Chapter Four
June 18th, 11:05 PM
Margot came home, set the duffel bag full of her Black Bobcat stuff on the kitchen table, and crashed on the couch.
What more could she do?
She hadn't seen Erin since she'd left the house last night. Erin had told her explicitly then not to follow her... And of course Margot didn't listen. She'd trailed her friend to Brian's apartment complex and waited in the parking lot. For hours. When she'd finally got anxious enough to snoop around inside, she'd found an open door that led to turned over chairs, wrecked furniture, and nobody in sight. She went into Brian's room and discovered Erin's clothes.
What had happened? Where had he taken her?
She'd checked her phone tracker again and again, but the red dot representing the Blue Lynx was as absent as it had been since the Spaniel had unmasked her. Worried but undaunted, she'd zipped around town, in costume, interrogating suspicious characters on the streets, looking for leads. She'd found nothing.
She had been up all night, and then continued to search through the next morning and afternoon. She'd even called the police at one point.
"Excuse me," she had said. "Have you all seen, umm, the Blue Lynx, lately?"
"Who is this?"
"Umm, just, uh, a curious person."
"Listen, lady, we don't keep tabs on where Miss Pussy spends her time. You'd probably do better calling the mob or something."
"Umm, do you have their number?"
She was getting desperate. Erin had been in predicaments before, and Margot knew better than to bet against her friend. It was when the moment was at its bleakest that the Blue Lynx typically found a way to prevail. But the clothes in the room... The ruined apartment... None of it looked good.
So she sat at the kitchen table, turned on her laptop, and gazed at it with red eyes. She'd give it one more shot tonight before bed. She wasn't giving up, no. She just had to get some rest. But one more chance, just for the hell of it, for Erin's sake, she had to...
She checked her e-mail. Nothing new, from Erin or anyone else of possible interest.
She checked her social media accounts. Only nonsense.
She sighed and typed "Blue Lynx sightings" into Google.
The fifteenth result down was a link to a Donator page titled, "Find a Cure with Help from the Blue Lynx."
Margot blinked, rubbed her eyes, and clicked the link.
On the top of the page was a photograph Margot had never seen before. It was the Blue Lynx, but not the Blue Lynx. It was definitely Erin, at any rate, but her signature blue spandex and white boots had been swapped out for some kind of black-and-white-striped dress. She was tied with seemingly hundreds of yards of rope to a metal dolly. The shot showed her from bare ankles to the top of her mussed hair.
She looked... Distressed.
"Oh my God," Margot said. "Oh my God."
She began reading the page, her eyes widening with each bizarre, terrifying sentence.
Greetings! My name is Regina Sunflower, and I work for Speaker of the House Brent Hammerson. As you probably know, Mr. Hammerson was recently crippled and put in a coma after an encounter with the costumed vigilante that goes by the name "The Blue Lynx."
For the last several months, my team has been at work for a way to cure Brent and return him back to his vital self. Unfortunately, research has hit some roadblocks. We are rapidly running out of the funds needed to help our friend. Thankfully, you can help!
As you can see, after months of trying, I have finally managed to capture the Blue Lynx. This pesky "superheroine" has been a thorn in the side of both me and our great city for too long. But now, with your generous financial support, she can be made to assist our cause, and maybe even find a cure for Brent.
In exchange for your donations, I will provide information and pictures of the Blue Lynx that SHE DOESN'T WANT YOU TO SEE. That's right. Each tier of your support will give you an inside look into the secret life of this very secretive little vixen. Ever want to know who she REALLY is? Do you want to see her really get worked over in a fight? These things can more can be yours for the right price. (See tiers below.)
I understand concerns about whether I really have the true Blue Lynx in my possession. To help quell any doubts, I provide only these pictures as well as my absolute guarantee that this is the famous Blue Lynx you've read so much about, and none other.
Margot scanned the three photographs, placing her fist against her lips. The first was of Erin in costume, passed out on a floor, her face to the ground, her mask beside her. The caption underneath the photo read: "The Blue Lynx, unconscious and ready for transport." The second was a close-up on the Blue Lynx's utility belt, a few flaps unbuttoned to show the weapons inside. The caption for this one said, simply, "Impossible to fake this." The third was of Brian, the Spaniel, knocked out in his civilian clothes, but wearing his mask. The caption underneath it told of "The Blue Lynx's ally, also in our possession."
"Oh my God," Margot repeated. She was beginning to piece the story together in her head. She continued reading.
Donors will receive the following rewards.
25 dollars: Glossy photo of the Blue Lynx tied and gagged.
50 dollars: Glossy photo of the Blue Lynx tied and gagged, without boots and gloves
100 dollars: Strand of the Blue Lynx's hair!
200 dollars: One of the Blue Lynx's famous "darts" (used to incapacitate "evildoers")
500 dollars: 5 minute video of the Blue Lynx losing a fight
1,000 dollars: Photo of the Blue Lynx naked, with mask
2,000 dollars: Audio recording of the Blue Lynx begging for your help (personalized with your name)!
5,000 dollars: Video footage of the Blue Lynx being unmasked
Other rewards possible! Please inquire for more details.
Thank you! -RS
Margot's mouth felt dry. Her head was spinning.
It was Sunny, the whole time. Sunny who had captured Erin, who was now holding her hostage, who was making the Blue Lynx's identity into a sick game.
"That bitch!," Margot said, slamming her fist into the kitchen table.
Where was she holding Erin? How was she allowed to do this? Had the cops found this Donator page yet? Did they even care? Did anyone?
Margot pressed her fingers to her temples, scanning the page again. She had a lead now. That was good. But this situation... It was not.
Erin's superheroine existence-- her life itself-- was in jeopardy.
"What... do I do?" Margot asked herself.
On to Chapter Five
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