sarashina: (Oz - is possibly doing this wrong)
In which I attempt intrigue, rising action, and dramatic reveals.


Chapter Five

"I'm sorry."

Aidan snapped out of his thoughts at his sister's quiet comment, and he turned to her with a raised eyebrow. "Sorry for what?"

"Your hospital." Leaning against his shoulder, Lily gestured to the blazing building in front of them. "Hope there wasn't anything important in there."

"Important? Nah." Aidan patted the cart full of medical supplies. "I got everything I needed. And what're you apologizing for, hm?" He lightly pushed her. "You didn't burn it, did you?"

"It's possible." When Aidan sharply looked at her, Lily's lips twitched. "I'm joking."

"Oh… right." Aidan laughed. "It's a bit hard to tell with that poker face, you know."

"That's not my poker face," she smugly replied. "You should know that by now."

"How should I know? I've never played poker with you before."

"I've never played poker before."

"Well, there you go." Aidan shook his head, staring into the flames. "But like I said… it’s nothing to worry about. We were ready for a change of scenery anyway, weren't we?" He paused, fiddling with the stethoscope on top of the cart. "Still… it is a bit…"

"Pretty." Lily smiled. "It's kind of pretty."

Aidan offered a wry half-smile. "Not quite the word I was looking for… but pretty works."

Lily vaguely nodded, then looked around her. "What are we doing about them?" she asked.

"What, the people from the hospital?" Aidan looked over at the refugees sitting in a small circle a few feet away. "Get them out of the city, I guess?" Aidan shrugged. "Although I don't think we can fit 'em all in that piece of junk van-"

"Not them." Lily shook her head. "Them." She gestured to where Tobias and the rest were tying groups of the insurgents together. Aidan could hear his new employers bickering about how many criminals should constitute a group, of all things.

"Well… I don’t know." He shrugged. "I hadn't asked." He looked like he was about to add something to that, but he stopped, squinting at his sister. "What's that?"

"…what's what?" she asked.

"There's a smudge on your face." Aidan tilted her chin up. "Looks like dirt, or—"

"It's dirt." Her expression barely flickered, and she licked her finger and began to rub it off.

"That Loki guy… he didn't try anything funny, did he?" His expression darkened.

"Of course not." Lily gently shrugged him off. "He did just what you asked him."

"You sure? We can leave right now if he's a problem—"

"It's fine." She patted her brother's shoulder. "Don't worry about it."

"…sorry, Lily." He awkwardly crossed his arms. "Next time I won't leave you alone, okay?"

"It's fine," she repeated with a reassuring smile, then looked over his shoulder. "…I think the hobo is waving at you."

"What?" Aidan frowned. "What hob—"

"Aiiiiiiiidaaaaaaan!" Tobias sang from across the lawn, jumping up and waving. "Be a darling and load those supplies into the van, will you?"

"I'll… be right back. Okay?" Aidan apologetically smiled.

"I'll be here," Lily mumbled.

Grabbing the handles of the cart, Aidan pushed it across the rough ground towards the van. Pulling the trunk open, he stared at the pile of trash lying there, dismayed.

"Need some help, Doc?" The chipper voice from behind him made him jump, and he swung around, grabbing the first thing he touched from the cart and holding it high in the air.

"Oh… Mrs. Croft." Aidan deflated. "I'm sorry, you surprised me."

"None of that 'Mrs. Croft' stuff!" Theo waved a hand. "And it's perfectly understandable. Besides, if I could be beaten with a roll of gauze, might as well quit this job right now."

Sheepishly, Aidan placed the gauze back on the cart. "I-I could use a hand, thanks."

"Good!" Theo began clearing a space in the back of the van. "So, interesting first night, huh?"

"You could say that," Aidan said weakly. "Sorry I can't be of more help."

"Ah, don't be like that. My first job, I was bloody useless." Theo grinned. "I think I ran away screaming."

"I can't really imagine that," Aidan blurted out. "I mean… that is… you looked pretty confident in there."

"Hardly," she laughed. "I'm still a coward, I'm just better at handling it."

"If you say so." Aidan began to load things into Blue Heaven. "Um, the rioters you caught… are any of them…"

"Dead? God no. Wasn't even much of a chore to subdue 'em." Theo shrugged. "An' a weapon's no use if you don't know how to aim it. Speaking of, I think I might've scared you earlier?"

"Earlier? Oh, you mean… no, I'm very grateful that you helped me," Aidan said quickly. "It just seemed a bit unfair, hitting him from behind like that."

"Unfair? I was doing him a service! This way, he can think it was some big tough guy that took him down… not a tiny woman with a piece of wood."

"I…I suppose that's one way to do it," stammered Aidan.

"He a friend of yours or something?" Theo asked.

"Well, sort of. He worked for my father for a while." Aidan paused. "And he may have had a crush on my sister."

"Oh," Theo said, slowly nodding. "Should I have hit harder?"

Aidan's laugh came in a tense burst. "No, that's okay."

"So, your sister, she's doing all right, then?" Theo glanced over to where the younger girl stood, staring at the captives with a sort of morbid curiosity.

"Yes, she is… I think." When Theo looked at him, confused, Aidan continued. "I just have difficulty telling with her sometimes. She never really shows what she's thinking, or says anything she doesn’t have to… most people find that creepy. She… doesn't make you uncomfortable, right?"

"Honey, look at me," Theo snorted.

"Point." Aidan flushed.

"But you don't think that's creepy, right?" Theo tilted her head to one side.

"No," Aidan said slowly. "She just… lives in her own head, I guess. Not that it's unusual, most mathematical minds are like that, from what I know."

"She likes math?" Theo smiled.

"I think she'd write in equations if you gave her the chance," Aidan said with a laugh.

"In any case, I'll bet she's fine. Loki's a good kid, I'm sure he kept her somewhere safe."

"I'm sure," Aidan repeated with a frown. "But next time, I'd rather he pick a place further away. I don't want her near any of this."

A moment passed before Theo answered. "Why?"

"…well, that's obvious, isn't it?" Aidan said loftily. "She's too young to be exposed to this."

An odd, unreadable expression crossed her face. "Too young?" She looked thoughtful for a moment, then her lips pulled into a grin again. "I guess so! But it's not uncommon, you know."

Aidan wasn't sure how to respond to that; instead, he helped her load the supplies into the trunk. As Theo laid one of the boxes down, something caught her eye, and she pulled it out. "Aspirin." She giggled. "I could've reaaaaally used this a few weeks ago."

"That's right, you were the medic before, weren't you?" Aidan must have looked apologetic, because she dismissively waved her hands.

"No no no, don't be sorry, I wasn't very good at it!" she assured. "Absolutely awful around blood. I'm sort of used to it, though… when Anton was a kid, he lived off thinking up creative ways to injure himself. Idiot," she fondly added.

"I take it you've known him a long time, then?" Aidan politely asked.

"Ages! Since we were brats, anyway. Wish you could've seen him then, you'd have hated him." Theo laughed again. "You know where Dhana Island is?"

"You lived there?" Aidan blurted out. "I vacationed there when I was a kid… it's gorgeous there! What are you doing all the way out here?"

With her back turned, Aidan couldn't see Theo's expression, but her voice stayed the same. "That's slightly more complicated," she said cheerfully. "He'd be there right now, if…"

She turned back towards Aidan, smiling brighter than ever. "I should really go check the rioters, make sure they're tied up tight an' all. You can handle the rest by yourself, right? Later!" She bounced off across the lawn, leaving Aidan standing by the van, mouth half-open.

~~~~~~~~~~

Lily hummed to herself as she walked in a slow circle around the building, swaying a bit as she moved onto her tiptoes. Buried in thought, she barely noticed what she was doing until a hand grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"Easy there, girly!" Loki hissed as he dragged her behind him. "Tobias and Silas're discussing business." He jerked his thumb to where the two men were standing, seemingly deep in conversation.

"So… you were listening?" asked Lily.

"No!" snarled Loki. "…a little. Unintentionally. I was—just hush!" He flushed. Lily complied, leaning forward.

"—don't understand why you're going along with this, is all," Silas was grumbling.

"Going along with what?" Tobias casually replied.

"Can you just slow down for a minute and think about it?" Silas growled. "We don't really know what happened here."

"We don't have the time to think about why," Tobias retorted.

"We have plenty of time, Tobias," Silas sighed. "If we knew the whole story—"

"Why do we need to know? It's their business."

"If it's their business, we shouldn't have done this in the first place."

"Si," Tobias placated. "You can feel sorry for them, if you want. But I've seen plenty of people deal with stress without becoming raging pyromaniacs."

"How can we know it's just 'stress?' From the way that kid was talking about it—"

"Talking about what?" Tobias mirthlessly laughed. "He didn't seem to want to talk about it at all."

"There seems to be a lot of things he doesn't want to talk about." Both Tobias and Silas jumped as a third voice slid into the conversation.

"Anton… what have I told you about giving people warning?" Silas breathed.

Tobias instantly snapped into a cheerful tone again. "Aww, he's just showing off again," he said with a grin.

"I'm serious." Anton crossed his arms. "You don't know a thing about that doctor… or his little sister, for that matter. Don't you think we should be a bit less hasty?"

"Now, if being on this crew required a full resume, we wouldn't have the pleasure of your company," Tobias said smoothly. "Or your lovely wife's, for that matter. And speaking of, you could follow her example?"

"She's just being polite," Anton grumbled.

"Jealous?" Tobias sang.

Anton didn't answer the question; he simply huffed. "I just think you should consider the fact that he may not be trustworthy."

"That's not my concern," Silas butted in. "It's irresponsible of you, taking on someone so inexperienced."

"You talk like I'm gonna drag him out on jobs every time," Tobias laughed. "Listen, I don't want either of you to even think about it. I have it entirely under control."

"Tobias," Silas said warningly.

"Si, Si… how long have you known me?" Tobias purred. Loki and Lily thought they saw him smiling. "Have I ever made the same mistake twice?"

"…if something goes wrong—" Silas began.

"Then I'll fix it." Tobias clapped a hand on Silas' shoulder. "Have a little faith, hm? Both of you."

Anton shrugged. "It's not important."

"Your wife can handle herself." Tobias threw the other arm around Anton. "Now, smiling faces? They'll be here any moment to collect the— well, look, there they are!"

From Loki and Lily's perspective, they couldn't see the cars pulling up the driveway, but they could hear them sliding up the pavement.

"Ah, finally!" Loki exclaimed. "I heard Tobias saying some important guy was gonna be here, too… Mr. Wittenberg?"

Lily's eyes widened, and her fingers closed around Loki's wrist. "Let's go back to the van."

"Huh?" Loki frowned. "I need to go out there—"

"You don't." Lily tugged on his arm. "You don't need to see them at all."

"Girly, what's wrong with you?"

"Please?" Lily pleaded. "I just want to go sit in the van, now."

"Okay, okay!" With a loud sigh, Loki let himself be pulled over towards Blue Heaven. "I guess it'd be useless to ask."

Lily ignored him, looking around them. "…w-where'd Aidan go?"

~~~~~~~~~

"You don't know how grateful I am to you all!" rumbled a portly man in a business suit, vigorously shaking Tobias' hand. "You'll all be handsomely rewarded, of course, only the best for the people who saved my city!"

"We hardly saved it, Mr. Wittenberg," Tobias said smoothly. "I only wish there was more we could do to help."

"Well, I want all your names, at least!" Wittenberg chortled. "I'm sure some of our citizens could learn from your example… wait a minute!" he cried. "Is that Aidan Connors?"

"Mr. Wittenberg," Aidan said stiffly. "It's been a while."

"Too long!" Wittenberg shook Aidan's hand as well. "I should've just known you'd be out here, helping, always such a dedicated young man… but tell me, how is your sister? She feeling better yet?"

"Much better," Aidan mumbled. "We were going on a short vacation, actually, get her some quiet time."

"Of course, of course," Wittenberg replied, his voice bubbling with sympathy. "We've all been quite concerned about her, to say the least… well, do tell her that we're all waiting for her return!"

"A little at a time, sir." Aidan stared at the ground.

As the last of the captives were loaded into the police cars, Wittenberg clapped Aidan on the shoulder. "Well, good luck to you, my boy, and to the rest of you, as well! Here's my number, Mr. Locke, we'll have to arrange another meeting soon to discuss your payment." With a genial wave, he climbed into his black sedan.

"See? That's how all city officials should be," Tobias laughed. "Polite, and… oh, excuse me! You in the brown suit! Mister…"

The blond man trailing behind Wittenberg turned around, smiling. "Hawthorne. Mr. Hawthorne."

"Yeah, you dropped your cigarettes!" Tobias handed them to Hawthorne. "Owww… what happened to your face?"

Hawthorne's smile widened. "Pretty dangerous people out there, Mr. Locke." With a polite nod, he climbed into the front of the sedan, coasting down the long driveway as the flames swallowing the hospital slowly began to dim.



Chapter Six

It took two hours to get everyone to the Back Wards, a process that involved several trips back and forth in the packed van. The first few went without incident, but by the later trips, the refugees became less and less appreciative.

"They could stand to clean this piece of junk," whispered one elderly man to the woman sitting across from him.

"Excuse me, Grandpa?" Loki swiveled around. "For your information, Blue Heaven's a hell of a lot cleaner than you are!" He turned back to the front again when Lily tapped his shoulder. "What, girly?"

"Keep your eyes on the road," Lily said simply.

"Nothin' here to hit, if that's what you're saying" Loki grumbled.

"No, but you just missed the turn to the South Gate."

Loki cursed, yanking the steering wheel so the van did a full turn, rocking onto its left two wheels. Half the passengers in the back shrieked.

"Do you know what a turning radius is, young man?" screeched an older woman.

"Do you even have a license?" the old man barked.

Loki bit his lip as they turned into the junkyard, willing himself not to speak until the last of the grumbling passengers climbed out of the van. "So much for gratitude," he finally spat out.

"Such is the life of a good Samaritan," Tobias sang as he sauntered up to the driver's window.

"Of course," Loki sighed, climbing out of the driver's seat. On a second thought, he opened the passenger door and extended a hand to help Lily out. Then, to Tobias, "So, how goes the sitting around?"

"Don't be like that, Loki," Tobias charmed as they walked to where the others were crowded around a small fire. "We've been discussing a plan of action!"

"What's to discuss?" Loki asked as he flopped between Anton and Silas. "We’re finished here, right?"

"Not quite," Silas replied.

"It wouldn't hurt to wait around a bit, would it?" Theo looked around at everyone. "Just until someone shows up."

"I'm sure someone'll be here soon," Tobias said confidently. "We did tell that Mr. Wittenberg that the people here needed assistance—"

"Which means they're on their own," Anton cut in.

"Don't be so sure," Aidan muttered. "Elections're coming up, he can't afford to lose anyone's vote."

"Come on," Tobias pouted. "Do you all really want to stay in the smoldering city of depression any longer than necessary? Besides, we really should be getting back. Don't want to miss any valuable customers, after all."

As everyone shuffled back to the van, Aidan hurried alongside Tobias. "Back to where, exactly?"

"Our central offices, of course," Tobias said with a nod.

"Mercenaries have central offices?"

"Again with the M-word!" Tobias closed his eyes as if Aidan uttered some horrible curse.

"I don't see how you still have the energy for hysterics, Tobias," Silas sighed as he climbed into the driver's seat.

"Youthful energy," Tobias retorted. "Everyone in?" Murmurs of assent drifted from the back seats. Theo uneasily gazed out the window at the cluster of people outside. "All right, then, wave goodbye!"

As Blue Heaven jerked to life, Aidan stared in the direction of his former home; the high flames had dimmed and the skeletal remains of the buildings looked like tall, glowing coals. As if just remembering something, Theo turned around in her seat.

"Do you need to get in touch with anyone before we leave?" she asked Aidan. "Your parents, maybe? Let them know you're okay and all… maybe we could meet up with them on the way out, in case they wanted to take Lily—"

"It's fine, thank you." Aidan glanced over at his sister, and then back to Theo with a small smile. "I can talk to them later."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The three-hour drive passed mostly in silence. Aidan rested his chin against his palm, wondering why people built these long stretches of country road without building anything to look at along with it. The only things to see for miles were endless farms, pastures, and cows.

The loud bump as the car rumbled onto a bridge, followed by the rattling of the medical supplies in the back, jostled Aidan out of his daze. He squinted into the blue early morning light to see a flat marsh below them, surrounded by tall, swampy grass.

"Finally," Loki mumbled sleepily. "Is it just me, or does the drive get more boring every time?"

"Not so. I think I saw a bull this time." Theo yawned, stretching across her seat.

"Ohh, Aidan!" Tobias turned around. "I haven't warned you about our secretaries yet, have I?"

"Warned me?" Aidan frowned. "About what?"

"Well, there're some things to keep in mind when meeting the Langleys," Tobias laughed. "They hate it when you mix them up, for one: Liv's the youngest, Kate's the oldest, and Sofia's the other one."

"Never comment on how short Liv is," Loki added with a shudder. "She's a hair-puller."

"Don't… well… it's best you avoid Sofia altogether," Theo said delicately. "Actually, she might like you… high society and all that."

"And I wouldn't point out that Kate looks nothing like the other two," Tobias intoned. "She's sort of adopted."

"She's sensitive about that?" Aidan asked.

"No, she just hates when people point out the obvious." Tobias grinned.

"…if you don't mind me asking," Aidan began, looking slightly uncomfortable. "If these women are as… volatile… as you say, why are they handling customers?"

"Runs in the family, I guess," Tobias chirped. "Their oldest sister helped start the business, after all!"

"Will I be meeting her, too?"

"Evie? Nah." Tobias shrugged. "She's no longer with us." He turned around again, wiping his hand across the foggy windshield.

Aidan settled back into his seat, frowning. That flippant way Tobias said it, Aidan told himself the woman had retired… but there was something about the finality of the words, and the uncomfortable silence in the van at the mention of her name. Aidan decided he didn't want to know.

As the car squelched down the muddy road, Aidan could see a cylindrical building in the distance, emitting black smoke, which Aidan recognized as a power plant. 'Guess we must be close to civilization after all,' he thought.

The van sharply turned into a driveway, and Aidan found himself staring up at a four-story building that seemed to be built taller than it was wide. The white paint was muddy and peeled, making the house look almost grayish, and the white railing on the porch looked like it would fall apart under a person's weight. But the stained glass French doors and oval windows gave him the impression that this had been a nice house, just one that no one bothered to maintain properly. Above the door hung a faded sign: "Locke, Bristow, and Langley."

A small, blonde girl stood on the front porch, elbows resting on the rickety railing. When she saw Blue Heaven, her face lit up.

"Anton!" she sang, bounding down the porch steps and throwing her arms around his waist. "I missed you!"

Anton closed his eyes, resigned, and patted her on the head. "Good morning, Olivia."

Theo climbed out of the car, smiling at the girl. "Hey, Liv!"

Liv stiffened, and politely inclined her head towards Theo. "Hello, Theodora." Theo just laughed, ignoring the venom in the girl's voice.

"Nobody got burned?" A taller, but just as thin, version of Liv glided out onto the porch, haughtily gazing down on them. "That's a shame."

"Your concern touches my heart as always, Sofia," Tobias sighed, a hand on his chest.

Sofia looked as if she was about to reply scathingly, but a dark-skinned, curvaceous older woman pushed her aside and marched onto the porch. By deduction, Aidan figured this was Kate.

"Is it true?" Kate demanded. "Is it really on fire?"

"Well, it was," Silas drawled. "It's pretty well crispy now."

"Damn," Kate breathed. "Please tell me you still got paid?"

"Sort of!" Tobias walked up the steps, handing Kate the card with Wittenberg's number. "We're supposed to make an appointment with him next week, be sure to hound him 'til then."

"Dammit, Tobias," Kate sighed. "Next week… isn't now," she lamely finished.

"Excellent observation!" Tobias laughed.

"You know what I mean," Kate grumbled. "We've got ten people to feed here—wait. Ten?" She counted everyone, frowning. "…Tobias. Why do we got two extra?"

"Oh, that's right!" Tobias gestured towards Aidan and Lily. "Kate, Sofia, Liv, this is our new medic, Aidan, and his lovely sister, Miss Lily!" Aidan could see the sisters exchange looks, as if trying to formulate a reaction. Finally, Kate offered a lopsided smile.

"Welcome, I guess?" she laughed. "Hope you don't mind the mess. If I knew we had guests comin', I would've cleaned up a bit."

"That wouldn't be necessary, Katherine." Sofia smirked. "So where'd you pick this one up, Tobias? Side of the road?"

"Actually," Tobias corrected, "he's an intern back in the city."

"…oh." The sneer vanished, and in its place was a coquettish smile. "You never said he was a professional."

"It's… very nice to meet you all." Aidan bowed.

"Likewise," Sofia simpered.

"Well, let's not just stand out here," Kate interrupted. "I'll see if I can make some breakfast out of what we have left, then we can talk business?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So, Miss Kate." Silas took a bite of his pancakes. "There's business to talk?"

"Well, Dante Bateman called right before you showed up," Kate began. "He wanted to reschedule, since your last appointment was… you know… cancelled due to fire."

"No," Theo groaned. "I thought I'd escaped him, for once."

"C'mon, Theo, it's a job," Kate wheedled.

"Easy for you to say," Theo grumbled. "You don't have to deal with him. What is it this time? He thinks someone's trying to steal his paintings again? He thinks the fire was an elaborate attempt to destroy his work, right?"

"Actually, he says he received a death threat this morning… says someone's tryin' to assassinate him."

"Lovely!" Theo clapped her hands. "Give them my blessing."

"What happened to focusing on the positive, darling?" Tobias pouted.

"That disappeared when he tried to grope me."

Anton turned to look at her. "He tried to grope you?"

"Well… no," Theo admitted. "But he's always flirting, and hugging me, and talking about how nice guys finish last and all that bullshit while he pets my kneecap—"

"It's probably all in your head," Anton interrupted.

"Don't take it personally, Theo," Kate reassured. "He falls madly in love with anything with boobs and a pulse."

"Why is it just me, then?" Theo ranted. "Always talking about how selective he is, like he deserves a prize or something, sayin' he'll only go for a petite woman—"

"That's funny," Kate mused. "With me, he's always talking about full-bodied women."

"…either way!" Theo crossed her arms. "I won't work for him again even if I'm starving."

"I got news for you, honey." Kate poked Theo in the ribs. "You are starving."

"Wait," Aidan cut in. "Dante Bateman? As in Harry and Maria's son?"

"That's right, you prob'ly know him, don't you?" Kate nodded. "After the fire, he evacuated to his parents' villa in Bellerophon."

"Oh, are we close to Bellerophon?" Aidan sighed in relief; they hadn't left civilization after all.

"Barely a half hour's drive," Kate said cheerfully.

"But… but but… we don't actually have to go, right?" Theo pleaded.

"Oh, please!" Sofia let out a loud sigh. "At least Dante is more civilized than you."

"Sofia," Kate growled. "What d'you think your sister would do if she were here?"

The tension in the air was palpable. Aidan and Lily exchanged a look of confusion, and the others looked at each other, unsure if they should break the silence. Finally, Sofia, who was steadily turning red, stood up, nearly taking the table with her.

"Evelyn'd put you on the street where you belong, you uncultured pig!" she shrieked.

"What's that?" Kate hollered, standing up as well. "Evie would take a belt to that prissy hide of yours!"

"You guys," Liv whined. "She'd tell you to stop fighting!"

"What makes you the expert?" Sofia snapped.

"She liked me best," Liv whimpered.

As the sisters crashed into an argument about exactly whom Evelyn liked best, Aidan watched, wide-eyed. '…is everyone in this business a raving lunatic?' he thought. It seemed Tobias' frivolous attitude was contagious.

"Anton and I are just gonna… take a shower before we leave," Theo laughed nervously. "Right, Anton?" Anton simply nodded, standing up and nearly dragging his wife away from the table.

"I better go put some gas in Blue Heaven, so we can get to Bellerophon," Loki mumbled. "Uh… you wanna help, girly?"

"Why would you need help?" Lily asked.

"Well, y'know, I might need someone to… hold the can?"

"Very well." Lily allowed herself to be shepherded out the door.

"Excuse me?" Aidan tried to cut in weakly. "I'm sure your sister wouldn't want you to argue—" As soon as the words left his mouth, Tobias and Silas grabbed him by the arms and began to drag him outside.

"Mind the china, ladies!" Tobias yelled back into the kitchen as they hurried onto the porch, leaving the crashing and screaming behind them.



Chapter Seven

"At this rate, Bateman'll be dead by the time we get there," Silas grumbled as he climbed into the van.

"I was brushing my teeth!" Tobias whined as he made a move to get into the driver's seat.

"What d'you think you're doing?" Loki elbowed Tobias out of the way, frowning. "Only person who can drive Blue Heaven 'sides me is Silas."

"You're so suspicious, Loki!" Tobias reached over and ruffled his hair, causing the younger boy to squirm. "Now, where're our little lovebirds?"

Picking up a small rock, Loki lobbed it at a window on the second floor. "Oi! Theo, Anton! In case you hadn't noticed, time is of the essence!"

"We're right here, you idiot," Theo grumbled as she strode onto the porch, looking rather disheveled and dragging her husband behind her. "Don't let Kate see you pelting her windows with rocks."

"I wasn't pelting," Loki pouted. "And it was more of a pebble."

"Now, Aidan, are you ready?" Tobias chirped.

"I've been ready," Aidan sighed, buckling his seatbelt. "Shouldn't you be a little more concerned? The man might be dead already."

"Nothing's gonna happen to Bateman." Theo rolled her eyes. "Unfortunately."

"He can't be that bad," Aidan reasoned as Loki turned the ignition key.

The sound of the door slamming open drowned out Theo's retort. The Langleys had finally pulled themselves away from their squabbling long enough to stick their heads out the door, nearly falling over each other.

"Don't let Bateman stick you with any IOUs!" Kate yelled at the van. "And don't let 'm sweet-talk you, either!"

"Be careful, Anton!" Liv shrieked, her wildly waving hand catching Sofia across the face and pushing her back inside. With a nervous chuckle, Loki stepped harder onto the accelerator, kicking up dust behind the tires as he floored the van towards Bellerophon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The lack of sleep finally caught up with them about halfway through the trip. Most everyone in the back dozed off, except for Tobias, who stared out the window as if each rundown house or tree he saw was an astounding thing, and Anton, who sat up straight and tensed. After Loki nearly mowed down a row of mailboxes when he accidentally leaned against the wheel, Silas forced him to switch, even though he looked as if the only thing keeping him alive was the cup of lukewarm coffee in his hand.

Finally, the van lurched from dirt onto a paved road, jerking everyone out of their stupor. Rows of lavish houses replaced the empty fields, and polished sedans and SUVs sat in their driveways instead of pickup trucks. Suddenly, Silas slammed on the breaks, throwing everyone forward.

"Missed the turn," Silas mumbled, backing into the nearest driveway and pulling out again.

The next driveway they pulled into sat on top of a steep hill, so steep that Aidan thought the van would come crashing back to the street. The driveway leveled out at a lush cream-colored villa, with high gables and a large sunroom facing the road. A tanned man dressed in a bathrobe sauntered out almost immediately, brushing his dark blond hair out of his eyes.

"Certainly took you long enough, heh," the man remarked, smirking. "I could've died, you know."

"We got here as fast as we could, Mr. Bateman," Tobias assured as he bounced out of the van, shaking his client's hand. "We were all very concerned, of course!"

"And yet, you don't look all that concerned." Theo said stiffly as she stepped up behind Tobias. "You better not be messing with us, Bateman."

"Theo!" Dante Bateman seized her hand, kissing it in what he seemed to think was a chivalrous gesture. "Missed ya," he said, grinning. Despite Anton’s earlier assurance that Theo imagined the flirting, the look he gave Bateman as he sidled behind his wife exuded venom. Oblivious, Bateman held onto her hand for another triumphant second before she pulled it away. “Well, of course I’m concerned, but it’s not an immediate issue.”

“Not an immediate issue?” Silas frowned. “You told Kate that someone was trying to kill you.”

“Yes” Bateman sighed. “Not until tomorrow.”

“…you could’ve told us your assassin specified a time,” Silas said calmly as he crumpled the empty coffee cup in his hand.

“I did,” Bateman chuckled. “Your hired help leaves something to be desired, heh.” Theo and Loki opened their mouths as if to start yelling, but Tobias clapped them both hard on the back.

“I’m sure she just forgot, Mr. Bateman,” Tobias laughed. “We’re all a bit overworked, right Si?”

“Sure.” Silas fished around in his coat pocket for a cigarette. “How do you know it’s tomorrow?”

“Because of the note.” Bateman looked around at the quizzical faces. “You forgot that, too?”

“We didn’t forget anything,” Theo snapped. “We ain’t psychics, Bateman.”

“’Ain’t’ isn’t a word, Theo.” Bateman reached over and pinched her arm. “How many times have I told you that?”

“She gets it,” Anton said coldly.

“Well, like I said, the note’s inside.” Bateman started to turn around, when his eyes rested on Aidan. “Aidan Connors?”

Aidan smiled stiffly. “ Mr. Bateman… it’s been quite a while.”

“Dante, call me Dante! Nothing less for my best friend! And – is that Lily?” Bateman’s face lit up as he looked her up and down. “I almost didn’t recognize you… then again, little girls don’t stay little girls forever, right? Heh.”

“Yes, Aidan’s kindly agreed to be our medic, you’re in great hands if we screw up, what about that note?” Tobias interjected.

“I was getting to that,” Bateman huffed, walking up the stone front steps. Dubiously, the rest of the group followed. As they stepped into the sunroom, Bateman snatched a piece of paper off of the table and thrust it towards Silas. “See what I tell you?”

Silas took the piece of paper and scanned it quickly, reading aloud. “Dear Mr. Bateman, it is with regret that I inform you that your life will be ending tomorrow – that is, unless you can return something of value to me. At 8:00 PM, dismiss the guests from your gallery opening and wait for me in the second floor bedroom wing. Then perhaps we can discuss a favorable outcome for the both of us, hm?” Silas looked up from the paper, frowning. "Something of value… what's that?"

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Bateman replied. "He's after my painting."

"Your painting?" Silas raised an eyebrow.

"Why else would he have chosen tonight, when I'm about to show my work for the first time?"

"He?" Anton asked.

"I was just assuming," Bateman replied.

"Wait, wait, hold up," Theo interrupted. "You have a gallery?"

"Contrary to popular belief," Bateman said loftily, "I am quite productive with my time."

"I'm just glad to hear you're adjusting so well," Tobias said casually. "Barely a day since your home burned down and you're already arranging socials."

"…I'll have you know that I wasn't spending much time in the city, anyway," Bateman mumbled. "And besides, many of those unfortunate people are staying here in Bellerophon… just doing my part."

"I see your charity didn't extend to offering those unfortunates a place to stay," Theo commented.

"Guess that means you don't want to sleep on a bed? Heh."

"All right, all right, that's enough," Silas said. "What exactly is it you want us to do, Bateman?"

"Easy," Bateman replied. "You're going to catch this letter-writer and make sure he never bothers me again."

"Sounds pretty taxing to me," Tobias sighed. "And we have precious little energy as is…"

Bateman gritted his teeth. "And you'll be compensated fully, of course."

"Wonderful! And just a note, our rates've gone up, but hell, I'm sure you can handle that." Tobias patted Bateman on the head. "Now, you said this was tomorrow, right? Then if you'll excuse me…"

"Wait… where're you going?" Bateman frowned.

"To bed." Tobias grinned. "Obviously."

"Not a bad idea." Theo yawned. "I'm dead…"

As everyone trudged into the house, Lily quietly made her way over to where the letter lay, picking it up and reading it. Her expression remained blank, but her grip tightened, ripping the paper a little.

"Lily, we should go inside too. You really should get some sleep." Aidan rested a hand on her shoulder, steering her towards the door. It was a moment before he noticed she still held the letter. "What's wrong?"

"The handwriting…" Lily trailed off, finally lifting her eyes from the paper to look up at Aidan. She carefully laid it out on the small table in the front hall. "…it's nothing. I thought I recognized it for a moment."

~~~~~~~~~~

Despite Loki's best efforts, he couldn't sleep. Which irritated him, of course, he didn't remember the last time he was so exhausted. His mind just seemed to want to go over the events of the last twenty-four hours over and over.

"…just the troubles again. I hadn't given much thought to it."

'You can't just not give much thought t' something in front of your face,' Loki thought, rolling out of bed. 'What's so horrible about that place that no one wants to talk about it? It's gotta have something to do with that marble place, right? And that guy… hell, I barely know Lily, but she doesn't strike me as a girl who panics easy. But when she saw that Hawthorne guy…'

Loki wandered down the dark hallway, eyes scanning the closed doors in the hope of seeing a light on. Tobias and the others were all frequent insomniacs; Loki usually found company on sleepless nights. But to his disappointment, it looked as if everyone had gone to sleep. Sighing, he decided to take a walk around the villa to get rid of all his nervous energy.

As he descended the stairs, he noticed a faint light coming from the study. Hopeful, he looked around the corner, but deflated when he saw Bateman pacing. He began to tiptoe in the other direction, not eager to talk to their client, but before he knew what he was doing, Loki turned around and walked towards the study.

"I gotta ask you something," Loki blurted out. Bateman jumped half a foot and whipped around, deflating when he saw Loki.

"Oh, it's you." The fearful expression melted into a bored one.

"What're the troubles?"

"Sounds like a euphemism. Heh." Bateman smirked.

"I'm serious." Loki crossed his arms. "What happened in that place? Why is everyone so vague about it?"

Bateman didn't look at Loki. He simply stared at the opposite wall. "Vague, huh… maybe it's habit." Loki didn't like the way he smiled then. "Tell me, kid, do you really want to know?"

"…no," Loki answered quietly. "I really don't."

"Well… not sure how much there is to tell," Bateman began. "Or, at least, how much there is to tell that makes sense. There's always been a bit of an unspoken agreement among the upper class to… try and ignore the whole thing."

"And did you?"

"I'm not an idiot." Bateman frowned. "I used discretion, of course, but some things were just hard to miss. You'd have to be blind not to realize that Mr. Wittenberg was doing whatever the hell he pleased."

"Mr. Wittenberg… that important guy that Tobias was talking about?"

"He's not just an 'important guy.' You could say he sort of… runs the city. Has for the past five years. Most of the time he's lauded to the skies for all he's done, lifting the city out of a twenty-year depression, financing all the new facilities… you'd have to go two hundred miles outside the city to find someone that didn't know all about him."

"But you can't keep the lower classes happy forever," Bateman continued. "The gap between them and people like myself and Aidan started to grow again, everyone was complaining that Mr. Wittenberg only serviced his friends… got pretty toxic pretty fast. And it didn't help that Mr. Wittenberg… liked to indulge himself. The man deserves a little fun, of course, but I do think he should have shown more caution—"

"Indulged himself how?" Loki asked.

"It's really not important, I think the whole thing was blown entirely out of proportion. Like the situation with that reporter, for instance."

"So? You gonna explain that, or just brag about how knowledgeable you are?"

"…you didn't hear about that?" Bateman shook his head. "You really don't know anything, do you?" He paused, leaning against the wall. "Name was Brian Vandoren. Wrote for the newspaper, always had to have the edgiest story, never could keep his mouth shut…" He shook his head. "I still remember the day, about a year ago, when he gloated to everyone in sight that he was writing an expose about Mr. Wittenberg."

"And what was in there?"

"Don't know." Bateman leaned in close. "He vanished. Along with his entire team." He smiled mirthlessly as Loki's eyes widened. "You could say that everything just…" Bateman snapped his fingers. "…exploded… after that."

"…he died?" Loki whispered.

"Now, I didn't say that." Bateman began to walk towards the door. "But those people you turned in back at the city seem to think so. But hell… maybe they know more than we do." He stopped at the door. "Go back to bed, kid. Gotta be rested if you're going to protect me tomorrow, right?"

Bateman walked out the door, and Loki stood frozen, feeling more awake than ever.



Chapter Eight

Tobias sauntered into the sunroom with a catlike stretch, yawning. The brusque autumn air, undiluted by the sun's warmth, sharpened his senses better than any cup of coffee, and he pulled off his suit jacket to let the breeze cool off his burning skin.

Despite the villa's size, Bateman always insisted on cramming the group into as few bedrooms as possible, and Tobias usually ended up sharing a double bed with Silas. Both men grumbled that it was hot, claustrophobic, and cramped, but, of course, neither of them was willing to sleep on the floor.

Tobias leaned against the window, seemingly staring off into Bellerophon's lush suburbs, but after a moment, a smile twitched at his lips. "Are you just going to stand there, or did you need something, Miss Lily?"

Lily tiptoed down the steps, avoiding Tobias' amused glance. Her hair fell around her shoulders, the high pigtails let down, and she picked uncomfortably at the outfit of Liv's Kate insisted she borrow. "I didn't know you were here."

"Well, now that you are, you can come keep me company!" Tobias gestured for her to come to the window with him. "Is your brother still asleep?" Lily nodded. "And what about you? Just can't sleep?"

"I don't need much sleep." Lily shrugged.

"Ahh," Tobias said with a nod. "I'm the same! I always have so much energy before a job. You're not nervous, are you?"

Lily shook her head. "It's a waste of energy."

"Good philosophy, that," Tobias laughed. "Especially considering who you're working with!" Lily made a small noise of affirmation. "Rest assured, Miss Lily, if anything comes up, you'll be perfectly safe."

"I don't need any special treatment, Mr. Locke." Lily offered a small smile. "There's only one thing I want from you."

"Name it, my dear."

Lily hesitated, fiddling with the buttons on her blouse. "…can you promise me that my brother will be safe?"

Tobias raised an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't he be?"

"You can promise to protect me, why is Aidan any different?"

"Now, I didn't say that," Tobias assured. "Simply curious as to why you're so concerned."

"Does it matter?"

"Well… no, I suppose it doesn't." Tobias smiled. "Very well. I promise you, Miss Lily, that as long as Aidan works for me, nothing will happen to him."

"…and you're not going to go back on that, right?" she asked.

"My, you're a skeptical one, aren’t you…" Tobias looked around. "Don't see anything I can sign… will it be good enough if we shake on it?" He extended a hand towards Lily, the quick motion making her jump.

Lily eyed Tobias as if searching for some sort of catch, folding her hands behind her back. Then slowly, she withdrew one hand, closed it around Tobias’, and shook his hand. “Deal.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“I hoped I’d never end up wearing one of these again,” Theo grumbled as she looked into the hall mirror, pulling up the straps of the red silk gown she’d borrowed from Bateman’s mother. "How am I supposed to carry a weapon dressed like this?"

"That, my dear, is why they invented garter belts," Tobias laughed.

“It’s only for a few hours,” Silas assured. “We just don’t want to draw attention to ourselves.”

“No offense, Si.” Loki was drowning in his borrowed tuxedo, flushed with embarrassment. “But d’you really think we’re gonna blend in with them?”

Loki gestured into the burgundy sitting room, where a crowd of mostly middle-aged socialites sat on the velvet couches, nodding politely as Bateman showed off his painting. The rest of the canvases were blank, marked with price tags and titles like “Violet Lilies.” Bateman had explained earlier that he planned to auction off his unfinished ideas.

“You gotta wonder why they still look so nice,” Theo whispered. “I thought they were supposed to be… y’know… refugees?”

“Oh no, those people are from Bellerophon!” Tobias explained. “The ones from the city look slightly less presentable.”

The migrants stood in a tight circle in Bateman’s ballroom, talking in low voices. They still wore formalwear, but most of it was obviously borrowed, fitting some of them too loose and some far too tight. Most of them frowned, fidgeted, bit their lips, and self-consciously smoothed their hair back; they seemed as if they’d forgotten all the confidence and decorum of the crowd in the sitting room.

“…I can blend with them,” Loki conceded.

“Well, let’s get this over with,” Theo sighed, fixing one of the hairpins in her long, black curls. “This bun’s cutting off the circulation to my brain.”

"What do I do?" Aidan asked. He'd been hanging back, fiddling with his tie and trying unsuccessfully to break into the conversation. Lily trailed behind him, frowning disdainfully at her petticoats.

"You'll be coming with us, of course!" Tobias leaned over and tugged on his sleeve. "You and Lily already know those people, right? You can help us blend!"

"But…" Aidan frowned. "Lily really shouldn't—"

"This is the safest place for your sister to be," Silas said. "We can all keep an eye on her this way."

"Besides," Tobias added, "the only target is the master artiste over there."

On cue, Bateman strode out of the sitting room, smiling smugly. "I hadn't anticipated so much interest in my painting," he boasted. "I expect that it'll be bought before the end of the evening. But I suppose I should give equal time to my other, less fortunate guests…" He offered Theo his arm.

"Good idea!" Theo wrapped her arm around Anton's instead. "Turn on some music, will you Bateman? It's way too depressing in here."

As the couple sauntered into the ballroom, Bateman turned to Lily expectantly, offering his arm to her in turn. Before Lily even had time to react, Loki took her arm and hurried her after Anton and Theo.

"Well, as long as we've all got a buddy!" Tobias grinned and threw an arm around Aidan. "Be my date, Aidan?"

"Mr. Locke…" Aidan ducked out from under his arm, flushed. Tobias contented himself with grabbing Aidan's sleeve and parading him into the ballroom.

Bateman stood staring after them, looking faintly disappointed. Silas sidled up next to him, stony-faced.

"Shall we?" he deadpanned.

~~~~~~~~~~~
"You have no idea how wonderful it is to see you, Aidan, and Lily, as well," a middle-aged woman gushed, touching Aidan's shoulder. "Bill and Muriel have just been frantic looking for you both, and I was starting to fear the worst… why haven't you called them?"

"It's been hard to reach them, Mrs. Goldthwaite," Aidan replied with a polite smile. "And besides, I'm sure they're both very busy with helping Mr. Wittenberg."

"Oh, absolutely," the woman shuddered. "There's plenty of work to be done there, cleaning up… not to mention dealing with those horrid people. But all the same, dear, you really should give them a call… they're worried sick about you both, especially with Lily being so ill lately."

"Lily's fine." Defensiveness crept into Aidan's voice as he put an arm around Lily. "She was just going to take a bit of time off work."

"Understandable, your job must be so stressful," Goldthwaite simpered, patting Lily's head. Lily only shrugged, and gave Aidan a small smile before slinking off towards the corner where Loki stood.

Aidan tuned out Goldthwaite's babble on the kind citizens of Bellerophon and glanced around to make sure neither Tobias nor his crew were offending anyone. On the contrary, they seemed to be doing rather well: the small group of older men Tobias was chatting up were looking at him a bit incredulously, but Silas had acquired a sizable group of middle-aged women around him, all of whom eyed him appraisingly. Theo was in the center of a rather large crowd, still holding onto Anton's arm as if trying to keep him from bolting.

"Enjoying the party, Aidan? Heh." Bateman slicked his oiled hair back as he pushed his way into the conversation.

"It's such a nice party," Goldthwaite cooed. "Dante, these friends of yours are just lovely! Who's the charming young lady over there?"

"Oh, Theodora?" Bateman smirked. "Yes, isn't she just a vision? We're going to get married, you know."

Aidan eased himself out of the circle, wandering around the ballroom. Even with the casual conversations around him, he could still feel the tension in their voices. He knew it wasn't the displacement making them so nervous; the people in the Back Wards would kill to evacuate to someplace like this. But he could understand it, to some extent. It was a bit unsettling, knowing that they might never be able to ignore it again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I've never been to a party like this," Loki babbled as he paced the floor. Lily leaned against the wall, watching him with a raised eyebrow. "I've never been to a party, period. I mean, I'm always on the road now and everything, and I wasn't exactly in a position to just go to parties before I met Tobias, and I don't really have the right clothes for it 'n all—"

"Is something wrong?" Lily asked.

"Huh?" Loki stopped. "Why would something be wrong?"

"You're gibbering."

"…so what if I am?" he huffed. "In case you forgot, there's supposed to be a hit tonight."

"It's too early for that," Lily said, glancing at the clock. "Relax."

"Easy for you to say," Loki grumbled. "You've done this before."

"Been present before an assassination?"

"Been to fancy parties."

"Only for appearances." Lily smoothed down her skirts. "After a few minutes, it's quite easy to leave without much notice."

"Smart." Loki nodded. "I thought rich girls were supposed to… I dunno, socialize and waltz and all that?"

"The latter isn't too bad, with a good partner," Lily said absently, eyeing the clock again. "Do you know where the bathroom is?"

"Yeah, down that hallway." Loki gestured. "Want me to show you?"

"I'll find it myself, thank you." Lily smiled. "I'll be back in a minute."

She left the ballroom. She slid past the sitting room, where Bateman's guests were still sipping brandy, and with a quick look around, she turned and began to walk up the stairs.

After the first few steps, she stopped, pulling off her shoes so as not to make any sound. Reaching the top of the stairs, she turned to the door that led to the bedroom wing, which hung slightly ajar, and carefully, she pushed it open.

It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dim light as she began to walk down the long hallway of bedrooms. As she passed each room, she slowed, straining to hear any sound of movement, but the only noises she heard were those of the party downstairs. Finally, as she reached the room that she had stayed in the previous night, she heard the faint creak of a floorboard, and everything seemed to fall silent again.

"Time to come out now," Lily said softly.

"Well… took you long enough, Princess."



Chapter Nine

"Theo…" Loki pushed his way through the throng of guests, jerking his head towards a secluded corner. "I need to talk to you."

"Hm? Sure!" Theo turned to Anton with an apologetic smile. "I'll be back in a sec, okay?" She followed Loki away from the crowd, frowning at the anxious look he shot across the room, where Aidan stood. "Everything okay, honey?"

"I… I don't know where Lily is," Loki moaned. "She left a while ago, never came back… I looked everywhere on this floor, couldn't find her anywhere… her brother's gonna kill me…"

Theo bit her lip at the words 'on this floor.' The villa was three stories high; Lily could easily just be upstairs. And it wasn't even time yet, it was barely 6:30. But even so…

"All right, let's not panic, okay?" Theo smiled reassuringly. "You just stay here, I'll go get her."

Loki shook his head. "I'll come too."

"If we both leave, everyone's going to think that something's wrong," Theo replied. "'sides, we don't want to worry Aidan, right?"

"…just come back really soon, okay?" Loki looked close to tears.

"Don't worry about a thing, hon." Theo turned around and strode into the hallway, trying to get out of sight before anyone noticed she was gone, but a hand fell on her shoulder just before she turned the corner.

"Where are you going?" Anton frowned at her.

"Oh, I need to help Lily with her dress," Theo said smoothly. "You know, girl stuff."

"Girl stuff?" Anton echoed, his voice laden with skepticism.

"What, I can't be girly tonight?" She poked him, grinning. "Got the dress 'n all."

Anton sighed. "You've got the pistol I gave you, right?"

"It's here" She gestured to her small evening bag. "But I'm still not very good with it…"

"You probably won't need to use it." He half-smiled at her. "Stay close to the ballroom."

"Hey, trust me. I'll be good." She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and began to walk slowly past the sitting room. With a furtive look down the hallway, Anton disappeared into the ballroom again.

As soon as he was out of sight, Theo started up the stairs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"My my my, don't you look pretty tonight?" Hawthorne purred as he took a step closer to Lily. "If I'd known this were a formal occasion, I'd have dressed up too."

"Bateman wasn't the target." It was a statement, not a question. Lily took a step back.

"Oh, you know I could never kill Bateman," Hawthorne laughed. "It's far too much fun to watch him squirm."

"How did you know, then?" Lily asked, backing up further as he advanced again, circling her.

"Well, it was my own good luck that your brother joined such an ostentatious little group… wasn't hard at all to find out who their frequent clients are." Hawthorne affected a bored expression. "I knew a little worm like Bateman would scream for help at the first sign of trouble…"

"I haven’t told them anything," Lily mumbled.

"I know, I know," Hawthorne placated. "I know you've been good… that's why I'm being so nice to you." Hawthorne smiled. "It's why I didn't embarrass you in front of your cute little bodyguard… but adults like me… we're on a rather tight schedule." He stepped closer. "And I just don't have time to play with you in the sandbox anymore. So why don't you just go get that notebook?"

"I can't," Lily shot back. "I got rid of it."

"Liar," Hawthorne sang. "It's in that room, isn’t it?" He leaned closer. "I think you've been working those equations, haven’t you?"

"They're just equations." Lily shrugged. "Nothing more."

"Oh no, not even for a second," Hawthorne whispered. "Everyone else might buy the wide-eyed innocent act, but I know you better than that now… not Vandoren's little avenging angel."

"I told you, I didn't know Brian Vandoren," Lily said dismissively.

"Is that so? You took his disappearance quite personally, as I recall."

Lily's expression darkened. "He didn't deserve it. No one deserves that."

"Perhaps he did," Hawthorne replied. "Like you said… you didn't know him. But, I suppose it's useless now… your little friends abandoned any logical course of action for cheap theatrics."

"That doesn't matter, Hawthorne," Lily murmured. "It will come around in the end."

Hawthorne leaned closer. "Maybe you don't get it, Princess. I understand that it's human nature to vilify their betters… but I thought you were more intelligent than that. Mr. Wittenberg turned that city from some muddy little hellhole into one of the greatest powers of this country… and if I let some muckraking journalist and his fanclub ruin that, I'd be quite remiss in my duties." He tilted her chin up, forcing her to meet his eyes. "Now, let's try this one more time… where are—"

"Lily?" Both Hawthorne and Lily froze as the question floated down the hallway, and they moved apart as they heard footsteps approaching. Theo turned the corner and began to call Lily's name again, but as she took in the scene, she stopped dead. "Wait… you're…"

"Ah, Ms. Croft." Hawthorne's voice took on a silky politeness. "What a coincidence."

"Mister… Hawthorne, was it?" Theo tilted her head to one side. "Bateman didn't tell me he invited you."

"Oh, well, you know how Dante is," Hawthorne laughed. "Such a forgetful boy… not exactly the brightest, either."

"Tell me about it," Theo grinned. "What were you doing up here, again?"

"Simply borrowing a shirt… I'm afraid I spilled red wine on my own." Hawthorne turned around. "Well, if you'll excuse me—"

"I don't think so." Theo drew the pistol from her purse and pointed it steadily at Hawthorne, smirking. "You must think I'm an idiot."

"I was hoping you weren't," Hawthorne replied.

"Satisfaction guaranteed," Theo purred.

"Don't," Lily warned. "It's fine, just go."

"Mmmm, I don't think I will," Theo said, not taking her eyes off Hawthorne. "So tell me, Mister Hawthorne, do you have anything better to do than harass little girls?"

"Are you telling me to pick on someone my own size?" Hawthorne looked her up and down. "That rules you out, then."

"I've overcome that particular disadvantage," she retorted.

Hawthorne raised an eyebrow. "You're aiming rather low, don't you think?"

"Oh, believe me, Mister Hawthorne, we don't take kindly to people who screw us over… but it's no killable offense."

At that, Hawthorne began to laugh softly, a sound that made Theo shiver. "Oh you poor girl… you poor, poor girl… haven't you figured it out that it's not about you?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Has anyone seen my sister?" Aidan shoved his way through the crowds, shouting the question to every familiar face he saw. Aidan gritted his teeth, looking wildly around the room. If he found that Loki…

In his haste, Aidan ran headlong into another man, nearly knocking them both over. As Aidan straightened himself up and mumbled hurried apologies, he started to run past the person before they caught him by the back of the jacket.

"Where is she?" Anton threw Aidan a contemptuous glance. When Aidan looked back blankly, Anton sighed. "Theo. She said she was going to talk to your sister."

"When was that?" Aidan asked.

"Ten minutes ago."

"Well, they've got to be around here somewhere, right?" Aidan said. "You check the sitting room—"

"They're not in there." Both men turned around to see Loki standing next to them, looking at the floor miserably. "Lily… w-wandered off somewhere, and Theo said she was gonna go look for her upstairs—"

That was all Anton needed. He took off towards the hall staircase before Aidan even processed Loki's words. "Get Tobias," Aidan managed before turning around and bolting after Anton.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm getting bored here, Ms. Croft."

Theo stood frozen in front of Hawthorne, pistol still pointed at him, her arm beginning to shake visibly. "I said, don't move."

"My, getting nervous?" Hawthorne frowned in mock-sympathy. "And you seemed so excited before. Are you not a good shot?" He took a few steps forward, so they were only three feet apart. "That should help."

"I'm serious," Theo snarled. She waved the pistol a little as if to prove her point, but her hands shook so badly she couldn't hold it steady.

"Are you now? I believed you more the first two times you said it," Hawthorne countered. "Those employers of yours, Mr. Locke and Mr. Bristow, they have quite a team here. Children with toys they don't know how to use. If it's because I'm unarmed…" He picked the gun out of her hands, dropping it to the floor. "We could do this the old-fashioned way."

The words barely left Hawthorne's mouth before her fist connected with his jaw, making him stumble backwards. "You talk too much, Mister Hawthorne," she growled, massaging her hand.

She stepped forward, her movements awkward in the constricting gown, and raised her leg halfway to shove her 3-inch heel into Hawthorne's stomach. But he recovered quickly, springing up to meet her so fast that it threw her off balance, and he grabbed her roughly by the hair.

"That didn't hurt." He slammed her headfirst into the wall, his other hand pinning her wrists. "Go on, try that again…"

The crack of a gunshot exploded into the hallway, barely missing Hawthorne and crashing through a window instead. Anton stood at the hall door, revolver pointed at Hawthorne, and Aidan close behind him.

"Touch her again," Anton said calmly, "and the next one goes in your skull."

"Now, that's better!" Hawthorne pushed Theo to the floor, where she curled up and moaned. "Does that mean you're fair game, handsome?"

"Hawthorne, what the hell are you doing?" Aidan shoved past Anton and sprinted down the hall to where Lily stood, backed up against the wall, and stepped in front of her. "What's this about?"

"Well… there you are," Hawthorne said. "I was wondering when you'd show up, Aidan."

"Hawthorne," Lily warned. "You said you wouldn't…"

"I said, if you were good, Princess." Hawthorne's grin seemed to stretch his jaw as he grabbed the front of Aidan's shirt. "And you've been very, very rude tonight…"

"Well… if someone had told me the party was up here, I would have brought champagne." Tobias slipped past Anton through the doorway, Silas following close behind him. Aidan yanked his shirt out of Hawthorne's grasp, backing away and pulling Lily with him.

"At last, someone my own age to play with!" Hawthorne clapped his hands together.

"I've been told I'm not a very fun playmate." The casual words didn't match Tobias' grim expression as he pulled a switchblade out of his back pocket, flipping it open. "So let's bypass that stage all together, shall we?"

"Just tell us what you're doing here, kid," Silas growled.

"Me?" Hawthorne smiled. "Simply to make an appointment… Mr. Wittenberg did say we'd arrange your payment, didn't he? Although since you've proven yourselves so very capable, he'd like to ask another favor as well…" With an exaggerated bow, he backed away. "Next Tuesday, 1:00 P.M. I'm sure we'll work out something to your liking." And with that, he jerked open a nearby window and slid out onto the porch roof.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Go to the van, Loki, get me my good blade, Loki…" Grumbling to himself, Loki climbed into the back of the van, searching through the various boxes. "If Tobias wanted it so damn much, he should'a brought it in with him…"

As his hand touched the sheath of Tobias' favorite knife, Loki sighed, pulling it out from under a large pile of coats, and began to run back towards the house.

A man landing, cat-like, in front of him, stopped him short.

"Jesus Christ!" Loki spluttered, nearly dropping the knife in his surprise. "What the hell d'you…" His voice died in his throat as he found himself inches from the man he'd met in the marble house.

Brushing himself off, the man winked at Loki, ruffled his hair, and began to walk casually down the driveway.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You'd think rich people wouldn't have a problem with payin'," Theo groaned, clutching her aching head.

"But this was too elaborate, don't you think?" Silas frowned. "Setting up this whole thing with Bateman just to scare us off?"

"He didn't seem too in touch with logic, if you ask me," Tobias added.

"So, what do we do?" Silas leaned against the wall.

"We can't back out just because of this," Tobias said with a shrug. "That Hawthorne's just one guy, only thing he had on us this time was the element of surprise."

"There might be more next time," Silas said.

"So we deal with them," Tobias retorted.

"One thing I still don't get, though," Theo raised her head from her arms. "He said… he said it wasn't about us."

"It's not." Loki, who'd been standing silently in the doorway, took a step forward, eyes fixed on Lily. "It's about you, isn't it?"

"What are you talking about?" Aidan snapped. "This isn't Lily's fault."

"Then why did he follow us? That man, from the marble house." Loki pointed towards the door. "I saw him leaving. He came here for you, didn't he?"

"Wait a moment." Aidan turned to Lily. "You went back there? I thought I told you—"

"What the hell is a marble house?" demanded Theo.

"The council offices back at the city?" Tobias asked. "Why on earth were you there?"

"She told me we had to get something there!" Loki began to pace. "We went into this office and got this notebook, and then that guy shows up and starts threatening her—"

"You took her there?!" Aidan exploded.

"We should be asking the questions here, Connors," Anton said coldly.

"It's not her fault!" Aidan met Anton's accusing glare. "Lily used to work there, as Mr. Wittenberg's personal assistant, and that Hawthorne wouldn't leave her alone! He practically drove her to a breakdown he scared her so much!"

"Maybe there's a reason for that," Anton said.

"There was no reason! She never did anything—"

"Aidan." Lily's resigned voice silenced the room. "It… wasn't for no reason."

Aidan turned to her, anger fading. "What are you talking about?"

"…those people back at the city. The ones you helped arrest." Lily sat up straight and took a deep breath. "I was one of them."


Chapter Ten

Lily wondered why no one was yelling at her.

She pictured it every day, the moment that she’d tell Aidan. She expected screaming, questions, pity, she even expected to be slapped. She would have taken anything then but the blank stare Aidan gave her.

“What do you mean, ‘one of them’?” Aidan asked, a forced smile crossing his face as if humoring her. “Lily, that’s impossible. You were with me that entire day.”

“The day the city burned down… yes.” Lily nodded. “I wasn’t part of that… may as well have been, though.”

Tobias started to say something, but Theo shushed him, shooting him a quick glare. “Let her talk.”

“…when did you…” Aidan stopped, and then tried to form the question a few more times, staring at Lily’s pointed shoes rather than her face. “You didn’t… you didn’t take that job because of…?”

“No… not then.” Lily smiled faintly. “I didn’t have a problem with him then.”

“Aidan, you don’t have to come with me, honestly.” Lily threw her older brother a grin, giving him a little shove. “I know where the office is, I’ve been here enough.”

“What? And miss my baby sister looking so professional?” Aidan laughed. “What’s with the hair, anyway?” He reached over as if to ruffle it, and she danced out of his reach with a squeak.

“Don’t even think about it,” she pouted. “It took me forever to straighten it.”

“Your hair’s straight enough, it didn’t need to be any flatter.” Aidan smirked at her. “What’s the fuss? You’ve known Mr. Wittenberg for years.”

“Not professionally,” Lily replied testily. “No one’s going to take me seriously. Everyone already thinks Father got me the job, and it’s bad enough that I can only come here after school—“

“Lily, you can’t drop school, no matter how boring it is.” Aidan poked her in the side. “What’s the rush to be professional? You’re not even sixteen yet.”

“Well, I have to contribute some way, right?” Lily offered a sly smile. “Not all of us can be lifesaving interns.”

“Lily!” A man appeared in the marble doorway, his rumbling voice echoing through the halls. “You look positively lovely!”

“Good morning, Mr. Wittenberg.” Lily inclined her head into a small bow. “I’m looking forward to working with you.”

“Oh, you don’t need to bother with formalities, dear.” Wittenberg winked. “We’re friends, right?”

Lily smiled. “Yes, Mr. Wittenberg.”

"This is where I duck out. Good luck, Lily." Aidan smiled, patting her shoulder before turning to leave. "Nice to see you again, Mr. Wittenberg."

“Always a pleasure, Aidan!" Wittenberg laughed. "Now, the offices… you know I’d love to show you around, but I have a meeting in five… ah, Lucas, perfect!” Wittenberg seemed to notice someone behind him, and he stepped aside grandly.

A man in a dark brown suit stood behind Wittenberg, looking at Lily with a pleasantly perplexed expression. His pale blond hair hung in thick bangs across his face, nearly hiding his sharp gray eyes. Although he offered a polite smile, she couldn’t help but fidget under his fixed stare.

“Lily Connors, this is Lucas Hawthorne,” Wittenberg rumbled. “Lucas, Lily will be starting as my secretary today. Would you mind showing her around?”

“So this is the famous Miss Connors?” Hawthorne smiled. “I’d be delighted.”


“I… thought you were happy there,” Aidan mumbled.

“Oh, I was.” Lily twisted the hem of her skirt. “For a long time, too. I was working with the techs to revamp the filing room, making a new coding system to log the files with. Makes them easier to find. Mr. Wittenberg said I was one of the most competent employees he ever had…"

"And Hawthorne… well…" She shrugged. "He was always so nice to me." Lily looked up at Aidan, biting her lip. “I didn’t even realize anything was wrong until a few months ago.”

"What happened?" Aidan prompted.

"One night a few months ago, when I stayed late…" Lily flinched. "I saw Brian Vandoren get killed."

Lily scrawled the sequence of numbers onto the last folder of the night, grinning to herself. She’d finished an entire decade in those four weeks, she only had five years left until she was caught up.

Picking up her messenger bag, she swung it over her shoulder and started down the hall, but on a second thought, she doubled back towards Wittenberg’s office. She wanted to show him the finished product in case he didn't like it, so she'd have time to think of a new arrangement during school the next day.

Lily slid her key card into the door, leading to the hallway where Wittenberg's office was. The fluorescent lights made the hallway glow white, as always, but Lily could see that the office was dark. The door was open, and Lily frowned to herself. Even with the security clearance the hallway required, it was careless to leave the offices open. Hawthorne probably forgot again.

"Mr. Wittenberg?" Lily stuck her head into the office, just in case. When no answer greeted her, she reached around the door, flicking the light switch. The light stayed off. Lily figured some light bulb needed to be replaced. She stepped into the shadowy room; she'd just turn his desk lamp on and write him a note to look at her progress in the morning.

She moved into the office, blindly feeling her way around for the desk, when her foot caught on something, tripping her. Wincing at the weight of her backpack against her hip, she felt along the floor to see what she lay on.

Her hand ran across the rough, bumpy object, and her breath caught in her throat as she felt fingers.

Scrambling up again, Lily groped across Wittenberg's desk, knocking his empty mug over in the process, and she turned the knob and looked across the floor. A young man in a blue suit lay sprawled by her feet, his neck splayed at an impossible angle and his cloudy eyes fixed on the door.

Dimly, she knew she should get someone, even as she knelt next to the man, even as she pressed her fingers against his neck she knew there was no way he could possibly be alive. But even then, she tried higher, lower, on both wrists just in case there was some faint pulse she missed. Nothing.

She rose slowly to her feet, her stomach beginning to twist, and just as the feeling made its way up her throat and she opened her mouth to scream, a hand from behind her smothered the sound.

She clawed at its arm, biting down hard on one of the fingers and flailing as hard as she could, until she was whipped around, and she found herself inches from Lucas Hawthorne's face.

Her hands immediately went slack, falling by her sides and ceasing their resistance. As she stopped struggling, Hawthorne uncovered her mouth and smiled.

"Now, Miss Connors, tell me what you saw?"


"So he was dead after all…" Loki breathed, his statement greeted by stares from the rest of the group. He'd forgotten that he was the only one Bateman told. Before anyone could ask, Aidan interrupted.

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" he asked.

"And end up like Vandoren?"

"That wouldn't have happened… we would've protected you."

Lily didn't respond; she simply shook her head. "I didn't find out the man's name until a few days later… it was in all the papers, his disappearance. And when the rest of his team didn't show up for work one morning…" She paused. "There were protests everywhere… tons of people had heard about that expose. And I figured… if I could just tell them what happened, they'd handle it for me. But when I asked, they told me to see the person in charge."

"In charge?" Aidan repeated.

"Vandoren's brother. Edward Vandoren."

"It's fine… let her through."

"Mr. Vandoren, that's Bill Connors' daughter," growled a muscular man, holding Lily back by the arm. "If anything, she's here to rat us out."

"I'm not!" Lily wrenched her arm away. "I have some information about Brian Vandoren!"

Edward looked down at her coldly. "Go on, talk."

She stood up straight, looking Edward in the eye. "Lucas Hawthorne killed him."

"We already knew that, kid," the muscular man sighed, giving her a shove towards the door. "Get lost."

"You're sure about this?" Edward asked.

"I saw the body!" Lily bit back tears. She'd come all the way here to help, and they treated her like she'd sullied their hideout. "I work for Mr. Wittenberg, I saw it happen!"

"Do you have any proof?" When Lily didn't respond, he smiled grimly. "To go against Wittenberg. Miss Connors, we'll need more than the testimony of a little girl."

"Y'heard him, kid," the other man laughed. "Come back when you can give us some real help."

"Don't go yet." Edward frowned thoughtfully at her as she stood halfway in the doorway, ready to leave. "You say you work for Mr. Wittenberg?"

"Yes sir…" Lily nodded. "I'm his personal assistant."

"I see." Edward said. "Tell me, Miss Connors, is there anything you're particularly good at?"

"Well…" Lily reddened, shifting her weight. "I'm pretty good at organizing… and I'm really good at mathematics, but that's about it."

"Come on, Mr. Vandoren," the burly man scoffed. "Straight A's in Algebra's not gonna get us anywhere."

"On the contrary." A grin flickered across Edward's face. "I think it's just enough.


"I didn't get it," Lily continued. "Edward had plenty of spies in the marble house, even if I was closer to Mr. Wittenberg, they could've done without me. Half the information I brought back to them, they already had."

"What Edward was really interested in were the little codes I made up… he always made me teach him how to use them, he even helped me make a few. He tried to limit my time there, though, since he didn't want anyone to know…" Lily shot Aidan an apologetic look. "I never went out with friends, and I didn't really work late anymore. Most of the time I was out somewhere, it was there."

"Then, a few weeks later…" Lily disappeared into the bedroom she'd stayed in the previous night, and came out a few moments later holding a dark blue notebook. "He gave me this."

"What is it?" Aidan moved to take it from her hands, and instinctively, she pulled back.

"I'll show you." Carefully, as if afraid of damaging it, she opened the notebook, flipping through the pages. "Equations, broken into three different sections. Edward said… he said that it was a failsafe, and that I wasn't to solve anything until he told me to."

Aidan drummed his fingertips on the floor. "How… how did Hawthorne find out?"

"I don't know. But somehow, he did."

"Where are you off to so early, Miss Connors?"

Lily didn't turn around. "Mother wants me to be home for dinner tonight."

"It's 4:30." Hawthorne moved in front of the door. "Your mother can wait another hour or two. Or do you have something more pressing?"

"Mr. Hawthorne, please." She tried to step past him. "I'd really like to get home."

"Sure you're not making any stops on the way?" Hawthorne leaned in closer. "To see Edward Vandoren, maybe?"

Lily only allowed her surprise to show for a split second before she affected a bored expression. "Who?"

"Playing dumb? Cute. It would've worked so much better had you not spent the better part of this week talking with Mr. Wittenberg about your friend Edward… I believe you called him 'a menace?'" Hawthorne laughed. "What a selective memory."

"If you are accusing me of something, Mr. Hawthorne, I suggest you do so." Lily narrowed her eyes. "I'm not in the mood for your word games."

"So you'd like to play with the gloves off?" Hawthorne murmured, shooting her a smile that made her shiver. "Perhaps you're not so boring after all. Very well, Princess. Are you being disloyal to Mr. Wittenberg?"

"I'm not spying, if that's what you're insinuating. But I don't have to approve of what you do here."

"That again? I suppose you didn't bother to think about what the circumstances may have been."

"Whatever the circumstances, it wasn't right. And neither is what you're doing now."

"Giving lectures now?" Hawthorne scoffed. "You're taking this so-called 'oppression' quite personally for a spoiled brat."

"You can't hide this forever." Lily firmly stood her ground. "It'll catch up with you."

"I'm not a big believer in karma," Hawthorne purred.

"You might be soon enough." It wasn't until after the words left Lily's mouth that she noticed Hawthorne's rapidly darkening expression.

"Oh, dear…" Hawthorne grinned. "You have no idea what you're saying, do you?"

"You can't hurt me," Lily declared, hiding her shaking hands behind her back.

"Princess, I can break you in half without even touching you."

"Go ahead and try," she retorted, even as part of her was screaming to walk away.

Hawthorne laughed softly. "Rather daring of you… rather careless, considering how much I could take from you."

"What are you…?" Lily trailed off, slowly realizing what Hawthorne could be talking about. She was vaguely aware of her fingernails digging deep into her palms. She fought to keep the panic out of her eyes. "…you're going to leave Aidan alone."

Hawthorne patted her head. "If you're good."


Aidan looked more uncomfortable than ever, looking at the hall doorway rather than his sister. "You didn't have to…"

"I think I did." Lily smiled weakly. "And it all worked, for a while… you were okay, Edward and the group were really getting the word out about Brian, doing some serious damage to Wittenberg's image… they were getting new converts all the time. There wasn't much I had to do, besides keep the notebook in a safe place… Hawthorne wasn't even that bad to deal with at first. I thought, I'm smarter than him, right? I can handle it."

"I'm getting rather tired of this, Princess.

"And then suddenly he was everywhere… always following me around at work, always calling me at home… I even thought I saw him sneaking around school a few times. And even at home, I couldn't shake the feeling that he was outside, waiting for me to leave…" Lily shivered. "Everywhere I went, there was always that shadow from the corner of my eye, always gone by the time I turned around."

"Then stop… I can't help you, you know that… just leave me alone."

"And whenever he'd corner me at work, he'd just… some of the things he'd say… I'd hear him talking to me all the time. But he always came back to the same thing, it was always the same threat…"

"You're not being very good today."

"And after a while, it just felt less and less like a game, less like I was outsmarting him until I realized that he was the one writing the script all along."

"Y-You can't scare me with that anymore…"

"No? Are you willing to take that chance again?"

"Stop it… please, just shut up…"

"Oh, don't be sad, Princess… you know I enjoyed playing with you. And hey, just for you, I'll make it extra quick for your brother, just like Vandoren."


"Until one day, it just… slipped out, I guess."

"Edward's hiding in the Back Wards! In the old j-junkyard b-by the fourth s-sector, that's where the safe house is…"

"And the item he entrusted you with?"

"A b-blue notebook… it's in my locker… are you g-gonna leave us alone now?"

"Of course, Miss Connors, of course… you've been a very, very good girl."


Lily stopped short, breathing in deeply before she continued. "Edward's body was found a week later. And not too long after that… the rest of his followers burnt the city to the ground."

"And that was why you…" Aidan began in a low voice.

"Got sick?" Lily nodded. "…just thinking about every one of Edward's followers, how they thought I was so wonderful for helping them, not even knowing that I got Edward killed… and even now, they're probably somewhere thinking I'll pull some magical solution out of that notebook that'll fix the city for good…" She laughed mirthlessly. "If I kept my mouth shut, that city wouldn't be burning."

"And I can assure you, no one will hold that against you," Tobias butted in, cutting Aidan off. "Nor will it affect your brother's employment, but… Miss Lily, is that notebook going to be trouble for us in the future?"

"No, I'll get rid of it. I promise."

"And if that Hawthorne comes back and asks about its contents…?" Tobias questioned.

"I really don't know," Lily said helplessly. "I was supposed to figure that out on my own."

"You must have some idea of what it says," Tobias pressed.

"I swear, I don't know…"

"Tobias," Anton barked before the older man could respond. "Wasn't it you who said 'being on this crew didn't require a full resume?'" All six pairs of eyes turned towards him, showing varying degrees of surprise. For a long moment, the only thing audible was the sound of people saying their goodbyes downstairs.

Then, before anyone could react, "We're going to bed." Anton hauled Theo off the floor and set her on her feet, holding onto her elbow so she wouldn't fall over. "Doctor, if you could come take a look at Theo when you're finished here, it'd be appreciated."

"Don't need lookin' at, Anton," Theo grumbled, giving the rest of the crew a backward glance and a shrug. "Just ice is good."

As they departed, Loki took a step forward, his hands balled up inside his jacket and his eyes fixed on Lily. Finally, he mumbled a quick "G'night" before darting down the hallway to his own room.

As Silas and Tobias turned to leave, Lily stood up. "I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologize." Silas smiled weakly at her. "You're fine."

"Not your fault at all," Tobias added, an odd, forced grin on his face. "Although a word of advice… in the future, you really should try to stay out of adults' problems. Only complicates things in the end." And with a nod, they walked down the hall, leaving the siblings alone. Aidan took a deep breath and opened his mouth, but Lily got there first.

"I know, he's right." Lily shook her head. "But it's fine. You don't need to worry about it anymore, we can just earn some money like this and take that vacation, like you said…" Lily smiled. "Good night, Aidan." She slipped into the bedroom and shut the door behind her.

Aidan still sat on the floor, staring at the closed door as if waiting for her to come out again. All the time spent thinking he could make her better, protect her from Hawthorne… and really, he didn't know the half of it. He didn't even know what he wanted to say to her.

It took him a moment to notice that Lily's notebook lay in front of him. He picked it up and began to walk towards his bedroom, thinking he would burn it in the morning, when he suddenly found himself flipping to the first page.

The first page held only an inscription, written in a hasty scrawl:

Lily-
Remember that most solutions do not appear in their logical order.
-Edward.

October 2013

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