Ryan woke up in the same rum induced hangover he experienced nearly every morning, it was kind of euphoric honestly. Besides, he was known for his love of the drink from the day he set foot out of prison, even more so after his brother crossed international waters. He ran a warm palm through his dark, messy hair and wiped over the tired mask over his brilliant blue eyes. Needless to say, the day ran the same boring routine as always, he watched Samantha, the tall redhead he allowed a full-time post behind the bar mostly for her charms and absolute gorgeous figure to lure in the customers while she cleaned the majority of the rustic interior with a slight hum drifting from her lips. Later when the sun slowly eased over the horizon he welcomed the regular rowdy bunch, a few more curious characters joined him in the corner over a big table where they easily fell prey to his tricky winnings in a game of mischievous poker.
“Excuse me for a few second gentleman”, he waved a theatrical gesture at them before slipping through the locked door behind the bar, a quick right and a few long steps into the basement he found himself face to face with a young fellow donning a horrible beard and tired brown eyes. Ryan leaned down, a shudder passed over the fellow’s eyes while he leaned closer, the young asshole’s hands were tied rather roughly to the wooden chair beneath him and his feet roped together in complex knots.
“Have you decided to tell me where my last shipment’s gone mate?”, at the dozenth illusion of his own death the man still shook his head. “Fine by me”, Ryan winked at the man even though he was trapped in a constant illusion of being dissected alive. He didn’t waste time with the young asshole any more than he needed to, instead he slipped back inside the bustling activities of the bar with the same confident charm he exerted with absolute ease.
Ryan scanned over the regulars with a curious glance, it was honestly boring with half the town’s perverts almost leaning over the bar to get a glimpse at Samantha’s slender legs but he wasn’t interested in losing another bartender for the sake of a lustful endeavor. His brow lifted curiously at the sight of a blonde stranger seated by the end of the bar, he hadn’t seen the beautiful lass before. Ryan made his way through the crowd with a cocky grin plastered on his lips, the blue of his eyes almost vibrantly shining in the dim yellow lighting.
“Now, what’s a pretty lass like you doing by yourself?”, he leaned with one elbow on the hard mahogany counter of the bar, his eyes curiously delighted in the sight of her natural beauty. “What’s your poison love? It’s on the house”, he grinned with a charming confidence calling over Samantha in anticipation of a daring order.
The last person you expected to be a Private eye and bounty hunter was the Librarian two blocks down. It made it easier to have a good cover when no one knew who you were. The day had started easy enough when she was contacted by an older man who was looking for his son. Typically she didn't ask many questions just for the fact that she was paid in cash. People who came to her often didn't want anyone to know why they hired her. This man needed her to find his son who had been missing for days.
When asked about possible culprits behind the disappearance, The name of a bar owner came up and she had her first lead. Once the father had left she did some research about the suspect and found he owned a bar on the same strip as her Bookstore. Sad enough she had never actually paid enough attention to recognize the mans face. Later in the evening she closed the bookshop and packed a few books into her bag. Her laptop went in last as she headed out the door and down the road to the bar. Flashing her ID to the bouncer she moved inside and found a table in the back.
Her goal was to go unnoticed as she built a profile on this Ryan Jones. Moving around the place she managed to stick a few bugs under tables and even drop a few hidden cameras around. Taking her seat again she pulled up the feed on her cameras and slid headphones over her ears. To the normal eye, she just looked like a work-obsessed multi-tasker. Watching her target carefully he excused himself to head down the hall and into a locked door. He wasn't gone too long before he came back up and locked the door again behind him.
Watching him on the cameras she noticed he was coming her way and she slid off the headphones and closed the laptop. "I've found going to the bar alone if the best way to get into trouble." Her voice rang out and she smiled. Winking at the man just playing into his interest in her as she tried to figure out her best game plan. "Whiskey on the rocks." Scribe told him when he asked for her choice of poison. "If you excuse me for a moment I need to step to the Ladies room while the drink is being made."
Gathering all her items on the table she Pulled the bag over her shoulder and moved down towards that hallway but instead of heading to the bathroom. She pulled out a lockpick kit and quickly unlocked the door. Sliding inside she moved down the stairs with a taser in her hands. Her eyes fell on a man tied to a chair who looked like he was out of it in his little world. Pulling her knife she cut the ropes and her hand tapped the man's face. "I'm gonna get you outta here." Her started talking nonsense about not being able to move and needless to say she was a bit confused. She had no idea her suspect was a mutant that put people in illusions.
“Aye love, if trouble’s your preference you’re not entirely off course”, there was a mischievous glint to his gaze. Ryan had a known weakness for beautiful woman and she was by far one of the most beautiful sighs to haunt his vision, he found it pleasantly euphoric. There was something odd about her, while her intelligence laced her every word he found himself rather distrusting of the woman. Nevertheless, he kindly stepped aside with a charming grin and theatrical gesture of making way as she excused herself. Ryan felt the tug of a smirk to his lips as he slowly brought an illusion of himself to light, the façade of a double disappeared through a side door as he himself cloaked away from the minds of his patrons followed quietly behind the stranger. For a few seconds he got sidetracked peeking at the obvious cheating from the asshole in the corner, he was hiding a deck of cards from his choosing under the table and Ryan almost opted to give him a taste of his own medicine but his interests were overcame by the desire to find the beautiful lass with a subtle look of suspicion.
For a second he cloaked himself beyond an illusion overlay of the exact room he kept the sneaky thief trapped in, he saw her easy tear through the ropes and he had to give her points for bravery. Ryan thought she had balls coming in to free a man without doing proper homework on the man who took him captive in the first place. “This is all an ill-advised endeavor lass”, he revealed himself as if reality rippled at his touch. Ryan stepped closer, fully unaware of her mutational potential. He waved a palm towards the young man trapped in his own tragic death with a nonchalant shrug.
“he won’t follow you soon, in a few hours I’d bet my hand he’ll be a loony mess no one can help”, he circled her with a focused gaze. Ryan had no desire to kill the beautiful lass but he wasn’t prepared to lose his shipment either, even at the cost of a messier room.
“Perhaps we can come to a less meddling solution”, he waved his palm and the world around them changed. A foggy illusion quickly turned into a definitive sight of a soft beach with water lapping over a light beach, a setting sun over the blue horizon and the soft sway of a wind at their backs. The crashing of the waves and the sight of the world was clear, the wind was hard to mimic but he tried nonetheless.
“I’d prefer to have this conversation without the bothersome ramblings of a mad man”, he leaned his back against a towering palm tree, Ryan was as charming and casual in his illusion as he was in reality. He patiently waited her response with a hopeful intention to leave her breathing, without the hassle of local police breathing down his neck.
