Casting a glance at the rest of the mansion residents seated at the table, Scott watched them their faces, pale, their hands clasped tightly upon the drinks before them. He felt a sick, twisted glee at the thought that they knew what he was struggling with now, they knew the demons that Logan had slain.
The walls till glowed with the pictures of other children, a soft, steady hum of classical music filled the room as dinner were served. He watched Jean pick at the meal set before her and hid a grin.
Scott saw Bethany talking to Piotr and Angel and sighed, he wondered if she’d be open to slipping away for a few minutes. He smiled softly when she turned to look at him, and saw her smile back. A moment later she was moving through the tables, ignoring the drone of conversations as she moved to their table.
“How is everything this evening?” Bethany asked pausing behind Scott’s chair. “I trust you meal is satisfactory.”
“Yes, thank you.” Charles dabbed at his mouth as he cast a glance at his team. “Are you from here Bethany?”
Bethany shook her head, “No. I’m not.”
“But you live here.” Jean smiled coldly at her.
“For the time being. I’m only helping to get the new property up and running before I head home.”
“Where were you originally from?” Bobby asked.
Bethany looked at the polished young man for a moment, “Tennessee. A small town in the mountains.”
“Do you miss it?” Jean asked catching the familiarity between her and Scott and not liking it a bit. Somehow this girl knew him and it bothered her.
“No. I stopped missing it about the time I was nine.” Bethany replied and cast a glance toward the front of the room. “That’s when I met Angel. She wasn’t so polished then, little more than a teenager herself.”
“Tell us about her.” Charles invited.
“If you want to know about her, ask someone who could tell you more.” Bethany bowed slightly. “Enjoy the rest of the evening.”
“Thank you.” Charles watched the young woman slip away into the crowd and leaned forward. “She’s not a mutant.”
“Does she have to be?” Scott asked. “Does being human make her less worthy of help?”
“Scott that isn’t what…”
“No?” Scott shifted on the chair and sighed. “What makes one more suitable for salvation than the other? There should be no difference, help is help.”
“Scott,” Jean put a hand on his wrist. “There has to be more than just a few children being abused to this. What is she training them for? What are they doing gathered in such large groups…”
“Living.” Logan said as he took an empty seat and leaned back in his chair. “Surviving and doing a damn good job of it.”
“Should have realized you’d be here.” Jean hissed. “Isn’t it enough that you’ve managed to corrupt Piotr’s thinking…”
“I have no say in what Piotr does. If you want to know why not ask.” Logan leaned forward and stared at her. “Look around you Jean, take a good look. You think these kids are being trained to fight mutants? You think this has anything to do with your war? It doesn’t. Every one of these kids is suffering from something you wouldn’t understand. You’ve never had to trade your dignity for your next meal.”
“Oh come on Logan, this isn’t some epidemic that’s being swept under the rug.”
“No?” Logan shook his head and glared at her. “Tell me Jean, when was the last time you were hungry? How many times have you been willing to do anything for a meal? You can’t because you’ve never walked in the gutter. You wanna know about Angel, ask her. Ask her to tell you about hell and see if you still feel this is all some elaborate ploy to get money.”
Logan stood and glared down at those at the table. “I’ll ask Angel to join you.”
Exchanging telling looks, those at the table were silent as Logan stalked over to the tall blonde who glanced sharply at the table before nodding.
“Looks like we may get an answer to our questions.” Charles said as the woman glided to the table and sank into the vacant chair.
“So Logan tells me you wanted to talk to me.”
“We’re curious. What made you do this?” Storm asked as she waved at the room.
Angel smiled sadly and glanced around. “Because, at one time I was one of those kids. I’ve seen the degradation that happens, I’ve walked in those shadows and I’m not scared of it. Only a few get out, and I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let anyone suffer because of another’s choices.”
“You can’t possibly…” Jean started only to stop as a rather large shadow loomed over the table.
“Miss Angel,” distinct, deep, the baritone was filled with an urgency few at the table heard.
“Yes Bulldog?”
“We’ve got a problem.”
Angel rose without a word and started for the door to the rest of the building. Ignoring the looks being exchanged at Xavier’s table she sighed, “What is it?”
“Got word that one of our team’s spotted someone. He ain’t exactly young, what I mean is he’s in his late teens but he’s in pretty rough shape. He’s traveling with a little girl about ten, and another kid although I’m not sure what the age or gender is. From what I’ve managed to get outta Witchdoctor things are going bad.”
“How so?” Angel said turning the lock and heading for her office. She would need to be changed and ready to go with a moment’s notice.
“Witchdoctor said she recognized Elise McQuire as the bait.”
Angel shot her enforcer a dark look before she reached for the zipper of her gown. Tossing it aside, she heard the shuffle of feet as he turned to give her a bit of privacy. Slipping into a pair of black jeans, a tank-top, and her gauntlet she reached for the slim silver letter opener on her desk. Tucking it in her hair she galncd up as the door opened and Piotr, Logan, and Deke stepped into the room.
“Leave Bethany in charge,” Angel drawled. “We’re going out toplay.”
“You should stay here,” Piotr said. “You should be present for any of the guests to ask questions…”
“This isn’t a game Piotr,” Angel spoke softly as she stared at her lover. “I can’t let McQuire beat me to these kids. Besides, I can get closer to the shadows than you can. This isn’t a fight tonight, this is simply making sure that bitch doesn’t get the kids. Logan, is there any rooms available at the new place?’
“Sure. Got half the building ready.”
“Good, Rogue can handle setting things up for three residents. It’ll be just the four er five of us.” Angel moved quickly, organizing her mind in preparation for the coming confrontation. “Get a hold of Witchdoctor and let her know we’re coming. Tell her to keep an eye on the trio, but not to make contact.”
Bulldog nodded and hurried from the room.
“So you think they’re going to accept an offer of help?” Logan asked.
Angel grinned and shrugged, “As long as they’re aware of the problems that come with being on the streets I’m sure that boy’ll make the right decision.”
Exchanging a glance the trio of men followed Angel toward the side door. Would there be bloodshed or not? Either way, someone was going to get hurt.
Bethany leaned back slightly and watched in silence as Angel, dressed in full battle regalia led a small team toward a waiting car. Casting a glance behind her, she sighed, it would do no good to alert anyone to the possibilities. She watched in silence as the car pulled away from the front of the house and disappeared into the steady stream of traffic.
“Something interesting?” Scott whispered against her neck.
“There’s always something interesting around here.” Bethany turned to face him. “Isn’t your wife going to notice you’ve slipped away?”
Scott shrugged, “Probably. But since I came to see if you’re going to be around later…”
“I’ll be at my place after midnight,” Bethany whispered softly. “Feel free to use the key.”
Scott nodded and squeezed her arm gently before slipping away. Bethany watched him disappear into the crowd and sighed, tonight would bring more than just a few pennies into the coffer. She just hoped that when it came dawn, something was still standing.
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