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--donation bonus (day #27, post 1/5)--
David tried not to grimace. He hadn’t seen this coming. And he should have. He had left himself exposed to this assault, despite already knowing that Abolish would not be here to protect him. Which was the strangest bit of irony here--as volatile and dangerous as the Abolishers were, they had also been serving as guards for the princes up to now. Nola had made sport of terrorizing anyone else David hired to protect him, and he knew that she was not the only one to act as such.

If only he’d realized that Luther also had access to Abolish’s plans. It was sloppy to presume otherwise. He’d been so preoccupied with worrying about the attack on Rendon that he’d forgotten about the more immediate threats.

There was no time to be upset with himself, however. The situation required his full attention.

“How about this?” said Luther. “If Meriwether can convince me that he is not a threat, then I will not kill him.”

David clenched his jaw, struggling to think and failing. The pressure was getting to him. He didn’t know what to do. He wasn’t prepared for this at all, and he hated himself for it.

“I have a better idea,” said Meriwether. “Put down the gun now, and I will attempt to prevent you from being executed.”

Luther seemed amused. At first. But as he stared at his younger brother’s unflinching expression, Luther’s smile began to wane. “Bluffing will not help you,” he said.

“Last chance,” was all Meriwether said.

And Luther blinked at him, visibly uncertain.

David was perhaps even more confused, looking to Meriwether for an explanation, but the man was too busy staring Luther down. To David’s utter astonishment, Luther did decide to put the gun down on the table in front of him.

Meriwether picked it up and trained it on Luther now, who raised his arms.

David’s mouth hung open slightly. “...What just happened here? Meri, what--?”

“I am not entirely sure myself,” said Meriwether.

“So you were bluffing,” growled Luther.

“No, I was not. You already know that I am a terrible liar. You made the correct choice.”