同章对照

Ryan never thought he would bring a communist to Dynamis’ doorstep.

Enrique Manada’s waiting room was nearly silent, with only the sound of a secretary typing on her computer to break the monotony. Felix looked through the window, impatient to be done with the meeting, while Len’s fingers fidgeted uncontrollably. She had been in a sour mood since they arrived.

Ryan didn’t fare much better. His wounds still ached, and even his dazzling clothes couldn’t hide all the bandages beneath them. Even with a Genome’s metabolism, it would take him a few days to be back in top shape.

The courier’s eyes wandered to his adoptive sister. She had made an effort to dress well for the occasion, trading her jumpsuit for a white blouse tucked by the waist into a blue skirt. A discreet red ribbon completed the set. Though Ryan’s feelings for her had moved from romantic to brotherly over the last few loops, he still found her lovely.

“Mr. Manada will receive you now,” the secretary said, causing Len’s scowl to deepen.

“You’re sure you want to come?” Ryan asked her. “I can take down the bourgeoisie on your behalf.”

“Yes,” Shortie said with a firm nod. “I need it, Riri.”

At least she had taken Alchemo’s meds before the meeting. As expected, the brain Genius had arrived yesterday with his own team, quickly confirmed Ryan’s time-travel story after analyzing his mind-map, and immediately moved on to secure the bunker. The courier trusted his allies to manage that part without him, especially with Livia at their back.

Ryan had convinced his girlfriend to delay the celebrations until they could cure Bianca though. Celebrating the Meta-Gang’s demise without her felt wrong.

The trio walked into Blackthorn’s lair, the secretary closing the doors behind them. Len paid more attention to the Japanese pond than the flowers decorating the office, while Felix glanced at the people behind the mahogany desk. Though Enrique Manada welcomed them sitting in a chair costlier than most houses, Wyvern stood right behind him in her human form, arms crossed.

“Felix,” she greeted her teammate politely.

“Wyvern,” Atom Kitten said while returning the nod, before doing the same with his other superior. “Blackthorn.”

“Atom Cat.” The superpowered gardener moved on to greet the others. “I am Enrique Manada, the Chief Brand Officer at Dynamis and Head Manager of the Il Migliore program.”

The man shook Ryan’s hand, but when he offered Shortie his own, she only responded with an icy glare.

“She respects your private property,” Ryan informed Blackthorn. “To each their own hand.”

“I see.” Enrique understood the message and moved on, the trio sitting in comfy leather chairs facing the desk. “I admit I am curious. Atom Cat told me you wanted to discuss a possible partnership with our organization.”

“I don’t see why you asked me to come as well,” Wyvern said, arms crossed. She alone refused to sit down, perhaps because she worried that the meeting might end in a fistfight.

“We wanted to have a meeting to discuss the collectivization of our economy,” Ryan declared. “The more, the merrier.”

“Uh-huh,” Enrique replied without emotion. “And the real reason?”

Len looked at the superhero manager. “Why?”

“Why what, Miss Sabino?”

“Why did you do this to my father?” Len asked harshly, venom dripping with every word. “For money? For power? Was it worth it?”

Enrique didn’t respond, his fingers interlocked into a diabolical mastermind pose. His expression remained hidden behind his mask, though the flowers around the office seemed to bristle.

Ryan searched for something under his trench coat, causing Wyvern to tense. Instead of a gun, the courier grabbed a folder and tossed it on the desk. Blackthorn made no move to read the documents inside it.

“Enrique?” Dragon Mom asked her superior, confused.

“I know what it holds,” Enrique replied calmly, though Ryan noticed an undercurrent of shame behind the stoic facade.

Wyvern frowned before glancing at Felix, who stared at Enrique with cold anger. She grabbed the folder and began to read the documents within, her skin turning as pale as chalk with the first lines. “That’s impossible,” she said as she turned the pages. “It’s fake.”

“It’s not,” Len insisted.

“You think I can believe half of what’s inside? That Dynamis turned a Psycho into a drink, or cloned me?” The superheroine shook her head. “Lots of false information spreads about Lab Sixty-Six and the Knockoff production process. I’ve heard all the conspiracy theories. Aliens, children’s bodily fluids...”

“Well, they’re half right,” Ryan replied.

“You can take my blood if you want,” Shortie added, while Enrique remained as silent as a tombstone. “See for yourself.”

“Underdiver, I know you attacked Dynamis installations in the past, but spreading these lies are a new low and will not help anyone.” Wyvern put the file on the desk, a picture of a Knockoff transforming into Bloodstream slime slipping out of it. “Felix, don’t tell me you believe them?”

“I do,” Felix replied grimly. “I took this picture.”

Dragon Mom remained in denial. “You were deceived. And that part about Dynamis funding the Meta-Gang is the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard yet.”

This time, Enrique wordlessly glanced at the documents and examined them. He quickly reached the part about the Knockoff Elixirs deliveries to Adam, transcripts of Psyshock’s meetings with Hector Manada, and most importantly, the schematics of Dynamis brain-mapping machine.

“Where did you get these documents?” the corpo asked, doubt gnawing at him.

Len brought out a phone, activating it. The video showcased Agent Frank dutifully keeping watch over a pile of dangerous Marxist literature, trapped in an underwater prison. Wyvern immediately recognized this proud defender of democratic values. “Is that Frank the Mad?”

“This is a live feed,” Len explained, while Enrique watched on with sharp attention.

“We neutralized the Meta-Gang’s leadership, and currently hold most of their members in underwater cells,” Felix said. The video switched to Dynamis thralls being treated in an infirmary and to the Knockoff crates. “We have dozens of witnesses currently receiving medical attention. You can visit them yourself.”

Wyvern scoffed. “Felix, are you saying that you defeated the Meta-Gang by yourselves?”

“You can come to Rust Town, and check,” Len replied frostily. Her anger at Dynamis gave her confidence. “If you are willing to get down to earth and sully your clothes.”

The superheroine flinched, but quickly regained her composure. “I raided the Meta-Gang half a dozen times since they arrived in New Rome.”

“It changed nothing,” Len rasped. “Hundreds would have died if… if we hadn’t been here. Old people, children… they hoped you would come rescue them, but you never came.”

Tellingly, Dragon Mom didn’t attempt to say she did all she could. She had advocated Il Migliore attack the Meta-Gang in the past, and still wished her superiors took her suggestion to heart.

Speaking of her superiors, Enrique grabbed his own phone and started making calls. “I have been informed that some of our drones have gone missing lately, probably repurposed by the Meta-Gang,” he said, the picture of the shattered machines on the desk. “Do you confirm? Uh-huh, uh-huh… why wasn’t I informed?”

Wyvern glanced at her manager with worry. “Enrique?”

“Pack your things, you’re fired.” Enrique ended the call, and made another. “Yes, it’s me. I have been informed that Elixirs from the April production were lost, do you confirm? Uh-huh… what about the technicians from the robotic division, Team 7? Are they missing?”

“Enrique?” Wyvern asked again, more and more concerned.

Instead of answering, Dynamis’ CBO made a dozen phone calls in fifteen minutes, fact-checking every piece of information, following every lead. Ryan noticed that the flowers in the room grew more and more agitated as time went on, their petals dancing, their roots emerging from the earth. Wyvern noticed it too, and her doubt turned to horror.

In the end, Enrique put his phone on the desk, turned his chair around, and looked through the window. He couldn’t deny the truth before the overwhelming amount of evidence.

“Enrique, say something,” Wyvern demanded. “Please.”

Instead of answering her, the manager glanced at an empty spot to his left, near the window. “You can come out, Martel. I know you are here.”

Shroud became visible without warning, causing Wyvern’s eyes to shine with a green glow. Enrique stopped his ally with a nod before she could transform.

“You know me?” Shroud asked, surprised.

Blackthorn shrugged. “We have a file on you, and everyone in the Carnival.”

“Did you steal his private data?” Ryan asked mirthfully. “Dynamis should update its privacy policy charter.”

“I knew this day would come, Quicksave,” Enrique replied, while Shroud formed a seat of glass from his own armor. Blackthorn turned his seat to face the whole group. “I suppose that’s how you took down the Meta-Gang, with the Carnival’s help? Did Hargraves send you to arrest me? Or kill me?”

“No,” Len replied, though her tone didn’t soften at all. “I want answers.”

Wyvern slammed the mahogany desk so hard that its surface cracked.

Her violent reaction made everyone flinch, except Ryan and Enrique. The former, because he saw it coming; the latter, because he had expected it.

“Enrique, what’s happening?” The superheroine’s fist clenched, some of the documents falling off the desk. “Is any of this true?”

“All of it, as far as I can tell.” His voice was heavy with guilt and remorse. “All their evidence points to my father conspiring with Adam the Ogre to weaken the Augusti. As for our Elixir production process… I saw it for myself.”

By now, Il Migliore’s shining dragon was positively trembling. “Tell me this is a sick joke of some kind.”

“I wish it were.” Her manager let out a sad sigh. “The Knockoffs react violently to Miss Sabino’s blood samples. Her father put an unknown agent in her hemoglobin which removes the safeguards on our Elixirs. My brother Alphonse wanted her turned into a guinea pig so that we might remove that flaw, and perfect the production process. I put my veto on that, but—”

This time, Wyvern punched the desk and snapped it in half. Ryan quickly stopped time to save the folder and gather all the documents.

“You let Tyrano clone me? Turn me into a poison?” Wyvern asked, struggling to hold back tears. “Enrique, after all… after everything that happened between us… how could you do this?”

“Laura—”

“Your company infected this city’s population with a Psycho, Enrique!”

“When I learned the truth about how our artificial Elixirs were made, it was too late to pull the plug,” the CBO replied with remorse. “The Knockoffs had been distributed to the population. I was put before the Fait Accompli.”

“Better late than never,” Len replied angrily. “Why didn’t you just stop?”

Instead of answering immediately, Enrique slowly removed his mask and put it on his desk’s left corner.

He looked rather handsome, with perfectly groomed hair and a sexy Spanish mustache. He took a lot from his sire Hector, though with a leaner face and more skeletal features. While the father reminded Ryan of Pablo Escobar, the son looked more like a lanky Antonio Banderas.

Enrique glanced at Ryan and Len, before locking eyes with the latter. “For as little as it is worth, I want to apologize to you both,” he declared. “What my family did to yours is unforgivable, and you are within your right to hate us. I have a responsibility in hiding the truth from the population, but I never wanted any of this. This was done behind my back.”

“But you covered it up,” Felix accused him, while Wyvern wiped away tears of rage and betrayal.

“If I had revealed the scandal, Atom Cat, then Dynamis would have certainly collapsed alongside any hope of rebuilding Europe into something halfway decent,” Enrique defended himself. “Do you want Augustus to become the face of our future? We are not perfect, but at least we try to recreate society based on the rule of law. I cannot say the same for our opposition. Dynamis is the only remaining check on Augustus’ authority; the last barrier between Europe’s population and a deranged Genome suprematist.”

Enrique glanced at the window, and at Mount Augustus sticking out of the horizon. “That is why my brother lied to me and created the Knockoffs, Sabino. To try and knock these so-called gods off their thrones.”

“Yet your solution presents as great a danger to the world as Augustus,” Felix said accusingly. “Maybe even greater.”

“The Carnival didn’t give you the full reasons why we wanted Bloodstream gone to avoid a panic, and maybe we should have said the truth from the start. Our previous seer…” Shroud cleared his throat. “My mother predicted that Bloodstream would cause a worldwide disaster, if left alive. Our data proves that the risk remains even now.”

“My father…” Len’s hands fidgeted on her lap. “My father could go mad and… everyone who drank the Knockoffs…”

Ryan put a hand on her arm, and he could tell she was thankful for the emotional support. Enrique absorbed the news with gloom, while Wyvern looked fit to gag.

“Dr. Tyrano insisted that his vaccine worked,” Blackthorn said, though doubt had crept in his voice already. “That it would neutralize Bloodstream in case of a containment breach.”

“Don’t trust a reptilian to do a mammal’s job,” Ryan replied as he broke hand contact with his adoptive sister and extracted a beautiful sheet full of graphs from the folder. Blackthorn quickly grabbed it.

“Here is our plague doctor’s analysis report,” Shroud explained. “If put in contact with the blood agent in his daughter’s hemoglobin, the core of Bloodstream will regain its full power and automatically transform anyone who consumed a Knockoff into a clone of itself. And according to our simulations, it might gain the ability to do so on its own as it mutates further.”

Blackthorn sank deeper in his chair as he read. “Thousands…”

“Millions would die in the best-case scenario,” Shroud replied.

“You’ve got to stop this,” Felix insisted.

Blackthorn returned the document to Ryan. “You came to destroy Lab Sixty-Six.”

“They wanted to come in guns blazing,” the courier admitted, “but I convinced them to try finding a compromise.”

“Why?” Enrique asked dryly. “Out of all the people in this room, you should hate us the most.”

“Because although you look like a Saturday Morning Cartoon villain, I know you are anything but.” If anything, Ryan had come to see Blackthorn as the other side’s Livia, an internal reformer doomed to fail without outside help. “You’re the only hope Dynamis has of reforming into something actually good for the world.”

“We have found a treatment not only for the Bloodstream infection, but for the Psycho condition,” Shroud explained.

Though skeptical, Enrique looked willing to entertain the possibility of a cure. “Do you have proof of what you say?”

“Of course.” Ryan put a hand on his chest. “Thanks to our Psychocare policy, my administration is currently curing the Meta-Gang’s members. You can come see it for yourself.”

“But we will need resources to cure Psychos across Europe,” Shroud said. “Resources that your company can provide.”

“I… I want to try the treatment on my father. To try and heal him… and if it doesn’t work…” Len cleared her throat. “If it doesn’t work… I want to end his suffering. This is all I ask. I… I don’t even want revenge. I just want him to find peace.”

Enrique tensed up. “My father and brother will never agree—”

“They won’t,” Ryan agreed. “Which is why we’re asking you to do the right thing, Jiminy.”

Though he remained as stoic as ever, the courier’s words affected Blackthorn. Ryan could see it in his body language, how the plants in his office shifted. A part of him truly believed in the superhero propaganda he pitched to his customers.

Deep down, Enrique Manada desperately wanted to make the world a better place.

“I’m resigning,” Wyvern declared with a hardened voice. “I can’t stand by this. And neither should you, Enrique.”

“No, I should not,” the manager conceded. “But if we reveal the truth and arrest my father, then my brother Alphonse is in charge. He won’t let his life’s work vanish without a fight. He has gambled too much on this project to stop now.”

“Even knowing the risks?” Felix asked, aghast.

“Even so. My brother dreams of a world where everyone is a Genome, and thus equal. He would rather die than abandon it.”

“Then we’ll stop him too,” Atom Cat locked eyes with his manager. “You remember the day I first came to this office, Blackthorn? What did you say to me back then?”

Blackthorn let out a heavy sigh. “That even if your family was in the wrong, you were right to take a stand for what you believe in.”

“Start practicing what you preach. Or was that just a slogan?”

Wyvern put a hand on Enrique’s shoulder, making him freeze. The superhero and the corpo exchanged a glance, full of conflicted emotions. Past intimacy, pain over past lies, regrets… a tiny bit of hope. They had been so close that they could probably understand the other’s thoughts without saying a word.

“Even if it’s all for naught, Laura?” Enrique asked Wyvern.

“Even if it is all for naught… Someone has to try, Enrique. Or nothing will change.” She gathered her breath. “Please.”

Enrique’s hand rose to touch Wyvern’s, but she backed away from his shoulder before he could make contact. For the first time since Ryan had met him, the courier could see the pain and loneliness behind the Manada’s stoic facade.

“Suppose I'll help you.” Il Migliore’s manager faced his guests. “Even if by some miracle Dynamis survives the destruction of our main lab, our loss of credibility, and my brother’s inevitable retaliation, the company will be a shadow of its former self. Easy prey for Augustus. Unless you intend to take him down after cleaning up our house?”

“You have a secret weapon against Augustus,” Shroud pointed out. “The Gravity Gun.”

“An untested weapon,” Enrique pointed out. “You of all people should understand why we’re unwilling to take a gamble, Martel. Your organization’s last encounter with Augustus ended with half of your members dead, Martel; ours, with Malta sinking beneath the waves. When humans dare the lightning to fall, they die.”

Ryan felt a sharp pain in his chest, right where Lightning Butt struck him in the past loop. “We have another option,” he said. “Mechron tech. Its efficiency has been proven.”

Technically true, though he left out the gory details.

“Nothing is ever certain with Augustus, but I suppose this is true for all things in life.” Enrique seized Ryan’s folder. “I will analyze these documents in detail. If you are correct about the potential for an Elixir epidemic… if you are correct, then I will contact you again.”

“And the Gravity Gun?” Shroud asked.

“I will send you the data.” Enrique looked away, avoiding Wyvern’s gaze. “Go now.”

Not yet. While Shroud vanished and his other allies moved to the door, Ryan turned to Wyvern and spoke one word.

“Jasmine.”

Wyvern flinched. “What, Jasmine?”

“It’s not too late for you and her,” Ryan said. “All she wants is an apology and recognition.”

“Apology for what?” Dragon Mom asked with a confused frown. “I never did her harm.”

“She wants you to apologize for never paying much attention to her, and letting her live in your shadow,” Ryan said. “That’s all she wants in the end. Recognition for her achievements, and being treated as an equal. It’s really that simple.”

Wyvern’s eyes widened, and the courier could see the gears turning in her head. “Is that another prophecy?” she asked, Enrique squinting at the courier with suspicion. “Are you a precognitive Genome too?”

“Sort of.” Ryan shrugged. “It’s not too late to help her turn her life around. But it won’t be possible without you.”

“I… I see.”

Hoping that she would take his words to heart, Ryan walked out of the office and left the two corpos alone. They were locking eyes as the courier closed the office’s door behind him.

Though Ryan could tell that not all hope of patching things up was lost, flower and dragon had many couple counseling sessions ahead of them.

“What was that for?” Len asked on their way out of the building.

“I made a promise to a girl once,” Ryan said, remembering his Jasmine lost to time. “I owed her that much.”

---

Ryan drove the Plymouth Fury on the way back home, but the group didn’t move to the Junkyard immediately. “Here,” Atom Kitten said at a key crossroad. “To the southeast.”

The courier immediately recognized the way. “Family, or friends?”

“Friends,” Felix said.

After half an hour of travel and avoiding two traffic accidents, Ryan parked his car in front of Jamie’s house.

The occupants were already waiting outside, even before the courier and Felix stepped out of the car. Ryan noticed Ki-jung’s rats in the grass around the house, and tossed a swiss cheese piece at them. “Why do you carry cheese on yourself?” Felix asked in confusion.

“Why wouldn’t I carry cheese?” Ryan answered, while Len remained in the car. Though she was improving, she didn’t do well with new people. Baby steps. “I have milk too, if you’re thirsty.”

“Only if we drink from the same cup,” his sidekick replied, before facing his old friends. Jamie looked as tense as a bear caught in an ambush, while Ki-jung appeared torn between joy at seeing Felix again, and worry.

As for Lanka...

“Look at that, a suicide bomber,” Lanka said while opening a beer can. She glanced at Ryan and Len, her eyes hidden behind her sunglasses. “Are they your new team? Come to blow yourselves up together?”

“Sort of,” Felix replied.

Ryan put a hand on his sidekick’s shoulder. “We found your cat erring on the road, and adopted him.”

“Ain’t our cat anymore,” Lanka replied before sipping her beer. “He ran away, so you can keep it.”

“Felix, why are you here?” Though he asked the question with calmness, Jamie couldn’t suppress the worry in his voice. “Are you returning back into the fold?”

“I’m not coming back,” Felix replied, before choosing his next words carefully. “But… I realized I might have treated you a bit too harshly. I hoped we could stay friends.”

“Funny, I remember you saying we were done,” Lanka replied, unimpressed. “Among other colorful things.”

“I still believe them,” Felix replied bluntly, causing Ryan to sigh. Atom Kitten was about as diplomatic as a prison door. Still, the courier hung back, as it was a private matter between former friends. “Staying with the Augusti is wrong, especially after you saw the damage they caused first hand.”

“Felix, you will always remain our friend,” Ki-jung said softly. “I remember all you did for me, and Jamie too. You will always be welcome among us.”

“But by coming here, you’re putting everyone in danger,” Jamie declared. “If Pluto learns you came…”

“You’ll die.” Felix sighed. “Guys, you’re going to die if you stick with them. Even if you don’t do anything wrong, Augustus will be the death of you. You will retire in coffins.”

They know, Ryan thought, as he observed their reactions. Lanka and Jamie seemed to have accepted it as inevitable, while Ki-jung stared down at her own feet.

Felix waited for them to answer, before clenching his fists at their silence. “Guys…”

“We can’t leave,” Jamie said, while his girlfriend looked away.

“After dragging Ki-jung into this mess, you’ll keep her in it?” Atom Cat accused him.

Jamie’s expression turned into one of disgust, his voice brimming with cold rage. “Drag her into this?”

“Jamie was against me joining the Augusti,” his girlfriend said while observing her rats in the grass. A dozen of them stopped fighting over the cheese to go back to their mistress, surrounding her like an elite rodent guard. “But we had little choice. I stole from the organization, Felix. They wouldn’t have let me leave New Rome alive.”

“Pluto wanted her dead, to make an example for those who would dare to steal Bliss shipments,” Jamie explained grimly. “There was no other way to mollify the leadership. What else could we do?”

“Run away together,” Felix said, unimpressed. “Flee to another country, or join Dynamis. They could have protected you.”

Something in his voice made Jamie’s expression turn into one of suppressed anger.

“Felix, if we had abandoned the family as you did, Ki-jung would be dead.” The mobster crossed his arms, his face grim and sullen. “I would be dead, Lanka would be dead, and everyone we ever cared about would be dead. The only reason you’re still alive is that your parents and ex-girlfriend have Augustus’ ear. Without them?”

Jamie locked eyes with his old friend.

“You would be buried in an unmarked grave in Rust Town.”

Felix flinched, as the words hit close to home. Ryan didn’t blame him. He had seen firsthand how far Lightning Butt would go in the past loop, and how so few could hope to escape his grip alive.

“Alright, I see I was a special case,” the young superhero confessed, less sure of himself. “But let’s assume that the Augusti leadership collapses.”

“They won’t,” Jamie replied with cynicism. “They can’t. Nobody can defeat the Olympians, let alone Augustus.”

Ryan shrugged. “We can, and we will.”

“I don’t believe you,” Jamie said with defeatism.

“But if we succeed?” Felix asked. “Just imagine that we succeed, that Augustus and his cronies are gone. Would you leave? I’m not asking you to join us, Jamie. Only whether you will simply step aside.”

“Leave the family?” Jamie was aghast. “I… that would be betrayal. I owe them everything. If it were not for Mercury, I would be a nob—”

“Yes.”

Everyone glanced at Ki-jung.

“Yes,” the vermin controller repeated, first hesitantly and then more firmly. “Yes, I would leave. I would leave and I wouldn’t turn back.”

“You’re sure?” Jamie asked with a worried frown.

“I… you saved me, Jamie. But each time I look at Bliss…” Ki-jung’s arms trembled, her gaze haunted by the memories of darker times. “Each time, I feel the urge to fall back into it. As long as this drug exists, I will never be free of it. You saved me, but… how many others suffer, with no one to help them? If we can escape that poison… if we have a chance, we should take it.”

Her boyfriend considered her words, doubt gnawing at his heart. He might owe the Augusti everything and felt he belonged nowhere else…. but Ryan knew that he intended to marry Ki-jung and start a family with her.

A real family forged in blood and hardship, rather than a false one built on drug money.

“Jamie?” Felix asked, a hint of hope in his voice. “What would you choose? I have to know.”

The mobster put a hand around his girlfriend’s waist, pulling her closer. “I would choose her,” he said, Ki-jung resting her head against his shoulder. “Wherever that leads.”

Felix let out a breath of relief, before glancing at Lanka. “And you?”

“Sorry, Bomberman, you won’t get a diabetes feast from me.” She shrugged her shoulders, tossing her empty beer can away. “I won’t say a word about this meeting, but I just can’t imagine a world where Augustus ain’t killing you one day.”

Ryan put his hands behind his head. “Lightning won’t strike him this time.”

“And how would you do that?” Lanka snickered. “There aren’t any lightning rods big enough for the marble guy upstairs.”

“We’ll put Lightning Butt in a bottle and toss him where he belongs,” Ryan promised. “With the clowns.”

瑞恩从没想过，自己会把一个共产主义者带到迪纳米斯门前。

恩里克·马纳达的会客等候室里几乎一片寂静，只有秘书敲击电脑键盘的声音打破这份单调。菲利克斯望着窗外，巴不得赶紧开完这场会；蕾恩的手指则不受控制地动个不停。从抵达这里开始，她就一直心情恶劣。

瑞恩也没好到哪儿去。他的伤口还在隐隐作痛，就连那身光彩夺目的衣服，也没能遮住里面所有的绷带。即便有基因者的新陈代谢速度，他也得过上几天才能恢复最佳状态。

信使的目光移向自己的义妹。为了这次见面，她特地好好打扮了一番，脱下连体工作服，换上了白色衬衫，下摆在腰间收进蓝色裙子里，再配一条不起眼的红丝带。过去几轮里，瑞恩对她的感情已经由恋慕转为兄妹之情，但他仍然觉得她很可爱。

“马纳达先生现在可以见你们了。”秘书说。蕾恩的脸色又阴沉了几分。

“你确定要一起进去？”瑞恩问她，“我可以代你打倒资产阶级。”

“确定。”小矮个坚定地点头，“我需要亲自来，瑞瑞。”

至少她在会面前吃过阿尔凯莫开的药了。不出所料，那位大脑领域的天才昨天带着自己的团队赶到了这里，分析过瑞恩的思维图谱后，很快证实了他关于时间旅行的说法，随即着手控制地堡。信使相信，不用自己在场，盟友们也能处理好这一块，何况还有莉维娅在背后协助。

不过，瑞恩已经说服女友，把庆祝活动推迟到他们治好比安卡之后。少了她就庆祝超能帮的覆灭，总觉得不对。

三人走进黑棘的巢穴，秘书在他们身后关上了门。比起装点办公室的花卉，蕾恩更在意那座日式池塘，菲利克斯则看向红木办公桌后的人。恩里克·马纳达坐在一把比大多数房子还贵的椅子里迎接他们，双足飞龙则保持着人形，双臂交叉站在他身后。

“菲利克斯。”她礼貌地向队友打招呼。

“双足飞龙。”原子小猫点头回应，随后又向另一位上司点了点头，“黑棘。”

“原子猫。”这位超能力园丁转而招呼其他人，“我是恩里克·马纳达，迪纳米斯的首席品牌官兼至优者项目总负责人。”

他和瑞恩握了手，可当他向小矮个伸出手时，得到的只有一道冰冷的目光。

“她尊重你的私有财产。”瑞恩向黑棘解释，“各人的手归各人所有。”

“明白了。”恩里克领会了她的意思，没有纠缠。三人在办公桌对面舒适的皮椅上坐下。“坦白说，我很好奇。原子猫告诉我，你们想和我们商讨合作的可能。”

“我不明白为什么还要叫我来。”双足飞龙抱着双臂说。只有她不肯落座，或许是担心这场会谈最终会演变成拳脚相向。

“我们想开个会，讨论一下经济集体化的问题。”瑞恩宣布，“人越多越热闹。”

“嗯哼。”恩里克毫无感情地回应，“真正的原因呢？”

蕾恩看着这位超级英雄负责人。“为什么？”

“什么为什么，萨比诺小姐？”

“你们为什么要那样对我父亲？”蕾恩厉声问道，每个字都淬着毒，“为了钱？为了权力？值得吗？”

恩里克没有回答，十指交扣，摆出一副幕后魔头的架势。他的表情仍藏在面具后，办公室四周的花朵却仿佛竖起了刺。

瑞恩伸手在风衣里摸索，双足飞龙顿时绷紧了身体。不过，信使掏出的不是枪，而是一份文件夹。他把它丢到了桌上。黑棘没有伸手翻看。

“恩里克？”龙妈困惑地询问上司。

“我知道里面是什么。”恩里克平静地答道，但瑞恩注意到，那副冷静的表象下潜藏着羞愧。

双足飞龙皱起眉，随后看向菲利克斯，发现他正满怀冰冷的怒意盯着恩里克。她拿过文件夹，开始阅读其中的文件，才看了开头几行，脸色就变得像粉笔一样惨白。“不可能。”她一边翻页一边说，“这是伪造的。”

“不是。”蕾恩坚持道。

“你觉得这里面的东西，我能信一半吗？迪纳米斯把一个疯魔做成了饮料，还克隆了我？”女英雄摇了摇头，“关于六十六号实验室和仿制品生产流程的假消息多得是。各种阴谋论我都听过。外星人、儿童体液……”

“嗯，那些说法对了一半。”瑞恩答道。

“如果你愿意，可以抽我的血。”小矮个补充道，恩里克则依然像块墓碑般一言不发，“亲眼验证一下。”

“深潜者，我知道你过去袭击过迪纳米斯的设施，但散播这些谎言，是又一次突破底线，对谁都没有好处。”双足飞龙把文件放到桌上，一张照片滑了出来，拍的是仿制灵药正在变成血流黏液的过程。“菲利克斯，别告诉我你相信他们？”

“我相信。”菲利克斯沉着脸回答，“这张照片就是我拍的。”

龙妈仍不肯接受。“你被骗了。至于迪纳米斯资助超能帮的那一部分，更是我听过最荒唐的说法。”

这一次，恩里克默默看向文件，开始翻阅。他很快找到了向亚当运送仿制灵药的记录、心震与埃克托·马纳达会面的谈话记录，以及最重要的东西：迪纳米斯大脑映射仪的设计图。

“这些文件你们是从哪儿弄来的？”这位企业高管问道，疑虑正在啃噬他的内心。

蕾恩拿出一部手机，打开了画面。视频里，弗兰克特工被关在水下监狱中，正尽职尽责地看守一堆危险的马克思主义文献。双足飞龙立刻认出了这位以捍卫民主价值为荣的卫士。“那是疯子弗兰克？”

“这是实时画面。”蕾恩解释道，恩里克则全神贯注地看着。

“我们已经瓦解了超能帮的领导层，帮里大多数成员目前都由我们关押在水下牢房中。”菲利克斯说。视频切换到正在医务室接受治疗的迪纳米斯奴仆，随后又切到装着仿制灵药的箱子。“我们有几十名证人，目前都在接受医疗救治。你可以亲自去见他们。”

双足飞龙嗤笑一声。“菲利克斯，你是说，就凭你们自己，打败了超能帮？”

“你可以到锈镇来，亲自检查。”蕾恩冷冰冰地回答。对迪纳米斯的愤怒给了她底气。“只要你愿意从高处走下来，弄脏自己的衣服。”

女英雄畏缩了一下，却很快恢复镇定。“自从超能帮来到新罗马，我已经突袭过他们六次。”

“什么都没改变。”蕾恩嗓音沙哑，“几百人都差点死了，要不是……要不是我们在。老人，孩子……他们盼着你去救他们，可你始终没有来。”

值得注意的是，龙妈没有试图辩解，说自己已经尽了全力。她以前就主张让至优者进攻超能帮，直到现在，仍盼着上司能认真考虑自己的建议。

说到她的上司，恩里克拿起自己的手机，开始打电话。“有人告诉我，我们最近丢失了一些无人机，很可能被超能帮改作他用了。”他说，桌上就放着那些机器被击毁后的照片。“属实吗？嗯，嗯……为什么没人通知我？”

双足飞龙忧心忡忡地看向自己的负责人。“恩里克？”

“收拾东西吧，你被解雇了。”恩里克挂断电话，又拨出一个号码。“对，是我。有人告诉我，四月份生产的灵药有一批丢失了，你能确认吗？嗯……机器人部门的第七技术组呢？他们是不是失踪了？”

“恩里克？”双足飞龙再次开口，越来越不安。

迪纳米斯的首席品牌官没有回答她，而是在十五分钟里接连打了十几个电话，核实每一条信息，追查每一条线索。瑞恩发现，随着时间推移，房间里的花越来越躁动，花瓣摇曳，根须破土而出。双足飞龙也注意到了，心中的疑惑渐渐化为恐惧。

最后，恩里克把手机放到桌上，转过椅子，望向窗外。在压倒性的证据面前，他无法否认事实。

“恩里克，说句话。”双足飞龙要求道，“求你了。”

负责人没有回答，而是看向左侧靠窗的一处空地。“你可以出来了，马特尔。我知道你在这里。”

裹尸布毫无征兆地现出身形，双足飞龙的双眼顿时亮起绿光。还没等她变身，恩里克便点了下头，制止了自己的盟友。

“你认识我？”裹尸布惊讶地问。

黑棘耸了耸肩。“我们有你的档案。嘉年华的每个人都有。”

“你们窃取了他的私人数据？”瑞恩乐呵呵地问，“迪纳米斯该更新一下隐私政策了。”

“我知道这一天迟早会来，快存。”恩里克答道。裹尸布用自己的铠甲变出一把玻璃椅子，黑棘则转回座椅，面向众人。“所以，你们是靠嘉年华的帮助击败了超能帮？哈格雷夫斯派你们来逮捕我？还是杀了我？”

“都不是。”蕾恩回答，语气却丝毫没有软化，“我要答案。”

双足飞龙猛地一拍红木办公桌，力道之大，震裂了桌面。

这番激烈的反应让所有人都惊了一下，只有瑞恩和恩里克例外。前者是因为看出了她要发作，后者则是因为对此早有预料。

“恩里克，这到底是怎么回事？”女英雄攥紧了拳头，几份文件从桌上掉落。“这里面有哪怕一件事是真的吗？”

“据我目前所知，全是真的。”他的声音里满是愧疚与悔恨，“他们的所有证据都表明，我父亲与食人魔亚当合谋，试图削弱奥古斯蒂。至于我们的灵药生产流程……我是亲眼见过的。”

此刻，至优者那条光彩照人的巨龙已经实实在在地颤抖起来。“告诉我，这只是某种恶劣的玩笑。”

“我也希望如此。”她的负责人悲伤地叹了口气，“仿制灵药对萨比诺小姐的血样反应剧烈。她父亲在她的血红蛋白里加入了某种未知物质，能够解除我们灵药的安全限制。我兄弟阿尔方斯想把她当成实验品，好消除这个缺陷，完善生产流程。我否决了他的提议，可是——”

这一次，双足飞龙一拳砸下，把办公桌打成了两半。瑞恩赶紧暂停时间，抢救文件夹，把所有文件收拢起来。

“你让提拉诺克隆我？把我变成毒药？”双足飞龙问，竭力忍住眼泪，“恩里克，都已经……我们之间经历了那么多……你怎么能做出这种事？”

“劳拉——”

“你们公司让一个疯魔感染了这座城市的居民，恩里克！”

“等我得知人造灵药究竟是怎么制成的时候，想叫停已经太迟了。”首席品牌官懊悔地回答，“仿制灵药已经发放给民众了。摆在我面前的已经是既成事实。”

“亡羊补牢也好过什么都不做。”蕾恩愤怒地说，“你为什么不直接停下来？”

恩里克没有立刻回答，而是缓缓摘下面具，放到办公桌左侧的角落。

他长得相当英俊，头发打理得一丝不苟，还蓄着性感的西班牙式小胡子。他的相貌很像父亲埃克托，只是脸形更瘦削，骨相也更突出。父亲让瑞恩想起巴勃罗·埃斯科巴，儿子则更像一个瘦高版的安东尼奥·班德拉斯。

恩里克看了看瑞恩和蕾恩，最后与后者四目相对。“不管这道歉有多么微不足道，我都想向你们两个说声对不起。”他说，“我的家族对你们一家所做的事不可原谅，你们完全有权恨我们。向民众隐瞒真相，我有责任，但这一切都不是我想要的。他们做这些事的时候，一直瞒着我。”

“可你替他们掩盖了真相。”菲利克斯指责道。一旁的双足飞龙擦去眼泪，那是愤怒与遭到背叛的泪水。

“如果我把丑闻揭露出来，原子猫，迪纳米斯必然会垮掉，把欧洲重建得稍微像个样子的希望，也会跟着一起破灭。”恩里克为自己辩解，“你想让奥古斯都代表我们的未来吗？我们并不完美，但至少还在试图重建一个以法治为基础的社会。我们的对手可不是这样。迪纳米斯是如今唯一还能制约奥古斯都权力的力量，是挡在欧洲民众与一个疯癫的基因者至上主义者之间的最后一道屏障。”

恩里克看向窗外，看向地平线上高耸的奥古斯都山。“所以我兄弟才会骗我，制造出仿制灵药，萨比诺。就是为了试着把这些所谓的神明掀下王座。”

“可你们的解决办法，对世界的威胁并不比奥古斯都小。”菲利克斯指责道，“甚至可能更大。”

“为了避免引发恐慌，嘉年华没有告诉你们，我们想除掉血流的全部原因。也许我们从一开始就该说实话。我们上一位预言者……”裹尸布清了清嗓子，“我的母亲预言过，如果任由血流活下去，他将引发一场全球性的灾难。我们的数据证明，这个风险直到现在仍然存在。”

“我父亲……”蕾恩放在腿上的双手不安地动着，“我父亲可能会发疯，然后……所有喝过仿制灵药的人……”

瑞恩把一只手放到她的手臂上，能感觉到，她很感激这份安慰。恩里克阴沉地消化着这个消息，双足飞龙则像是随时会吐出来。

“提拉诺博士坚称，他的疫苗有效。”黑棘说，语气中却已经透出怀疑，“他说，一旦收容失效，疫苗就能制伏血流。”

“哺乳动物的活儿，别指望爬行动物来干。”瑞恩说着，把手从义妹的手臂上移开，从文件夹里抽出一张漂漂亮亮、满是图表的纸。黑棘立刻接了过去。

“这是我们疫医的分析报告。”裹尸布解释，“如果接触到他女儿血红蛋白中的那种血液因子，血流的核心就会恢复全部力量，并自动把所有服用过仿制灵药的人变成它自身的克隆体。根据我们的模拟结果，随着进一步变异，它可能不再需要外力，就能自行做到这一点。”

黑棘越读，身体越深地陷进椅子。“几千人……”

“就算是最好的情况，也会死上几百万人。”裹尸布答道。

“你必须阻止这一切。”菲利克斯坚持道。

黑棘把文件还给瑞恩。“你们是来摧毁六十六号实验室的。”

“他们本来想直接开枪打进来。”信使承认，“不过我说服了他们，先试着找个折中的办法。”

“为什么？”恩里克语气生硬地问，“在这个房间里，最恨我们的人应该是你。”

“因为你虽然长得像周六早间动画片里的反派，但我知道，你完全不是那种人。”真要说起来，瑞恩已经把黑棘看成了对面阵营的莉维娅：一个试图从内部推动改革、没有外力帮助就注定失败的人。“迪纳米斯想要改头换面，变成真正对世界有益的东西，你是唯一的希望。”

“我们已经找到了一种疗法，不仅能治疗血流感染，还能治疗疯魔症。”裹尸布解释道。

恩里克虽然怀疑，却似乎愿意考虑治愈的可能。“你们有证据吗？”

“当然。”瑞恩一手按在胸前，“多亏我们的疯魔医保政策，本届政府正在治愈超能帮的成员。你可以亲自来看看。”

“但要治疗整个欧洲的疯魔，我们需要资源。”裹尸布说，“你们公司能够提供的资源。”

“我……我想给父亲试试这种疗法。试着治好他……如果没用……”蕾恩清了清嗓子，“如果没用……我想结束他的痛苦。我只求这个。我……我甚至不想报仇了。我只想让他得到安宁。”

恩里克绷紧了身体。“我父亲和我兄弟绝不会同意——”

“他们不会。”瑞恩表示赞同，“所以我们才来请你做正确的事，吉米尼。”

黑棘仍像往常一样不露声色，可这番话触动了他。瑞恩看得出来，从他的肢体语言里，从办公室里植物的变化中。他内心的某个部分，确实相信自己推销给顾客的那套超级英雄宣传。

在内心深处，恩里克·马纳达无比渴望让世界变得更好。

“我要辞职。”双足飞龙语气坚定地宣布，“我不能再支持这种事。你也不该支持，恩里克。”

“是，我不该。”负责人承认，“但如果我们揭露真相，逮捕我父亲，接下来掌权的就是我兄弟阿尔方斯。他不会眼睁睁看着毕生心血化为乌有，绝不会不作反抗。他在这个项目上押得太多了，不可能就此停手。”

“就算知道风险，也不肯？”菲利克斯惊骇地问。

“就算知道也一样。我兄弟梦想着一个人人都是基因者、因而人人平等的世界。他宁可死，也不愿放弃。”

“那我们就把他也拦下来。”原子猫直视自己的负责人，“黑棘，你还记得我第一次走进这间办公室的那天吗？你当时是怎么对我说的？”

黑棘重重叹了一口气。“我说，就算犯错的是你的家人，你挺身而出，坚持自己的信念，也是对的。”

“那就开始践行你说过的话吧。还是说，那只是句口号？”

双足飞龙把一只手放到恩里克肩上，他顿时僵住了。超级英雄与企业高管交换了一道目光，其中满是彼此矛盾的情绪。昔日的亲密，往日谎言带来的痛楚，遗憾……还有一丝希望。他们曾经那么亲近，或许无需开口，就能明白对方在想什么。

“就算到头来全是徒劳，也要做吗，劳拉？”恩里克问双足飞龙。

“就算全是徒劳……也得有人去试，恩里克。否则什么都不会改变。”她吸了一口气，“求你。”

恩里克抬手，想要碰一碰双足飞龙的手，但还没碰到，她便从他肩上收回了手。自从认识他以来，这是瑞恩第一次看见这位马纳达那副冷静面孔背后的痛苦与孤独。

“假设我答应帮你们。”至优者的负责人面向客人，“就算奇迹发生，迪纳米斯挺过了主实验室被毁、信誉崩塌，以及我兄弟必然会发动的报复，公司也将远不如昔，沦为奥古斯都唾手可得的猎物。除非你们打算在清理完我们门户之后，把他也干掉？”

“你们有一件对付奥古斯都的秘密武器。”裹尸布指出，“重力枪。”

“一件未经测试的武器。”恩里克强调，“马特尔，你比任何人都该明白，我们为什么不愿冒险。你们组织上一次与奥古斯都交手，死了一半的成员，马特尔；我们上一次与他交手，马耳他沉入了大海。人类胆敢向雷霆挑衅，下场就是死。”

瑞恩胸口一阵刺痛，正是上一轮闪电屁股击中他的地方。“我们还有另一个选择。”他说，“梅克隆科技。效果已经得到过验证。”

严格说来，这确实是实话，只是他省略了那些血淋淋的细节。

“涉及奥古斯都，就从来没有十拿九稳的事。不过，人生中的其他事大概也都一样。”恩里克拿过瑞恩的文件夹，“我会仔细分析这些文件。如果灵药引发瘟疫的风险确实如你们所说……如果你们说得对，我会再联系你们。”

“重力枪呢？”裹尸布问。

“我会把数据发给你。”恩里克别过脸，避开双足飞龙的目光，“现在走吧。”

还不行。裹尸布隐去了身形，其他同伴走向门口，瑞恩却转向双足飞龙，只说了一个名字。

“贾丝敏。”

双足飞龙一怔。“什么，贾丝敏怎么了？”

“你和她之间，还来得及。”瑞恩说，“她想要的，只是一个道歉，还有认可。”

“为什么道歉？”龙妈不解地皱起眉，“我从没伤害过她。”

“她希望你道歉，是因为你从来都没怎么关注过她，让她一直活在你的阴影里。”瑞恩说，“归根结底，她想要的就这些。成就得到认可，被平等对待。真的就这么简单。”

双足飞龙睁大了眼睛，信使看得出，她正在飞快地思考。“这又是一个预言？”她问道，“你也是有预知能力的基因者？”恩里克则眯起眼，怀疑地打量着信使。

“算是吧。”瑞恩耸了耸肩，“帮她改变人生，现在还不晚。但没有你，就不可能做到。”

“我……我明白了。”

瑞恩希望她能把这些话放在心上，随后走出办公室，把两位企业人留在里面独处。他带上办公室门时，两人正凝视着彼此。

瑞恩看得出，他们并非全无破镜重圆的希望，不过花与龙这对搭档，往后还有好些场伴侣心理咨询要做。

“刚才那是为了什么？”走出大楼的路上，蕾恩问道。

“我曾经答应过一个女孩。”瑞恩说，想起了那个失落在时间里的、属于他的贾丝敏，“至少这件事，是我欠她的。”

---

回家的路上，瑞恩开着普利茅斯“狂怒”，不过一行人并没有直接去废料场。“这里。”到了一个关键路口，原子小猫说，“往东南走。”

信使立刻认出了这条路。“家人，还是朋友？”

“朋友。”菲利克斯说。

开了半小时，避开两场交通事故后，瑞恩把车停在了杰米家门前。

信使和菲利克斯还没下车，屋里的人就已经在外面等着了。瑞恩注意到房子周围草地里有基贞的老鼠，便丢了一块瑞士奶酪过去。“你为什么随身带着奶酪？”菲利克斯不解地问。

“我为什么不该带奶酪？”瑞恩反问。蕾恩依然待在车里。她虽然有所好转，却仍不太擅长应付陌生人。得一步一步来。“你要是渴了，我还有牛奶。”

“除非咱俩用同一个杯子喝。”他的搭档答道，随后面向老朋友们。杰米紧张得像头遭了埋伏的熊，基贞则似乎既为重见菲利克斯而欣喜，又有些担忧。

至于兰卡……

“瞧瞧，这不是自杀式炸弹客吗？”兰卡说着，拉开一罐啤酒。她看了一眼瑞恩和蕾恩，眼睛藏在墨镜后面。“他们是你的新队友？过来组团自爆？”

“算是吧。”菲利克斯回答。

瑞恩把一只手搭在搭档肩上。“我们发现你们的猫在路上乱晃，就收养了他。”

“早不是我们的猫了。”兰卡回了一句，喝了口啤酒，“他自己跑的，你们留着吧。”

“菲利克斯，你来这里做什么？”杰米问得平静，却压不住声音里的担忧，“你要重回家族了？”

“我不会回去。”菲利克斯回答，随后谨慎地斟酌起措辞，“不过……我意识到，我之前对你们可能有点太苛刻了。我希望我们还能做朋友。”

“真有意思，我可记得你说过，咱们完了。”兰卡不为所动，“还附赠了不少精彩的词儿。”

“那些话我现在也认。”菲利克斯直截了当地回答，瑞恩不禁叹气。原子小猫的外交手腕，跟监狱铁门是一个水平。不过，信使还是退在一旁，毕竟这是昔日朋友之间的私事。“继续留在奥古斯蒂就是错的，尤其是在你们亲眼见过他们造成的伤害之后。”

“菲利克斯，你永远是我们的朋友。”基贞轻声说，“你为我做过的一切，我都记得，杰米也一样。我们永远欢迎你。”

“可是你来这里，会把所有人都置于危险之中。”杰米说，“要是普鲁托知道你来过……”

“你们会死。”菲利克斯叹了口气，“各位，继续跟着他们，你们迟早会死。就算你们什么错都没犯，奥古斯都也会害死你们。你们只能躺进棺材里退休。”

他们知道。瑞恩观察着几人的反应，心里想着。兰卡和杰米似乎已经认定，这个结局不可避免；基贞则低头看着自己的脚。

菲利克斯等着他们回答，见众人一片沉默，不由得攥紧了拳头。“各位……”

“我们走不了。”杰米说。他的女朋友把脸转向一旁。

“你把基贞拖进这摊烂事，还要让她继续陷在里面？”原子猫质问他。

杰米露出了厌恶的神色，声音里满是冰冷的怒意。“我把她拖进来？”

“杰米本来反对我加入奥古斯蒂。”他的女朋友看着草地里的老鼠说。其中十几只停止争抢奶酪，回到主人身边，像一支精锐的啮齿类卫队般围着她。“可是我们没有多少选择。菲利克斯，我偷过组织的东西。他们不会让我活着离开新罗马的。”

“普鲁托想杀了她，以此震慑那些胆敢偷极乐货物的人。”杰米阴沉地解释，“我们没有别的办法平息高层的怒火。还能怎么办？”

“一起逃走。”菲利克斯不以为然，“逃到别的国家去，或者加入迪纳米斯。他们能保护你们。”

他语气里的某种意味，让杰米的表情变成了强压着的愤怒。

“菲利克斯，要是我们像你一样背弃家族，基贞早就死了。”黑帮成员抱起双臂，脸色阴郁而沉重，“我会死，兰卡会死，我们在乎过的所有人都会死。你还能活着，唯一的原因就是你父母和前女友在奥古斯都面前说得上话。没有他们呢？”

杰米直视着老朋友的眼睛。

“你早就埋在锈镇一座无名坟里了。”

这话戳中了痛处，菲利克斯不由得一缩。瑞恩不怪他。上一轮里，他亲眼见识过闪电屁股能做到什么地步，也知道几乎没几个人能有望活着逃出他的掌心。

“好吧，我明白了，我是个特例。”年轻的超级英雄承认，没那么笃定了，“可假设奥古斯蒂的高层垮了呢？”

“他们不会垮。”杰米冷嘲道，“不可能垮。没人能击败奥林匹斯众神，更别提奥古斯都。”

瑞恩耸了耸肩。“我们能，而且一定会。”

“我不信。”杰米的语气里满是认命。

“可要是我们成功了呢？”菲利克斯问，“你就想象一下，我们成功了，奥古斯都和他的爪牙都不在了。你们会离开吗？杰米，我不是要你加入我们。我只想知道，你会不会袖手旁观，不来阻拦。”

“离开家族？”杰米骇然，“我……那就是背叛。他们给了我一切。要不是墨丘利，我什么都不——”

“会。”

所有人都看向基贞。

“会。”这位害兽操控者重复了一遍，起初有些迟疑，随后越来越坚定，“会，我会走。我会离开，而且绝不回头。”

“你确定？”杰米担忧地皱起眉。

“我……你救了我，杰米。可是每次看到极乐……”基贞的双臂发抖，目光中萦绕着那些黑暗岁月的记忆，“每一次，我都忍不住想重新陷进去。只要这种毒品还存在，我就永远摆脱不了它。你救了我，可是……还有多少人在受苦，却没人帮他们？如果我们能逃离那种毒药……如果还有机会，我们就该抓住。”

她的男朋友思索着这番话，内心渐生动摇。他也许觉得自己的一切都来自奥古斯蒂，觉得自己再没有别的归属……但瑞恩知道，他想娶基贞，和她建立一个家庭。

一个由血缘与患难铸就的真正的家，而不是靠毒资堆砌的虚假家族。

“杰米？”菲利克斯的声音里带上了一丝希望，“你会怎么选？我必须知道。”

黑帮成员伸手搂住女朋友的腰，把她拉近。“我会选她。”他说，基贞将头靠在他肩上，“不管这会带我们走向哪里。”

菲利克斯松了一口气，随后看向兰卡。“你呢？”

“抱歉，炸弹人，我可不会给你端上一桌甜得能吃出糖尿病的话。”她耸了耸肩，扔掉空啤酒罐，“这次见面我一个字都不会透露，可奥古斯都迟早会弄死你，我实在想象不出别的结局。”

瑞恩双手枕到脑后。“这一次，闪电不会劈中他。”

“你要怎么做到？”兰卡嗤笑，“想对付上头那个大理石家伙，可没有那么大的避雷针。”

“我们会把闪电屁股装进瓶子，丢到他该待的地方去。”瑞恩保证道，“让他跟小丑们做伴。”