Laurence Zelkovii
On the way to the hospital, Lanny had errantly tried to call his brother and inform him of the situation, causing him more frustration when he remembered belatedly what Johann had said - the local tower was out. The rest of the trip was mostly a silent one, aside from the few horns that were blasted at him when he cut various people off in traffic and generally disregarded any traffic sign that he could afford to. He reached the hospital in record time, and dashed across the parking lot and through the doors of the ER, where he slowed down just long enough to get his barrings straight before he was off running again, making his way to the front desk, "Which room is she in? Cassidy, which one?"
Johann*Others
Despite the clear alarm that Lanny was dealing with, the woman at the front desk didn't seem at all moved - after all, she was used to having this kind of person dash up to her desk frequently, working in the only emergency room in the city. Her answer was calm and rational - but perhaps not the words he wanted to hear. "Miss Jones has already been escorted to emergency surgery, Mr. Zelkovii... I'm afraid they're not permitting anyone in the delivery room due to the complications of the case. I'm sorry - but you'll simply have to remain out here with Mr. Jones until she's assigned to a room and the doctor gives orders that she's to have visitors." She inclined her head to indicate the older man, who was seated on one of the hard waiting-room chairs, clutching at the armrests with a force that made his knuckles turn white with the effort, and made his arms shake ever so slightly. Otherwise, he seemed entirely calm - but that in and of itself was a significant sign that he was half out of his mind with fear for Cassidy.
Laurence Zelkovii
Honestly, he hadn't thought about how he'd deal with being in the room with Cassidy during surgery, or that he'd only be in the way of the doctors and nurses working on her. The only thing that had clicked in his mind was that he needed to get to her, and for a moment, he looked like he was about to get verbally violent with the receptionist that denied him from seeing Cass. Before any words could spill from his mouth, the woman's nod led his gaze to Johann, whom he did a double take of before he called back a bit of common sense into his rushing mind. "Fine, but I want someone out here in the next minute, telling me what's going on in there." Nostril's flared, the man forced himself to exhale a slow, trembling breath, not able to fully control the shaking that had set into him with the mix of adrehnaline and surprise that had hit him all at once. He left the counter quickly enough to take a heavy seat next to Cass's uncle, "When'd all this start?"
Johann*Others
The woman's jaw had set some, seeing the tension in him and prepared for the verbal volley she expected; her hand moved just out of sight under the desk - no doubt feeling for the button installed on all such surfaces in the hospital for summoning help if a patient or family member got violent. When he backed off a little, however, she relaxed some - and provided him with a prompt and polite answer, just as though they hadn't just almost come to biting words over what she'd told him. "I'll send for the orderly who stayed with her while they were prepping her for the surgery - he'll be able to tell you what the problem is." She offered him that before he headed away to sit down - and then picked up the phone, apparently calling to see that the orderly came down here to speak with the understandably tense young man.
So distracted by his own thoughts, Johann didn't notice the young man when he plopped down beside him - in fact, he jumped a little when Lanny spoke, which was the first time any such thing had ever occurred with him in living memory; Johann was famous for being very award of his surroundings, even under duress. He was so stunned that he had to pause for a second to understand what Lanny had said to him, but when that finally made it home to his brain, the man's voice came out even and calm - save for a barely-noticeable tremble. "She was feeling nauseous last night after supper - it kind of worried me then, but she told me it must have been the food... she was in the mood for spicy, and her stomach's been a little more sensitive than usual lately... so I didn't think too much about it. But this morning, she was walking across the living room, and I heard her gasp - whatever it was, it hurt her so badly that she actually had to sit down. And that scared me - I brought her straight here, fighting and cussing the whole way."
Laurence Zelkovii
Johann's jump didn't register immediately in Lanny's mind, but as an afterthought, the subtle action seemed to highlight something about Johann that Lanny hadn't ever seen before. He knew the man would give the world to save Cassidy, but this unheard of display reminded him just how much the girl meant to him. For as long as he could remember, nothing scared Johann enough to unhinge him like that, but the young man was smart enough not to say anything to that effect, "Thanks for calling me." He stated a little gruffly, able to put aside the usual issue of guy-pride to let his gratitude be heard; something he likely wouldn't have done if not for the suddenness and seriousness of this situation, and the fact that they were both so emotionally invested in Cassidy. "If she fought the whole way here, she must not be too bad off." It wasn't really possible to reduce the tension right now, and the attempt at making this joke was spoken awkwardly at best - Lanny was otherwise distracted, glancing anxiously from one doorway to the next, and keeping an eye on the clock.
Johann*Others
Johann didn't answer the quiet thanks that Lanny gave out - it was awkward enough between them, with both of their minds clearly more on Cassidy than the conversation, that he just couldn't muster a decent answer. All the young man got for his efforts was a grunt of acknowledgment to indicate that he'd heard, followed by a long silence as they waited for someone to come and give them news as to what was going on and how the girl was.
And it was just under the pre-set minute before the orderly appeared - dressed in a white uniform with a waist that sat just a little too high for him and hung like a sack on his thin frame, the man had a slightly nervous air about him - the hazel eyes behind the thick glasses were a little too wide, accentuating a face that was as thin as the rest of him. He looked almost like a frightened school kid rather than hospital personnel, but when he spoke up, it was with authority. "Mr. Zelkovii? I'm Alan Hutchins - orderly in charge of OB-GYN care and delivery. I understand you've come to see about Miss Jones?" He didn't give Lanny much time to answer before he went on, "She's had an obstetrical hemorrhage, caused by placental abruption - a tear in the tissue that connects the womb to the placenta, causing internal muscle damage and bleeding. They've initiated an emergency c-section to hopefully prevent trauma to the baby - in fact, they're probably almost through with that now. Then they have to see to it that both baby and mother are taken care of - she's got a lot of blood running loose in her belly because of the tear, which means that she's very likely going to need a transfusion - they'll both be in intensive care when it's over with." 'If they both make it,' was the end to that sentence, but seeing as how Lanny was tense already, and Johann not much better, he chose not to say that.
Laurence Zelkovii
The minute time frame felt like it was dragging on for an eternity, and the young man swore he'd looked at the clock no less than a hundred times already. When the orderly did arrive, Lanny abruptly stopped the foot-tapping he'd started into and automatically stood up to face the man more directly, as if this were some gang-related issue where the intimidation factor was required. Partly because of his fear, and partly because of his lack of knowledge over terms, most of the words went right over Lanny's poor head. "How long's this going to take?" Not all of the words might have made it home to Lanny, but he'd gathered enough by this point to understand how serious all of this was, and was going to let Mr. Hutchins knew that he wasn't to be lied to or have information withheld from, "And just what kind of condition is she in, to need to be put in intensive care?" Lacking a gun or the ability to physically intimidate the man where he would have done out on the street, the usually easy-going Lanny resorted to the tone of voice and intense posturing - even if subtly done - to get the answers he was seeking.
Johann*Others
Mr. Hutchins responded to Lanny's show of dominance by hunching his shoulders a little and looking briefly away, but he didn't back up - it was a curious way of expressing that he feared the young man's physical presence and reputation, but wasn't going to let it completely rob him of control. "Twenty minutes at max," he answered calmly, "depending on how quickly they can get the bleeding under control. However, I cannot say how long it will be until they decide that she is ready for visitors - she's suffering from hypovolemic shock." The second, more pointed question got a small flinch from him, but he still didn't back down, explaining carefully to Lanny, "Her blood volume's too low because of the bleeding - and thus, her heart is having difficulty bringing oxygen to her vital organs. And she will lose more blood because of the c-section; they'll work to minimize that as much as they can, but some blood-loss is inevitable. And depending on the severity of it, hypovolemic shock can result in tremors, low oxygen saturation, loss of consciousness, disorientation - she'll have to be kept in intensive care to ensure that she's properly cared for and monitored until both her blood and oxygen levels are within safe ranges again... and also to be sure that there are no complications from the surgery." Johann was listening silently to all this, remaining seated where Lanny had to stand up - but his hands and re-tightened on the arm rests, his own way of expressing the tension.
Laurence Zelkovii
Lanny didn't let up one ounce, despite Mr. Hutchins' clear display of being frightened. A mix of fear was adding more lines of tension to his features, which came across in Lanny as an intensified expression of anger and anxiety - one look at the co-lead of the CrypticSilvers would make most think twice about being near him now, even if he'd never be so foolish as to get too belligerent in the hospital. This was one place where his power was somewhat trumped, and where he could get into some real trouble for causing mayhem, "Twenty minutes?" The young man restated, to make sure he heard right, "I want to be updated on what's going on in there. If anything changes, I want to know first thing." One reason for his current aggression was because he felt so helpless in this situation - there was litterally nothing he could do to help out, so to make up for that, he gave what little orders he could get away with to bring himself just a bit of power back.
Johann*Others
"Right - I'll let them know," the man answered, his voice still calm and even despite the fact that he looked as though he wanted to turn tail and run. And a moment later, the frightened man had the chance to do just that, though he did his best to walk calmly away from Lanny instead of darting out of the room as he wanted to. It was only then that Johann's voice spoke up heavily. "Sit down, boy," he muttered, his tones dull and kind of lacking in will, but speaking with the small authority that his rather prestigious position in the gang permitted him. "There's not a bloody thing to do but wait." And after that, he fell silent, hopelessly waiting for the eternity of the twenty minutes to tick by. The time passed without any further updates - but finally, the door between them and the operative end of the hospital swung open, and out came Dr. Marachek, her salt-and-pepper hair dark with a slight sheen of sweat and her face looking tired, but the keenness of intelligence and authority still visible in the level brown eyes. Without any introduction or greeting whatsoever, she got right down to the nitty-gritty. "She's out of surgery - but deep in shock, which we're treating as best we can, considering the circumstances. They're seeing her to a room at the moment - she's on a respirator, and we've got her fairly heavily sedated both for that and because we don't dare give her enough pain medicines to keep her comfortable, frail as she is. However, she's reasonably stable." Giving them the unornamented, blank truth, she then went on, "Ordinarily, I would forbid any and all visitors, because she's so delicate right now - but I know that when she wakes up, she'll freak out if one of the two of you aren't with her. So as soon as she's settled, I'll have a nurse escort you to the dressing-room... you'll have to be gowned and masked to stay with her. But be warned - she has to be kept absolutely quiet. No noise, no fuss, no stress - if I get so much as a tiny increase in heartrate while the two of you are in there, I'll throw you out on your ear, and screw whatever influence you have. Got it?" Her voice had turned hard and cold - she was tired from the hard work she'd just done to save Cass, and didn't have the patience to argue with either one of them.
"While they're getting her to her room, I'd recommend that you go up to Neo-natal and see your daughter," the doctor continued, her voice lightening some with the change of topic. "you can't go in the room or touch the baby, but you can look at her through the glass - she's three pounds, four ounces, and reasonably healthy, considering, though her respiratory system is not fully developed - she's on oxygen. You won't be able to touch her until I'm sure that her immune system is fully functional - I'm having tests run for that now, and should have the results sometime early tomorrow. You ought to go see her - it'll give you something to do, until her mother's ready for you."
Laurence Zelkovii
Brief control of power aside, Lanny was soon left with things out of his hands again. Little beads of sweat that had nothing to do with the temperature outside were already collecting around his temples and forehead, complimenting the rapid beats of his heart and a flushed color that was starting to inhabit his otherwise tanned face. Where he was dominant and calling orders one minute, Lanny was now receiving orders - and abiding by them with no conflict. He didn't say anything to Johann, but he sat down at least, as quiet and anxious as the old man, only he wasn't quite as careful to hide it. For Lanny, who didn't have to rely on the sort of stoicism that Johann did, revealing his emotions generally didn't come into conflict with his work.
After those twenty minutes creeped by, Lanny was up again, putting on that same show of authority, even if it did no bit of good against someone like Dr. Maracheck. Only this time... he got a little nervous. Of course, he was well use to seeing fellow members wounded; heck, he himself had been in the hospital plenty of times. But it was different seeing someone like Cassidy here, and he knew before ever going into the room that it would take a lot of strength to see her on the ventillation system and be able to keep his cool. "Tell the nurse I'll be with my daughter until Cass is ready." To avoid saying anything that might get him in trouble with Maracheck, Lanny kept his reply as short as he could, and kept his worries mostly to himself. He had enough sense about him to look over his shoulder and Johann, "You coming?"
Johann*Others
"Marguerite," Dr. Marachek called, and in a moment, a short young woman with dark hair had appeared at her side, looking up at them all with silent wisdom. "See Mr. Zelkovii and Mr. Jones to Neo-natal to see their little girl, please. I'll call you when I'm ready for them." The nurse nodded obediently, and chirruped, "Yes, Dr. Marachek." As he had with everything else, Johann had listened quietly to the devastating news, not offering any reaction; however he looked up in surprise when Lanny spoke to him. It was enough to get him to his feet and prompt him to shake off some of his near-stupor. "Yes, I'm coming," he answered quietly, to which Marguerite answered, "Follow me please, gentlemen."
Along the way, she'd stopped by the aforementioned dressing room and instructed both men that they should change out of their clothes and into the sterile outfits provided in the room - and after waiting for them to reappear in headcovers, masks, and hospital gowns, she led them through several long hallways. Enduring all of this in silence, Johann trailed along slowly, but still managed to keep up with the brisk walk of the nurse, and finally she pushed through one last door and indicated a glass panel to her right, just across from the nurses' station. The whole wall to the room seemed to be made of glass - plexi-glass, actually - and though the room was large enough to hold several adults and a host of equipment, only a heart monitor and an oxygen tank sat beside the small incubator wherein they'd placed the tiny girl - she was very small and delicate-looking, but her color was good and she was moving about with a good strength - aside from her underdeveloped respiratory system, she was apparently fine. The tag at the bottom of the incubator merely read, JONES-ZELKOVII, indicating that the infant had not been named, as of yet.
Laurence Zelkovii
His palms were so clammy that he doubted he could hold a glass of water at the moment, much less keep from shaking the water out of it with his unsteady hands. Past these outward signs of his stress, and the unmistakable expression of tension on his face, the young man had recovered his wits enough to keep his head straight and follow along with the nurse and do as he was instructed. But he was clearly preoccupied just under the surface, thinking back over what the orderly and doctor had told him, and just now beginning to realize that Cassidy was in very serious trouble; serious enough that her outcome wasn't entirely certain, should something go amiss while she was so weak.
A few times on the walk to the neo-natal center, Lanny had flicked open his cell phone, only to flick it shut with a fluster when he saw he still had no signal. Now he was cursing himself for not taking advantage of those twenty agonizing minutes to use the hopsital's phone to reach his brother, and set up his own version of protection for Cassidy. Resolving to do that when the opportunity next presented itself, Lanny hadn't let the idea of 'his' daughter sink until he was actually at the window and looking over at her. His expression completely melted, the edges of his drawn face relaxing a little and softening. The panic never left the back of his mind, but the forefront of his thoughts were suddenly taken by awe, and all he could say at first was a quiet murmur of disbelief, "She's so tiny..."
Johann*Others
"You'll want to turn that off, before you go in and see Miss Jones," Marguerite ventured, seeing him flicking the phone open and shut in frustration, but keeping her voice low. "The signal of your cellphone can interfere with her heart monitor, and with a lot of the different machines she'll be on, even if you're not actively using it - there'll be a land-line in the room for you to use." And after quietly offering out that bit of advice, she slipped out the door, leaving the two men alone, save for Lanny's newborn daughter, the two other babies on the ward, and the nurse on duty.
And there was silence for a long time, where not a dropped pin could have escaped notice. "Her mother was about that size, when she was born. I remember it clearly." That was the first sound that Johann dared venture - his face hadn't let up much from its somberness, but there was a slight warmth in the back of his eyes that suggested he too was attempting to focus on the tiny girl before them. "And a fighter, even at that size." He couldn't quite manage a smile, with the heavy issues weighing upon his mind, but at the least, he sounded less grim and worried than he had.
Laurence Zelkovii
"Are you serious?" Laurence had looked down at his cellphone after he'd been given the warning, contemplating it as if it were a vial of some deadly plague all of a sudden. It didn't take him long to turn the device off and hastily shove it back in his pocket, where it would stay unused for the remainder of his time in the hospital. He'd nodded his acknowledgment to the mention of a land-line phone and added that to his list of things to check out later, so that he could secure security for Cassidy. That all was put aside right now however, as he was studying the tiny girl through the glass. Her tiny size as both frightening and amazing, where he felt a sense of fragility and hope at the same time as he looked at her. "I wonder if Cass came up with a name yet." He was about to go on, for the sake of breaking up the awkward silence, and say something to the effect of 'we'll have to ask her when she wakes up'. But he put a lid on that when he remembered she was on ventilation, and would be effectively mute until the tube was removed. And that only cast a cloud over his awe at seeing the tiny girl.
Johann*Others
"Raine." Despite the fact that he'd said so very little since his frantic phonecall - gods, was it less than an hour ago? - Johann immediately spoke up with authority when Lanny wondered aloud about the name. "I didn't get time to tell the staff - but she'd decided on Raine." The younger Zelkovii would recognize the name - it had been Cass' mother's name, and had sentimental value to her, since she'd never known her mother. And after that, he fell silent again, watching as the undersized infant wriggled a little in her bed and gave a few faint cries before seeming to settle down and close her eyes.
Fortunately for them, after a few minutes the decided tension in the air was interrupted by the soft voice that sounded from the door. "I'm to bring you to her," Marguerite told them softly, still keeping her voice significantly lowered in the stillness of the ward as she began to lead them to an elevator. As they were riding up, she went on, "She's in number 403. And I've been told to remind you gentlemen that she's to be kept completely quiet and calm - keep your voices down and do as little as possible. If you touch her, mind the wires - keep your cellular telephones, radios, and all other signal-emitting electronic devices turned off. There's a cot set up in the room - the two of you will have to argue over it, because only that and the couch will fit in the room." Getting out of the elevator at the correct floor and beginning to lead them down the hall, she stopped to point. "Restroom facilities are down the hall to your right - no in-room toilets are available on this floor due to risk of contamination. And please remember to keep your mask, gloves, and other sanitary clothing on and in the correct position at all times." Ending the words with perfect timing, as though it were some kind of tour, the nurse indicated a small room in the corner of the hospital, in which shone a single, tiny light - the rest of the room was dark, the figure on the bed still. But instead of the quiet sound of her breathing, there was the continual hiss of the respirator, and the beeping of the three other machines clustered around her bed. With a tube down her throat and several other wires and tubes connected all over her body, Cass didn't look very 'stable', or very much alive. But the continued little pulse of green on her monitors indicated that her heart was beating, even if she was completely responseless. Johann had to stop at the door to take a deep breath and brace himself before he could head inside.
Laurence Zelkovii
There was no response from Lanny this time around, leaving Johann only with the deafening silence that lasted for next several minutes. If the situation wasn't so grave, he would have smiled at the name, recognizing instantly where it came from, and why she had picked it out. As it was however, Lanny could muster any more words through his foggy mind, and didn't have the drive to saying anything else - he only stood there, watching Raine, while lost in deep thought. When the nurse saved them from the heavy silence, Lanny spared his daughter a long, parting glance before he proceeded after the nurse and on to Cassidy's room. He'd made no comment to the mention of the cot, having decided without any thought that Johann would get that. Along with the general guidelines of treating women respectfully, there was a strong notion of heirarch with the elderly - even James, the leader of the gang, would have opted the couch in order to offer any senior member the more comfortable cot, regardless of their ranking. It didn't mean that he'd go out of his way for anyone, but there were small, understood rules of their gang society.
It felt like a cold burst of air had hit him when he first stepped into the room, because his breath seemed to stall in his lungs for a second or two, and he froze a little. He'd pictured this sort of scene in his mind, but seeing it for real was a completely different story, and it hit him harder than he could have guessed. Clenching his jaws tightly, Lanny breezed past Johann on legs that felt full of lead, and numbly sat himself in a chair beside her bed. The tremble in his hands were more noticeable now than before, but he still reached up to run his hand across her arm, and carefully take her paled hand in his, making sure to steer clear of the man lines that were connected to her. And for the first few minutes, that's all he could do - he was simply numbed past the ability to say anything.
Cassidy*Others
While Lanny shifted past him and seated himself beside the pale young woman, Johann had frozen in the doorway, not able to draw past it, even to go see to Cass. "403... hellfire and damnation. Why this room?" he muttered to himself, his voice too soft even to be heard by Lanny, still standing in the half-darkness of the doorway, not moving. A muscle worked tensely under his jaw as he stood there, trying to make his feet mind him so that he could move into the room, but they defied him - it was near a solid minute before he could force himself into the room. Even then, he found it difficult to lift his feet as he trudged over to the opposite side of the bed, feeling something tight settle into his chest as he looked down at the girl's pale face. The muscle in his jaw continued to work and throb as he reached a careful hand up to brush delicately along her forehead and push a strand of hair out of her eyes, his touch so light that it suggested he feared she would break if his touch was too heavy. He didn't sit - he couldn't sit. The joints in his knees seemed to solidify... a few more minutes passed in absolute silence - aside from the hums and beeps of the machines - and then his voice came out softly and heavily. "I shot you, Lanny."
Laurence Zelkovii
Cassidy*Others
The old man didn't know quite while he'd felt the need to say that, in this tense moment, of all the times he could have picked. It had been eating at him for some time, ever since he'd sat across from Lanny with the girl between them and asked for details of the shooting, just as if he hadn't been there - and now, finding himself in the same situation again, with Lanny on the chair and himself in front of the couch, with Cass in between, he found that he couldn't hold it back. "I shot you," he repeated calmly, just as though he were informing the young man that his shoe was untied. As if he couldn't see that dark, frightening thing rising at the back of Lanny's eyes. But before anything else could erupt, he went on softly, "I had no other choice. If you'd been able-bodied at the time, you'd have gotten up and finished him off. And the boy was telling the truth - he didn't send that note to Cass."
Laurence Zelkovii
When the confusion dissipated from his blue eyes, what was left in its place was a frightening degree of fury that very quickly made his cheeks blossom with a pinkish tinge, "You sonofabitch!" For the third time, he stood, releasing Cassidy's hand so that he could turn and fully face the elder man, giving him a look that could kill. One hand balled up in a fist, and would almost certainly have struck out to meet Johann's face, but there was plenty to keep Lanny's arm at bay, the greatest reason being that he didn't dare disturb Cassidy. His knuckles turned white as he clenched his fingers tighter and took a few decisive steps to put him right up in front of the old man, "You're lucky I don't have my gun with me old man." The whole 'elder senority' ranking was obviously trumped in situations like these. The man's defense of his actions hadn't registered with Lanny yet, or he'd have been questioning the whole note business - all that struck him now was that Johann had the guts to shoot him. "Give me one good reason I oughtn't call James and have you swimming with the fish tonight." Maybe it was a touch overboard, but then he was known for his bouts of aggression, and he'd spent the last half-hour more stressed then he could remember.
Cassidy*Others
"Keep your voice down," the man admonished quietly, showing very little tension despite the fact that the taller and heftier young man was suddenly not two inches from his face and looking at him with murder in his eyes. He lacked the energy to encompass tension right now - where the events of the day had left Lanny wound up and only this side of homicidal, they had left Johann drained. He let out a low sigh and made no moves in defense of himself, other than to keep on talking in his quiet, tired voice. "The boy has allies, Lanny - more than you think, and more powerful than you think. If you'd killed him, you'd have brought those allies down on our heads. No one can pass a lie by me - the boy was innocent. Even aside from the ally problem, we've never deliberately spilt innocent blood - we've always kept it in-gang, and whoever else got killed was accidental, not deliberate." He stopped for a moment, weighing the younger man in his eyes, identifying all the flaws and weaknesses in him, and seeing all the strengths that made the younger Zelkovii a stronger, more stable co-lead than his brother had ever been, despite his drinking problem. "I know who sent the note... who's been threatening her all this time. And they're too prominent a force to strike at directly; if you'd killed the boy, the whole thing would have blown sky-high. I had to Lanny... to save you and me, and James and Sheryl... and Cass too. To save us all, I had to shoot you. I know you don't believe me."
Laurence Zelkovii
"You're damned right I don't believe you!" The worked up fury in him lashed out, because his common sense was a little delayed in catching up with what Johann was actually saying. It was surprising that he was able to keep his tones moderately low, and that's what eventually got him to actually thinking about the old man's reply; it all went back to Cassidy. The anger remained fuming in his expression and heavy in his words, and he was far too worked up to back away from Johann, but rather than tear into him with blunt accusations and focusing on the fact that he got shot, Lanny directed his attention to the note, "Tell me who sent the note." His tones sharpened a little and churned out more authority, but at least he was not like his brother - James would have retaliated physically by now, choosing to exact revenge first and ask questions later.
Cassidy*Others
So far, so good... he hadn't really thought this through very thoroughly before he'd spouted out that admission to Lanny, but as the tense moments passed, he saw some of the intelligence come into the blue eyes that were boring into his own. He waited patiently, silently, as that intelligence replaced the raw aggression and near-despair brought on by Cass' condition - and waited until he was addressed before he quietly answered the younger man. "A handwriting study showed exactly what I expected it to - the note was penned by an attendant at the flower shop, and the order taken over the phone. But when I got to looking at the shop's records, I noticed that it was paid for by credit card - the name of the cardholder was Alfred W. Jamison. Mr. Jamison is an employee of a prominent local mining company I'm sure you've heard of - he was likely reimbursed for the business-related expense. And I'm sure you know whom the head of that prominent mining company is." He didn't come right out and say it, but with all the trouble that Ben had always had with the ACPD, and the CrypticSilvers alliance with that group, he was sure that the younger Zelkovii knew of the manipulative man - and once he'd gotten past the blinders that had consumed him in worry for Cass and who might be threatening her, he'd studied it, and Mr. Linus had suddenly become a very possible - indeed, a very likely - choice.
Laurence Zelkovii
Lanny was at a point where he was borderline ready to have it out with Johann, and caught by what could be the true answer to a question that he thought was already figured out. It was his need to protect Cassidy, and the constant goal to keep the gang strong, that won out over the more senseless rage that he'd almost let himself loose with. Slowly, the anger began to wash away, leaving the young man feeling more weary than he'd noticed, until he actually backed off from Johann and sat down to continue the conversation. His eyes were still cold, and he wasn't close to being done talking about the shooting - but he was sensible enough to hash out the more important stuff first, "No, why would he..." Benjamin Linus came to mind when Johann led him on with the clues but the name just didn't seem to fit the picture, as far as Lanny was concerned. "Why would Linus want to mess with us?" Unlike most in the town who were fooled by Ben's charisma and friendly act, Ben had proven before that he was far more cunning than he let on, and that much was revealed when he helped in an assassination. Lanny didn't realize just how deep the man had his claws into their business, or just how far his influences stretched over the Valley.
Cassidy*Others
There was a long, breathless moment where Johann thought that Lanny was going to sock him a good one - and he had to admit that he would have deserved it if the younger man had. However, when Lanny backed away and sat down, the older man relaxed internally - he'd been braced for the hit, and now he allowed his muscles to untense. Moving back himself and sinking onto the couch with a heavy sigh, Johann ran a hand tiredly over his eyes as he answered, "Because he's afraid of Cass." He'd barely whispered that, due as much to the strangeness of the idea as it was to his weariness, and after a moment's pause, he explained, "We had some brief dealings with him, she and I - they consisted mostly of eliminating a few mutual enemies that the gang didn't need to be involved in. She used the lessons I taught her to deal with him - he's as sly and clever as they come, that man. And he felt threatened by her ability to shift through emotions as efficiently as he can. So he wanted to get her out of his way, either by making her his puppet, or by eliminating her... or by frightening her. She's too smart to be his puppet, and with her ties to the gang, he didn't dare kill her. So he went for the third option." He shifted his weight some, and went on still more softly, "He sees her as a threat that must be eliminated - and he'll use you and the baby to get to her, if he can."
Laurence Zelkovii
The more that Johann spoke, the further Lanny's mind traveled away from the shooting for the time being. One sure fire way to divert his attention so thoroughly was to point out a danger to Cassidy or any of his 'family', because it was part of his duty as co-lead to ensure safety and unity in the group, and to snuff out threat and competition. "You're really pushing it today, you know that?" Lanny leveled the man with a defiant warning when he learned of the dealings that went on without Jame's approval, but didn't otherwise interrupt him until the explanation was finished. He wasn't going to question this information, as much as he was put off by the revelation of the shooting; this was Johann's job, and he did it better than anyone else. "I'll tell James soon as I get to a phone. I'm going to need names of everyone in that mining company, and anyone he's connected to. Sending that letter was the worst mistake of his life, and the last one he's going to make, mark my words."
Cassidy*Others
"It wasn't my decision," Johann informed the young man carefully - and of course if it hadn't been his idea to have connections with Ben, then it was perfectly clear who had made the decision. And his words were so deadpan that it had to be the truth - he'd kept something from Lanny, but he'd never lied to the co-lead. "Dammit, Lanny - I've been with this gang thirty four years. And I'm still doing the same thing now that I've always done - trying to keep it going, and doing what I need to do in order to see to it that everyone comes home alive. You know that. But you know also that Cass comes before everything else in my life - gang included." He shook his head slowly - perhaps the day was catching up with him, but he looked desperately old right now. He was in his early forties, but his everyday appearance was more in the fifties - tonight, he'd aged another decade. "You can't do that, Lanny - if you strike at Linus, he'll use all of his resources to bring the gang down. And he's got more than we've ever suspected - he's got both the money and the influence to give us a run for our power. Best case scenario, we keep the city, and lose our control - we become a puppet either of the mayor, or of him, whoever wins out. Worst case, we lose the the city, lose control - and lose most of our people. We just don't have the manpower to eliminate him - and we can't run the risk of getting him angry by trying to hurt him and failing."
Laurence Zelkovii
This was a tough one for Laurence, because he knew Johann was true in his words and wisdom, but to not react was to left an enemy breech the defenses of his gang, and more unsavory, to threaten Cassidy. "We can't let him do this and get away scot free, no way. No one is immune from us." He growled, in a tone so low and filled with frustration that it was hard to hear. He took a moment to look back on Cassidy, then to the floor, and finally back to Johann, trying to put things in order in his head, "I'll tell you right now, I'm not sitting back and letting this slide. I'll agree that telling James of it can wait for a little while - but I swear, if Linus does something else, he's a dead man. Until then, I need you to find out everything there is about him, and find his weaknesses. If he can't be taken out by force, we'll play his games."
Cassidy*Others
Shrugging his shoulders to alleviate a stiffness in his neck, Johann wearily forced his brain to keep on functioning and plotting, even while he felt as though he'd fall over any minute. Only the sharpness at the back of his eyes revealed any tension he might be feeling. "You don't honestly think that I'd let him get away with hurting her?" His voice sounded shocked, insulted - and horrified. It was a cover for what might otherwise have been hurt... he couldn't believe that Lanny would suggest that he'd let all this go with not attempt at retaliation. An awkward silence fell after that, until finally he spoke up again. "One thing you'd better call and tell James is that we need guards up here - personally, I feel like crap... and you don't look any better. I doubt seriously either one of us would be a decent guard tonight."
Laurence Zelkovii
Because his mood was already rather low and he was on the defense, Lanny snapped back harshly at the man, "If you've got a plan, I'd better be the first one to hear about it." Of all times, right now was not the healthiest times to get into a quarrel with Cassidy's uncle, but he wasn't cool-headed enough at the moment to sensibly control all that he was spewing out. Stewing a little, and being in a rare enough mood that he wasn't going to back down and acknowledge that Johann was just as defensive, if not moreso, about Cassidy, Lanny chose the easier route of silence right now. He scrubbed at his head, then tiredly at his eyes, speaking only after Johann had pointed out James again, "I'll give him a call." Forcing himself up, Lanny stalked towards the door, but paused before he was about to exit, and turned to address the old man, "Take the cot, I'll have the couch tonight."
Cassidy*Others
"Agreed," the old man rumbled solemnly, a promise to keep the young man in the loop, whether he really liked the idea or not. Lanny was more even-tempered and calm natured than his brother, but Johann knew as well as anyone just the sort of senseless rage the young man could get into under the right conditions. Threats to those he loved was one of those conditions - and he knew without a doubt, judging by the way that the co-lead had stuck by Cass all through her pregnancy, and by the desperation and all-consuming distress he'd displayed this afternoon, that Cass was someone that Lanny loved. He'd suspected it before, but these things confirmed it. So for Cass' sake, he made the promise, and intended to keep it.
He fell silent after that, again scrubbing a hand tiredly over his face, and turning a look to Cass. She had lain silent and still through the whole discussion, lost to the world and looking more weakened and vulnerable than he'd ever seen her. His protective senses flared, his heart beating with a heavy, somber rhythm that made his chest hurt - he didn't answer Lanny, but by the time the younger man returned from making the phone call, it wouldn't matter. Johann was stretched out, one hand resting on the bed beside Cass in a sign of protection - and his head resting on the arm of the couch. The way he didn't stir when Lanny came back in was the first hint, and his light snoring the second - he'd passed out barely after the younger man had left the room.
Laurence Zelkovii
Going by the haggard look of the old man before he'd left the room, Lanny wasn't all too surprised to find him dead to the world by the time he came back. Tired himself, sleep sounded like a pretty good idea to him, but he had enough fright and fight left in him to easily push that aside; at least for the next hour or so, and definitely until a proper guard arrived and the place was secured by his standards. So it was that the young man pulled up a chair on the opposite side of Cassidy's bed, and again took to holding her hand, as if he could keep her tied to this world with that simple gesture. "We'll get him, Cass. For you and Raine, we'll get him. You just have to fight this battle first."