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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
 
 
 

The Longest Night - REVIEW THIS STORY

Written by Ascian
Last updated: 01/02/2007 02:01:11 AM

Chapter 3

The lights of Taipei had not dimmed in the past five years. If anything, they were brighter, and even more dazzling and frenetic than he remembered them being. Gambit stared out the car window, his fingers idly tracing the edges of the playing cards inside his coat pocket. Since leaving the Far Eastern Hotel, a light rain had begun to fall, misting the city streets with

a slick, reflective sheen that captured light and color against the darkness of the roadway.

He had heard travelers and politicians compare Taipei to New York City, but in his opinion, it was like trying to describe how an apple was better than an orange, or vice versa. Taipei, like all Asian cities he had ever visited, was a law unto itself--part modern development and part something else, something old and languid. In as much as the steel and glass of

Taipei filled the eye, the lush greenery and ancient bricks of the old homes and cobbled streets that pervaded the city provided a perfect counterpoint, sinking farther into Gambit's heart than the lure of fast money or big business.

The last time he had come here it had been on a lark--something to pass the time during a slow month. A top business executive in New York had expressed interest in owning one of Chang Dai-Chien's early paintings, an interest backed up by a very respectable sum of money. Which had brought Gambit--as well as his competition--to Taipei's National Palace Museum for a week long game of burglary, evasion, and--if he did say so himself--several spectacular strategic maneuvers that were still discussed by Taiwanese police forces.

Now though, his business in Taipei was serious, and Gambit was beginning to suspect that the ramifications were more far-reaching than anyone had previously acknowledged. It worried him.

"We're almost there," Li Zhang announced quietly. Gambit responded with a silent nod and a discreet glance at the man behind the wheel. The words they had shared in front of the Far Eastern lingered heavily on his mind, and he could almost taste the threat, both to himself and Sarah. Deep, quiet anger filled him, and he clenched his fist around the pack of cards

inside his coat pocket. The real problem, he was beginning to think, was that the Taiwanese guild did not even want his help. Which begged the question of why he had been asked to come in the first place.

Gambit twisted in his seat to look at Sarah, ignoring how Li Zhang's disapproving eyes left the road for a brief moment to track his movements. Much to his surprise, the girl looked as though she had fallen asleep. Her temple rested against the car window, her chin drooping downwards to rest on her chest. He was su re that she would be awake. Especially after her

gape-mouthed reaction to the extravagant interior of Cecilia's five star hotel, and the exotic newness of a foreign city. Gambit smiled grimly, trying to imagine what Li Zhang's reaction would be if he could see the girl without her image-inducer.

The abrupt ringing of a cell phone broke the quiet of the car's interior, and Sarah jerked awake, instantly alert. Gambit sighed, snaking free a hand to pat the girl on the knee. She relaxed only slightly, and warily stared at Li Zhang, whose quick-fire speech radiated tension, and then abruptly crackled with anger.

"What happened?" Gambit asked, as the man turned off his cell phone. As Gambit waited for a response, he did not miss the way Li Zhang's eyes lifted up to the rear view mirror to examine Sarah, and he quickly squelched a brief surge of irritation.

"There was another incident," Li Zhang finally replied, the recent sounds of anger in his voice replaced by deliberately subdued and neutral tones. A muscle jumped in his right cheek, and heavy silence filled the interior of the vehicle.

Gambit stirred restlessly, but before he could press the reticent man for more information, Li Zhang pinned the Cajun with dark, unsettled eyes.

"It is your friends," he said, and Gambit felt his stomach lurch sideways. "They have been taken."

The Guild house, based in the south of Taipei, looked quiet enough on the outside. It was a four-story apartment building crowded on every side by businesses and homes, and to be honest, Marrow could not find a single thing to differentiate it from the rest of the neighborhood. Which, she supposed, was the entire point. She had trouble, however, imagining any criminal

activity going on in a place that looked so normal and clean-cut. This was supposed to be a den of Thieves? This? At least the sewers had atmosphere.

As soon as they drove into the underground garage, however, her opinion changed. There were people everywhere, all of them moving with intent and purpose. Only a few looked up as they drove in, and those that did put down what they were working on, and greeted them as they climbed out of the vehicle.

"We heard the news," one woman said, glancing nervously at Marrow and Gambit.

"Ling," Li Zhang said, "meet Remy LeBeau and his.friend, Sarah."

Neither of them missed the pause in his voice, and Marrow reminded herself to turn his "rooster" into a "hen" before she left Taiwan. She liked Remy. She liked him *a lot*, but that was between them, and she didn't care for the intimations in Li Zhang's voice. They made her feel funny. And not in a good way.

Gambit frowned. "We can meet each o'der later, Li. What I need now is information 'bout what happened tonight. An' no bullshit dis time."

Li didn't bat an eye, turning instead to Ling, who cleared her throat. "We have a witness--he arrived just before you three. One of our own men--assigned to the medical conference since the first guests began arriving on Monday. Considering the types of people who have been disappearing, it only made sense."

"In o'der words," Gambit drawled slowly. "Y' knew dat somet'ing like dis was goin' t'happen."

Ling froze. "We anticipated--"

"Y'anticipated shit," Gambit told her. Marrow felt the room go still around them, but Gambit pushed on, his voice loud and harsh in the sudden quiet. "If y' had really anticipated tonight's kidnappin', Henri McCoy and Cecilia Reyes would still be sleepin' in deir beds, an' we'd have some answers."

"LeBeau--" Li began. Gambit held up his hand, his gaze bright and furious.

"I got one more t'ing t'say, Li," he said, swooping down until they were eye to eye. "If I ever hear y'talk 'bout Sarah again with anyt'ing less dan respect, I'll break both o' your arms. Ni ting dong le ma?"*

Li's cheeks darkened with color, but he said nothing.

"Good." Gambit straightened. "Now let's go find dat witness o' yours."

They were led through a narrow corridor; the walls were concrete, unadorned and gray, and Marrow felt inexplicably penned in by them. She concentrated on Gambit's back instead, and found a little comfort in his solid presence. Not that she would ever admit that she was actually in *need* of comfort--but this place was strange, and she did not understand the language

being spoken.

Li Zhang and Ling walked several feet ahead of Gambit, and they finally stopped in front of a tall metal door. They did not hesitate; Li Zhang pushed open the door and walked in, Ling motioning for Gambit and Marrow to precede her.

The room was well-lit and filled with medical instruments and narrow cots.

A man sat on one of them, his back turned. He looked up as they entered, and Marrow felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise.

"What'd dey use on you, boy?" Gambit muttered, as he stared at the man's ravaged, bloody face. "De butt of a wrench?"

Maybe just that, Marrow thought to herself, appraising the damage. The blow had been controlled, that was for sure, the brunt of it concentrated on his nose. She had made wounds just like that, using the dull end of one of her bones.

"This is Guo Xi." Li Zhang said, and approached the resting man who reverently dipped his head, wincing in the process.

"These are our American guests, Guo. I know you are in pain, but could you please tell them what you told me?" Ling prompted him, laying a gentle hand on Guo's shoulder. His shirt was torn in the front, and Marrow caught a glimpse of a tattoo. There was more, but the man shifted slightly and the material folded over his skin.

"There were four men," he told them, his voice muted. His English was only slightly accented, and he kept his eyes downcast as he spoke. "I was not there when they subdued Henry McCoy or," he looked up, his eyes narrowing just slightly. "Cecilia Reyes. That is her name?" He did not wait for a response before continuing. "I caught them all as they were leaving Doctor

McCoy's room."

"Henri and Cecilia--were dey unconscious?" Gambit asked.

Guo hesitated. "Doctor McCoy seemed unresponsive, as did Doctor Reyes. I suspect they were drugged."

"How'd you get hurt?" Marrow asked, ignoring Li's raised eyebrow. Let him take it up with Gambit if he had a problem with her talking.

Guo's eyes grew flinty. "I was careless. When I tried to.stop the kidnappers, one of them managed to hit me in the face with the butt of his gun, stunning me. They managed to escape with the two doctors."

There was a moment of silence as Marrow stared at him. "I would have killed you," she stated in a flat voice. "Why didn't they?"

Guo blinked, obviously startled by the question. "A gun shot would have been too loud."

"Guns are meant t'be used," Gambit replied, his eyes thoughtful. "De kidnappers wouldn't have brought dem if dey couldn't be."

"We should let Guo rest," Ling said, stepping between the two men. "His injuries have not yet been taken care of."

Gambit looked like he wanted to argue with her. There were too many unanswered questions, and there was something about the man that Marrow did not like, which in itself was not surprising. There were so few people in this world that she hadn't fantasized about killing, simply disliking someone wasn't enough to convince her that he was.a liar?

Marrow leaned forward, suddenly struck by the patch of skin she had noticed earlier. It was still just barely visible under the torn section of his shirt, but something about the marks in his tattooed flesh sent a tiny thrill of recognition through her body. Before anyone could stop her, she stepped forward and ripped away the obscuring section of material. The man bit back a shout, and half fell, half jumped off the cot. Ignoring the shouts of outrage from Li and Ling, Marrow followed Guo, hooking a foot around the back of his leg. She let his own momentum carry him into the floor, and swiftly pinned him down with one bony knee pressed into his sternum. She bowed close, and Gambit knelt beside her.

"Look at this," she said softly, tracing five long marks along the front of his shoulder, just below the intricate tattoo. "Like claws. Fingernails."

Gambit's face hardened, and Marrow felt a triumphant smile creep onto her face.

"LeBeau, what--"

Gambit held up his hand, and pointed towards Guo's chest. Li Zhang quieted immediately, and leaned over the Cajun's shoulder.

"Y' want t'explain dis?" Gambit asked, his voice deceptively gentle. Marrow watched Guo carefully as he looked down at his chest; his expression--what little of it she could see beneath the dried blood--was one of bewildered confusion. His eyes, though--there was fear there, down deep. Marrow fought the urge to use one of her new bones on the prostrate man

beneath her. Instead, she ground her knee a little more deeply into his chest, grinning at his groan of pain.

"My girlfriend did it," Guo told them, gritting his teeth. It was an obvious lie--the marks were too fresh, unless he had been having sex on the job, and the hands that had made them were small--smaller than her own. Marrow bounced a little, mentally encouraging one of her bladed knee bones to emerge just a bit more. Guo cried out, and squirmed beneath her. Which, of course, only made things worse.

Gambit leaned close, until he was nearly cheek to cheek with the whimpering thief. "How'd y' get de scratches, Guo? An' if y' don' answer me dis time, I'll let Sarah ask de questions. An' trust me, y' don' wan' dat." Gambit glanced at Marrow, and she felt a grin split her face.

Guo paled, his gaze flickering past Marrow's shoulder. "They'll kill me--"

"No," Gambit interrupted. "I'LL kill you. But if y' don' tell me what I wan' t'know, I'll have Sarah torture y' first. Or y' can tell me now, and I'll kill y' quick and painless. Which is more'n y' deserve if you've done what I t'ink y' have."

"Either way, you're dead." Marrow whispered, tracing a fingernail down the side of his face. "But I would LOVE to play with you first."

"Enough of this, LeBeau." Li Zhang straightened, his face pale. "This is a Guild matter now, and *we* will handle Mr. Guo's.questioning."

Gambit stared at him incredulously. "Are y' crazy?"

Li Zhang ignored him, and reached into his pocket for his cell phone. "You are not in America, Lebeau. We handle things a little differently here. Suffice to say, you will have your answers before morning."

"We could have them now," Marrow argued.

Li Zhang dialed some numbers and lifted his phone to his ear. Marrow suddenly noticed that Ling had disappeared from the room, and she wondered if the woman had gone to get reinforcements. She looked down at Guo; his forehead was beaded with sweat, his face contorted with pain. There was still fear in his eyes, but something else, too. Something disturbingly

close to triumph.

Marrow growled, and felt her fingers elongate, sharpen. The image inducer hid her bodily distortion, so when she pressed two of her fingers just below Guo's eyes, no one was aware of the threat but Guo and herself. She lowered herself down on top of him, ignoring Li Zhang's eyes burning into the back of her head, and his rapid-fire speech directed into the phone and at

Gambit.

"Tell me," she breathed into his ear. She pierced the flesh just below his eyes, and Guo gasped. Li was yelling now, demanding to know what she was doing. She heard Gambit respond, but she shut out his voice. "Tell me," she asked again, and pushed the tips of her fingers further into his face. She was aiming high--she would reach his eyes if she did it again. She

could smell his fear, and his blood.

"Tienmu," he whispered raggedly, loud enough for her ears only. "They're in--"

He never got to finish his sentence. The door to the room slammed open, armed men and women running in. Gambit leapt in front of Marrow, but not before Li grabbed her ankle. He pulled sharply, and Guo arched upwards as her fingers left great trenches in his face. Marrow twisted her body, and slammed her other foot into Li's shoulder. He let go, but was instantly

replaced by a woman who trained a gun on her.

Marrow looked for Gambit; he had his hands up to the two men taking aim for his head. His face was contorted with anger.

"You're makin' a mistake, Li," Gambit warned.

Li said nothing, his eyes moving from the new wounds in Guo's face to Marrow's blood-free fingers. "I must talk to the Guild-master," was all he said, and with one last look at Guo, he walked past the armed Guild members and left the room. Ling entered, followed closely by two women dressed in white. They made a bee-line towards Guo, while Ling quietly regarded Gambit and Marrow. She made a silent gesture with her hands and the guns dropped.

Marrow snorted. The nervous little mouse-woman that had greeted them earlier was gone--vanished into thin air. It had been a façade, she realized. A mask. And she had fallen for it.

"You should go," she told them. Her voice was quiet, but the words had steel in them.

"He has information we need," Gambit replied, just as quietly.

"And we will give it to you when it becomes available. But for now--" Here she paused, and she tossed something metallic to Gambit. He caught it easily, and Marrow saw that it was a loop of keys. "But for now, you should go. I have just given you a vehicle, and you have rooms at the Grand Hyatt. We'll call you when we find something." Ling turned and began to walk away.

"Ling," Gambit called out. She stopped, and looked at him from over her shoulder, waiting. "Why was I asked t'come here if y' don't wan' my help?"

Ling frowned. "Your father asked that you come, isn't that right? Perhaps you should take your question up with him, Mr. LeBeau." With that last remark hanging in the air, she left. The armed men and women, who helped to carry out the injured Guo, followed her.

Marrow watched them leave, and glanced at Gambit. "Are we going after them?"

Gambit, who had been staring at the ceiling and muttering in French, shook his head and closed his eyes. "We're on our own," he told her. "I don' s'pose Guo told y' anyt'ing before Li yanked y'off?"

Marrow shrugged. "Y'know what or where Tienmu is?"

Gambit slowly smiled.

Translations:

"Ni ting dong le ma?" = You understand?

 

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