Starlight Saint

While Paul wanted to head to the courthouse to rescue Johnny from death row, there were a couple of things he needed before heading there. The first thing he needed was something that could not wait.

“Any of you know any clothing stores nearby?” Paul asked. Since he was still wearing his prison uniform, he would be drawing police notoriety just by running around.

“I spotted a Sloppy Seconds thrift store nearby,” Alberto offered.

“Maybe someplace that actually has a selection?” Paul complained.

“Quit being picky and let’s head over there,” Starlight chided.

The store wasn’t far from where they were; they could actually reach it on foot. Once they got there Paul spent some time looking at the limited selection of clothing available since, as the name implied, the selection was composed of whatever people had either outgrown or developed a distaste for so they were sold to the store to get back a little of the money used to purchase the clothing.

In the end Paul settled for a pair of gray sports shorts and a white tee shirt while noting that he would find something better at the first opportunity and once he had more money.

Paul lamented when Starlight told him that the money he had saved up five years ago had to go into the medical expenses needed to keep him alive. It was enough to clean him out so he was nearly broke. What he had was just enough for the clothes he just purchased. At the same time he had a tiny bit of jealousy for Starlight who had plenty of money in her account and he suspected that her account was only going to grow larger while they were taking over Stilwater again.

Putting his jealousy aside, he still had enough money left for a drink and he really needed one after what happened. “Hey Star, do we have time to visit a bar around here? I really need one after what I went through.

Starlight considered Paul’s request and thinking about what happened, she couldn’t blame him for feeling that way. The trial was about to start but she felt that Paul might feel better with a little alcohol in his system. “I guess so, but let’s be quick about it.”

The nearest bar was a Tee’N’Ay strip joint which Starlight didn’t feel disturbed by nearly as much as she used to. Larxene had taken her to a few strip bars over the years she spent in Pittsburgh so the experience had helped her get used to it.

The bar was a few blocks away so Starlight got her friends in the car to take them there. Since they were five people now there wasn’t room for Paul anymore so he had to hijack his own ride.

Once at the bar, the five sat at the bar stools while the dancers were giving their show behind them. The bartender was quick to give each of them their orders.

On the TV, they noticed a news broadcast by the reporter Jane Valderamma who reported that Johnny was arrested a couple of years ago for attempting to assassinate Troy Bradshaw while pointing out the three hundred eighty seven counts of first degree murder on his record which would mean he would be sent to death row.

“Hey Barry, turn that shit off,” someone beside Paul demanded as he sat next to him with a bottle. The man wore dark red clothing, indicating a possible connection with The Brotherhood.

“We were watching that,” Paul stated.

“Guess you bitches aren’t anymore.”

Paul was grateful that Starlight was able to restore his muscles enough for him to fight, though he still felt a little winded after he smashed the man’s beer bottle in his face and knocked him out.

“Can you turn that back on?” Starlight requested. The bartender complied while Jane continued her report about Johnny’s fate. “I think it’s about time we head over there.”

As the group prepared to leave the bar, the unconscious man’s buddies appeared looking for a fight. Paul put up his fists to defend himself since he found that he didn’t have the strength to lift a bar stool yet. However, that didn’t stop another barstool from floating up behind the Brotherhood thugs and bashing them unconscious.

“Glad you haven’t changed, Star,” Paul thanked.

Starlight shrugged, “What can I say? Something about them just draws furniture to them. Now let’s head over there.”

As they left, a couple more thugs tried getting in their way only for Savage to hurl them out of the bar while Alberto pulled out a shotgun and blasted them. They then entered their vehicles and headed straight for the courthouse. They made sure to conceal their weapons as they headed into the entrance as they didn’t want to tip off the cops their intentions yet.

Spotting Jane Valderamma and her cameraman, Larxene decided to have a little fun by jumping in front of the camera and waving into it. “Hey all, I just wanna give a shout out to my lame friends over in the Big Apple. When you guys finally get those sticks out your asses, let me know.” Once she gave her shout out, Larxene followed the others into the courthouse.

Once inside, they obtained the information that Johnny’s trial was being held on the second floor. Larxene, however, had other plans.

“Hey, I’m just going to…check out the facilities…if you know what I mean.” Larxene then headed for the nearest restroom. Starlight wondered what her friend was up to as the way she said that told her that mischief might be brewing in the near future.

Deciding not to think too much about it, the rest of them casually headed upstairs while the guards appeared to let them pass despite the fact that the media wasn’t allowed inside. Starlight wondered if Troy had something to do with it but found that she didn’t care either way.

The hallway where their destination was unguarded so they decided that it was a good time to bring out their firepower.

Inside the courtroom, the judge, an elderly dark-skinned woman called Judge Melmack, looked over an album that contained a large number of gruesome photos of the various murder scenes where Johnny was involved.

"Mr. Gat, you've been convicted of over three hundred murders, do you really expect this appeal to work?" Melmack rhetorically asked.

“Your Honor, I think the count should be lower since it was in defense of my daughter. Like the time three Rollerz grabbed her. There have been numerous instances where the old gangs tried using my daughter as a hostage against me.”

“While I can understand you acting in defense of your daughter, killing them was still excessive. I can't offer much leniency since you used excessive force. Even if I did mitigate the charges due to circumstances there are many instances where your daughter wasn’t involved. Unless you have powerful connections ready to help you out, I’m afraid you won’t be able to avoid the chair.”

Just as Johnny was about to make an angry and aggressive retort, the sound of gunfire and pained screaming came from just outside the courtroom. Legal Lee, Johnny’s Lawyer, knew of an opportunity when he heard it and stood up. “Your Honor, I’d like to call for a hasty dismissal of this trial on the grounds that this courtroom is about to be attacked.”

Melmack was about to deny Lee’s motion but as the pained shouting and gunfire grew louder, she became less certain that the guards were going to be able to handle the intruders. With a quick decision, Melmack banged her gavel to accept the motion before getting up to leave the room in a hasty exit.

One of the bailiffs was unfortunate enough to investigate the noise only for the door to the hallway to break from its hinges and fall on him. Another officer raised her weapon to deal with the intruders but the assailant was quicker as she found a weapon pointed at her.

“Drop it.” Paul demanded.

Raising her arms in surrender, the officer let go of her gun which fell to the floor and discharged a shot which caused everyone to duck as a bullet ricocheted around the courtroom for a moment.

Once the room was quiet, Legal Lee rose his head from the desk he was hiding under to offer his services for anyone hit by the bullet.

“‘Bout time your burnt ass woke up,” Johnny quipped.

“More like burnt and withered. I had to go through a lot of effort to get him walking again,” Starlight corrected as she entered the courtroom.

Johnny gave a wide smile as he quickly got out of his seat and rushed over to hug his daughter. “Pumpkin! Why didn't you tell me you were back in Stilwater?”

Starlight gave her father a flat stare, “Because you were arrested and likely not having your phone with you because they normally confiscate it.”

Johnny waved his hand dismissively, “Details. Let’s get out of here.”

“Savage, Alberto, find us a ride out of here. We need something that can fit six people.”

Savage nodded and ran ahead, trampling the guards who got in his way. Alberto ran after him.

Seeing as they were going to be fighting their way out, Johnny collected the gun from one of the bailiffs and checked its ammunition. There wasn’t much so he would have to collect what he could on his way out.

“So, those guys are your new friends? Where’s the crazy chick you were tellin’ me about?” Johnny asked.

“She said she was checking out the facilities which tells me she’s up to something,” Starlight replied.

Paul, Starlight and Johnny began fighting their way out of the building, taking out any guard who shot at them. Starlight tossed a few guards off the second floor with her magic. Johnny and Paul used a couple of guards as human shields to deal with a group of guards ahead of them before hurling their shields across a snack bar.

Once they reached the bottom floor, the three noticed that there was a lot of water on the floor. Apparently with the commotion they were causing, nobody decided to check where the water was coming from. That was when Starlight realized what was happening. “Guys, back up!” she warned.

“What’s the matter, Star?” Johnny asked.

“Just watch.”

Sure enough, a large group of guards gathered in front of the entrance, not caring that there was water all over the floor, courtesy of a certain someone flooding the nearby restroom.

“Freeze! Put your hands in the air!” one of the guards demanded.

“Or you can put your weapons on the floor and you won’t be lit up like a house on Christmas,” Came Larxene’s voice from nearby. The woman was sitting on one of the x-ray scanners at the entrance behind them. The guards looked behind them and saw the electrified knives she was carrying. Their sense of self-preservation reminded them that there was water on the floor. Combine the two and the guards knew that the woman had their lives in her hands.

With no choice, the guards placed their guns on the floor. Larxene then jumped onto the floor and waved for Starlight and the others to follow her.

Once outside, the four spotted a police van with Alberto and Savage inside. The four quickly jumped inside and closed the door. Starlight gave Alberto the address of her house and they were away. “Before you get there, take us through a Forgive and Forget on the way. I uploaded it to your GPS.”

“Forgive and Forget? What kinda place is that?” Larxene asked.

“I guess only Stilwater has those places,” Starlight explained. “They’re a drive through where you pay the vendor and he somehow sweeps our crimes under the rug and takes the heat off us. It works for law enforcement and gang aggression.”

“Really? How does that work?”

“No idea but I won’t question it.”

Larxene snorted which quickly turned into laughter for a few moments. “Man, I’m liking this city already. I can cause all the trouble I want and I just need to use one of those places to make everyone not pissed at me.”

“It’s still good to practice self-control. I’d rather not test the limits of Forgive and Forgets in case I do something they can’t conceal.”

Larxene shrugged, “Yeah, fair enough.”

“Thanks for bustin’ me out,” Johnny said. “Eesh would have killed me if I got executed.”

“How’s mom taking it?” Starlight asked.

“Well, seeing as she warned me not to go after Troy, I’m probably lookin’ at a few weeks on the couch.”

“How long were you in jail anyway?” Paul asked.

“Two years and thirty one days.”

“Not like you were counting…”

"Yeah, right? It's weird...people inside were betting how long I'd last...when I was first busted guards were always tryin' to put me in the ground. After Troy became chief of police it all stopped...Troy must be more forgiving than I am."

“When did Troy become Chief of Police?” Paul asked.

"You better start getting with the times. Julius is missing, Ben King wrote an autobiography, Dex is a...don't even get me started with Dex…”

“He’s a corporate officer for Ultor,” Starlight supplied.

“Seriously?” Paul questioned. “Actually, don’t answer that. I just realized that would be what that asshole would do. Guy had a big head before now he has a job to inflate his ego even more.”

“As for Troy,” Johnny continued. “Word is he's become obsessed with finding out what happened on your little boat trip with the Alderman."

“At some point we should probably pay him a visit to see what he has. I’d love to find the son of a bitch who tried to blow me up and show them how I feel about that.”

“Hopefully he hasn’t skipped town,” Starlight muttered.

“Hey, while we’re talking, would your mom mind me couch surfing for a bit? I forgot to find an apartment online,” Alberto informed. Larxene and Savage also realized that they were also without their own place to stay while they were living in Stilwater.

“We can talk rent later,” Johnny postponed. “For now we need to let Eesh know we’re back.”

Once they arrived at the house, Alberto, Larxene and Savage admired the mansion which had its own arch that said “Starlight Estate” on it.

“Not a bad place, Star,” Larxene complimented. “My old home was bigger but this seems to be the best-looking place I’ve seen in this city so far.”

“And you swiped it from some lawyer? Impressive…” Alberto whistled.

“Let’s go inside and say hi to my mom.”

As it turned out, Aisha was waiting for them at the entrance. She had a deep frown pointed at Johnny which foretold what he prophesied earlier. That didn’t stop her from running over and wrapping her arms around him. “It’s good to see you back and alive.” She repeated the process with Starlight, “And you as well, Starlight.”

Starlight returned the hug. “I’m back, mom.”

Once they broke their hug, Savage tapped Starlight’s shoulder and pointed her to a couple of men in suits that she recognized as the uniform for Mr. Wong’s people. Starlight had a feeling that things were going to get really busy for her soon.