Against Us
Part Seven
Arthur blinked as the dream fell into place around him. He could tell that Kitchen's projections were not exactly catching on but they seemed agitated. He wasted no time retrieving the several guns he had hidden in the dream for himself. The inside of the restaurant looked like any other high class place and it looped into itself. He was the dreamer and he was the one that they were going to go after. If nothing else he needed to make sure that Virgil got the package. From where he was sitting Arthur could see Virgil sitting at the bar and Eames walking over to Kitchen as Richards. It was always disorienting to see Eames in the skin of another person because in one sense he knew it was his friend but on the other hand it looked nothing like Eames.
The real moment would come when Eames joined Kitchen and they discovered whether or not he accepted the forge. If he did not then things would get ugly fast. They spoke and Kitchen seemed at ease. That was enough for Arthur and he checked his watch. They had two hours in the dream but he was not sure how to kick them out without shooting them in the head. Instead he watched Eames interact with Kitchen and kept his eyes on everyone around him. He was supposed to be the last one out but Arthur decided that he could kick himself out and then wake Eames and Virgil up without having to kill them. There was still a little time to mull it over and he busied himself by keeping an eye on the projections that moved around him.
The conversation seemed to be going at a socially smooth place but the longer they spent in the dream the longer they risked having the projections catch on which was exactly what they were starting to do. Projections stared at Arthur and he felt the entire dream atmosphere shift because things were on edge now. Virgil must have felt it too because he went over and spoke with Eames and Kitchen briefly. His eyes skipped to the nearby manager's office where the safe was located and from the way Virgil smiled he seemed confident that the plans were going to be inside. The extractor vanished into the manager's office and the projections became even more agitated. Eames must have noticed because he convinced Kitchen to go with him to the restroom. One glance over his shoulder and Arthur knew that Eames was going to barricade himself in there as long as he could.
Arthur stood up and began to make his way through the maze. People started to follow him and he saw knives and forks in their hands. He did not want to get killed with a butter knife but he did not move too fast to alert them even further. Suddenly the entire dream changed and the projections started chasing him. Arthur took off through the maze shooting as he went. He managed to put some space between him and the projections when his phone rang.
"Please tell me this is good news, Virgil," he said.
"I have the information. Are the projections after you?" the extractor asked.
"Yes, but they are all mostly on me. Keep going over that information and memorize it. I'm going to kick myself out," Arthur said and hung up the phone. He turned a sharp corner, put the gun to his head and pulled the trigger just as a woman dressed in formal wear stabbed him in the stomach with a steak knife.
Arthur opened his eyes and, ignoring the pounding in his head and the sharp pain in his stomach, he knocked over Eames' and Virgil's chairs. The two men blinked awake but Arthur was already cleaning up the PASIV device. Virgil snatched a notebook and wrote information down at a furious pace. Eames blinked slowly as if he was having trouble focusing on the ceiling. Arthur knelt in front of him and touched his hand while removing the line.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, just disorientated. I was still in Richards' skin when you kicked us out and it feels strange but I'll be fine," Eames replied and he flashed an uneasy smile. "Now we know that I should drop the skin before waking up. Learning experience and what not." Arthur squeezed his shoulder and they began to gather their things. Virgil looked very smug as they walked out of the massage parlor and the adrenaline was starting to wear off when Arthur began to realize that they had just stolen information from another person's mind. Virgil called Lombardi and told him to meet them back at the apartment and he took off toward his own car. Arthur exchanged a look with Eames and they both walked to their rental car. Eames still looked a little pale but he seemed better than he had been a few minutes ago.
"That was intense," Arthur said as they sat down in the car.
"It really was," Eames agreed. Neither of them said much on the way back to the apartment and Arthur's mind was too busy going over how they were going to get out of the city. He wanted to spend one more night in the hotel with Eames but the projections running him down like that had his nerves on edge.
"Why are you holding your side?" Eames asked as they walked up the stairs. Arthur blinked and realized he was holding the spot where the projection had stabbed him; it still ached.
"Elderly woman with a steak knife," he replied and Eames winced. They opened the door and found Virgil on the phone again. Arthur began to clean up his desk. He gathered a pile of papers that he would burn and began to wipe down the surface.
"Lombardi is on his way," Virgil said. "Excellent work, both of you, you're going to do well in this business."
"Thank you," Arthur replied and he shook Virgil's hand.
"Good working with you, mate," Eames said and he seemed more like himself. The door opened and Lombardi walked in.
"I think you'll find that this helps you," Virgil said handing over the notes. Their employer smiled and nodded as he looked at the paper.
"Well done, gentlemen. I will place the money in your accounts. Have a safe travel home," the Russian businessman said and they all exchanged a few more handshakes. Virgil left after his things were cleaned up and Eames helped Arthur finish wiping down the apartment and putting bleach on everything. When it smelled and looked clean they left and went back to the hotel. They were barely in the room when Eames slammed Arthur against the wall and stole his lips into a searing kiss. They broke apart for only moments as they pulled off their shirts quickly. Arthur dug his fingers into Eames' shoulders and bit on the other man's lower lip. Arthur managed to twist his body so that Eames fell back against the bed and Arthur moved to straddle him.
"I thought I was going to be the one to push you into the sheets," Eames said smirking.
"I decided that it's my turn," Arthur replied and he claimed Eames' lips in another kiss. Arthur rolled his hips against Eames and smirked at the groan the other man released. Arthur went to work on Eames' belt as he kissed along his collarbone and neck. Two hands snatched his waist and Arthur looked up but Eames did not say anything. He just moved the two of them so their pants were discarded on the floor. Arthur was not sure what to make of that but decided it was not worth thinking about too much. Instead he reached into his drawer and pulled out a small bottle of lube and a condom. Before he could react Eames managed to flip them both over so he was on top. "I thought I said it was my turn."
"And I decided that I would much rather it be mine," Eames replied smirking. It took almost no time for the two of them to shed the last of their clothes and Arthur's breath hitched when Eames pushed a slick finger into him. He was familiar enough with Eames now that Arthur felt no shame in being vocal. The other man placed kisses all along his neck and Arthur almost saw stars when Eames put in a second finger. Their lips met again and Eames swallowed up the groan Arthur made when he twisted his fingers. Vaguely he heard Eames ask if he was ready and Arthur realized he must have nodded because the next thing he felt was the other man pushing into him. Arthur braced for the brutal pace that they always seemed to set but Eames had other ideas. He just rocked them together and for some reason Arthur was okay with that. Even with their slower pace all it took was Eames biting his collarbone for Arthur to come. Eames was not far behind and they lay together as they tried to catch their breath.
"We have an early flight tomorrow. We should get out of town," Arthur said as he disentangled himself from Eames so they could clean themselves up.
"Sounds good," Eames replied and Arthur closed his eyes as he lay in the bed. He felt Eames shift and sleep on his side of the bed like they always did and listened as the other man's breathing evened out. Arthur, however, opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling. His mind was going three hundred miles per hour and he spent the better part of the night staring into the darkness unable to wind down.
The first thing Arthur did when the sun was up and he could justify getting out of bed without cause for suspicion was check their bank accounts. The money had been sent to offshore accounts and he started to filter some of their earnings into accounts that they could use to buy things that they actually needed. Arthur drummed his fingers on the desk and stared at the vast amount of money he had just made. The money was not the thing that had his skin itching though; it was the prospect of what they had just done. It was odd doing something like this using the skills he had learned from the military. After checking to make sure that their flights were running on time Arthur decided that there was another search that he needed to do. They had both fallen off the grid a long time ago but Arthur had a feeling that the government was keeping an eye on them or at least checking up. They needed to change apartments right away and make sure that everything was under different names. They needed to vanish like the dead men they were.
"That's a lot of zeros," Eames said looking over Arthur's chair at the computer. "Looks like you can get that suit now."
"You should get something decent too since we are going to be working," Arthur said. Eames grinned at him and headed for the bathroom.
"Care to join me? Save water for the environment and what not," Eames said from the door.
"Keep it quick, Mr. Eames, we do need to get to the airport," Arthur said rolling his eyes. The other man laughed and vanished into the bathroom. The water began to run but something was not right. He could not tell what it was but he had a strong feeling that something was wrong. He covered their tracks flawlessly and he was almost positive that there was no way for anyone to track them. Still there was a knot in his stomach that would not go away despite how many times he checked all of the details over and over again. He was so engrossed that he did not hear Eames get out of the shower until the door closed.
"All yours," Eames said with a wave of his hand. Arthur shut down his computer and went into the bathroom for a shower. He ran the water a little too hot and hoped that it would take the knots out of his shoulders but it did not help. A little frustrated Arthur shut off the water and wrapped a towel around his hips. Using a towel he wiped the steam from the mirror and looked at himself for a moment. His hair was quite long and as much as Eames had said that his naturally curly hair looked okay it did not look professional. He decided to find something better to do with it when they got back. Arthur left the bathroom and they busied themselves with getting their things ready. The taxi ride to the airport was uneventful and neither of them spoke. Inside the airport they made meaningless conversation and Arthur stared at his computer the entire way back to New York. They were in the process of getting a taxi when his phone rang; it was Virgil's number.
"Arthur here," he said.
"Mr. Arthur." Arthur froze when he heard Lombardi's voice.
"Mr. Lombardi, was there a complication?" he asked.
"You could say that. Your extractor friend decided it would be a good idea to sell the information you extracted back to Kitchen for double the money," Lombardi explained. "You can see how this presents an issue."
"Yes, sir, I do, but I can assure you that we had no part in that," Arthur said. Eames looked at him, concerned.
"Yes, I'm aware, and I also know that you have not been in this business very long so consider this a warning along with some advice. I put a bullet in Mr. Virgil's head for double crossing me and I think you would do well to remember that not all belligerent employers will be as kind," Lombardi said and the line went dead. Arthur stared at the phone and back at Eames. He did not say anything but Eames seemed to understand that something was wrong. They continued toward the taxis and Arthur slipped the phone into a trash can.
