The fire crackled warmly, illuminating the common area with an inviting air. Although their home was far from any entrance of the outside, chilling breezes still slivered their way in, forming goosebumps along the woman's slender shoulders. She quickly brushed the idea of the frigid caress out of her mind, swirling the glass of wine in her hand as her dark brown eyes trailed over the novel she was reading. Dress shoed foot-steps echoed down from one of the four dark corridors, approaching her in an unhurried manner.
"You'll catch a cold." A familiar voice called out.
Hearts emerged from the second hallway to the right, his piercing steel blue eyes looking over the small Asian girl's status. She'd changed since he last saw her- she wore a simple, more comfortable black satin dress that she'd deliberately cut at her mid-thigh. The straps were narrow and delicate, the type that could be easily ripped. The dress sensually dipped down her chest, hugging her breasts and keeping them up; his gaze darkened at the sight before him. She sat on the long couch with her legs crossed and to the side. Her left elbow pushed into the curled inclined elbow-rest, allowing her to lean on it as she kept her book up. Strolling behind her, the Lancer draped her with a warm quilt, meticulously adjusting it to cover her legs as well.
"Always so careless." He whispered into her ear.
"Thank you…" She mumbled as she turned the page.
Another, lighter pair of footsteps reverberated from the first hall on the left. The clicking of a disgusted tongue could audibly be heard as another man appeared, slightly shorter in height than Hearts. He was stockier than the lancer, having more of a muscular build. His facial features were much more mature than the other Englishman's- his nose taller and more defined, his lips were tauter and rosier, and his jaw line was wider. His sharp, clear blue eyes fixed on her as he approached her before glancing over at the blond.
"You spoil her."
Hearts rolled his eyes at the comment, taking a seat next to the female. The mildly irritated man sighed slightly before brushing his chest nut hair back to glare at the now sitting lancer. A brief moment of eye contact was enough as the shorter man half rolled his eyes and made his way for the exit.
"Diamonds, don't leave yet." Her apathetic, clear, cold voice rang throughout the room.
He stopped dead in his tracks, hands still in the pockets of his trousers- it seemed as though time stood still in the small window of when she spoke to him. Authority wasn't something that was present in Spades but she had a quality that made her just so damn intimidating- it was almost as though a quiet, haunting shadow loomed over her that just reeked of death. The brunet had unpleasant shivers down his spine as he stood completely still, waiting.
"I suspect there may be something for you to do tonight." She finished almost pleasantly.
Spades lithely rose from her position to grab three wine glasses before resuming her previous seat. Placing them on the small stand beside her, she filled two of them with a decent amount.
"I hope you don't mind that I opened the wine." She said, handing Hearts a glass.
"Of course not. It was meant to woo you." He grinned, taking a sip of the dark liquid.
She placed the empty glass upside down on a clean cloth before placing the last glass on the stand beside her, sliding it to the other side, next to the seats further from her, glancing at the frozen brunet. Unwillingly, Diamonds pivoted on the balls of his feet, making his way towards the sofa where she left the glass for him. He was wearing his typical attire of a pale button up shirt with a bright gold sash beneath the collar; his brown vest toned down the dazzling color. His overcoat, dress shoes and trousers were all black as an easy matching set. The Englishman gave a cold hard stare in response to Hearts' cheerful smile at him, taking a rather large sip of the wine. As much as he didn't like to admit it, Diamonds loved it when Spades gave him a job. It was usually always challenging and exciting- something he lacked in his life before he met her. His glacial eyes trailed over her petite figure as she leisurely sipped the delicious drink; she was always an intriguing person. The brunet could never figure out her next move- something he excelled at with everyone else. She was intelligent beyond belief, not because she read a lot but because of her ability to think several steps ahead- not once had he beaten her in a simple game of chess. Diamonds sighed once more, swirling the delicious drink in his glass. Everybody in this group had a screw or two loose in their head, he often told himself. Everybody enjoyed killing, murdering, and torturing, some more than others but the brunet only had one interest in mind. After seeing how everybody dealt with their targets, Spades was the only one he'd come to respect…just a little. Heavy footsteps thudded towards the welcoming gold light from where the three sat. The green tinged goggles gleamed just as maliciously as its owners eyes; a large Cheshire cat grin on Clover's lips was a tell-tale sign about his experiment.
"Did you have to make it so loud?" Spades took another sip of her wine, not bothering to look up at him, "I could hear his annoying screams all the way from here."
Mocha eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness of the room, the smirk never leaving his lips.
"I made him suffer, didn't I?"
"Indeed you did. You killed that Brazilian spider I worked so hard to get you, didn't you?" She swirled the wine once again.
"Lucy? No, she's a tough one." He sat down on the sofa beside Diamonds, giving him a quick acknowledgement of a head nod, "Turns out, he invested money in a bank not too far from here."
Without averting her gaze, the petite Asian passed Clubs an empty glass, motioning towards the iced bottle beside her. The Scientist and Lancer nodded to each other in acknowledgement, gleefully grinning at each other like lovers that haven't seen each other in months.
"You're thinking we can salvage something from this guy?" Diamonds tipped the glass to his lips.
"The idiot said he invested the money in a bank. A bank." Clover's deep voice rumbled in amusement, "I didn't bother asking which one though; I assumed you could figure it out."
"How long has it been since all four of us were in this room together?" Hearts cut in, crossing his legs casually.
"It has been too long!" The Black man agreed downing his wine.
"You want me to get whatever this poor bloke invested." Diamonds interjected flatly.
"If he invested, he must have a lot of money elsewhere. Find it and bring it home." She paused momentarily, "…and don't kill people if you don't have to. It's not nice."
Clovers grinned widely at her last remark, his gaze connecting with the lancer's. Hearts smiled in return, turning to look at the youngest of the bunch. The brunet's eyes flashed in excitement as he quickly downed the rest of his wine, gently setting the glass down before swiftly getting up.
"Don't take too long."
"Yes ma'am." He replied half mockingly, before quickly disappearing down the exit from which the Scientist emerged.
"He's always so impatient." Hearts mused, admiring the deep red of the wine.
"He's just a kid." The Scientist reached for the bottle of wine for the second time, "He's still learning."
Spade's gaze glanced down the corridor that lead to the outside briefly before shutting her book. Brushing her long, dark hair behind her, she got up to return the novel back to where it belonged.
"Have you finished your project?"
"Indeed I have! I used it on my victim. Oh, how his screams serenaded; it was lovely." Clovers regaled, reliving the moment in his mind.
"I figured that was you! Your target's screams were a little different tonight, I noticed." Hearts complimented.
The only female made her way down the corridor furthest to the right, her small bare feet pattering against the stone floors. The two much larger men watched her curiously as she was swallowed by the darkness. The mammoth, burly black man leaned back, crossing his legs in a comfortable manner; his large oiled fingers left black streaks along the once clean, delicate glass he held so gently.
"She's a bit moody today, ain't she?" The scientist remarked.
"It's quite late. You know she doesn't sleep until all of us are home. Your job took quite a while and how the kid is gone. I suspect she'll be a little sensitive at least until the end of tomorrow." His grey-blue eyes studied tunnel Spades went down, "She's the one who's always worrying about us."
"Heh," Clovers took another swig of the alcohol, "She should worry about herself more."
"It's why we take care of her." The blond mumbled quietly.