Gunpowder & Lead, Tag: Sean

[Audrey Richards]

Date: Thursday, 21 June 2012
City: Chicago
State: Illinois
Synopsis: Audrey heads into a bar to do business with Sean Connoly.


Finding a weapons dealer had not been easy.

The thing was, Audrey was so new to the hunting game that she had no contacts, and she didn't know any other hunters who could point her in the right direction, aside from her parents, and they were retired. As a result, she had to do the dirty work herself, not that that bothered her. She had spent the last week driving across the U.S.A., making inquiries and coming up blank every time. At least, that was until she reached Chicago, Illinois.

Audrey had found a pub somewhere on the outskirts of the city, and it turned out to be a hunter's bar, miracle of miracles. One of the people inside, a regular, had soon got into a conversation with her, and said conversation quickly turned to weapons. After admitting that she was new to the game and was trying to find a weapons dealer, the regular (Zach, his name was) had given her the phone number of a man named Sean Connoly. Needless to say, Audrey had been very grateful, even despite Zach's warning that the Connoly family was a… dysfunctional one.

So Audrey had got in contact with Sean and managed to make an appointment with him. The date was to be Thursday, 21 June, and the location was to be a bar Sean frequented. It seemed an odd place to do business, from Audrey's perspective at least, but hey, she was glad about having an appointment with someone, so she didn't complain. Not to mention that Audrey was seriously considering — if Sean turned out to be a decent guy and things went well, mind — making a deal with him. She had plenty of talismans, amulets, and other magical devices, definitely way too many for her alone, so it seemed like a good idea for her to try trading. Of course, Audrey knew there would be cash involved, either way, but not to worry. She had plenty of that.

That had only been a few days ago. Today was Thursday.

Always one for coming early, Audrey arrived at the bar and took a seat near the bartender. When he asked, she politely declined having a drink. Quite frankly, Audrey wasn't too keen on the idea of drinking alcohol this early in the day.

She was dressed rather conservatively: just a simple white t-shirt with a black unbuttoned cardigan, black slacks, and brown sandals. The only real oddity and it was only an oddity to those not in the know, was her pentagram necklace — in all actual fact, an anti-demonic possession charm — and only because the pentagram, with its ring of flames around it, didn't look like an average pentagram. Of course, there were probably a few idiots who would think that the necklace meant she was a Satanist. Audrey knew the difference.

Reflexively, Audrey checked her watch. There were a couple of minutes left until the time when the appointment started. Sean still wasn't here yet. Audrey frowned slightly. Maybe he was one of those people who preferred to be at an appointment dead on time, rather than early. Well, she didn't mind that. She liked that kind of person, actually.

[Sean Connoly]

Audrey sounded like a sweet girl on the phone. The type of girl you probably should have moral issues with selling guns to. Luckily for everyone involve, Sean's conscious was pretty much nonexistent. He'd sell to just about anyone, no questions asked. So long as there was cash or objects of even value to be traded, of course.

Sean waited until the bartender, Louis, called him and let him know his client had arrived before showing up. He found it was a much nicer way of doing business if he knew ahead of time if someone was going to kill and/or rob him from the beginning. That was one reason he preferred to meet in public. Get all the introduction and negotiations out of the way in a nice, visible area, then take them to where the guns were once the cash or goods had been handed over. Kept everything nice and neat and everyone nice and safe. Once someone became one of his trusted regulars, he usually let go of the precautions a bit.

Not that he was really worried about Audrey. She'd sounded sweet on the phone and looked pretty much the same. His blue-eyed gaze gave her a once over as he walked across the bar, taking her in and judging what he saw. Pretty, definitely hadn't been in the life long enough to get that jaded look, but not nervous. He was willing to bet that despite her relative newness to the job, she could handle herself fine.

"You must be Audrey?" Sean said, though it wasn't really a question. The bar was pretty quiet at this time of day; just a couple alcoholic regulars, Louis and the two of them. The bartender poured him a drink automatically, leaving it on the bar and walking over to bother Frankie down at the other end of the bar. "I'm Sean Connoly. Glad you found the place all right. You in town long, or just passing through?"

Hey, no one ever said Sean couldn't be polite when he wanted to be. He took a tentative sip of his drink, then placed it back on the bar. "So how about I tell you how this works," he suggested amiably. "You tell me what exactly it is you're looking for, we agree on a price, then I go about getting it for you. Some things I've got in stock, other things I might have to track down for you. Might take time, depending on how rare or special it is," he explained. "You pay me before you get your hands on the merchandise, but not until I've got it if I have to track it down, because I can only guarantee doing my best to find it. Of course, the more I have to do to get it, the more I'm probably going to charge you," he admitted freely. He didn't rip hunters off, for the most part, but if getting them something costed him, he wanted to be reimbursed. Handsomely.

"I'll sometimes take things in trade too, depending on the circumstances," he added, scratching his face lightly as he tried to think of the last time he had. "So, if you still want to do business with me, how about we start with step one? What are you looking for, Audrey?"

[Audrey Richards]

As Audrey had suspected he would, Sean arrived dead on time. When he showed up, Audrey gave him a quick nod and a surreptitious once-over. He looked to be around the same height as her, give or take a few inches, definitely seemed like he knew what he was doing, and looked to be an okay guy. Nevertheless, Audrey knew the phrase looks can be deceiving, so she wasn't about to let her guard down. Besides, she knew that being a weapons dealer was illegal, and dealing with one was illegal too. In doing this, Audrey was breaking the law, and it was making her edgy. You better get used to it, she told herself firmly.

She nodded again when Sean asked who she was, although it probably wasn't necessary — there were very few people in the bar at the moment. Audrey didn't speak up until Sean, whom she now knew was definitely him, asked if she'd been in town long or was just passing through. "Just passing through. I've only been here for a few days," she responded. The only city Audrey had been in for a long period of time was her hometown of Boise, Idaho. From here on out, though, Audrey would only return to the city every two months, and only for a couple of days. After all, while she did have a cell phone, Audrey preferred talking to her family and friends in person.

Sean then proceeded to get right down to business and tell Audrey how his system worked, which Audrey was pleased about. She listened very carefully to what he had to say. It was a relatively simple system, thankfully, so Audrey had no trouble understanding it. That made things a Hell of a lot easier. Audrey didn't want Sean to get her anything rare or special or difficult to find — not yet — so she imagined things weren't going to get too pricey, but still, money was not a problem for her. He also then confirmed that he might take items as well, but it all depended on the circumstances. Audrey frowned slightly, wondering what these circumstances might be, but she decided that she would worry about it later.

"Yes, I still want to do business with you," Audrey confirmed, smiling a little. With that, she too got down to it. "Okay. Well, as you can probably see, I'm new to the hunting game, but I already have a set of blades and a lot of magical talismans and amulets." To emphasise, she fingered her necklace slightly. "So basically, the main things I'm looking for are firearms and ammunition. You know the deal — rock salt, silver bullets, lead bullets, et cetera, et cetera.

"I'm afraid I can't really tell you how many firearms I want, because I don't know what's a good amount for a hunter to have. So that's up to you. The main thing I can tell you is that I'm looking for pistols, revolvers, shotguns, rifles, all that kind of crud. You've more or less got free reign on this, though. Whatever's good for a hunter to have in the firearms department, I'll take it."

It probably sounded stupid, especially for somebody who'd wanted to be a hunter for as long as she could remember and was the child of two retired hunters to boot. Still, she was only new. Audrey cast Sean a quick apologetic glance and leaned back slightly, waiting for a response of some description.

[Sean Connoly]

Sean nodded when Audrey explained she was just passing through. Most hunters did. Their family wasn't a total anomaly; plenty of hunters had a base. But most didn't stick exclusively to a certain area even when they were hunting. Connolys only took jobs if they could get back home quickly if an emergency sprang up.

He was glad she still wanted to do business with him. His system wasn't really off putting to most people he had to deal with. It was generally fair and if he did charge a bit more than going through legal channels...well, they were illegal transactions. You wanted the privacy they came with, sometimes the price tag was bigger. Still, he hadn't been sure about Audrey. Sometimes new hunters were skittish about this kind of thing at first. He liked that she was willing to own her newness. Make it a positive trait.

Firearms and ammunition; two things no hunter (and especially no one who sold to hunters) ever went without. Pretty easy to get a hold of too. Generally the hard to get weapons were things that killed a specific type of monster and were really old. He was a little surprised she was leaving it up to him, however. It'd be easy to take advantage. However, he also sensed that if he treated her right in this transaction, Audrey could be a repeat, possibly regular customer. And since she didn't have any trouble spending money, that was the kind of customer Sean wanted to keep.

“Never tell a salesman he's got free reign,” he joked with a good-natured laugh. “I won't steer you wrong; you're a hunter, after all, and we watch each other's backs when we can. But not everyone takes that philosophy.” The advice was free, since the guns and ammo weren't.

“Now, ammunition's easy. You'll want rock salt, silver, and regular rounds for sure. How much of each will depend on how much you think you'll need. If you need to target practice, I'd recommend getting extra. Nothing worse than going to shoot something and finding you're out.” Sean paused, thinking about his stock. “I think I've got some iron too, if you're interested. It's more expensive, because it's harder to make, so if you just want it for ghosts I'd stick with the rock salt.”

Now on to guns. Sean had no idea how much experience she had with them, but she seemed to have no real idea of what she wanted. He was quiet a moment, obviously thinking while he looked critically at her. Not in the “I'm judging you for not knowing guns” way, but just trying to decide what would be the best ones for her. “Well, no hunter leaves home without at least two,” he told her. “A handgun and a shotgun are pretty much necessary. How many of each depend on your needs. Rifles are great if you want to take things out more long range, though.”

He was going to have to take her to the guns and let her get a feel for them, most likely. Not a problem, but he wanted to give her some idea of what he would pick for her first. If she knew guns in theory, she could tell him if he was on the right track. If not, then he could just show her. “Based on your experience level, I'm going to recommend a semi-automatic shotgun. It reloads the chamber automatically, without you having to pump or pull anything to make that happen. They're a bit easier to use, especially in crisis situations. I've got several, so we can go check them out and you can pick whichever you get a feel for,” he suggested.

“Handgun's gonna depend on what kind of fire power you want. I'd recommend pistols, not revolvers. At least at first. They're easier to use, but once you get more experience you can definitely go the way of revolvers if you want. Now, if you want a lot of stopping power, I'd recommend the Colt M1911. It's a .45, so while it's going to put down whatever you're shooting at if you hit it, the recoil's going to throw off your aim,” Sean warned, before moving onto the pros. “But if you're not used to guns, it's both single action and semi-automatic. Basically, that means you point and shoot. No muss, no fuss. Now, if you want something a little more forgiving,” he continued, “I have several Ruger P series 9mm models. The 93 is compact and streamline. Great if you're looking to hide it. They're also semi-automatics, but double/single action. Basically that means you'll have to pull harder for the first shot, but the rest will be just like the single action.” He frowned, wondering if this was being well explained.

“If this is confusing to talk about, I can always show you,” Sean offered.

[Audrey Richards]

Audrey laughed along with Sean at his little joke, but then said, more seriously, "I know. I'm one of those people. I do business with people myself — mostly I'm just selling off my amulets, talismans, and blades — but I do require people to be specific when I offer my… other… form of business. Otherwise things get messy." She didn't dare tell Sean exactly what it was that she required people to be specific about, not unless he asked anyway. Witches and hunters were not known for getting along. As for hunters being witches, or vice versa, her family was the exception, not the rule. Magic rituals were quite complicated, even the easiest ones could be a bit tricky at times, and that was why Audrey was so stringent about people giving her specifics in that area.

With that, Sean got right into it. Audrey listened very intently as he explained what he could offer her in the ammunition department. Rock salt, silver, regular rounds, definitely all of those… maybe some iron, she had enough cash to pay for that and extra. "I think that I'll take everything that you've suggested, iron and extra supplies and all. Mum and Dad showed me how to work guns and so on, but they didn't let me touch one until I was old enough to do so. I think that's why I'm fumbling around here…" she said, quickly changing the subject to firearms. Sean also didn't waste any time in getting into that, either. She kept quiet as he gave her a critical look, trying to consider her options a little better than she had just before.

So, two guns minimum, a handgun and a shotgun. That sounded pretty good, especially if you added a rifle into the mix. She listened to Sean rattling off the specifics and recommending different types of guns, nodding slowly and weighing up the pros and cons in her head. The one that looked the most promising to her was the Colt M1911, although the Ruger P series 9mm looked pretty good, too. Maybe she'd get one of each. It would be enough to start with combined with the handgun and rifle. As she got more experience, she would try to add more guns to her arsenal. After all, her Mum and Dad had had a lot of guns in their arsenal when they'd been hunters.

"Nope, this isn't confusing, but I still think I'd like to be taken to them, just so I can see which one feels best. I think I'd also like a rifle — but I did my research in that department and I'm considering the M&P15, or the AR-15. Maybe the M&P15-22? It's a blow-back semi-automatic, and the calibre is .22LR. 'Course, if you can think of something better, I'll take it… oh, yeah, and flare guns, too. For torching wendigos. No idea how commonly available those things are, though…"

There was probably more to come, a lot more. For the moment, though, Audrey was pretty satisfied with what she had going. Hopefully she wouldn't mess up and things wouldn't go wrong…

[Sean Connoly]

Sean nodded interestedly when Audrey started talking about how she sold amulets and such. He'd have to keep that in mind. Sometimes his clients wanted such things, and while Sean definitely sold that kind of thing, he didn't make it. Generally he had to find it from other sources when someone requested it, and he didn't see the harm in throwing some business this girl's way. Besides, he was thinking the whole Connoly brood might need new protective things in the future.

He was glad she opted for the extra ammunition, and not because it would boost the sale a bit. In truth, ammunition was paltry compared to the guns themselves. Mostly he just didn't like any hunter he was helping with weapons to hunt unprepared. If they went and got themselves killed, it wasn't going to be because he shortchanged their service. Sean nicked a pen from behind the bar and made a note about the ammo she was ordering on a scrap of paper he pulled from a pocket.

He smiled slightly as he wrote when she revealed why she wasn't as experienced with guns. “Sounds like your parents are pretty responsible. Hunters?” he guessed, then nodded. “Mine too. Well, one of them. He started teaching us kids this stuff when I was seven,” he revealed, then added, “and not responsibly.” Whatever, life was what it was, and if Patrick was a lousy teacher, at least his kids hadn't been lousy students.

He was glad she seemed to get it after his brief explanation. Despite her newness and slight unfamiliarity to this kind of weapon – she'd mentioned blades earlier, so he was under the impression those were something she knew about – Audrey seemed like a quick study. Funny thing about Sean was that while he couldn't stand the willfully ignorant, he didn't so much mind it when people didn't know things but still showed an ability or interest in learning. It got you more respect with him than any brag would have.

Sean first nodded when she rattled off a rifle she was interested in, then shook his head when Audrey differed to his expertise. “No, those are all great models. I think I've got a couple in stock too, so you're in luck. You can test 'em out and see what you like best.” He chuckled when she mentioned flare guns. “They're pretty common. Most marine and outdoor stores stock 'em, for boaters and hikers. I've got a couple you're welcome to, however. But if you need replacement flares at any time, don't make a special trip here, because you should be able to find some reasonably easy.”

Hopping off his bar stool, Sean nodded for her to do the same and come with him. He might meet new clients here, but the bar wasn't his real place of business and he would rather just bring her to all the guns then try and figure out how to bring them to her. Ten minutes later, he was leading her through the front gate of a beat up house. Rather than head up the stairs to the front door, however, he lead her around back. “Next time you need something,” he said as they walked, “give me a call, but I'll probably tell you to come straight here. Especially if I have whatever you're looking for on hand.”

Sean stopped at a fortified shed just behind the house that was heavily padlocked. He couldn't keep the guns in the house, with his little brother, but all three elder Connoly siblings had a key in case they needed something out of it. Sean pulled out his and let him and let him and Audrey into the small building. It was obviously well maintained, and a variety of guns took up most of the space. Toward the back was his bladed weapons section, but he ignored it for now. Instead he surveyed the assembled group of rifles, since that was what she'd done some research on. Pulling two free, he held one out to Audrey. “The M&P15,” he announced. “And the AR-15,” he hefted the one he still held. “Doesn't look like I have the 15-22, but I could track one down if you don't like either of these. Check 'em out, but don't shoot back here. We can do that some place else if you need to before buying.”

[Audrey Richards]

"Retired, actually," Audrey responded. "They started hunting when they were eighteen and worked together for around sixteen years, but they left the lifestyle when they got married. I was four when they started teaching me about what they used to do and what they still did, just so that I could defend myself better or if I decided to become a hunter, too. The same thing happened with my little brother, Nathan. He wants to be a hunter as well, but I told him he's going to graduate first." She snorted slightly, remembering the way he'd pouted when she had informed him of that little fact.

Audrey cringed when Sean said that his father had started teaching him and his apparent siblings about this stuff when he was seven, and not at all responsibly. Apparently his Dad has no idea how dangerous it can be to teach a kid this kind of thing, especially if it isn't done properly, she thought, shaking her head. Nevertheless, the only thing Audrey said was, "Not cool. But I don't like involving myself in or asking about other people's personal lives, so I'm just gonna shut up about it and leave it at that." Her voice was suddenly harsh, and she cleared her throat slightly. If there was one thing she didn't like, it was irresponsibility.

Especially if the time period was 2009–2010, when the Apocalypse was raging. After all, there was a reason why Mark and Paula Richards had insisted that Audrey stay at home in Boise until (if) the danger passed, which it had, though not without a lot of death and destruction. It would simply be irresponsible to let her go out into the world with no experience, and it would be irresponsible for her to do exactly that. At the time, Audrey hadn't liked being told to stay in Boise and had only grudgingly conceded, but nearly two years on (Mark and Paula had told her to stay until they gave her permission to go), and she had to admit that they were right.

She exhaled when Sean told her that he had the models she had talked about in stock, along with a few flare guns. When Sean mentioned that marine and outdoor stores also stocked flare guns and replacement flares, Audrey snorted again. "I'll keep that in mind, then," she said cheerfully, wondering why she hadn't thought of those kinds of stores in the first place. After all, flare guns weren't supposed to be used as weapons, they were supposed to be used to cast flares, and flares were typically used as distress signals. It would make sense for them to be in marine and outdoor stores.

Seconds after Sean got off his bar stool, Audrey did the same. She nodded to the bartender and then followed Sean out the door. As she did, Audrey couldn't help but spare her Ford Thunderbird a quick, almost nervous glance, wondering how she would get her cash or stuff if she was going to be somewhere else. She supposed she could use telekinesis, but she would have to warn Sean beforehand so that he didn't freak out. Admittedly, Sean seemed like a calm, level-headed guy, but you didn't see someone moving things with their mind every day.

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the place where Sean apparently had the guns, which was a shed next to a rather beaten-up house. Audrey nodded slightly when he told her to give him a call and arrive here if ever she needed something else, which was very likely. The shed, although small, was quite heavily padlocked, which Audrey found understandable. As Sean unlocked the door, Audrey stepped very carefully inside, not wanting to knock over or damage anything. Inside the shed, it was very tidy and well-maintained, and Audrey could clearly see where some of the things she wanted were.

Sean went over to the rifles section and Audrey followed, keeping a slight distance just in case. She nodded again when he showed her the rifles she'd asked about, an M&P15 and an AR-15. There wasn't an M&P15-22, but that didn't really matter, and she said so. "Nah, I don't need to shoot. I've had some practice with shooting already, so I should be okay on that front. I just need to get a feel for them," she also said.

There was a brief pause, and then Audrey added, "By the way, I'm not looking to damage anything in here by dropping it or something to that effect. I can't guarantee that I won't have an accident, so in order to avoid that, I'm probably going to end up moving a few things with my mind. And I can do that, by the way. So if something starts moving randomly, don't worry, it'll just be me. If you're fine with that…"