A Guy Walks Into A Bar...

Truth Sale

A firm gloved hand smacks the side of my face repeatedly, forcing me to slowly open my eyes. I'm instantly met with those eyes. Those wide emerald colored eyes of my father's. They swirled with a hodgepodge of emotions. Everything from anger to joy, confusion to certainty, and doubt to confidence. So many different things, that you couldn't pinpoint any one as the dominant emotion.

Then I can hear his voice, fake and dramatic sounding, like he were putting on a show because he loves being the center of attention. "Wakey wakey, eggs and backey!" He smiles at me, "Did you have a pleasant nap Junior?"

I come to a little more and notice that I'm bound to a chair and gagged. I immediately start to pull at my restraints. I was taped to the chair and not going a damn place. Then it suddenly hits me, I made a mistake by coming to Gotham City to meet my father. Because I put myself right in his hands, and now he's going to kill me for sure.

What was I thinking? Mom was so right. The bad in him far outweighs the good. He's a dangerous man with power and connections. There was no way of talking myself out of this with tape across my mouth. But that didn't stop me from trying to beg from behind it. This is it. He's definitely going to kill me for my stupidity.

"Save your energy kid," he stands up straight and peers down at me, "I have questions which I want answers to. This," he twirls his wrist, "is the most effective way to make sure that I get those answers," he says and holds his hand out to his head henchmen at his side. The man puts a syringe in hand and I start to futilely struggle again, knowing that whatever was in it, was meant for me. My father hovers over my arm, needle readied against my vein, and rolls his eyes at me. "Hold still or it's going to hurt silly." But I still struggle, trying to ask what it was. "It's only sodium pentothal. Just so I can keep you honest," he says and I can feel the needle go into my skin. I could feel the cool liquid go into my vein.

"There," he says, his tone was now different, almost sounding the same as my own, "that wasn't so bad, was it? We'll give that a few minutes to kick in. In the meantime, I'm going to remove the tape from your mouth," he then flicks open a knife right in my eyes. It seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Did it just come out of his sleeve? Had he had it in his hand this whole time? "But if you do something dumb..." I could see the seriousness in his eyes. He totally wasn't bluffing. I vigorously nod my head in compliance. He smirks and rips off the tape. I could feel it taking away my top layer of skin with it.

"Now, humor me while I reiterate everything I know so far," he sighs and stares up at the ceiling as he starts to talk again, "Young Junior, tired of small town life, moves to the largest city with the most crime, to forge his way out into the world and be a man. But what does young Junior do when he arrives? Well of course a man needs a job, a source of income," he flamboyantly speaks and flays his arms a lot. His wide eyes are mostly green, only tiny dots mark his pupils. His expressions are as equally dramatic as his movements. "Normally one applies in fields they know, sometimes just whatever is convenient. Now naturally, I can see how this would lead you by chance to apply in one or two of my establishments. But all of them?"

His eyes seek out mine, his lips pull back and show off those metal teeth, "That just seems fishy to me. It certainly piqued my radar. I'm known as many things Junior, but stupid is not one of those things," I can hear that menacing growl of his. It freakishly accented the anger that was making his pupils dilate more and more by the second. "Do you find me to be stupid Junior?" He stares down at me, and all I can see is the questioning look in his eyes. Like he knew something but wasn't sure yet.

"Hell no sir!" I say and mean that from the depths of my soul. He definitely wasn't stupid. A normal person wouldn't have found my one mistake so quickly.

He raises his chin high and slowly paces in front of me, "I think you came to this city looking for me kid. Why else would you only apply in my businesses, if it wasn't in the hopes of running into little ol' me?"