Some people were just untouchables. There wasn’t any way around it. Their money, power and friends all kept them out of the dangers that the rest of seemed to have to face head on. It wasn’t right but a whole bunch of them worked hard for that untouchable feeling, others fell into it. The law wasn’t prepared to step up and deal with the backlash so they let it go with a blind eye. Looking the other way on assaults, drug deals and the like. As long as the right pockets were lined then those untouchables had free reign. 

That was something that never sat right with me. It led to the little guys being stepped on and pushed aside. Forgotten even before the blades had been wiped clean. There wasn’t all that much that could be done about it unfortunately, especially if the law wasn’t going to do anything about it.

The other side of the coin was that no one was truly untouchable. All it would take was one person to step up, one person to put what was right before anything else and the untouchables suddenly became just like everyone else. 

One such of those untouchables was Charles Grim. He ran an outfit out of the Midwest. Pulling strings and calling shots from an ivory tower constructed by his own hand. His fingers snaked their way into each and every little pie. Gun running, drug trafficking, hell, even murder. He even controlled the flow of information with a newspaper, personally cherry picking what was written and what was conveniently left out. That was where his true power was held. If the people are fed those facts over and over again, eventually they believe it, they don’t really have any choice in the matter. He was smart enough to pick the right officers and high ranking officials to dole out payments too and other then those he quietly destroyed, every one was happy with the arrangement.

Grim was smart with his cash as well. He kept his bodyguards well fed and paid handsomely, to the point that they would gladly lay their lives down for his if need be although that wasn’t really a true fear, he was untouchable after all. No one was stupid enough to take a chance, it would be as if they were signing their own death warrant. He kept himself out of the public eye, only leaving the tower if it was an absolute necessity and even then, surrounded by his most trusted individuals.

It took some time of sitting and watching but there were times when he slipped away unguarded. There were mistresses spread over the city in lavish town houses and penthouses. He would slip in through back doors, leaving his men sitting in their vehicles that dotted the streets here and there. Not exactly inconspicuous but they never had to be. No one had been foolish enough to take a chance before. 

It has been a few days of wandering around the city, paying attention to the little things without looking like I was before Grim finally emerged, climbing into the backseat of his vehicle flanked on either side by two rather large men. As soon as his car pulled away from the curb, another five vehicles fell in line behind him, each with three men vigilantly scanning the terrain out the window as they drove. Eventually, they pulled up to one of the newer buildings five or six blocks away, the bodyguards spacing themselves out along the street before giving the go ahead and Grim stepped from the backseat straightening his tie as he did. Grim was always one to keep up appearances, he was far to vain not too.

This was the chance I had been waiting for. A little nervously, I felt the eyes on me as I made my way into the building adjacent to the one he just entered. It was a bit crazy and might be a mistake but it was a necessary evil. Something had to be done one way or another.

I made my way up to the roof access door, keeping to the quiet stairwells, making sure not to be seen. The last thing I needed was to tip off my presence just yet. I took a deep breath as I reached the roof, taking a second to calm my breathing before I broke out into a sprint towards the edge. Pushing off as hard as I could, I landed on Grim’s mistresses building with a forward roll. It wasn’t the most graceful of landings but it worked for what I needed.

I tried the door only to find it locked, quickly sticking in the Bobby pin and jiggling it around until the tumblers gave way. For all the security that Grim had built for himself, the building was completely devoid of his forces. I suppose never having to look over ones shoulder gave him a false sense of security. I made my way down another floor before I heard the muffled speech through the door. I couldn’t make out the words but I had been in close enough proximity before that I knew the voice of Charles Grim.

I thought about kicking the door in and making a dash for it but that wasn’t the smartest course of action. I picked the lock again, trying to be as quiet as possible as I slipped inside. I found a corner off to the side, positioning myself out of sight and waiting until the voices separated. I took a small step out of hiding spot before springing forward, grabbing Grim by the back of his collar and hauling him off of his feet, cracking the back of his head down hard on the hardwood floor with as much force as I could manage. The shock look on his face was all I needed as I placed my hand over his mouth and nose, pressing down with my full weight as I pulled the blade from its sheath with my free hand. 

”No one is untouchable, Grim.” I jammed the blade forward into his ribs, dragging it up as soon as it was buried to the hilt. With a shudder and one last gurgle, Mister Charles Grim was taken off the board. One less untouchable left in the world.

Kirsty can't quite believe her eyes...  She thought that Matt_Murdock was a lawyer...  But here he was, stabbing a man with a name very similar to my boss's, Grin-07.

The gasp from the end of the hallway caught me a bit off guard. In my singular focus, I had nearly forgotten about this being the mistress’ place. I looked up to lock eyes on Kirsty. That would pose a bit of a problem. I held nothing against her other then her choice in men, I couldn’t blame her for that, some women were just attracted to power, no matter how dangerous it was. I certainly wasn’t going to hurt her in anyway. As long as I could get out of here before she ran screaming I would be just fine. 

I stood slowly, wiping the blade off on Grim’s bloodstained shirt as I did. The last thing I needed was to spook her. Lifting a finger to my lips, I judged her softly as I took slow deliberate steps backwards, making sure not to take my eyes off of her as I moved towards the door that was still slightly ajar. Fortunately for me, she didn’t move as I slipped out the door, shutting it firmly as soon as I was safely in the hallway. I let out a deep sigh as soon as I was free of the place. That had the potential to really screw things up, especially if she made her way to the guards standing watch before I could slip over to the other building and get out of sight. It would have been the smart play to remove her from the board as well but she didn’t do anything wrong, she was a pawn in Grim’s game just as much as anyone else, hardly a reason to die over.

Giving up the chance at being quiet, I sprinted up the steps back towards the roof, hitting the door a little too hard and sending it flying open with an audible thud as I did. I headed towards the ledge, pushing off with all of my might and clearing the gap with ease once more. I swiftly made my way into the building easy enough, skipping three and four steps at a time as I hustled my way down to the street level. I turned at the base of the stairs, electing to head for the back door rather than front that lead to the street lined with Grim’s bodyguards. As soon as I was outside, I cut down a few alleyways that led deeper into the city, checking over my shoulder every so often to make sure I wasn’t being followed.

I learned quite some time ago that the court of law wasn’t perfect. Justice was supposed to be blind but in these parts, it could be bought off just like everything else. No one was infallible, definitely not judges. There were always going to be places that the law couldn’t reach, places that operated differently from the rest of society. It was the lay of the land, the way it had always been, the way that it was most likely going to continue being. Right and wrong didn’t have much of a place here. It was powerful and meek, rich and poor. The divide would always be there.

At times, I tried my best to straddle the line but on more than one occasion I diverted to the wrong side of things. It didn’t make me any better or worse than anyone else, it made me the same. Some people saw the world as black and white but I had wandered around enough to know that everything was shades of grey. Those untouchables were always going to be there, in one form or another. 

Judge Brett Malone took his job seriously, more serious than most. Doling out punishments far more severe than they rightfully should have been. What should have been slaps on the wrists turned into lengthy prison stays, turning those that had made simple mistakes into career criminals simply because they weren’t given any other options. It took me a few years of dealing with him in the court system to figure out that he wasn’t above taking rather large cash payments from the local families in New York for sparing their people and throwing the book at their enemies. The thing about those actions are that they can’t be covered up forever, eventually word would leak out one way or another and that always made the untouchable far less than that.

However, Judge Malone saw himself as above all of it. He figured as long as he was quietly doing the dirty work, with the law in his back pocket, that he was in fact part of the upper echelon. What he failed to realize was that he was just as replaceable as anyone else. If anything ever happened to him, there would be five, ten more, ready to take up his mantle. 

It wasn’t  all that hard to figure out his schedule. Every Thursday after his day in court, he would skip over to the local massage parlor for a few hours. That was part of his schtick of believing he was above the law. No cop was willing to put their career on the line to raid the place that the most powerful judge in the city frequented. He never even tried to hide it, openly speaking of the services he received to his subordinates. It really was one of the worst kept secrets in Manhattan. 

Fortunately for me and unfortunately for him, I didn’t have any cases scheduled for this particular Thursday. I arrived a few minutes before he did, leaning against a building across the street and lighting up a smoke as a light drizzle began to fall. The streets were busy enough that I blended in with everyone else who was out and about at the time. That was the best part of being in New York, everyone was so wrapped up in their own lives that they never seemed to bat an eye at anyone else. As soon as he pulled in front of the parlor and sauntered inside, I snuffed out my cigarette and made my way to his side of the street. The small backpack I had with me blended in with everything else. I bent down as if I was tying my shoe as soon as I reached the spot of sidewalk beside his vehicle, quickly pulling the device from my bag before attaching it to the underside of his car, just below his driver’s side door. It was going to be loud and messy but it would show the city that no one was above the law, that no one was truly untouchable. 

As soon as everything was in place, I made my way to a coffee shop a few doors down. I had to be within close enough proximity to make sure that everything went smoothly. One cup of coffee turned into two then three before I saw the front door of the parlor push open and Judge Malone stepped out into the street, flipping the collar of his coat up against the wind and rain as he did. 

The explosion was controlled, small enough to only damage the Judge and his car while sending innocents screaming for cover. I quickly finished my last cup before placing a few folded bills on the table and making my way outside, mingling in with the rest of the terrified New Yorkers.

Judge Malone’s untimely demise shook things up slightly throwing a wrench into plans at first but within a few days he had been replaced easily enough and the cogs continued to turn. It was what was expected at this point. The machine would keep chugging along even with a few hiccups here and there. Only time would tell if things were going to change any.

Things didn’t really seem all that different on the surface but the streets had a different vibe to them now. People that weren’t normally used to looking over their shoulders were now peering around corners before turning down darkened alleyways they once felt comfortable in. There had been some push back with law enforcement as well, albeit small, but it was a step in the right direction. The world was on edge from one thing or another. It was quite, just bubbling below the surface of things. 

I spent a few days figuring out next moves, arranging the puzzle pieces together as best I could with the information I had on hand. Things were connected like they always had been, I just needed to pay enough attention to connect the dots.

Sometimes these things were quite predictable, as soon as the fall of Charles Grim was reported, there was a rush on filling the vacuum of power that he had left behind. Every first time dealer, every new faced mugger was clambering to fill the void. Eventually one began to rise above the rest. An outfit out of the west run by Avery O’Malley. O’Malley was different than the rest. He wasn’t as flashy, a good ole catholic boy fresh off the boat from Ireland. He preferred to keep things quiet for the most part, pulling strings from behind the scenes, making sure that his name was never front page news. He was a shrewd business man with as many legal operations as illegal ones. He made a name for himself moving weapons in mass quantities here in the states as well as back home giving him much more capital than the rest.

Most of that was a facade though, O’Malley was just as dangerous and unhinged as the rest of the untouchables. He held a propensity for torture, choosing his victims sometimes just because they could hold out the longest against his methods. He wasn’t a man that ever heard no very often and if he did, he always made sure that there wasn’t a chance to hear it again.

Avery O’Malley didn’t waste his time and money on bodyguards like some of the rest did though, he bought off entire police departments. It was an added luxury for him to have police chiefs and captains in his back pocket. Whenever he needed it, they were at his beck and call.

Despite the fact that he had far less visible guards the way someone like Grim did, he was far more difficult to reach. He just didn’t take the same risks, didn’t have the same vices. That wasn’t to say that he was as untouchable as he thought though. Every Sunday he visited the same church for the same service, spending an hour afterwards on the steps outside shaking hands and quietly making deals. With the crowds that gathered it was nearly impossible to get close enough to make any type of move and even if there was a chance then it would have been completely impossible to get away with my life intact. The parishioners were always off duty cops mixed in with the general public, cops who were making more from his payments than there regular paychecks. 

I found an empty apartment across the street from the cathedral, using a different name and making sure that I paid in cash. It gave me a clear line of sight as I set up the rifle in the open window with the shade pulled down just far enough to be able to see out. I took slow deep breaths as I slowed my heart rate, letting my adrenaline guide my hand more than trying to fight it off. Watching through the scope as O’Malley discreetly passed over an envelope with a sly smile. He was beloved by those he kept well fed and didn’t bat an eye about making moves in such a public place. 

The gunshot was echoing in the small apartment, stinging my ears and causing them to ring slightly. I trusted my shot, not bothering to watch as the screams and wails filled the air. The panic had set in. Innocents began scattering and the cops grabbed their weapons, trying to decipher where the shot came from. I quickly disassembled the rifle, tucking it away in its case before slipping out of the apartment into the hallway before making my way down to street level. As soon as I was outside I tossed the case into the nearest dumpster before casually making my way away from the panic.

I had spent a few days at the offices before I noticed a few days old daily newspaper that got mixed in with the rest of the paper work on my desk. There had been a rash of over doses thanks in part to a new designer drug that had been hitting the streets recently. What started out as a party drug quickly turned into something far deadlier than that with bodies tossed into alleyways behind old abandoned buildings that were mixed around town. Everything was relatively quiet about the drug, there were no leads on who was bringing it in or where, which made things difficult to pinpoint. There was however one dealer, Chauncey Paxton, who just couldn’t keep his mouth shut for the life of him.

Everything Chauncey did was usually flashy, constantly drawing attention to himself. He operated out of a beat up apartment building a few blocks away. Recently he had been flaunting his fresh new suits and considering he didn’t have any actual work prospects, the only way he was able to pay for the finer things of life was through the drug trade. Chauncey always wanted to be part of the upper echelon, it didn’t matter to him if he didn’t fit in with anyone, in his mind he was untouchable as long as his customers kept coming back. He was only one cog in the machine though, the easiest to reach actually. From everything I heard about him, he wasn’t going to have any problem giving up his supplier as long as it meant saving his own skin. 

I locked the door behind myself as I left Nelson & Murdock, flipping my collar up against the cold New York wind that was swirling outside. I had a general idea of where Paxton would be, there were only so many street corners and darkened alleyways that he operated out of and with his new flashy three piece suit it wasn’t going to be all that hard to pick him out. I had made my way a couple of blocks away from the office before I spotted the small gathering, four or five men huddled around the entrance of an abandoned bar. Sure enough, Chauncey was standing in the middle, trying to command the space and speak over everyone all at once. 

I found an adjacent alley that I cut through to circle around the group. Hugging the wall as I moved, I sparked a cigarette as I waited for the group to disperse. It only took a few minutes before the men left, leaving Paxton searching out his next sale. Peering around the corner, I made sure no was way paying attention before I grabbed him by the collar from behind, pulling him off of his feet and dragging him back into the cover between the two buildings. Before he could scream, I clamped my hand over his mouth, holding up a finger to my lips to shush him. 

”We can do this as painless as possible Chauncey. You’re going to tell me exactly where you got the drugs and from who and you might just be able to walk out of here.” My voice came out more like a growl than I wanted it too.

”Fu-fuck you!” Paxton’s voice was gravely, as if it was coming from the underbelly of the city itself, “I ain’t no snitch!”

”Well, that’s just not going to work.” I pulled the cigarette from in between my lips, quickly sniffing it out against the side of his neck, drawing a nearly inhuman howl from the dealer. “I’ve got an entire pack of these Chauncey. And I’m in no rush. Make this far easier on yourself.” 

”Alright, alright! I’ll tell you just let me go!” 

I made a mistake in that moment, letting my grasp of him go, giving him a chance to scramble to his feet. He didn’t make it very far before I clipped his heels from behind, sending him crashing loudly into a garbage can, spilling its contents all over the alley. That wasn’t a mistake I was going to make again as I quickly pounced, crashing my heel down just above his ankle, the sickening crack of his legs bones drowning out his yells for a moment.

”Where and who, Paxton? I’m not going to ask nicely again.”

”Th-the docks!” Chauncey rolled around in pain, clutching at his lower leg.

”A name, Chauncey. Give me a name.”

”Naugs! I only know him as Naugs! I’ve only ever seen him once!”

”But he will be there, right?”

”Ye-yes! He’ll be there! He doesn’t trust anyone else to move his product!”

”That’s all I needed to know.” I took a step back as if I was going to leave before stomping my foot forward, catching Paxton squarely in the jaw, knocking him out cold. Someone would find him eventually. Or they wouldn’t. Either way he was still getting off lightly.

I took the information that I was able to gather from Chauncey and sat on it for a few days. If I went running in without a plan than it would be the last thing I would ever do. Someone running an operation like Naugs was wouldn’t take kindly to a random stranger walking into his pet project. It most likely wasn’t the smartest thing I was ever going to do but this wasn’t something that I could ever let slide. There were far too many innocent lives being fucked up just because he didn’t care. There was making money and than everything else for him. 

It wasn’t terribly hard figuring out where down at the docks he was working out of. It was the only place that had security wandering around covering each and every square inch of the place. This certainly wasn’t going to be an easy thing to pull off. The thought occurred to me to call in some back up but I didn’t really want to put anyone else in danger. It was bad enough I was putting my own life on the line, I certainly wasn’t going to bring anyone else into this hell. 

I took my time, keeping a safe distance as I kept an eye on the place. Naugs may have been loaded with cash but it didn’t seem like he paid for the best assets. Most of his security force were out to lunch for the most part, there minds clearly in other places than protecting their boss. There were gaps in their sight lines, ones that if I worked carefully and quickly, I could easily exploit. 

I waited for the fancy car to pull up as the sun was just beginning to set above the top of the building. A men stepped out with a finely pressed suit, who I could only assume was Naugs, flanked on both sides by two rather large men who were armed to the teeth. I doubt there was much time when they weren’t at his side but I wasn’t going to worry about that at the moment, I could cross that bridge when I got there. I waited a beat longer until I watched the three of them head inside through the heavy steel door before I began inching closer to the building. I was still far enough away that no one was paying any attention to me yet.

Using the cover of the darkening dusk, I slipped between the guards, swiftly covering the space between them and the entrance door rather quickly. Things were a little iffy once I made it inside. I didn’t know the layout of the warehouse and was really playing it by ear at this point. It wasn’t my best plan but it was better than nothing at this point. I was truly thinking on my feet. I was sticking to the shadows, hugging close to the large boxes that dotted the place. All I had to do was stay out of sight for as long as I could and I would be just fine. 

The inside of the building was much more filled than the outside. There had to have been at least double the security force but also all the workers that were moving about, loading and unloading the large crates. I had to think quickly, if I was in here for too long eventually someone would notice that I wasn’t supposed to be here and it would be all over. 

Under the cover of a shadow, I waited until one of the workers came to inspect one of the boxes, sneaking up behind him and wrapping my right arm tightly across his throat, squeezing until he grew limp. I dragged the lifeless body deeper into the shadows before I quickly managed to change clothes, pulling on the hard hat last. At least I could move about freely now without drawing too much attention. There were enough people working in and out of here that I could fall into the mix and no one would really know if I should or should not be there. It was certainly going to allow me to get a bit closer.

With the layout of the place, Naugs office sat above the working floor with large panels of glass so that he could look down on his operation. It made spotting him much easier than I thought it would. I made it look like I belonged for a bit until I pulled the lighter from my pocket discreetly and flipping the flame alive. I wasn’t exactly keen on losing my favorite lighter but I needed some sort of distraction. It only took a moment or two of black smoke billowing into the building from the crate that I dropped it into beige the panic set in. Clearly things in here were highly flammable.

As the workers began filing out in droves I slipped into the crowd, making my way over to the boss’ fancy black car that was parked out front. I used the car as cover, standing on the far side of it as Naugs made his way outside, still flanked by his main guards. He was pushing through the crowd, nearly tossing people out of his way as he looked more pissed off than anything else.

I waited until he felt that he was safely in the back seat before I reached into the waist band of my pants, slipping out the pistol in one swift motion before immediately pulling the trigger. The first bullet shattered the window, catching the nearest body guard in the side of the head, causing him to lurch backwards. Naugs sat in the middle completely dumbfounded. Not in his wildest dreams did he ever think that anyone would ever take a shot at him, let alone succeed. His eyes caught on mine as I squeezed the trigger once more, catching Naugs in the center of the chest before I broke out into a sprint, shucking off the workers gear as I did. 

I could hear the yells and cries behind me but it didn’t take me long to mix back into the bustling city, becoming just another nameless face in the crowd.

Big Rick was the owner of a pawn shop in the heart of Hell’s Kitchen. He was a vicious little man that had enough connections in and out of the law that made him more dangerous than he rightfully should have been. With friends in high and low places he made it a point to make an example out of anyone that happened to cross him. I really wouldn’t have put him on my radar at all if Miss Taiga hadn’t come to me asking for my help. Her younger sister got mixed up with him, stealing a ring from his shop that wasn’t that big of a deal but he couldn’t let it be known that someone pulled the wool over his eyes. He had used his connections within the police department to have the book thrown at her and now she was facing hard time, years in lockup if he had his way. 

That wasn’t exactly something that I could let slide, especially considering very few of his dealings were actually on the up and up. He murdered and stole and even had a laundry list of hired guns for when he wanted to keep his distance and his hands clean. One of those hired guns just happened to be the arresting officer in this case.

He was a clever man, smart enough to know that someone would come looking and asking the wrong questions if he flat out had her removed. He was tapped in to the network within the city and certainly knew who Taiga was. That would have been the least of his problems if something happened to her little sister so he went the other route, the one where the law was behind him. 

The smart play would have been to wait it out and have my day in court but with his connections and cash flow, there was no guarantee that he wouldn’t bribe the right people and if that were to happen, my hands would have been tied. I had to pay him a visit, see if I could talk some sense into him at the very least. I was still relatively unknown around these parts and he struck enough fear in those he dealt with that I truly doubted if it would work or not. I had to at least try.

I took my time making my way to his shop, trying to decide on the best course of action as I made my way through the streets. I stayed off of the main roads for the most part, I really didn’t need anyone following or recognizing me at a later date but I finally managed to get there, pushing through the door as the tiny bell above it chimed loudly. Big Rick was sitting behind the register, barely looking up from his paper as he sat there. I probably wasn’t the type of his usual clientele so he didn’t seem to notice me all that much. I was used to that by now though. Making my way to the counter, I tried to look as docile as possible. The last thing I needed was to spook him into reaching for the revolver that he always kept loaded beneath the counter top.

”Afternoon, Sir. I’d like to speak with you about a little business, if that’s alright.” I rested my palms on the glass case that he sat behind.

”Buying or selling?” His voice was gruff, the kind that smoked and drank too much. That much was evident by the opened container of whiskey that sat beside him, the smell filling my nostrils.

”Neither actually. I’d like to talk about the girl that was in here a few days ago, apparently she took something from you, a ring.”

That seemed to catch his attention as he put the paper down with a crinkle and slid his right hand into his lap, he gun now more accessible. “What of that thieving bitch?” There was a certain amount of venom in his words.

”I’ve been hired on as her lawyer, I was hoping that we could come to some type of agreement to have these charges dropped. She’s not a bad kid, just made a mistake. There isn’t any reason she needs to be locked up for years because of it.”

”Oh, is that right now? She’s lucky I haven’t taken more drastic measures yet. The inside of a prison cell is exactly what she deserves!” 

I should have known that things were going to go this way. As he reached for the revolver, I grabbed the neck of the opened bottle, swinging in one swift motion and shattering the glass as I struck him upside the head. The whiskey splashed over the countertop as he slouched forward, the gun clattering uselessly to the floor as his eyes glassed over a bit. I grabbed at his left wrist, pulling the blade from my waistband and slamming it hard into the top of his hand, drawing a spray of blood and a howl of pain from him. 

”I’m going to tell you exactly how this is going to go. You’re going to call your buddies on the force and tell them that you won’t be pressing charges. You’ve had a change of heart if you will. You’re going to let this one go or I’m going to be back and I’m definitely not going to be as nice as I have been today. Do we have an understanding?”

”Fu-fuck you!” He spat in defiance.

I didn’t say anything at first, just twisted the blade harshly, “Ye-yes! We have an understanding!”

”Good, that’s just what I wanted to hear.” I pulled the knife back with one swift motion, letting him fall back as I did. 

I heard him call out to me as I made my back to the front door, “If-if I ever see you again, I’ll fucking kill you!”

”If I ever see you again, you won’t get the chance Big Rick, clean yourself off and make the call.” I replied as the bell chimed loudly again.

There were sometimes just people that always thought that the rules didn’t apply to them. Maybe it was how they were brought up or who they associated with but they seemed to think that they were better than everyone else. One of those people was the reason that I was back in Detroit now. 

It had been sometime since I had ventured back into Bricktown, I had enough ventures to keep me occupied throughout the country that I didn’t really need to be back anytime soon. When I got the panicked call I knew right away that something needed to be done. There was a man running around with impunity. Terrorizing anyone he care across in any manner that he saw fit. I was never one to idly sit by while people were walked all over and I certainly wasn’t going to start now. 

I ended up taking the train into town from Manhattan, it wasn’t the quickest of trips but it gave me a chance to breathe on the situation. There was a solid part of me that didn’t want to get involved at all but I knew, deep down, that I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I turned a blind eye. 

Once I made it into the city, it wasn’t all that hard to find him. All I had to do was find the loudest voice in the room that wasn’t really saying all that much. He liked to hear himself speak even if the only people that were listening were doing it out of fear more than anything else. It was just a game to him, one that he would win on sheer nastiness and vitriol. Even his own body guards would roll their eyes and fake a laugh at the things that would come out of his mouth. They seemed like good guys but they knew where their paychecks were coming from and weren’t going to walk away from easy cash. I couldn’t fault them for that, they most likely had families to care for and they weren’t going to do anything to take food out of their mouths, even if it did mean biting their tongues and looking the other way. 

It wasn’t going to be cheap but I had come prepared for that. If I could get a couple of them to look the other way than this would be a whole lot easier than it could have been or rightfully should be. I just had to trust that I had enough in my case to make things go smoothly.

I found the bar that he frequented on most nights, which wasn’t all that hard. I could tell the servers and most of the staff weren’t entirely thrilled with him either. After a bit of small talk with the manager I put two and two together that he had a rather large tab that had been running for sometime now. On top of that he showed the workers there the same respect that he gave to everyone else outside his little bubble which was absolutely none. 

Quickly shifting gears, I decided to use the case for the workers instead of his body guards. I got the feeling they could use it a bit more. It wasn’t all that hard, I simply caught his main waitress just as she stepped around the bar with drinks in hand. I explained the situation and she was more than happy to pause for a moment as I broke open the capsule and emptied the contents into the rum and coke. Swishing it around for a second or two until it had completely dissolved, I slipped her a stack of bills before I sent her on her way with a rather large smile on her face. 

Inhad been sitting at the bar for ten minutes or so before I heard the clatter of glass shattering against the floor, turning to see the man failing miserably at clutching at the table before he too hit the floor, an off color white foam bubbling up out of his lips as scratched uselessly at his throat. Finishing my drink up in a slow pull, I handed the case over to the manager before heading back outside and avoiding the chaos.

It took some legwork and more than a couple of favors but I managed to get myself assigned as Scot Prozens public defender. Scot had made it a habit of treating women as if they were beneath him, taking what he wanted when he wanted, especially after they said, “No.” From everything that I heard, that didn’t stop when he was sent into the pen either. He was a large hulking figure, preying on anyone that he deemed weaker than himself. He relished in making an already miserable existence even worse for his targets. He was a loud mouth as well, consistently bragging about his conquests to anyone within earshot. 

Scot wasn’t exactly the type of client that I usually took on but this was a different circumstance all around. In the streets and inside he thought of himself untouchable, destroying anyone who might happen to disagree or step towards him. It was only blind luck that his last victim didn’t succumb to her wounds on the outside and had the guts and the wherewithal to take her story to the proper authorities. He had left her for dead in an alleyway with a broken wrist, shattered orbital and a severely broken nose. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a remorseful bone in his body, evident by the way he forced himself upon those that were also locked up as well. 

I wasn’t exactly proud of it, but I managed to work the system, getting him off on a technicality. It was a necessary evil to make sure that he couldn’t terrorize anyone anymore. Even in my limited interactions with him I could tell how slimy he was as a human being. Clearly, doing time didn’t change him one bit, once a rapist, always a rapist. 

As soon as he was out, he did exactly what I had expected him to do, heading towards his usual stomping grounds, a beat up old dive bar well off of the beaten path. The type of place that only the dregs of society would frequent. I slipped inside a few minutes after him, pulling my cap down to conceal my face and finding a dimly lit corner to sit and watch. Prozens was brazen with his actions, openly groping the young waitress that had the unfortunate task of being his server. Between that and his lewd comments, she was nearly in tears every single time she had to head towards his table. I felt bad for her, she had no idea what type of man she was dealing with and it was only going to get worse from there. 

Scot drank for hours, demanding drink after drink until last call was finally called. He even put up a fight about that before finally relenting, smashing his last empty glass onto the dirty floor before he wandered outside. It was too hard to know what he had planned and sure enough, as soon as he was outside, he moved to the shadows in the alley, keeping a watchful eye on the front entrance. 

It wasn’t too long before the waitress finished up cleaning for the night, closing out the register and grabbing her coat from the back room. As soon as she was within grasp, Scot grabbed her by the wrist, hauling her off her feet and dragging her kicking and screaming into darkened alleyway. If I hadn’t been around the corner, waiting just like her was, her pleas would have fallen on deaf ears. 

I quickly closed the distance between us, slipping into the shadows between the two buildings. Luckily, he was a bit preoccupied at the moment with his back to me. I kicked my leg forward, catching him in the side of the knee with a sickening crunch as he crumbled to the ground with a yelp. I had managed to catch him off guard and crippled his knee. I wasn’t expecting that to be the end of it though as he stumbled to his feet, barely able to put any weight on his right leg.

“I’m going to kill you, you son of a bitch!” He spat out. Which sounded more like a promise than a threat.

I didn’t bother saying anything in return, I just circled him so that I was between him and the waitress who was too terrified to do much of anything. I keep myself at a bit of a distance, as soon as he lunges forward, his right knee collapsed, sending him to the asphalt where I was just out of reach. I slammed my heel down hard on his left wrist, pinning him there as he grabbed at my pant leg with his free hand. I kicked with my other leg hard, catching him in the ribs a couple of times until I could hear his gasps for air. The thought occurred to me of just ending this now but the way that he terrorized anyone he wished for pushed those thoughts away rather quickly. There wasn’t a chance that I wasn’t going to let him go without feeling the fear that he set upon so many men and women. 

I stepped back with the foot that had him pinned but the damage was already done. With his leg in shambles and the ability to breath now gone, he wasn’t a threat to anyone anymore, especially his next target that managed to get up and take off running in all of the confusion. Grabbing him around the collar, I hauled him up to his feet, landing well placed body shots as he staggered on his one good leg. Scot tried his best to swing at me but even if he didn’t connect there was no power behind any of his punches at this point. Catching his wrist, I swept his good leg as I pulled hard on his arm, the jostle tearing it from its socket as he fell to his back, holding it uselessly to his chest now. I stepped over him now, raining down fists into his unprotected face. I wasn’t exactly sure how many landed before I knelt over him, pressing the cold steel of my pistol against his chest as I unloaded the clip.

”Your days of hurting people are through.”

Kirsty grabs her passport, some salt and dehydration medication, and eagerly rushes out to her next assignment.  She's been told to research "the Untouchables" and, at last, she thinks to herself, she has been given a brief to investigate and report on the "caste system" which sadly deems certain classes of people to preordained stations in life in the Indian subcontinent.  Kirsty had been up all night, she had met a very cute man in a Chicago bar, and felt he could be "the one."  Uncharacteristically for her, she took him, wishing to consummate the passion she felt for him.  The man, it transpired, was a former inmate, and this led to some very interesting conversations and a distinct lack of physical union, for what he proposed was certainly not something that she is equipped to provide.  But they have decided to become friends anyway.  But all of this excitement has meant that she didn't have time to read "The Untouchables."  She rushes over to Matt_Murdock and asks him some questions.

"Mr Murdock, why did you choose this particular caste to write about?  What do you think about the colonial situation over there?  Do you feel that there will be peace in our time?"

The train ride into Detroit was rather uneventful, which was perfectly fine by me. It gave me a chance to run through the details in my mind and give me a chance to plan the best course of action. The anonymous telegram that I received gave enough details right down to the time of day the priest would be out and about that I could time everything out perfectly. I really didn’t want to have this meeting within the church walls but if it came down to it, I wouldn’t have a problem with that at all. It even gave me his home address, although from everything that I gathered, he rarely spent much time in mansion.

I stretched my arms high above my head, my knuckles popping loudly as I stepped off the train. It was getting to be a bit tiresome wandering back and forth across the country but it was a necessary evil at this point. If everyone else was living in too much fear to do anything then that responsibility was going to fall on my shoulders. 

Pulling the piece of paper from my pocket for one last time, I read over the address of the parish once more before crumpling it up and tossing it in the waste bin. I had enough time on the ride into town that I didn’t need it for anything else anymore. I made my way down to the curb, hailing a cab for a moment in the spring sun before climbing into the first one that pulled up and giving the driver my destination. I assumed he figured I was just like any other god fearing catholic but he wouldn’t have known me from any other traveler that care into town.

The church was out a little ways from the center of town, more near the outskirts where the people there were just struggling to get by. The more I thought about it in the ride the more infuriated I was getting. These people had next to nothing and the priest was taking their hard earned cash and throwing it away for his own purpose. Lavish trips, fancy cars, nights spent in the closest whorehouse, the whole nine yards. He had shattered whatever promises he made to his parish as well as to his god.

I tipped the driver well as he pulled up in front of the church before I stepped out with my bag in tow. The days sermons were over now and he should be the only one left inside. It wasn’t the ideal place for a thing such as this but sometimes I didn’t get a choice in that.

The church itself was massive, easily the most gaudy, well maintained building for miles. That wasn’t exactly saying much though, considering everyone in this part of town was hovering around the poverty line. Inside it was even more impressive with gorgeous floor to ceiling stained glass windows that let the light in as well as a cathedral ceiling that seemed to stretch upwards endlessly. The place was empty as far as I could tell but I could hear muffled voices coming from behind the curtains. I maneuvered closer through the pews, each step making it clearer and clearer what I would find at the end.

I wasn’t at all surprised when I slipped past the pulpit. The priest’s robes were strewn onto the ground, his hand holding the gag in place as he stood behind the man muffling his screams. It didn’t seem like the young man was enjoying this encounter as he had a heavy rope tied tightly around his neck that was connected to his hands so he had no way of escape. It seemed like the telegraph was spot on with what I would find here.

Taking slow, deliberate steps, I kept quiet until I was with arms reach. Reaching forward I grabbed the priest by the shoulder as I jammed my foot into the back of his knee, dragging him away from his victim and slamming his back hard into the ground.

“That doesn’t seem very catholic like.” I pinned him there with my knee against his throat, reaching back with my free hand to cut the ropes that bound the young man. For the first time, I was able to get a good look at him. He was just a kid probably no older than fifteen. As soon as he pulled the gag out of his mouth he took off running, pushing by me as he made his way to the exit. 

I turned my attention back to the priest who’s face had drained of color, going white in fear as he began to plea, “Please-please dont do this. I can get you whatever you want! Money! Gold! Let me go! God help me!” 

”God isn’t here now, you made sure of that. This isn’t about money. This is about your actions. You’re supposed to be a beacon of hope. A light in the darkness but all you are is darkness.”

I plunged the blade into his upper thigh as I twisted it, applying more pressure onto his neck to stifle any screams. As I pulled the blade back, his blood began to spurt, I had hit an artery that was now spewing blood out. If he didn’t get to a hospital rather quickly he was going to bleed out, most likely before he even reached the front doors. I thought about taking the blade across his throat and putting him out of his misery but that was more than he deserved. I brought the blade up high again before slamming it into his other leg, this time dragging it upwards. 

I left him there to succumb to his wounds as I wipe the blade on the floor beside him, “Make sure to tell the devil that it was Matt Murdock who sent you to see him.”

He’d rather be dead than have to deal with lying scum like you.

It was more tiresome than I would have cared for but I managed to box away Matt’s belongings, leaving nothing in the offices of Nelson & Murdock but his old furniture And the stacked cardboard boxes. I only wished that I could have seen this place in action. I assumed that Matt would have spent most of his time here, evident by the now nearly empty whiskey bottle that sat on his desk. Granted I may have had a hand in emptying it as well.

As I sat in his desk chair, I began pulling the papers from the desk drawer. Most of it was paper work that I couldn’t begin to understand but there was one notebook that piqued my interest. It was filled with messages asking for Matt’s help for one thing or another. From what I could gather it was all about the people who couldn’t help themselves, begging for him to help in anyway that he could. 

Matt was never one to turn away anyone who came to him and I got the feeling that on more than one occasion he would take it upon himself to put a stop to whatever bad luck had befallen them. I had no illusions that I was even half the man that Matt was but this seemed like it would have held some serious weight to him. I didn’t exactly know what happened or how it went down but this was something that he would have kept doing as long as he could have. That was just the way of him.

I finished the last of the whiskey as I sat there contemplating. If this was something that Matt felt passionately about then I couldn’t just let it fall to the way side. It wasn’t in my nature to help those less fortunate the way that it was for Matt but it was probably the least that I could do to honor his memory. Tucking the small notebook into my inside vest pocket, I stood before making my way over to the office door, shutting the lights off at Nelson & Murdock one last time.

Billy_Russo, son, I heard Matt was a fucking midget.

What do you say?

It wasn’t exactly my cup of tea but the pay day was far too vast to pass up. It certainly helped matters a bit that there were numerous messages left on Matt’s answering machine detailing exactly what type of person this was. From everything that I was able to piece together they were one of those people who felt the need to keep others underfoot to make themselves feel important, as if they mattered. The truth was that once they were gone, no one would bat an eye. The world would just keep on spinning, albeit a bit nicer.

It wasn’t all that hard to find them either, they seemed to be on every street corner, feeding that egomaniacal streak that just couldn’t be satiated. They seemed to enjoy hearing themselves speak because god knows there weren’t all that many that were listening. I didn’t know what it was but truthfully I didn’t care, I really wasn’t in the mood to listen to way they talked to others, the way that they needed to make themselves feel important. They were simply a tool, and as soon as they served their purpose they would be tossed to the wayside like so many that came before them.

I found a quiet bar off to the side in hopes that I could shut it out but that goddamn voice just seemed to travel. It was a constant ringing in the ears like an air raid siren that wouldn’t go away. As soon as it quieted down for a moment it would come back tenfold. I was hoping I could just ignore it but sure enough, after I was finishing up my second beer, it walked into the bar, even louder than before. They felt the need to be the loudest voice in the room, belittling everyone that they crossed paths with. 

And still, I tried to ignore it, tune it out completely but it continued to drone on and on. At this point I wasn’t even sure they knew what they were saying. 

I waited until they finally found a seat after wandering through the room speaking down to everyone. They sat with their back to the bar, going on and on about how they were the greatest and had so many powerful friends. The amount of delusion was getting to be a bit sickening by now. If they weren’t careful their god complex wouldn’t be able to be put away. 

With the empty bottle in my hand, I made me way through the small crowd, chuckling lightly to myself as I watched the constant eye rolls in their direction. At least I wasn’t the only one growing weary of this song and dance. As soon as I was within arms reach I swung the bottle forward hard, shattering the bottle over the back of their head and sending them crashing forward, tipping the table over with a crash. The others at there table were slow to react not really knowing what was going on but as they reached for their weapons I was faster on the draw, squeezing off shots center mass as they too went sprawling to the floor with audible gasps. 

I stood over them as the clutches at the blood that was flowing from the back of their head. They were far to dazed at this point to do much but I doubted if that mattered much. They would just keep going on and on one way or another. I trained my gun downwards, “No one wants to hear it anymore.”

Pulling the trigger, I sent two rounds into the back of their skull before I straightened my tie and went back to sitting at the bar, “I’ll have another beer please.”

There were times when the untouchables were being protected from on high. Maybe they poured money into this world or maybe them being around kept the heat solely focused on them, whatever it was, it wasn’t right but it was allowed for one reason or another.

There was one such man, Kristian, that seemed to relish in the fact that he could do anything that he wanted and get away with it. He’d push people towards suicide, going as far as to offer to pay for it, sexually harass others, there just seemed like there were no limits to the depths of depravity that he wouldn’t slink to. And yet, nothing was ever done about it. He could get away with murder as long as the higher ups continued to turn a blind eye to it all. Which is exactly what they did time and time again. 

There were some people that had the guts to stand up to him but they were dealt with swiftly, either removed completely from the board or slandered and ridiculed over and over again until they were beat down. It was clear as day what Kristian was doing but that didn’t seem to matter for one reason or another. As long as the blind eyes and appeasements continue to happen it was not only allowed, but condoned as well. 

After rummaging through the file on Matt’s desk, it wasn’t hard to see at all that something needed to be done. Even if it was a losing cause it still needed to be taken up. The world would be a better place for all if he simply wasn’t in it anymore. Even if it was a bit hastily decided, I picked up my colt from the desk, checking the slide before tucking it underneath my jacket into the shoulder holster there. 

There wasn’t much time to set things in motion so I skipped the train this time around, opting for the quicker travel of an airplane. The airport was quieter than I thought it would be as I swiftly purchased my ticket before boarding the plane. I tried my best to relax as I found my seat but I found myself shifting uncomfortably in my chair. The closer I got to my destination, the more my blood began to boil. I had the file with me and reading over each nasty thing that Kristian did was only proving that this needed to be done some time ago.

By the time the plane touched down I was more than ready to go. I was one of the first to depart making it out to the street before deciding to skip a cab and try my luck with walking.

I wasn’t too worried with where he was because frankly, it didn’t matter in the slightest. He could be surrounded by all the body guards that he could afford but I was more than confident that given the option, they would turn a blind eye like the ones who had continually condone his behavior. It was an hour, maybe two later that I came upon the group, Kristian standing on his soap box, speaking down to each and every person that made the mistake of engaging him. He didn’t seem to care how he was portraying himself. I wasn’t sure if I should had been expecting anything else from him. That was just who he was.

I didn’t want to do it but I had to get the attention of his body guards first. Deftly slipping out my pistol, I fired one shot into the back of one of the man’s calf, sending him clutching at his leg and falling to the ground with a yelp. I immediately put my hands into the air, making sure I kept a solid grip on my gun. 

”You all know who you work for,” I began, keeping my voice even keeled, “You know the type of man, and I use that term very loosely, that your boss, Kristian, is. Is that really someone who you want to eat a bullet for? You’ve been around him enough to know that he doesn’t care about anyone but himself. If it meant his continuing on, you all know that he’d feed you to the wolves without a second thought.”

I held my breath slightly as I waited for the other foot to drop but I had been right so far. I watched as one by one, the men lowered their weapons and began holstering them. Without so much as a look at their boss, they picked up their fallen friend and began dispersing, leaving only me and Kristian and anyone on the other side of the street who had stopped to see what all the ruckus was all about. 

I could see the gears starting to spin in his head as his face began to drain color slightly. “Get back here! Don’t you know who I am?!” He pleaded loudly but no one was paying any attention to him now. “Don’t you know who my friends are?! I have so many of them! You all are going to pay for this. My friends really like me! Don’t you know that?!”

I couldn’t help but laugh out loud at his pathetic attempts to make himself sound far more important than he actually was. It took no more than four sentences for his people to walk away without even giving him the time of day. “You’re alone Kristian, like you’ve always been. You’re nothing more than a tool that once outlived your purpose, would be tossed away just like you’ve done to so many before. You’ve been weighed, you’ve been measured and you’ve been found wanting. You’re so called friends, the ones watching your back, they aren’t here because they don’t care about you. You’re nothing to them just like you’re nothing to the rest of us.”

Slowly putting my hands down, I fired a single shot into his upper thigh, sending him spinning off of his soap box, landing in the sidewalk with an audible thud, his high pitched scream echoing off of the buildings that lined the street. As I strode forward, I thought of ending it quickly but that was much more than Kristian deserved. He deserved to suffer like he did to countless others. I placed the heel of my shoe on his bullet hole, pressing down hard as I ground my shoe into him. By now his screams shifted to a pathetic whimper. “If there was ever a person who brought this upon himself it would be you.”

Grabbing him by the collar, I lifted him to his feet as he continued to whimper and plead, his begs not even registering with me by now. I threw his back roughly up against the building, landing a heavy punch into his rib cage causing him to double over. I could have stopped there but I kept swinging as if I was hitting a heavy bag. Over and over I landed shots, switching between his midsection to his face and back again. The blood began to drip down his face, covering him completely as it stained the sidewalk all around us. I couldn’t really say how many times I hit him or for how long but as soon as my arms began to feel heavy, I drew in a deep breath, slowing my heart rate considerably. “Your days have always been limited here. It was only a matter of time before you outlived your usefulness.”

In one quick motion I produced the blade that I had tucked away, slamming it into his stomach with as much force as I could muster. Kristian didn’t deserve a quick end, he deserved a slow, painful end. An end that would stay with him even in the next life. I left him as a crumpled mess on the street, sobbing like the child he was.

After everything in the Midwest, I let things die down a bit. There wasn’t any reason that I had to rush into anything so soon. I probably should have stayed away but I found myself back at Nelson & Murdock checking the messages again. I wasn’t exactly sure why I was there but something kept telling me that there was more work to be done. 

One of the messages that stuck in my mind was for a name I had heard before. I had served overseas with Timothy Rancher, a hulk of a man from somewhere in Idaho. Even in the midst of war he seemed to enjoy the carnage, revel in it even. It was the first time I ever heard someone laugh while they cut down people in a hail of gunfire. A sick, twisted laugh that still stuck with me even after all these years. It shouldn’t have been much of a surprise that he continued on his path of destruction after he had been discharged.

It took some digging and some asking around but I managed to piece together that Rancher had become a hired gun. He was willing to take on any contract as long as the pay was good, unfortunately, the included women and children if need be. He didn’t seem to have a problem with things like morality. A paycheck was a paycheck, even if it meant removing entire families. He had become known for silencing witnesses as well, which made tracking him down a bit easier actually, all I had to do was follow the wake of bodies.

A day or two had passed before my informat called back. Someone had just accepted a ticket for an entire family up in Boston, husband, wife and two young kids. They didn’t have a name but that seemed like it was right in Rancher’s wheelhouse. Even in the hitman world, there were few and far between that would take up a contract like that.

I always kept a bag ready to go stuffed under Matt’s old desk for just such an occasion. I grabbed my wallet as I slid the bag out, slinging it over my shoulder in one motion. If I hurried down to the station I could make it up to Boston in a couple of hours at the quickest. I rushed out the door, making sure to lock it up behind me before I skipped the cab and hurried my way down the sidewalk.

The ride into New England was nicer than I had expected. Spring was in full bloom by now with the trees all a lush green. It was nice to be able to relax a bit and see some sights before more pressing matters took over. As soon as the train cars pulled into the station I hopped in a cab and headed for the target’s address. I was hoping that I was there in time and wasn’t stumbling upon a crime scene. 

The house itself was on the outskirts of the city, an older building like the others that dotted the street with well manicured lawns. I didn’t want to scare them but I had to make sure that they understood the gravity of the situation. With my bag in tow, I walked up the front path, my knuckles rapping loudly against the wood of the front door. 

After a moment or two the door pulled open a crack as a smaller looking woman held the door open, “Can I help you?”

”Afternoon ma’am,” I slid my hat off of my head, “My name is Billy Russo, I was wondering if your husband might be home and I could speak with him.”

She eyed me up and down for a moment before calling back into the house behind her,“Thomas, hunny, someone is here for you. Please come in Mr. Russo.”

With a polite smile, I stepped inside, making sure that the door was closed behind me before I placed my bag on the ground next to my feet. The man I presumed to be Thomas came around the corner in his Officer blues, his revolver clenched tightly in his right hand. “You won’t be needing that, Sir, not at this moment at least. My name is Billy, I’m from New York, I got word a few days ago that a contract has been placed on your and your family’s life.” I could see the color redden in his cheeks as he clenched the handle a bit harder, “I’m not here to collect, quite the opposite actually. I’m here to stop the man who is. A Timothy Rancher.”

”Goddamn it!” Thomas spat, a twinge of fear laced in his words, “I should have just fucking walked away! What do I do now?”

”I’m not sure how much time until he makes his way here but if there’s anything I know of him, he’ll wait until nightfall. That leaves you a few hours to get some place safe. Preferably quietly. Load up a few suitcases with a couple days worth of clothes and grab a cab. You’ve got to leave the car in the driveway so he thinks that you are all home. I’ll be here when he does show up. He will most likely try to stage it as a robbery gone wrong but he won’t be expecting me to be here. I can put an end to it while the rest of you stay safe.”

Thomas seemed to think it over for a brief moment, weighing his options before he tucked his revolver away and hurried off into the other room to pack some things up. After half an hour or so the things were packed and a cab pulled up into the driveway. Before leaving, Thomas shook my hand firmly, “Thank you for this. How will I know when it’s safe to come back?”

I thought about it for a moment before replying, “Pay attention to the papers. This one will probably make it in there.”