Hard to Hate You // Michael Langdon

Part XX - Halloween Ball

I smirk as I lean forward.  "You've made your bed, Wilhemina; now it is time to lie in it."

......

"Why are we even still having this stupid ball?" Mallory complains from Coco's bedroom.  "We should just kill Venable now."

Gallant pauses doing Coco's hair just long enough for them to share a skeptical look.  They've never heard Mallory this angry before.  Gallant sighs as he continues doing Coco's hair; the only one of us who wants to dress up is Coco, so he's devoting all of his time to doing her hair.

Coco speaks up.  "Are you sure about this, Mal?  You're talking murder; that's some serious shit, and there's no taking it back."

"Venable has had no problem murdering innocent people in the past.  Even if Stu was contaminated, she should have never killed him," Mallory counters.

"Listen, Mallory," I state from Coco's bed, sitting up.  "You're thinking with your feelings right now.  You're pissed, which you have every right to be.  However, you and Venable are not the same; you aren't made to kill people."

"I don't care.  Venable deserves what's coming her way."

I look towards Coco and Gallant, and they both have the same look on their face: they know that Mallory will regret this.  I sigh as I turn back to Mallory.  "Listen, the other Grays are going to kill Venable anyway, so it's not like you need to get involved."

"I want to kill her.  No, I need to kill her."

I sigh as I send a defeated look to Gallant and Coco.  They shrug helplessly.

"I'm not going to regret this.  I promise," Mallory states.

I shrug.  "You'd better not, because there's no going back."

......

"Where is Langdon?" Venable asks me.

I turn to her, surprised that she is already here, considering that the whole outpost wants to kill her.  I turn back to look at the outpost inhabitants grimly talking around the sitting room, yet to notice Venable's presence.  "He's not coming," I state.

I can sense the disappointment emanating off of her, but I decide not to address it.  "Tell me, Ms. Venable, what are you planning?" I ask.  I could just read her mind, but 1) I'm not the best at mind-reading yet and 2) It's more entertaining to try to pry the answers from her.

She sighs.  "You'll find out."

"Are you planning on letting me die?" I ask amusedly.

She smirks to herself.  "You're at an advantage here; you already know that I have something planned.  You must be smart enough to figure out what it is; if not, then you can die with the rest of the people here."

I chuckle.  "Harsh.  I suppose I should expect nothing less."

She nods.  "I'll see you when the festivities begin."

With that, she slips off into the hallway.  I turn back to see Gallant entering the sitting room.  "Where's Coco and Mallory?" I ask as I walk to him.

He points to the balcony.  "On their way."

I turn to the balcony as Mallory appears.  I smile, noticing that her hair is down and that she is wearing one of Coco's dresses; Coco must have given it to her.  Mallory clears her throat, diverting the room's attention to her.  "May I present Coco St. Pierre Vanderbilt," she announces as she steps out of the way to reveal Coco.