The Wrath of the Daemon Ch. 03

"How will you know when they will strike?" Cesar asked just as a soft knock interrupted them. Edith opened the door cautiously.

"What is it, Edith?" I asked.

"The girls just called," she meekly replied, unsure how much she could speak about them even with this small group around me.

"It's fine," I replied, "what did they need?"

"It seems that they have been evacuated," she continued, watching my expression for any signs of distress. "There was no immediate danger, but..."

"Elvis felt that it was necessary to move them for their safety. You asked how we would know, dear brother? This is how."

...

Elvis watched as each collective breath was taken almost simultaneously; the room had fallen as quiet as a funeral home. He had kept her name out of the redacted reports for a very important reason, there were still many loose ends to chase down when it came to leaks. "I knew that it would only be a matter of time before D would learn the same information, so when I engaged him, I did so to figure out just how far his ire would spread out."

"What was your assessment of the situation then?" The Secretary seemed to be the only man inside the room that had not been phased with the revelation Elvis had just made.

"Before the raid on the house had taken place, D was secure in his knowledge that he would keep collateral damage to a minimum. All his Family's affairs would be handled internally, maybe not the best answer to give to a Federal Agent, but knowing the power and intelligence available to him, this was the far lesser of the evils."

"And after the raid?"

"After the raid, and his lack of immediate response," Elvis continued, "I was afraid. Truth be told, I imagined that D would become unhinged that his girls had been put in danger, that he would try to find out the responsible party and punish him. I feared for Agent Carter's life at that very moment, but as we completed our engagement with the armed operatives, I understood why he had been so restrained."

"You call what we have in our hands 'restrained,' Agent Presley?" The Chief had to interrupt the exchange between the secretary and Elvis.

"I have seen that man order the complete annihilation of an entire city without so much as blinking an eye," Elvis replied, "I have seen him take lives without a second thought. But, I have also seen the lengths he is willing to go to for Family. Yes, I call his reaction very restrained, again I must remind you, members of this panel, of the amount of power at his disposal.

"The damage that was done here was done as a response from attacks on D and his Family, and if you look closely at the actual evidence you can see that the majority of attacks done by D were done in a defensive position. They were done to protect the community in general, not to destroy it. However, there is little to be disputed about the identity of the attackers and they had more than enough motive to lash out in this manner. Wounded animals can group together to defend one another, and that is exactly what happened here.

"By the time the girls were placed in protective custody and the attack on their house had been taken care of, D's enemies had emerged from their hiding spots in full force. It did not take me long to find out the identity of their benefactor: it seems that members of the ousted Families did not take too kindly to the fact that their enemies would swallow what was their territories for so long. They banded their money together and joined this woman that promised to deliver them the Head of the Daemon.

"The girls were her first target, she knew this would rattle D and cause him to make mistakes that otherwise he would never do. By the time she made her move, however, I was there. All they needed was a location, something that Agent Carter provided for them with his foolishness and arrogance. We got to them in time, he knew that I had them so he would not lose his train of thought over them. His attention would be focused on the rest of them."

"The rest of them?" The Secretary again took control of the conversation.

"Yes," Elvis continued what was quickly becoming a lesson in counter-intelligence and espionage, "D had also identified a small outfit in his local area as conspirators in the entire chain of events. From his brother's incarceration to his shooting. He knew that Anais was pulling a variety of strings from all directions, but the shooting itself pushed his agenda further. Their next target would be the previous Head of the Family."

...

"If he has all this," Jose asked fearfully, "why did he wait so long to act on it?"

"Be grateful that you are not his primary target," CeCe replied, "his attention is diverted elsewhere. Your greed was beneficial to you for once."

"I can't believe it," Jose replied, the strength in his hands began to falter. He allowed the papers to fall onto the ground, a small tremor slowly consumed his body. "He wouldn't simply let this go, its not in his nature."

"Of course, he is not just simply letting it go," CeCe continued, she was not even trying to hide her amusement at his discomfort. "This is a last favor to a family member, after this we will leave you alone. You are no longer welcomed inside the Family home, or with any of the Family friends. Those that ignore the Daemon's order and interact with you will receive his ire. After today, Jose, you are no longer part of this Family."

"Long overdue," Jessica added, she had bitter memories of Jose.

...

The first time that Jessica had seen D when he returned had been inside the office, while Jose's penis thrust in and out of her anal cavity. She still remembered the way she had acted that day, she vividly remembered the way that D had looked at her. She could imagine exactly what he had been thinking then, dismissing her as nothing more than another whore spreading her legs to get ahead in life. He would not have been wrong.

The shame had made her decide to sever her relationship with Jose, but his banishment surely helped sever her ties completely. D's punishment for her had been more than deserved for both of them. While Jose would be forced to look at the woman he had dominated and humiliated multiple times without being able to do so anymore, her punishment was far more elaborate. She would be constantly reminded of that shame, every second she had to spend with Jose, those feelings of shame returned.

But even at her worst, D found a way to improve her lot in life. He had assigned Francisco to personally coach her, teach her the ways of her new function as bodyguard. While at first, their interactions had been only professional, eventually feelings developed between them. She had asked Francisco once about his feelings over their accidental meeting. Francisco looked at her curiously.

"What do you mean accidental?" Francisco had this way of looking at her that made her stomach do somersaults.

"Well," she replied, "D had sent me to do this task as a punishment and assigned you to teach me. If he had not done that, we probably would have never met."

"I've known D for a short time," he replied, "and I've heard a lot about him. His mind works in amazing ways, I wish you could see it. He is often 3 or even 5 steps ahead of everyone else, he sees things there that no one else could even possibly fathom. He never does anything accidentally, there is always a purpose behind his decisions."

"You really think he saw you and me getting together?" She looked at Francisco, "surely you remember how we first met. How he looked at me like I was a whore. I don't think he dislikes you to the point where he would throw a whore like me, at you."

"Yes, I remember that day," Francisco replied, "but his look had very little to do with you in that way. He told me how he knew you from his childhood days, how he used to look at you as one of the prettiest girls in his class. He was disgusted, sure, but not at you."

"I don't understand," she replied.

"In his eyes, you were still that girl he was enamored with in his youth," Francisco replied, "he was disgusted at what his cousin had done to you. How he had abused his position in order to subjugate you and demean you in such a way. Sure, you allowed it to happen, and that's why he felt the need to 'punish you' as you put it. The way to do that is to remind you of how low you fell so that you never fall that low again. He also prevented the situation from happening by his orders, and I am sure that he saw something in you and I that made him realize that we would be connected. Do you remember when he saw your son and I together?"

"Yes."

"Did you see him be surprised at the fact that your son addressed me in such an affectionate way?"

"I really hadn't thought about it," she replied, thinking back on that day, "but you're right, he was very casual about it."

"I asked him about it after you had left," Francisco confessed, "his only question was why no one had told him about it. Why he had been the last one to find out, when everyone seemed to know all about it. He never once found it odd or out of place."

"I wonder what it was that he saw there," she asked rhetorically, "what made him think we would happen?"

"Only D knows that," Francisco replied as he softly kissed her lips, "and I doubt he could even describe it if we were to ask. But whatever it was, he was right."

...

"There's vehicles approaching," Jessica's concentration had been interrupted.

"Well," CeCe added, "looks like its time."

"What's the plan?" Jose was scared, Jessica tried her best to hide her enjoyment, but was unsure if she had been successful.

"I have a message for their leader," CeCe replied, "we will adjust our position based on what they have to say." As she finished explaining her plan, one of the vehicles approached the house and parked in the front yard. It was a large, black SUV, windows tinted. CeCe laughed internally, these people had certainly seen far too many movies.

"We're here to get Jose to safety," the large man shouted as he opened the rear passenger door. She knew who he was, but this was the first time that she had seen him with her own eyes. "Ladies, if you don't mind moving aside, we'll take it from here."

"Do you know who I am?" CeCe asked, "does either one of you know who I am?" She was now addressing the three other men that had climbed out of the vehicle after their leader.

"Why the fuck would I care about who you are?" The large man replied, "do you know who I am, bitch?!"

"You are Casper," CeCe calmly replied, "these men follow your orders much as I follow the Daemon's orders. You should know who I am, the Devils always get a kick out of learning who sent them new guests. My name is CeCe," she looked at the men, recognition of her name clearly registered in their eyes. Casper looked concerned before he quickly recovered.

"Then you can help us," he smiled, "we are here to take Jose to safety. There are men on their way to kill him, we were sent to protect him."

"That's more like it," Jose replied, "I knew that he didn't have it in him to just abandon me with only you two to protect me."

"If you leave," CeCe said in a tone of voice that only Jose and Jessica could hear, "we will not stop you. They are not here to protect you, these are your killers."

She turned to the group and continued in a louder voice, "I am here on the Daemon's behalf. His instructions are simple: 'Casper has betrayed the Family. All who side with him will be seen as traitors by the Family, and as such will be dealt with in that manner. However, there is one among you that still holds some honor. If He stands against Casper, then the Family will stand behind him and those that stand with Him.' You have 1 minute to decide, Hunter."

She looked at the young man that had been driving the vehicle, "the Daemon knows who you are, and if you take the role of leader to this group, those that follow you will be spared. However," CeCe drew her weapon out, "Casper has betrayed the Family, and I am here to end his life. You now have 30 seconds to decide."

"She is lying," Casper shouted, "I am not a traitor!"

"Have you never heard of CeCe?" The man called Hunter replied, "she is the right hand of the Head of the Family, death itself." He took a step away from Casper, "her word is Law in the streets." The rest of the occupants followed him as they moved away from Casper.

"Good choice," CeCe replied as she pulled the trigger to her weapon. Casper managed to look at her for a second before the darkness took him. Her shot had gone through his head, ending his life immediately. "Jessica," CeCe said just over her shoulder, "gather your things. Our job here is done."

"What do you mean its done?" Jose pleaded.

"I told you," CeCe replied as she moved away from him, "our protection ends after this group is dealt with. As you can see, they have been dealt with, you are now on your own."

"But I don't even have a weapon!" Jose was again whining, his voice was a high pitched note that sounded much like a small girl's voice.

"All our weapons belong to the Family," CeCe replied, "by Law we cannot provide you with one. Good luck, Jose, may we never cross paths again." With those parting words both CeCe and Jessica moved away from the man that had fallen to his knees. Casper's body would be collected and taken care of by the group that had followed him there.

"What does the Daemon want me to do?" Hunter asked.

"Spread the word to your men," CeCe replied, "tell them what you saw here. What you heard. When he needs you, the Daemon will call."

...

"That explains the sudden change in leadership," the Secretary mused just under his breath. "When did you learn about these events?"

"Not until recently," Elvis replied, "however, we have been unable to find the body. As far as we can approach that situation, it is nothing more than the musings of criminals trying to elevate their own infamy."

"What happened within the gang of ruffians once their leadership had changed?" The Chief again interrupted, he would not allow himself to be forgotten.

"War, sir," Elvis answered matter-of-factly. "Some of Casper's more loyal members of course had some reservations. Surprisingly enough, his younger brother was not among them. By the time their internal conflict settled, no more than 12 people left the gang, in fact they appear to have banished from the city."

"Do you think your target had anything to do with that?" The Chief again asked, his questions were becoming a bit smarter, but the damage to his reputation was done in Elvis' eyes.

"No," Elvis replied, "D's attention was still focused on other targets."

"So far, Agent Presley," the Secretary summarized, "at this point in your report, what actions has this Daemon taken?"

"At this point, D has identified his shooter as Casper and he was dispatched by CeCe, if the story is true that is. Martha and Rebecca were placed into protective custody, along with Mr. Vazquez, Cesar's biological father. Angel's case was being presented in front of a Federal Judge, within a few days it would be officially dismissed and Angel will be set free. Along with the heartfelt apologies from the United States government. Anais has been identified as the mastermind behind the attacks against D's Family, along with her sister under CIA custody. We have taken the small group of professionals that had been hired by Anais into custody, at least the few that were left alive after their attack." Elvis looked around the room, "all of this had been meticulously planned out by D, down to the last detail."

"With one exception, is that not correct Agent Presley?" The Secretary looked at Elvis closely, "unless her death was also part of his meticulous planning?"

"No, sir," Elvis looked at the floor, though surely not as deep as D's pain, he felt that he shared at least some of it. "I don't think it was."

...

"Francisco," I called out to the man that had stood beside me over the vary chaotic previous days. "I need you to call Anais here for me. Do not alert her as to what this conversation will be about, simply tell her that I would like to see her."

"Do you want Edith away?" Francisco knew the answer.

"Yes," I replied, "she does not need to know what will be said, or what will happen to Anais. Let her come up with her own conclusions and interpretations. By the way," I looked at him, the weariness was more than obvious in his eyes, "how is Jessica doing?"

"She is fine," Francisco replied, "CeCe helped her out a lot more than I could. But she is not sure if this is going to be her life, she wants me to consider settling down with her, make us a more permanent relationship."

"I sense a 'but' somewhere soon..." I joked trying to ease the tension.

"I want revenge first," Francisco said, "I want to see that bitch pay for what she did to our Family." For a second, he looked at me with wild eyes, "D, I know that revenge can swallow a man whole, and I don't want that to happen to me. I want to get that out of my system before I can settle down with her."

"Francisco," I understood what he meant, I understood his fears, and more importantly I perfectly understood his anger. "It's almost over, we have made it this far and we got a little bit more to go. We cannot afford to become reckless now. But I promise you, brother, that she will pay for all the blood that has been shed."

"Thank you, D," he replied, "what time do you need her here?" The sound of a car pulling up to the house made us both look out the window, there was no need to look too closely to know who would be in that car.

"Three hours," I replied, "we'll meet outside in the garden." Carefully, I gathered all the paperwork that had filled the desk over the past months. Everything had been organized carefully, all numbers had been verified and tracked down to the cent. A description of what had been accomplished with the men, the other Families, and who filled what roles within the Family hierarchy had been prepared.

"One last drink?" Francisco handed me one of the glasses, the clear liquid let me know what this drink contained. "I take it your decision is still the same as what we had discussed?"

"Yes," I replied, taking the glass from him. We toasted the last moments of what soon would stop being my office, "I made a promise to the Family, I would sit at the Head of the Family until Angel returned."

"Well, my friend," Francisco replied, "it's been a pleasure."

"Meet us outside once you've talked to her," I said as I made my way out the door, "catching up with Angel will not take long."

As I made my way to the garden, I could hear my brothers talking excitedly. Angel was sitting in one of the lawn chairs enjoying a cigarette while our older brother told him of the trial. As soon as they saw me, both of them lifted their own glasses and welcomed me with a smile.

"The smell of freedom," Angel inhaled deeply, "nothing better in the world. Thanks to you two, I am a free man once again."

"Try to stay that way," I replied, "there is one last thing I need to take care of before handing everything over back to you."

"What do you mean?" Angel asked.

"I only took the seat until you got out," I replied, "now that you are here, I just need to close the last of our affairs so you don't need to deal with them."

...

The conversation had been strange, far stranger than the previous conversations she had recently experienced with Francisco. She tried her best to hide her smile as she saw him slowly age before her, things must be going according to plans. She was amused, there was no denying that, but she had to maintain control of herself. Her plan was almost at its conclusion, she could not afford to be careless now. The only thing that was of concern for her was Casper's absence. She knew that D would more than likely use him to chase down all the false flags that she would be throwing at them. As soon as her allies informed her that they had discovered the women's location, her plan was set in motion. Casper knew his role, once Jose had been taken care of, and with the women death, she would confront D himself. But she had to wait on Caper's call to know when she could make her final move.