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Brian Gamble slammed shut the door to his apartment, tossing the bag containing everything he had cleared from the precinct to the floor. After being returned back to life by Wolfram and Hart, he had eventually decided to spend his second human life making up in some small way for all the deaths at his hands by working in the police, eventually joining S.W.A.T. But the events of the last few days had reminded him of why he worked better alone, and of how much easier it had been to live with no morals than to try and be one of the ‘good guys’.
The sound of movement from the direction of his lounge drew his attention, and he dropped to one knee, pulling the gun from his ankle holster before stepping over to the partially closed door, pushing it open with enough force to slam it into the wall behind, neatly ensuring that no one was hiding behind it as he ducked into a shoulder roll, coming up with his gun trained on the lone figure sitting in the darkness on his sofa.
“Nice entrance,” a voice from his past drawled, followed by a click as the reading lamp was switched on.
“Lindsey McDonald,” he growled.
“Penn,” Lindsey smirked, kicking his feet up onto the coffee table. “Oh, I’m sorry, it’s Brian Gamble now, isn’t it?” he said, a mocking tone in his voice. “Former vampire nutjob turned SWAT marksman. How’s life working out for ya?” he grinned.
“Fucker,” Brian replied. “I oughta shoot ya,” he swore.
“Now, now son,” Lindsey cautioned, never losing the grin, even as Brian put moved his finger back onto the trigger, gun steadily trained on his forehead. “I’ve been threatened by worse,” he said dismissively.
“What do you want McDonald? And how did you find me?” he asked.
“You didn’t really think you could keep hidden from us forever, did you?” Lindsey asked. “We’ve known exactly where you were for quite a while now. The Senior Partners simply decided that they liked you were you were, so opted to let you carry on playing cops and robbers. At least until they had a better use for you.”
“Which is now,” Gamble stated.
Lindsey just grinned.
“What makes you think I’ll do anything they ask?” he asked.
“Ah well, you see they’re not really asking son,” Lindsey’s grin turned evil. “They brought you back to this life you’ve been enjoying – you owe them a debt, and it’s time for you to pay up.”
“And if I say no?” Gamble asked.
“Well, let’s just say it won’t be pleasant for you,” Lindsey replied. “Besides, it’s not like you’ve got anything better to do right now, is it?” he grinned.
“The bank job was a set up?” Gamble asked darkly.
“Not at all,” Lindsey laughed. “That was just a fortuitous event. The lady you shot though, she may have received a little unsolicited legal advice whilst she was in the hospital.”
“So you convince her to sue the city for damages, and the police have to react.”
“And you made such a convenient scapegoat for them. Especially with that hot temper of yours,” Lindsey nodded.
“What do they want me to do?” Gamble sighed, putting the gun down. He was tired of pretending to be the good guy all the time, two centuries as a vampire had left him somewhat lacking in certain human emotions that the return of his soul had not entirely fixed. That didn’t mean he was about to march to Wolfram and Hart’s drum however.
“Actually, I think you’ll rather enjoy this,” Lindsey laughed. “They want you to get even with your former employers.”
“What?”
“You’ve heard, of course, about the arrest of Alex Montel?” Lindsey asked.
“Who hasn’t?” Gamble replied. “Arrogant fucker.”
“Yes, well, he does have a charming personality and sparkling wit I’m sure, but he’s also a client of ours.”
“And the great and powerful Wolfram and Hart can’t get him off?”
“Oh, I’m sure we can, but the trial date’s not even set yet, and we don’t have that amount of time to waste.”
“Why?” Brian asked. “What’s so important?”
“That doesn’t concern you,” Lindsey told him. “All you need to do is break him out, we’ll do the rest. You can even have the reward money he’s offering.”
“And if I do this, my debt to Wolfram and Hart will be considered paid?” Gamble asked.
“In full,” Lindsey confirmed. “As far as the Senior Partners are concerned, if you get him out of custody, then you can go and do whatever it is that you want to do with the rest of your miserable life.”
Gamble sighed. It seemed a little too simple, and knowing Wolfram and Hart, there was going to be a catch. But he’d already decided it was time to bury Brian Gamble, so doing this wasn’t going to do anything other than delay him by a few weeks. And if it meant he didn’t have to look over his shoulder for the rest of his natural life, whatever identity he chose next- it would be worth it.
“Okay, I’m interested. Tell me more…”