A/N:

NeuroticBanana: Howdy folks! Apologies for the slight delay but rest assured we never forget to update. We put too much work into this little puppy to not post. Anyway, this chapter required quite a bit of tweaking, but now we are satisfied with it…so as always, please read and enjoy, but also please review, like Avogadro says, they make us happy, oooohhhh sooo happy. Make our day! Yay!

Avogadro602: Hey guys, sorry again for the delay in posting. We had a couple busy days. Anyway, we hope you like the chapter. We have noticed that we're a bit sparse on reviews right now. But reviews make us happy. So…make us happy? Please?

Disclaimer: We do not own Resident Evil or its characters. We're just borrowing it, but we'll give it back. Eventually.

Chapter 6:

Grin of the Cheshire Cat

Leon squinted at the abrupt brightening of the room. Previously dark, lumpy objects that had been obscured in shadow now took shape. Leon managed to take in a long and luxurious blue couch sitting in front of the floor length window. A fancy rosewood coffee table sat between the couch and the window and several plants dotted the corners of the room with exotic looking flowers protruding from green stems. Picasso like pictures adorned the walls. However, all these details were secondary to the sleek figure that stood at the side of the floor length window. His eyes zeroed in on her and all other features in the room faded to the background.

Ada Wong stood before Leon, a slender hand on her hip. In typical Ada fashion, she was dressed to the nines. When Leon's eyes did finally adjust to the bright light, he nearly did a double take as he took in the illusive woman in front of him. She wore a tight red halter top that made Leon's mind involuntarily slip into the gutter and a snug black skirt. It hugged her hips and backsides but opened up around her thighs to flash porcelain white thighs. How could Leon ever feel like he was on equal footing with her when the clothing she wore was so distracting?

"Ada," Leon finally managed to say after he'd thoroughly examined the woman before him. He waited for a response from her, but much to his irritation there was none. Ada simply batted her eyes at him and gave a very coy smile. With that demure little smile still gracing those achingly red lips, Ada sashayed away from the window and closer to Leon.

"What are you doing here Ada?" Leon asked, irritation clearly edging into his voice. The lethal grip he'd had on his pistol loosened and he reluctantly holstered it. While Ada was in many ways a dangerous predator, she was likely not a threat to him.

Still, silence from the sultry woman. Leon crossed his arms over his chest and sneered, "Lost your boyfriend again?"

"Jealous, Leon?" She teased, her voice like silk on his skin. Somehow, it simultaneously managed to turn him on and fill him with anxiety at the same time.

"So that's how it's gonna be? We're playing twenty questions…as usual," Leon huffed and kicked the door to the apartment closed. Once the door was sealed he stepped further into the room, but farther away from Ada. Better to keep distance between he and the snake in the grass.

To Leon's left there was a narrow hallway that assumedly led deeper into the apartment. It was dark and shadowy but Leon made out a few doorways. Through one he thought he saw the corner of a desk. An office, perhaps? An apartment this posh would be certain to have one.

When he glanced back at Ada he realized she had managed to sneak a little closer to him, despite his initial distance from her. Leon intentionally ignored this and pressed forward toward the dim hallway. Part of him was acutely attuned to where Ada was behind him. He didn't like that Ada just happened to be in the apartment of a missing man that had shady connections. Why was she here? What did she know that he didn't?

"So tell me Leon, what brings you to Mr. Redfern's apartment?" Ada's voice echoed behind him, rich like a bell. "Business or pleasure?" Leon steadfastly ignored her. Better to let her do the talking; perhaps he could even catch her in one of her own webs, though he doubted that would happen.

The first doorway in the dark hallway was on Leon's right which he gingerly peeked through. A dimly lit little bathroom greeted him. Definitely not what he was looking for; he continued down the hall ever aware of the soft footfalls behind him.

"Cat got your tongue?" Ada mewed. Leon, still ignoring the sweet velvet voice behind him, continued down the hall. She could ask all the questions she dared and tease all she wanted but he wouldn't give in. For once he wanted to have the upper hand. He wanted to be in control.

There was a little sigh in response to his silence and then, "Redfern's office is the room at the end of the hall…and the bedroom," Ada's breathy voice paused as Leon stood stalk still at her words, "…the bedroom is on our left." Leon could easily hear the smile in her voice but couldn't help peaking in the room on his left. The shape of a bed was clearly visible through the doorway. Of course once he spotted it, his mind once again began travelling to naughtier places—places with satin sheets, bare skin and soft moans…

Stop it, Leon commanded himself and forced himself to keep moving. He had the overwhelming urge to turn back and look at Ada, to see that coy smile on those enticing lips. She was like heroin and he was an addict. He both loved and hated this little game they played; Ada was always a few steps ahead of him with her constant teasing, never willing to actually give of herself. These lustful feelings for Ada were natural, but the deeper feelings—the tender ones that carried weight with them—were the dangerous ones. It was these that would always give Ada an upper hand with him. Ada wasn't the type of woman you could care about and expect to have anything returned in kind; it would always be one sided. That was what Leon would tell himself when he would lay awake at night and think of her, which happened more nights than he cared to admit.

"Ada, I'm on the clock, and unlike some people I try not to mix business and pleasure," Leon snapped and turned his head slightly in her direction so that he could just barely see her. He had been hoping to see annoyance or even anger mar her perfect features, but was sorely disappointed when he saw a Cheshire cat grin spread across her lips at his words.

"Did I hit a sensitive spot?" Ada cooed her eyes narrowed with mischief.

Leon began to open his mouth to say something biting, but was stopped mid thought as Ada boldly passed by him and headed in the direction of the office. She gave him a brief smirk over her shoulder as she sauntered past. Leon began to frown but the expression was frozen in place as he caught site of the bare, silky white legs contrasting with the black skirt. He couldn't pull his gaze away as he watched those devastatingly long legs move under the flowing skirt. The mere movement filled his head with dirty thoughts. He could just see it in his mind's eye; her bare legs wrapped around his waist, hands gripped tight on his lower back, her breasts gloriously naked and pressed against his equally nude chest, their lips…

His adult imaginings were cut short by Ada's velvet voice as if she were privy to his thoughts. "Aren't you coming?"

Damn her, I need a cold shower, Leon thought to himself as he forcefully banished all thoughts of a very naked Ada from his mind. He needed to focus on the job and stop fluttering about like a horny teenager. This was Ada, not some sweet doe eyed cheerleader; this woman was more akin to a black widow waiting in a cleverly woven web.

Leon was finally able to break out of his lust filled stupor and made his way to the office. As he walked in he had to blink and shelter his eyes from the bright light that spilled out of an overhead lamp. It had been dark before he'd entered but just as he'd crossed the threshold, Ada had flipped a switch on the far wall and let light flood the room. Yet another way she could tease him.

"Dammit Ada! A little warning next time please?" Leon chastised and blinked at the brightness of the room. He briefly wondered why Redfern liked his home to be so dimly lit but then remembered the man had a serious alcohol problem and had probably consistently battled with hangovers that were worsened by any kind of light.

"Oh, I'm sorry…did I catch you off guard?" Ada asked demurely. Leon rolled his eyes in her direction and then really took in the office.

For a man of what was supposed to be great intelligence, Isaac Redfern's office certainly didn't portray that. While there were various diplomas and letters of achievements framed on the wall, there were copious amounts of beer logos and advertisements sharing the same space. There was even a small neon Bud Light sign above a very cluttered desk. The wall next to the window had a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition calendar on it. However it wasn't the beer or the nudey calendar that really caught Leon's eye, it was the clutter. Everywhere he looked there were stacked or crumpled papers, books piled up to the ceiling, trash overflowing from a waste bin next to the desk. There was a couch opposite the desk that was impossible to sit on because it was filled with crumpled papers, books, scientific journals, empty and molding takeout boxes, and general trash. Leon thought he saw a few Playboy magazine's somewhere in the mix. In addition to being an alcoholic, Isaac Redfern was a hoarder as well.

How am I supposed to find anything of value in this mess? Leon thought to himself as he looked around the filthy little office. He didn't have a clue where to begin. It was likely there was probably something of value among the trash and clutter but the odds of him finding it were small. It would easily take more than a day to sift through all the crap in this office.

Leon glanced back to Ada who stood by the desk; her eyes were on the window and the outside world. He wondered if she was looking at anything in particular. He imagined she'd probably done a once over of this room and had either found whatever she'd been looking for or had deemed it unfit to even search through.

As Leon gazed at Ada something on the desk caught his eye. Amidst the crumpled and scattered papers the edge of an unrumpled sheet of paper was just visible along with the letter A clearly written. It was an oasis of cleanliness in a desert of chaos. He couldn't quite put his finger on why he was drawn to that particular sheet of paper with just one letter visible, but for whatever reason he wanted to investigate it further.

Careful not to alert Ada to his possible discovery, Leon moved away from the desk and began shuffling through some of the other trash in the room. He thought that if he looked like he was randomly searching he was less likely to tip Ada off that he had potentially found something, because if he had, he sure as hell didn't want her getting it first.

"I never took you for the dumpster diving type," Ada mused from the window, her dark eyes observing him.

"Yeah, well, some of us have to get our hands dirty on occasion," Leon replied shortly as he continued sifting through the mess. He subtly moved closer to the desk.

"I don't think the dear Dr. Redfern would appreciate you digging through his trash."

Leon briefly stopped his searching to chuckle at Ada's words. "I 'spose you would know. After all, you're his girlfriend, right?" Leon shot Ada a mocking look.

"Now who gave you an idea like that?" Ada cooed and left the window. She approached Leon and as she passed the desk she ran one slender hand just over the papers Leon was interested in. The clutter sitting atop the intriguing paper moved revealing more of the paper beneath it. Leon could actually make out words now.

FDA, Remember to se

It was all he could read through the remaining clutter, but he could now see that what he'd thought was just a piece of paper was actually an envelope—an envelope with a lump in it; something was inside.

Leon quickly raised his eyes from the envelope and to Ada's hand that was making its way up to make contact with his chest. The fact that she was planning on making contact with him immediately put him on edge. He'd thought that Ada had probably searched this room already and was done with it. Obviously however, he was wrong and she was in fact still searching and was most likely using him to aid in her search. Ada wasn't above using her sensuality or his feelings for her to her advantage; that was exactly her MO.

Acting on instinct now, Leon snatched ahold of Ada's approaching hand with lightning speed and aggressively pulled her closer to him. His other arm wrapped around her waist, essentially pinning her to him. He knew full well that she could escape his grip if she wanted to; she would always be the hunter, never the hunted.

"Forward aren't we?" She whispered her eyes not on his face but clearly on his lips. She hadn't fought his advancement and looked as comfortable as ever, despite being pinned there. He doubted she would actually make any moves on him; that wasn't her style and if she did it would only be to gain the upper hand. He was bound and determined to not let happen.

"Why are you here Ada?" Leon asked doing his best to distract her.

"I could ask the same of you," Ada answered evasively and moved her free hand up to Leon's cheek. Leon had to fight every instinct in his body to prevent himself from melting like butter as that simple touch turned into an almost loving caress. This was all part of the Ada Wong act, and he knew better.

His face like stone, Leon repeated, "I asked you what you're doing here, Ada. Stop playing coy and come clean."

Ada's eyes were still on Leon's lips, occasionally glancing at his eyes, her own mouth edging closer. A large part of Leon wanted to give in to that sultry little game Ada was playing; to embrace it fully. But the logical part of Leon refused such an idea. If he gave in now, he didn't know how she'd be able to do it, but she would manage to sneak away whatever possible lead he'd thought he'd found. He had to resist—had to outthink her, out maneuver her.

Just as Ada's apple red lips were inches from Leon, her hand still lovingly on his cheek, Leon turned the tables on the clever little spider. He let Ada get tantalizingly close to kissing him before sliding a hand up the length of her back and firmly gripping the back of her neck. His arm caged her to him as he bent at the waist and lowered her into a near horizontal position. Her eyes brightened as he seemed to react to her advances and she observed him with an amused confidence. Taking advantage of her momentary distraction, Leon's free hand briefly reached out to drift across the desk and snatch the envelope. When it was safely tucked into his pants pocket, he tried to think about pushing her away. It was dangerous to keep her so close when her lips were still so near and tempting…

He lowered her to the ground, fully intending to leave her there. But despite his best intentions, he found himself hesitating at the feel of her body pressed against him. A sweet perfume seemed to emanate from her skin, though whether it was natural or a carefully crafted creation made to entice her prey he didn't know. Whatever the case, the overall effect was hypnotic. Her smile turned sultry as her hands traced over the muscles in his neck and he swallowed thickly. His skin tingled at her touch as if she'd coated her fingers with a deceptively friendly poison. His own hand began drifting from her side, knuckles brushing against her ribs. It crept upward until his palm traced the rounded curve of her breast. A satisfied gleam came to her eyes and her deft fingers wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer.

His mind broke from its haze and flew into a panic as he finally registered the look on her face. Danger Will Robinson! Danger! He leapt off her faster than if she'd been a zombie. A flash of surprise showed on her face for a fleeting moment but it was smothered a second later. He patted his pockets and felt a surge of triumph. The envelope was still there.

Ada rose with much more grace than he had.

"I'm not going to play this little game with you, Ada. We've done it too many times and we both know how it ends," Leon said sternly, desperately hoping that the seriousness of his voice and mock irritation on his face hid his previous actions.

"But it's so much fun," Ada replied smoothly and moved closer to him again. The brief flash of surprise that had marred her features was replaced with Ada's typical playful, coy smile. She took a step closer to him. The hands at her sides made Leon instantly cautious; those dainty little hands would try to find a way into his pockets and steal his prize. The woman was like a damn psychic; she saw everything.

Taking a step back, Leon shook his head. "Maybe for you. I'm done playing games."

Another step closer to him. "I think you're playing one right now."

"When have I ever been one to play games with you?" Leon snapped and held his ground. Ada simply smiled and drew closer.

She's got you cornered; you have to get out of here now or she will take what you've found, Leon thought to himself as Ada closed the distance between them. For just a second Leon reveled in the warmth of her body pressed against his and the feel of her hands on his hips, her fingers moving steadily down toward his groin…or more likely his pockets. The moment Leon felt Ada's teasing little hands dance on his waist he broke through his reverie and abruptly pushed Ada away from him and moved past her and out of the office. He could still feel the weight from the now crumply envelope in his pocket and knew that even though Ada had probably had every intention of lifting it off of him, she'd failed.

"Don't tease me Ada," Leon grumbled over his shoulder as he left the office and continued down the hallway. He knew he had limited time before Ada spun another web and ensnared him in it.

"Who says I was teasing?" Ada's musical voice called after him. He didn't stop or look behind him to see what she looked like when she spoke. It was all a ploy; it was all it ever would be with her.

Leon walked back into the now well-lit living room and wondered how he was going to get out of this apartment with his newly acquired evidence intact. He knew Ada would keep up this dance with him until she got what she wanted.

The front door was in sight now and in only a few short strides he'd be able to turn the knob and walk out but he knew that that was unlikely to happen. Ada would somehow interfere.

Turning from the door to the hall where Ada now stood her hands gently clasped in front of her, Leon said, "Well, I obviously won't be able to get anything done with you here. I'm going now." He turned to leave but heard rapid footfalls behind him and a velvety soft hand close over his wrist. If she had been any other woman, he might've expected her to beg him to stay and confess a heartfelt declaration of love for him, but he knew better than that.

"Really, Leon? I was enjoying our little reunion," she chimed with that same demure expression on her face. Leon felt his knees want to wobble at that coy smile; his hands burned with the desire to touch her, to caress the softness of her skin, to feel the heat of her body against his…

He tore his hand out of Ada's grip and moved away from her. Ada's face was impassive at his rejection. Leon began to say something to her when suddenly to both their surprise, the apartment door opened and the receptionist from the lobby stood in the doorway. He eyed both of them with a hint of suspicion as he stepped into the apartment.

"Uh, Hello Greg," Leon stammered as he foggily recalled the receptionist's name. Leon briefly noted that Greg's nails now looked pristine. Apparently all that filing had paid off.

"Hello to yourself. You two have been up here a while now, and I need to make sure you aren't stealing anything from Dr. Redfern," Greg stated and crossed his arms over is chest in an incredibly feminine way.

"No need to worry Greg…I was just looking for a pair of my panties that I left here the last time I was over," Ada teased and shot a lusty expression at Leon.

"Oh yeah, I bet," Greg murmured and eyed Ada with extra suspicion.

Ada began to walk forward toward Greg and the doorway, clearly intending to leave. She raised her hands up in a playful gesture of surrender as she passed Greg.

"Don't worry, my pockets are empty," Ada mused and sauntered past the pouty looking receptionist. Just outside the doorway Ada paused briefly, looked over her shoulder and called, "See you around, Leon."

Leon felt his stomach churn at her words. She knew he had something she wanted; he didn't know how she'd caught him but she had. He was sure that he would see her around sooner than he'd like. He'd have to find out what was in the envelope sooner than later and decide what to do with it. The quicker he was about it the better, because honestly, he was never quite sure when the snake he so adored would choose to strike again.

"She's a different one, that girl," Greg said mostly to himself as he looked after Ada.

"Damn straight," Leon whispered and sighed.

Things could never be easy.