Tares City

62. Dilemmas

Arrow is startled awake by the bag being roughly removed from her head. Bright lights blind her instantly, and her earphones are removed roughly as well. Before she could blink to make her eyes adjust faster, her chair is rocked back at a precarious angle, a damp towel being slapped onto her face. Her brain doesn't get to register any of this fully before water begins falling onto a towel covered face.

She was being waterboarded.

Arrow sputters and coughs as her nose and lungs burn. She spits water out her mouth with each gasp but it doesn't help her much, the towel across her face making it hard for her to get a clear breath. Just as abruptly as it began, it comes to an end. Her chair is pitched forward roughly, the towel snatched off of her - earphones and sack being replaced before she could get a look at anything.

In the silence of her sensory deficit, her racing heart beats loudly, her erratic breathing sounding as if it were someone else. Her nose burned, her head aches, her lungs stung....she was helpless. What feels like hours pass before the event repeats itself, playing out in the very same way it had the first time. Starting with her succumbing to the fatigue only to be awakened by near drowning.

After the third assault, a rag is tied over her eyes once her chair is returned to its natural position.

"In the mood to chat hunter?" A female voice speaks, coming from directly ahead of her.

Arrow doesn't respond, despite her mind screaming at her about the severity of the repercussions to come.

"No? Okay."

Arrow expected to be waterboarded again at her defiance, readying herself to brace the torture. Instead, she feels the muscles in her body begin to pulse painfully as instantaneous and unrelenting agony surged through her. The suddenness and intensity have her crying out, fighting against her restraints.

"Name?" A male voice asks once the source of pain recedes, tremors still racking her body.

"A-Alex," Arrow sputters out.

"Why were you at the restaurant, Alex?" He asks, his tone mocking.

"I got lost," Arrow responds, receiving a laugh from the man.

"The hunter has jokes. Killed four innocent men, widowed a pregnant woman, paralyzed the sole bread winner of a family... and she has jokes!"

Arrow finds herself tensing, readying her body for the pain of what she guessed was a taser again. But the sting never came. With the earphones off, she knew someone was still in the space with her, hearing footfalls moving around.

"AH!" Arrow screams out as heat connects to her leg, the sound of a sizzle against her flesh intensifying the sensation.

As soon as the heat source is removed from her skin, Arrow's ears are covered once more - the bag being placed over her head even though a cloth is tied around her eyes.

~

YARA ROSEWOOD

Yara steps out of the room as the hunter's scream dies down.

She was a bit stunned when Jensen told her to let Dalton carry out the interrogations. She was fully prepared to face the hunters and demand answers. It was her restaurant, her friends. She wanted to be the one to take the lead but Jensen was persistent and now she knew why. Now she saw what Jensen knew his friend was capable of. She figured his tactics were from their time in the field. Dalton's cold, stoic approach was fascinating and unnerving to watch.

He carried out the interrogation in a way she would not have thought to. "Break them, and then make them talk." He had told her when she asked why they were starting with their questions.

Walking outside, she looks back at her cabin house. Part of her wasn't happy they were doing this at her Clearmeadow home but it was the only secure and private place within their reach. They had the hunters locked in separate rooms of the unfinished extension. They'd make sure to move every and anything out of the spaces, though Yara was confident they wouldn't be getting themselves out anytime soon. Dalton had been thorough in securing the female hunter, making sure there wasn't more than an inch of space for her to move. The male was still unconscious, Jensen doing just enough to prolong his life. He removed the bullet, placing mediocre stitches to close the wounds he sustained.

Taking out her phone, she dials Darla, needing to check up on her and Decker. Decker was the only one to survive the ordeal with the hunters, but it was at a cost. Paralyzed from whatever poison they'd injected him with, her friend was no longer able to shift. Despite his efforts, he couldn't bring forth his claws or change his eyes. Trapped within a body that didn't work.

Yara had Darla stay with Decker and his family, hoping it would be enough to keep her occupied. She of course wanted to be a part of the questions but they all knew that scenario would not have played out well for them. She wanted the hunters dead but they needed answers first. After that...well...

A new text distracts Yara before she can press the call button - seeing it was a reply from Brandon. 'Got the name, send the posit.' The text read. Brandon was the owner of 'Tares Auto Wreckers', a family-owned business he inherited. A Lycan Yara met when she opened her restaurant, and the two of them became acquainted when he gave her his card with the proposal of trading discounts.

The night of the attack was the first time Yara used his number, having to negotiate a price and a couple of meals for his discretion. No stranger to the works of hunters, he eventually agreed...at a cost. He also offered Yara the opportunity to find out the name of the car's owner. The price was steep but it was leverage they needed.

With a sigh, Yara responds 'Okay', heading to her cash app to direct transfer the payment.

'Received. Name: Berlin, Arrow.' The following text read. 'More information requires another deposit.' He sent after.

'You're dealing with a big name there. Better watch your back.' He sends it immediately after.

'Thanks. Will be in touch.' Yara types back in response.

'Noted, until then. Delete chat.'

'Ok.'

"Well, shit!" Yara hisses as she reads the messages over. "A Berlin."

~

"What on earth could they want with you guys? This wasn't just any attack either, they were looking for something!" Dalton voices, the four of them standing outside.

"I have no idea! There's nothing and I mean nothing!" Yara responds pacing.

"You know what, there's no use in us standing out here trying to figure it out. Let's go get some answers. No more going easy!" Dalton declares, Jensen and Clayton nodding in agreement.

"We have to move fast. Someone's bound to be looking for her," Yara adds with a nod.

"Definitely!" Clayton comments. "We also need to discuss what we're going to do with them once we have our answers."

"I'm sure Darla already has an answer to that," Jensen says in return.

"But is it our answer?" Clayton presses.

"Why not?" Dalton interjects with a shrug. "Ain't nothing worse than what they done. We aren't the ones who went looking for trouble unprovoked."

"It's tricky. Killing them will put a big ass target on all of us and probably everyone we know too," Jensen begins. "We can't set them free and call it a truce. We can't keep them forever..."

"We probably already have a target on our heads," Yara interjects. "Well, me and Clayton at least. They were in my restaurant so that means something. I say we get answers first and then we can strategize accordingly."

"Solid plan," Clayton says nodding.

"No plan survives first contact with the enemy," Dalton mumbles, running a hand along his face.

"It's our only option considering all we have to work with," Jensen replies to his friend's statement. "Let's get started."

"Wait," Jensen whispers, stopping them as they are walking toward the house - his eyes locked onto his phone screen.

"What is it?"

"Vanessa."