Without wasting another minute, he bolted, knowing he’d be caught and not giving a damn. He could not spend the night in jail. He pulled the tried and true duck and dodge. And it worked. He managed to get all the way back to town with that one.

Then, he got to Kelly’s and ran headfirst into the Absent Papa. Things got very sticky from there. Evidently, something tripped Luke’s radar, prompting him to catch Spinelli by the scruff of his neck and not let go.

“Where are you headed to in such a hurry? Or should I be asking where you’re coming from?” He sounded mildly amused and not-at-all curious. Spinelli was inwardly thankful and prayed he’d be released before the inevitable phone call came. Alas, that was not to be.

Luke’s cell rang and he let Spin go long enough to reach for it. Another cue for the skittish one--he shot away from the tiny coffeehouse like a bullet out of a homemade pistol. He kept listening even as distance came between where he was and where he’d been.

“Hey, you! Get back here!” Long strides followed his shorter ones, so he double-timed it. He knew Luke Spencer was old school. Zigzagging wouldn’t save him with this guy. That left him one option: run like hell and pray for rain. Robert had said accessible, not available for a rousing bout of kickboxing with the Blond One’s father.

Spinelli tripped and was seized by a pair of unrelenting hands that threw him to the sidewalk. He stared up in horror at Luke Spencer who said, “You either tell me what you’ve done with Laura or you see stars.”

At this point, Spinelli couldn’t actually breathe. He was too afraid to try and, so, held his breath.

“Speak!” His fist was poised over the Jackal’s face, looking as though it packed a serious punch.

“I know not of what you speak,” he uttered at his own risk.

“Really?” Luke’s expression became even less forgiving. Spinelli braced himself for pain. “You went to see her not an hour ago. Then, she vanished. Why were you at Shady Brook?”

Spinelli squinted up, hoping--maybe even praying a little--for an intervention. “I was looking for the Blond One.” He realized his words and panicked. “The other blond one! The younger blond one! I didn’t find her. So, I left.” He winced at the impossible lie. It wasn’t a good one, not nearly one of his best.

“You left?”

Spin nodded only to be met with Luke’s hand around his throat.

“Where did you take her?” Luke was nothing if not single-minded. Rationality was foreign in this moment.

“I don’t know where she is.”

“Did you see who took her?”

Damian pursed his lips, diverting his eyes, thinking maybe they wouldn’t give him away. It wasn’t a day for him to praise his body parts.

“Computer boy, I’m not kidding. Tell me or I kill you. Simple options: chose one.”

“Just some guy,” he whispered, hedging. He needed to be going. If he was going to save the Blond Mother, he’d have to shake the formerly Blond Father.

He did indeed see stars as he skull made harsh contact with the pavement. He groaned. “More than necessary force, Distinguished One.”

“I’ll show you force, spud. If you don’t tell me where Laura is I’ll force you into the middle of rush hour traffic--on your back!”

“I can’t tell you,” he relented. It wasn’t worth his life, or Laura’s, to keep up this lie. If he could just show the Proud Papa that he was the only key to Laura, he’d be fine.

“Why not?” They were causing quite the commotion. In fact, Spinelli recognized a blond head bobbing in the crowd.

“Dad! Let Spinelli go. Dad.” Lulu came up behind her father, attempting to separate him from her clearly overcome suitor. Luke wasn’t going anywhere.

“He took your mom, Lulu. He was there when she disappeared and he won’t tell me where she is, who has her, and why they took her. I’m not letting him go.”

Lulu looked stricken. She clearly hadn’t gotten the call. “Spinelli, is that true? Do you know where my mom is?”

He shouldn’t say. He knew it would make things even more complicated if he told her what had happened; he just wasn’t smart enough to lie to her. He looked away.

“Spinelli, if you know, you have to tell us. She can’t protect herself. That means it’s up to us to keep her safe. Tell me, please.”

“She’s all right,” he croaked. His throat ached and the stars he was seeing changed into dark spots on his vision.

Lulu was next to his head, touching his face. It was nice. “Spin, where’s my mom?”

“In the company of greatness,” he wheezed.

“Who?” Luke cut in.

Spinelli attempted to pry Luke’s fingers away from his neck. “The Scorpion. He was present at the Jackal’s arrival.”

Luke gave a confused scowl. “Robert?”

“Yes,” he rasped. “He was trying give her something, something to revive her, but the Jackal…I made him jump and he dropped the needle. Therefore, I am duty-bound to help him get more of the cure.”

“There’s a cure.” A faint hope lit Luke’s voice, and he loosened his hold on Spinelli’s neck, who could finally nod.

“It’s location is perilous, but The Jackal will help him get there to retrieve the antidote. I’m the only one who can.”

Luke stood up, not bothering to dust himself off. “I don’t think so. You’ve done enough. I’ll get it.”

Spinelli propped himself up on his elbows, staring helplessly at the towering figure of the Blond Mother’s eternal savior. He shook his head. “No, sir, it can‘t be you. It has to be the Jackal. I have technical the expertise to do this. It has to be me. Even the Scorpion agrees,” he shrugged as though that was the final word. He turned to Lulu, who looked scared and determined and his sinking feeling didn’t lessen. Her mindset was his open book.

“No, Blond One, you have to stay here. Your sole duty is to ensure the Blond Mother’s safety while we’re away. There are people out to hurt her. If we have a cure, but we don’t have anyone to give it to the journey will be pointless. Give me your word that you’ll keep an eye out.”

Lulu looked suspicious, but trusting. “You know I’ll do anything for my mom. I just don’t know how I can take care of her if I don’ t even know where she is.”

Although Spinelli realized the vow he was about to make was false, he knew that not making it was worse. The plan would stall if he couldn’t send the Spencers on a different path. He licked his lips uneasily. Did he mention lying was not something he was good at?

“When the time is right, a call will come for you,” he took Lulu’s hand. “It will tell you the location of the Blond Mother. The thing is, you’ll only get the call if we fail in our mission. It will probably only come if we die trying. Otherwise, we’re not gonna stop until we can bring her back. We just won’t. I won’t.”

Lulu was putting on a brave face and nodding as though she understood. That was the thing, Spinelli thought, she knew him better than anyone alive and she knew he meant it. He would die trying to give her back what she wanted most. It was immature, and maybe a little selfish. That didn’t meant he wouldn’t do it. It was love after all.

Aware that they were still sitting on the pavement in the middle of the street, Lulu helped Spinelli up. Luke had already disappeared, most likely in search of his old friend and Lulu looked about ready to flee herself.

“When are you leaving?”

“Tonight.”

She arched an eyebrow in surprise. “So soon. I thought it would take more time to get this kind of operation under way.”

Spinelli stuck his hands in the pockets of his hoodie. “You’d think so, but the Scorpion planned well, even well enough to weather the Jackal’s reign of destruction. He was prepared for things to go awry.”

They started to walk together, amid the whispers of the latest Spencer hijinks, towards the docks. He deviated somewhat, directing them back towards Kelly’s. He didn’t want her anywhere near the docks when he had to leave. If she was there, she was as good as going on the trip and he wasn’t gonna let that happen. She was tough as any warrior princess he’d ever known, as beautiful too, yet she was someone he wanted to shield, to protect. He wanted to be her hero for once instead of the other way around.

When they arrived at the entrance to the tiny coffee shop, he had a feeling it was almost his time to go. He wanted to call it his gut, but that mainly consisted of the part of his brain that told him when to hit the space bar during level four of Spartan Battlements III. No, his instincts weren’t much to speak of, but they were his and he trusted them.

“The Jackal must depart, now,” he smiled nervously. “But, uh, I’ll be back. Hopefully, upon my return, I’ll be able to revive the Blond Mother and restore order to the House of Spencer.” It sounded so noble, he almost didn’t believe he was the one trying to do it. And he didn’t know what else to say. “Take care.” He didn’t want to say goodbye this way.

The Blond One was nonplussed. She was non-responsive, he would even describe her eyes as somewhat lost. She didn’t say a word; just threw her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. Her tears were on his face, salty and wet, warming his heart and cementing his resolve.

“I will always love you for this,” she whispered in his ear. He clung to her and memorized it all. This was first love and it was forever.

“That’s why I have to do this,” he whispered in return. “Because I love you, too.” There they were, words he couldn’t yank back into his soul where they were sure to go unbothered. She was stunned into silence; her lips moved without sound. He brushed her feathery bangs away from her eyes so that he could commit them to memory. It was a small gesture that meant it all.

“Farewell,…my Lulu.” Without waiting for her response, he pulled out of her embrace and hurried headlong into the night. The Scorpion was waiting.

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