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"I hate you, Kenny." Jules growled from his chair.
"Eh." Kenny responded with a wink. "I can live with that."
Jules struggled again, but the thick leather straps pinning down his biceps, forearms, wrists, and crisscrossing chest kept him all but immobile. "Okay, fine. The chair works."
"We haven't even tried the head straps yet!" Kenny's protest was only half-serious, although he made no move to free the burly man from confinement. "But yeah, it works."
Jules and Kenny were currently the only occupants of the small lounge area in the offices of the Paranormal Investigation Agency, which also served as storehouse and workshop. The rooms off to one side were currently Jules' living quarters. He lived and breathed the Agency, really. Kenny had never met a man more dedicated to his chosen path.
"What time is it, Kenny?" Jules questioned, still trying to slip out of the unyielding leather, grateful that he still had his shirt on to avoid any annoying sticking of the straps to his sweaty skin. "I have that guy coming at five."
"Five?" Kenny gulped. "Uh... it's... uh-oh. Five oh five."
"Shit. Get me out of here, Kenny!"
Kenny fumbled with the straps, and all he had succeeded in was freeing Jules' chest - but considering his arms were still locked in place, it practically did nothing.
"Just - act casual!" Jules growled as the sound of footsteps echoed in the hall. Kenny yelped and leaned against the wall, adopting a nonchalant expression. Jules rolled his eyes.
In walked the most intimidating man Kenny had ever seen, Jules included. He looked somehow both dangerous and professional, like a Mafia don. His hair was pulled into a small ponytail, his jaw outlined with a manly yet neat beard, and the hint of tattoos snaked out from the cuffs of his suit and the collar of his shirt.
To his credit, Jules remained calm, waving a little with one of his hands, even anchored down to the armrest as it was. "Mr. Ashby. Glad you could make it."
The man smirked, his stride not faltering for a second, as if he walked into rooms with heavily-restrained men on a daily basis. Although... Kenny wouldn't be surprised if he did.
"Am I interrupting something?" Mr. Ashby asked, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Not at all! Kenny was just showing me a new piece of equipment."
Mr. Ashby glanced over at Kenny and nodded. "Ah, your tech expert. Mr... Lee, was it?"
"That's Brady. I'm Kenny Hebert. But call me Kenny."
"Mackenzie Ashby." Mr. Ashby shook his hand before turning to Jules. "Mr. Patterson, I came to discuss whether you and your team were ready for the big leagues. You told me that you'd discuss this with them."
Jules shifted uneasily. "Look, Mr. Ashby, you can't exactly expect me to just trust you on this. Most of the people I talk to think I'm crazy - I'm not sending my people into something I don't know anything about."
Kenny cleared his throat. "Uhhh, what's going on?"
Jules growled again as Mr. Ashby took a step closer and covered his mouth with one of his large hands. "Mmmm?"
Mr. Ashby took no notice. "About a week ago, I came to Mr. Patterson here to offer your Agency financial backing. I work in the private sector, but I'm currently cooperating with the government to hire you and negotiate employment terms."
Kenny's eyes bugged out. "T-the government wants to hire us? For real?"
Mr. Ashby chuckled. When Jules tried to shake his hand off, he simply pressed the man's head against the cushioned headrest of the restraint chair, pinning him in place. "Officially, you'd be on my payroll for now. This is, after all, a probationary measure. With our help, you'll have a far better reach and ability to craft equipment, better pay, and let's face it - without us, most people will think you're crazy. I appreciate the need to discuss this with your team, but the fact is, there's a young man in the Midwest who has just come up against what would classify to most as a ghost, and we need someone on the job if he's going to survive. Apparently he's permanently gagged with some kind of unnatural substance."
"Why us?" Kenny frowned. "What will you do if we say no?"
Mr. Ashby shrugged. "Cover it up. We do our best to avoid mass hysteria and panic with the revelation that the supernatural exists, but the fact of the matter is, all we're really equipped to do is cover up. If you want to actually help people... this is your shot."
Kenny glanced at Jules. "You said we'd be on probation, right?"
Mr. Ashby nodded.
"Then consider this your probation. We'll go with you this one trip, and if we all get through it, we'll talk. Deal?"
"Deal."
Ashby removed his hand from Jules' face to shake Kenny's, and the man groaned. "I would've agreed to that. There was no need to cover my mouth."
Mr. Ashby laughed, smirking at Kenny. "But look at how easily we made an agreement without you."
Kenny snickered. "I like him."
Jules only sighed. "Will you at least get me out of this?"
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