Truth & Lie

Chapter 16

Leaning back in his chair, Bradford drummed his fingers on his desk. Katie had been ignoring his calls. He bit his beak. She didn't actually think they would win, did she? Bradford chuckled to himself. They didn't have a chance. He had killed anyone with a blood relation to the McDucks, and Huey was at FOWL. The only ones left were close honorary family and a few friends of friends. Their small ragtag team couldn't hope to defeat FOWL.
Bradford was about to try to call again, but stopped. Then he had another idea. He could go to her. Certainly seeing Katie in person would convince her that he did actually care about her. And from what he had seen from the hacked footage at the mansion, they weren't treating her very well either. It was just to prove his point that their family wasn't actually as tight and loving as she thought. And Bradford's plan came together.

After Drake left, Katie and Gosalyn were alone in the mansion. Gosalyn started circling the robin. "So, Katie, you work for FOWL, eh?" Gosalyn asked.
Katie looked confused. "You already know that, and no, I don't," she said.
Gosalyn glared at her. "I'm the one running the interrogation, thank you," she said.
Katie spoke up. "If you're going to interrogate me, at least do it correctly," she began. "You would have to take me to a private room in case of spies, know what you're trying to get me to tell you, find a way I can't escape and- Oh, no," she said, after seeing a look in Gosalyn's eyes.

Katie was tied to a chair in Scrooge's office. Gosalyn stood on the table in front of her. Katie sighed. "Now, where's FOWL's hideout?" Gosalyn asked.
"Well, if I was a spy, I wouldn't tell you, but since I'm not, it's at Funzo's," Katie answered.
Gosalyn gasped. "You mean Funzo's Fun Zone, where fun is in the zone?" she sang. Katie nodded.
Gosalyn frowned. "He always seemed like such a friendly walrus. I should've known better."
"Can you untie me now?" Katie asked politely.
"No! I'm not done asking questions!" Gosalyn snapped. Katie clamed up.
"Now, most importantly, where's Huey?" Gosalyn demanded. "I honestly don't know. My grandpa told me he was here, but he..." Katie dropped off in thought.
Gosalyn put her hands on her hips. "Just admit it. He lied to you," she said.
Katie glared at her. "You guys keep saying that! But I bet I have a better relation with my grandpa than you," she said angrily.
Gosalyn stopped. Katie watched her. She saw a glint in her eyes. Was she... crying? Katie wondered if maybe she had hit a soft spot. Gosalyn sniffled.
"Gosalyn are you crying? You always seem like you're full of spirit," Katie questioned.
Gosalyn went quiet. She wiped her tears with her arm. Then she looked at Katie upset. "Katie, why can't you see the hurt FOWL has caused? Bradford murdered people. Not just the McDucks, but others too. And some of those people were good people. Some of those people had a little granddaughter at home. And some of those people were all I had left," Gosalyn said.
Katie was quiet. Had something happened to Gosalyn?
"FOWL killing Huey's family effected more than just their family. Webby lost her grandmother. I lost a close friend. We all did. And yet you continue to believe your grandfather isn't a bad guy." Then the girl left the room upset.
Katie was speechless. She untied herself from the rope, seeing as Gosalyn wasn't very good at tying knots. She went to the front room, questioning herself. She laid down on the couch. Then she closed her eyes exhausted. She hadn't meant to hurt Gosalyn. She was just tired of being accused so much.
A familiar voice made her sit up straight.
"Katie."
"Grandpa?"
Katie jumped to her feet. She stared at her grandfather, standing before her. She couldn't believe it.
"What are you doing here?" she gasped.
Bradford put a hand on her shoulder. "Oh, Katie, did you think I wouldn't come for you? The real question is, what are you doing here?" he said.
She tensed up. She started to stutter. "I- I-"
He combed his hand through her hair. "Katherine, you know better than to keep secrets from me. We tell each other everything," he said. The robin gulped.
"I know you helped those girls out of FOWL," he said.
She looked up at him. "You do?" she asked worried.
Bradford nodded. "And I don't blame you," he added.
She was surprised. "You don't?"
"Why, you were just trying to do that right thing, saving two seemingly innocent girls," he said.
Katie raised an eyebrow, suspicious. "But?"
"But let me tell you, they weren't," he said.
Katie pulled away from him. "Webby and Gosalyn didn't do anything. They're nice!" she argued.
Bradford clicked his tongue. "Really? How have they been treating you here? Are they the wonderful family you thought they would be?" he questioned.
She stopped. She went quiet, thinking.
"Well?" he pressed. She folded her hands nervously.
He knelt to her level. "Oh, Katie, I tried to tell you how heartless they were," he said. "Remember all the fun times we've had? We're a closer family, built on love and trust and-"
She took a step back. "If I can trust you then where's Huey!" she demanded.
Bradford was taken back. "Katie, you can't be questioning if you can trust me! We're family," he said.
"Then where's Huey?"
Bradford bit his lip. If he was going to get her back, he had to at least throw her some line. "Fine, you want to know where Huey is?" he said. She nodded, biting down on her lip. "Alright, I'll tell you. He's in cell 25," he replied.
Katie gasped. "What! Why!" she exclaimed.
"Because he wasn't so innocent either," he said. Bradford could see pain in her eyes.
"Katie, come back to me," he pleaded. She looked around. "You don't need to worry about what your so called friends will think. So please, come back," he said. She stared at her feet.
The two were startled by a clanging noise outside of the room. "What was that?" she asked, spinning around. No one was there. She turned back to her grandfather, only to find he was gone.

Five minutes earlier...
Cleaning herself up, Gosalyn stared into the bathroom mirror. She took in a deep breath. With her sleeve, she wiped away any remaining tears. She held onto the edge of the counter. "Come on, Gos, tough girls don't cry," she scolded herself. She looked herself in the eyes with the mirror. She was just tired of losing people. She thought back on how she had treated Katie. She cringed at the thought of apologising, but she supposed it was the right thing to do.
The redhead duckling searched the mansion for Katie. She thought she had voices in the other room. She stood by the entry way to the room and listened. There was Katie, but there was somebody else too.
"Alright, I'll tell you, he's in cell 25," a man said.
Gosalyn pressed her back against the wall. "Cell 25?" she whispered under her breath.
"What! Why!" Katie exclaimed. Gosalyn held her breath, trying not to make a sound.
"Because he wasn't so innocent either," the man said. Then he added, "Katie, come back to me."
Gosalyn tried to get a better view of who the robin was talking too. But she wasn't paying attention to what her leg was doing. She knocked down a few items off of a nearby shelf.
"What was that?" Gosalyn heard Katie say. The duckling ducked around the corner, trying not to be spotted.
Outside the window, she saw a vulture leaving the property. Gosalyn frowned and snapped her fingers. "I knew she was a spy!" she whisper shouted.

Huey tossed and turned in his sleep. He was used to the nightmares, but this one was different. Instead of him dreaming of murdering his brothers in one way or another, he was in a dark room. His brothers stood before him. Huey ran up to them. "Dewey! Louie! I missed you so much!" he cried running in for a hug.
Dewey and Louie took a step back, dodging his hug. "Guys?" Huey questioned. They both had angry expressions.
His brothers glared at him. "So, what? You're just giving up?" Dewey said.
Huey raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" he asked.
Louie crossed his arms. "Huey! Look at yourself! Just wallowing in your own self pity! Whatever happened to Ducks don't back down?" he said.

Huey fumbled for words. "I- I-"

Dewey pointed an accusing finger at him. "You're just giving up and would be happy if you just died!"

Louie shook his head. "Just going to rot away in this cell. And no one will have cared you existed. You've lost your fire Hue," he said.
Dewey sent Huey an intimidating stare. "You disappointed us," the blue triplet said. Huey's brothers turned to leave.

"Wait! Guys!" he called after them. They ignored him. Huey tried to run after them, but his feet were frozen to the ground. "Dewey! Louie! Help!"

Huey shot awake from his nightmare. He breathed heavily, biting hard on his beak. Then, he broke down in tears. For the first time in a long time, he let all his emotions flow out at once. Picking up a stale roll, he chucked it as hard as he could against the wall. Then he went on crying.