Chapter 35: Miss Me?
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June 6th: zero days left...

Today's their last day in Hawaii. Tomorrow they get on the plane at 5 am. But many of them weren't talking.

Gar would talk to Dick and Vic. He tried to talk to the girls but they gave him the cold shoulder, so he gave up. Kori would only speak to everyone but Gar. And Raven would only speak to Kori, and maybe Dick if he got lucky. Otherwise she'd be mute, giving shrugs, nods, shakes of her head, and hand gestures to answer simple questions. She acted like Gar was invisible. Sometimes she'd attempt to walk right through him, pushing him aside, not even reacting to the fact that she just ran into somebody.

Tonight, somehow with all the lack of communication, they agreed they'd play pool in the den then watch a movie.

Gar played with Vic and Kori snuggled on the couch with Dick. Raven was nowhere to be seen, and nobody looked for her. They figured they'd give her some space.

"Kor, are you ok?"

"Mhm..." she said sleepily. They had also had a glass of wine or two. But she's a lightweight. "I'm just a little upset with, Gar. He was selfish. He is never selfish. I don't understand why he'd do such a thing to Rachel."

"I'm not sure what he did, Kor, but he's not the kind of person just to do something for no reason."

"I know..."

"NO! NONONONONO!" They turned around. Gar had hit the 8 ball by accident and it was headed straight for a pocket. He held his breath as it stopped short of the pocket and he exhaled deeply.

"Aww man! I almost won!"

"Yeah. Almost." He went back to his quiet façade he had kept pretty much all day.

"See, it is mostly that that really worries me. That quiet exetrior he is putting up." She whispers. "He's just trying to hide himself from us. Why?"

"I'm really not sure Kori. You're the one with all the info. I'm just a bystander at this point. Though I really wish I could help." He sighed. "The two of them are giving eachother a such a hard time. I feel kind of bad."

"For who?"

"Both of them. I don't exactly know what happened but both of them have a right to be upset about it. Rachel from whatever he did to her and Gar because the backlash from her he's been getting."

"I do not agree with you, but I'd rather just enjoy the last day of our vacation in peace. Or some semblance of it."

"Agreed."

"Crap!" Vic got the white ball in the pocket. Now Gar gets to put it wherever he wants.

He used his turn tactically and got the last ball he needed to get in.

"Alright, mister 8-ball." He said quietly. Because of his screw up earlier he was now at an advantage. There was hardly a sound off the pool cue as he tapped the ball into the pocket and won.

Usually he'd celebrate loudly, but this time he just smiled and leaned on the pool cue. Vic was pretty pissed. He just set the cue down and walked towards the couch.

"So how's about that movie then?" He said begrudgingly.

"You guys can start, I've got to go to the bathroom." Gar stated. He headed down the hall to the bathroom but he stopped before he passed Raven's door. It's was promptly shut after he stopped walking. He looked through the key hole.

He gasped and then ran back to the others. He had seen the familiar black leg of a familiar black suit.

"Guys! Guys! Get up off the couch dammit!" They were more startled by the fact that he was speaking so loudly since he had more or less only spoken in mumbles all day.

"What is it, Gar?!" Vic asked.

"Nightengale is in the house!"

"What? Impossible. How would she have followed us all the way to Hawaii?" Vic denied his claim.

"And if she was here our phones would go off."

"No they won't!" He shouted.

"How do you know?" Kori spoke to him for the first time all day.

"Uh..." all of a sudden the lights went out and an all too familiar laugh rang through the air.

Gar bolted for the front door. But it was locked. He then tried the back door. Also locked.

"Damn." Kori got as close as she physically could to her husband and braces herself for the worst.

It was dead silent. It was like she had put them in a sound proof room. Not even the waves outside could be heard.

Then there was some sort of humming, a creepy sounding tune, that replaced the deadening silence.

"Friends, we must find Rachel." Kori whispers.

"Agreed." The other two said while Gar mentally facepalmed.

"Don't bother." A dark shadow flew behind them and then Nightengale appeared out of a wall. "You won't find her."

"Nightengale..." Dick growled.

"Evening, Richard. It's been a while hasn't it?"

"How did you get here without the chips going off?" She touched the diamond on her chest and it opened like a little door, revealing the scrambler chip inside. "But how did you..."

"I got information from a little boy I know. Or should I say a little Beast Boy?" All eyes were on Gar. Who had a prompt comeback ready.

"Are you really going to listen to her? She's insane!"

"If I didn't have a spy how would I know that Starshine over here feels more comfortable with him than with her own husband?"

"What?" Dick looked at Kori.

"Or about what happened with you and Little Miss. Markov?" Gar glared irately at her. "Oh that was a fun mission. Seeing that car burn was like Christmas in the summer."

"You're lying!" Gar shouted. She was annoyed that he had the guts to even speak up.

"Am I? How would I know that little Richard here has a brother then?" She gained Dick's attention. "Or that you need to have a constant grasp on people in order to be happy. So, so pathetic. I honestly expected more from an esteemed business man like yourself."

"Shut up! You don't know what you're talking about!" She broke him away from his wife, prying her away from him and kicked him in the gut. He fell on the ground and Nightengale pulled a gun on him, popping him right in the elbow. Starfire screamed and booked it. Vic ran after her but Gar stayed.

"Dick..." he mumbled saucer-eyed. Then he leaves too. Nightengale follows, but the hall all three of them went down is empty.

"(To the "pop goes the weasel nursury rhyme") 🎵Come out come out wherever you are. Birdy's gonna find you. You can run but you can't hide, Birdy's going to find you.🎵" her singing was creepy as all hell in that dark house.

Little did she know Gar was back helping Dick. They didn't speak. He just helped him up and sat him down. Then as quietly as he could grabbed, bandages from the bathroom and temporarily covered his wound.

"Thanks." Dick whispered.

"No problem." Then another one of Star's shrill screams rang out followed by disgruntled struggling noises.

Against their better judgement, they followed the sounds to door of the basement. Nightengale was holding up Kori by her neck. Thinking quickly Vic beaned Nightengale in the back of the head and he grabbed Kori as she fell and ran. Nightengale saw stars, but she wasn't done yet.

Once she collected herself she teleported behind them and snatched up Gar by his collar.

"Hey!" They turned around but they started backing up slowly.

"Why do you keep lying? What is your goal anyway?"

"Let me go!"

"Aww why should I? Although, I guess I really don't need my little spy anymore."

"Gar!"

She pulled out a knife and attempted to stab him with it, but he stopped her hand.

"What?!" He quickly turned on her and stabbed her in the thigh, freeing himself. He ran to the others panting.

"Gar,how did you–" Vic was cut off. Nightengale yanked out the knife and started shooting at them and they scattered across the living room. Kori and Vic got hit.

Gar growled. He was extremely upset now. He ran at her, only to run past her. But he did a clean sweep of her ankles, similar to the way she does it, and she fell. Gar took the opportunity to throw some punches. He landed two out of 6 because she tried to get up in the process. Dick joined in with his good arm swinging a pool cue. He got a few good hits on her before she snapped the cue in half with her power.

The three of them went at it until one punch from Gar in the face knocked her mask clean off and she fell to the ground on her knees. Her hair fell to her shoulders, giving her the look of someone familiar to them.

"Show your damn face!" Gar yelled. "Show them who you were all this time! Show them who's really lying!"

She turned around and stared Dick straight in the eyes.

"Rachel?!"

"Actually," he roundhouse kicked the both of them into and over the couch. "The name's Raven."