Rendezvous with a witch 2: New Deal

"Today's the day"

"Don't remind me"

I retorted at Liz who sat across me at a diner, happily eating the most expensive desert on the menu.

Tuesday crept up at me like a thief in the night, mostly because I spent Monday doing a whole lot of nothing— The bombardment of hocus pocus information I've received in the past few days really took the wind out of my sails.

Now here I am, hopefully well prepared to take down Sara.

"So, did you call me out here just to torment my wallet?"

I asked, a little exasperated

"Just think of it as hush money and you'll be fine"

"Huh?"

She gazed up at me, pouting a little

"Since you're clearly withholding information, I won't pry in exchange for this"

And here I thought I was hiding it well— it's almost unsettling how easily this girl sees through me, originally, I assumed my mask had worn off after five years, but after my game with the clown I can say with absolute certainty

Lizbeth Andrews is simply just a freak of nature, who just glared at me for some reason

"You were probably thinking something rude, weren't you?"

Ugh, She got me

She raised her hand at that moment, signalling the waiter

"Excuse me, I'll like two more spring surprise parfaits and five rainbow tarts"

"Hey, calm down Li—"

As I instinctively reached out to stop her, she leaped straight at me, climbing the table and ending up less than an inch from my face, her blank, indifferent eyes peering into mine.

"I won't stop you if you want to take her on alone, but if that's the path you choose to take, clear all distractions from your mind and focus on the problem with everything you've got. If you don't, I can't help but worry"

Just how much of me could she see?

While I told her about the haunted hotel and asked her to investigate the news lady, I left out the part of not being able to read her mind, the fact she was a witch and the fact Sara was one too.

My reasoning, well..... While I'll do everything to avoid that outcome, should the worst case scenario I've envisioned come to pass, I'd rather Liz not be in the thick of it, especially since Sara's one of the few friends she has.

Still though, just how long does she intend to stay a couple centimeters away from kissing me, IN PUBLIC?! It's embarrassing.

Embarrassing for me anyway, I'm the only one having these thoughts, figures.

*RING RING RING

Saved by the phone.

"I have to get this, it's Sara"

Liz returned to her seat then let out a short sigh before I answered the call and before I even got the chance to say hello,

"Your favorite supernatural buff here! How's my little failed genius doing this fine day?"

"It's way too early for this"

"Fufufu, It's 1pm"

"Like I said, too early"

"Anyway, I'll be expecting you in 30 minutes, don't keep me waiting"

"YOU HAVEN'T EVEN TOLD ME WHERE TO MEET!"

"Oh, haven't I?... Fufu, guess I forgot....."

Yeah right, more like you deliberately waited till the last minute so I won't be able to make any physical preparations at the venue

"... It's actually somewhere you're familiar with"

She gave me the location then cut the call after a " see you soon" in a whisper that sent shivers down my spine.

"I should go"

I said to Liz after ending the call, Liz who was still looking at me with worry.

"Sigh, fine... Now that I think about it, there is something you can help me with"

I told her what it was and her expression lightened a little, at least I think it did.

"Okay, I can do that"

"Thanks, I'll see you later"

I got up casually, about heading for the door when she grabbed my sleeve

"Do not underestimate her"

"I'll be fine, quit worrying so muc—"

I stopped once I saw the look in her eyes, she wasn't kidding by any stretch of the imagination.

"Alright, I won't"

"Good. Oh and, one more thing"

"What is it?"

"Did you really think you could slip out of here without paying for my dessert?"

Well, it was worth a try.

*****************

Shortly after, I arrived at the location we agreed upon— an auto repair shop, the same auto repair shop I borrowed a motorcycle from to rescue Liz a couple of weeks back.

Surprisingly, they were closed despite it being a Tuesday, but as Sara instructed, I waltzed right in to meet her inside, tinkering with her bike with the focus of a true artisan

She wore a dark green mechanic's jumpsuit with the top half tied on her waist, as for what she wore on top you ask?

A white singlet— a rather flimsy and common piece of clothing, however, when worn by a body like that, it turns into a lethal weapon.

Her hair tied back into a ponytail, her laser focused eyes, the bits of sweat trickling down her collarbone onto that singlet, as well as the massive weapons said singlet is covering, all blending together to a sight that puts the Mona Lisa to shame.

As a guy, if you weren't the least bit moved by this sight, then you're definitely an inanimate object.

C'mon, calm down Adam.... channel your inner inanimate object. She clearly chose that outfit and this location to rattle you and tip the negotiation in her favor, don't let her manipulate you.

Still though, the more I try to calm myself, the more worked up I get. If Liz was here, she'd probably say something like

"Something's rising, and it's not the shield hero"

Sara finally noticed me, breaking her concentration. The cool, laser-focused eyes was replaced with a mischievous grin as she said.

"Look who finally decided to show up, you're late"

"I read minds, I don't teleport. You only gave me the location like fifty minutes ago"

Good thing her "magic" breaks the moment she opens her mouth, I was reminded of the kind of person she is, phew.

"Anyway, I'll wait outside while you change"

"Change?"

"Yeah, your clothes"

"Why? Is there a problem?"

She asked, folding her arms in such a way that her..... You get the picture, and with that mischievous grin still plastered on her face.

She sure enjoys teasing me, still though, I think she's being a bit more forward than usual. If I wasn't sure before, I am now— she's anticipated the possibility that I'm here to stop her plan, and she's exercising her arsenal to make sure I fumble.

If she sees me as that much of a threat, then I have a chance. Even better, I can win!

"No, not really. It's better to have something sweet to look at when discussing tasteless matters like this"

I'm not some generic anime protagonist who'd start fidgeting like he got electrocuted because a girl teased him a little.

We walked over to a table to begin the showdown

"So, do you work here or something?"

"No, the owner just owes me a couple favors is all. He closed early for the day and gave me the keys when I told him I had a boy coming over"

"Just what kinda favors can a man owe a 17 year old girl to make him skip out on business at the drop of a hat, or even lend a complete stranger a bike?"

"Fufufu, I'm sorry to say but your previous question is all I'm answering...."

She stretched out her palm, then continued

".... You've reached the end of your free trial, for exclusive access, it's going to cost you"

"What are you on about, you want me to pay for your secrets?"

"That's obviously not what I'm talking about"

"You lost me"

"Fufu, I'm saying you should turn off your sound recorder now"

What?! She knew all along?

Right before I entered the garage, I turned on the sound recorder on my phones, I wasn't about to make the same mistake I did last time.

I turned off my phone's sound recorder and showed it to her

"Happy now?"

"Both of them"

"—"

Fact is, I actually brought two phones with me today and set them both to record, I half expected her to catch the first one so I brought a second as insurance. Didn't expect her to catch them both though.

"While you're at it, you can go ahead and take off all the bugs on you"

"Huh?"

"You planted listening devices on yourself, didn't you? So Lizbeth can listen in on our conversation and record it from her end, am I wrong?"

"Yeah, you're wron—"

"Take em off"

She interrupted me, smiling..... but her eyes were definitely not.

With a sigh, I took out four listening devices from different parts of my clothes

"ALL of them"

"Sigh"

I took out the remaining two and handed it to her, however, as she was about to take them, she grabbed my hand and pulled me closer to her— she was so close to my face that I could even feel her breath— peppermint?

Looking deep in my eyes she reached out with her other hand to caress my cheek, brushing past my hair slowly and gently with her fingers it felt—

"Got it" She said

"Huh"

Glancing at the hand no longer on me, I saw another listening device in her hand.

"Lizbeth probably expected I'd see through all your tricks, so she planted this as insurance"

"She did, but whe—"

Oh! When she leaned towards me at the diner, she must've planted it then

Sara took all the listening devices and crushed them beneath her boots. She then tilted her head a little, then turned back to face me.

"Still, if I know her like I think I do, then...."

She reached out and grabbed my sleeve, the same one Liz held onto earlier and pulled out another listening device

"She would've planted two. Fufufu, I'm sorry about this, Lizbeth, but this is a private chat between me and Adam, I'll give you a B+for effort though"

She crushed the device then smiled at me with those yandere-like eyes.

"Now then, let's get down to business. I'll entertain whatever questions or frustrations you have after the fact..... You can even spend the whole day with me if you want"

So much for that idea, she saw it coming from a mile away. She drastically shortened my prep time so I won't gather much dirt on her, then anticipated I'd try a last ditch effort to try blackmailing her with whatever info I could potentially draw out of her during our conversation and shut that down as well.

You are good, Sara O'Neil, I'll give you that. Hope you're feeling happy with yourself, cause I've still got plenty of fight left in me.

I went ahead and gave her my report as it seemed she wasn't going to give me any time of the day till after she's heard my findings.

And for my plan to work, I need her undivided attention— I need her to be fully invested in me.

"FufufuHAHAHAHAHAHAHA... I expected some dirt but not this, so the blond bitch had something like THAT! Ohhhh, I'm going to have my fun with this"

"That's no reason to laugh like a freaking maniac."

"Relax, no one can hear us outside"

"Yeah? And that?"

I pointed at her mouth. Geez, she's so excited by Michelle's misfortune that she's even drooling

"No one's here so it's fine"

So I don't count as someone?

"Still, it's rude"

"Sorry, I couldn't help myself. I mean, killing someone is the absolute lowest you can go, she's making my job way too easy"

"If a killer is the absolute lowest, then you might as well be subterranean"

"I beg to differ. Sure, I do a lot of bad things, but I don't kill"

So she's actually aware she does bad things? Sigh.

Huh? Wait, hold on. I got so caught up in her pace I almost missed it

"Hey, while she was indeed arrested, she didn't actually kill anyone, she was framed"

"Yeah, I heard you the first time"

"Then why did you—"

"Because it doesn't matter if she did it or not, that's how rumors work— As long as a single key part is confirmed to be true, the public will believe the whole thing, even if it's a heap of lies"

That is true. A believable, well crafted lie centered around a sliver of truth will be easily accepted by the public because it comfortably suits their thoughts on that sliver of truth— In psychology, this is loosely known as the confirmation bias.

Fact is, a record of her getting arrested for murder exists, which works to Sara's advantage. And if she needs more ammo, Michelle's past as a prostitute and then a gang member is an undeniable fact.

It couldn't be easier to destroy her.

"Even after hearing my story, you don't feel the least bit of sympathy for Michelle?"

"Sympathy? Hmm... Well, once elections are over, as promised, she'll become one of my friends, so it's all good"

She's also the type who doesn't care about what she doesn't care about, much like Liz— No, unlike Liz, who's indifferent to them, Sara sees the people she doesn't care about as toys; with no feelings, emotions or will.

And thus, she feels nothing when they break, at least, that's my take on her.

Just what made her turn out like this? No, that's not my immediate concern, I can worry about that later.

"I was hoping you'd step back once you heard her story, guess I was wrong. Nevertheless, I'm not not going to let you have your way"

"Oh?" She flashed a mischievous smile "Did shacking up with Michelle for a night make you fall for her? Didn't know you were so easy"

I ignored her attempt at provocation and pulled out some clippings from Liz's file and placed them before her

"I heard your friend Lia has been battling with trauma for quite a while, would be a shame if she suddenly got pushed over the edge"

Multiple fears ranging from fear of waterbodies/swimming to panic attacks in extremely stressful situations and an aversion to certain spices.

For less than a fraction of a second, I noticed her mask slip and show real worry— although, since it was so brief, it could've been just my imagination, my own confirmation bias.

She smiled with an air of composure

"I moved up our meeting so you won't have enough time to gather anything that could potentially shake me, so you gave up on that and went after someone else. Tell me, what made you think I'd give two shits about what happens to some girl? You should know better, fufu"

"I thought so too, but right now, I'm convinced. Liz really was on to something"

Even I didn't realize that crack in Sara's armor until Liz pointed it out. She's bluffing, hiding the fact that she's rattled and right now, I'm slowly reaching equal ground.

"You do realize you'll be putting Rachel at risk with this stunt, don't you?"

"I intend to stop you with everything I've got, no matter the risks"

I'm not letting you bluff your way out.

She sighed, then replied.

"What a waste, you might've been able to shake me if it was anyone other than Lia. She has that four eyed freak in her corner, so she'll be fine"

"Do you honestly think Bruce King will be able to stop me?"

"Yes"

She replied without hesitation, and this time, it was no bluff. Honestly, that stung a little. That said—

"That said, I had a feeling you'd say that, which is why my target was actually a different person"

I pulled out clippings of Katherine and placed them before her, my actual bullet.

This time around, Sara's eyes widened, she didn't even try to hide it this time.

"I'm sure you know what will happen should the school find out, do you want library girl to suffer for your stupid pride?"

"Katie, she.... How?"

"Your decision to forcefully tear Miguel away from her broke her more than you realize and led her to this, do you really want another stubborn decision of yours to finish the job?"

Her head sank, fingers holding on to Katherine's picture, her lips moving, uttering stuff I couldn't hear. Until finally

She sighed.

"Adam.... Thank you for telling me—"

Is she finally.....?

"—However, I'm still not giving up"

"Huh?!"

"I'll just have to destroy Michelle and protect Katie at the same time, oh, and I shouldn't forget about Rachel. To do that....."

She raised her head, gazing at me with fierce eyes— the eyes of a hunter locked on her prey

"..... I'll just have to crush you with everything I've got"

What's this I'm feeling? Fear? Me?

I'm.... afraid?

Of the near insurmountable wall before me, of the entity known as Sara O'Neil?

Get a grip, Adam. Don't falter, this is your moment.

After all, she's finally looking at me

I rested my head on my fist, trying my damnedest to aura farm, to hide my hesitation.

"Sigh— a scuffle with you will be tiring and annoying as hell, and there'll be casualties on both sides, so allow me to propose a compromise"

Her expression lightened a little, showing interest. Noticing it, I pulled out the ball I received from Eleanor, which Sara seemed to be able to identify instantly.

She's fully invested now.

"You seem to know what this is"

"May–be" She replied in a playful tone.

"I have no idea why you witches are hunting yourselves and quite frankly, I don't care. That said....."

I stretched out my palm

".... I'm willing to hand you this witch on a silver platter in exchange for a favor"

Sorry News lady, but this is where our partnership ends— well, if you can call it that. Fact is, I intended to double cross her from the start, or rather, I intend to double cross the both of them.

As the middleman with info on both sides, I can manage the information on both sides and pit the two witches against themselves, then reap the spoils by siding with the winner— that's what my plan appears to be at first glance.

"I'm not giving up on Michelle"

"That's not what I'm asking you in exchange for this. What I want is for you to leave the matter of Michelle King to me"

She tilted her head, urging me to explain further

"The only reason you want to stop Michelle from becoming President is cause of the threat she'll pose to the occult research club. However, as long as the risk of her attacking the club doesn't exist, she can become President, right?"

"How do you intend to do that?"

" I have a couple ideas, so i want you to trust me on this"

I say "trust", but she knows what I mean— she's researched me before and has a fairly accurate assessment of my abilities, so she knows I can fulfil my end of the bargain.

"You realize that means you'll actually have to spend time around her"

"Ugh"

Part of me forgot that I'd been avoiding her like the plague before the hotel incident, still

"If it means I can save her from you, it's a small price to pay"

"Fufufufu, when you say it like that, you really do make me sound like some evil witch"

"Probably because you are"

She stretched out and grabbed my palm

"But if you're on the case, then I guess it's alright. You have a deal"

She completely ignored my retort! I hope the news lady at least knocks you around a couple of times.

That said, the real reason I cooperated with Eleanor was to limit her movements and manipulate her position with false information, making it easier for her to fall into Sara's trap.

After all, it is impossible for me to imagine a scenario where Sara loses to Eleanor, so it's best for me to side with her from the start, especially since she's intelligent enough to figure out if I'm playing both sides.

*BZZTT

CRASH

"Huh?"

I heard a crash sound and a second later, my brain processed the vision before me.

A huge cloud of dust from the direction of the wall 10m away and Sara's bike now one with said wall. As for the bike's owner, she was no longer in front of me, and even more shocking, beside me was Eleanor Clarke who spawned a second ago— yeah, she just appeared like poof.

In summary, Eleanor appeared beside me and struck Sara with lightning and she was sent flying. She crashed into her bike but it was too weak to cushion the impact and was also pushed to the wall with her.

"Sorry, kid. I might've lied a bit about that orb's capabilities. You see... It's actually more of a listening device and I can also activate the warp from my end"

"You.... tricked me"

"You did the same thing, I was just better. That's why you shouldn't mess with adults, haha"

"How can you laugh after killing a person?"

"Oh, please. Witches don't qualify as peopl— holy crap"

Her face suddenly turned pale, and she started sweating bullets as though she's having a panic attack.

"That girl.... Isn't a witch"

What? I couldn't hide my confusion, but she didn't care much to check my expression. She was busy going through a mid life crisis.

"What do I do...I just killed a person.... I killed a person....."

Over and over like a broken record. Until

"Phew, I thought I was a goner for a sec"

Said Sara O'Neil, stepping out of the rubble a bloodied mess, like the action hero of a Hollywood blockbuster.

She staggered toward us— Eleanor, who was more in shock than anything else, she kept apologizing repeatedly in a low voice.

Sara, who'd finally reached Eleanor was beaming with smiles as she said

"Wow, you're a witch aren't you. I'm a huge fan of witches, can I shake your hand....."

She's totally fangirling! She went on for like five minutes overwhelming the news lady with compliments while within her personal space, until..

"... Also, I've always wanted to play a malefis. I know, that's how you can make it up to me, challenge me to a malefis!"

" A malefis?.....Are you sure?"

" Yes!"

She pondered the matter for a bit but eventually lost to Sara's excessive enthusiasm

" Alright then, you have a deal"

They hit it off and chatted for a bit, then exchanged contacts before the storm left as fast as she'd arrived. After which, Sara breathe a sigh of relief.

"Well, that was exhausting, fufufufu. Thanks for your hard work, Adam"

" You're not.... A witch?"

" Ofcourse not. Can't blame you for thinking so though. The sloth factor defends against any unnatural mental attacks, including mind reading. Oh, the sloth factor is an ability unique to witch of sloth. Other witches also have their factors..."

" H-Huh?"

A crazy hypothesis started forming in my mind

"So the reason you didn't teach me about witches—"

"Yep, I wanted you to assume you couldn't read a witch's mind, even you fall prey to confirmation bias, fufu.... You might've taught you'd deduced it fairly but all it was was information you brought together to give your conclusion substance, Oh and, I couldn't have you realizing you'd faced a witch before"

"I have?"

" Yes. The conductor if the grand casino is a witch. The witch of greed"

" And why'd you want to hide that?"

"For one...." She pulled off the top on her waist and showed me "this was reinforced with a spell from her spellbook, keeping me from biting the big one. And..."

That...."Spellbook" must be the thing she obtained from her bet with the conductor back then which she refused to tell me.

Ofcourse, since unlike me, she knew exactly what the ball was the moment she saw it but didn't take any actions concerning it, she must've known all it's properties which means, she'd anticipated Eleanor's interference and planned for it.

While there were a couple gaps, the hypothesis is done.

Seriously?! This girl is amazing....or just fucking insane!

"Tch"

"Oh? judging from the exquisite look of defeat on your face, I'd say you've figured out most of it. So then, tell me.... How long do you think you've been my puppet?"

"Shut up and go treat your wounds"

" No, not until I hear you say it"

She retorted with a special mischievous smile.... A smile that signified her victory. The smile of a girl I lost to before I even made the first move.

From the moment I joined this club, no even before that.....

"From the moment we met— the moment you bumped into me at the library, you've been manipulating me into arriving at this very moment"

Her smile of approval confirmed my thoughts as she said

"Come bandage me up, I'll entertain any of your lingering concerns"