Bad News On The Home Front

Job Details:

Approval: Page 13, Post Number 317 Approval

-Bellum, Clarence Necargie's Mansion-

Diana had been called here today by her old family friend Clarence Necargie because he had some important news that he wanted to share with her. He claimed that some confidential "sources" had told him that Mr. Gorman was making moves in the shadows and hiring the services of some contract killers to eliminate Diana. Diana was ushered into Mr. Necargie's presence by Madeleine, the young woman who she had recently rescued from the Haunted Guild.

"Welcome, Miss Winchester. I appreciate everything you did for me a few days ago, but the pleasantries will have to wait. My uncle would like to speak to you about a grave matter." Madeleine greeted Diana. Diana wiped off her navy blue dress shoes at the door and was guided by the brunette into Mr. Necargie's dining room, where the impeccably dressed older man was seated at the head of the table with a glass of champagne at his right hand. The table had been set for three, which must have meant that Madeleine would be joining them for the discussion.

"Welcome, my dear. Please, have a seat. We have much to discuss." Clarence said to Diana, who took a seat at the opposite end of the table. Madeleine closed the doors and drew the curtains, then sat to the left of her uncle. Once the participants were seated the discussion of the "grave matter" began.

"Some confidential sources have told me that Mr. Gorman has learned that you're still alive. As you remember, he's the one who had your family killed over four years ago. He thought that he had gotten all of you, but now that he's learned that you're still alive he's going to finish what he started." Clarence warned Diana of Mr. Gorman's intention to complete the extermination of the Winchester family.

"Do you have any specifics that you can tell me about without endangering your sources?" Diana asked her host. Clarence closed his eyes for a moment and took a sip from his glass of champagne, then spoke to her again.

"I can say this much. Mr. Gorman's been spending a lot of money on something. My sources don't know what exactly that something is, but I suspect that it's the services of contract killers from a group called The Shadow Collective. They're very expensive but also very good at what they do." Clarence informed her. Diana was not very surprised to hear that. Mr. Gorman had plenty of money to throw around and would spend as much as it took to destroy the Winchester family once and for all. If the information her host had obtained was accurate, Mr. Gorman was spending a lot of money to hire a shadowy dream team of contract killers to remove his problem for him.

"What will you and Madeleine do if Mr. Gorman decides that you are next for elimination?" Diana asked Clarence. Clarence gave a smile full of confidence.

"He won't move against us. He wants you dead more than he wants us dead. Mr. Gorman may be a conniving snake who has a lot of money and charm, but he's got a weakness. A big one." Clarence replied to Diana with confidence. Diana was interested in what he would say next. He knew much more about Mr. Gorman that she did and the blonde hoped to learn how she could defeat the enemy before the banking magnate could finish the job he started over four years ago and kill her.

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[Total Word Count: 600/1,500]

"And what might Mr. Gorman's weakness be?" Diana asked her host in a straightforward fashion. Clarence simply gave her a wide smile.

"He's a smart man. He knows how to manipulate people and he can make plans. But Mr. Gorman's biggest problem is that he doesn't know how to deal with failure." Clarence told her. Diana kind of understood where this was going, but she was still a bit uncertain as to what he meant. What did he mean by claiming that her enemy did not know how to deal with failure?

"What exactly does that mean?" Diana asked politely, taking a sip of water. Clarence's smile did not falter.

"He's so used to succeeding that when he fails, no matter how small that failure is, he flies off the handle. And when he flies off the handle he loses sight of his goal and does short-sighted things. Stupid, short-sighted things." The older man elaborated.

"One time he was playing golf in Capital Crocus. He was on the eighteenth hole and missed a three-yard putt after making birdies all game. He got so angry that he picked up his bag of expensive golf clubs, lifted it above his head, and threw it at his caddie. Thankfully his aim with the bag of clubs was about as good as his putting ability and it missed the poor man. As you'd expect, the landing bent up his clubs and cost him a lot of Jewels that he wouldn't have had to pay if he'd just kept calm." Clarence told her an anecdote of Mr. Gorman's inability to handle failure in a mature fashion. That anecdote was indicative of what she was going up against. It also gave her a way to beat him that did not require her to play a game of golf or to attack him directly.

"So all I have to do is play the long game and keep foiling his plans and he will sabotage himself with his volatile temper?" Diana asked point-blank. Clarence simply nodded.

"Exactly." Clarence said succinctly. Now Diana understood what she had to do. She did not have to make a direct attack on Mr. Gorman, something which was both dangerous and illegal. He likely expected an attack on his person and had undoubtedly planned for such an event by preparing all sorts of countermeasures. All she had to do to win was be patient, which was easy for her since her other job required waiting for just the right moment to strike.

"And what do I do about his... hired helpers?" Diana asked him. Madeleine calmly sipped tea and Clarence took a sip of champagne.

"If they come after you, kill them." Clarence said candidly. The smile faded from his face and a stony no-nonsense expression formed. Diana could feel the mood in the room shift from a casual conversation with menacing undertones to a mood of complete seriousness.

"They won't take mercy on you. They can't be reasoned with or bought off. If they come after you, you fight or you die." Clarence told her that there was no other option but to fight for her life if one of the Shadow Collective contract killers came after her. Diana did not intend to plead for her life or to buy them off. If the Shadow Collective came after her she would kill them. Aside from the obvious benefit of keeping her alive, killing them was her way of cutting down on the Hidden Blades' competition.

[Word Count: 600]
[Total Word Count: 1,200/1,500]

"It's that simple. Just wait Mr. Gorman out and he'll sabotage himself." Clarence reiterated his advice to her. Diana could do that. She had no interest in going after him directly and would have let the not-so-small matter of him killing her family go had he not added her to the list as well. He had made things personal and she could not overlook that transgression. Mr. Gorman would get what was coming to him... just not in a way that would make him look like the innocent victim of a crime.

If Diana were to act against him and succeed, there would be a storm of consequences. The violent death of such a public figure would draw an intense investigation and a nation-wide manhunt with no stone left unturned and no lead that was not followed to the end. If she were caught there was a good chance that she would be convicted, even in the famously mage-friendly country of Bellum. Diana had a different plan in mind, one that was less action-oriented and slower to play out but one that would be more beneficial in the long run.

Mr. Gorman was putting a lot of money into hiring the Shadow Collective members. If Diana repeatedly killed them or otherwise made them look incompetent, his short temper might cause a rift between the two. The "best" case would be that Mr. Gorman angered the wrong Shadow Collective member and they would kill him for her, but she was not banking on that. She would gladly accept the shadowy organization severing ties with him and refusing to take any more contracts from the banking magnate. Either outcome was desirable to the blonde.

"No one knows what the Shadow Collective's agents look like. They could be anyone, so you'll just have to watch your back wherever you go." Clarence answered the next question before it could even be asked. Diana was not too surprised to hear that. Anonymity was how contract killers lived to retirement... or at least lengthened their careers.

"I'll keep contacting my sources and see what they can come up with, but I'll have to be careful. I don't want them to be compromised." He said to her. Madeleine took another sip of tea and commented on the situation after a long silence.

"It seems that you have become embroiled in some sordid business. I wish you luck, Miss Winchester." Madeleine offered condolences to Diana. Diana was mildly amused by the brunette's choice of words. The blonde was already embroiled in "sordid business" long before her shadow darkened the doorstep of Necargie Mansion. She was part of Hidden Blades, the most secretive of the major guilds. Before that she had been an assassin working for her parents to get rid of their competition or anyone who threatened their bottom line.

"Thanks." Diana said laconically. She did not need to elaborate on the gravity of her situation. She knew what she had to do in order to "win." She just had to keep fending off attempts on her life until Mr. Gorman got tired of flushing Jewels down the toilet and either gave up or angered the wrong assassin and ended up getting killed himself. That could take awhile to happen, but Diana had the patience to play the long game.

Diana finished her glass of water, stood up, and was about to leave when Clarence stopped her.

"Why don't you spend the night here where it's safe?" He asked her. Diana was about to refuse but did not want to alienate her closest ally by refusing for no good reason. She would accept the offer of hospitality, if only to stay on the good side of Clarence Necargie.

"I would like that, thank you." Diana replied politely to her ally. Clarence clapped his hands together.

"Excellent. I'll make the arrangements shortly." He said to her with a smile. Diana decided to play it safe and spend the night here. There was no need to hurry because the Shadow Collective would be after her soon enough.

[Word Count: 693]
[Total Word Count: 1,893/1,500]