--[Ramon]--
Jenny let out a tired sigh, "I think we're done here. While the morality of your actions is suspect, the likelihood that you had the ability and/or the opportunity to vanish Preston without a trace is little to none. He probably just went underground after finding out his little hit on you fell through."
"Well then, I wish you luck, officer," I replied with a small smile as I stood up. "Also, I was being serious about my offer. Stop by any time, I'll treat you to some of the best food in town."
After a second, a small smile spread across Jenny's lips, "I think after the week waiting for me, I'll have to take you up on that offer, but let me walk you outside first."
---
With one final goodbye, I slid into my car and closed the door behind me, putting the keys in the ignition and starting the engine as I reached for my seatbelt.
"Don't scream."
My entire body lurched as my head whipped over to stare at my passenger seat, which was suddenly occupied despite being empty only seconds earlier, "Where the fuck did you come from?!"
"Well, at least you didn't scream," Sombra muttered as she leaned back in the seat, getting comfortable, "You should start driving now, the last thing we want is eyes on this conversation."
I stared at Sombra for a long second before putting the car in drive and pulling out of the police station as if everything was completely fine.
Not a word was exchanged between the two of us before I turned the corner, and the police department was out of sight. But the moment I straightened the car after turning, the questions came flying out of my mouth.
"Alright, just how the hell did you end up in my car without me noticing?" I asked, demanding an answer as I glanced at Sombra, who looked completely at ease, "I can turn invisible."
"Bullshit, I want a real-"
Before I could finish my sentence, Sombra disappeared with the only warning being a quick purple flash, like a computer glitch playing over her body before she was completely concealed.
I stared as hard as I could, trying to pick out some type of outline or distortion, but there was nothing. "How the fuck is that possible?"
Sombra reappeared with another flash and a broad grin, "What did you think you were, the only one with magic?"
I froze, staring into Sombra's eyes, and knowing in an instant that she knew everything about me, "Shit."
"Yeah, but don't worry, this isn't magic, just a highly advanced intradermal cloaking device that I developed," Sombra replied as if it were no big deal while holding up her arm and moving around, allowing me to see the faint, almost invisible hexagonal tattoos covering her skin.
"That sounds like sci-fi bullshit if I've ever heard it. What are you, some international super spy?" I muttered, my voice coming out angry and gruff as I tried to figure out what the hell was going on and if my supposed paradise was about to crumble into pieces.
Sombra grinned, "As a matter of fact, I am. Going on nearly five years now."
"This doesn't make a damn bit of sense." I shook my head and gripped the steering wheel like it would keep me grounded, "And you're enjoying this way too much."
"I know, but it's not often I get to flex and show off like this, and watching you freak out is a nice little bonus," Sombra admitted plainly, "So just let me indulge for a moment, would you?"
"That depends, you here to kill me?" I asked.
"We both know that if I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't have shown myself, " Sombra answered with a roll of her eyes, "But I guess I should tell you what this is all about…god where to start."
I scoffed, "How about admitting that you had something to do with Northwest disappearing and Samson suddenly growing a consciousness and admitting everything to the police?"
"Yeah, that was all us, I kidnapped Northwest myself, though, got the bastard right in the neck with a tranquilizer. Samson was given the slate treatment, knocked unconscious, and implanted with a set of directives he's compelled to follow to completion. We also wiped his memory while we were at it, so he won't recall the magic you used on him. You're welcome, by the way."
"I'm really not sure how to respond to that. With everything you just said, it sounds more and more likely like you belong to some type of secret shadow government." I grunted while pulling up to the traffic light.
"You're more right than you are wrong," Sombra answered with a shit-eating grin, "But I can't get into the specifics right now, still haven't gotten the go-ahead to give you full clearance from the higher-ups."
"Yeah defiantely not a shadow government," I muttered sarcastically, making Sombra laugh, "Man, I wish I could do this more often, usually it's up to the ties to make first contact."
"The ties?"
"It's what we call uniformed agents in the org; they all wear black ties," Sombra replied with a dismissive wave of her hand. "They're in charge of the everyday-to-day stuff, surveillance, and stuff like that."
"Is that how you know about me, what I am? How long have you had people watching me?" I asked, hoping to get some kind of concrete answer.
Sombra shook her, "No, you actually managed to fly underneath our radar for a pretty long time. Usually, with you demons, a month doesn't pass without some blood cult popping up and abducting people. I was the one who sent in a report after watching you pull ingredients out of thin air."
My face darkened, "So you caught onto that, huh?"
"Yep, I was looking out for possible poisoning attempts, but I got a lot more than I was bargaining for. I almost couldn't believe it. Thought you were trying to curse me or something, luckily for both of us, you only made a very delicious soup."
I opened my mouth to say something, but Sombra beat me to the punch, "No, Ashe is not involved in any of this whatsoever, and it's in mine, yours, and her best interest would like to keep it that way. I think we can both agree that she's got enough problems on her plate as it is."
"Alright, but what happens from here? What's the point of you showing up at all?" I questioned, "Are you trying to spook me by showing how much you know and what you're capable of?"
Sombra sighed, her jovial attitude fading for a second, "Making you scared isn't the goal, or should I say, isn't the main goal. The reason I'm here is to make contact and let you know that, even when you didn't ask for it, we had your back. Think of it as an olive branch; if I had to bet, the higher-ups are looking to make you an asset rather than a liability. Which let me tell you is the best outcome of this whole predicament."
"What the hell does becoming an asset mean?"
Sombra shrugged, "That I can't tell you, not because I'm not allowed to, but because I don't know. It could be as simple as being another pair of eyes on the ground or something far more involved. Or this could be the last you hear from us, it's not likely, but who knows what the hireups have planned."
"Alright, so what now? I'm just supposed to wait around and hope that you don't just appear out of nowhere again and tell me that I need to do X, Y, and Z at the drop of a hat."
"I doubt they'll be that heavy-handed," Sombra admitted, trying to put me at ease, though it didn't work, "Just try not to think about it."
"I'm not going to even dignify that bullshit with an answer," I muttered with a shake of my head, "Yeah, I'll just try and not think about the shadow government that may or may not be spying on me."
"Yep, just slide right back into that nice place of blissful ignorance," Sombra replied with a wink, "Piece of cake, right?"
Before I could give a sarcastic response, Sombra glanced at the clock on the dashboard, "Hmm, looks like my time is up. Now, if you wouldn't mind letting me out, that would be greatly appreciated."