“The fuck with owing people.That kinda shit causes more problems,” Griffin huffed.
Apollo hated owing others anything, but in this case, Brick and his team had earned the right.They’d saved his sister, helped take down the local Noah group in New Orleans, and provided invaluable information on an ongoing basis as the number of mutants kept rising.
This raised another question plaguing Apollo: how many more survivors were waiting for help?
After a bloody battle, escaping the group’s holding facility, and gaining his freedom, Apollo had dedicated his life to this quest, and he’d been picking up survivors and team members ever since.Some in his military group came from closed labs.Others were former military personnel, commandos, and security-for-hire types who worked outside societal norms because they couldn’t function within conventional society.
All test subjects of a megalomaniacal desire to improve what nature had built.
“Facts are facts, whether we like them or not.We’re better off working together with them in this fight than working alone.Until that statement is proven wrong, we continue with the status quo.”
“Fine,” Griffin growled as he paced over to the office window.“But this Rocko got no claim to past debts or arrangements, and if it comes down to him or anyone on our team, then he sleeps with the fishes.”
Apollo couldn’t help but laugh at Griffin’s attempt at an Italian mafia accent.“Been watchingThe Godfatheragain?”
“No one does it better than Don Corleone.Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.The man knew his shit,” Griffin said with his usual bravado.
“Yeah, yeah.If we ever find ourselves in a firefight with the mob, I’ll keep that in mind.For now, let’s go welcome our new visitor and leave Don Corleone and his mafioso friends on-screen.We’ve got enough to deal with shutting down the Noah Project.”
***
Rocko
Damn, his neck ached, and his patience had reached its limit.He hoped his temporary detainment wasn’t a precursor of what to expect when he arrived at the compound.The rook’s superiors would have to think long and hard about what to do with him.Personally, Rocko would love to see the guy busted down to parking meter duty, but that wasn’t up to him.It was one thing to have a suspect get the jump on you, but a completely different realm of fucked up to throw the man who saved your ass under a bus in an attempt to keep your secret.Asshole.Christ, even though he’d pointed out the security cameras to the addict, the rook had been oblivious to his reality.
More or less, he had a two-hour drive from Albany to Ticonderoga, where he was set to meet with a team member of Apollo’s at the Burleigh’s Luncheonette on Montcalm Street, and then to follow them out to their new property.
When he asked why he couldn’t simply drive directly to their property, he was told point-blank he’d never find it.As a survivor of the Noah Group, Rocko could understand and even respect their need for security and living off-grid.Still, he was extremely resourceful, a fucking detective after all, so yeah, he could’ve found the location.
However, Rocko could also see the benefits of vetting every person who came into contact with their team members, and how it would essentially protect them from any kind of threat.He knew it wasn’t uncommon for folks to set up compounds to avoid contact with outsiders, the law, and government.Being out here in the thick of the forest was a favorite retreat.
There’d likely be a shit-ton of work ahead of them clearing the land Apollo had inherited, bequeathed to him by his Iroquois grandmother.The area was being developed into a safe place for Apollo’s people, which included his team.They were building new structures, installing a septic system, electricity, and installing a clean water supply.And that was only the beginning of building a place of safety beyond the clutches of the Noah Group.
Hell, he might find himself sleeping in a damn tent in the bush for all he knew.Then again, it wouldn’t be the first time he’d roughed it in the middle of nowhere, and likely not the last.As a previous test subject of the Noah Project, Rocko had mutations he’d used throughout his career in the police force while staying off the Noah Group’s radar.
He’d been six when he was cut loose and thrown into an orphanage.Part of his ability, beyond his knack for finding people, was a memory beyond photographic or eidetic, surpassing hyperthymesia.This ability allowed him to recall all past experiences in extreme detail.Down to the date, time, weather, smell, feel, people, words spoken, locations, and so on.
At times, it became almost too much to handle when Rocko’s brain reached overload from storing so much information.The interior noise was deafening, and things got so bad that even knowing it was a stupid move, he’d turned to alcohol in an attempt to drown it all out.
He’d always kept his distance from close friendships.Even with Ray, a fellow detective, though they were friends and fuck buddies when available.No one knew the true him.
Ray called him the easygoing optimist.He doubted his friend would say the same if he got a look inside the true Detective Rocko Owens, with his overworked brain and the lengths he went to silence it.At times, the only thing that mattered was dulling the pain in his head, as he’d done too many times to count over the years.
The drive wasn’t as horrible as he’d expected, and Rocko would have actually enjoyed it if he’d been here to take in the beautiful landscape and cozy vibe of small towns and villages.He glanced out of the passenger window at the passing wall of foliage.Upstate New York was filled with expansive green forests, tranquil lakes, and winding roads that trailed off the main highway, leading to unknown places deep in the wilderness.
This place was a paradise for backpackers, homesteaders, and explorers set in the Adirondack Mountains.He’d done his research: Ticonderoga had approximately five thousand full-time residents and a Star Trek Original Series Set Tour in its museum.But Rocko had no interest in exploring the universe, considering his life was a sci-fi drama on a daily basis.He was more interested in what was available in the area, including amenities and infrastructure.
Huh.My life is already a science fiction story, who needs more?
Sure, it was an impressive little town with all the shit someone would need to live a pretty damn comfortable life.Drive five minutes in any direction, and bam, you were in the forest.
There was a small plane airport, Ticonderoga Municipal, north of town, which piqued his curiosity.He’d trained as a pilot in the Army Rangers, a world he’d lost himself in that felt like a lifetime ago.
The sun shone through the windshield, burning his eyes as he drove down Montcalm Street and turned into the diner’s empty parking lot.
“Great.”Rocko looked at his watch and confirmed he was almost up to the minute of their meeting’s rescheduled time, but the diner was closed, and no other vehicles were parked in the lot.
Now what?This bullshit day is wearing down the little patience I have.
