* SECOND NATURE !!

‘ you’re telling me you’re gonna walk outta here and i’m never gonna see it again? ’ ‘ i don’t have a few years. wish to hell i did. ’ ‘ i didn’t want you to come. go home. i didn’t want you to see this. ’ ‘ you don’t have a violent bone in your body. ’ ‘ he just rolled over. he didn’t put up a fight. ’ ‘ i didn’t kill that man. ’ ‘ i believe in being part of the solution. not the problem. ’ ‘ i’ve got news for you. “trust me” means absolutely zero inside these walls. ’ ‘ you spooked her. ’ ‘ you’ve got too much potential to be screwing up your life like this. ’ ‘ you two have the most dysfunctional idea of love i’ve ever seen. ’ ‘ i will not be cowed into forsaking my beliefs. not by you, not by anybody. ’ ‘ in a month’s time, i’ll be dead. ’ ‘ you’re already dead to me. ’ ‘ you’ve been checking up on me. ’ ‘ i’m an anchor. all i’ll do is drag them down with me. ’ ‘ getting outside these walls is just the beginning. ’ ‘ you’re anticipating every one of my moves three moves in advance. ’ ‘ you’re one hell of a strategist. ’ ‘ he may run this place during the day, but i run it during the night. ’ ‘ you don’t gotta look for trouble. it finds you. ’ ‘ the man’s a five-time felon. he had no credibility. ’ ‘ my whole life has always been crazy and noisy. ’ ‘ if he testifies, a lot of people are going down. including me. ’ ‘ we’ve known each other a long time… it would be a shame if anything happened to your kids. ’ ‘ you want me to fight, i’ll fight. ’ ‘ all i need is a weapon. ’ ‘ i got a good mind to slash you open right now. ’ ‘ your luck just ran out. you chose the wrong side. ’ ‘ i never pulled the trigger. that guy was already dead. ’ ‘ you’re a dead man! do you hear me? you’re a dead man! ’ ‘ they’re gonna kill your boy like they killed mine. ’ ‘ do what you need to do to make this go away. ’ ‘ if i give you that information, i’m a dead man. ’ ‘ do’t make me lie to you. please. ’ ‘ you kill him, you kill our ticket out of here. ’ ‘ if you were a decent man, and you really loved her, you’d let her live her life. ’ ‘ i’m looking to do some damage. i want to do it slow  —  inflict the maximum amount of pain so a guy wishes he’d die, and get it over with, but just can’t quite get there… ’ ‘ you’re one sick puppy, you know that? ’ ‘ i figured i could play their game and watch him die, or take matters into my own hands. ’ ‘ the world would be better without him. ’ ‘ why would i want anyone to watch me die? ’ ‘ i know you’re scared. i am too. but please put the gun down. ’ ‘ i had to see if you could keep a secret. ’ ‘ you wouldn’t be human if you weren’t scared in a place like this. ’ ‘ we could cut off all his limbs. he still wouldn’t talk. ’ ‘ don’t make this any harder than it needs to be. ’ ‘ you renege now and i’m gonna cut you. so you better take care of your business, or i will take care of you. ’ ‘ has he threatened you? ’ ‘ he deserves punishment as much as the rest of these guys. ’ ‘ you know you’re gonna get killed in here, right? if you’re not careful. ’ ‘ if we’re gonna pull this off, we need to take one of them out. ’ ‘ you’re up against much bigger fish than me. ’ ‘ i’d made my peace, then you give me the one thing a man in my situation shouldn’t have. hope. and now that’s gonna be taken away. ’ ‘ not even a week here and you’re working it like an old con. ’ ‘ i have a little unfinished work to take care of. ’ ‘ i abandoned him a long time ago. ’ ‘ we’re pissing someone off. when people start breaking the law, you know you’re getting warm. ’ ‘ i think it’s time we stopped beating around the bush and go after the damn bush. ’ ‘ the chair isn’t the only way to take a man’s life in prison. ’ ‘ there’s three things for certain in life  —  death, taxes and count. ’ ‘ you probably heard stories about me. they’re not all true. ’ ‘ i told you not to apologise. it makes you look weak. ’ ‘ i ain’t messing with no diablo. ’ ‘ i got enough enemies already. ’ ‘ i’m not gonna hurt nobody. i’m a part of the team now. ’ ‘ i’m gonna be very clear here, because you and i face an evolutionary gap. you ain’t gonna hurt this man. ’ ‘ just don’t make a scene, okay? he gets very uncomfortable with this thing. ’ ‘ if you’re trying to calm me down, you’re doing a terrible job. ’ ‘ he’s a good guy but he doesn’t understand that you gotta grab the situation by the gonads and take control. ’ ‘ you ask too many questions. ’ ‘ i’m gonna take care of him myself. ’ ‘ you’re not gonna kill him. ’ ‘ just have a little faith. ’ ‘ we’ve gotta get him on board. ’ ‘ how is this okay? someone just tried to kill us! ’ ‘ i hope you don’t feel like you owe me anything. ’ ‘ i didn’t touch the murder weapon. ’ ‘ i am not a stalker. ’ ‘ he doesn’t fit the profile. ’ ‘ if you go out there, they’ll gun you down. ’ ‘ i imagine heads would’ve rolled if he hadn’t been caught. ’ ‘ this is a matter for the police. ’ ‘ i turned my back on him because i didn’t wanna make waves. it was just easier to look the other way. ’ ‘ i used to think he was some kind of conspiracy theory whacko. turns out maybe he was right. ’ ‘ what they’re saying about me  —  it’s not true. ’ ‘ they killed her. right in front of me. right in front of my eyes. ’ ‘ people have killed for a lot less. ’ ‘ if you think you’re getting up in this, you’ve got another thing coming. ’ ‘ we have to do it in order to keep our sanity. ’ ‘ it’s in my nature to want to help. ’ ‘ you and i may be stuck together in this little dance, but i call the shots. ’ ‘ i’m kinda short on friends in here, in case you haven’t noticed. ’ ‘ i need to get out. right now. while i’ve still got my life. ’ ‘ if i come all the way out there and this turns out to be a waste of my time, i’m gonna castrate you. ’ ‘ you gotta hand the reins over to me now so that i can save your ass. ’ ‘ before you pull the trigger, look that son of a bitch in the eyes and tell him i said goodbye. ’ ‘ i don’t like getting attached to things if i know they won’t last. ’ ‘ i think there’s cynicism and there’s realism. ’ ‘ i tell you all about me and you don’t tell me you’re married? ’ ‘ you know how many pints of blood the human body has? the answer is ten. ten pints. ’ ‘ you decide whose life is more valuable. ’ ‘ that’s prison, yo. ’ ‘ if you try and swing that piece of lumber at me, it’s gonna feel like your arm is ripping out of its socket. ’ ‘ i need you to steal something back that was stolen from me. ’ ‘ you’re telling me i have to wait until she dies before i see her? ’ ‘ you dragged these people into this knowing that you had no clue how to get them out. ’ ‘ their deaths are on your head. you made this mess. nobody else. you. ’ ‘ the questions you have about me… there are answers. ’ ‘ we’ve got too many people. one of them has to go. ’

“t’s my nature, I don’t- I don’t feel it,” Victor lisps, not upholding his usual pretense of niceness since this version of himself was so quick to the condescention. “How th’ hell’ve you been keepin’, then?”

      "  of  course  --  pͤ͐ͪ̋̂ͮr̎ͦ̃̿̉̔̔̇eͫ̈́͒̈́ȳ͂ͧ  never  does  .  .  .  feel  weak  until  the  p̅̽́̉̔̄̎̋͆r̆͑̈́̉́e͂̅̌ͫ͐ͮ̾̿dͦ̀͐a̾̇ͤ̉̎̓͋̄t͂̍͒ö͑̓͗̚r̒ͭͣͬ̒̚ṡ̂͛ͪ̆ͬ  come  for  it.  "  the  smile  that  spreads  across  his  face  now  was  too  wide,  too  toothy,  too  sharp.  "  my  last  form  .  .  .  was  b̖̖̼͍̲ͅe̩̝̮̳̫͈t̗̹͚͍̼t̫̱̭̳̫̺̪e͔̭̥͖͎͈r͉̝̖̹̝̲̜,  but  this  one's  not  without  .  .  .  its  c̩̝͓̱̟̟̟͕̜h͎̤͖̣͙̥͖̦a̟̦͈̪̘̫̲ͅr̜̰͔͎͍ṃ̘̟͓s͕̟.  "  indeed,  there  was  some  security  in  being  the  region's  champion  --  brute  power  was  by  far  what  he  preferred  to  rely  on,  but  for  the  time  being,  he  could  have  chosen  far  worse.

She glances up from her sketchbook when she feels him approach — what does he want NOW?

      "  you  are  going  .  .  .  t'  entertain  me  today.  "  really,  she  ought  to  feel  honoured  that  she  is  receiving  such  attention  from  him  --  of  course,  the  fact  that  she  won't  agree  with  that  is  part  of  what  makes  this  such  fun  for  him.  "  better  make  it  good.  "  he  smiles  wide,  that  same  too  toothy  smile  --  "  if  you  don't  .  .  .  y'  might  regret  it.  "

She draws a pair of small, dark hands around Victor’s throat.

Current mood

But that’s against the rules of the game, isn’t it?  And Lillian knows the rules.

‘ you’re telling me you’re gonna walk outta here and i’m never gonna see it again? ’ ‘ i don’t have a few years. wish to hell i did. ’ ‘ i didn’t want you to come. go home. i didn’t want you to see this. ’ ‘ you don’t have a violent bone in your body. ’ ‘ he just rolled over. he didn’t put up a fight. ’ ‘ i didn’t kill that man. ’ ‘ i believe in being part of the solution. not the problem. ’ ‘ i’ve got news for you. “trust me” means absolutely zero inside these walls. ’ ‘ you spooked her. ’ ‘ you’ve got too much potential to be screwing up your life like this. ’ ‘ you two have the most dysfunctional idea of love i’ve ever seen. ’ ‘ i will not be cowed into forsaking my beliefs. not by you, not by anybody. ’ ‘ in a month’s time, i’ll be dead. ’ ‘ you’re already dead to me. ’ ‘ you’ve been checking up on me. ’ ‘ i’m an anchor. all i’ll do is drag them down with me. ’ ‘ getting outside these walls is just the beginning. ’ ‘ you’re anticipating every one of my moves three moves in advance. ’ ‘ you’re one hell of a strategist. ’ ‘ he may run this place during the day, but i run it during the night. ’ ‘ you don’t gotta look for trouble. it finds you. ’ ‘ the man’s a five-time felon. he had no credibility. ’ ‘ my whole life has always been crazy and noisy. ’ ‘ if he testifies, a lot of people are going down. including me. ’ ‘ we’ve known each other a long time… it would be a shame if anything happened to your kids. ’ ‘ you want me to fight, i’ll fight. ’ ‘ all i need is a weapon. ’ ‘ i got a good mind to slash you open right now. ’ ‘ your luck just ran out. you chose the wrong side. ’ ‘ i never pulled the trigger. that guy was already dead. ’ ‘ you’re a dead man! do you hear me? you’re a dead man! ’ ‘ they’re gonna kill your boy like they killed mine. ’ ‘ do what you need to do to make this go away. ’ ‘ if i give you that information, i’m a dead man. ’ ‘ do’t make me lie to you. please. ’ ‘ you kill him, you kill our ticket out of here. ’ ‘ if you were a decent man, and you really loved her, you’d let her live her life. ’ ‘ i’m looking to do some damage. i want to do it slow  —  inflict the maximum amount of pain so a guy wishes he’d die, and get it over with, but just can’t quite get there… ’ ‘ you’re one sick puppy, you know that? ’ ‘ i figured i could play their game and watch him die, or take matters into my own hands. ’ ‘ the world would be better without him. ’ ‘ why would i want anyone to watch me die? ’ ‘ i know you’re scared. i am too. but please put the gun down. ’ ‘ i had to see if you could keep a secret. ’ ‘ you wouldn’t be human if you weren’t scared in a place like this. ’ ‘ we could cut off all his limbs. he still wouldn’t talk. ’ ‘ don’t make this any harder than it needs to be. ’ ‘ you renege now and i’m gonna cut you. so you better take care of your business, or i will take care of you. ’ ‘ has he threatened you? ’ ‘ he deserves punishment as much as the rest of these guys. ’ ‘ you know you’re gonna get killed in here, right? if you’re not careful. ’ ‘ if we’re gonna pull this off, we need to take one of them out. ’ ‘ you’re up against much bigger fish than me. ’ ‘ i’d made my peace, then you give me the one thing a man in my situation shouldn’t have. hope. and now that’s gonna be taken away. ’ ‘ not even a week here and you’re working it like an old con. ’ ‘ i have a little unfinished work to take care of. ’ ‘ i abandoned him a long time ago. ’ ‘ we’re pissing someone off. when people start breaking the law, you know you’re getting warm. ’ ‘ i think it’s time we stopped beating around the bush and go after the damn bush. ’ ‘ the chair isn’t the only way to take a man’s life in prison. ’ ‘ there’s three things for certain in life  —  death, taxes and count. ’ ‘ you probably heard stories about me. they’re not all true. ’ ‘ i told you not to apologise. it makes you look weak. ’ ‘ i ain’t messing with no diablo. ’ ‘ i got enough enemies already. ’ ‘ i’m not gonna hurt nobody. i’m a part of the team now. ’ ‘ i’m gonna be very clear here, because you and i face an evolutionary gap. you ain’t gonna hurt this man. ’ ‘ just don’t make a scene, okay? he gets very uncomfortable with this thing. ’ ‘ if you’re trying to calm me down, you’re doing a terrible job. ’ ‘ he’s a good guy but he doesn’t understand that you gotta grab the situation by the gonads and take control. ’ ‘ you ask too many questions. ’ ‘ i’m gonna take care of him myself. ’ ‘ you’re not gonna kill him. ’ ‘ just have a little faith. ’ ‘ we’ve gotta get him on board. ’ ‘ how is this okay? someone just tried to kill us! ’ ‘ i hope you don’t feel like you owe me anything. ’ ‘ i didn’t touch the murder weapon. ’ ‘ i am not a stalker. ’ ‘ he doesn’t fit the profile. ’ ‘ if you go out there, they’ll gun you down. ’ ‘ i imagine heads would’ve rolled if he hadn’t been caught. ’ ‘ this is a matter for the police. ’ ‘ i turned my back on him because i didn’t wanna make waves. it was just easier to look the other way. ’ ‘ i used to think he was some kind of conspiracy theory whacko. turns out maybe he was right. ’ ‘ what they’re saying about me  —  it’s not true. ’ ‘ they killed her. right in front of me. right in front of my eyes. ’ ‘ people have killed for a lot less. ’ ‘ if you think you’re getting up in this, you’ve got another thing coming. ’ ‘ we have to do it in order to keep our sanity. ’ ‘ it’s in my nature to want to help. ’ ‘ you and i may be stuck together in this little dance, but i call the shots. ’ ‘ i’m kinda short on friends in here, in case you haven’t noticed. ’ ‘ i need to get out. right now. while i’ve still got my life. ’ ‘ if i come all the way out there and this turns out to be a waste of my time, i’m gonna castrate you. ’ ‘ you gotta hand the reins over to me now so that i can save your ass. ’ ‘ before you pull the trigger, look that son of a bitch in the eyes and tell him i said goodbye. ’ ‘ i don’t like getting attached to things if i know they won’t last. ’ ‘ i think there’s cynicism and there’s realism. ’ ‘ i tell you all about me and you don’t tell me you’re married? ’ ‘ you know how many pints of blood the human body has? the answer is ten. ten pints. ’ ‘ you decide whose life is more valuable. ’ ‘ that’s prison, yo. ’ ‘ if you try and swing that piece of lumber at me, it’s gonna feel like your arm is ripping out of its socket. ’ ‘ i need you to steal something back that was stolen from me. ’ ‘ you’re telling me i have to wait until she dies before i see her? ’ ‘ you dragged these people into this knowing that you had no clue how to get them out. ’ ‘ their deaths are on your head. you made this mess. nobody else. you. ’ ‘ the questions you have about me… there are answers. ’ ‘ we’ve got too many people. one of them has to go. ’