The Killer Queen

Thorpe was on edge, eyeing Palmer with a mix of suspicion and guardedness,

The moment their gazes locked, Thorpe could tell Palmer wasn’t messing around.

“You’ll get your man, but you’ve got to guarantee his safety.”

“I’ve never seen Mr. Thorpe give a hoot about anyone’s safety before. After all, you’d throw one brother under the bus just to get treatment for the other.”

That jab hit Thorpe right where it hurt, and he swung his fist at Palmer in a flash!

Before his fist could make contact, Noella chimed in coolly, “Lay a hand on him, and your

brother can kiss my help goodbye.”

Palmer’s eyes softened, a tender smile gracing his lips as they misted over with a swirl of soft blue.

The girl finally started to show some concern for him, remarkable!

Thorpe’s punch hung in the air, mere inches from Palmer’s face!

He looked back and forth between Palmer and Noella, confused,

“Isn’t the Phantom Surgeon Lunaris one of Obelisk Organization’s own? Since when did you cozy up with Abyssal Organization’s Vocalist? If you can leave Obelisk, why not check out Cerulean Whale? Whatever Abyssal’s offering you, I’ll double it. No, triple!”

Thorpe was convinced that Noella had sided with Palmer, likely because he snagged that consultation order Lunaris had posted on the deep web.

Thorpe scanned the area and saw no sign of Obelisk Organization’s crew. That meant Phantom Surgeon Lunaris was flying solo on this gig, with no ties to Obelisk.

“Phantom Surgeon, joining Cerulean Whale will be the best move you’ll ever make. Name your price, and I’ll meet any demand! If Wise Fool of Obelisk knew his man got poached by Vocalist, I wonder how he’d feel. But here at Cerulean Whale, we’ve got your back for sure!”

Palmer snorted with a sneer. “If you can’t even snag a consultation order, what makes you think you can outdo Abyssal?”

Just mentioning the consultation order got Thorpe steaming!

He wasn’t a regular in Harmonia Country, so he was clueless about a lot of stuff here. Last time he tried to secure the order, his internet crapped out on him!

If it weren’t for that glitch, he wouldn’t have missed out.

“Phantom Surgeon, name your price–I’ll pay up!”

Noella whipped out an encrypted payment code. “Three hundred mil, upfront, for today’s consult.”

10:23

Thorpe gazed at the code, his mind a whirlwind of chaos.

“Sure, the consult fee’s a given, but you haven’t filled me in on my brother’s condition yet!”

Noella, her face masked and capped, revealing only her icy eyes, stared down Thorpe. “Register first, then get treated. Get it?”

The patient in bed coughed violently, his pale face flushing red, and when the coughing fit ended, bright red stains of blood marked the pristine white sheets.

He gasped for air, flashed Thorpe a feeble smile. “Bro, don’t bother. My life ain’t worth the trouble.”

Thorpe’s eyes reddened in an instant, and he scanned the payment code with his phone.

“Cut the crap! I didn’t say you can give up yet!”

Noella tore up the one–use payment code, lit it up, and tossed it into the bin. The specially treated paper turned to ash in no time, leaving no trace of its former self.

“Brain cancer, needs surgery, but you’ll need Mirage Grass, which you should have, right? You met with Toxic Monarch last time; if you left empty–handed, then you’re beyond saving.”

Thorpe’s meetup with Toxic Monarch was no secret on the deep web.

Thorpe nodded. “Yeah, I’ve got it. When’s the surgery, and what needs prepping?”

“I need three of my folks to come prep for surgery with me.”

Thorpe’s gut reaction was a hard no. “No way! I’ve got doctors prepped too. You work with mine. I don’t trust your crew.”

Noella looked up, her gaze as cold as ice meeting Thorpe’s wary eyes. “And I don’t trust yours.” Thorpe clenched his teeth but stood his ground. “My guys wouldn’t hurt my brother. What if one of yours does something during the surgery?”

“Then there’s no deal. If you’ve got doctors, you can find someone to operate.”

As she spoke, Noella got up and started peeling off her disposable gloves, clearly ready to leave.

Seeing her about to split, Thorpe’s arm muscles twitched, reaching out to her.

Before he could touch Noella, he copped a solid punch.

“Mr. Thorpe, I warned you. Touch Lunaris, and you’re a dead man!”

“You…”

Thorpe barely started to speak when he caught another fist to the face!

Palmer rubbed his wrist, standing by Noella’s side.

The man in the bed struggled to help Thorpe up, “Bro…”

Books tumbled from his bedside as he moved.

Noella bent down to pick them up–Gerastor comics!

Thorpe wiped the blood from his mouth. “I’m fine. Phantom Surgeon, please, save my brother. Your crew can join in, but I’m staying too. Don’t worry, I won’t get in the way.”

Noella flipped through the comics nonchalantly before handing them back to the patient.

“Even if you’re in there during the surgery, if I wanted to harm your brother, there’s nothing you could do to stop it.”

Noella slid her hand into her white coat pocket and spun around to give Thorpe a cold, hard stare. “If I don’t save him, he’s toast. Why would I screw him over? Sabotaging your own reputation might be Cerulean Whale’s cup of tea, but I’m not into that kind of play.”

Working on the borderlines required teamwork between the crews, but the Cerulean Whale gang hadn’t missed a chance to pull a fast one for their own gain. Dealing with their shenanigans was always a headache.

Thorpe’s face turned beet red. “If you’re game to join us at Cerulean Whale, you could be riding shotgun as my right–hand man!”

Palmer rested a hand on Noella’s shoulder, his icy gaze dropping like a hammer on Thorpe’s

face.

Trying to poach right in front of him? Thorpe seriously needed to check if he was punching above his weight!

“I’ve got zero interest in Cerulean Whale. Since the patient has already fasted, we’ll start the operation in an hour. If my people can’t get through, the show won’t start. When to let them in, that’s your call.”

Noella gave Thorpe a casual glance. “Anyway, it’s not my neck on the line. His condition is pretty dicey right now, so if you dilly–dally, you might as well go knock on the Grim Reaper’s door yourself.”

Thorpe’s face was a picture of turmoil!

Stepping out of the ward, Noella and Palmer made their way back to the office..

Peeling off her mask, Noella let out a big sigh of relief. Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“What’s up? Is the surgery that tricky?”

“I’ve seen trickier. I’m just puzzled why Thorpe’s brother is into the same comic as my granddad.”

That comic wasn’t exactly mainstream, and the artist wasn’t a household name.

Ever since she got back from Imperial West Hospital, Noella had hunted down and read every

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comic by that artist.

Marcel stumbled upon that comic by sheer fluke while he was visiting some old-timer for a game of chess. It caught his fancy in no time, and he even got so impatient with the slow translations that he picked up Gerastor just to follow the serial.

The old geezer who introduced Marcel to the comic had been discharged last month.

Noella had a hunch that there were more secrets hidden in those comic pages!