[FIN] Who Will it Be?

[BlackFireKitsune]

"No? Well, everything then; I'm sure there'll be some interesting pieces in there somewhere," she said with an airy shrug.

"What's the other option?" He asked, trying to focus his gaze on the wall and not her, and trying to breathe. He couldn't get someone else involved in her bullshit, not again. And what would she do if she couldn't blackmail him? What if he had to tell her where Zevran was from, what sort of place he'd worked in -- what sort of place he'd left that frowned on people leaving? Would she try to find them, get in contact with them? Would she threaten him with that? Not even with some terrible secret, but with death? That seemed like something she would do. He could barely stand the fact he'd dragged Taavi into this mess, he would never forgive himself if he pulled Zevran to his death. Just thinking of it made him more sick than he'd felt this entire time.

"Remember what I was curious about before? What you hit me over?" Abel's breath hitched and caught in his throat as his stomach twisted into a giant knot in an impressively short amount of time; Alyssa's grin widened just a bit. "Option two is you and I take a trip to go visit your sister."

"No," he said abruptly, anger flaring up immediately over the sick knot in his stomach. He pushed her hands away and quickly twisted in his chair to aim a furious glare at her. How dare she even suggest such a thing? Not that it was surprising. "No. You're not doing--"

"Oh I'm not doing anything there," she said as her expression morphed into that self-satisfied Cheshire smile, "you are."

The blond immediately slumped back in his chair. Just as quickly as it had flared, the sudden eruption of anger dissipated entirely and in its place left a cold, dead feeling in the pit of his stomach. For the moment he didn't know what to say.  

[TawnyAngel]

"I am a fascinating man," Zevran said dryly, even as his entire being twanged with tension at what she had just said. "And those two are the only choices you offer? No others?" Abel's sister, his nieces, if she thought Abel would do anything to them she was wrong, it was clear that Abel loved his family and that was just as it should be. He was second to them, of course, and that would be fine even if he believed Abel would tell Alyssa anything important. Unless he was a poor liar surely he could deflect her with vague half truths but avoid and real facts.

Taavi remained silent but got to his feet to move over to where Abel sat and perch on the arm of the chair that Alyssa wasn't near. He couldn't do anything but he could show solidarity at least.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel rested his elbows on his knees and silently pressed his face into his hands. Alyssa shrugged and offered a sly smirk to Zevran. "I'm sure you are, and he could do neither, of course, that'd be a third option. But that would mean I would send out all of the information I have on him, and he doesn't really want that -- do you?" She asked, turning to the taller blond at the question.

He shook his head mutely. A moment or two later he asked without raising his head, "You want an answer now, right?"

"You know I hate waiting," she replied with a shrug.  

[TawnyAngel]

"Tell her what you will," Zevran repeated with another shrug. "I see no reason to bring anyone else into this." Even if Abel couldn't lie well at best she would end up poking at the hornet's nest that was Antiva's underbelly... and she would die, and then Abel would be in trouble.

s**t.

There really was no good option here was there? Rinna would have thought of something but she had been far cleverer than he and Taliesen.

s**t.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

He saw no reason? Abel lifted his gaze enough to aim a helpless look at his friend. He saw a very good reason in the form of Zev being taken against his will, injured, killed, because he opened his mouth. No, he couldn't sell him out, he couldn't do that to him.

But neither could he ever even think of laying a hand against his nieces. Not for any reason.

His face dropped back into his hands again. After a moment he managed to mumble, "I need to think about this for a minute.."

"Alright," she said cheerfully, "you have one minute."  

[TawnyAngel]

"Abel," Zevran hissed, his arms unfolding from across his chest but only to clench at his sides. "Just say whatever she wants to hear of me, it doesn't matter." It had to be better than the alternative... Though might that buy them some time?  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Oh don't worry about him, it took just as much work getting him to tell me about Taavi," Alyssa said with a casual, dismissive wave of one hand. "He doesn't want to rat you out, but he knows he can't lie to me to get out of it, either."

"When would I have to do them?" Abel asked abruptly, trying to cut off her conversation before she could go much further. "I'm guessing if I tell you what I know, you'll want it now, but going to my sister's--" He cut himself off there, unable to finish the sentence.

The redhead happily picked up where he left off with a nod. "Yep, you'll either tell me now, or we'll take the first boat out in the morning. It leaves right at 7am, so we can't be late. So," she grinned, "which will it be?"

"Um," Abel replied eloquently.  

[TawnyAngel]

Taavi took another swig of vodka, everyone else seemed to be pretty preoccupied right now. ******** had not answered the question, but Abel had raised the point of time. If he refused now but then went to the docks and told her a tale they had worked out by then would the suffice?... Perhaps not, he didn't know Alyssa well enough to count on her whims.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel leaned back against the cushions with his elbows above his head, his hands still pressed into his face as he groaned. Ugh, what was he going to do? He didn't want to do any of it, not at all, but he just-- Someone was going to die because of him, it only varied in who it would be based on what he did. If he sold out Zev then he would die, if he opted to go to his sister's then one of his nieces would die, and if he did neither then he would surely just end his own life. Could he take Alyssa with him? No, because then that would mean whatever she had on Taavi would be released, and he couldn't do that... s**t. Why was everything awful?

"Tick tock," Alyssa said a little impatiently, even going so far as to tap her foot a bit.

Ugh. Ugh, okay. He couldn't think like this, he couldn't handle this but he had to think. Okay. If he sold out Zev he would have to do it now, and that would be it. She would presumably leave after and try to figure out how to make him suffer. If he chose his nieces, then nothing would happen until early morning when he'd meet up with Alyssa again. And if he picked neither, that could happen immediately too...

Okay, if he wanted to have the most time, he needed to pick the second option. But what would he do with that time? It wasn't like he had anything on her, knew how to get at her... Could he get something on her in that time? Was that enough time to find something as well as find out where to use it?

Did he really have a choice?

He couldn't live with himself if he brought anything down on Zevran. He could never do anything to his nieces; he'd sooner do it to himself than one of them. So.. that left just one option then. Okay. Alright. Okay.

It was fine. It'd be fine. Maybe? It had to be. If it wasn't, then at least no one else would suffer because of him. "Okay," he ceded as he dropped his arms to his lap, "alright. Uhh.. I think I know which, I guess," the blond said rather lamely. s**t, he didn't want to pick any of these, he just wanted her to go away, for all of this to end... but it wouldn't.

He was going to be sick.  

[TawnyAngel]

It was like sitting waiting for an execution. Obviously he couldn't do what Alyssa was implying he do to his own nieces but it still had to be hard to go and say what he was going to do. Abel felt awful enough about having told Alyssa his secrets and doing it a second time had had to be just as bad or worse even.

Even though he knew what Abel was going to say Taavi found himself barely breathing as he waited for the words to come out.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Alright," Alyssa prompted, "what'll it be?"

"I..." Arceus, he wasn't going to go through with it but it still felt like someone was twisting a knife in his heart regardless. "I'll go to Sinnoh."

"Oh really?" The redhead replied, her eyebrows lifting in mild surprise. "And here I thought you would've picked the first option; I know how much you love to sell out your friends. Alright then, I'll be back here tomorrow morning at 6:30 sharp, so you'd better be ready."  

[TawnyAngel]

Taavi choked on a swig of vodka and turned to Abel, eyes wide with shock. Had he just- he couldn't mean it could he? No, he couldn't, so he was going to do... something? What could he do though? Wouldn't it have been easier to tell her whatever he knew about Zevran? He had said it wasn't that important but apparently Abel disagreed.

...Hu. Zevran's brows rose slightly in surprise at Abel's response, perhaps his friend was thinking along the same line that he had been just a moment ago? In the hours between now and then they could easily get their story straight, maybe Alyssa would become a bit of an annoyance to him but not much if they avoided giving her anything substantial and kept Antiva out of it.

Whether that was what Abel was thinking or not the play for time made sense, perhaps Abel would simply choose to disappear? There were worse things than leaving behind a life that had become unbearable... but Abel had a family, he wouldn't wish to cut ties with them.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Alright," the blond said simply, rubbing his hands over his face again.

Alyssa wrinkled her nose and grinned first at Abel, then at Taavi as she gave him a pat on the shoulder as she passed. "Careful there; I'd hate for you to choke and die on me." Her voice didn't carry any actual concern or sincerity. With her business done, she offered the trio a brief wave and, with a smug smirk, she walked out and shut the door behind her.

Once she left, Sonia manifested by the door, dropping her illusion and reaching up to lock the door behind her before looking back into the apartment's interior for what she should do next.  

[TawnyAngel]

Taavi walked slowly over to the couch and sank down onto it, his head was spinning but that might be partially because he'd just downed quite a lot of vodka. "********," he said again with feeling.

"Indeed," Zevran agreed, glaring at the closed door with an intensity that ought really have set fire to it. b***h.

Once he was sure that Alyssa would be well out of ear shot Zevran crossed back over to the chair Abel was sprawled in and perched on the arm. "So, what is the plan then?" he asked softly, reaching out to give his friend's shoulder a squeeze as he spoke.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Abel barely noticed Taavi's expletive or Zevran's touch. "Uh." He frowned and looked to the door; it was locked and Sonia still stood beside it, waiting for some kind of signal. Alyssa was gone, she had to be, or else his Zoroark would've started growling or reacting in some way. She was gone, it was okay.

"The plan is to figure out what to do about all this bullshit before 6:30 tomorrow morning," he said as he pushed himself to his feet and quickly jogged to his bedroom.

Nothing was okay.

The weight of the words hit him as he said them, filling him with a renewed sense of panic, multiplied by the fact he now had a deadline. A deadline of sunrise the next morning. Oh Arceus, oh s**t ********> he said as he stumbled out of his room just a couple moments later; he had socks on and one arm inside a hoodie he wrestled with on his way to the door. "I only have until then to figure out what to do. What am I going to do?" Was that even enough time? What would he do if it wasn't? What if he couldn't figure anything out? What then?