Never Judge



"I hope you have good news for me." Al said as he continued to monitor Annabeth's condition through the screen in front of him.

She was still passed out, but that wouldn't last long. 

He estimated that by the end of the call, Annabeth would be concious and ready for the third day of torture. 

"I've reached out to Uncle Ming." Eric started to say, making Al smile.

The fact that Eric managed to contact Guan Ming so quickly was a good sign.

Al actually expected it to take Eric a few days to contact their Uncle Guan Ming, the man was a busy one. 

"Did he respond?" Al asked.

"He has." Eric replied. "He asked me if the person I was sending was a reliable one. I promised him that you were and that he would have to interrogate you himself."

Al nodded, he understood that Guan Ming would be careful of the people who knew he ruled the underworld in his own country. 

His secret was even better kept than Al's father's.

"I'm sure he will torture us to get the truth." Al confidently answered. 

"Will you tell him who you truly are?" Eric asked, worried that their Uncle Guan Ming would regret extracting the truth from Al.

"If I can speak to him alone, I will." Al told his cousin. "If not then we will have to settle for our cover story, that one will still hold water."

"Alright." Eric told his cousin over the phone. "There is a downside, however."

"What?" Al asked.

"You have to be there in three days, Uncle Ming said he has urgent business to settle." Eric informed Al.

"I think Aunt Camilla might be pushing for him to come here." Al answered. "She and my mother were always close, with my death she will want to be there for her friend."

"And just like your father and Uncle Cedric, Uncle Ming is probably just as over protective." Eric chuckled.

Eric couldn't imagine what it would be like always worrying about the safety of the woman he would come to love.

For one's mind to always be tied to thinking about one person, it was a life he couldn't imagine for himself.

"What do we know about Uncle Ming and Aunt Camilla? They haven't visited in so long I don't think either of them will recognize me if they did see me." Al told his cousin.

"They have one child, Guan Zeng. He's a year younger than us but is supposed to be some sort of genius." Eric told Al.

"I wouldn't be surprised, both Uncle Ming and Aunt Camilla are brilliant." Al chuckled. "But I don't really remember Guan Zeng looks like."

"He was quiet and shy, but he did look up to you a lot, so try not to disappoint him when you meet him again." Eric told Al.

"I doubt I'll get to meet him, but I'll keep that in mind."  Al said, nodding as he watched Annabeth slowly stir.

He would have to drop the call soon, but he wanted to finish the conversation with Eric first. 

It would do no harm to let Annabeth stare into space in her cell.

"Is there anything else?" Al asked.

"Ummm. . ." Eric hummed over the phone, making Al frown.

Al could sense the hesitation in Eric's tone, he sighed and shook his head. He had no choice but to insist Eric told him everything.

"Out with it Eric." Al hissed, annoyed that his cousin would even hesitate to tell him something.

"It's Cara." Eric said in a sad tone.

"What about Cara?" Al asked, pushing his cousin to say more.

"Al, are you sure you want to keep the truth from her? From the family?" Eric questioned, his tone was clearly pained.

It was a heavy burden to know that someone was alive while everyone around him was in pain, mourning someone they loved. 

"What happened, Eric?" Al asked in a stern tone.

He wanted his cousin to give him the unfiltered truth. 

"She hasn't left her room since she arrived, the only time she went out was during your funeral." Eric told his cousin. "She's barely eating and she won't talk to anyone, not even Angel."

Al could tell that his cousin's heart was breaking for their friend. 

But the less Cara knew, the safer she would be, the same applied to their family.

"Eric, you know we can't tell them. It's to keep them safe." Al reminded his cousin.

"And what about your dad? Your mom? Aunt Ayanna's eyes have been swollen since that night." Eric told Al. "What about Andres? Your younger brother suddenly has to step up to your position when he doesn't really have to."

"It's only temporary." Al reminded Eric.

"Al we have no idea how long this will take!" Eric's tone was frustrated as he tried to keep his voice down. 

"I won't draw it out, I will end this as soon as I can." Al told his cousin as he watched Annabeth pull on the chains, trying to free herself.

"What about me, Al?" Eric asked. "I have to sit here, pretending that you are fucking dead!" 

"You volunteered to do this!" Al answered back in a raised tone. "Don't forget that this was your plan too."

"I didn't think you would keep this from everyone!" Eric hissed. "At least let your father or Uncle Cedric know."

"We can't." Al insisted. "If they know they will do everything in their power to get me back home."

"At least tell Uncle Cedric." Eric told his cousin.

"I'll think about it, depending on how the meeting with Uncle Ming goes." Al said as he gave in to his cousin's request.

"Good." Eric's tone was much lighter, clearly relieved by the idea that Al could possibly reach out to their Uncle Cedric. "He will understand."

"Yeah, he did a lot of stupid things to keep his family safe too." Al chuckled as he recalled the stories his father and mother told him.

"Stay safe Al." Eric told his cousin in a tender tone.

"You too Eric." Al said. "Oh and Eric."

"Yeah?" Eric asked.

"Take care of Cara for me." Al said in a sincere tone.

"Of course, I'll protect her with my life." Eric swore as they ended the call and Al returned his attention to the woman in the room. 

Al swore that by the next day he would have all the information he needed. 

He wanted to get back to Cara and his family as soon as possible, and breaking Annabeth was key.

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