Next of Kin Part 30 - The Long Game

"This is ridiculous. I can walk!" Maggie complained as she sat in the wheelchair, arms crossed and a full-on glower on her face.

"Sure you can, but you're not supposed to Mags," Winn said with a smile. He leaned to the side, whispering up at James, "Where's Alex. If she gets up, I'm not stopping her."

"If she gets up, I don't think you can stop her man," James replied. Speaking to Maggie, he added, "Just relax a minute, pretty lady. Alex will be back in a minute, and then we'll all head upstairs."

"Don't 'pretty lady' me Olsen. You're prettier than most ladies I know," Maggie snapped, staring up at him.

"Heh, heh. You're pretty James," Winn said, the smile falling off his face when James glared at him. Lips pursed, he scratched the back of his neck and looked away.

"Did you take you painkillers?" James asked Maggie.

"It's just Aleve," Maggie said, crossing her arms tighter and squirming. "I cracked my skull open. Well, technically Kara cracked my skull open for me. Still, you think I'd get some better painkillers. What I really need is a beer and a shot. Hey." She smiled up at the guys, looking from one to the other expectantly.

"No, Maggie, no," Winn said shaking his head back and forth quickly. "I'm pretty sure Alex would shoot us if we brought you alcohol. You're not supposed to drink in the hospital...I think. Right James?"

"Right. No alcohol in the hospital. Want me to push you into the hallway so we can look for Alex?"

"You touch me; I break your thumbs. Anyone pushes me, and I break their thumbs," Maggie threatened.

"You and Alex are kind of perfect for each other, you know?" James pointed out.

Maggie smiled sweetly and sincerely.

The door opened, and Alex strode in. "Okay, we're all set. Let's head up to Ms. Luthor's room."

"They won't get me a beer, babe," Maggie complained. "How long am I going to be stuck here? Can't I at least get a beer?"

"Not while you're in the hospital. We'll have an evaluation in the morning. Maybe we can get you out tomorrow," Alex replied as she moved behind the wheelchair.

"If you were stuck in the hospital, you'd want beer," Maggie reminded her girlfriend.

"If Alex ends up in the hospital it's probably alcohol poisoning," Winn whispered to James.

"What did you say?" Alex said looking up sharply at Winn.

"Nothing. I'm an idiot," he answered quickly.

Still staring at him she said, "You know I'm armed, right?"

He nodded. "I've met you. I assumed."

"Good assumption." She replied, putting her hands on the handles of the chair and saying to Maggie. "Ready to go for a ride?"

"You're not going to break Alex's thumbs?" Winn asked, shrinking back a little when Alex looked at him again.

"Nah, I need all of Alex's digits...recreationally," Maggie replied with a smirk.

While the boys tried and failed to get the image out of their mind, Alex cleared her throat. "Let's stay on task and get this over with. The sooner we do this, the sooner we can get a plan together against Lillian. As much as I hate to admit it, Lena Luthor probably has a better understanding of what goes on in her mother's disturbed mind than the rest of us do. She'll be a good resource." The words, 'if we can trust her' were left unsaid but hung heavy in the air.

The four of them rode up on the elevator to the seventh floor. They made their way to Lena's new room where only Alex had been so far. This time Alex unburdened herself of weapons at the door, handing them over to Kalia without argument, and they were all ushered inside. Within the room, Lena and Kara sat side by side, Lena in her wheelchair and Kara in a chair. Their shoulders touched, and they each held one side of a tablet, pointing and talking, both smiling.

Kara looked up at the newcomers, whispering something to Lena who gave one nod and took the tablet while the blonde rose still smiling. "Glad you could join us," Kara said giving out careful hugs, especially careful in Maggie's case. "How are you feeling Maggie?"

"Thirsty."

"You want some water?" Kara offered, a sincere and open look on her face.

"Ignore her Kara," Alex replied. "She's trying to get a beer. Let's just get down to business so we can get this over with."

Kara shrugged with one shoulder. "Want me to get some more chairs?"

"Sure that—"

"We'll stand," Alex said, cutting off Winn.

"Or that. Standing is good," Winn added, mainly to himself.

"You gentlemen are welcome to sit on the bed. It's a fairly comfortable surface once you're able to get out of it," Lena said.

"Thank you, Lena," James said, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Yeah, thanks, Lena," Winn agreed, perching on the edge of the bed a few feet from James. "There's room Alex."

"I'm good."

"I could get you a chair," Kara offered.

"I said I'm good. Let's just get down to business." Arms crossed, Alex leaned against the wall.

Kara sat back into her chair a bit heavily, relaxing a bit when Lena's hand touched her arm.

"Perhaps we should start with what we know of my mother's newest business dealings," Lena suggested. "Detective Sawyer?"

"Sure thing Luthor," Maggie replied with a head nod. "We know that the new gang moved in when there was a void in the underworld due to the break-up of the Dushku family. Things were ripe for the picking at that point. Normally gangs are territorial, and there is a good amount of in fighting. The biggest concern the NCPD has there is collateral damage. Civilians get in the way. Sometimes gangs will make an uneasy alliance, but it never lasts. These fuckers live and die by territory, and they don't like to share."

Maggie paused, making sure everyone seemed to have a good understanding of SOP, Standard Operating Procedure, for gangs. Though she wasn't usually on the gang task force, these new weapons had pulled her into it as part of the Science Division. She'd had a decent understanding of the workings before, but now she was getting down to the names, aliases, hangouts, and next of kin kind of detail.

"So this new gang, what we've dubbed The Ultra Gang, is breaking all the rules. They took over the Dushku territory, which is the waterfront. Their tech is unlike anything the other gangs have had though. They seem to be using it to set themselves up as some kind of overlords of the underworld. Many of the higher ups in the families aren't happy about it, but we've had quite a few of them fall off our radar, and some lieutenants take up the reigns."

"Excuse me," Lena said, holding up a finger. "I have a clarifying question, Detective."

"Shoot, Luthor," Maggie replied.

"I feel that there's an implication there, and I want to make sure that I'm inferring this properly. Are you saying that the heads of other gang families are being killed if they won't join up, and their subordinates are taking command?"