Welcome To The Dark Side (Part I)

"D'oh not at all! Most people tha' collect swords n' knoives dunno how to properly take care of 'em so they wear down ova' time. Just a bit of oil every day keeps the blade clean," she ended up waiting at the door while he finished up. He looked kind of excited. Well good! It was better than looking like a nervous car wreck. Jacob was handling things better than she thought. That meant he trusted this whole thing to her. She just couldn't let him down and keep up her end of the deal. No killing...and no violence unless she had to defend them. Even so, no killing. "Oy'll show ya how when we get home. Let's get goin'."

The ride was actually pleasant and she kept up with the conversation to kill time and keep the positive atmosphere. Just for the sake of Jacob's joke, she had them stop by a bagel shop and sure enough they had some guy with a thick-accent yelling at them to make their orders quick and snappy. An everything bagel, a coffee, and twenty minutes later, it was down to business. They pulled up to the shop which looked even more run down than in the photos. "Well...This is it, luv. It'll be fine. Just follow my lead. Should be in an' out if all goes well," she reached over for a good luck kiss then sighed, "Let's not forget he's still an asshole..." and got out of the car.

The doorbell chimed as she walked in. The interior was subpar. Could use a new coat of paint on the walls...and the floor was dirty. The meats even looked questionable and briefly she wondered how in the world he managed to pass his inspections. It was a small shop. Huh. At least she was able to land a pretty good paying job just for taking pictures. Eventually, the owner of the shop showed up, standing at 6'8 and nearly filling up the doorway to the back room with muscle and...Oh, he was packing on some pounds. He was wearing the typical dirtied apron over his dirty white shirt and black slacks. Even the white cap looked ridiculous.

"Welcome--Oh!" he seemed to stiffen when he realized who exactly came into his shop. It was subtle, but oh yes it was there. "Evenin' mate. Long time no see," she greeted with a smile that seemed to make the big man nervous. "Ahahah, yes. Long time no see, friend. What brings you here?"

"Oh, jus' wanted to chat up an old friend. Thas' all. Or...Is this a bad time?"
He circled around the counter, even having to go sideways just to walk past and get to the door. He locked it up himself, flipping the little sign 'CLOSED' before ushering the two for the back room. "No! I have not open shop. Come! Let us talk, yes? Bring your man-friend too, we drink!" Thank god the back room was big and she was surprised Bosco was being this hospitable. He gestured to the table, pulled out the seats, and even drinks were served! Vodka. Cheap vodka, but whatever, she wasn't here to drink. "You on vacation with man-friend? Looks like honeymoon to me!" Bosco chuckled and sat with them. "Haha! Yeh you can say tha', roight hon?" she tipped the glass to Jacob. "I just heard about you 'retiring' and found the shop. Guess oy' can't go through you anymore, roight?"

Bosco smiled, "Yes. No more business for you!"

"So woy'd you retire?"

"I like meat better."

"Is that so..." Bosco seemed determined to stick to his 'meat' story. That was fine. "Well that's not what I heard...Right, honey?" she put her elbow on the table, cheek resting on her knuckles as she looked to Jacob.

Bosco grunted at hearing "Cosco". He seemed to tense up, apparently just a tad bit insulted when Lenn laughed. "Ahah! Costco! Yeah, that's a good one," she laughed and at some point Bosco got his little laugh in too. "Haha...Yes, very funny, but I do not understand what you mean, Mister?..."

"His name's Cheech, now cut the crap," she frowned and pushed the glass aside. "Two months ago, some of Donovan's goons decided ta kick down m'door an' shoot the shit out moi apartment. Can't even git the deposit back!"

"Is very unfortunate."

"Yeah it sure is. Someone tipped them off an' th' last toime oy' recall you were the only wanka' tha' knew where oy' was goin'."

Bosco's gaze darkened. "What you say? You say I rat you out?!" There was a vein popping out of his forehead. "You have no proof!"

"Yeh thas' wot you think. Look, oy'm not stupid. If I was, oy'd be dead a long toime ago and you wouldn't have nearly half the money to open up this shitty shop if it weren't for me," she stood up, hands upon the table. " Oy'm a woman and by default, oy' hav' no patience. This guy here?" she jabbed a thumb at Jacob, He's a mean one and the number one thing he hates is liars. Just admit it already.

Bosco's face was already red. Being called a liar was bad enough and people like him had little to no patience as well. "You think your puny man-friend can scare me? Bah!" he crossed his arms and even smirked a little. Intimidated? Not in the slightest. Lenn on the other hand sighed. Doplomacy was hard and right now she was getting nowhere with Bosco. Ex-Mafia or not, these guys were tough nuts to crack. She combed fingers through her hair, "Oookay, oy' gave ya a chance, Bosco. Yer gonna have to deal with 'him' now." she patted Jacob on the shoulder. "Yer up now. Don't beat on him too hard now," and then she left the back room, leaving the two grown men alone.

Bosco leaned back in his chair, unimpressed with Jacob's intimidating demeanor. "You will not get a word out of me, leetle man."

Anyone with keen ears would have heard the faint 'click' of a lock coming from the front of the store...along with a whistle while Lenn killed time. Bosco on the other hand, smirked with confidence, knowing that he was right about this..'runt'. He watched as the real nature of the man before him. Cheech, was it? Or maybe it was just some joke because the woman did not want to reveal his name? It didn't matter. This man was a nobody, talking about being civil men and that basically it was okay to 'rat' out his previous employer.

"Hmph! Haha! Help you? For what?" Bosco grunted, "I meet scarier men in prison than you. You no idea how things work! You have nothing for me. No money, women, or safe place!" There was no way he was going to tell. Donovan's men would be on him so fast. Lenn didn't matter. She could easily take care of them and also some of Bosco's problems which were some of the henchmen that also knew he was dipping his hands in jars that shouldn't be touched. The extra money was a bonus, but the guns he managed to smuggle out were even better. This little shitty butcher shop made only pennies compared to what he did. Yes, he left Donovan's gang, but that didn't mean he had to call it quits forever. So far, he was getting better income than he had with Donovan, but nobody needed to know that --especially these two.

He rose, thick hands on the table as he loomed over Jacob. "The only thing I tell you is this," he snorted and spat a glob at the 'little' man. "Piss off! Get out of my shop, the both of you!"

So that she could live a--Fwahahahaha! Bosco roared with laughter, even slapping the desk! Did he mean to say that Lenn was retiring? What a joke! His laughter was cut short once he noticed the sword upon the table. The little man was proposing something-- a deal of some sorts. That's when he wiped away the tears from his eyes and eased back into his seat.

Little did he know, Lenn had returned to the backroom while Bosco had his fit and stood right behind of him when he spat in Jacob's face, those now bright crimson eyes glaring down at the man's back, the shadows darkening around her face for one hell of a scary expression. There was a...oh my--a large butcher knife in her gloved hand that she twirled with ease. Hopefully she didn't give Jacob a heart attack. It honestly wasn't meant for him. She didn't appreciate Bosco spitting on her boyfriend. Not one bit. Maybe she should just say fuck it and dismember this wanker. Yeh, feed 'em to his own shitty customers.

Before Lenn could act on her own creative ideas, Jacob had surprised her; he was bribing Bosco in exchange for information. That was an interesting move. Normally it wasn't a good idea to let targets know what your ultimate goal was and why people like her were there to stomp information out of them, but this was good. Lenn relaxed just a bit as Bosco put a meaty hand to his chin in thought, unaware of his potential executioner behind him...

This wasn't a bad trade. There were a lot of benefits for Donovan to be out of picture. He could take over Donovan's clientele and possibly, just maybe the drug ring... Now the gears began to turn. He could be in charge! Honestly, he hated handling meat. He didn't know what to do with it. With this, he could easily have it all without having to move a finger. All he needed was these two to get rid of the head-honcho. "Okay, okay I admit, I was one who rat her out. I sorry, but I know she take care of herself. If not tell, I get hurt bad," he cracked, frowning. The only reason why he left so fast was so she didn't find him. Lenn had better resources than he thought. Well played.

Then he went into detail about how unfortunately, he honestly did not know where Donovan was, but there was someone else who worked closely with him. That somebody's name was Chase Dombrowski who was apparently a rich, snotty-bastard who owned a Gentleman's club on the busier side of town. He also was in charge of human-trafficking--specifically teenage girls. There were rumors of a new drug that was being distributed from the club called 'Liquid Dream'. The reason why it was called that because once taken, people said the experience was surreal as if they were in a dream. The drug had various side effects. Some people could be happy and high as a kite. Others could get violent. It supposedly all depended upon the 'true nature' of the person, but Bosco thought that was rubbish. After all, the drug was still being modified.

That scary look vanished over time and she paced, using the sharp end of the knife to clean the dirt out from under her nails, listening to every detail that Bosco mouthed off. For someone being 'retired', that was a lot of information to be spitting out, but that was none of her business. The ape could do whatever he wanted so long as it didn't involve her and whomever was with her. His information seemed legit and useful enough. "And that's all I know!" Bosco grunted and smiled. "Maybe if you have cash, I say mor--"

SLAM!

The butcher knife came down fast and embedded itself halfway through the table just centimeters away from his fat fingertips. Bosco immediately froze, sweat running down his face in rivulets from just how close he was to losing those fingers. Lenn leaned in close enough to smell that sweat with the kind of smile she had on her face when she was about to render someone to pieces. "How 'bout this, mate? Oy' forget tha' you squealed loike a pig about moi location an' oy' won't chop you up an' sell ya to yer own customahs?"

Bosco nodded quickly, not wanting to tempt her any further. "Good. We're done hea'," she let go of the knife and rose, the color of her eyes returning back to their original state. Bosco also rose from his seat as Lenn winked at Jacob. Wait, Costco, oy' almost forgot about yer present!" Bosco somehow forgetting about his existence threatened to be annihilated seemed to brighten up at the word 'present'. "You got present for me? What is--"

Lenn extended her fingers and ridge-handed him in the throat with one fluid motion. The big man stepped back, his mouth open, but all that came out was a loong, deep WHEEEEEEZE that reminded her of that one movie with the creepy pale-faced Japanese lady. He face went red as he tried reaching for either of the two, but doubled over instead. Must have been hard trying to think with the lack of oxygen going to his pea-brain. By the time his face turned purple, he was spread out on the floor, most likely concentrating really hard on not passing out. "He'll live. That lil' bone in the throat? The Hyoid Don' worry, oy' only pulled it. Next toime he decides to disrespect you, oy'l be ripping his Hyoid out. Anyway, lets git' outta this dump," she waited for him to gather his sword up, grumbling something about Bosco being a dumb-ass wanka' before they left. Oh, and she flipped the sign 'OPEN' so someone could call an ambulance.

She got in the car and...Well, this was the first time she didn't have to wash the blood off her hands. For a moment, she left him in silence, letting everything sink in... "Wow...Ya did it, Jacob. Oy'...Honestly didn't think it was possible. To be honest, oy' wasn't plannin' on lettin' him live today..."

Violence pretty much solved everything in that world. Either that, or a threat of serious bodily harm did the trick. It all depended on who was dishing it out. Lenn was a pretty good example. Everyone took her seriously--especially since she always kept her promises. Anyone who didn't believe her was either just as tough as she was or just plain stupid. Most of them were stupid.

"Wot? At least 'es gonna live. Bastard doesn't deserve it. He's lucky oy' didn't make 'em choke on his spit."

Or his own blood. That would have been preferred, but in this case at least she got to see Bosco's face turn fifty shades of red. "Don't worry? Nobody disrespects you loike tha' an' gits away with it," she pouted as if they were arguing about the dishes. Well you weren't gonna do it. Someone had to! Ugh...Well, he had a point. She was supposed to be doing this to change her life. Well, the blow wasn't fatal, but it was all about perception. She knew Bosco would probably be unable to speak for a couple days, but Jacob probably wasn't aware of that. It did look like Bosco was gonna die so...

"Alroight, alroight oy'll be a lil' more...gentle next toime. Anyway, les' git outta hea' an pick up sumthin' ta' eat," Tomorrow was going to be something interesting. She noticed how tense he was about Chase's unique buisness. After all, he did have a daughter of his own. She couldn't imagine what he was thinking right now. Oh hell, jus' imagine tomorra' noight... This was going to he 'fun'. "Oy'm thinkin' choinese."