Rooftops of Verity's Baltimore to Dippin' Donuts, Wednesday Night

[arboreal_priestess]

In the three or so weeks since Verity's first and only run in with Dominic De Luca--or "that asshole from the Covenant" as she liked to call him--Baltimore's cryptid population had dropped. Many of them had suddenly come forward with excuses to be out of town: the traditional sick relative, family funeral, impending childbirth/whelping/ovipositing. Those, Verity didn't worry about; sure, it was annoying that so many people would suddenly turn tail and run, but she couldn't really blame them. The Covenant had managed to exterminate a lot of cryptid populations and had irrevocably destroyed even more, that even the possibility of an incipient purge was enough to spook survivors.

No, Verity was worried about the ones who had simply disappeared. It seemed like more and more members of the city's cryptid population went missing every day. It had started small, with just a few outliers from the community, people no one kept really close tabs on anyway. But the number of vanished was increasing, and while Verity couldn't get an exact number of the missing, she knew it was higher than she'd liked. And of the few estimates she could get, they only covered the humanoid cryptids. Nobody knew how many animal cryptids there were in Baltimore, which meant nobody knew how many had gone. But everyone she talked to all agreed the numbers were dropping fast.

Verity	She didn't know for sure that De Luca was behind it all. Hell, logic suggested he wasn't. She'd found some hint of his hunting, but the bodies had been left at rooftop level and all of them hostile 'monsters' like the ahool. But he was still Covenant and so the closest thing she had to a lead. And so it was time to call a meeting with that asshole from the Covenant and see what it was that he knew.
Liam	"Maybe we need to think about setting a snare for him," Liam grumbled, only half-joking.
Verity	"I'm liking the way you think," Verity told him. "Dave swears up and down that his contacts don't know anything, but...Dave." It was never a good idea to take a bogeyman at his word when you weren't holding a gun to his head, and even then there was a good chance he’d try to play you before you could pull the trigger. "Two more blocks and then we call it a night?" she suggested.
Liam	"Sounds like a plan," Liam agreed. The late nights didn't bother him, so much, but the lack of results? Definitely annoying. And "lack of results" characterized both every night so far that Verity had gone out here alone as well as the ones where he'd accompanied her, albeit most recently as a cat. The ability to slink in to certain spaces unnoticed had certainly been useful, but so too was the ability to actually convey information without having to resort to kitty-charades.
Verity	Verity really appreciated the lack of charades. Cat body language wasn't exactly the easiest thing to read, at least for subtle things. "I've got registration for a competition tomorrow," Verity said, deftly stepping over a pile of rubble. "I have better things to do than wander around rooftops playing Catch The Covenant Asshole." They came to the edge of the rooftop, the buildings stretching to the left and right in a circle around a small, inner courtyard. "You go right, I go left?" Verity suggested. "And we'll meet up on the other side?" Even if they didn't find De Luca, they were having a merry time wrecking his traps and removing his snares.
Liam	"Last one there buys the pre-patrol coffee tomorrow," came Liam's reply just before he made the jump across. He wasn't at Verity's level of free-running skill, but he'd done his fair share of sneaking around on rooftops- just usually as a precursor to breaking in to things like top-secret research facilities.
Verity	"Liam, you just could have volunteered to buy coffee if you wanted to!" Verity called after him. She took another moment to appreciate the way he looked while free-running before taking off herself in the opposite direction. The route around the buildings was just as fruitless as the rest of the patrol before it, not even yielding a snare she could take her frustrations out on. Boring and frustrating, story of her nightlife. By the time she was almost to their designated meeting rooftop, she was practically on autopilot. Only her years of patrolling--most of those with family members that would ambush her if they thought she wasn't paying the proper attention--that had her alert enough to hear the faint footfalls behind her. She kept walking, refusing to let her sudden tension show itself in her posture as she reviewed the last few minutes. She was certain she hadn't passed any of the local cryptids. They would have made sure she saw them, since they know it was never a good idea to surprise a Price when she was on patrol. That meant whoever or whatever was behind her wasn't something that respected her place in the city. Monster or member of the Covenant, odds were good for either. Hell, she'd say they were one and the same, but she didn't want to insult a good monster like that. She bent forward, like she was stretching out her hamstrings, and grabbed the pistols at her belt. Spinning as she drew them, she turned the motion into a smooth pirouette, bringing her guns to bear on whatever or whoever was trailing her.
Dominic	Dominic De Luca was ten feet behind her, a crossbow out and trained, dead center, on her chest. He smiled a bit when she froze, guns still raised. "I'm really not sure which of us would fire first," he said, tone almost apologetic, "but I'm reasonably sure whichever of us didn't would still have time to pull their trigger before the missile struck home."
Verity	It took Verity a moment to puzzle her way through that sentence. Raising her eyebrows, she asked, "Are you saying that no matter who shoots, we probably both die?"
Dominic	"Exactly," he said, that same apologetic note in his voice. "Can I recommend we stand down, at least for the moment?"
Verity	Verity hesitated. Part of her was saying, You can take him. That part was thankfully drowned out by the rest of her, which was pointing out how pissed the rest of the family would be if she died like this. 'Go down shooting' might as well be the family motto, but if it were, the second half would be 'don't go down stupid.' Raising her hands and turning her pistols so he could see what she was doing, she reengaged the safeties and slid the guns back into their holsters.
Dominic	Dominic hesitated, conflict written on his face. Verity was, after all, the granddaughter of Alice Healy and Thomas Price, one of the Covenant's greatest traitors, and great-great-grandaughter of Alexander and Enid Healy, the other two of the Covenant's greatest traitors. If he pulled the trigger, he could probably kill her before she had time to draw again. He could go home a hero, secure in the knowledge that any door in the Covenant would be open to him. All he had to do was twitch his index finger, and the world was his. All he had to do was kill a woman who had already surrendered.
Liam	Too bad for Dominic that he didn't have all the facts. Namely that Verity didn't always do these patrols solo. And that her occasional partner had the Sight. Moments ago, Liam had seen a glimpse of a possible future where Dominic had pulled the trigger, so now he was stepping in. He grabbed the other man by the waist and flipped him down to the ground, pinning him with a knee to the chest. One hand reached out to grab hold of Dominic's right sleeve, the other the lapel of his jacket, making it difficult, if not impossible, for the Covenant agent to move. "Yeah, yeah, I'm buying the coffee, don't rub it in," Liam said to Verity.
Verity	"I would never," Verity assured Liam, giving him a giant grin. "...Did you think I worked alone?" she asked Dominic sweetly, looming over his prone form. "Sorry to disappoint. But this works out nicely. What took you so long? I've been looking for you for weeks. It's not nice to keep a lady waiting."
Dominic	Dominic would like it to be known that he had already planned on holstering his weapon before the tackling had taken place. There was a difference between temptation and acting on it, thank you. Though the Price girl's words had him raising his eyebrows in turn, confusion replacing conflict. He made no move to free himself, recognizing the secure hold for what it was. "Waiting? Looking for me? I thought this was just another unfortunate encounter. I knew you hadn't left the city, but I'd rather hoped your rabble-rousing would keep you too busy to come back up here." To Liam, he said with the utmost politeness, "Might you be willing to let me up, sir? I assure you, I have no intentions of doing anything with my weapons other than putting them away."
Liam	In this reality, perhaps. But there was at least one where he had gone through with that urge, and Liam hadn't really felt like taking any chances. "Only because you asked so nicely," he said after a moment. Well, that and he wanted to know what the hell was meant by 'rabble-rousing'. He backed off, giving Dominic enough room to move.
Verity	That's okay; if anyone asked for Verity's opinion, she was firmly on the side of Liam tackling Covenant assholes to the roof for literally any provocation. She also objected to being accused of rabble-rousing. "The hell do you mean by that? I was looking for you to find out what the hell you think you're doing. I told you to go home."
Dominic	Dominic took a moment to stand, gathering the shards of his dignity around himself like the leather duster he was still wearing, even in this heat. "What I'm doing?" he repeated, confusion deepening. "I'm not the one protecting inhuman monsters by telling them to evacuate."
Verity	Verity blinked, too confused to even get pissed at his casual racism. "Evacuate? Are you kidding? Sure, people are leaving, but it’s nothing like an evacuation."
Dominic	"The population here is nothing like what I was told to expect."
Verity	A slow, disturbing certainty was creeping through Verity's veins, bringing a whole host of new questions with it. "Hold on." Dominic raised an eyebrow at her in inquiry. "How many cryptids have you killed since the last time I saw you?"
Dominic	"Not enough of them, and nothing that could speak." Dominic shook his head, frustration clear in the set of his jaw. "A few more of those giant bats. A vast reptile living beneath a dumpster. Beyond that, there's been nothing."
Verity	The rest of the ahool's flock and a lindworm. That definitely didn't match up with Verity's list of the missing, and both species were nonsapient predators that fed on humans. "Right." She reached up to pinch the bridge of her nose, fighting the near-irresistible urge to scream. "We need to talk. How do you feel about coffee?"
Dominic	"Coffee?" Dominic repeated. "I...like coffee." His expression hardened. "But how do I know this isn't a trap?"
Verity	Verity rolled her eyes. "Right," she said. "We've spent the last few weeks just trying to find you, all so we could lure you into a ready trap at the local Starbucks." Did this guy need to make everything difficult? "Look, it's late, I have an early morning, and your information doesn't match up with mine. So Liam and I are going to go for a cup of coffee and try to figure stuff out. If you can play nice for twenty minutes, you're even invited to come along. Hell, I'll even let you pick the place if that'll make you feel better."
Dominic	"It will," Dominic said, either immune to sarcasm to pretending to be, just to piss Verity off further. "You are a Price and you are an unknown quantity allied with a Price, and that means neither of you are trustworthy." The Covenant clearly had not invested any time in learning the art of winning friends and influencing people. "I will meet you at the Dipping Donuts on the corner of Main and Marble in fifteen minutes. If you don't show by then, I will assume you are no longer interested in talking."
Liam	"So that went well," Liam commented mildly as he watched Dominic stalk off, complete with dramatic long leather coat billowing behind him. That Liam had a nearly-identical coat in his possession was beside the point; he hadn't worn it to go jumping around on rooftops. His comment also wasn't sarcastic. Nobody had ended up maimed, or dead, and they were presumably about to go sit down and talk like (somewhat) reasonable people.
Verity	"Are you sure I can't just knock him off the roof?" Verity snarked, watching Dominic like a hawk until he disappeared into the evening gloom. "By the way, thanks for the assist. It was hot, watching you take him down that fast."
Liam	"Not if you want to figure out what's actually happening to the cryptids around here," Liam pointed out. He grinned at the compliment. "I spent a lot of time preventing assassination attempts, remember? Da'an never said it was 'hot', though."
Verity	"Da'an didn't know what he was missing, obviously," Verity said, starting to head over the rooftops towards the coffee shop Dominic had mentioned. "You can tackle assholes in front of me anytime." Dominic's expression had been almost as great as watching Liam work. They made it to the shop within the timeframe, only to be greeted by a nervous-looking Dominic. He'd started glancing anxiously around before they'd even placed their order, and his surprise when Verity collected the mugs and muffins and turned toward a table was almost comic. Only almost. If he wasn't responsible for her missing cryptids, and she hadn't been running the underground evacuation he'd accused her of, well... There were several alternatives, and none of them were good. "So," Verity said after a few entertaining minutes of watching Dominic attempt to keep an eye on her, Liam, and everyone else in the shop. He jumped at the sound of her voice and she swallowed the urge to smile. "If you're not responsible for most of the cryptids who've been disappearing, and I'm not responsible for the cryptids who’ve been disappearing, who is? I'm assuming you're the only one working this city. You would have tried too hard not to say something if you weren't."
Dominic	Dominic blanched, going as pale as was possible for someone with his particular skin tone. "Quiet," he hissed, in a low whisper that was more likely to attract attention than speaking in a conversational tone. "Do you want people to hear you?"
Verity	Verity exchanged glances with Liam. "Um...not particularly, but I wouldn't be upset if they did. Why do you ask?"
Dominic	"The ears of the general populace must be shielded from such blasphemous words," Dominic said, like he was delivering holy writ.
Verity	Funny how things like 'delivering holy writ' got less impressive when you were literally worshipped by cryptid mice. "What, 'are you working alone' is blasphemy now?" Verity scoffed. "No offense, but you need to get out more." Actually, at least a little offense intended, now that she thought about it.
Liam	"Do all Covenant agents speak like they have a thesaurus stuck-" Liam paused, and then rephrased, "like they swallowed a thesaurus, or just you?"
Dominic	"Not that." He ignored the jokes, his voice dropping even lower, a stunt Verity wouldn't have believed possible. "They mustn't know about the...monsters."
Verity	Every time his gaze shifted, Verity learned a little more about the Covenant's training methods. She couldn't say she was impressed. Maybe it was just the difference between American and European crowds throwing him off, but if he was that unsettled by your standard after-midnight coffee freaks, she couldn't imagine him following a ghoul through a crowded train station. Plus--and this was a big one--he was trying to watch her and Liam, too, and she could have poisoned his coffee six times while his attention was directed elsewhere. Shoddy work. "Wow." He blinked. "Wow?" "Yeah, wow. I didn't know people actually paused portentously in common conversation. Look, you've got nothing to worry about."
Dominic	"I don't know what brand of training you may have had, but I assure you, my caution is more well-deserved than your offhanded dismissal." He leaned back in his seat and eyed them both disdainfully. "It's clear that you have little experience in these matters."
Verity	Verity didn't know which annoyed her more; the assumption that her training had somehow been less thorough than his, or the easy dismissal of her field experience. She stiffened, the muscles in her jaw tightening until it felt like she was forcing her next words out through concrete. "Is that so," she said, making it less a question than a statement, giving Liam a look to keep her from reaching across the table and throttling him.
Liam	They were operating under a temporary truce! There would be no throttling. Still, if Verity had a flower, Liam would be offering to hold it right about now. "I'd apologize for what's about to happen," he told Dominic evenly. "But let's be honest, you deserve it."
Dominic	"I understand that things may be different here," Dominic said primly. "Please believe me when I say that the need for caution is universal."
Verity	Yeah, that tore it. "Right." Verity raised a hand. "Hold that thought." She was standing before he had a chance to react, kicking her chair out from behind her. She grabbed it with her right hand, keeping it from going toppling over, and flipped it around to form a makeshift platform before stepping onto the seat and striking a dramatic pose. Several other patrons turned to look toward the commotion. One wolf-whistled appreciatively. When looking to attract attention in a hurry, there were worse strategies than being female and wearing skintight gray spandex in a coffee shop packed with college-age males. "Citizens of Baltimore," she said, waving her arms for emphasis. More patrons turned in their direction. Dominic had gone even paler, which was an accomplishment. "May I have your attention?"
Some Randos	"You've got it, sweet-cheeks," called the whistler. "Now can I have your number?" His buddies laughed, elbowing each other in the easy amusement natural to semidrunk frat boys trying to get enough coffee in themselves to remember where they left the car.
Verity	"Maybe later," Verity said, meaning 'never'. Turning her attention to the coffee shop as a whole, she gestured to Dominic and said, "My friend and I belong to two rival sects of monster hunters, pursuing the supernatural and mysterious through the underworld for centuries. He believes in extermination. I believe in preservation. Now we put it to you: which of us is right?"
Obnoxious Drunk Boys	"The one who takes off her top!" called another of the frat boys. Another round of laughter followed. The rest of the patrons shook their heads and turned back to their tables, dismissing her outburst as being either drunken ravings, promotion for a television show they hadn’t heard about yet, or both.
Verity	Verity hopped down from the chair, straddling it as she smiled benevolently at Dominic. "Well?" she asked. "See any sign these nice folks feel like they’ve heard blasphemous talk?" "I—you—they—" "Pronouns are only useful when you combine them with other words. I have a few I can give you, if you're at a loss."
Dominic	"I don't believe you did that!" He was turning red now as the blood rushed back into his cheeks, horrified embarrassment chasing his pallor away. He turned to Liam. "Does she just...do that?"
Liam	"In all fairness, I did warn you," Liam pointed out. That'd be a yes, by the way. Her tendency to 'just... do that' was actually one of the many things Liam liked about Verity, of course.
Verity	"Why?" Verity shrugged, dropping her chin to rest on her crossed wrists. "Look, these are people who've grown up with slasher flicks and horror novels and everything else you can imagine. About the only way I'd get them to listen to me if I wanted to claim that cryptids were real would be to hop up on this table and strip."
Dominic	Dominic shook his head. "I never believed the stories about your family. I thought they were exaggerated. Now I'm starting to think that they may have been understating things." He saw Verity's curiosity and grimaced. "They call you insane," he said, bluntly.
Verity	"Ah." Verity sat up again, grinning at him. "That's pretty much true. We're all crazy. But crazy has its benefits." She winked and gave him fingerguns. "Crazy gets all the knives." It was possible she'd gotten distracted fucking with the Covenant guy. But he was just such a dick, it was hard not to. At least they were only fingerguns?
Liam	Liam made a valiant attempt to cover up his snicker at the fingerguns with a cough. "Right," he said. "And now that we've established that, can we get back to the business at hand?"
Dominic	Dominic was still glaring at Verity, but he answered Liam anyway. "My orders were clear. I am to scout, take notes of what I encounter, and report back. That way, we can determine the size of the needed purge. At the same time, I demonstrate that I am morally prepared for fieldwork."
Verity	"So you’re here alone to demonstrate that you can be trusted to be here alone. Isn’t that a little circular?" This was the craziest shit Verity had ever heard. And considering where she'd been living for the last year, that was saying something. "Uh-huh. And if you're not prepared?"
Dominic	"I will be reprimanded." "Harsh." Dominic shook his head. "You cannot imagine."
Verity	Verity'd read her Grandpa Thomas' journals and so had some idea. Somehow, it didn't seem like a good idea to tell him that. "Here's the thing I don't get," she said, propping her chin up on the knuckles of one hand. "You're here to kill the people I'm here to look after. Why are you worried about them going missing, if you know it's not because I'm getting them out of town? Either they’re in somebody else's territory, which is a problem for your superiors, or they're dead, which is a problem for me, but either way, they’re not a problem for you anymore."
Dominic	Dominic sighed. "If I thought the monsters were fleeing, it wouldn't be my problem. I'd notify my superiors and keep hunting the ones that remain. There haven't been any signs of them appearing in neighboring territories, and at least some of them would have to be traveling on foot. Since you're here, there was a chance your family was running some sort of ill-considered underground railroad."
Verity	"Well, we're definitely not. I'd know," Verity said. It wasn't that they hadn't considered such things in the past, but too many factors made it pretty much a non-starter. ...Though maybe with Liam's help--No, eyes on the task at hand, Verity.
Dominic	"I'm assuming you have local contacts who would have told you if they were running something like that, and that you wouldn't have been lurking around on rooftops hoping to find me if they were." Verity nodded, and Dominic continued, "That's my 'angle,' as you so charmingly put things. You can solve a mouse problem by developing a snake problem. But is it any better?"
Verity	Verity groaned. "I was really hoping you wouldn't say that. You think we have a snake?"
Liam	"A snake?" Liam echoed, frowning in confusion. "Like an actual... or is this a metaphor?"
Verity	"Both," Verity said, eyes boring into Dominic's. "He means a snake cult. Don't you." It wasn't even a question.
Dominic	Dominic answered it anyway. "Yes," he said quietly.
Verity	There was really only one thing to say to that, and so she said it, with all the fervency she could muster: "Fuck." And from Dominic's expression, for once, Price and Covenant were in total agreement.

[And we begin again! Adapted from Chapter 8 of Seanan McGuire's Discount Armageddon with amazing preplay AND coding help from firstofitskind, who was a fucking rockstar over the past...number of months. Parts one, two, three, and four. Is followed by this post. NFI, NFB, OOC is love]