* Bzzzz-z** Bzz-z* *Bzz-z* *Bzz-z*
I woke up to a strange buzzing noise. Damn cell phone, this early.... Slowly opening my eyes, I immediately caught a pleasing picture for my eyes and my mood quickly improved. Two completely naked girls were lying on either side of me. Thea was asleep, but Nyssa.... I highly doubt it. I didn't bother to tell her that, since she didn't seem to mind being here at all. Her heartbeat was calm, maybe she was trying to realize what had happened....
It had been a busy night, I think they would have a long time to rest yet. Both women's legs were thrown over me, and Thea's arm was around my neck. The girls themselves were disheveled and the sheet was still a little damp. The girls' necks and thighs were still red, and it looked like bruising was inevitable.
Smiling, I lifted Thea's hand slightly and pulled it away, then reached for the phone. Unfortunately, it was far away, so I had to get up from the warm spot and grab it from the floor.
Pushing my boot aside, I finally managed to pick up my phone. There were things scattered around, and most of them were tattered. I guess someone would definitely have to update their closet. Yeah, it's definitely something worth doing again someday.... Looking at the sleeping Thea and the slightly squinting Nissa, I smiled and said quietly:
«Don't go, I'll be right back.
Nyssa opened her eyes and gave me a strange look before closing them and turning away. I grinned and walked out the door.
Hartley kept calling...
Picking up the phone I yawned:
«Wahh, what's wrong with you? Why are you calling so early?
«Early? Hunter, it's 1:00 in the afternoon, have you been drinking again?
I grinned:
«You're not my babysitter. I want to drink and I drink. So why are you calling?
«You told me to call you when I was done at Star Labs, remember?
I knew immediately what he meant:
«So what's in there? Did you get everything?
Hartley hummed:
«You ask.
***
Two hours before.
Star Labs.
Hartley had no trouble breaking into the lab and quietly entering the main hall. The security system had changed, but he couldn't be stopped by such a small thing. He had seen a lot of defense systems in the last few months and already knew them well. And he should not forget about his meta-power.
Looking around the familiar walls, Hartley smiled:
«Cisco was in his repertoire, it was all too easy to get into this mess. - Hartley grinned and headed for the main hall.
When he got there, he immediately noticed people talking. There were three people there. Two of them the guy knew well. Caitlin Snow and Cisco Ramon. At the sight of them Hartley grinned and watched. The girl sitting opposite these two was unknown to him ...
«Lisa, there are termite marks on your skin. - said a concerned Caitlin.
«Termite? Is it like an explosive? - The girl asked nervously.
«Yeah, that's the one, looks like you're screwed. - Hartley grinned as he appeared.
«H-hartley?! - Cisco and Caitlin exclaimed in one voice.
Rathaway only smiled and walked over to Snard, looking her over he smirked:
«Poor thing, that thing in your head, I'm getting a faint signal. If I were you, I'd have it out by now.
«Uh, who are you anyway? - The girl frowned.
«Я...
«He's a bastard, and he doesn't belong here. Why did you come here? - Ramon asked irritably.
Hartley took no offense, just grinned and pulled something out of his jacket pocket. Handing it to Cisco, he said:
«Hunter asked me to give this to you, it might help keep Stein from exploding.
Cisco accepted the strange scepter-like object and marveled:
«Hey, that's, uh.
Hartley nodded:
«Yeah, it kinda belonged to Wells, or should I call him Toon? - With a grin at Snow, Hartley added: - It's a good thing that bastard's dead, good riddance to him.
Caitlin frowned and Cisco eyed the scepter with interest, Hartley smiled and waved:
«Okay, have at it, he'll be back to pick it up. Oh, I almost forgot... - Hartley turned around and said seriously: - He asked me to tell you that he's coming to visit very soon to pick something up, and you should take care of Stein. If the professor dies, I don't envy you. - Hartley turned around and walked out.
Cisco finally put the scepter away and asked seriously:
«So you work for Hunger?
Hartley paused and, with a smile, nodded:
«What's the big deal? Don't you like him?
«He eats people, of course I don't like him.
Hartley hummed:
«People? He eats real subhumans, you ever hear of Joe Ferrons? He killed and raped twelve kids, you think trash like that belongs behind bars? He did eight years, then he got out and went back to his old ways.
Cisco's face changed, and Hartley continued:
«Hunter wouldn't tell me about it, but I was curious to know who I was working with. Seeing everyone he'd killed had totally convinced me that I belonged with him. His diet may be weird to me, but we all got weird because of H.G. Wells, didn't we, Cisco?
At Rathaway's strange question, Ramon frowned.
"Does he really know?"
Noticing Cisco's reaction, Hartley grinned:
«Okay, I won't burden you with whatever I say, it'll be useless. I'll just say this, even though he wanted to eat me, he trusted me and gave me the job I've dreamed of my whole life. So I'm definitely not going to listen to your moral crap. So long... - waving once again, Hartley turned and walked out of the room. But he didn't head for the exit as it might have seemed, he had some more unfinished business....
Retheway went around to the other side of the corridor and looked for the switch on the wall. He didn't know exactly where it was, but if Hunter had said it was there, he didn't doubt it. Though his new boss had a peculiar temper, Hartley respected him. It was unconscious, but Rathaway was sure that this man had a future. His ambition, confidence and strength, had the same effect on the lad. In the past, he was embarrassed about his orientation and used to vent all the negativity on others. But having met a man who was used to taking whatever he wanted, the guy also changed and began to unconsciously learn. Of course Hartley realized that the reason why Hunter had chosen him was because of his knowledge and skills. But it didn't matter, all people choose others based on their qualities, so Hunter's choice was understandable.
After a few minutes of searching, Hartley was finally able to find the switch. The wall spread out in an interesting way, revealing a passage to an unknown room. The walls in it were very unusual, Hartley had never seen anything like it. There were ideas, but he wanted to make sure.... The first thing that caught his eye was the unusual yellow suit in the display case. It looked a lot like the Flash's...
---
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