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No Turning Back (Alvis Alendran&SHARPii)

Emerson saw her make the dash for the bathroom, and was glad to hear she made it. That was one mess he didn't want to clean, and didn't want her feeling guilty over. He was laying out a pretty simple fare, an egg cooked into a slice of toast. he woudl admit that he had no idea what to do with traumatized young women, but he acted as though he had a good idea of what was needed. Simple food that would be easy to keep down. He set the plate in front of her as she entered the small room.

"Morning." He said to her simply. He sat down on a stool, adn sighed. He usually seemed large, powerfull, adn able. Now he looked...tired. Worn, and run down. It seemed Emerson Card had his own burdens to bear in the mornings. "So I hope you're about done with running off on me? I'm getting older now, and it's hard to run you down these days." He smiled at this last, softening the statement. "You're knee deep in this. So it's only fair that you get to know what you're up against. And then you can disapear, and try and findsome peace. Or help me fight. It's all up to you."

Mallory was almost cried out. She wasn't sure she'd be able to properly cry again. It was like she was forgetting how. Harrison pulled his member out of her mouth, and came on her face. She flinched back, but knew better than to do anything more. She'd faced that punishment only once, and she wasn't eager to repeat it. Harrison sighed.
"Esther showed much more skill in this than you. A shame really." Harrison lamented. Mallory shrank back a litle. This rarely preceded anything good.
"Sir...what do you want me to do?" She half whispered.
"Be better. Perhaps I can call in a few associates of mine. Rent you out to them as a whore for a few nights." The look of mounting horror in her eyes was priceless.
"No sir! Please no! Just tell me what to doand I'll do it!" She half sobbed, finding that there were still a few tears left in her after all. harrison gestured to his member.
"Get back to work. And do it right this time." She leapt to task, taking him straight down her throat, doing all she could to suppress her gag reflex, but desperate to please. Harrison snapped his fingers. "Look at me while you work." He ordered. Her eyes shot up instantly, and he smiled. "Much better."
 
Her eyes looked up and she saw Card and she managed a weak smile. It felt odd to smile. There was nothing to smile about. Absolutely nothing. Life was a sick and cruel joke and well at least she found out now while she was still pretty young enough before she suffered through it and got older. No, if she had her way, she wouldn’t live it through. But she had unfinished business. The rest was up to the stars.

“Morning.” She said softly and she sat down beside him on a stool, slowly of course and braced her arms on the table, surrounding the plate he had pushed towards her. She gulped. She wasn’t hungry. Actually, no he stomach was growling. Esther just didn’t think she had it in her to stomach it. But Emerson Card had been so good to her, tended to her well, saved her from the shit last night for crying out loud. She’d eat what he made. “Thank you. For breakfast.” But she had so many things to thank him for. She picked up a fork, broke a piece, stabbed it and was about to take a bite when she looked down and knew something was missing. She put her fork down with the bite still impaled onto it and stood up gingerly and rounding to the fridge. She opened it like she lived here but Esther Martin was on a mission. A mission for syrup. And she found what she wanted. Good syrup too and then turned around, rummaged around for a spoon before sitting back down. She uncapped it and dipped the spoon in, before pouring it over her food, a real smile appearing on her face. She loved her syrup. She would always love syrup.

After putting one teaspoon, she stuck the spoon into her mouth and nearly melted, it was really, really, really, really good syrup and then capped the jar before pushing it back. She looked up to Card and smiled sheepishly before she removed the spoon from her mouth, picked up her fork again, dipped into the syrup and then ate. The look on her face was that of absolute and pure happiness. Okay, perhaps there was one thing to smile about; maple syrup. She ate her breakfast in peace, stomached it and was very much pleased with herself.

“So,” she began when they finished their breakfast, she standing to collect their plates and began to wash the dishes. It was only fair. She was acting like she hadn’t been through a lot last night. She was done pitying herself. It wouldn’t bring justice. “How am I so knee-deep in this? Because I had a file?” She snorted. “Okay, so I deserved everything that happened last night? Hilarious.” It was like she had a mental check list she just had to go through. Out loud. In front of him. Poor guy, subjected to this. She needed to vent. She deserved to. “What do I do? I want to bring this son of a bitch down and make him pay.” And she would. Esther Martin wasn’t running. No, she was fighting back.
 
Emerson found in interesting that he was seeing what he could only imagine were flickers of the woman she used to be before everything happened to her. From what he could see she'd been...vibrant. Energetic. But no longer, except in little glimpses. Gods, she was so much like her, it was painful to watch her at times. But watch her he did. he didn't have a choice now. He listened to her speech, letting her run on as long as she needed. Words didn't have muc effect on him these days. It took more than that get him offended or riled up. And Gods knew she could use the chance to get thigns off her chest. When she basically annouced she was declaring a war on Harrison Trenton, he could only nod, and smile. It had been a long time since he had someone who was actually invested in winning this little war of his.
"Then we'd best get down to brass tacks, and figure out exactly how we're going to bring him down." Emerson said calmly, leaning on the counter. It was time to bring this war around to an ending.

"This...this is what we've got right now." Emerson said, patting the file folder. "Abby thought that it was a record of everything that Trenton has done over the last few years. It wasn't, but it's still got enough in it to be able to put him away for a long time. If average people could read it." He blew out a sigh. "Damn things written in a weird ass code, spread the information all through it. Even if we can make sense out of it, we gotta assume that Trenton will be representing himself in court, adn he'd tear it apart in front of a jury. What we really need, is the original documents. The ones that aren't written in code. Those ones that any joe can read would put him in hot water that he'd not be abel to get out of."

Mallory was huddled in the corner of the room, not making eye contact. There were red marks along her back. She'd showed a certain lack of enthusiasm for the procedings last night, so he'd made sure she knew the error of her ways. She shivered, the room was several degrees colder than normal, but that was no barrier to a man who simply pulled up another layer of blanket to ward off the cold.
"Good night." He said calmly, alost sweetly. It was a sickening tone that would have made most people feel sick to their stomachs.
"S-s-sir?" She shivered out.
"Yes, what is it?"
"I'm c-c-cold. May I p-please have a blanket? Or shirt?" Harrison paused to contemplate that.
"What will you do for such?"
"Whatever you want me too..." She trailed off, fighting a faint, but racking sob. This was the thing Harrison was looking to erradicate, this lingering element of her old personality. It made her...unsuitable. But she had come a long way in only a few days. He threw the blankets back, and sat on the edge of the bed. He freed his member from his pants.
"Very well. Service me. And take it deep enough to choke on. Succeed, and you may share the bed and the warmth. Fail, and I take the temperature down another five degrees."
"If...if I don't risk it?" She stammered out.
"Then you have failed. Get to it. And make sure t keep your eyes on me." Mallory shuffled on her knees, adn bent to task. Harrison sighed, and leaned back. It was pleasant, almost glorius. But still not enough. He'd have to push her harder. The soudn of her half choking on him made him smile. All things in time.
 
Esther just stared at him for a moment before turning her head. She stared forward, her eyes drifting off over every detail of his fridge before a light bulb went off in her head. “Lloyd.” She said softly. “I can talk to Lloyd. He liked me. He was nice to me. And…I highly doubt he knows but he might be able to get into the files. They keep the files there at the firm, all of them, heavily guarded and under serious lock.” She said softly. She knew, she filed a lot of stuff away. But then the many questions came into her mind as to how she would do it. She couldn’t just walk around anywhere now. She was wanted. Sighing heavily, she looked back over to Emerson and managed a weak look. “Unless…I call Lloyd and ask him to be my lawyer.”
 
"If you can get Lloyd in our court, that'd be a big win for us. He might actually be able to pull away some of Harrison's resources. But as for Lloyd being your lawyer...there's two problems there." Emerson sighed as he spoke. "First, Trenton is still your lawyer. Only Lloyd can pull him, but not without a proven cause. If we had something to prove he was too involved in the case. Is there anything to prove that he was...too close to you to be a proper lawyer?" He winced as he asked, not wanting to drag this up, but not seeing any other way around it. They needed some kind of evidence to proceed with this plan. And they'd need it quickly.

Lloyd reclined in his chair. He'd just spoken to harrison that day, adn his old fiend seemed to be much more himself. Whatever he'd been doing seemed to have gotten teh stress out of his shoulders. Frankly, if she hadn't been a wanted criminal, he'd have sworn he was doing Esther to relieve his stress. But that was impossible. And besides, Harrison had not once ever cheated on someone and he'd not claimed to have given up on Esther. Frankly, if there was one lawyer i this city that could get Esther out of all this trouble, it would be Harry. With that thought, he leaned a little farther back, and took a drink. It was a good day so far. He only hoped that Esther was keeping herself safe in all of this.
 
Esther sighed almost a little dejectedly and she looked down, shaking her head. She could call Lloyd, maybe try to work something out with him but then even she had a feeling that he wouldn’t do anything. Not when it came to her and his good friend, pupil and partner in the firm. No, he probably wouldn’t betray Harrison like that. He was probably a loyal one. Harrison…not so much.

Looking at Emerson though, she bit her lower lip, thinking back to the videos. Then she just thought back to Harrison. His touch, his hands, his hair, his scent, his kiss, his…everything. Her eyes closed and she felt her lip tremble. Why? Why? Why? She wanted to ask so many questions, get so many answers but that was left impossible. Because if she were to, if she were to find Harrison right now, it probably wouldn’t end well for her. Honestly, Esther didn’t know what might happen if she were to be face to face with him right now, in the flesh. She just…didn’t know at all. She didn’t trust herself. Because even though he had all this happen to her, there was still that allure, that feeling, that emotion…

Recovering, she tilted her head to regard Card and nodded her head. “There are videos.” She whispered. “Well, there were. Unless I can bring them up from a different computer. You wouldn’t happen to know a skilled hacker, would you?” The tone of her voice was more than a touch sarcastic. "I might have...destroyed--wait, wouldn't Lloyd be able to prove that Harrison is unfit to be my lawyer? He knows. He knows that Harrison and I had--have--had a thing?" She asked. "Couldn't he be like a...what's the legal term? Witness or something along those lines?" This is why she was a teacher! Not a legal anything.
 
Emerson shook his head.
"Lloyd has nothing but hearsay. He only knows because you told him. Can't prove it. Harrison would run circles aroudn him in the firm. Lloyd seems a good man, but a middling lawyer at best. Harrison would eat him alive if he tried to push something like this. 'specially when he points out to the board that you're a high profile case now, and how they need the best man on the job." Emerson sounded bitter as he explained. It was another roadblock, and being used to them didn't make you like them. Not at all. It made you just a little more annoyed, a little more hardened to it all. And whlie he hated that side of him, he'd need it right now. Harrison Trenton was one of the most intelligent, and ruthless men he'd ever seen. Esther was living proof of that. Barely living proof. And they were going to have to be every bit as ruthless if they wanted to win. "I know a guy who might still help us. Be easier if we actually had one of the drives that this stuff was on. Make our jobs a lot easier." He paused. "Might be time to talk to a friend of mine. Maybe we get lucky."

Harrison opened his eyes. It was stil early. he saw mallory curled up against him, and she stirred. She looked up at him, and this time there wasn't fear in her eyes.
"Sir? Is everything all right?" She asked lazily.
"What is your name? Just answer me. Don't worry about the question, just answer it please." He told her witha faint edge of sleep in his voice.
"M...Esther? My name is Esther." She answered.
"Good girl. Sleep now. There's a reward for you when we get up." She smiled, adn snuggled into him, letting herself drift away.
 
Her eyebrow rose as he mentioned a friend. Honestly, if she was going to meet another friend of anyone’s, she wanted a full background information. To say she trusted no one—she was hardly trusting Emerson right now, to be perfectly honest—was definitely an understatement. Still though, she didn’t let her newfound paranoia and insecurities come in the way and simply turned a little bit on the stool to face him. “And who might this friend be?” She was tempted to actually ask if she could see full report and background check on said friend of his but she refrained, though it took all she had not to be that rude.

Still though, something about the drives got to her and her head tilted. This of course thinking that nothing at all happened to Mallory and she was probably home safe or even just at her job without any idea whatsoever. She swallowed hard and looked at him. “I can get a drive. I have an in.” She said softly. Mallory would help her. They were good friends, Esther often helped her out with work when…before all this happened. Mallory would help her. She knew it. She was confident about it. “I can get someone to get a drive for me and then we’re golden.” She knew it couldn’t just be any drive. The drive, a main drive, of the entire system, of sorts.
 
"Friend of mine is a good person. A detective, one of the few honest ones in the city. Won't be looking to set up a meeting with her or anything, that's too risky for everyone. But I might be able to get her to find something we can use. If you've got an engle to work on, that's good. We can both try our approaches, see what shakes out, and try and get it to all work out." Emerson was starting to smile faintly. Esther having an approach was good, it gave them options to pursue. And options were always a good thing. He pulled out a phone, and set it in front of her. It was a cheap, disposable phone, but that was the virtue of it. Disposable, 'burner' phones as the police called them were nearly impossible to trace. Emerson usually had three or four on him at any given time. He pulled out one his own, and dialled.

The phone in the precinct rang, and the detective lifted the reciever.
"This is Detective Lys. How can I help you?" They asked.
"Detective. How's thing?" Emerson asked. The detective froze.
"You shouldn't be calling me. You're wanted for a lot of things right now."
"Yeah, I know. But we both know it's bullshit. So let's get this over with eh? I need something from you."
"Sorry, I'm not in a habit of doing thigns like that."
"Don't need a habit. Just a favour. Nothing critical to you. But a favour."
"Okay, what is it you need?"

Harrison stretched, adn looked outside. He could still here the heavy breathing from behind him, and turned to see Mallory just starting to get her wind back. She was naked and sheathed in sweat, starting to drag herself across the bed.
"Enjoy your reward?" He asked her. She nodded eagerly.
"Yes sir. May I have more?"
"No, not now. Rewards are earned, not just given. Fetch me somethig to eat. If it pleases me, I may find it in me to offer you some reward." Mallory nodded, and hesitated at the door. She turned to look at Harrison with a wide eyed nervousness. "Yes, you may take a robe." He amended. She took a housecoat, and wrapped herself in it before heading out. Harrison turned back to his window. It had been...pleasant. Enjoyable, certainly. But it hadn't scratched the itch that he had. His own private addiction named Esther Martin. Now that Mallory was cracking down the middle, and beginning to accept the reshaping of her personality, she was becoming a bit mroe like what he wanted. But it still wasn't the same.
 
Esther nodded her head and listened to him. “Sounds like a plan then. I’ll go make a call.” But she wondered how. Her stuff was in her apartment if it was still her apartment and she couldn’t exactly go there. But as if Emerson could read her mind, he provided a phone for her and she actually and genuinely smiled. It wasn’t a big beaming bright smile. It was just a smile that took no effort to smile and made her cold insides warm just a little bit. At this point, any kind gesture after the million unkind gestures that had been fed to her—forcibly too, if I might add—was like a ray of warm light. It was…nice. Kindness still existed. Just a fraction compared to the unkindness of the world. She saw enough of it.

“Thank you.” She mouthed before taking it and standing gingerly. She made her way out of the room so give him privacy while he was on the phone and she dialed Mallory’s number.

It rang twice before an uncertain answer. “Hello?” She sounded slightly out of breath.
“Hey, Mallory.” Esther spoke quietly. There was a sharp intake of breath on the other line and then a very quietly-spoken response. “Esther?” She whispered.
“Yeah.” Esther for some reason whispered as well. This entire conversation was a secret after all.
“W-Where are you?”
“I can’t say Mal. I need a favor though.”
“Anything.” She spoke with zero hesitation.
“I need you to nag a hard drive from the main server and get it to me. I’ll meet you somewhere. I just need you to do that for me.”
“Done.”
“You’re a lifesaver Mal.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Esther sighed a little bit. “I will be.” She paused. “What about you?”
“I’m okay.”
“You were okay last night, right?”
“Y-Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I just wanted to make sure. I’ll let you go. When should I meet you?”
“Can you come…tonight? I’ll be able to have it for you.”
“Yeah, definitely. What’s the address?”
Mallory gave her the address to the estate but Esther didn’t think anything of it because she didn’t even know. They got off the phone. Esther pocketed hers and she walked back to where Emerson sat. “It’s all good now.” She said softly. “I’ll get that hard drive and things will be squared away.”

She wondered though if she had to be confined to this place. “If I wanted to go out, could I? I have to go tonight. I have an address. But I wanted to go to another place before I go there. Please? It’s urgent.”
 
Emerson hung up his phone, and sighed. It was arranged. He could get one of the drives from teh computer that Etsher had tossed out of the window. That would give them the grounds that they needed to get Harrison pulled off of Esther's case. He listened to her talk about leaving, adn sighed.
"Well, yer not a prisoner. Don't want you to think that. And I'd like to sya I'm coming with you, but something tells me you want a bit of space. So..." Emerson crouched, adn lifted his pant leg. A moment later he stood back up, and handed Esther a small bundle. It was a snub nosed revolver, not big, "...take this with you. It's a .38, but the short barrel means they've gotta be close. You get in a tight spot, this should get you out of it in a hurry. Just be careful, and I hope like hell you don't need it." He also pulled out a money clip, and tossed it onto the table. "There's a few hundred there, in case you need to take a cab, or anything like that. Just..." he looked away a oment before meeting her gaze again. "...be damned careful out there girl."

Mallory was back in the bedroom. Harrison cocked an eyebrow.
"I do not see food. Why are you back here?" He asked her, beginning to advance on her. To her credit, Mallory managed to hold her ground.
"I have somehting better." She managed.
"Such as?"
"Esther Martin." Harrison froze, his fist starting to clench as he thought about striking her for mentioning the name. "She called me. She wants to meet me. And I told her to go to your estate. But she doesn't know it's yours." Malory was wilting as she spoke, knowing that she was sconds away from a beating. Harriosn smiled at her, and his hand opened.
"When?"
"Tonight."
"You have earned a reward, most certainly. What would you like?" Mallory brought her hands to the band of his sleep pants, adn pulled them down, before pulling him towards the bed. "If you insist..."
 
Esther was trying to contain her glee. Not that she didn’t like spending time with Emerson. She did and he was so helpful but she couldn’t get anything done if she was cooped up in here. So what if she had a BOLO out with her name on it? She had to get things done, had to get to the bottom of all this shit and before she got the drive from Mallory tonight, she needed to see someone else. Despite just being a runner, Esther knew ways into the firm without being detected. She had to. She wanted to slip back in undetected all the time from Bree Larkin.

“Thank you.” Her eyes widened at the gun and she nodded before taking it, hesitantly. She knew how to work it. It was pretty straight forward. She knew how to work a gun. Of course she did. It would be uncommon for a Martin not to. Sighing heavily, she pushed it into the back of her jeans and then pulled her shirt and sweatshirt over it to keep it hidden. Taking the money, she shoved it into the big pocket of her sweatshirt and then pulled her hoodie up. “Thank you Mr. Card. It’s been a pleasure.” She moved to him and kissed his cheek and then turned, opening the front door and left, just like that. Even she didn’t know what might happen tonight. It was just better to be safe than sorry.

About an hour or so later, she was standing outside a very particular office in which not many seemed to go in and out of a lot but she new he was in there. With a steadied breath, she pulled her hood down to reveal her dark hair, her messy mop of her hair which she couldn’t be bothered with and then she opened the door and walked in. Shutting the door behind her, she leaned back and stared him right down. “Hi Lloyd.”
 
Lloyd sighed, and looked up. His eyes shot open, and he dropped his cup. He didn't seeem to notice it.
"Esther? Esther! What are you...how did...Esther!" he stammered out ,pointing at her. He seeedm to take a few seconds to get himself calm enough to be rational. "Okay. Esther. Wat the hell is going on?! Last time I saw you, we had a few drinks, the next time I hear about you you're wanted for drug dealing and possession, prostitution, and are being linked into two more murders! What the hell?!" he ahlf exploded. But one thing he hadn't done, was accuse her of actually doing these things. "Harrison is still taking the case, ad it's looking like you might need someone like his to get you out of all this!" He took a step towards her. His hadns were open, not doing anything that might be construed as threatening.

"God damn it boss, that last chick you sent us after, she was a real winner!" Darien announced, looking at Harrison. The rest of the gang was in the next room, laughing over the whiskey that Harrison had served. Harriosn withheld the urge to punch Darien.
"I had thought so." He answered noncommittally. "But Darien, why are you not enjoying your success witht he rest of your crew?"
"Sorry boss, I'm sure you've got some absolute top end stuff in there, but I uh, don't drink. I don't really like who I am when I'm drunk." Harrison wondered at the hypocrisy in this man. He was a murderer, a rapist, and a thief, and he didn't like himself when drunk? Harrison honestly doubted he could be any worse of a human being.
"That is unfortunate Darien." A loud thump came from the next room, and Darien stepped to the door to open it. Dale fell inside, stone dead. Darien gaped, adn turned to see Harrison holding a small pistol on him. The gun made a popping sound. Darien staggered a moment, adn looked down to see a red spot growing in size. "If you had been a drinker, you could have died painlessly with your friends." The gun went off twice more, staggering Darien into the wall, where he dropped to the floor.
"Sir...why?" Darien gasped out.
"Esther Martin was mine. Letting you and your brutes have her...it should not have been done. So I am correcting the mistake as best I can. Goodbye Darien. You did always disgust me." The smal revolver went off five more times, pumping the small bullets into Darien's body until one struck him in the head, ending him. harrison sighed, adn rang a bell. A few men came into the room, servants at his estate. "There seems to be some trash on the floor. Do clear it up for me?" The men nodded, and set to work. it wasn't the first time someone had needed to be disposed of on the estate.
 
Esther stepped back, her back to the door with his initial outburst and reaction and she swallowed hard. Her eyes closed and she took in full reign of everything he was basically hammering out at her. Question after question after question. Explosion after another and her head tilted back hard on the door, hitting it lightly. She took in a deep breath and then exhaled, but it came out shakily. Her eyes opened and she blinked them a few times before lowering her gaze to look at him. She swallowed down the lump that always seemed to want to keep forming in her throat but she didn’t move. She noticed Lloyd had stepped towards her but she didn’t react. She was just…there. “You guys are friends. Surely you know of Harrison Trenton’s devious ways.” She smiled but it wasn’t that true genuine smile. It was that kind of smile that held no light in her eyes. One could just see the pain. It was one of those smiles.

“But then what am I to expect? If I told you what he did, the things he did to me, the things he had done, everything to cover up what? His own mistakes? His own selfish impulses out of no other reason than to gain power so he did what it took?!” She snapped. “You won’t believe me Lloyd. I get that now. I thought maybe for a second, maybe for just one second, you would actually believe me. But you won’t will you? Because you’d rather believe him!” So perhaps she might have lost her mind. Well she kind of had every reason to. “Everyone believes him! I believed him. He’s so charming, he’s so suave, he has such a way with words—“ Her voice broke and she was breathing hard through her nose, turning to avoid his gaze. “I thought wrong.” She spoke, it being clear the way she spoke that she was trying hard to hold onto any vestige of self control she had any vestige of something to not break the tiny little pieces that was left of her into sand.
 
Lloyd held up his hands. He made a step back.
"Okay okay, In the light of all of this, I think we both need to back up a step. So. Harrison is a smooth little shit, which is why he's a good lawyer, and why I recruited him. Now. I know he's up to some things that aren't...properly legal. But I'm going to need to know exactly what happened before I do anything. So. Have a seat. Tell me what's happened. And we can go from there, okay?" He went back to his seat, and wavd for Esther to take the other. He looked open, curious, and willing to listen. Esther told him the tale, all of it, from start to fnish, from when she was taken, to what was done to her, to all of the things that had come up since, and the file that connected Harrison to the whole sordid incident. Lloyd kept calm until she was done. Then he sank his face into his hands.

When he looked up at her, he looked...ragged. Old. Like the eternally young mindset that had never made him seem a day over thirty had been drained away from him. Now he was just a man in his mid forties, or even older.
"Gods damn it. Esther if even...a tenth of what you've said is true...and I don't think you'd be lying to me about this... then Harrison is out of control. I can get him off your case, turn the whole damned firm on it's head if I have to. If I can get something to really tie him down, it'll force him off the case. And then...I'll do what I can. You can stay here, it's safe here. Harrison isn't coming in for a few days while we fix his office. And we can make sure you're kept out of sihgt. Hell, you can hole up in the lounge! And when we've got enough...we can move."
 
Esther looked to him, her eyes shining and glossy with unshed tears. Like she had any more to let fall but believe it or not, she did. She probably could cry for the rest of her life because it all stung so much. It all still hurt incredibly and what hurt the most even more than anything else was she believed it. She believed it all and that had to be the worst thing ever. She felt like a fool and it only proved just how much more younger she was than all of them. To be caught up in his web of lies and proving that she was a naïve twenty-five year old woman, almost twenty-six. She believed it. Because she liked to believe the best in people. No more.

With a heavy but shaky sigh, she sat down almost hesitantly, as if unsure but nonetheless sat down. She looked to Lloyd and bit her lower lip, trembling. She opened her mouth and it all came out. Every last explanation, skipping over some obvious details because she herself couldn’t yet speak them, couldn’t validate them by saying them and couldn’t come to terms with it. She knew it happened. But she wanted to stay in denial just a little bit longer.

When the tale was out with and spoken, her eyes traveled over to Lloyd and she saw how much it took a toll on him that she saw his true age. She looked down, her hands fidgeting together in her lap and she nodded her head. Except she couldn’t stay here. She couldn’t stay in the lounge. She couldn’t stay in one place for too long because it was far too dangerous to do so, especially while her name was still not cleared for all the false charges, tainting it. “I can’t stay here Lloyd. I thank you for believing me, even more for helping me but I have to do things. I have to meet Mallory and I have to get this in my own hands. There’s nothing left of me or nothing left for me to do but this. I don’t care what happens. He just can’t get away with it.” If ever it was clear her will to live had drained last night, now was stronger than ever, a time when she herself understood as well.

Standing, she rubbed her sweaty palms on her jeans and looked at him. “I have to go.”
 
"and I can help you do this Esther! But if you leave, and go back out there... and te police find you, I'm not sure how much I can do to help you then. They'll lock you up, and if Harrison is pulling as many strings as you think, he'll make you disappear from there. If he's going down, you need to stay safe." Lloyd half pleaded with her. He'd already made up his own mind about where he was going as soon as this meeting was over. There was someone he needed to talk to as well, adn it was going to be a rather unpleasant conversation. "But I can't stop you either. So just...be careful? And stay out of sight as much as you can." Lloyd walked her out of the building, adn made his way to his car. He got in, adn drove hard and fast, not caring one jot about the speed limit. he knew where harrison was going to be. Whenever things got dicey, he was known to retreat out to the estate he'd built.

Ermerson smiled as he reached under the mailbox, and found the paper wrapped package. He pulled it off, and looked within. It was a hard drive all right, and in an anti-static bag as well to make sure that it was preserved. it was harrison's drive, and if he was lucky, there'd be more than just a video of him and Esther. This could be exactly what he needed to beat this man. He started back towards his car, wanting to reach the safe house before Esther did.

Lloyd stormed into the house, fists clenched.
"Harrison! Where are you?!" he rorared.
"Over here Lloyd. No need to shout." Harrison replied. Teh man was looking out the back window, at some people moving around in his back yard.
"We need to talk. Now. I've just heard some pretty serious allegation against you, adn I need to know if it's true or not!"
"You spoke to Esther then?" Lloyd stopped short, his tirade falling short in the face of the wall of calm that Harrison threw up.
"Then...?"
"Oh Lloyd. You've known for a long time that I was involved in unsavory things."
"Rape?! Murder?! What else do I not know about?!?"
"Drugs, prostitution, smuggling, illegal trade in technology, a few arms deals, human traficking, bribery, corruption, fraud...oh, and unethical buisness practices, since I was having sex with Esther on the side." The casual nature in which Harrison rattled off his rap sheet, the tome of misdeeds that he'd performed, Lloyd was struck dumb a moment. He blinked, and stepped forward to stand beside Harrison.

"And you used my company for all of this?" He asked quietly.
"Oh, of course not! I used the shipping interest that I set up years ago for most of it. The law firm only handled most of the corruption. It was terribly helpful to have most of the police in my pocket. And don't look so indignant about the firm. It was the company that you were given, but never wanted. It's why you brought me in, to run things well, and make it into a powerhouse that is nearly unrivaled. And I have done that over and again."
"At what cost?!"
"None that is unpaid. I have done what is needed, every step of the way Lloyd. Now, was there anything else?"
"Yeah. You're fired."
"Oh, come now Lloyd, would I have told you what was happening if there was the slightest chance of you getting to do that to me? Come, give me some credit." Lloyd just stared, until realization crept into his mind.
"You own the board. Don't you?"
"Enough to possess controlling interest in the company. You'll not be forcing me out of anything old firend." Lloyd stared outside, seeing all of the activity in the yard.
"And what are they doing out there?"
"Bury the bodies of the men who hurt Esther." Lloyd stared until he heard someone coming into the room.

He whirled to see Mallory enter the room, a little hesitant. Lloyd widened his eyes in a state of near panic until Mallory spoke.
"Did you call me? I thought I heard my name." She asked faintly. Harrison smiled, and shook his head.
"No, it's all right. Head downstairs, I'll be along in a few minutes." She nodded, and smiled at Lloyd, before leaving. Lloyd turned slowly to Harrison.
"That was mallory from the office. And the only name we've mentioned besides ours is... oh Jesus Christ Harrison! What have you done?!"
"Nothing of consequence."
"Oh I cannot be here. I.." Lloyd fled, also realizing that Estehr was coming to meet Mallory. And likely to this very address. He got into his car, and peeled out. There were three ways to get to teh estate, so he had to gamlbe that she was cmoing here right now He picked one and drove. he only hoped that he'd found the right one.

He didn't.
 
Esther watched him go. Everything he said, not to offend him if she ever told him this, if she ever spoke to him again, kind of went through one ear and out the other. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to listen but her mind was already made up and once her mind was made up, especially now, there was little to do to change it. So once he had gotten into his car and left, she stayed standing on the sidewalk, listening as the normal traffic of cars passed by. Her had tilted and she raised her chin to the heavens, her eyes closed and her hands shoved into the big pocket of the hoodie she wore. She needed strength. She needed the strength of every Martin that had passed.

Then her right hand came out of her pocket, raised up in the air and she flagged down a taxi. Once it stopped, she got in and handed him the piece of paper with the address where she was going to meet Mallory and sat back. It was a long ride. Well it felt long.
When the cab arrived, it was just twenty minutes after Lloyd had left and she didn’t pass him along the way in the cab. No, the way the driver went was the longest route. Figures. He wanted money. Well he could damn well have it.

Stepping out, she took the money clip from her back pocket and took out what was needed, putting ten dollars more in it for him before thanking him. She offered a small smile and he just drove away. Turning, she stood before the large estate and her jaw dropped. Oy. Swallowing hard, and completely obliviously, she walked up the long path until climbing the steps of the front door. She didn’t know Mallory had digs like this. Esther didn’t know anything. Just as she was about to knock, something, instinct, told her not to. She took her hand back and stepped back, turning and she quickly went behind a hedge. There, she took her phone out and dialed Mallory’s number. She picked up after the third ring.

“Esther?” She whispered.
“Yeah, I’m here.”
”Come over to the side. I’ll open the door for you.”
Esther kept her on the line and went to the side. “I’m there.”
Mallory took a moment but soon the lock clicked and the door swung open. Esther ended the phone and she went inside with her before the door shut and locked it.
“Where is it?” She asked and Mallory stepped to her. “There.” She pointed up to a flight of stairs, the door rigged. “Come on.”
Mallory led her to the stairs and motioned for Esther to go up. She did and when she got to the door, her hand came to the door knob and she turned, pushing the door open. Light flooded her vision and she winced slightly before the piercing sound of an alarm went off.
 
Mallory froze, getting a distinct deer in headlights look on her face.
"Oh no...nonono..." she panicked, and bolted, charging into the estate heedlessly, chanting no over and over again. Something had clearly spooked her, and severely. The door that led outside made a loud clack as a lock bar came into place, making it impossible to open. The alarm rose adn fell, making ti a steady, droning sound that assaulted the ears, adn the lights situated in a few places flashed on and off, making it hard to get proepr bearings if you didnt know how to move around. Mallory could still be heard in the distance, seeming to have found a place to cower.

Emerson Card looked at his watch. Esther should have made it to the meeting by now. he wished she'd let him come along as a backup. If she got in over her head, she might end up dead, or worse. And that was not something that he wasnted on his conscience. But there is was. He couldn't make her choices for her. No more than he could have for his own daughter. When she'd started at the shipping company, he'd been leery. And when harrison had forced himself on her... the investigation was too dear t him. And now he might have sometihng that he can use. But he didn't want it to be purchased with Esther's life.
 
Esther groaned and her hands came to her ears, a finger going in each to drown the noise out. She stepped up the last stair and pushed the door open further to walk in. The lights were driving her mad, it was dizzying. She opened her ears, the sound still incredibly bothersome but used her hands now as shields against the flashing offensive lights. “Mallory?” She knew the girl went off somewhere, she could still hear her and so she went to find her.

She was in the house now, the big estate and assumingly so, she had come up either from the basement or the garage. She couldn’t really tell. But now she was going around, looking for Mallory and also some sort of fuse box to maybe turn the damn noise down. “Mallory, where did you go?” Esther called out loudly, nearly bumping into a pillar when it went dark for a second before the lights flashed back on. What in the hell kind of alarm system was this? The kind that was built to make a person go deaf and blind at the same time? “Mother fucker…” She grumbled.
 
As suddenly as the alarm had come on, it went silent. The lights lowered to a lower light, one that was very similar to the lounge. Or Harrison's apartment. A hand moved away from the panel that controlled the alarm.
"Noisy thing, isn't it? Works wonders though on people determined to enter my estate without my knowledge. Hello Esther. I've been expecting you." Harrison said idly, before turning to face her directly. Still adorned in his usual level of suit, he took a step forward, cocking his head. His face dropped somewhat after seeing her. "My Gods, what did they do to you? What did they take from you?" He seemed to more be just speaking, not like he actually thought she might answer the questions.

He had wondered what it might be like to have Esther standing before him again. Would he disdain her? Knwoing what had been done to her, would that taint her in his eyes? Would seeing her like this, and comparing her to what he had forged in Mallory. Would that be enough to break open his addiction to Esther? It was why he'd been pleased that Mallory arranged this meeting. And now that she was here, what did he feel?

Desire.
 
Esther blinked her eyes. She thought that maybe her ears had gotten so accustomed to the alarm that she didn’t hear it anymore. But the lights were no longer flashing, and that’s when it dawned on her. Her eyes widened and she turned around suddenly, her gaze dropping on Harrison. Fuck me… she thought to herself. Why did he have to be so gorgeous? And knowing what she knew of him now, knowing what he had done to her and what he allowed to happen to her, it made her see him in a different light of course but at the same time, the feelings she had for him were still ever present. Yes, she had feelings for this monster, she couldn’t deny it and she hated herself for it.

Swallowing hard, she kept her hands down at her sides, they clenching into fists and she kept her gaze glued to his. They sounded rhetorical but she answered them anyways. “You should know. It’s your fault. You did it. You did…all of this.” Her eyes averted his gaze as she said the last sentence, her lip trembling. Oh no, they were actually facing each other and it was going to be different than she thought. She always thought that when it actually came to seeing him in person, it’d be so easy to just point a gun at him and pull the trigger. But now it came down to it and here she was. It wasn’t as easy as one, two, three. She couldn’t just grab her gun right now and shoot him. No, she couldn’t.

Her hands came up to run through her hair and she sniffled deeply before dropping her hands and looked at him again. This time she laughed but it was a choked laugh, as if disguising the sob she choked back. “Why?” She asked it and it came from her mouth before she could stop it or not ask it. “Why would you do it? What did I do? I didn’t deserver it! I did nothing! You should have just…” She shook her head and her hand came up and wiped her eyes. “Talked to me. Or did you have so little faith in me that you couldn’t talk, you just acted?”
 
"Faith in you? Esther we'd known each other for three days. And you had acquired information that was...problematic to say the least. When you foudn it you could have called me, told me it was there, talked to me. But you...gave it away, into the hands of someone that has been after me for years. I reacted. Quickly. But...that doesn't mean I wanted any of that. Not for you Esther. Never for you." He was moving closer to her. That flame was still smoldering, and he had none of his normal shields up on his face. He was wide open, and the layers of raw, ragged grief at what he had wrought were on his face. He was close to her, maybe three paces, but he was slowing, not wanting to spook her away, cause a sudden knee jerk reaction.

"All of those men...they're dead. I...took care of them myself, not five hours ago." He said quietly, his hand starting to come up towards her, a slight tremor i it, like he was afraid to make contact, if he did, he just wasn't sure if she'd shove him awy, or shatter, and he'd find that she'd never really been here at all.
 
“That gives you no right to send a bunch of men after me to rape me!” She didn’t scream but man did she raise her voice in a way she probably hadn’t had to since she and Chad had their pretty gruesome break up. Because around Harrison, she couldn’t think straight, always turned to putty just from being near him and couldn’t be what she wanted to be. She always swooned and right now, seeing the grief and regret on his face, she was trying with all her might not to swoon. But he kept nearing her, getting closer to her and it was becoming difficult.

Her body trembled seeing how the distance between them started to grow smaller and smaller until he was right there. Her head turned when she saw his hand try to come up, to touch her, slap her, hit her, she had no idea. The tears that were in her eyes started to fall and she swallowed hard, taking in deep breaths through her nose to try and calm herself but it seemed to no avail. Her lower lip trip trembled and she bit down on it hard to maybe qualm the sadness but she couldn’t. They just kept falling. “It’s no excuse.” She almost whispered, her voice a little hoarse. “So you knew me for three days, you make it seem like nothing happened between us. That is was just primal instinct and need on both our parts. It wasn’t like that for me.” Then her head turned and her eyes fixed on his. “But maybe it was for you.” It was like everything else he said didn't make up for it. Even if it should. It didn't. Because all she cared about...

What did she care about? Why was she still there? She should have bolted when he came near her. She should have gotten out of there while she still had the chance. And yet, she couldn't.
 
"Three days Esther. And they felt like a lifetime for me. You kept giving me ways out. Constantly it felt like you were giving me the chance to leave you, it was always like you were waiting for me to go, bracing yourself. That you were as deep in as..." Harrison said with an edge to his voice, and edge that said he might be close to a breaking point himself. The tears in her eyes...he'd seen that on women before, adn it normall made him more arroused, but not this time. Not on her. Esther's tears weren't normal. They weren't for his amusement. They were the indictment that what he'd done wasn't just to a nameless, unimportant person. They were to Esther, and that meant something. She meant something to him. She had then, and she did now. He couldn't shake that feeling. His hand moved in, very gently touching her hair, sliding down her face, before cupping her cheek, a gesture he'd made with her a dozen times before at least. One that spoke of affection, and a desire to make sure she knew how he felt. He let himself drift a little closer, now only a bare handspan apart. He could feel her shaking, feel the rage, teh hurt, everything just pouring off of her. This was not the Esther he knew, there was nothing guarded about her now. She was raw, open, adn it was his fault that she'd been forced into that state. He leaned down a little, bringing his face close to hers.

Wha he was doing, it was stupid. He should have simply shot her a half dozen times, left her die, adn buried her in the back with the other bodies. But here, now, with her so close to him, he just couldn't. Vulnerable as she was, he still found that the addiction he had with her was real, it was present, and it was ever so tempting to sweep her up and sate himself with her again. But he shouldn't. But then, he never should have. Even the first night with her, if he was being honest, had been a mistake. Another mistake followed that, adn made a long trail of them. But after making so many mistakes... what was one more? He leaned forward, and very faintly, gently touched his lips to hers.
 
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