"Its not a better life out there pendejo," he reiterated. "Just different," he advised. "The same assholes down here are up there.... sometimes I think they are worse," he advised.
Joseph looked to his daughter as he spoke as he decided to switch to their native tongue to tell her where to look. "Ve hacia el oeste hasta el borde de moscú, hay una colección de rocas. Hice una marca en una de las piedras donde dejé caer mi cuchillo favorito. Todavía debería estar ahí.
"Quédate junto a la roca hasta el anochecer. Ellos vendrán."
"Good luck miha," he said.
@Grimscythe
Translation:
Go west to the edge of moscow, there is a collection of rocks. I made a mark on one of the stones where I dropped my favorite knife. It should still be there.
Stay next to the rock until nightfall. They will come.
"You want proof miha?" Joseph said as they started to head out from the holding cells.
Joe rolled her eyes and turned around anyways. "Why don't you tell someone that believes you?" she pointed to Kaz.
Joseph turned his attention to Kaz to see if he wanted what he would say next.
@Grimscythe
Joseph chuckled shaking his head as he leaned against the bars. "But...." he repeated. "If you trusted her really. You'd not be here right now begging me to tell you what she thinks is all lies," he pointed out. "Because you'd believe that I was a raving lunatic. No.... you don't really trust her and you want to prove her wrong. I'll tell you what I told her. Once you get out of the city there is more but its not better than here. Just different. I was a prisoner for the past ten years."
@Grimscythe
"Then why are you here? You trust her to keep you alive but you don't trust her word on what she said about me and my raving?" Joe looked around Kaz to where Joe was leaning against the wall. "You need better friends miha."
@Grimscythe
Joe didn't have questions. She rolled her eyes at his aggressiveness as her father didn't get out of his bad. "Papi?" she said slowly. "Meet Kaz," she frowned at the broad shouldered man. "Kaz. This is my papi Joe," she explained. "He wants to ask you some questions. He seems to think you didn't just abandon me to go fuck some girl for the last ten years," she said snidely to her father who was still lying down.
Joseph finally moved to get up, slowly. He wasn't wearing a shirt at the moment but he moved as if he were old and creaky. "Miha," he chided his daughter playfully. "I would never fool around with a nina. Only a mujera," he said looking to the man that was about his height but obviously nearly thirty years younger and with far fewer scars. "What are your questions pundejo?"
@Grimscythe
"I don't know much about them. They kept labor separate from everyone else and they were very private in their affairs but they are called the Nemes clan. That's really all I know," he advised. "Its not that I didn't try though. It was just impossible."
@AnOriginalAccountNam
“He’s telling the truth,” she said. “His tell is when he taps his finger on his tattoo on his left arm,” she advised the other officer. ”What do you owe those people?”
”My life. They saved it so they think they own it,” he explained.
@AnOriginalAccountNam
“How did Miller and Artyom get there?” Joe asked. She was standing to the side with her arms crossed.
The man looked to his daughter. “Was that their names?” He asked.
”Just answer the question.”
”A train. Everyone knows how to get there that lives outside. This place is falling apart. We should go too as long as we don’t stop there.”
@AnOriginalAccountNam
Kazimir paced back and forth outside of Joe's. He wasn't accustomed to feeling unease, but the last few days weren't ordinary for him by any measure of the word. He was emotional, frustrated, and quite frankly unsure of how to proceed. But he had to, and that was why he stood outside her home now. Stopping, he sucked in a sharp breath of air before calling out, "Joe!"
@Morrigan
@Morrigan
"You want another drink?" Grischa asked, watching Katya down what little remained of Joe's vodka and then hand the bottle back to the old man as she nodded and he did the same.
"...It's been a hell of a day." He said, and began to lead Katya to the bar.
What time is it? He wondered. Every station in the metro ran on its own time, where it was the crack of dawn in one it was the middle of the night in another. Right now it seemed it was getting late at Polis, people were heading home and those who were not were going to one of Polis' many bars which Katya and Grischa soon found themselves in. With the left over bullets he had, Grischa bought Katya and himself some dinner, mushroom soup and then after a little back and forth with the bartender Grischa also got them the hardest alcohol his left over cash could buy them, some shroom vodka straight from Kievskaya.
The dinner conversation was mostly one sided, Katya pushed her food around and only stared at her drink. Grischa knew he wasn't the kindest person, but over the past few years Katya had spent around him and that good for nothing Misha, he had, at least somewhat privately, grown fond of the girl, and hated to see her give everything the silent treatment.
I'll get her to cheer up...or die trying. He thought, then looked around the bar and shrugged before grabbing his drink and holding it up, gesturing for Katya to do the same, a little toast between the two.
"Hey....to better days." He said, she gave him a confused look and shrugged.
"To better days" she said and downed her drink.
----------------
Just before the Polis version of 'night' was to become 'day' there was a series of thunderous knocks on Joe's door.
"O-open up!....Come on, open up!" Some one shouted as the knocking grew louder then the knocks turned into strikes, as if the person was punching the door.
"I said come out bitch!" The female voice behind the door almost screamed.
Joseph finally started to recognize some places. There were changes, a lot of changes but that didn't matter, he knew where to go. He had to know where to go. He wasn't going to let that place be the cause of his death. He had to see his daughter again, had to make sure she knew he didn't leave intentionally. It was important to him.
Even as he stumbled, he was hungry and thirsty. It had been a day since he had anything to eat or drink but now wasn't the time to dwell on that. He pushed himself back up and forward.
Just another mile.
Just another step.
He could do this.
The filter he had was old and probably not even functioning anymore but he was as stubborn as his daughter.
By the time he reached the station entrance he could barely stand. The guards were up in arms. "Who the hell are you?" they shouted as he collapsed.
"Sousa," he said before he blacked out.
The guards scrambled. "Isn't Sousa a woman?" some of them said. "That's what I thought."
"Just get him inside and cuff him to the bed. We'll figure it out if he survives."
They dragged Joseph into the entrance and decontaminated him before taking him to medical and tying him to the bed before a doctor checked them out. Once he was stable they went and found Joe and told her a guy had asked for her which confused the hell out of her but she went anyways. She figured it was probably the dumb ass vulture hoping she'd not let him get kicked out of Polis or some shit. When she entered the curtained off place she actually stopped dead in her tracks, her hands dropping to her sides as she blinked to be sure it was real.
Voldya was behind her. If he tried to go around her she would stop him. "Just give me a second."
@AnOriginalAccountNam