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Lyss was… lost.

Even though she’d desperately wanted to sleep off the pain in her shoulder, she stayed with the group. Only because she wasn’t sure if she could make it to the hotel room by herself. She didn’t want to go to the hospital with the DENs and Claudette. Not in Miami. Not where the Dollhouse or her old partners could look her up. So, she let Herik put a makeshift bandage over the wound until Helena would be able to patch her up nicely. She was just about to ask about Claudette when they delivered the news.


Claudette was… gone.

The world blurred around her. She could only hear her heart beat and feel the pain in her shoulder and now in her chest. Claudette… didn’t make it? Lyss could have helped her too. They all could have. Instead, she’d reacted in defense. She’d still done the Coven right. No one else was killed. And yet their leader was dead. Lyss could hear the others’ muffled voices. Even though she couldn’t understand them she knew they felt the same. The devastation. The weight of the guilt on their chests. None of them were to blame except for the Dollhouse and Kimberly. Lyss wanted to tell them that, but she could barely breathe. Was it the loss of blood, or the loss of her closest sister?

When the initial shock wore off, the others’ voices became coherent. Who was going to take care of Kimberly? Were Penny or Isla in on this? They knew her well. Was Kimberly really capable of this when she also wanted the cure for Annabelle? It wasn’t adding up. This entire day… it didn’t make sense. Lyss should have never come back to Miami.

Madison. She didn’t believe it was really Walton. Lyss still trusted Madison. Madison and Claudette were close to. Lyss slowly raised her eyes to look at Madison for reasoning, but she saw her activate the Jaws. Her head turned towards the source of panic. It was the girl that was with Babylon, and then the man that was about to attack when Herik stepped in.

Lyss gripped her shoulder tighter and moved to stand, but she found her legs were too wobbly to hold her weight. She narrowed her eyes at the two Dollhouse members. What the fuck did they want? She looked around, but there was no sign of Babylon. Her presence wasn’t in her range, either.

She wasn’t in any state to demand answers, but she was thankful that Emily and Madison stepped up for her. Demands were made, explanatory monologues were given, and-

Lyss froze. Kimberly Walton sold empty bodies to the Dollhouse? Her blood began to boil. Of all the times she hadn’t heard about the Dollhouse, she had heard of those who sold the soulless to apparitions. It was much harder to capture and sell apparitions if they were finding meat suits to hide in. The bodies made them harder to seal inside of an object. So, Lyss always kept tabs on that part of the market.

To hear that Kimberly Walton, famed ghost hunter, had been a major player either during Lyss’s time in the market or before shocked her. Walton was much more dangerous than she let on. Hell, at least Lyss never sold a soulless for her own greed. She’d never stoop that low. Even if Walton had a “change of heart” she was still capable of the worst kind of evil.

[b] “They’re going to come for you all…”[/b]

Lyss frowned. This wasn’t good. The Coven was supposed to stay far away from the black market. They were her safe haven, and now they were mixed up in the market’s business. The only one who understood her was gone. Would the others treat her with the same respect as Claudette if she spoke up now? She couldn’t explain her history with the market with two members of the Dollhouse -[i]especially[/i] not with the DENS-  around. And now this Johnny Bravo dickwad wanted them to assassinate three of the markets top potion kingpins?

[i]No.[/i] [b]Hell no.[/b]

[color=D3D3D3] “If you want three of the markets top dealers to disappear, you’ll want to work with the DENs for that. Not us.”[/color] She hissed suddenly. Her eyes were staring at Johnny with the anger and grief that was mixing around inside of her. [color=D3D3D3] “We’ve already lost one of our own because of the market. I [i]will not stand[/i] to lose another.”[/color]

She turned her head to look at the others. [color=D3D3D3] “If we go back and “remove” those dealers from the market, we’ll have a target on our back for the rest of our lives.”[/color] She already had one of her own targets from the market. Why make hers bigger? Why give the other girls one of their own? [color=D3D3D3] “We shouldn’t get any more involved with the market. I know we need those potions, but we’ll have to find another way.”[/color]

She looked at the members of the DENs now, and then to Johnny. [color=D3D3D3] “The DENs should arrest the three leaders of the Dollhouse, confiscate the potions as evidence, and then slip us what we need to fight Annabelle and cure our own as a contract of silence. You, Johnny, and your friend there, should be there to assist them with this and then deliver us what we need. This will be your way of gaining immunity, because the DENs could arrest you right here and now for affiliating with the market.”[/color]

[color=D3D3D3] “At least, that’s how I’m seeing things right now. I think I got it all down correctly.”[/color]