“Hold still, will you?”

Johnny winced as Matt pressed a wet cloth against a cut above his left eye. The older man growled, pushing him against the wall to keep him still. He cringed a little, sensing the commander’s frustration. He’d already given the bigger man the run around.

It was over an hour since the Creed’s TaskerOne had arrived at the Astor to find the place in lock down. All the other inmates had been rounded up and sent to the dining hall under heavily armed guard. Only Johnny was left eluding the guards and soldiers who had already been there before Matthew arrived.

Then for half an hour, Johnny had lead Matt, and his men, around the prison on a merry dance, until the smaller male had practically wilted from exhaustion. Matthew and his 2IC had finally corralled the smaller man into an interrogation cell and that was where they were now. Cleaning up the scrapes he had received in the pursuit.

“Don’t see why you’re bothering...” Johnny mumbled then gritted his teeth as Matthew applied more pressure.

“You’re not allowed to bleed to death on my watch,” was the rough answer.

Johnny grimaced at that response. He didn’t really understand what that was supposed to mean. And considering no one ever really paid him much attention unless he caused trouble, if he ever did bleed to death he was certain no one else would give a damn.

“It’s just a graze.”

Matt sat back on his haunches, glaring at the smaller male. He didn’t bother responding, instead he said, “Take off your shirt.”

“What?” Johnny blinked at the command.

“That’s not the only one. Take it off. I’m not talking to you until I know you’re not going to pass out on me.”

Johnny shook his head, locking his arms across his chest.

Matthew’s eyes narrowed behind his shades. “If I have to get Jason in here to hold you down, I will. Don’t make this shit harder than it has to be.”

There was an edge to Matt’s voice that the younger man noticed and he figured that it wouldn’t be worth the hassle pushing his luck. So, he carefully eased his top off, over his head, wincing more as he realised there was quite a large wound on the right side of his torso. He wondered how he hadn’t noticed it. Probably the adrenaline still rushing through his body was at least partly to blame for the lack of sensation.

“Crap...I don’t even know how I got this one...”

Matt shifted closer again to get a better look. Removing his shades, he bent his head down, sucking at his bottom lip.

“Looks clean. Hold on.” He picked up the cloth again where he had dropped it on the floor, and carefully placed it against the wound, dabbing at it.

Johnny flinched, grabbing at his wrist. “Stop...it’s fine...I’m not gonna - Ow...that fucking stings!”

Matthew rolled his eyes, but relented on the pressure. “You hold it, then.”

Johnny grumbled, taking the cloth from him and pressing it against the wound. Matt stood and walked over to the only chair in the room. It was one of those metal-framed ones that could be found littered throughout the prison. He parked his ass on the edge of the chair, leaning forward with his elbows resting against his knees.

“So, you want to tell me what the fuck you think you were doing today?”

Johnny snorted at his choice of words. “If I say no, what the hell are you gonna do?”

“Just answer the question, Seward.” Matthew was in no mood to play the younger man’s game. He just wanted to get this over and done with, so he could get out of there and go home.

“I don’t know,” Johnny muttered. “Just bored I guess.”

Matt’s gaze darkened in disbelief. “Bored? Hell, Christ. This is the seventh time in three months.” Johnny’s attitude frustrated him no end. “You’re going the right way to a bullet in the head, y’know?”

“Yeah, well maybe I’d prefer to be dead than stuck in this hole for the rest of my life,” Johnny murmured. His tone suggested that he was in fact very serious about that fact. And that made the elder man wonder how it had been for him all this time.

“Jesus, Christ...” Matthew shook his head, leaning back against the chair.

“What?” Johnny lifted an eyebrow. “I’m serious. I don’t have anything to look forward to. You might as well just shoot me. I’m not doing anyone any good here. Anyway, if I’m dead, you won’t have to deal with me causing shit all the time.”

Matthew literally groaned at that. “Y’know, you could just quit with the shit. I don’t want to see you dead.”

“What the hell do you care? You didn’t have a problem killing my brother,” Johnny stated bitterly.

The bigger man just stared at him then said in a cold tone, “You really are a fucking little shit.”

Johnny shifted uncomfortably against the wall, dropping his gaze and checking the wound on his torso. He couldn’t really deny Matthew’s statement. It was a bit insensitive of him to say what he did. But, he felt a lot of resentment concerning what had happened to his older brother. So, in a way he felt justified in calling Matt out on that. Still, it probably wasn’t the smartest thing to say in the given situation.

He peered up at Matthew again. The commander was still glaring at him, anger evident in his hard stare.

“Maybe I’m wrong,” Johnny said in an attempt to appease him.

“You’re absolutely wrong,” Matt said in a tight voice.

He normally remained calm when confronting prisoners at the Astor, but most of the others he didn’t have any personal connection with. This was a whole other ball game. Johnny’s elder brother had been a friend, a very close friend. And if it weren’t for the fact that he was the top-dog of the Creed he wouldn’t even be volunteering to deal with this particular situation. It wouldn’t have been allowed.

If someone else in the corps had a close tie with anyone in the prison, they weren’t permitted to intervene with that particular case. For Matthew, he had no choice. He had to officiate over every incident.

Johnny’s case was the hardest, though. It hit terribly close to home and it was taking all Matt’s willpower not to break. He folded his arms over his chest, a defensive gesture.

“You know how it was with your brother and me.”

Johnny gave a slight nod, averting his eyes again. “Yeah, I know.”

“But he broke the law,” Matthew pressed. “And I was given my orders.”

“I know. You don’t have to tell me.” He shot a sour look at his brother’s friend. “I was there.”

“You were. And you were damned lucky you were underage at the time.”

“Lucky? I don’t see it like that.”

Johnny stretched out his legs, resting his hands against his thighs, allowing the cloth to fall to the floor again. It was stained with his blood, but the cut had dried up a bit after having constant pressure on it.

Matthew’s lips twisted. “No? Is that why you keep doing this? You want to get yourself shot?”

Johnny lifted his shoulders, answering in an almost nonchalant tone, “Like I said, it’d be better than being here for the rest of my life.”

Matt didn’t really know how to respond after he said that. He hadn’t had a lot of experience with inmates who had been so despondent that they didn’t really care about life anymore. Most of the ones he had dealt with had either begged to be released back to their families, or had become resigned to completing their time and slogged it out without complaint. Never had he encountered any who deliberately stirred up trouble to get themselves out of the shit situation they had put themselves in. Even if it meant facing execution.

Sighing, he stood and approached the smaller man. Johnny watched him, a cagey expression on his face. Matthew crouched down in front of him, retrieving the cloth, screwing it up into a ball while frowning faintly.

“You have got to stop this. Otherwise, I’ll be forced to put you before the firing squad.”

Johnny made no response, just continued to glower sullenly at the bigger male. Matt sighed again, straightening and looking over his shoulder.

Jason appeared in the doorway one eyebrow lifted in question. “Shadows?”

Matthew returned his gaze to Johnny who was now looking down at the floor. There really wasn’t much he could do if Johnny refused to let him in to his head. If the younger man didn’t want to explain anything, and didn’t want help, well...

Short of threatening him, nothing seemed to work at any rate. And it was pretty obvious that Johnny had checked out.

“Take him back to his cell,” Matt finally said, with another sigh. “I have to report to the General.”

Jason nodded, walking into the room and over to stand by the younger male.

Matthew turned and walked out, not bothering to stay and listen to the fight that would most likely occur between the two men. It was always the same, after all and he didn’t feel it would be helpful to get caught in the middle. Jason always managed to get Johnny moving, in the end.

* * * * *

General Eskino was a portly man, to put it in polite terms. He had been a bear of a man in his younger years, thick with muscle, built like a linebacker. Since taking the position as General, though, he hardly did any ground or field work and so all that meat had transformed into fat, giving him a rotund appearance.

His favourite pastime was playing Solitaire on his computer, that and berating his TaskerOne if he hadn’t been as efficient as he would like. Today though was a little different. The General felt surprisingly genial toward the young commander. Matthew noticed this, standing in the middle of the office, as he was reporting the week’s progress to the elder male.

Head Office was several miles away from the Astor, sort of halfway between the maximum security joint and The Creed’s barracks. It was an old red-brick affair that looked more like an aged pensioner’s home than the headquarters of the most ruthless man in New Huntington. But, maybe that was the point. Keep his men feeling comfortable and they trusted him more.

“So,” General Eskino commented once Matt had finished his report, “it’s been smooth running, Shadows?”

The General never called him by his real name. Ever since Matt had told him of the nickname he’d given himself in high school, Eskino had latched onto it and used it exclusively. In a way, it made complete sense. Matthew had called himself that because he felt that he’d been quite a dark personality and it was by pure coincidence that it sort of fit with his position.

Being TaskerOne demanded he be, not so much underhanded or sly, but someone who could stomach the things that had to be done. It was also a lot more intimidating for lawbreakers to hear someone say, ‘you’d better watch out, or Shadows will get you’ than if he used his real name.

“Yes, sir. I wouldn’t say things haven’t gone wrong, though.” He was always honest. Trust in his capabilities was always built on absolute honesty. Matt never lied, he only ever refrained from telling the truth. Or at least, that’s the way he liked to see it.

“The riot?” the General didn’t even raise an eyebrow as he asked.

Matthew gave a curt nod. “Dealt with.”

General Eskino steepled his fingers beneath his chin, gazing steadily upon the younger man. “Something needs to be done about young Seward.”

“I know.” Matt was willing to concede that point, particularly after the latest incident. He began to pace in front of the General’s desk. “I just have no idea what to do. I did talk to him.”

“How did that go?”

“He seems depressed. As in clinically. I’m not qualified to make a diagnosis, of course. But, he said that he only does the things he does because...” Matthew paused trying to think of how to describe it. It came to him after a moment’s thought. “He basically has a death wish.”

Eskino leaned forward, his brow creasing. “Are you thinking we should oblige him, Shadows?”

For a moment, Matt just stared at the General. Emotions warred in his eyes and across his face, but he finally schooled his expression into a stony mask. He wasn’t going to let his personal feelings get in the way of his job. Of course, he didn’t want to do anything to Johnny. He really just wanted to walk away and not have anything to do with Luke’s younger brother. But, he didn’t have that luxury.

Matt said, reluctantly, “I don’t see how we can do anything else, sir.”

“Well,” the General’s lips twitched in a grim smile, “I believe that we should not be so hasty as to pull the trigger on him.” He sat back against his chair, the leather creaking in protest as he settled his considerable weight into the seat. “I have actually been thinking about his case for a while now. Today’s little incident has highlighted for me the utmost importance of fixing his situation.”

Matthew turned to face the older man, brow furrowed. He didn’t know what to think. He couldn’t think of any solution to get Johnny out of the rut he’d dug for himself. Nothing good came to mind. But, then he wasn’t much of an innovative thinker; that was more Jimmy’s thing. Well, most of the time. He did sometimes have good ideas, but this situation had him stumped.

“What do you suggest, then sir?”

General Eskino sighed. “This is not the best solution I could come up with, but it appears that he needs a change of scenery.”

Matthew blinked. “Should we send him north? To Canada?”

The Astor had a partnered facility in the far north of the neighbouring country. The Creed’s influence reached even the most remote areas of Canada and Alaska. It was a very isolated region and very rarely did anyone ever go there. The thought of sending Johnny up there had crossed Matt’s mind earlier on, but he didn’t really want to go there with that thought.

Thankfully Eskino didn’t seem to be thinking along those lines either, judging by his answer to Matt’s query.

“No. I was thinking of somewhere much closer to home.” The General reached over for a pen and opened a file that was on top of a pile on his desk. “You know what these are?”

The younger man glanced down at the open file, squinting a little. “No, sir?”

“Custody release forms,” Eskino explained as he scrawled his signature on the dotted line at the bottom of the top page in the file. “What I want you to do,” pausing, he looked up at Matthew to make sure his attention was on him. Bright hazel eyes were locked on him, bemusement evident in their depths.

He continued briskly, “What I want you to do is release Johnny from the Astor.”

“Release him?” Matthew asked nonplussed.

“Yes. I do not care what you do with him once you do. Just get him out of there.”

Frowning, the commander pondered the General’s order. “You’re putting him into my custody?”

General Eskino nodded slowly. “Exactly. Perhaps he just requires different company. That may settle him down. In the meantime, I will try and find a more permanent solution.”

Matthew’s jaw tightened. Part of him felt a sense of relief that the General hadn’t ordered him to shoot the little bastard, but another was anxious to see how this whole thing would work out. He was absolutely certain that Johnny hated his guts after what he’d done to Luke. Placing the younger man in his custody could end in disaster of a different sort.

“I don’t know if this is a good idea...”

“I’m not asking you to do this, Shadows.” The General’s voice was stern. That was a no-brainer. The General never asked anything of his men. It was a command, pure and simple.

Matthew straightened his back, lifting his chin, expression steely. “When do you want me to take Jonathan?”

Eskino tilted his head a look of approval in his dark eyes. He knew this wasn’t going to be an easy task for Matthew. The General had been there six years ago when Johnny, his brother and friends were arrested. Was present when Matthew had shot Luke and the elder members of the illegal group they had formed. He had experienced the devastating effect that it had on the then twenty-two year old. But, he also knew that sometimes the only way to deal with one’s demons was to force one to face the situation head-on.

General Eskino mentioned none of his thoughts, though. Matthew did not need to know that part of the reason he had made his decision was to repair the TaskerOne’s own psychological wounds as much as to throw young Seward a lifeline.

“I presume you will want to speak with Valary about this.”

Matt shook his head. “I’ll call her. She won’t mind.”

“Well, then right now, if you can get back to the Astor.”

“No problem.” Matthew unhooked his shades from the neck of his tank top, slipping them onto his face. “You want me to report to you once he’s out?”

The General shook his head. “Not necessary. Just go home once you’re done.”

Matt swallowed a lump that formed in his throat at that statement. “Excuse me, sir?”

“Were you not wanting a second day, Shadows?” Eskino raised an eyebrow. “By all means, you can return to the barracks, if you would rather?”

Matthew rolled his shoulders not certain how he should respond. He felt embarrassed that he had even mentioned it when he had called earlier to ask. He started to shake his head, but then changed his mind thinking that was the whole point of his original request.

He glanced at the General, his expression one of immense gratitude. “No. I will go home afterwards. Thank you, sir.”

General Eskino inclined his head to the younger man. “Go. I don’t want to see you here again for another week.”

Matthew brought his back so it was straight as an iron rod, saluting to the General. Then without another word, he spun on his heel and walked out of Head Office.

Eskino settled back in his chair letting out a sigh, his thoughts following the young man out. Matthew was the Creed’s most valued commander in so many years and to lose him emotionally would be a huge blow.

However, the General had sensed over the last few months that was exactly what was happening. It wasn’t even noticeable on a physical level. Not even Jason Berry had picked up on the signals. But Eskino recognised the earliest signs, and knew he had to take some form of action.

In hindsight though, he only hoped he had made the right decision. He wouldn’t have admitted it in front of Matthew, but he completely agreed with the TaskerOne’s assessment of Johnny’s situation. It could all end up going to pieces.

Or, it could go a long way to fixing what had happened in the past.

Only time would tell.

Notes

Sorry for not having posted in so long. I kinda floated away...lol