Kevin Grant's pov
Well great. The team now has two powerhouses on house arrest. I can still leave with "chaperones" or whatever but I'm still not trusted. Tense silence about my situation again prevailed. Taking a deep breath I confessed into the silence,
"I really need a Piccadilly Commando."
"You need a what?" Garfield asked, a perplexed look on his face.
Cyborg and his computer sharpened mind caught the quaint reference.
"He said he needs a hooker."
"Rando's from the paparazzi should suffice." I said and all the women in the room blushed. Except Cassandra, she had her earbuds in. Raven facepalmed but half-heartedly explained, "Kevin… friends like that inside the Tower are a security hazard."
"Friends like that outside the Tower are a security hazard." Robin buzzkilled.
"Besides," Starfire added, "we don't need any more scandals-"
"Especially after you killed someone, spy!" Osiris spat.
"Well, well, well, look at you," I drawled, "a queef thinking he's a king of the reef trying to start beef."
"Kevin," Robin spat, "shut. Up."
"What if I don't want to? What if I got more bloody experience than everyone in this room combined?"
"Experience," Raven growled, "does not equate to power, or leadership ability. Neither is it a plausible disclaimer to ignore your superiors… even if they are younger than you."
I bore my eyes into her and spat, "Blow me."
"Okay," someone else said.
I turned to the voice and Cassandra had finally spoken up. She finished putting on some chapstick and popped her lips before adding, "Does that mean you will sit down and shut up?"
She had said it in her usual, nonchalant tone and it caught me off guard. Before I could reply she suggested, "How about this, me, Cynella and Kevin investigate these bodies dedicated to Mozart and the rest of you go investigate the Ventriloquist's gang? Sound good?"
Raven worried aloud, "Do you need any backup just in case?"
"My Silent Armor is super effective against demons and Trigon's forces. I think I will be fine." She glanced towards Miss Martian and added, "Megan can come along too, she hasn't been out in a while."
"Be careful." Donna warned.
"Just stop, nothing is going to happen today; just watch."
"And I'm right here," I half-yelled, "you bunch of-"
***
Meanwhile…
Deathstroke's pov
"Slade!" Wintergreen yelled coming in through the door, glass crunching under his boots, "How in the hell are we going to tell the landlord that your ex-wife tore this place apart?"
"Easy," I spat, "point a gun at him and tell him we'll fix it if he keeps up his part of the deal."
"Slade!"
"Ok, tell him I'll owe him a favor if he needs it, just shut up for a second!"
As if on cue, the landline started ringing and I was ready to fight God… or become him.
"Are you gonna-"
"Let it go to voicemail Wintergreen! Just get out!"
I sighed and sat on my couch with nothing but my towel still on. Clicking on the remote the news came on and my blood chilled. Wintergreen saw what was on the screen just before he could leave and exclaimed,
"My god, that's Rose's school."
The phone stopped ringing. I didn't even need to say anything for Wintergreen to play the message on speaker. Rose's mother, Lilian Worth was on the phone,
"Slade, remember that night when you told me I can call you for anything? Well, I REALLY need you right now."
"Wintergreen-"
"Getting the briefcases and tablet cases right now."
"Get the pocket glocks too and the pop-locks."
I rubbed my feet on the rug, getting the glass shards out, and half jogged-half ran to my room and threw open my ammo safe. I grabbed two pre-loaded belts of 9mm ammo with five drums and ten extended magazines. Then I grabbed two folding shotty caddys and two 5.56 shoulder slings for each of us. Both of us were wearing four 5.56 magazine couplers; essentially eight 30-round magazines of lead death. We both had 900 rounds of 9mm and 48 shotgun shells. I slipped on my carbon weaved tactical pants and armored leather trench coat.
(200 rd SAW box weight: 7 pounds of 5.56. 100rd 9mm is 1-2 pounds. 18 12g bullets= 1 pound. 100 12 gauge = 5.5 pounds. So they have 25-30lbs of gear/ammo. Normal soldiers, as far as I could find on the web, pack 90-140lbs of equipment. They'll also be carrying at least 12-13lbs of gun… at LEAST 😎. So 45-50lbs of guns and gear so yeah-)
Wintergreen came in and handed me two of the M3 Folding Glocks and I slipped them into my pockets and I handed him the belts and gear. Next were the suitcases and laptop bags. These were just concealed guns.
Reach into the laptop bag, grab a handle, whip it out and fold it open to unleash the FDC-9 (1.1lbs) {it's the 2008 FMG-9 that's releasing next year} spewing 1200 rounds per minute. I tested the weight of the suitcase in my hand with the laptop bag slung over my shoulder. I asked,
"The pop-locks installed? Little heavy."
"Yes sir but Slade…"
"Yeah?"
"What do we need all this heat for?"
"Superman doesn't like lead."
"He's bulletproof and you know it."
"Doesn't stop me from trying, c'mon. Lilian is waiting."
———————
"You saw the news…"
"Yep."
"And you STILL thought it was a good idea to come to my house with like six guns and two thousand bullets?!"
"Adeline visited today." I groaned in reply.
"Oh," Lilian said, "how did that go?"
"A ballet of bullets. That's what. Can't even get family visits without trading powder."
Lilian Worth just groaned, face palmed and shook her head. She was a ex-Cambodian princess fully adjusted to American life with nothing more than a white blouse and slacks on. Standing on the sidewalk in heels, one would think that she was getting ready to go to a meeting or something. She still possessed an accent whenever she talked but otherwise blended in a crowd fine as any. Not for me though, I could see the pretty thing a mile away.
"Sweet-Lilli," I purred, "we got this all figured out, okay? Do you still have family in Northern Khmer?"
"Do where?" Wintergreen asked.
"It's Thailand," I drawled for the moron, "Cambodia is next to Thailand and Vietnam, Wintergreen."
"Slade," she replied, "this is my home now. Rose is too old to move someplace else."
"So you'd like her to lay down roots watered by the blood of her friends?"
"Slade," Wintergreen growled, "you never even met her."
"Why are you both teaming up on me?
"Gentlemen, quiet." Lilian said, "Let's just get on with the hypothetical plan and make adjustments."
"Wintergreen and I are US marshals with WITSEC aka the Witness Protection Program. I originally planned to send you out of country but maybe we can compromise. There's no guarantee that this was a coordinated attack on you to get to me but we are going to assume it was-"
"Slade, we can't just pick and leave based on suspicions-"
"Sure you can, I do it all the time."
"Slade-"
"Ms. Worth," Wintergreen mediated, "Slade's just trying to protect you and your daughter."
The pace picked up into an argumentative speed,
"He's never met her, how would he know what to do?"
"A commander doesn't need to meet every soldier who's in the field."
"Oh so we are just units now?"
"I love you more than anyone on this planet right now and you know it woman!" I declared.
Wintergreen and Lilian were taken aback by the confession. I sighed, anger in my system as I added, "I'm just-" I raked my hand through my hair, frustrated, "I'm just trying to think tactically."
"Yes but sometimes you need to think practically as well."
"Nothing in my life is practical Sweet-Lilli and yours hasn't been either or I wouldn't be here like this."
She was a refugee from a war in Cambodia and I was the one tasked with her safety. That contract was taken care of years ago but that protectiveness remained. Lilian was my emotional other half.
She sighed and asked, "Do you have compelling ID's? Rose is smarter than you think."
"Of course, Ms. Worth." Wintergreen answered.
"Ok then, follow me."
We went into the house, entered through the threshold and passed through the living room and to a bedroom in the back of the house. Lilian hesitated at the door reaching for the knob before pulling back. She stammered,
"S-Slade?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you, I know you're a… busy man."
"No problem."
Lilian cracked the door open saying, "Rose? Are you decent? We got company." There was no reply but Lilian called again.
"Come in."
Lilian and Wintergreen went to the girl while I walked the perimeter of the room. I knocked on the walls: hollow, most likely wood and drywall. The window in the back of the room started at the ankle and ended at eye level. Someone could easily get in here. This security will not do.
"Sergeant Wilson, could you please wait to do the security and perimeter check?"
I turned to answer Wintergreen and saw her, that white hair. Jesus Christ-