Pacific Station Vigilante (Book 1): The Negative Man (City of Chaos) (4 page)

I gave the teller the checks to deposit.  She said it’d take a few minutes, so while we were waiting I opened up with some small talk.  “Crazy past few days huh?”

Her green eyes lowered.  “Mm hmm, I told everyone that Negative Man guy, he’d be back I told them.”

I looked at her name tag and it said Marge Osteen.  “Personally, I wish you would’ve been wrong Marge.  Between that and all the happenings with The Aces, the city’s in bad shape again.”

“You don’t know the half of it.  Over the past few weeks our alarm keeps going off at random times.  Sometimes during the day, sometimes late at night.  I’m telling you right now it’s the work of The Negative Man.  He controls that sorta shit, mm hmm.”  She added the last part with a bit of over-the-top sass.  I liked Marge.

I looked back and Heather was sitting on one of the comfortable chairs the bank lobby offers.  She seemed content to mess around on social media until the deed was done.  Turning back to Marge, “Is anything missing?”

She leaned in and lowered her voice.  “No, that’s the weird part.  I told my manager I think it’s just test runs before the real deal.”

DL would need to hear about this.  The bank manager walked up behind Marge and gave her a deposit slip.  She handed it to me and I thanked her for everything.  Walking back, Heather saw we were finished and got up.  No sooner did we start towards the doors did the alarm go off again.  The high pitched squeal took us all by surprise.

The bank manager emerged from the side door leading to the back.  “Stay calm everyone, this situation will be resolved…”

A bullet shattered through a window high up and entered the man’s forehead.  The bank manager died with no recognition of what happened.  As his body hit the cold marble floor, the doors flew open.  Eight to ten fully covered men with automatic guns rushed in and ordered us all to the ground.  Behind the army of thugs, a man in a red heart mask came in.

Seeing all the customers lying on the ground, “Good, good.  Everyone remain calm and we all just might survive this.”

One of the armed gunmen came over to the area Heather and I were and he pointed a gun at me.  “No funny business from any of ya, got it?”

All of us nodded and he seemed content.  Hearts walked over to the front teller area and knocked on the glass.  Marge got up and was shaking uncontrollably.  “Y-Y-Yes?”

He dropped a key into the slot.  “That will open lock box number 1128.  Please bring me the content of that box, plus as much money as you can put in that sack right there.”  He tapped the window with his pistol.

Marge nodded and took the key and disappeared from sight.  The main door opened again and a guy with a sniper rifle entered.  “Yo Hearts, cops are five minutes out.”

“We have plenty of time.  Kill anyone that gets too close for comfort.”

The sniper smiled and went back outside.  This situation was going from bad to worse fast.  Could I do something, anything to get DL down here?

I slowly began reaching down into my pocket.  Heather’s eyes noticed what I was doing and they went really big.  I tried my best to visually tell her what I was up to, as I didn’t want the goon with the gun to get suspicious.  As my fingers brushed the top of my cell phone, I heard the loud voice.  At the same time, the awful squeal from the alarm finally stopped.

“You there!”  I felt a gun jab my back.  “Just what do you think you’re doing?”

Damn!  “I’m trying to get my pain meds.  The bright lights give me migraines.”

I felt a hand pull me up.  “Empty your pockets.”

I did as I was told.  I took out my car keys, my cell phone, and my bottle of pills.  The thug was just about to do something when Hearts came over.  “What’s going on here?”

“This guy had his hand in his pocket.  He said he needed his pills, but I think he was trying to tip off the cops.”

Hearts’ phone went off and he pulled it out of his pocket.  He paused for a second, obviously reading a message.  Once he was finished, he gave a half laugh before putting the device back in his pocket.  He then turned back to us as though he hadn’t taken a text message in a hostage situation..

With no warning, Hearts shot the man in the head.  Blood splattered everywhere and a collective gasp went over all the hostages.  Like nothing happened, Hearts picked up the bottle of pills and handed them to me.  “I’m sorry for my former associate’s lack of respect.  I understand more than most the importance of taking one’s medication.”

I opened the cap and popped two pills before putting them back in my pocket and returning to my position on the ground.  My head was just inches away from the dead thug’s; I could see the bullet hole as clear as day and it made me sick.

Hearts walked back over to Marge who had everything he requested.  “That looks like everything.  Very good my dear.  Please come over to the door and hand it to me.  After that, no one else will be hurt.”

Marge disappeared again only to reappear at the doorway, the same one where the bank manager was snipered at.  That poor man’s body was still in the same spot.  Marge did her best not to look down and handed the bag and box to Hearts.

With his score in his possession, “Let’s go!”

The thugs still alive ran over to him and they backed out with Hearts being the final one to leave.  I looked down at my watch; the entire encounter took only three minutes and twenty-five seconds.  A minute later the police arrived, but it was already too late.

Officers scoured the scene, taking witness statements and looking for clues.  Even as they went through the motions, the officers knew who did it and that they wouldn’t find anything to give away their identities.

I was with Heather over in the corner, she was still in a state of shock.  “Hey, it’s going to be alright, we’re alive.”

Her face was white, like ghost white.  She gave me a sorta half nod that she heard me, but I doubt anything I said registered.  A cop came over to us and I flagged him down.  “Do you need us for anything more?  I don’t think my friend is really up for anything more.”

The worn out looking man looked over at Heather and sighed.  “Yeah, go ahead and get her someplace peaceful.  Just make sure one of the detectives has your information in case we need to get in contact with you.”

I did as he asked, giving Detective Lopez both Heather’s and my work numbers.  From there, I took her to a small café a few blocks from the bank.  She hadn’t said a word in the car, but as we sat down and she took a drink of water, color came back.  “Thanks Jericho.”

“For what?”

“Well you tried to be a hero back there and nearly got yourself killed.  Then after that, you stayed calm and made sure I was okay.”

I guess I didn’t see it as any big thing.  “That’s what friends do you know?  They take care of each other.”

She reached over and took my hand.  When they first touched, static zapped both of us, which just made her laugh.  “See, there’s sparks between us.”

I felt my face get red again.  “Sorry, I’m just not used to a woman paying me much attention.”

Her hands closed tighter around mine.  “Get used to it hero.  You’ll be getting a lot of my attention whether you like it or not.”

I would like it, that much I knew.  I would like it a lot.

“There was no sign of Hearts after the robbery.”

DL was pissed.  He’d seen the robbery happen live and beelined it down to Pacific National.  By the time he arrived, Hearts was gone, forcing DL to the streets in the hopes of finding him.  Obviously, he wasn’t successful.  “He didn’t display any superhuman abilities.  It just seemed like a perfectly planned heist.”

A picture of Hearts appeared on the monitor.  “Every time he strikes it’s the perfectly planned heist.  No Jericho, he’s a super – that much I can assure you.”

Under the picture was a rap sheet listing each of the incidents Hearts was involved in.  DL and I never even came close to catching him.  “We should focus on Clubs.  He’s right here, under our watch,  we break him, and we gain access to the rest of The Aces.”

“I appreciate your opinion Jericho, but we also can’t let them run rampant.  Massacre is out there right now looking for any sign or clue.”

Massacre – that was like sending an overeager child into a toy store.  He’d end up causing more problems than what you expected.  “Be careful with your reliance on him.”  DL’s eyes took a warning stare.  “I know you two are old friends, but even you can’t deny he’s gotten a bit reckless lately.”

Two weeks before we put Diamonds down, Spades sent a bunch of goons out to random ATM’s, breaking into them and getting the cash.  Massacre was unleashed and he ended up killing most of the thugs plus destroying six very costly ATM’s.  If it wasn’t for the PSPD’s reliance on Team DL and Grimes’ PR for us, we probably would’ve been run out of the city.

DL didn’t argue with that point.  “He’s a good hero Jericho, trust me on that.  The Aces have just been doing a damn good job at being better villains up until this point.  We will stop them, I promise you that.”  Storm clouds started building behind his calm façade.

“I hope you’re right.  The city’s on the brink of chaos, DL.  If these guys keep going, Pacific Station will be in even worse shape than when you know who was running around!”

DL fell back in his chair, looking both angry and tired at the same time.  His phone buzzed, a text message from Massacre.  He read it and growled in frustration.  “He had no luck finding shit.”

I almost slipped and made a childish sarcastic remark about Massacre’s detective skills, but I bit my tongue in time.  “No one’s perfect.  They’ll slip up and when they do, we’ll be there, err you’ll be there, and put an end to it.”

His head snapped up.  “At the heist was there any mention of The Negative Man?”

Here we go again.  “No, no mention of him at all.  Though Hearts did receive a message at the bank when he broke up my potential murder.”

This was all DL needed to fuel even more conspiracies.  “What was Hearts’ motivation was in saving your life is beyond me, but I would bet my entire fortune that the message he received came from The Negative Man.”

“Or Spades, we know he’s the leader of The Aces.”

DL didn’t like it when I got all logical on him.  To be honest, his paranoia and obsession with The Negative Man was starting to cloud his judgment.  Even before Diamonds mentioned his name, he’d been starting to get weird on me.  I wouldn’t deny that he wasn’t out there biding his time, but The Aces were the more immediate and pressing threat to us and the city.

He slammed his fist on the table.  “Never forget Jericho!  The Negative Man is and will always be the true threat until he’s dead!  You just don’t understand everything he’s done to me, to this city…”

Granted, I started working at Wonder-Tech weeks after The Negative Man horrors, but I was still living here.  “I know that I wasn’t here, at Wonder-Tech, but I still called Pacific Station home.  I know how long his reign of terror lasted, I saw the effects on the city DL.”

“You’re right and I apologize.”  That tired look was starting to overcome the angry, defiant DL I was used to.  “Being The Dark Lion, it’s taken so much out of me.  I never thought all these years after I first put on the cowl that I’d still be needed.”

“What’re you saying?  You’re not giving up on us already?”

“Never give up, but my time as a super is coming to an end.  But before that happens, The Dark Lion has one last task to accomplish and that’s to kill The Negative Man.  With the fall of him, a new generation can take my place.”

The thought of DL calling it a career disturbed my greatly.  John Wonderton had proved to be one of the strongest people I’d ever come across in my life.  “Get those thoughts out of your head, including The Negative Man.  You have a responsibility to the people of Pacific Station to end the threat of The Aces whether you like it or not!”

“I know and you’re right, as always.”  He looked at his watch.  “Go home Jericho, it’s been a long day for you.  We’ll pick this back up when we both don’t feel like shit.”

He was right; it’d been a long day indeed and rest would be most welcome.  I got up to leave, giving DL a pat on the back on my way out.  I hoped the hero the city needed would find himself in the morning after a decent night’s sleep.

I made it to my car and found my way home.  The streets were practically deserted on this Friday night.  Once safely in my apartment, I microwaved some pizza and got myself comfortable on the couch.  DL’s little breakdown in the office had put a bad taste in my mouth.  After all we’d done together to bring this city back from the terror it suffered…

No, if he wanted to retire, that was his personal choice.  I came across this lifestyle by coincidence and this could be my way out.  I had my own life to think about, my own goals and aspirations that had been put on hold.  It’d been so long that I gave thought to the things I’d hoped to do.  I wasn’t about to bail on DL, not yet, but if he was willing to give up this life, I wasn’t going to talk him out of it.

I turned on the TV and flipped the channels.  The only thing anyone wanted to talk about was the attack of Pacific National today.  Giving up and watching, it was weird to see an event I was part of from this vantage point.  As the anchors were talking, I noticed the camera zoomed in on Heather in the background.  About two seconds later, the camera zoomed back out, causing the screen to go an inverted color scheme of white and black.  Only one man ever had that calling card.

The anchors began freaking out.  “Julie did you see that?”

“Yes Tom, I did!  Could this mean what I think it means?”

“I think it does.  The Negative Man, long thought to be dead, has shown up twice in as many days!  Folks, please stay tuned to this rapidly developing story!”

No sooner did the anchor Tom spit out those words did my phone light up.  Checking the caller ID, DL was already on top of this.  Answering, “I swear, I had no idea he was there today!”

“I know you didn’t Jericho.  He’s out there, taunting me at every turn.  He’s back and it’s time to declare war on him and the villains he operates through.”

This was getting deep, fast.  “Declare war?  What exactly are you saying?”

His laughter was borderline insane.  “Exactly what I said.  He’s obviously using The Aces and we can’t find them.  Using logic, we go to the lowest common denominator and that’d be the thugs they hire for their jobs.  Then we can track.”

The one thing we’d always agreed upon was to leave ordinary humans to the cops.  Getting involved with low lives with no powers was taboo.  “DL, if you go after them, there’s no telling what the repercussions will be.”

“Repercussions be damned.  I know what’s good for this city, even if the people living here don’t!”

I was getting uncomfortable with this.  “DL, let’s just think about this…”

“Jericho, we sacrifice the few to save the many.”  And with that last declaration, he hung up.