Farrington-Gores: Closer to freedom

(A/N: Sorry this update's been delayed, been having issues staying connected to the internet.)

'You look cheerful.'

'Oh yeah, you might've heard me laughing a minute ago. I just got a call from Laz - turns out we've missed a bit of drama back home.'

'Oh? What's happened?'

'Abraxas got attacked by a demon who cut one of his fingers off.'

'...He cut his finger off?'

'Yeah. So the fucker's in hospital.'

'The only bad thing is, whoever this asshole is, did it in front of Annalise and my siblings, so they're pretty fucked up about it.'

'Oh no, poor them.'

'Yeah, I feel bad for 'em. Not Abraxas, though. I don't usually laugh at such violence, but when it's him, I feel like I can make an exception.'

'No, I can't expect you to have much sympathy for him. I'm not sure I do, either.'

'The way I see it, it's just desserts! Anyway, fuck him, I hope the hospital food is shit. Why don't we hit the beach? I wanna at least try and get a tan before we leave.'

'That's a good idea.'

Later that day -

'Right, thank you all for coming. Sorry for the sudden demand that everyone get here, but I had a phone call from Annalise this morning, and getting her out of that house has now become a much higher priority.'

'Who's Annalise?'

'Abraxas' wife. I went through a domestic abuse checklist with her, and it's safe to say that he's abusing her, just not physically.'

'Oh cool. Guessin' that's why you ain’t want me to go near him an' his bald mate at that weddin'.'

'Partly, but I also know how you can't resist making a scene, especially at the expense of somebody disgusting. So I'm trusting you to not make things worse, because this is serious.'

'Yeah, sure. I'll be dead serious, promise.'

'What's he done to her?'

'Verbally abusive with yelling and name calling, plus has a tendency to throw things, according to her. However, the reason why getting her and the children out of there has become so important isn't because of what Abraxas has done - it's because of what's been done to him, which is where you specifically come in, Anstine, because you're going to want to know this. He was attacked by demons.'

'Demons, huh? Do you know who?'

'No, unfortunately not. But let's face it, there's only one person we know of who is affiliated with demons and also happens to hate Abraxas' best buddy -'

'- Uh, I don't!'

'Okay, okay, look, I will explain everything soon enough. This has been a bit of an ongoing problem. You and Zaryn I need to help keep a look out once we're in Devil's Port, and I just haven't had the time to explain this entire fucking shitshow in full.'

'Annalise gave me a description of the two demons in question, and one of them was definitely Rikard, but his accomplice I have no idea about. Red skinned, spikes protruding from his shoulders, and a curly moustache.'

'Sounds like a sexpot.'

'Evijan.'

'That sounds like Aeshma the Romantic. And I'm not making jokes, that's his name.'

'This must have been what Hazel was talking about. She told us some of their associates were going to Devil's Port to see Abraxas. Because apparently one of Abraxas' cronies was spotted following Miles.'

'Oh, so that's who he was! Harmony - one of my friends who works with me - she spotted him as well!'

'Ahh, I see. Well, it turns out he had been sent to gather intel on Miles. In order to plan his death.'

'I hope it was worth it for the stupid fucking son of a bitch, because now he's down one finger.'

'What the hell?!'

'...Mmhmm. That's what this "Aeshma the Romantic" did. Mutilated Abraxas' hand, right in front of his fucking wife and children.'

'Holy shit.'

'That's horrible. His poor family.'

'Man, what the hell was Abraxas thinking? I'm guessing Tate sent him, but did he really not convey just how dangerous he and his demon allies are?'

'Who can say? But regardless, Abraxas is now spending time in hospital, so we only have a brief amount of time to act. I've already given Annalise a list of things she'll need to grab, important documents and the like, so she should be searching for them now. She's also fucking traumatised, needless to say, and is filled with paranoia.'

'I can't say I blame her.'

'So what I want us to do is to travel to Devil's Port together in order to assist Annalise and her children getting out of the town and into a safe hotel ASAP. Evijan and Zaryn, like I said earlier, you two are to be on lookout. Annalise is paranoid that Abraxas' friends might come over while she's trying to escape. You two are to stop that from happening.'

'Without making things worse or making enemies.'

'I gotcha.'

'Anstine, firstly I thought you should know what those demons have been up to, but secondly you and I are to assist Annalise with their luggage, finding things, taking bags out, whatever.'

'And I'm also going to be very presumptuous here. If you can find care for Vincent, I'd ideally like you to accompany us as well. As I've implied, Annalise is not in a good state of mind right now, and her self esteem is fucking shot. If you can come along, I think you'd be a big help.'

'Are you sure? Of course I'd be willing to help, but will she trust me?'

'I don't know. But I've told her to look into therapy for all of them regardless, so she'd have to trust a stranger whether it's you or someone else.'

'So you don't think she's likely to be wary or cautious of men at the moment?'

'I haven't gotten that impression, at least. But failing that, if she is, I'll just apologise and say I had to bring who I can and you can help us with the luggage and shit instead. I know this is short notice, but I want to go tomorrow.'

'Hmm. At least I have plenty of childcare options. I'll have to owe them, mind.'

'Well, if you can, I'd really appreciate it.'

'I can just throw a sicky an' get here easy enough.'

'...Okay, perhaps you should stay put instead of fraudulently getting the time available.'

'Fuck no, I wanna help out, I'll just say I saw Mum naked an' am spendin' the day pukin'.'

'She was the one in the almost dress, right?'

'Thaaaat's right.'

'Yeah, thanks for sending me that picture of her. I really wanted to wash my eyes out with bleach.'

'Oh, no problem man, can do it again if you like. Pretty fuckin' brave of her to wear that thing though, 'cause if I was sportin' tits like a golf ball in a sock, I wouldn't wanna draw attention to it.'

'I fucking regret my entire life.'

'Oh dear God.'

'Anyway, I'll be able to get the day off, too. Dad's happy to let me have time out of the lab whenever I ask, just so long as I don't, y'know, abuse the privilege.'

'Okay, thank you all. And also, I don't know if he asks what you're doing when you take time off, but -'

'- Don't mention I'm doing something for you, I know.'

'Thanks. I don't really like to encourage you to keep secrets from your father, but under the circumstances...'

'Yeah, exceptions can be made in the case of dealin' with a middle aged loser with the mind of a fuckin' three year old.'

'Evijan!'

'Well, it's a situation that should be handled with as much discretion as possible.'

'Exactly.'

'What? Oh yeah, I guess that was a bit of an unfair comparison. Three year olds have a way better temper than good ole Uncle No Di-'

'- Alright Evijan time to leave before I throw you on your ass.'

'Okay, okay. Text me times to meet you an' shit?'

'Yes, I will.'

'Sweet, see you bitches tomorrow then!'

'...Was she going to call him "Uncle No Dick"?'

'...Yes. Yes she was.'

'Okay, I think I'm gonna go too, because ew.'

'Wait, is that like a generic insult, or does she actually know the size of his knob?'

'...Marcus sent me nudes once. Evijan saw before I could trash the horrible things. So. Mm.'

'Oh dear Christ, poor you.'

'Wow. ...So I take it I'm not meant to pass that info onto Isai.'

'I suppose I can't really stop you if you're absolutely desperate, but I also won't take responsibility if he decides to string you up by your big toes in retaliation. ...Fun fact, that's why I moved here, because doing that let me know he was aware of which town I'm in.'