I meet with the forensic pathology department at Mercy Heights first. I guess I wanted to get a tour of the place, build up to meeting Dr. Petrelli again. Their facilities are good, the location is closer to my apartment, the staff is friendly enough, and they appear eager to have me. The head must have googled my name before I arrived. I
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Gabriel explains how he got the job after Dr. Scully left and I smile, remembering why Chandra, and especially Mohinder, weren't there to do the job. I really wish we could've enjoyed killing Mohinder more but I'm sure that others will eventually come through so we can have more fun with them. A never ending supply of Mohinders to torture, god that sounds great.
I swear to god Gabriel is trying to make me crack up in front of Ted and he's doing a damn good job of it too. I can't help chuckling while I finish filling my glass and set the scotch down on the desk within reach of them both. My eyes flick to Ted to see how he reacts to that throw away comment. Whatever darkness I saw in him before is still there and I think Gabriel is bringing it out even more with his comments.
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Nonetheless, I sit up a little more in my seat. Gabriel mentions playing with his food, Peter chuckles, and I just can't keep it in. I laugh too, shaking my head. "Interesting way of putting it," I reply, giving him a smile.
I should be scared, but instead I'm just tense-- awake. "So are we going to speak plainly, or is half the fun talking in riddles? Because I'm fine with either. We've just about run out of work-related gossip, though, unless you want me to get into why I transferred out of my last residency." I'm being a smart-ass. It's what got me into trouble the last time, too.
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"I'd love to hear why you left. Do tell." Please make it a good story, Ted. Peter will know if you're lying, and where would the fun be in that.
This will be a challenge for Peter and I. Neither one of us wants to use a power in front of Ted. We've got to play this human. Well as human as a pair of serial killers get.
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Gabriel encourages him to tell us why he left his last residency and I pay attention. What he says here will tell us a lot on whether we can trust him with anything about us, other then the public faces. "Gossip is boring but Gabriel's right, we would like to know why you left. It sounded like you had a good thing going there, so what changed?"
Ted looks slightly uncomfortable but not enough to not talk to us. Besides, he opened up the conversation for this topic. "I'm sure it can't be that bad." A smirk quirks the corner of my mouth.
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"My fiance died," I say flatly. I knew I'd have to mention that, so I get it out of the way as quickly as possible. "In my apartment. It was arrhythmia brought on by a mitral valve prolapse, so it was very sudden. I didn't want to be reminded of it."
I let the quiet sink in before I look up at them and continue. "Strangely enough, four of my fellow residents died that day, as well. Burned to death in a subbasement area they'd apparently been using to do drugs." I shrug. "They wouldn't have noticed the gas leak before they lit up," I say, with a small half-smile.
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Didn't want to be reminded about it my ass.
"That sounds like a horrible, horrible accident." Now the talk about the other residents. There's a flair of pride there, and a hint of smugness in his eyes. "They should have been more careful. Good thing you were engaged in their activities. You might have been killed too."
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Then he talks about the other residents and there's that same tingle. It's a half lie, an incomplete truth and I glance over at Gabriel. I'm not sure he's getting any of this off of Ted and we'll have to talk later. "Of course, if you had been part of their group, it's very lucky that you weren't there when the explosion happened." There's a flicker in his eyes at that and I'm almost sure I'm right.
He is one of us. Maybe not exactly like us but his hands are bloody and not from his job. "That must've been hard though, losing fellow residents like that. I can see why you wouldn't want to stay there. Getting far away from...trouble is good. If you had anything to worry about that is." I know you did.
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"I didn't mind losing them," I state plainly, leaning back in my chair and taking another swig of my drink. "They were too arrogant. They thought they were invincible. As far as I see it, that just makes something like that far more likely to happen." I finish off my Scotch and set the glass down. "None of them were worth hanging around. Good thing I figured that out quickly, huh?"
These guys are a little different- far more cautious, which is a good thing. Of course, that'll make this back-and-forth dance take a little longer, probably, but that's okay. "So what about you? Either of you ever have anything bizarre like that happen around you?"
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"I've had a few different things happen over the years. The Chief of Staff's son vanished a few weeks before I got my promotion for example." Fuck this chess game. I'm getting bored with it. "They think he went back to India, or he fell back through one of the time fissures."
"You do know about that, right? I mean speaking of weird." Might as well clear that up since the other versions of me are either pathetic or psychotic.
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"It's a very good thing. I'd hate to have lost such a...brilliant mind to such carelessness." Gabriel's getting impatient, I can see it from the way he's shifting slightly in his chair and when he mentions Mohinder. Ah, I miss the fun of all that. Ten he brings up the time rips and I duck my head down, smiling into my glass. Ted may not know about them but he will now.
"It's all quite fascinating. Part of my work is done with those that have come through." I look Ted straight in the eye. "Of course, it helps having first hand knowledge of what they're going through." If he can't accept everything we're telling him well...we'll just have to make sure he doesn't mention it to the wrong people. "Gabriel lends a hand when needed too."
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"What do you mean, time fissures?" I ask, figuring I'll address that. I'm giving them weird looks, but I'll listen. "I haven't heard anything about that."
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"Neither one of us feel any reason to go back if it's even possible. It does get a bit uncomfortable when I'm mistaken for one of the others who wear my face." A smile creeps over my face as I meet his eyes. "The funny part about that is most of them are serial killers. I'm the only one with a college education that I know of. My life turned out very different I've been lucky."
"Poor Peter was arrested a month or so ago because they thought he murdered one of the versions of his brother. Of course Peter's real brother isn't here." It's good to see that Ted's eyes aren't glazing over. He did have a nice little twitch at the corner of his eye about the serial killer part. Good thing I'm not telling him about abilities. That would blow his fucking mind.
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