Chapter 335: The Third Garden War Part 3 (1/2)
Two weeks ago
The remains of the Montague household weren't left much to the imagination. A Titan had crashed, destroying most of the facility, leaving only the courtyard and the bunker left unharmed. Throwing the rubble aside, Riley stood arms folded, looking deflated. ”This is the last place on the list. I really think Jinx doesn't want to be found.”
”Finding this outcast shouldn't be our concern. Mistress Riley, please, you are bigger than this. You don't have to follow the rules put together by that hack.”
”That hack spared my life many years ago. I owe him that at least, besides Haggis, you know I'm not doing this for him.”
Haggis threw a large piece of rubble away, nodding. ”I suppose you are correct. Forgive me for such vile words, my lady. I shall seek the proper punishment when needed.”
”You don't need to go that far, Haggis. But if you aren't happy by these terms, I'm not stopping you; the Syndicate family is dead.”
”I made a promise to your sister to keep you safe. I shall act out this duty until my last breath.”
Riley scoffed at this, faintly shaking her head. ”Typical, even beyond the grave, and Scarlett is finding ways to spite me…. No matter, let's get this over and done with, shall we?” Entering the courtyard, Haggis searched the area while Riley kept her eye on the bunker. Twirling her finger cooping Haggis over, she nodded to the lone bunker doors. ”I heard this was where the infamous Montague Trials took place.”
”The ones that were actually a gateway to the Garden?”
”Bingo, it was thanks to our friends at Team Rhapsody that the gateway was closed and the connection cut off. I wonder.” She muttered, walking over, holding her hand up, ripping the doors off, making a gunshot firing off just grazing Riley's cheek. Dropping the doors, she wiped her cheek, smirking. ”I thought so, long time no see Hollie Montague.”
Jinx slouched in a chair down in the bunker, her gun still smoking. She shook her head, throwing the gun away. ”You're lucky I didn't blow your head of Syndicate.”
”Maybe you're just a lousy shot. So, this is where you were hiding this entire time. The last of the Montagues.”
”Looks like we share something in common.” She scoffed, turning around. ”I sometimes question why it's me. Why am I still standing when so many others have fallen? Monty, Butch, Emil and Florence. I'm the last one, the head of a broken family who would have expected. I really have some bad luck, don't I?”
”That I can see. Well, I'm not going to beat around the bush here, but we need your help.”
Jinx stood up, pushing her chair back looking up at the two. ”Alton sent you? When did you two become allies again?”
”We both have a common goal.”
Jinx shook her head, turning around once more. ”I'm not interested in the slightest; the Garden has won this war. Fighting back will be futile.”
”Even if Alton has a Stage of Grief?”
Jinx rubbed her face staring at the walls of her home. ”I know all too well about his Stage. The world we all lived in for those few months was a grim reminder. A reminder of how fucked we are here. You want my honest thoughts? You should have left me in that other world.”
”Well, no matter how you feel about the Garden or Alton, he chose you. He needs you.”
”And what could that man possibly want from this bird of bad luck?”
”It's Zinnia. The Garden took her. We're going to get her back.”
”What….?” Jinx whispered, taken back. ”Zinnia? Why?”
”She too has a Stage of Grief. Bargaining has taken her to the Garden. Alton is gathering as many allies as possible to save her. You and Zinnia weren't close, but surely, you'd want to save her. If I recall correctly, she is a Montague.”
Jinx smirked at this nodding. ”She sure is…. Emil and my father trusted her enough to be one while I desperately tried leaving the family…. They would have gone to save her. I'm sure even Monty too…. I suppose I owe her for everything she did for the family. She freed us from the Garden, after all. How many others are there?”
”Enough. Alton and Alice are rounding the last one.”
”Who's that?”
”The Deadman walking. Gale Lampard.”
****
Alton held his hand up as time resumed and Gale fell to the floor beaten once more. Alice held her bow towards him, ready to strike as Alton adjusted his collar. ”Are you ready to talk, Mortem? Most preferably, I would like to talk to Gale.”
”He doesn't want to talk to you,” Gale whispered, coughing on his knees. ”He let me have the large majority of control over his body learning of the fate of Team Rhapsody. He's ashamed he wasn't there to stop the fallout.”
”You said the majority of his body. That means Gale is still in there. I would very much like to talk to him then. In fact, I came asking for Gale's help, not the lapdog of the Garden.” Alton stated, hands now in his pocket. ”We're going to save Zinnia from the Garden, but going in alone against potentially three Stages, Eve and the Gardeners would be suicidal. That's why I'm gathering allies I can trust to help me lessen the burden.”
”Are you mocking me, Brantley? Allies you can trust? Give me a break.” Gale barked. ”I did nothing but stab you in the back and make your life a misery.”
”You're right,” Alice whispered. ”You ruined all of our lives, but Gale didn't. Gale Lampard is our friend, no he's our family. That's what Team Rhapsody was at one point, no? But, with Emil, Scarlett and Iris gone, Gale, you're all we have left. I don't know about Alton, but I don't turn my back on family. Never again.”