Ferret rolled his eyes as he pressed the call button. His Renegade contact was a bit more conversational than he’d really care for, but sacrifices must be made. It was time. He played with the cord that hung around his neck as he waited for the other line to answer.
“Ferret! Hey man, how’s it going?”
“Havoc. I need you to put me in touch with your black market guy. I’ve been trying to get a hold of him, I have some cargo for him.”
“Yeah and you probably won’t be able to get him for a few days, he’s off the grid right now. I didn’t think he had any missions with you coming up, usually he’d let me know before he took off-”
“Ok, when is he supposed to get back?”
“Not sure. He’s outta town. I could come get it from you?”
“No, no it needs to be him, it needs to be face-to-face, and it needs to be soon.”
“I can’t tell ya when he’ll be back buddy.”
Ferret let out an angry groan.
“Oh, wait! I could get you in touch with his older brother though!”
Ferret frowned. “Didn’t know he had one.”
“Well, adopted. Sorta. It’s kinda complicated, but-”
“Ya know what, Havoc? I don’t really care that much. I’ll text you the info, just make sure he gets there, ok?”
“Oh, tell him to bring his own car, too.”
Castor climbed out of his car, then peered into the alley. This whole thing seemed really shady to him, but Jimmy swore by this guy, and Adair had worked with him before. He frowned as he stepped into the alley. Neither Jimmy or Adair had ever met this guy though. He worked in the shadows, got the supplies, and then dumped them in a secure location for someone to pick up later.
“Hey.” He called, drawing the attention of the man leaning against the building wall. “You here for Mayhem?”
“Yeah. I’m Ferret.” The man straightened up, and Castor raised an eyebrow. He didn’t think the other man had too much on him in the way of height, maybe five inches, but he still seemed to tower over him. “You Mayhem?”
Castor shrugged. “Next best thing. You have some supplies?”
The smuggler shook his head. “I said cargo, not supplies.”
“Alright. I have the car around there, I’ll help you load it up.”
“I needed to keep...the cargo safe until I was sure I had the right person.”
“But you were expecting my brother?”
Ferret smiled. “Good. So you at least have the right information.”
“Unfortunately, no.” He reached up and scratched the back of his neck. The motion freed a necklace from under his t-shirt, catching Castor’s attention.
His eyes went wide as he recognized it. It was a silver ring, hung from a leather cord with a simple knot holding it in place. He’d only ever seen one like it in his whole life. And it had been around his brother’s neck everyday for as long as he could remember. Every day until Avanda had left for her last mission, that was.
Ferret was still talking, but Castor wasn't listening. He threw himself at him, taking the advantage of height away from him by pushing him hard, then pinning him against the wall with his forearm. The other hand gripped the necklace.
“Where did you get this?” He demanded, his voice hard, “What have you done to her? Where is she?”
The smuggler blinked gasping a little as Castor leaned in, pressing his arm harder against the Ferret’s windpipe.
Castor applied more pressure. “That’s not what I asked, is it?” He hissed, “Where. Is. She?”
Ferret frowned, clawing at Castor’s arm. “S-safe….”
“Where?” Castor shouted, “Where is she? Tell me, or I’ll kill you and find her myself!”
“Damn right you will.” Castor stepped back, pulling Ferret away from the wall by his leather jacket before shoving him to the ground.
Ferret coughed, one hand massaging his throat and the other held off to ward off any further attacks as he caught his breath.
“She’s safe!” he repeated, “She’s the damn cargo, ok?”
Castor said nothing, watching as Ferret pulled himself to his feet.
“She’s the cargo. She’s at my house. She’s safe. I came to get you so that she can go home.”
Castor didn't say anything the whole ride. Ferret gave him directions to his home. It was out of the city...way out of the city. His directions continued without interruption until they had passed the city limits. And then he started to tell Castor everything.
How she had been taken by a bounty hunter who'd had every intention of delivering her back into the hands of the Regiment, but not before he'd had his fun with her. How the assassin's apprentice had grown fond of Avanda and had reached out to get her away-to safety.
"I don't know what he did to her." He said, his voice quiet, "I never knew her before, but she was so...broken. She was half starved, she's only just starting to put on a bit of weight. She hardly ever slept, and when she did it was only an hour or so before she'd wake up screaming."
Castor said nothing. He just gripped the steering wheel tighter and clenched his jaw, trying to push back the tears.
They parked in front of a small house, Castor thought it wouldn't have more than maybe two bedrooms. Ferret waved for Castor to wait outside while he pulled the door open. "Maggie?" He waited half a beat, and when there was no answer, he gestured to the large shop across the junkyard. "She must be in the garage then. Follow me." He started off again, Castor not far behind. "Maggie? You out here?"
"Yeah, I'm working on the ATV!"
Castor practically sprinted to the open door when he heard her voice. Once he reached the door, he stopped, staring at her. Her hair was pulled back into a fraying bun, a dark colored flannel tied around her waist. And she was elbow deep in engine grease, a partially dissasembled four-wheeler in front of her. She frowned a little as she worked. A face that he'd seen her make many times while fixing bandages. His mouth hung open a little amd he felt as though all of the air had been sucked from his chest as she hummed a little to the classic rock that came from a radio not far away.
Her head came up and she smiled a little at him. And then her face fell a little.
"Cas?" She dropped the wrench with a clatter, taking half a step forward. Castor didn't say anything else.
Avanda let out a sob and burst forward, flinging her arms around him. She sobbed loudly, her legs buckling a little as she clung to him.
"Hey, it's ok...I've got you." Castor blinked, a few tears rolling down his face. "I've got you, Av."
