Rogue Ghostbird

Chapter 24 - Ryder

Sang

We were in LA.

Finally!

As I got some of my luggage, there were people to get it, but I had weapons in mine. No one touches my weapons. Hands off!

I turn back towards the limo and I see Ryder come out. I drop my bag, guns forgotten and run towards him. I jump on him (not sexually) an give him a huge hug. Ryder and I are best friends now. He was so easy going. All the good guys are gay!

Ryder puts me down, "Ace and Aleksandr called me. I got one of Volto's men. I was waiting for you in order to interrogate him."

I smile manically, "I can't wait."

 Ryder looks behind me, "Who are those men? Do I need to kill them?"

I turn around, "Ryder, meet Nathan, Victor, Silas, and North. Nathan, Victor, Silas and North meet Ryder."

He walked up to Mel and gives her a hug, "I assume the five men you want to rescue are the other fathers."

I nod, "Yep, lead me to the prisoner."

Ryder smirks, "Let's go."

Silas grabs my arm, "What are you going to do?"

I yank my arm from his grip, "I am not the same little girl as I was ten years ago. I did what I had to in order to survive. That changed me."

Ryder and I walk on and get into a car with my men while my babies are in a different car. The were going to Ryder's place, somewhere free of danger. I tried to send my men with them, but they insisted on coming with Ryder and me. Fine, they are about to see a different part of me.

Soon enough, we arrive at Ryder's warehouse. He holds people who pissed him off there. Everyone knows if you end up there the only way you are coming out is in a body bag. I know torture methods. Don't judge me!

I joke around with Ryder while my men are just looking around carefully. I knew that they were storing where we are to go to the Academy or cops later. I know Ryder noticed too. He wouldn't do anything, but he expects me to keep them silent.

I warn them, "Remember you cannot speak a word of whatever you see."

"Why?" asked Victor.

Ryder replied, "Snitches get put in ditches. You talk, we have to take care of you."

Nathan looks shocked, "You are okay with this, Sang?"

I shrug, "What can you do."

We continue to walk along. I hear the noise of torture, and the musical sounds of their screams. Okay, Sang, tone down the creepiness. Ryder stops in front of a door and I know it holds one of Volto's men.

One of the people who helped Volto make my life hell for so long.

I am so pissed.

I shove the door open. I see one man, pretty muscled and not a lot of scars, tied to a chair. He has a gag on and is glaring at me with all his hate. Ha, not scary! I had to face down scarier people than him before. Nothing effects me at this point.

I approach him and punch him solidly in the nose, breaking it. I do that a couple more times, a punch to the gut too. His face is now bloodied up some more, but not enough for me. I back up and go up to Ryder. He gets my message and goes punching the guy. It gives me a perverse quite of pleasure watching my enemies get beat to pulp. Ha, revenge. That's something I love. 

I walk up to this man and take off his gag, "Wanna talk about your Boss now?"

He spits in my face, "Go to Hell bitch!"

I stare at him and then punch him again in the face. Nathan, Silas, Victor and North are watching me. They are pretty calm right now, probably thinking this is the worse we can do. Sorry to disappoint, but I love my torture weapons. I'll keep at it until the damn man talks.

Ryder informs the guy, "That wasn't a smart idea. She is the crazier one."

I walk over to the wall full of torture things: waterboarding, electric chair, electrifying him, a tool to yank out his fingernails. Full of fun, I guess. I take the thing that is supposed to yank out the victim's fingernails the most painful way possible. That should make him talk. 

I hand it over to Ryder who gets a savage look on his face, "Look what the lady picked! It seems like you won't have all your fingernails soon. Still don't want to talk?"

I look back at the boys who are all beginning to look a bit green except North. He is scowling, but that is normal for him. At least, he doesn't look like he is about to be sick. Apparently, the Academy doesn't train them with torture.

Ryder calls out for me, "He isn't talking yet. What do you want to do? We are kind of pressed on time."

I grab a bucket of water which I dump on the ground at the guy's feet and grab the electric stick, "I think we can try to electrify him. We electrify the water and if it touches him should hurt. A lot."

Ryder smirks, "I like the way you think."

Volto's guy looks back and forth between us before saying, "You're crazy. The both of you."

Ryder and I look at each other, smile and answer in sync, "We prefer the term psychotic."

Ryder proceeds to start to electrify the water. The prisoner leans back keeping all his body parts out of the water. It won't last long. This technique always works in my experience. Volto's men can't be that loyal.

I was right, he squealed and told us everything. He didn't know where exactly the boys were, but he told us all of Volto's locations. Ryder has already sent men to check each one. The moment the boys are found, we will be told. The men were told not to engage, and to leave it to us.

As we were exiting Ryder's warehouse to head to his house, Nathan asked me, "How could you do that to another human?"

I shrug, "We're the bad guys, it's what we do."

With that, silence reigned over the car. Ryder wasn't helping, he was texting his henchman on the phone. Nathan, Victor, Silas and North were shocked at the part of me that they saw. What can I say, I have changed.

Pain changes people. And I more than most know the pain of surviving.

They do not have the right to judge me. For the past ten years, I have been the bad guy. To them, Academy had been in the right and for me, it was in the wrong. Now, they know the truth, but they have not processed it yet.

That didn't matter anymore, I still have to find the rest of my men. No matter how mad I was at them, I would never leave them in the hands of Volto. I had made another promise to myself that Ryder offered to help me complete.

This time, Volto wasn't coming out of this alive.

*** 

Word Count: 1221