The Hellfire Club (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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nextgenerationmarvel2015-04-07 04:56 pm
ngm_hellfire) wrote in nextgenerationmarvel2015-04-07 04:56 pm
Entry tags:
A Little Revenge, Justly Earned (Marcelo)
Warning: Contains some fairly unpleasant violence.
The cancellation of all contacts with Veridian hadn't been a deathblow in and of itself, while it was a major disappointment for Shaw Industries, the fact was that the core of Shaw Industries' business was with America itself. The real damage was psychological. Whatever defeats or disappointments Sebastian Shaw had faced in his career previously, he'd led Shaw Industries to virtually uninterrupted growth and prosperity. He'd made the Board enormously wealthy and in exchange, they had given him their unstinting allegiance. There was often talk of the Board at Shaw Industries being the 'King's Men', but many of them had worn that badge with pride.
But the Brazilian setback had exposed other weaknesses in the company. It was reliant on continued contracts for heavy weaponry from the US government, but the fact was that many of those contracts were over and the government wasn't renewing all of them. Disengagement by some of Shaw Industries' partners had also played a part. It wouldn't be apparent for a month or two, but everyone knew what was coming- for the first time in over twenty years, Shaw Industries was going to post a loss for the next quarter.
It wouldn't be large loss, and in a company with a less thoroughly top-down leadership, it would probably come and go with only some mild reconstruction. But since Sebastian Shaw made all the main decisions, the loss would be pinned to him. People on the Board started talking. Some wondered if Sebastian's 'other job' had dug too far into his leadership on a corporate level.
That had been when Sebastian had contacted Crane, to reinforce his godlike leadership of the Board. It hadn't been hard, most of them would not have seriously contemplated rebellion anyway. It was precisely the sort of work Crane loathed, though. He'd found himself in dire need of some entertainment after that. Something to take his mind off of work.
The girl was a sweet young thing, obviously new to her trade- she was not a cunning enough actor to fake it. And Crane had been the picture of civility. Then she'd come home with him and he'd started. And now? Now that sweet thing was gently swaying on the end of a belt. Life is cheap, isn't it?, Crane thought as he casually sipped a glass of wine. He'd allowed her to speak her own will so she could beg, all in that sweet, innocent voice, while her hands and arms did the work. And then when the belt had cut off her breath, all she could do was stare at him. He could have cut her down if he'd wanted to, and sometimes he did, made them feel grateful. Just before he finished them another way. But he'd needed to watch someone die right then so he'd been a little hasty with her.
The man who'd given Marcelo the tip hadn't wished to be named. All he'd said was that he knew where Crane lived, and that he would be home that night.
The cancellation of all contacts with Veridian hadn't been a deathblow in and of itself, while it was a major disappointment for Shaw Industries, the fact was that the core of Shaw Industries' business was with America itself. The real damage was psychological. Whatever defeats or disappointments Sebastian Shaw had faced in his career previously, he'd led Shaw Industries to virtually uninterrupted growth and prosperity. He'd made the Board enormously wealthy and in exchange, they had given him their unstinting allegiance. There was often talk of the Board at Shaw Industries being the 'King's Men', but many of them had worn that badge with pride.
But the Brazilian setback had exposed other weaknesses in the company. It was reliant on continued contracts for heavy weaponry from the US government, but the fact was that many of those contracts were over and the government wasn't renewing all of them. Disengagement by some of Shaw Industries' partners had also played a part. It wouldn't be apparent for a month or two, but everyone knew what was coming- for the first time in over twenty years, Shaw Industries was going to post a loss for the next quarter.
It wouldn't be large loss, and in a company with a less thoroughly top-down leadership, it would probably come and go with only some mild reconstruction. But since Sebastian Shaw made all the main decisions, the loss would be pinned to him. People on the Board started talking. Some wondered if Sebastian's 'other job' had dug too far into his leadership on a corporate level.
That had been when Sebastian had contacted Crane, to reinforce his godlike leadership of the Board. It hadn't been hard, most of them would not have seriously contemplated rebellion anyway. It was precisely the sort of work Crane loathed, though. He'd found himself in dire need of some entertainment after that. Something to take his mind off of work.
The girl was a sweet young thing, obviously new to her trade- she was not a cunning enough actor to fake it. And Crane had been the picture of civility. Then she'd come home with him and he'd started. And now? Now that sweet thing was gently swaying on the end of a belt. Life is cheap, isn't it?, Crane thought as he casually sipped a glass of wine. He'd allowed her to speak her own will so she could beg, all in that sweet, innocent voice, while her hands and arms did the work. And then when the belt had cut off her breath, all she could do was stare at him. He could have cut her down if he'd wanted to, and sometimes he did, made them feel grateful. Just before he finished them another way. But he'd needed to watch someone die right then so he'd been a little hasty with her.
The man who'd given Marcelo the tip hadn't wished to be named. All he'd said was that he knew where Crane lived, and that he would be home that night.