"What do you mean you had an 'unpleasant meet' with them?" Erika asked, her eyebrows frowning. Jena's voice sounded really uncomfortable now, and she was at a loss of words.

"Well...um...we had gone out for a drink in a new place, and uhh... we happened to see some of them. We tried to follow them, since we knew that you would kill to learn where they are hanging around, but we didn't had the chance to follow them much..."

Erika quickly grabbed her laptop and prepared a research. "What was the name of the place?" she asked, her voice demanding and strong.

"Uhh, The Black Horse, I think. Somewhere outside the center... Look Erika, to be honest with you, I don't think that it's such a good idea to search for them..."

Erika didn't turn to look at the phone. Her eyes were glued on her screen and her fingers were tapping so quickly on the keyboard, that Loki hardly believed the fact that they hadn't catch up fire. "You didn't think of it as such from the beginning, but you agreed to help in the end."

"I know, but this is getting out of control girl! These guys are dangerous, they have power and you are just a woman! What makes you think that you have any hope?" Jena had started to panic, the words coming out of her mouth rapidly and her voice rising, only a bit but still it was loud.

"You know why I'm doing all this, don't you?" Erika snapped at her, turning her attention on the phone. It wasn't secret that she had started to get angry with Jena and her protests. A long silence followed after Erika's words, Loki's eyes drifting from the woman to the phone and again the same. He had lost interest for his book right now.

"Yes." Jena answered, her voice low and almost regretting. "But they tried to kill both me and Bradon when they discovered us! I'm only telling you this because I'm worried about you."

Erika fell silent. Her eyes stared at the floor for some moments, thinking over Jena's words. She wasn't going to give up all this try, not now that she was so close. Not after what they had done to her... But Jena was her friend, maybe the only friend she now had. She loved her and she would never do anything that would put her friend in danger. She shouldn't have involved her in this in the first place. But maybe there was a way to end this, to win Jena's safety.

"What I'm going to do is my decision and as much as I appreciate that you want me to be safe, I can't drop things now. You agreed to help me in the first place, but if you believe that it's too dangerous for you and Bradon, then close the phone and forget all about this. I will completely understand."

Again silence. This conversation seemed to be the longest Erika had ever had and with the longest breaks of silence ever. Maybe someone should write this down as a record or something. From the other line of the phone was heard a deep sigh, probably Jena's.

"I'm sorry Erika. Be careful and please, don't die." she said in a low voice and right after that, the sound of beep's started to play, a sign that Jena had hung up. She stared at the phone for a few seconds, breathing quietly, slowly. She moved her hand and pressed the button on the phone, turning it off.

Loki watched Erika, with his eyes being the only thing moving on him, turning her eyes away from the phone to the floor again, having forgotten everything about the laptop resting on her lap. She moved her hand to her eyes, rubbing them slightly while letting out a small, tired sigh.

And then her eyes shot up to him. For a brief moment they locked eyes with each other, Loki observing the chocolate brown eyes with rising interest and curiosity and Erika feeling the piercing green eyes diving into the windows to her soul, searching for her darkest secrets.

"Do you want any coffee?" she said, breaking their gazes and walking towards the kitchen. Loki's eyes followed her figure, burning her from behind. She was trying to avoid his gaze and possible questions he might had to ask her, and he knew it. But she wasn't going to get away with it so easily. Not from him.

"Why wouldn't you listen to your friend?" he asked calmly, as casually as he would speak about a celebration in Asgard. Erika stopped dead in her tracks, just before she entered the kitchen, her hand on the kitchen door. Her eyes rested on the door, waiting for something. Loki gave her that 'something'. "Because her way of speaking revealed an anxiety that can be provoked only by a dangerous reason."

Erika's eyes dropped on the floor, considering Loki's curiosity. Damn, she was a complete fool to have the slightest hope that he would keep his questions to himself. She knew, she shouldn't trust him her relationships with the Night Soldiers, he was the God of Mischief and Lies after all! But again, what did she have to lose? She sighed against the kitchen door and slowly returned to her previous seat on the couch opposite of Loki.

His eyes followed her back to her seat. He placed the forgotten book, he had been reading long ago, on the small table and joined his palms together, waiting for her to speak. Erika rested her elbows on her knees, hugging her arms, slightly leaning forward. Her eyes rose up to look at him.

"The Night Soldiers are... a secret organisation. Something like mafia, but less murdering. They have a long list of clubs and sex shops under their commands and an even longer list of customers." Erika titled her head to the side and shrugged. "At least that's how they want to look like. Behind this mask of them, they're busying themselves with 'night girls', illegal alcohol and drugs. Maybe a smaller amount of it, but still. Law's actions are as rare as an eclipse during daylight. Each member of the Night Soldiers has a tattoo on their upper arm, the shape of two swords, joined at the edges. And you bet there are too many of them."

Loki had been listening with interest, never taking his eyes from her, or thinking of changing his position on the couch. His mind drifted back, when he had come to Midgard to rule the human population. He was more than right when he had said to Thor about how marvelous job he was making, keeping humans under his protection. Erika herself was confirming it right now to him. Although his interest had rose even more, he was a bit disappointed. He had hoped for some more personal informations.

He slowly leaned forward, looking straight into Erika's face across the table. He observed her darkened face, when it had turned like this from the moment she had said their title. "And what do they have to do with you? Or should I ask, what do you have to do with them?" he whispered, his smooth British voice almost hypnotizing her.

Erika's breath caught in her throat. His face, his eyes, his voice, everything on him seemed to make her actually want to speak her heart out to him. He had made her to hold her breath and she was almost unable to speak. But it wasn't only him, who made her stop breathing. It was also the information he was asking to learn.

She took in a deep breath and looked down. Loki saw that the grip she had on her arms tightened only a bit before she spoke again, in a lower voice. "I want to pay their leader with the same way he destroyed my life." Loki titled his head, pushing her to go on.

"I want to kill him."

I want to say a big 'thank you' to Dragonat for giving me the amazing reviews and I inform you all, I still ask for your reviews! Really now, write me anything! Even a word would be great! It doesn't have to be something good, you can write me a complaint you might have. For example, Loki's behavior. If I'm out of his real personality. Anything! *growls* Okay, alright. I feel better now. I'm okay...

Next chapter might leave more questions to you, but it'll consider a different subject from this one. Don't let yourselves be fooled. Erika isn't the nice looking woman she seems to be! Or maybe, she's not only that.