another hero, another mindless crime

[osreborn]

WHO: NORMAN OSBORN and LADD RUSSO
WHERE: Hm. Around? Maybe Oscorp later.
WHEN: Friday the 21st
WARNINGS: Will edit if necessary.
SUMMARY: Now that Bullseye and Reilly have disappeared, Norman's on the lookout for a new employee.
FORMAT: Quick?



[ Norman had confirmed, for absolute certain, that both of his pawns had disappeared. It was inconvenient, but not impossible to work around -- he was reaching the point where he'd need them less, yes, but there was always a value in having muscle available that wasn't one's own.

But he thought he knew where he could find some. He suspected, anyway.

So Norman Osborn paged Ladd Russo's communicator, asking if he was interested in a job. ]

Comments

[sanguinosi]

[Ever since the Major got kicked out for good, Ladd had a difficulty with finding work. Or, to put it more accurately, he had a difficulty with actually looking for work in the first place. Still, the lure of a couple of extra bucks was always worth the effort.

He was quick to reply. Sometime afterwards, he shows up to their agreed meeting place, dressed in a conservative three piece suit. He's still not entirely sure what this guy looks like, considering how often he skips over most network feeds, and he wants to be certain he's in the right place first before he opens his big mouth.]

[osreborn]

[ Norman raised his eyebrow, walking toward the man he thought he recognized as his contact. He was dressed in a dark green business suit and holding a briefcase. ]

Mr. Russo, I presume?

[sanguinosi]

[And a smirk quickly plasters itself across Ladd's face.]

You presume right! An excellent guess, really. And you must be Mr. Osborn, if this whole meeting is going to be all formal.

[He holds out a hand for a handshake.]

[osreborn]

[ Norman smirked, accepting Ladd's hand and shaking it briefly, grip tight. ]

Pleasure to meet you officially, Mr. Russo. Perhaps we should take this meeting inside, what do you think?

[ He gestured to his car, which would take them to his office building. ]

[sanguinosi]

[Ladd slips his hands into his pockets now, glancing over at the car.]

Well, I'm imagining that most of our meeting won't exactly be the sort of stuff that the general public likes to learn about, now would it? I might be wrong though! You weren't really too specific with that message of yours, after all.

[osreborn]

I think the privacy will do us good. [ He smirks again. ] If nothing else, we will be discussing large sums of money.

[sanguinosi]

You sure know how to keep a guy interested, I'll give you that, Mr. Osborn! I'm almost glad that good ol' Bullseye disappeared into thin air now.

[He wastes no time in making his own way to the car, quite prepared to take his own seat if he's permitted.]

Of course, I miss him dearly. We were like brothers, y'know! Best friends until the end.

[The smile that lingers on his face is pretty quick to suggest that he's really not taking this meeting too seriously.]

[osreborn]

Where one door closes, others must open to keep everything in motion.

[ Norman sits down beside him, closing the door and raising his eyebrow. ]

At least you seem to know why you're here. That saves us some time. I don't suppose he ever mentioned me?

[sanguinosi]

[Ladd's already getting pretty comfortable in the seat, slumping back and dominating the space as much as he can.]

Y'know, I'm not sure. I never really paid much attention to the stuff he always complained about! That guy was a broken record, if you got the fucking broken record and jammed it down some asshole's throat.

[osreborn]

[ Norman crosses his legs, narrowing his eyes slightly but making no comment. He just raises his eyebrow slightly higher. The car starts, though for all he knows the conversation won't require a second location. ]

You know how he gets. Always holding some kind of grudge. I'm sure you're much more reasonable -- I'm not wrong to assume that, am I?

[ He smirks. ]

Describe your skills to me. I don't mind if you're brief.

[sanguinosi]

I've had a lot of experience with killing people. I've been a hitman most of my life. I'm much more interested in offing people with a little class, y'know? I'm not the sort of guy that'll poison your drink or any bullshit like that. I prefer a more direct approach.

And if you're wondering what sorts of people I'll kill, I don't care. So long as it ain't me, I'll kill anyone or anything you want.

[His eyes have been looking out of the window as he says this, but his last point causes him to glance over. Still grinning.]

Not to mention I won't do half as much complaining as my good friend Bullseye did. I'm a real professional, through and through!

[osreborn]

And discreet, I hope. [ Norman brushes his finger over his chin, thoughtfully. ] No, I assume. It doesn't take much to be more professional than Bullseye, yet that's a benefit nonetheless... as long as you're as efficient.

[ He smirks. ]

Which seems to be a given.

What about things beyond killing? Do you do anything else?

[sanguinosi]

I've got a few counts of arson under my belt, and I dabble in torture. Course, most of them end up dead by the end of it anyway, and I don't have much patience, but I know a thing or two.

[He taps his head with his forefinger.]

Anything else you want me to do, I'll probably handle, so long as it ain't below me. If you want your dry cleaning picked up, I'm sure you can find someone less murderous to do it for you, unless you want a couple of dead dry cleaners on your hands.

[It's pretty difficult to tell whether he's joking or not, considering how his tone of voice never seems to change.]

Not that I've got anything against dry cleaners! I just don't do errands, really. I'm a big picture sort of guy, you know?

[osreborn]

I don't need an errand boy. Don't worry. But I also try to save death for
special occasions. It's not quite as significant here, you understand. We have to choose our battles wisely.

[ Norman pulled his briefcase onto his lap, opening it slowly and showing Ladd that there was money inside. ]

Nonetheless.

I'm willing you offer you a very generous paycheck to do odd jobs for me, as I see fit. Subtlety and discretion required, obviously. Can you do that?

[sanguinosi]

[Ladd lets his eyes hover over the cash, as he turns to give his full attention to the man sitting next to him.]

Now, that is a very generous offer. In fact, I'm mightily impressed! Not many guys would be so sure of themselves to keep that much money right next to them, but I guess you're either very rich or very confident. I don't really mind either.

But I'm a man of integrity. Give me an example of one of my odd jobs before I sign away my skills to you.

[osreborn]

Both, actually. It's why I do so well for myself.

[ For now, he closes the briefcase again. ]

I've no doubt I'll have a few people for you to off, possibly even before the year's over. However. You may also be doing things like... hm, say, creating "accidents", or shadowing people that I want to keep an eye on. Roughing them up, if necessary. Understand?

[sanguinosi]

Ah, now, I can handle that. I know exactly when to stop beating a person so they'll stay alive a little longer. My uncle always said I was very talented, though he's dead now, so he ain't going to provide much of a reference, is he?

[He sniggers a little at that one, relaxing back into his seat once more, his strict attention mostly spent.]

You seem like a very generous employer, Mr. Osborn. Generous but heartless! I think that's a perfect combination, really.

[osreborn]

Oh, good. Then we might just get along. I won't think I'll be working you too hard, so I wouldn't worry about that. But you should know I don't take insubordination lightly.

Just a fair warning.

[ Norman smirks a little maliciously, glancing out the window for a moment; the car is pulling up in front of his office building. ]

Would you say we have a deal, then?

[sanguinosi]

Sure thing! A pleasure doing business with you, Mr Osborn. At least, I'm thinking that's what I'm supposed to say in a situation like this.

[He puts out his hand for one last handshake.]

[osreborn]

That's appropriate. A pleasure indeed, Mr. Russo.

[ Norman shakes his hand, and opens the car door. ]

I'm glad we could have this little talk.

[sanguinosi]

The pleasure was all mine, Mr. Osborn. You know how to reach me, next time you need a couple of heads blown off.

[Ladd wastes no time in climbing out of the car, before turning to walk down the street. He throws up a hand as a 'goodbye'.]