A Fraudulent Death, Draft 02, CH 08 (Patreon)

The restaurant was nicer than Trembor expected. Nicer than the neighborhood led him to think it could, he thought, as he parked in the half-full lot. He tightened his winter jacket as protection against the frigid wind as he ran for the door, then inside. The tigress on the other side of the podium smiled in commiseration as he relaxed.

He couldn’t wait for the warm weather to return.

“I’m meeting my brother,” he said as he breathed in the fragrant sauces and spices mixed in with scents of blood and cooked meats. “Bolifen Goldenmane.”

She consulted a chart. “If you’ll follow me.” She led him to a table near the back where Bo sat next to a mole. Trembor stopped a few steps away as the hostess placed a menu on the table. He looked around, searching for her guards, as the tigress walked away. He couldn’t make them out. Only regular-looking predators and a few prey seated at random tables, enjoying their meals. Everyone seemed firmly in the middle-upper productivity bracket.

“It’s only the three of us, Mister Goldenmane,” the mole said. “Please, take a seat.” Bo squirmed under his glare when Trembor fixed him with it. “It is customary to sit at an eating establishment,” she said after a few seconds of him not moving.

He sat, pushing the menu away. If he ate anything here, they wouldn’t be offered in there.

“I hope you remember me,” she said.

“I remember the threats you made against my family,” he replied, giving his brother a last glare before focusing entirely on her. He couldn’t afford to be careless just because she was prey.

“That was an unfortunate necessity. I am sorry the words had to be uttered.”

Trembor stifled the snort. He doubted she cared at all. He expected she had people killed more often than most predators did.

“Who are you?” He asked.

She didn’t react, she didn’t have visible ears for him to read as a sign of her mood, or her scent. Even if he could pick it up through the smells of the kitchen, he couldn’t be sure of what they meant. He hadn’t taken the scent recognition course Marlot had.

“I thought you said you remembered me.”

“You never told me your name. Or the group you represent.”

“Ah, yes.” She was silent as she considered—him or something else; her minuscule eyes looking ahead with no indication they saw. Moles weren’t blind, but without glasses, she wouldn’t see much more than shapes. “Maoma Burrows will do, I think.”

“If I ask to see your ID, what will it say?” Trembor asked, ignoring how she wasn’t addressing who she worked for, or the horrified expression on his brother’s face.

“Nothing of relevance, as you will not see it. Before you get yourself, and the people you care about, into trouble, know that while my people are not in the restaurant, they are monitoring the situation. If something happens to me, something will happen to someone in your family.” She smiled. “So let us hope this meeting happens peacefully, for everyone’s sake.”

Trembor couldn’t stop the growl, but he kept it low enough the goat a few tables over only looked up in worry, and not at him directly.

“Good,” she said. “This meeting is to address the rather idiot actions you undertook after our last meeting. Yes, I am aware you paid a hacker to leave incriminating evidence within our servers. Evidence the enforcers were quick to act on, and do so rather forcefully. While I am used to the enforcers putting their noses and claws into my affairs, they normally know better than to eat my employees. Unfortunately, the belief they took part in the killing of a cub clouded that common sense.”

Trembor watched her while untangling what she said, the implications left dangling for him to pull at. While he might want to come clean about his actions and be punished, it wasn’t to her he’d do so.

She placed a pad on the table. “Before you protest your innocence. You should listen to this.”

“He paid us to do it!” Jasber Braid’s voice came from the pad. The volume was low enough her yelling didn’t carry. Behind her, someone screamed in pain.

“Who?” a man demanded.

At her lack of response, the screaming intensified.

“Trembor! His name if Trembor Goldenmane! Stop it! I’m the one who made the deal. It was me. Stop torturing him!”

Maoma tapped the pad, and it fell silent.

Trembor stared at it. Jasber was supposed to be in enforcer custody, or at a caging complex. He had no problem working out who the person being tortured was. He’d thought the ‘brother’ thing had been part of the show she’d put on for his benefit.

“What have you done with them?” he whispered. Too stunned to put any threats in the tone. For them to be caught was one thing. They had taken part in his crimes. That Jasber implied the evidence tampering was his idea didn’t surprise him, she’d try to cover her ass the entire way to the cage. But for them to have been tortured over it? That was on him.

“What do you think?” the mole answered dismissively. “I have no use for them, once they sold you out, which she did rather easily. I told you I had nothing to do with what was happening to your brother, Mister Goldenmane. I gave you my assurances, then you went and did this.”

“You’re crooks,” he snarled and the others in the restaurant looked in their direction, so he lowered his voice. “Do you really think I’d believe one word you said?”

“And yet, you now know I told the truth.” She looked in his direction, and if she hoped to seem threatening, it was a wasted effort without him being able to be sure she was staring. “A Nikal Swiftfall was the male behind it. There is actual evidence to that fact.”

He ground his teeth.

“So now, there is the question of repayment, of balancing accounts. Your,” she paused, seemed to consider something, “employees have paid for their parts in this, but you are the one holding responsibility, ultimately. So, Mister Goldenmane, how exactly do you propose to replay me for the people your actions cost me?”

Trembor stared at her, trying to decide if she was trying to be funny. “You can’t seriously ask that. You lose people all the time.”

“That is true, and anytime it happens, the party responsible is made to balance their actions in some way. A business cannot run when constantly operating at a loss of personnel, and my, let’s call it industry, doesn’t benefit from the protection the government offers others through the productivity compensation. It falls on me to ensure proper compensation is obtained. Unlike others, I prefer doing so from those who have caused the loss. I find it to be proper justice.”

“I’m not paying you anything,” Trembor growled, insulted at her use of the word. People like her knew nothing of justice. “You brought this on yourself when you went after my brother.”

She glanced at Bo, then returned her attention to Trembor. “I did not go after him. His actions brought him to my attention. He accrued debt, and now he is repaying it. Once he has acquitted this duty, our business will end.”

Trembor snorted. “You expect me to believe you didn’t manipulate things into making his situation worse?”

“What you believe is irrelevant,” she said, so calmly she was driving him to want to bite at her just to cause a reaction. “You should instead focus on the situation you have created for yourself. Now, I will not have you killed, I will also not have anyone in your family killed, as I believe that will only exacerbate the situation. So you can cease worrying. Although I advise you against confusing my upfront concessions as weakness. Push me too far, Mister Goldenmane, and you may find I have voided said concession when I have a body left at your doorstep. Am I making myself clear?”

“Very,” Trembor said, swallowing his anger. He knew she’d do it. She’d even pay the tax just to show him how meaningless the act had been.

“Good. Now, you have stated you will not reimburse me for the bodies, so it only leaves one course of action.” She paused.

He waited for her to continue, but it became clear she wanted him to ask. So he did it just to put this to an end. “Which is?”

She smiled, and for him to be able to tell it was an impressive one. “For you to work for us until you have paid what you owe, of course.”

He almost exploded at her. At the implication he’d ever work for someone like her. Only the realization she’s miscalculated stopped him and made him smile.

“Good luck with that. I’m heading to a caging complex.”

Bo stared at him in surprise.

“That is easily resolved,” she said so dismissively, Trembor didn’t know how to take it. “And even if it wasn’t, a male like you would be useful to us even there.” Now he realized how she might have been able to get the recording. “But you need not worry. Interfering in your case will be a simple matter.”

“You mean like how you refused to do it for Bo?” He asked, to make sure his brother knew the kind of people he was involved with.

“For all the use your brother has, a Registered Investigator is much more valuable.”

He had to force the dismissive snort. “My license is suspended.” Her calm was beginning to feel like a weapon. It couldn’t be real. She couldn’t have that kind of power.

“But only if you are found guilty of the crimes you are being accused of,” she replied, her calm not breaking.

“You aren’t going to be able to make the evidence against me disappear,” he stated. Hoping he was right. She’d already implied having arrangements with the enforcers.

She shrugged. “You would be surprised what I can make happen. But no, all that would happen if the evidence vanished now is that it would look like someone is covering your tracks for you. If suspicion remains when you are cleared, you will be of no use to me.”

“You can’t remove suspicions from me,” Trembor stated, trying to sound as confident as she did. “Not considering who’s looking to have me caged at this point.”

“You mean Prosecutor Flattooth?” she asked, her tone amused. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about her.”

“There’s no way she works for you,” he said before he could stop himself. If these criminals had someone like her in their control. Someone so clearly and vocally against any sort of criminal—and now that he thought about it, he realized how it would make for the perfect way to divert attention—and got her to replace Sharphorns…

She chuckled. “Wouldn’t that be nice for us? I don’t need to own her, for me to have control over the outcome of your case. If you agree this is how you will repay your debt, I can promise you that you will go free without even the leftover scent of doubt to affect your future. Once it is repaid, you will be free and you can consider this lapse in judgment to be behind you. Call it a learning experience.”

“No,” he snarled. Even if everything about her attitude proclaimed she could do what she said. That they wouldn’t arrange things so he’d be indebted to them for the rest of his life. He would never work for criminals.

“Mister—” she began.

He was on his feet, hands slamming on the table and leaning into her. “I fucking said no. I’d rather die and be eaten by prey than to be pulled into what you do. I will be caged for my crimes. I’m going to pay for what I did. I don’t go and get others to pay for pulling my tail out of the fire.”

“An admirable sentiment,” she replied, unmoved by his growling. He couldn’t identify the individual scents into a mood, but he could tell they barely shifted. “Utterly misplaced, but admirable nonetheless. I am a business female. You may disapprove of the services my industry provides, but if there wasn’t a need for them, the forces of productivity would have crushed it. I will do what any good business person would in this situation. I will give you time to calm and properly consider my offer. You are free to refuse in the end. Once you are calm, at our next meeting, if you still say no, I’ll simply accept the loss, have you feed my employees, and go on about my business. I will not involve your family as part of that negotiation. I would like to think that the predator’s will to live will be enough.” She stood, put her pad in a pocket, and nodded to them. “I wish you both a good day. Do enjoy a meal, on my goodwill. This place only has rave reviews from the predators who eat here.” She stepped around the table and left.

The silence stretched as Trembor fought against chasing her, taking her down once she was out the door. The need was irrational, her death wouldn’t end the threat to his family. But he was certain the momentary satisfaction would be enough for the time being.

“Trem,” Bo said, and Trembor glared at his brother.

“Don’t,” he growled. “Bo, just don’t.” He didn’t need his brother telling him to work for these criminals, to add pressure for him to be free from the cages to what was already a difficult situation. If he’d thought it would be hard with only having his lawyer seeking to set him free, how impossible was it going to become if criminals also worked to make that happen?

He looked at his brother, realization setting in.

And if Bo told their father, there wouldn’t be a legal system left around by the time the dust cleared.

He swallowed. “You tell anyone in our family about this, Bo, and I will eat you myself, am I clear?”

His brother looked at him in horror. “And have to admit to dad what my part in this is? Are you fucking insane?”

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