Kay pushed herself into a sitting position, trying to find a breathing pattern that didn't make it feel like her chest was on fire. She couldn't sit this one out. Everyone was needed to break through the crowd and reach Snitch Gravel before he got away with Sam and Christine.

"Stay down," Jerry said, materializing next to her from the smoke. "You're hurt enough as it is."

She shook her head, her eyes watery. "I need to help."

Jerry faltered for a second. "Then help me get Tina and Billy."

It seemed like a good idea. She didn't feel fit to join the fight, yet Jerry might use some help. So she nodded and let him pull her to her feet and up the stairs. A few goons made their way to them, but without hesitation, Jerry tripped one of them, making him tumble to the base of the staircase. Before the others could figure out what happened, Kay punched one in the knee, while Jerry unceremoniously threw the other one forward.

They reached the landing without further incident. The balcony was now empty and all that was left were two closed doors. Jerry tried to first. It opened to reveal an empty bedroom. He headed for the second, but it was locked.

He stepped back, raised his leg but faltered.

"What's wrong?" Kay asked confused.

"I never broke down a door before. I remember training and Kyle mentioning basic physics is involved, but all I heard back then was blah, blah, blah because I didn't really think I'd ever needed."

Kay stifled a laugh. "Try to visualize the lock. You need to kick next to it and focus on how you distribute your weight. Kick hard."

"Still sounds like blah, blah, blah...." Jerry mumbled, but he shut his eyes and kicked the door.

It cracked open on the first try and he pushed it open. Kay followed him inside and almost bumped into Billy.

"Jimmy, about damn time," Billy said, rolling up his sleeves.

"I'm actually Jerry. Jimmy's downstairs with the others. There's a big ole fight and..." Jerry waved his hand.

"Wow, impressive," Billy said, and fortunately rushed through the smoke and down the stairs.

"What's going on, did something catch fire?" Tina appeared out of the smoke, her eyes wide and fearful. She stopped next to Jerry, hovering at an awkward distance.

"No, Snitch Gravel's men threw a couple of smoke bombs, but it's mayhem down there." Jerry stopped, tilting his head in question.

Kay had no idea what had happened between them, but the air was thick with awkwardness. "I'm just going to..." She indicated towards the stairs then got the hell out of there. Not like Jerry needed her.

She rushed down the stairs, but just as she reached the bottom, her foot caught something soft and she tumbled to the ground. She kicked the body away and scurried next to the wall. "Guys?"

A shot sounded right above her head and she curled into a ball. Someone touched her hand, and she bit back a scream, because no one who would want to hurt her would be so gentle.

"It's okay, we're fine," Jimmy whispered.

Kay turned to him and analyzed the look on his face. The threatening air around him had disappeared, and she hoped Kyle was back to normal, too.

"The smoke is helping," Jessie said, coming up on Kay's other side. "If they can't see us, they can't shoot us."

And as long as they couldn't hear them either, it made everything harder. The goons were shouting to each other, trying to somehow pinpoint where everyone was. It was hard, especially when Tom, Kyle and Angie kept moving, ambushing them from the smoke. Jimmy disappeared too, leaving Kay with Jessie for support.

"This would be fun if it weren't so tragic," Jessie whispered.

Kay nodded, aiming a kick at a screaming goon and knocking him to the ground. Jessie immediately knocked him out and returned to Kay. Even if she knew they were doing much better than she could have predicted a mere ten seconds ago, Kay was still worried. From the voices, she could tell there were still a lot of Snitch Gravel's men around, and the smoke was bound to rise at some point. Then there was the matter of not knowing if Kyle was still in beast mode or he'd returned to normal. And a weird song had lodged itself inside her head, familiar yet confusing, growing louder and repeating itself.

"What the hell is that?" Jessie asked, proving the music wasn't just in Kay's head.

And through the mayhem, Kay could hear Kyle cursing loudly.

"What's going on?" Jimmy asked from somewhere close to them.

Kyle came out of the smoke, one lone ringing object in his hand. At least everything about his posture screamed normal. He glanced at his phone as if unable to believe it.

"It's Mom," he said flatly.

❄

"This kid doesn't look dangerous to me."

"I'd trust the boss, he knows better."

That's right, keep talking like I'm not here. Sam looked from one guard to another, trying to calculate his chances of escape. He was handcuffed, once again separated from Christine and between two guards taller and much buffer than him. Chances weren't looking good. Especially because he could tell these weren't Von Crooken's usual bumbling goons.

Then there was the matter of being on his way to see Snitch Gravel, and Sam was a little curious to see what he wanted.

"You're being obedient," the buff black guy on his left said.

Sam shrugged. "I'm curious. Your boss is an interesting man. And I don't see why I should give you any trouble."

The affirmation earned him a bit more freedom once his guards let go of his arms. He continued to walk between them, doing his best to earn their trust in case he would need it later.

"Maybe we're being a bit too nice," the other guy mumbled.

Sam huffed. "I can pretend you roughed me up if you want. Though it's obvious you're not Von Crooken's men and I don't think your boss cares." They didn't say anything to this, so he pressed on, "You're not Von Crooken's men, are you?"

"No, we're Snitch Gravel's men," the black guy conceded.

Sam nodded and stayed silent, thinking about all this. Ever since he'd found out there was a difference in hierarchy, he'd been very curious about the inner workings of Snitch Gravel's organization. The confirmation only made him want to ask.

"Why is there a difference?" he finally said, keeping his tone as neutral as possible.

The two men exchanged a look like they'd been expecting a question like that.

"Look kid... Sam," the black guy finally said, "the chances of you ever facing us in combat are slim. So, nothing personal. Snitch Gravel isn't this evil mastermind you're picturing."

"Seriously, Rud?" the other guy mumbled.

Rud fortunately ignored him. "He is into a lot of things. Some are good, some are bad. But you... You're right in his crazy blind spot and I feel sorry for you."

Great. Being pitied by henchmen. And even if Sam was aware the man was showing him some humanity, he couldn't appreciate it. Because his stomach still throbbed from the bullet Snitch Gravel had fired at him, because it was four in the morning, because Christine had once again been taken from him and he was fed up with all the bullshit.

So he didn't answer, just hummed like it was no big deal and returned to cursing inside his head. They finally stopped in front of one of the many rooms. He hadn't even bothered to keep track because it wasn't like he'd escape and have to get back here.

"Well, this is it," Not Rud said. "Good luck, kid."

And without waiting for an answer, they opened the door and shoved him inside. Sam did an embarrassing sort of dance to stay on his feet, but at least didn't fall on his face.

The room had been a study even before Snitch Gravel had taken over the castle. It was spacious, with a high ceiling and a large window overlooking the ground huge and so red, Sam's first thought was that he'd stepped inside a heart. The wallpaper, the carpet, the upholstery on the bed which had been shoved in a corner with most of the furniture... Everything reminded Sam of blood.

Snitch Gravel had kept the ornate desk and two chairs and had greatly improved the chromatic of the room with enough grey filing cabinets to cover a wall. He also had a few maps up, pinned to a mobile wooden panel. Snitch Gravel looked a bit worn out as he scribbled something at his desk.

Sam remained standing in front of the closed door, wondering if he should try opening it and slipping out. But he seriously doubted the two men had moved away from the door and he also had a feeling Snitch Gravel wasn't as engrossed in his papers as he seemed.

Seeing as Snitch Gravel insisted to ignore him, Sam took the opportunity to look around properly. He didn't know where he was, but he assumed it was Chenonceau. After he'd been dragged out of the hunting lodge, he'd been shoved inside a trunk and it felt like they'd driven forever. It turned out to have been only about four hours, but he'd passed out at one point, so he wasn't really sure.

He hoped his brothers were alive and well, that they'd have the sense to rest before coming to the rescue, that they'd actually figure out where Snitch Gravel was. Though that was a bit of a no brainer. They all suspected the jewel was here. But where? It could be inside this very room for all Sam knew.

At least Christine was sleeping. They hadn't been locked up together, but at least they were in neighboring rooms, separated by one lone door which was locked.

"Playing hard to get, I see," Snitch Gravel said, making Sam jump.

Sam just glared at him, refusing to let himself get dragged into Snitch Gravel's game.

"Your silence is extremely rude."

"You freaking shot me! Was that not rude?" Sam snapped.

Snitch Gravel just grinned at him like the maniac he was, though he looked exhausted. "I knew you were wearing a vest."

"It still hurts!"

"Life hurts," Snitch Gravel said with a shrug, closing the folder he'd been writing in and sliding it to the corner of the desk.

Out of reflex more than curiosity, Sam strained his neck to get a look at what was written on it.

"By all means, come closer, have a seat." Snitch Gravel waved his hand to one of the empty chairs.

Sam shot him another death glare, but sat down, because saying he was still sore after the gunshot was an understatement. As he sat, he managed to catch a glimpse of the file. It said 'Relationship development' and he had no idea what that was supposed to mean.

"What's this?" he asked.

"I have a better question for you." Snitch Gravel leaned back in his chair and propped his feet on the desk.

That was when Sam noticed he was wearing black jeans and boots and the observation threw him off a little. He'd never seen Snitch Gravel out of his perfect suit.

"What you did tonight... that's what I was counting on when I devised this little strategy. That you would blindly rush to your dear girlfriend's rescue. Which you did, but all predictability stopped when you chose not to die together with your car."

Sam fought a shudder and pushed the incident back to a remote corner of his mind, where he hid all the bad stuff. He only prayed he'd never have the time to go back there and analyze.

"After that, you disappeared. Where did you go?"

"Paris."

Snitch Gravel's eyes narrowed. "Don't be a smartass."

"Like I'm going to tell you!"

A muscle twitched in Snitch Gravel's jaw and Sam was sure he was skating on thin ice, but to hell with it. He was done playing games with murderers at four in the morning.

"I'd reconsider. So is it Christine? The fact that you're not that into her?"

Sam's jaw dropped. "What?"

"I mean, look at Tom. He had no idea Angie was even there and still he rushed head first into danger."

Tom had laid low just like him, but the words still made Sam bristle, so he punished Snitch Gravel the only way he could. With silence.

"Rude again."

"I don't give a crap," Sam snapped. "We're enemies, there's no use being polite. It's probably killing you having me breathe your air anyway."

"Not even close." He dropped his feet from the desk and leaned forward in his seat. "This just doesn't click with your personality, so I want an answer."

"Of course. Because it's only natural that I help you figure me out. If it's one thing I've learned from you, it's that I should never reveal my weakness."

Snitch Gravel knocked his head back and laughed, which in turn made Sam jump. "I know your weakness. You want to be fair, you want to do right, you want to be the good guy." His grin was pure evil. "I could give you a depression you'd never crawl out of."

"Then why hasn't your plan worked? Why am I still alive and sane?"

"That's my question."

Sam just shrugged and opened his mouth for an empty answer.

"If you say 'whatever', I'm shooting you in the head. And I mean it."

Even if he hadn't planned on using the word, Sam clamped his mouth shut.

Snitch Gravel stood, a look of suppressed anger on his face. "I'm this close to killing you anyway," he mumbled and tossed the folder on the desk into Sam's lap.

Ignoring the not-so-veiled death threat, Sam glanced at it. His name was in the upper left corner and his blood froze when he realized what it was. He wanted to open it so badly, but the hands cuffed behind his back stopped him.

"Frustrating, isn't it?" Snitch Gravel asked and Sam looked up at him. "This is how I feel. You're the file, you're right in front of me and still, I can't open you up and read you. And I'm not sure what's holding my hands tied."

"You're spying on us?" Sam burst out.

Snitch Gravel retrieved his file and put it back in one of the drawers of one of his filing cabinets. "Spying? I would call it careful observation. Didn't you ever wonder why I haven't killed you yet? When you were thirteen, or even five? Why I've waited so long to come out of the shadows?"

"Well, no, not really," Sam said trying to feign ignorance he didn't posses, because he had wondered all that before, but it was safer to let Snitch Gravel think he was stupider than he actually was.

"I've let you live because I wanted something else from you," Snitch Gravel responded, apparently fooled. "I knew the Counters would come after you. I expected them to come after Kyle first, but they wanted all of you at the same time. I'm not sure how wise that is from their part, but..." He shrugged.

"So you waited for us to be recruited?" Sam asked.

"Exactly. How else would I thwart their plans and kill you all in one fell swoop? I have to admit I hate them almost as much as I hate your rotten father."

"Why do you hate my rotten father?" Sam asked again on a blank tone, trying to keep the conversation going.

Snitch Gravel was not fooled this time. "Did you ask him?"

"I did, but I didn't believe his story. At least not entirely."

"Why not? What did he tell you?" Snitch Gravel asked interested.

"He said you were in high school together, and you didn't like each other, and that you killed people," Sam answered, analyzing every muscle on Snitch Gravel's face.

Snitch Gravel gave him nothing, staring at him as if he hadn't opened his mouth. Then he started laughing so heartily, Sam jumped.

"Yes, but did I also rob a bank?" he asked between laughter. "God, he thinks you're that stupid. I would take offence if I were you. And you're such an amateur! Did you even look into his story?"

Sam faltered because he'd honestly thought there was no story to look into.

"I had plans to start threatening your girlfriend to get what I want out of you, but you just made my day," Snitch Gravel waved him away, still snickering. "Freider's always lacked imagination, but this?"

He kept laughing as he pressed a buzzer on his desk and summoned two men. They were different ones from the one who'd led him to the room, a lot more tired looking and less talkative. Sam followed them out without a word, his exhausted mind whirling.

It was obvious his father's story had been a much bigger lie than he'd thought. The bad part was, he doubted he'd get a better answer. If not even the information that his children were hunted down could possess him to tell the true, Sam doubted anything would. And maybe, just maybe, Snitch Gravel had the tinniest tiniest point.

❄❄❄

Yay, finally. It took me way too long to finish this chapter. Just a slow cooldown before we head off into giant action land again.

So please, give me your thoughts on what's going on here. The action, the mystery, freaking Snitch Gravel being freaking cryptic AF. We're so close to the end so I reaaaaally need to know how you feel about the story at this point.

Next chapter? Yes, it will come. We're also going back to the parents in that one. I'm sure you've missed them.

Vote and comment for support and finger's crossed for more writing time.