Participants:
| Scene Title | Nobody To Steal From |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Lola, not paying attention to any news outlets, finds out the hard way that Kain Zarek is dead, and she can steal from him no more. |
| Date | December 05, 2010 |
Early morning is not Tess's best time. Even if she's not active working right now, since she's still waiting for her stomach wound to heal, she's still a night owl. So when there's knocking on the door she heads towards it, zombie-like, wearing a pair of pajama pants that look like they were designed by someone on acid, a white tank top, and her hair a total mess. Morning baaaaaad.
Her eyes are still half-closed when she makes it to the door and opens it, blinking out at the strange face on the other side. A hand is rubbed over her face and she yawns, leaning against the doorframe. "Can I help ya?" she murmurs in a sleep-slurred voice, but her Cajun comes through just fine.
Blonde. That's the most noticible thing is that this woman has a very boxy cut to her hair and she's platinum. Of course, it's a wig, but that's how Lola visits. In cognito. At least this time she's not dressed like a whore. In her defense, they were the whore-clothes that Kain gave her after he shot her, but that may have made things just too complicated. She wears an expensive-looking trench-coat, heels and pressed pants. There's a dark blue blouse on underneath it, and she is wearing big Jackie O sunglasses. "'Scuze me darlin," this Cajun drawls, pushing her way past the tired Tess. She's polite about it, not nudging her any more than needed, and she doesn't seem to be running in or anything. In fact, she wanders into the foyer, apparently comfortable with this place. She's been here before. "Oi! Puppy-fucker! Drag yer ass outta bed, we gots ta talk!" She shouts into the apartment.
Having someone just barge into her house is not making Tess happy, but it is helping to wake her up more quickly than possible. "Hey, the fuck you doin'? Get the hell outta here!" she says, reaching for Lola, to try to drag her back and, hopefully, right back out the door. "I don't know who the fuck you are, darlin', but I don't like people just bargin' into my home."
"Hey hey hey!" Lola protests as she's being pulled. "Take it easy on t'goods, sugar, Ah had ta tail this bitch fer two blocks afore she took it off an Ah could snipe it. Ya know how hard it is ta snipe a coat in December?" People never take them off! "C'mon love, Ah ain' here fer you, Ah'm here fer yer shack buddy. The fuck's Zarek at? Ah ain' gonna shoot him….Ah mean, not unless he says somethin' or does somethin…" She doesn't really fight being pulled as she considers that. "Well, Ah'll try not ta shoot 'im. But if yer his old lady now - look a little young fer the part, don' mind mah sayin - then ya know how it goes. He don' ever shut the shit up. C'mon girlie!"
Well that's enough to have Tess going stark white, for a few seconds, then her cheeks go bright red. "Oh, that's it. Get the fuck outta here," she says, trying harder to shove Lola out the door now. "I'm his fuckin' daughter you dumbshit, and he's dead. Almost a month now. And if you're just gonna insult him, then you can get the fuck outta here, or I'll call down and have you removed," she says coldly.
Lola manages to catch herself against Tess' shoving on teh door frame. "Wait, what! Knock it off, sweetie, didja just say Zarek's dead? Who dun it?" Because Kain didn't just drop dead and have a heart attack. No, that would be much too nice and easy. There were way too many people in this world who wouldn't give his own heart the satsifaction of being the one to do him in. "Yer his brat?" Lola blinks again, shaking her head. "Stop shovin' me darlin. Ah'm…a…..um….well Ah ain' an enemy, an fer folks like me an yer daddy that's sayin' somethin, Ah guess. Quit shovin' me, lemme close the door. What's yer name, sugar?" Her voice has become much softer, more gentle, clearly sympathetic. And shocked. She's in a state of shock her own self.
"The more words that come out of your mouth, the more I want you the fuck outta my home," Tess says in a sugary sweet voice. "I'm not his brat, I'm his daughter. And yes, he's dead. No, I don't know who, but when I find out, he, she or them will pay. And if you want me to shut the door with you on this side, then you'll apologize for everything you've said since I opened the door."
His over-sensitive brat. Go figure, Zarek. "Alright, alright, Ah'm sorry sugar, now lemme step up alright? Ah ain' gonna hurt you or nothin'. Ah just came here t'talk is all. Didn' mean nothin' by my gabberin'. S'just how me an yer daddy get along with each other." If you could call it that. "Just slow yer roll an Ah'll tell ya whatever ya wanna know 'bout me or yer dad or whatever it is. But Ah just…dead a month now? So somebody did done do it? What 'bout Manny? He alright?"
"I'm not worried 'bout you hurtin' me," Tess says with a shrug, stepping back and settling her hands on her hips. Her cheeks are starting to look a little shiny now. In fact, all of her exposed skin is. Gotta love adrenaline and a lack of control over a new ability. "About a month, yeah. Was around the riots. Manny's the one who told me, so yeah, he's fine. Upset, of course, but can't blame him there."
"Well if there's other folks thinkin' Zarek left some good shit behind when he kicked it, ya might wanna be, darlin," Lola steps out of the doorway to close the door, reaching up to pull off the wig. Her hair is black, tinted red. She shakes it free, and removes her sunglasses so that Tess can see her for the first time. "Some folks what don' like yer daddy ain' exactly the savory kind." She peers around the apartment agian, this time as though afraid someoen else might be there. Paranoid much? "Lotta folks kicked it around the riots. Ah just….shit." Lola lowers her face, bringing a hand to cover her forehead as she processes. This is not good. Not good at all.
"Yeah, I kinda got that when one of 'em shot me," Tess says dryly. "And I don't know if it was in the riots or not. I was out of the state when it happened. He sent me to Jersey to keep me safe," she says, shrugging. "So can't tell you anything more than what was on the news. I know people are lookin' into it, but that's it."
Lola nods a little, lifting her head. She looks over Tess, but there are no blatent signs of an injury. "Well ya might be gettin' more'n that. Ya armed, sugar? Ah'm sure yer daddy kept a little stockpile 'round here. Not a big one, mind ya - he always was a little stingy on the firearms - but should be enough ta keep ya a bit safer. Where'd ya get shot? Do ya know who it were?"
"None of your business, stomach, and yes," Tess answers with another shrug. "Why the hell do you care? And it doesn't matter what's stockpiled or not around here, because I'm not gonna let you go snoopin' around. This is all I've got left of my dad'n I'm keepin' it," she says, expression a bit more fierce, and her skin is just a little more shiny.
Lola frowns a little bit at Tess. "Darlin', yer daddy did some good things fer me. He did some shitty ones too, but he did some good ones. Ah don' wanna go snoopin - Ah spent a couple a weeks livin' on his sofa tryin' ta get him sober, Ah' been here enough. Ah ain' here ta steal fer a change neither. Ah done asked 'bout ya bein' armed or having' some way ta protect yerself cause if ya didn' Ah was gonna give ya some. Alright? Ah ain' here ta step on ya or yer daddy or any of ya'lls stuff. Nothin' like that. Alright?"
There's a long moment of silence as Tess considers Lola. "You got any pictures of him? No one's got any pictures of him. I'd trade all the guns in the world for a single damn picture of him. But he gave me a coupla guns before shippin' me off to Atlantic City for the eighth. Not that I know how the fuck to use 'em, but I get in trouble, I can bail or I can call Manny. Or any of a number of other people."
"Naw sugar. Kain an Ah weren' like picture-buddies," She sounds very apologetic about the whole thing though. She wishes she had one to give the girl. "Ah got this though," she reaches into her coat pocket, digging something out. She holds it up for Tess. A silver lighter. "First day Ah met yer daddy Ah was just a thief an a pickpocket in Nawlins. Took this right outta his back pocket, mostly ta get a rise outta him. Just sorta ended up keepin' it. But its yers now, ya want it back. S'all Ah got a his."
Tess's hand darts out to take the lighter, but opening it doesn't work too well since her thumb is now stuck to it. "Mother fucker," she mutters, turning to head towards the kitchen counter, trying to sort of scrape the lighter off her hand and onto the counter. "Been lookin' for someone who's got a picture of him. Logan's gonna look for me. Big on pictures. Never got 'round to takin' one of him though. Figured I had time, then I was gettin' shot, and once I was outta the hospital I was gettin' shipping off to Jersey. Then…yeah."
"Kain had an evo kid? Heh," Lola chuckles a little, turning to follow Tess into the kitchen. "Ya alright there, sugar? Ah 'spoze Ah oughta tell ya - Ah'm Lola. Though if ya gotta go tellin folks ah was here, don' be tellin' 'em Ah was here. Cept fer Manny. Ah'm supposed ta be dead. Yer daddy was kind enough ta arrange it fer me. So…ya know. Ah ain' been shot in 9 months an Ah'm lookin' ta keep the record going."
"Yeah, I'm just dandy. I've just glued myself to the fuckin' lighter," Tess mumbles, working still at getting it off her hand. "Manifested the day I got shot. Freaked us both out. Not sure who was more freaked out, since I glued myself to…myself'n the couch'n my clothes. Saved my life though, go figure. Was the first time I'd ever been shot'n I don't care to repeat the experience."
"Havin' been a return customer to that sorta thing three times now, Ah can say it ain' like ridin' a bike an it don' get much easier. Speakin' a which though…" Lola turns, leaning against the counter as Tess begins trying to clean herself off the lighter. "Kain did some good shit fer me. So if ya want somethin, like say learnin' how ta shoot, well that's sorta mah business these days. Shootin'. So Ah kin help ya out if ya'd like. Get ya a set a kevlar too, if yer worried 'bout gettin' shot again." Kevlar seems like such a naturla idea to Lola. It maeks sense!
"Not sure I want to learn how to shoot. I've got no problem with beatin' the shit outta someone, hell, I punched dad once, but killin' someone?" Tess shakes her head. "Doesn't sound like fun. And kevlar…Mmm…How hard is it to move in that shit? Never wore it, but I gotta be able to move easily. I may not be able to shoot, but I can move. And most people can't climb up the side of a buildin' to chase me, yanno? Damn I miss doin' that."
"We kin get ya some rubber bullets if ya like. Ain' gonna kill somebody unless ya get 'em in the eye, but it'll surely make 'em think at least twice about what it is they're tryin' ta do. Ah use 'em from time ta time, just ta remind people that Ah mean business." Lola smirks a little bit at that memory. But then she comes back to reality. "A little stiff, sure, but…well here." Lola steps back, peeling off her coat. And then without a thought, she yanks the buttons undone for her top and pulls it off. Scars and kevlar are the two things that Tess sees. Wrinkled funny burn scars on one arm, a bullet scar on the other. The rest is covered by the Kevlar, but there's sure to be more. "See? Ain' so bad cause yer trunk don' really move anyway. A little annoyin' doin' this," Lola explains, lifting her arms straight up. "But bend at the waist an get used ta bein' a little warm an it sure as shit a bullet through yer body."
"Mine does," Tess says as she studies the kevlar. "Way I normally get 'round the city is by runnin', jumpin' and climbin' over shit. Parkour. Good exercise, fun, and don't gotta worry about gas. That and I'm terrified of wreckin' my car. Well, not so much my old car, but had to get rid of that. Still, might be somethin' to consider."
Lola turns so that Tess can see the back of it. "Well it'd take some gettin' used to, a course. But it sure as shit beats the alternative. Like Ah said, gettin' shot don' get no easier. Speakin a which," She smirks. "Kinda funny ya got shot in the belly. This one here?" She lifts the kevlar a bit to show a gross criss-crossing of scars around a bullet hole just above Lola's navel. "This one weren' even mah first, but Ah know what it feels like sugar. Trust me."
"Oh, totally. Gettin' shot sucked balls," Tess agrees, gaze dropping to the shot, then she nods and lifts up her own shirt, showing the month old wound. "Good thing 'bout manifestin' when I did though, with what I got? It sealed the wound so I didn't bleed out or anything. Prolly saved my life. Which was good. Got me a couple cool days with dad."
Lola smirks a bit, never minding her blouse for right now. Instead she hops up on the counter, sitting there and watching Tess. She's sat here so many times before, it feels natural. "So ya an Kain, ya were tight? Me an him used ta work together so we never much talked 'bout families, 'cept fer about his Daddy this one time." Yea, that's something she's not going into.
"Well, sorta, at the end. He didn't know I existed until I showed up and was all 'Hi dad!'. Made me get a blood test, and when it came back showin' that I was his he tried to pay me to get the fuck outta the city, which I found out later was him tryin' to prevent somethin' from happenin' like with the shootin', which was sweet, even if the delivery sucked. But got high one day'n we finally started talkin' instead of yellin' and that got ruined by the bang, bang hospital visit."
Tess shrugs, finally getting the lighter put down, and the shine is starting to leave her skin. "Even right after I got shot he was more dad-like. Got hugs'n even gotta call him daddy once." She grins. "He didn't seem to like it much," she murmurs. "But he stayed with me when I was hurt. He sent me to a nice place in Atlantic city with a coupla guns and some cash, to be safe durin' the riots. And now I got Manny for a friend, and Manny worked it out so I got this place, since it's all I got of him."
Lola nods. "Manny's good fer shit like that. Ah always liked him - plus between me an him we could always drive yer daddy fuckin' crazy." Well they could, and it was fun. Watching Kain squirm always gave Lola this tinge of happiness. "Listen, sugar, if ya kin keep mah name outta most things involvin' anyone but Manny an ya wanna learn ta shoot, Ah'm yer girl," Lola settles on, lifting her blouse and starting to button it up again. "Either way, ya want the kevlar, you just say the word. Ah got a few spares at home - Ah buy in bulk."
"Manny's awesome. He…he was the one who came'n got me from Jersey. Told me about dad. He was awesome." Tess smiles then and nods. "It was fun givin' him some hell. First meetin'? A friend set up a meetin', didn't tell him it was gonna be with me instead of her'n I just sprang it on him." Another nod. "I'll let ya know. Lemme think on it a bit, 'kay?"
Sure darlin'. If anybody asks bout mah name, use Daisy." She says, scribbling a number down on a napkin and sliding it across the counter to Tess. "Or even if ya wanna swap stories 'bout turnin' yer daddy's hair grey. Ah'm good fer a couple a those mahself, but Ah…Ah don' like bein' here too long. Never know if folks are watchin or not. Take care of yerself sugar, alright? An you let me know if ya need yer body guarded or somebody popped." Yes, that's what Lola does for a living.
"Daisy, got it," Tess says, nodding as she looks at the napkin but doesn't touch it yet. No point in gluing her to it as well. "And yeah, I'll take care of myself. I'm pretty good at it." She grins. "Plus there's this cute guy one floor down. Can always make him protect me." Yeah, that's a Zarek grin. A bit of a wicked one.
Lola slips on her coat. "Yeah well, Manny or Logan might take it upon themselves ta play daddy Kain's role an bust his kneecaps, so watch out fer him too." She reaches out to touch Tess' arm, barely so, on teh sleeve so as not to get it too close to her skin. "Let me know, sugar." She releases, flipping the wig back on and pulling on the glasses before she turns to sashay herself out the door she came in.
Tess snorts softly. "Manny, maybe. Logan? Doubtful. He's not as big a stick'n the mud as I thought he was, but he is totally not a dad-like person. But yeah, I'll let ya know."