Penelope grabbed Circe's arm.

"Get Frederica." Penelope hissed under her breath. They were far enough away that the blond man wouldn't be able to hear them even if they talked normally, but Penelope wasn't going to chance that Derek hadn't picked up a sensory enhancement passive or something.

"I'm not letting you fight him by yourself!" Circe reached for her bow.

"I'm not going to fight him!" Penelope pulled the other woman behind her. "Look, if he wanted to fight, then he would have killed the guard." She moved in front of the armored man that had been stationed at the door leading towards 16A. "I've got this." She held up her hands, then turned to the guard at the doorway to her left, over 500 feet away. "STAY AT YOUR POSTS! I'LL HANDLE THIS!"

The guards eyed her, but she didn't have time to argue with them. Over half the people had fled, leaving the other half sitting calmly at their tables.

"Best to assume those are Derek's men." Jeru advised. "But I think you're right. If he wanted to fight, he would have attacked by now."

"Go!" Penelope pushed Circe towards the door. "Get Frederica and Oakley and get back here. That's how you can help the most!"

Circe glared at Derek for a few moments, then turned back to Penelope. "Fine, but only because he's just standing there and Dawson isn't with him." She wrapped her arms around Penelope. "Don't die."

Penelope pushed the other woman off of her. "I'll be fine. Just go get everyone."

She watched the brunette vanish into the shadows. I hope Circe does what I told her. Penelope shook the worry about the woman out of her head and turned back to the blond waiting for her.

"Sending for reinforcements?" Derek tilted his head to the side as the eight other people got up and formed a wide semicircle on either side of her.

"Wouldn't you?" Penelope thought about reaching for a spell, but there was no need to antagonize the other man. She nodded at the people on either side of her. "This is a lot of muscle to talk."

"Things didn't go so well the last time, Red." Derek frowned. "A good leader knows that examples need to be made to enforce order." He gestured at his people. "Maybe if you exerted a little more order yourself, you wouldn't have lost someone last night." He dipped his head. "My condolences, by the way."

"Leading through fear and aggression only lasts as long as you stay the strongest person in the room." Penelope growled. "Leading with the sword only ensures that you'll be overthrown by someone you abused to make one of your 'points'."

"And leading with kiddie gloves ensures that your people will be too soft to protect themselves when a real threat comes along." Derek clicked his tongue. "Seriously, Red. You don't even want to be a leader. Why are you trying to lecture me about something you refuse to do yourself?"

"I might not want to lead, but I will protect my friends!" Her heart thundered in her ears as the walls of people on either side got closer. "If you want this to stay civil, then your people need to back up!"

Derek shook his head, then pursed his lips. "If you were a killer, then Kent would already be relieved of his head." He motioned at his people. "But, as a sign that I want this to stay civil, they'll back off."

The people took a few steps back, taking seats on the tables beside them.

"What do you want, Derek?" Penelope turned her thoughts inward. Jeru, can you keep an eye out for Frederica or trouble?

"Always."

Penelope turned her attention back to the smiling man. "Are you just going to sit there and smile?"

"Look at you!" Derek chuckled. "Acting all tough and like you're the one in charge. I thought you didn't want to be a leader."

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Get to the point, Derek." Penelope seethed.

"Fine, but as much as I'd love to talk to you, I need someone with actual authority to negotiate with." He clicked his tongue. "And we both know that there's no way for you to guarantee the trophy wife will abide by anything you promise."

"Then why talk to me at all?"

"Because you're pretty?" Derek bounced his eyebrows. "Come on, Red; you know I'll appreciate you more than she ever will."

"I'd rather not align myself with someone who kills other people to set examples." Penelope folded her arms in front of her chest.

"So locking people up behind a door without a key is what you're into?" Derek flashed her a smile. "Don't look so surprised. How do you think we got all the way over here without the guards being alerted?" He twirled a finger over his head. "I know everything that's happening in here."

Is he always like this?

"He can be." Jeru sighed. "Sometimes he just hides in the Star Tower."

Great. Penelope took a deep breath. "You killed one of our people and stole food and Demonic Essences from us." She tapped her foot. "What makes you think that she'd even want to negotiate with you in the first place?"

"If that's all there is, then I can work with that." Derek snapped his fingers, and Ren Bigelow walked in, carrying a sack of items.

Penelope took a step back at the sight of the large, bald man. His arms were bare, showing off the dragon tattoos that snaked up each muscular arm. A large hammer was strapped to his back, letting her know he was a physical attacker even without the [Savage] attached to the nameplate hovering over his head.

"Here." Ren's gruff voice echoed in the large chamber as he tossed the sack at her feet.

"There's twenty Tier One Demonic Essences in there." Derek motioned at the tables. "I'd offer some food too, but it doesn't look like you're missing any."

"That's it?" Penelope knelt down and looked in the bag. Vials of the black liquid, complete with the tag over them, let her know the blond man hadn't been lying. She closed the bag and stood back up. "What about Abel?"

"You want to kill one of my men?" Derek motioned around the room. "Take your pick."

Penelope sighed as the group around her stiffened. "I'm not going to kill one of your men just to even the score."

Is he serious?

"Sort of." Jeru lamented. "If you killed one of his men, then he's got leverage to get you to join his team." The blue Elf gestured at the men sitting on tables on either side of her. "If you don't, then he'll paint you as weak and someone who doesn't care about avenging a fallen friend."

"And that's why you need a capable leader to follow." Derek extended his hand. "Come on, Red. You know you'd be ten times more effective against the demons than under the trophy wife." He winked at her. "And I won't make you run a group that resents you either."

Penelope activated <Clairvoyance> and scanned the tunnel behind the blond man just to make sure there weren't any more men hiding through the door. The tunnel was empty, and for a moment, she thought about looking behind her to see how close the others were but decided to keep her focus on Derek for now, canceling the spell so she wouldn't be seeing double vision while talking to the pompous man.

"I like my team." Penelope shook her head. "And you just offered to let me kill one of your men. Why should I trust someone who might sacrifice me to pay for the next 'example' you feel like making?"

"I'd never sacrifice someone as pretty as you, Red." Derek grinned. His hand froze mid-motion.

"What if we kill you instead?" Frederica appeared behind him, her sword against his throat.

All the goons stood up, then cowered in fear as Riva appeared behind Penelope with Circe by her side. Shadowy chains held the men in place while the fear kept them from acting.

That's more than I thought they could control. Penelope scanned the group. Is it because they're all Tier Zero?

"All except Moe." Jeru coughed. "I mean Ren, but yeah, it takes fewer chains to hold a lower Tier person, and the <Fear> AoE will affect a larger group if it's lower level."

The brunette drew her bow, training the shadowy arrow on her string at the bald biker. "I wouldn't." Circe stepped in front of Penelope. "Give me an excuse."

"Wait!" Derek snapped his fingers and pointed at the door to his left. "Kill me and she dies!"

Dawson walked in with his hand around the throat of a tanned woman. He kept her pulled close to him like a shield as they shuffled into the room.

Penelope didn't need the name tag over her head to recognize the woman even from almost three hundred feet away. A chill ran down her spine as she turned to her inner voice. JERU! This falls under the 'you should have told me' CATEGORY!

"You kill me…" Derek tilted his head towards Dawson. "And he kills your predecessor's daughter."

Penelope fought the urge to summon her spell as the name tag over the woman's head came into focus.

Nina Ramirez - Level 1 - Hitter

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.