SD7

Sorry for the late upload. There was a death in the family.

Chapter Seven

The large man grabbed at me surprisingly fast, but I slipped back, barely avoiding him.

I swung, my bat covered in Cursed Energy Reinforcement. It slid just past the large man's approaching fist but connected to his jaw, stunning him. I resisted the urge to use Inverse and potentially complicate the fight. He bowled me over and let out a triumphant roar as he grabbed me by the neck and hoisted me up.

My back was on fire, and my airway was rapidly shutting down, but I still had the presence of mind to send the bat away and nail the son of a bitch in his hurt face with an enhanced fist to the eye.

He dropped me and started swinging, and precise activation of Inverse kept the worst of the injuries at bay. More blows came, but I threw more of my own, dishing out as much as I received until suddenly, he was off me. His neck jerked back, and a knife opened his throat with gusto, bathing me and part of the alley in red.

I scrambled back, trembling and wet, distancing myself from this new enemy. My Cursed energy bucked against me, but I found my groove eventually. I squared up, ready for a fight. 

A surge of Cursed energy hit me a second later as I leveled up, healing my injuries and clearing up my puffed-up eyes enough to spot the face of my new murderous benefactor.

It was the drunk man. He stood over the body of the giant with a chilling smile on his face.

"You're not half bad," he said as he ripped open his sleeve and cut three straight lines into a small patch of his forearm. It was the only part of his arm that wasn't covered in those tally scars. More marks were visible on his skin through the tears in his suit and shirt.

It dawned on me pretty quickly after that. I was standing in front of a serial killer.

He threw the knife straight at me, and I caught it instinctively.

"Next time, you might want to keep one of those handy when you show up to a street fight."

I gulped. "You're...Victor Szasz"

"In the flesh." He gave a small bow.

"The infamous serial killer."

Wasn't he locked up in Arkham like four years ago?

"That's what Batman and Gotham PD want you to think," he smirked. "Most of my work was actually mercenary."

"Why are you telling me all this?" I said shakily, and his smile grew only wider.

"Well, you asked and because I recognize a kindred spirit when I see one. Taking down two Black Mask's top enforcers and disappearing their bodies?" he whistled. "Not bad for a squirt."

Shit. "Does everybody know?"

He shrugged. "Just heard it when I was in the bar. Interesting stuff. If you don't get yourself killed, you might actually get the big man's attention."

"I'm not a killer," I insisted, and he looked straight at me. It took everything in me not to wince at his stare.

"Might be better if you are," he said. "It'll keep the rabble away at least."

Szasz pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and started wiping off what little of the blood he could. It did not help much. His suit was drenched in the stuff.

Just as he was about to leave, I called out to him, and he turned around slowly. I pulled my phone from my pocket and showed him a picture of Sasha and Ed.

"Did you see her on the inside?" I asked, but his eyes were glued on Ed.

"The friend who's missing," he hummed. "I take it he's dead?"

I gave a grim nod, and he flashed me a pointy smile. "Didn't see her, but if I had to bet money, she's probably dead too or just about. There's a bounty out on you, and she never reached out. You do the math."

"No!" I growled, my Cursed Energy flaring. Victor's eyes widened slightly, and his lips curled into a nastier grin. Did he sense that?

He grabbed me by the shoulder.

"Yes! Get angry, and stay angry. It'll make what you have to do that much easier."

My breathing grew harsh and ragged as I looked away.

Did anger make killing easy the first time around? Yes. But did it drive me to kill Mark and Gabe? Partly. Killing them was my only way out that night, and I'd have shanked the bruiser that was on me a few minutes ago if I had a knife in my inventory.

I had no idea what this meant for my future. But one thing was clear: I was hurtling towards a crossroads, and I had to decide the type of man I wanted to be before someone else made that choice for me.

I clutched the knife hard and met eyes once more with Szasz. Then I slid over to the next picture, which was of Tim.

"A friend told me he has her. Did you see him in there?"

Szasz gave me a small nod as if he had approved before answering. "No, but I can find out."

--

Szasz returned from the bar with an eager look and a fresh suit. He tossed me a sweatshirt, which I accepted with some confusion before he began to speak.

"Turns out, your friend Tim broke the cardinal rule. Never bite the hands that feeds."

"What did he do?" I asked.

"He's been undercutting his Kilos. Practically selling Sugar and baking powder to Vinnie's regulars. Went under the radar until somebody from a posh side of town tasted his cut."

"Oh shit," I muttered. It was not all that surprising. Sounded like something Tim would do.

"He's not at his place," Szasz hummed. "It's been ransacked and emptied out. Penguin wants his head on a spike."

"And be probably figures he can get out of the hole he dug by offering me up," I said slowly, assessing his motivations.

"Would be my next move," Szasz smirked, then stuck his hand in his coat pocket and handed me the gun that asshole had shot me with. He was dead also, a victim of Szasz's psychotic rampage. Even standing so close to him seemed like a risk, but I felt I understood Szasz, at least partly.

There was a method to his madness, and I was in his good graces for now.

"Just in case," he winked and turned away. "Good luck hunting."

I spent nearly two hours combing through all of Tim's usual haunts: bars, Restaurants, and liquor stores. I even checked out his apartment.

Near midnight, I talked towards the last place I'd ever expected Tim to go—my building. But the more I thought about it, the more sense it made.

Maybe he'd not choose my apartment exactly, but some apartments hadn't been rented out in weeks. My apartment must've been torn apart and overanalyzed by this point, and no one was coming here looking for me…at least not until today.

Hiding in plain site was stupid enough that it might just work.

I found a fat man posted on the sidewalk opposite my building and went up the fire escape instead. No doubt one of Black Mask's men or another idiot trying his luck.

On the third floor, I saw movement before something shattered the window. Inverse activated just before the hammer slammed into me. I desperately clung to the fire escape ladder and looked inside after blinking the glass from my eyes.

The apartment was mostly dark, and a silhouette stared at me. There was terror in his eyes.