Zaeed stepped off the Normandy onto Omega. He still found it hard to believe they'd made it back. Helluva few weeks. Still, the job was done, though he had a nasty suspicion that he wasn't getting paid now that they'd blown the Collector base up against their employer's wishes.
He thought it all through.
Shit, for all the hard, life-threatening fights, he had absolutely nothing to show for it. No credits, no retirement, and no dead ex-partner. Godamnnit!
He strolled through the market place, stewing over it all. He was angry. He felt like he was right back where he started. It had taken him twenty years to finally find that sonofabitch, and he hated the thought it might take him another twenty to find him again. There was no way he'd rest until Vido's brains were splattered against a wall. Then he sighed. He was suddenly very tired, and he had no idea where to start.
That's when he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye - mahogany curls. He turned his full attention on the woman, his heart thudding. It couldn't be….Could it? Now? When he'd felt at rock-bottom? He didn't believe in all that fate crap, but if it was her…
He had to know, and he followed the woman, willing her to turn her head so he could see her face. She seemed to be heading somewhere in particular, then he noticed two batarians moving in on her as she entered an alley.
Crazy woman, didn't she know she was on Omega? He sped up as she turned a corner, and out of his sight, the batarians close behind her. He rounded the corner at full speed, rifle drawn. He nearly tripped over one of the batarians as he writhed on the ground, a large knife protruding from his chest. There she was, back to the wall, struggling with the second batarian, who had her wrists pinned, his body pressed against her. Jade eyes stared fiercely back at her attacker. His angel.
He felt an unexpected surge of possessiveness.
He came up behind the batarian, his arm snaking around the man's neck placing him in a head-lock, making the batarian instinctively release his quarry as he tried to dislodge the arm hindering his breathing. Then withdrawing his own knife Zaeed plunged it hard and deep into the batarian's side and twisted. He held the jerking batarian until he stilled, then he yanked the knife out and shoved him aside, to land on the other batarian, driving the knife further into his chest and finishing him off too. He steadied his breathing and turned back to her. She was completely focused on him, frowning as she stared at him, searching his face, fixing on his scars, his right eye, then a quirk of her eyebrows as she realised why he looked familiar.
"Hey, Jessie," he said nonchalantly, but inside he was exhilarated.
"Jessie?" she questioned, confused.
Zaeed reached into the gap of his armour and pulled out a folded piece of paper, handing it to her. She took it hesitantly and opened it up, her mouth falling open as she recognised the note she'd left for him twenty years earlier.
Jas was speechless for a moment. But why 'Jessie'? Then she saw the initials she'd signed off with at the end. J. S-E. She looked back the man she had saved so long ago. She'd often wondered about him, whether he was still alive, and now here he was. The nurse had been right, that was one hell of a scar. She blinked, trying to think straight in this strange moment, as she looked back at those odd-coloured eyes. She cleared her throat, and pulled herself away from the wall she was propped against.
"It's Jas - Jasmyn. Jasmyn Shaw-Estes. Thank you…, Mr Massani."
It was Zaeed's turn to raise his eyebrows, that she remembered his name.
"Zaeed, and I figure I owe you one."
They just stared at each other. She felt heat rise in her cheeks as he soaked in her face, and she cleared her throat again. "Well, I should… I should get on, so I can get out of this place. It was, uh, good to see you in one piece. Um, thanks again."
She moved away and Zaeed felt it in his gut that he shouldn't let her walk away again. "Look… Jasmyn, you really shouldn't be by yourself. A woman alone - you may as well have a target on your back."
She faltered, looking at him as though she was trying to figure him out. She chewed her bottom lip, and damn if he didn't find that sexy as hell. She must be about forty now, and she looked fantastic, only a few extra lines on her face to define the space of time since he'd last seen her.
"Okay. I suppose I can't deny that it would be safer if you were with me. I wouldn't have stopped here at all, given the choice, but my ship started struggling, and it's beyond my ability to fix. I won't hold you up long, I just need to see if I can get a mechanic to take a look at it, and someone pointed me in the direction of a quarian."
"That'll be Kenn. Good kid. This way."
He retrieved her knife from the first body, wiped it off and returned it to her, then led her a short distance further, his eyes vigilant, glaring at anyone who so much as looked at the woman beside him. He watched over her as she dealt with the quarian, who gladly agreed to help her out, then the three of them headed to her ship.
-x-
It was tiny compared to the Normandy, and he wondered if it was the same ship she'd had twenty years ago. It certainly looked old. He moved over to where she sat on a crate, whilst she waited for the quarian to work his magic. "So where you heading?"
"Back to the Citadel."
"That's home?"
"Uh huh."
There was a moment of silence.
"I should say thanks. For what you did for me - back on Zorya," Zaeed murmured, settling himself beside her. She looked at him.
"You're welcome. … The man who shot you… he's not still after you, right?" she frowned.
"I expect he wants me even worse now, after our last encounter."
"You went after him!?
"I finally found him a few weeks back, on Zorya, if you can believe that. He'd taken over a refinery just a short distance from where the old base used to be."
"The Eldfell-Ashland refinery?"
"Yeah. Know it?"
"It was the reason I was on Zorya when I found you. I scout out locations for companies, sometimes individuals. That time, they wanted a site for their factory, not too far from Citadel space, and smack bang in a high mineral area. Zorya hadn't been occupied for too long, so I tried the opposite side of the planet and found just what I was looking for…. and something I wasn't."
He huffed. "Luckiest day of my life," he conceded.
"What happened? How did he get away?"
Zaeed felt uncomfortable then. For the first time in forever, he cared what someone would think of him, but he was nothing but honest. "Got carried away with the whole 'twenty years waiting for revenge' thing, set off an explosion that went through the whole place. The men I was with refused to go after Vido - the guy who did this..." he pointed to his face, "...until the workers trapped inside were safe, which made it too late to catch Vido. The bastard smirked at me as he took off in his gunship. Got the pilot though."
He raised his head to look at her, expecting her to be appalled.
"He'll get what's coming to him, one way or another," she assured him, and he was surprised.
"What, no speech about endangering innocent lives?" he asked sarcastically.
"Haven't you already done that yourself?"
"I'm not really one for dwelling on anyone who gets in my way. It's unfortunate, sure, but that's life. I won't pretend that I lose any sleep over it."
Jaz looked him over. She was horrified and intrigued all at the same time. Honesty, there's something she hadn't seen in a while. And he may not realise it, may not acknowledge it, but he'd hesitated before he'd told her what happened. There was shame there. Did that redeem him, if it didn't stop him from doing it again? It didn't matter, she decided, because she'd be out of here soon. "I can't believe you've been searching for him all this time though. You're certainly persistent!"
"What can I say? I know how to hold a grudge," he shrugged.
"It's all done, Ma'am," Kenn informed her, as he appeared, and she walked over to him.
"Thank you, so much, Kenn. You have no idea what a relief it is to get out of here."
"I can imagine," Kenn answered her sadly.
Jaz frowned.
"You can't leave?"
"Oh, I will eventually. It'll just take me a while longer before I can get enough credits together."
"How much do you need?"
"About a thousand."
"Hm. Well, here's your fee, as agreed, and a bonus for the quick work."
She saw the quarian hesitate, as he saw the amount she transferred to his Omni-tool.
"Oh, I can't take this-"
"Of course you can. No-one deserves to be stuck on this godforsaken rock. Besides, I'm walking away Kenn….." She did exactly that. Kenn laughed as she waved at him over her shoulder.
"Thank you," he called out, and she imagined him smiling beneath his helmet as he headed off.
Zaeed stood as she got closer. "Soft bitch," he commented, softly.
"I prefer, 'kind-hearted', and 'woman'," she added breezily, crossing her arms.
Zaeed just smirked back at her. "Well, be careful with that 'kind heart', or you'll get yourself in trouble, 'woman'."
"Hm, think yourself lucky I didn't have that philosophy when I found you."
"Touché!" he laughed.
Jas decided that she rather liked that gravelly voice. She looked the guy over. Tattooes and scars. The man probably drank whisky and smoked cigars. And women, he probably had plenty of women, though they'd only be casual flings. Note to self: Stay well away, Jas. "Well, this is it, Massani. I'm off. Take care."
"Wait!" he called out, before his brain had even engaged. It screamed at him to stay with her. Shit, he was the one going soft. She was staring at him in expectation. This was the point he was supposed to say something. "Got room for one more? I could do with a ride."
She was still staring at him. Not that he minded. He could swim in those eyes. She had an uncertain look on her face.
"Can't say I've ever had a passenger before - well, apart from you, but you were…..you know. Um, it won't be a comfortable ride."
"Do I look like a man who needs cushions and silk sheets?"
She choked out a laugh. "Ah, no I have to admit, you don't." She paused again, her brain ticking over, considering, teeth worried her bottom lip.
He saw the moment she made her decision.
"Okay. Jump aboard, Massani."
"Just give me five to grab my stuff."
"Will do."
Zaeed waited until she'd entered her ship before heading back to the Normandy, with a smug grin.
-x-
Eight hours in a confined space, nowhere to escape to, with a man she knew was a mercenary. She banged her head on the console in front of her. What the hell was she thinking!?
Maybe she should just leave, right now, before he returned - but she knew she wouldn't. She'd feel too guilty about it. Damn conscience. She'd never make a good mercenary, that's for sure. Besides, he'd saved her from that batarian. She shuddered as she remembered being pinned by his body, his foul breath on her skin. Then she replayed the fast, assured actions of Massani, as he'd dealt with her attacker.
He was dangerous. It was reflected in his hard eyes, but when he'd turned them on her, they'd softened. She felt a flutter in her stomach at the thought. She covered her face with her hands. Get a grip! I know it's been a while, but a thorny old mercenary isn't the way to go, no matter how fate has decided to put you back together.
"Ready to go?" came that voice.
She looked over her seat as Massani sauntered in, dropping a small crate on the way to the cockpit, and sat heavily into the passenger seat. She cleared her throat. "Yup," and she started the engines.