[ The call comes in late. With someone of Maeve's empathetic acumen, she might pick out the note of tension present in Theodore's voice that is not normally present. ]
[ That slightly raw edge won't leave any time soon. It's been A Night. It's a quiet, latent anger, but the fresh grief beneath it makes it harder to deliver it smoothly. ]
[ There's a long stretch of silence on Maeve's end. A worrisome silence? No. A flashback silence. Because for a moment, Maeve's back in her little cozy home with her daughter as a man wearing all black barges in to kill them both. For a moment, she sees it so vividly. And then with a breath, it's gone and she's back in the present. ]
...
[ It takes a moment longer for Maeve to collect herself. ]
Where is he now. You must keep him away from anyone. The things he'll do. He killed my -- he killed a little girl I once knew.
[ Teddy is patient, in the silence. It's begun to rain and he seeks shadowy shelter, his horse drawn along with him with lazy steps. The trickles of blood from his grazed ear and split face have slowed to a stop, and pain seems more like a distraction than anything else.
He frowns when she mentions a girl. The flutter of reverie not quite forming shape in his mind, but it sounds like a familiar story. ]
He's gone, [ he says, instead. Insistent in getting all this out. ] But I had him, at first. I had his life in my hands, then it ran through my fingers, like I couldn't-- I couldn't. I don't know why, but I couldn't kill 'im.
[ There's a pause. Of course, Maeve knows exactly why Teddy couldn't kill him. ]
Perhaps it's time for you to pay a visit to my good friend Tony Stark.
[ Because together, Maeve and Tony could likely lift those parameters. They could make Teddy better equipped to face this man in black or any human danger. ]
[ Theodore has no clue what Maeve might mean, but he could use a fucking drink. The return to banter is a grudging stumble away from the plague of half-memories that seem like they'll drown him any moment. ]
[ Instead of comment, Teddy offers a noise of acknowledgement. He'd ask what kind, but he's more curious about the matter at hand as he asks-- ]
And you think he can help?
[ He doesn't know what money can do against one wandering monster with a gun, but Maeve's about as sharp as they come. He's willing to trust she's got some idea. ]
[ This anonymous douchebag again. Maeve immediately knows this has to be the guy that Teddy fought, and this message must mean he's done something to him. ]
Is that what he told you? “Rescued?” Didn’t occur to me to ask why, on account of that hospital space being reserved for the differently-abled. Guess I figured the reason was self-evident.
He implied Chilton was the unwilling party in the ordeal. And shots were fired. And you can cut the cutesy bullshit right now. You and I both know Doctor Chilton is not going to be able to understand Theodore's mind.
Oh, sweetheart. You aren't as all-knowing and all-seeing as you imply. I've been writing my own fucking narrative for quite some time back home. And I've decided I had enough of our little world.
No. I do believe you were the one who wrote that for me. When you killed my fake daughter. If you are indeed the same Man in Black as all that.
[ Somehow texting it doesn't trigger the memories the way an in person encounter might. Somehow texting it keeps Maeve removed from the trauma. And for all she knows, she may be way off base. She hadn't seen him. But only one particular man in black made a lasting impression on her so it seems a logical conclusion that same man in black made a lasting impression on Teddy as well. ]
[Last night Chilton gave her a few good ideas about the whole Sam situation, but the bullet wound and the stress of retrieval just about knocked her butt out before she could even dial the phone.
Probably she could just head on into Merlotte's and talk to Maeve, but this seens a little easier on everyone. Plus, it's hard as hell to drive one-handed.]
Hello, hi ? I'm sorry to be bothering you so early. My name's Sookie, I'm a friend of Sam's. Mr Chilton said you're his manager at the bar now?
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