"What have you brought home?" Jack questioned without preamble as Nadie entered the president's office with the two Tediore men in tow.
"This is Francisco and—"
"Not them," he interrupted and looked up at her. His eyes flickered to the creature on her shoulder. "That."
Nadie lifted her hand and the stalker made a soft sound and rubbed its nose against one of her fingers.
"It followed me home. Can I keep it?"
Jack looked back down at his computer screen.
"Isn't Squeaky enough of a handful, babe? Do you really feel like you need another pet?"
"You have to admit, it is cute," the Siren replied. Jack snorted.
"I do not," he retorted firmly. "So, what other wild animals have you brought home with you?"
"This is Francisco and Juan Tediore. Uh." She looked back at the two young men. "I'm sorry, I don't remember the whole name."
"That's fine," Francisco assured her quickly. He stepped forward and nodded his head deeply to the CEO.
"My name is Francisco Alejandro Gui—"
"Yeah, don't care," Jack cut in. "I got the 'Tediore' name, that's all I need. Why precisely are you here in my office? I thought Amelia was doing the talking for Tediore."
A trio of scowls met him at that statement. The president studied the unhappy faces and then leaned back in his chair, chuckling.
"Well, that's quite a picture. Ok. Why are the two sons of Tediore sneaking around behind their mother's back to have a clandestine meeting with a rival company head?"
"Stepmother," Juan corrected immediately.
"We don't exactly see eye to eye with her," Francisco continued. "And we're sure she's using this meeting as an excuse to be on Pandora."
"Oh, I have no doubt of that," the masked man replied. "The question is, do you know why?"
The Tediore brothers glanced at each other and then looked at Nadie. The Siren frowned irritably, but Jack spoke before she could protest about their unwillingness to speak in front of her.
"Nadie is my right hand and probably the person most affected by her mother's presence," the president stated. "Anything you tell me she's going to find out anyway, so we might as well cut to the chase."
Francisco's lips thinned, but he nodded in acknowledgement.
"We're positive that she's here looking for a Vault."
Jack's eyes lit at the "v" word and the youngest Tediore immediately had the president's full attention.
"A Vault, huh? And how exactly did she find out about a Vault on my planet?"
Francisco shrugged.
"I don't know. Let's be completely honest here—if we were talking about my mother instead of Amelia, I'd never breathe a word of it to you. I am very aware of the profit a Vault represents. But it is Amelia here, and I'm positive she's responsible for our mother's death, so I'm going to make sure every plan she has fails catastrophically." The young man's words were almost a snarl by the end.
Jack's smile was thin and dark.
"Hey, look at that, sweet cheeks. I think we've found someone who hates your mother as much as you do. So, what can you tell me about the Vault your stepmother is looking for?"
"We don't know much," Francisco admitted, spreading his hands wide. "What we do know is Amelia had some Atlas documents that referred to a 'Vault of the Traveler.'"
"Hm." Jack leaned back in his seat, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I definitely recognize that name. Given that Atlas is involved, I must have seen something in their documentation when I took the company over."
"There was some indication that there was an Atlas facility somewhere that was dedicated to its study," the younger Tediore continued.
"What was she doing with this stuff? Was your mother Atlas?" the president asked, looking over at his Siren. Nadie shrugged.
"I have no idea. I know Dad was at one point, but he's never said anything about Amelia having been."
Jack frowned.
"I think we need to buttonhole your bullymong father and find out exactly who and what your mother is."
"Yeah, I'm thinking that's not a bad idea. But do me a favor, love. Don't go talk to him yourself."
"What? Why not?" the masked man protested, sounding almost wounded. "Sweet cheeks, are you saying you don't think I have a way with him?"
She snorted as she retorted, "Oh, you have a way with him. A way with getting right on his last nerve. Let me be there."
The president sighed.
"Oh, very well. I won't talk to him without you."
Jack turned back to the Tediore brothers, but a commotion at the door interrupted anything he might have said. Amelia strode into the room quickly, a tall brunette haired man behind her, and an attractive young woman stopped in the doorway, proclaiming they were not allowed to just walk into the president's office. Jack sighed.
"Don't worry about it, Penny. She's here now." There was a note of irritation in his tone, but it was not directed at the secretary.
"I am so sorry, sir," the woman at the door apologized, backing out of the room. The CEO turned his gaze to the visiting Tediore rep who had slowed in her approach the moment her gaze fell upon the brothers.
"I beg your pardon for the intrusion, but it was brought to my attention that a Tediore family ship had been found missing," Amelia began slowly, schooling her expression carefully, her eyes on the young men, but her words for Hyperion's president. "The data indicated it had left dock on a flight plan that set course for Pandora. I thought I should let you know that there may be a complication arising, but I see such warning is no longer necessary. I wouldn't have imagined it would be my husband's children come to visit. I am pleased to see you, Juan and Francisco." She smiled gently at the two young men, though there was the vaguest hint of an edge in the expression.
"It's… nice to see you, too, Stepmother," Francisco replied, the words forced through clenched teeth.
"I apologize for any inconvenience they may have caused you," the representative continued, her gaze going back to Jack. The president waved a dismissive hand.
"No need to worry about it. They've enlightened my day."
A corner of Amelia's lips twitched, but otherwise her expression didn't change.
"I'm pleased to hear they haven't made themselves into a burden. If you don't mind, I'd appreciate if you would relinquish them into my care so I might help them acclimate to life on Pandora for the short time they're here."
Jack smiled brightly, and Nadie recognized it as the look that said he knew he was about to disappoint someone and he had every intention of enjoying the experience.
"Oh, there's no need for that," he assured the representative. "Pandora is becoming quite the tourist attraction. We're more than capable of making off-world visitors feel at home. And as these two are not here for negotiations and thus not here on behalf of Tediore, they fall under my purview as guests. They're clearly of an age where they can speak and act for themselves. Or are you going to try and convince me they're not of sound mind?" He crooked an eyebrow at Amelia, almost inviting the woman to make the argument. Amelia smiled vaguely, not rising to the bait.
"Oh no, like all boys, they're more than capable of making their own decisions." Her tone spoke to her opinion on the kind of decisions boys made.
"Fantastic," Jack replied, intentionally ignoring the unspoken sentiment. "Then the matter is settled." He reached up and tapped his Echo. "Jimmy, I have a pair of gentlemen here who need guest suites. Would you come get them?"
Once he heard the acknowledgement, the president returned his gaze to Amelia.
"There, taken care of. Is there anything else you need, Mrs. Tediore?"
The older woman stared at him for a heartbeat longer than was expected, clearly thinking quickly, but then she tipped her head.
"Not at the moment. Excuse my intrusion, Handsome Jack." She gestured to the young man who had accompanied her into the president's office. The brunette glanced at her and then nodded almost imperceptibly. He bowed and swung a hand out toward the door, waiting until Amelia swept passed him, and then he followed her out.
"Anyone get the name of the brute tagalong?" the president questioned. Juan snorted in disgust.
"That's Xavier. He's one of our stepmother's lackeys. He came with her from whatever hell she crawled out of."
"Babe, I think I'm beginning to share your feelings with regard to your mother."
Nadie glanced over and gave him a half smile. If she was going to say anything, it was interrupted by the arrival of Mister Blake.
"I'm sorry for the delay, sir," he said as he came into the room. "I was making the arrangements needed. I assume these are the two gentlemen?"
"Yeah," Jack replied. "They're a couple of Tediore's kids not here on the payroll. Make sure they're comfortable."
"Yes, sir. Follow me, if you would?" Mister Blake gestured toward the door. The brothers exchanged a look and Juan shrugged. Francisco's lips thinned, but he headed toward the office's exit as requested, his brother behind him.
"Make sure you come back when you're done," the president instructed his assistant. "We have work to do."
"Yes, sir."
Mister Blake left the CEO's office, shutting the door behind him. The moment he did, Jack immediately turned his attention to his computer and brought up a login screen.
"What are you doing?" Nadie asked curiously, walking over to his desk as he began typing rapidly.
"Pulling up the old Atlas files I inherited," he replied. "I know I've heard something about the Vault of the Traveler before—I'm hoping the location of this facility that was studying it is listed in here somewhere."
The Siren stepped up to stand beside him, slipping an arm over his shoulders so she could join him in watching images and information flicker across the screen. The small stalker scrambled off her arm and hopped down onto the desktop, eyes locked to the president's fingers which were almost a blur across the keyboard. Its head twitched left and right, its tail swinging back and forth, and it shifted, gathering its weight onto its hindquarters. Its low rumble of anticipation went unnoticed by the two humans, much to Jack's chagrin when it leapt abruptly onto his hands and started nipping his fingers.
"Ack!" He tugged his hands away sharply while the stalker growled and scrambled over the keyboard, hopping up and down to try and reach his fingers.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Nadie said hurriedly, attempting to catch hold of the animal.
"Play, play, play!" the stalker chanted, happily dodging around her hands.
"It's ok, babe, it didn't really hurt," the president assured her, staring down at the little beast. "It just surprised me. I was expecting it to be better behaved since it was with you."
"I think it was trying to play with you," the Siren said, chuckling softly.
"Grand," he sighed. "Unfortunately for it, I have work to do. And I'm partial to my fingers remaining on my hands."
The stalker plopped down on his keyboard, its tail curling around its clawed paws, and stared up at him expectantly.
"Nadalie, why is your pet trying to play with me?"
"I dunno," she answered. "It has good taste?"
He frowned in that way that said he was trying to be annoyed, but preening over the compliment was winning out. She took the opportunity to scoop up the escapee from off the keyboard.
"Sir?" Mister Blake inquired as he returned to the office. "There's someone here to see you."
Jack scowled.
"Now who is it?"
"You called, sir?" a young man asked as he leaned into the office around the door.
"Ah, Rhys! About time! Get in here. You too, Jimmy," the president ordered.
The new gentleman was a lanky young man with short cut brown hair and boasted a cybernetic eye implant as well as a mechanical arm. He carefully entered the room, followed by the CEO's assistant. Nadie straightened, studying the newcomer curiously.
"Who is this?"
"This, sweet cheeks, is Rhys. He is basically my right hand man on Helios. He takes care of it up there while I'm down here doing the important stuff."
"Happy to be of service, sir," Rhys assured them.
"I had him come down to Opportunity because it occurred to me that if I'm going to leave him in charge up there, it'd be a good idea if I was sure he could handle any surprises like these negotiations. So I'm going to put him in charge of things around here and see how he does."
"Pardon?" Rhys sputtered in shock, eyes going wide.
"Sir?" Mister Blake questioned, a hint of worry entering his tone. Jack waved a soothing hand at his assistant.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to leave him to sink or swim. I wouldn't risk my city that way. I'll be shadowing him, so if there's any real trouble, I can step in and solve it. But for the next week, he'll be running the show. Any meetings, projects to be decided, conflicts between departments… it all goes to him to deal with first and foremost. You're to only get me involved if it's an emergency. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir," Mister Blake agreed slowly while Rhys all but bounced on his toes in excitement. The assistant sought out Nadie's gaze to find her already giving him a perturbed look. The fact she hadn't expect this turn of events either did not allay Mister Blake's concerns.
"Am I supposed to go to him first, too?" the Siren asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
"If it's related to the job, yes," Jack replied. "If it's not, then definitely no, you come to me. That being said, you might as well vanish into your lab for most of the time the next few days, babe. I have a feeling it will be late nights for me for a bit."
"Boo," she frowned. "You're telling me it's going to be late evenings for a while?"
"Possibly no evenings at all, depending on how things go," he replied, which only made her frown deepen.
"Boo!"
He laughed and tugged her down to kiss her. The stalker churred in her arms.
"Don't worry, sweet cheeks, as soon as I'm done here, we can duck out early. However…" He turned and stood, waving a thoughtful finger at Rhys. "I have something for you. Stay there."
"Yes, sir!"
The president stood and went to a small storage room off to the side, leaving Nadie and Mister Blake to glance at each other uneasily once more. The Siren shrugged one shoulder and then looked at the young man who was staring at Jack's desk with a growing expression of awe.
"Does this mean I get to sit there?" he asked breathlessly. Nadie gave him a half smile.
"Sounds like it."
"Don't get too comfy!" came the warning from within the storage room. "I'm not letting you take over. This is just training!"
"We'd have to do some serious cleaning if he was," Nadie responded with a chuckle, looking over the collection of things on her lover's desk. Her brows quirked together when she spotted a pile of miscellaneous paperwork half shoved in a corner.
"What… oh, for heaven's sake." She reached over and grabbed the pile, plopping down in his seat as she started sorting through the paperwork. The stalker scrambled out of her arms and up to her shoulders once more. Jack grinned brightly when he spotted her on his return, holding a book and a small box.
"Aw, babe, you're finally taking over my paperwork for me? It's about time!"
"I just want to make sure it gets done before you get your hands full with babysitting," she retorted.
"Hey…" Rhys protested woundedly. "I have been running Helios for a while now. I am not totally incompetent."
"I didn't mean it that way, dear," the Siren assured him distractedly as she sorted pages. "You'd have to be useful in some regard or another. Otherwise he wouldn't give you half a moment, let alone control of his space station."
"And let's be honest, he'd probably be dead if he wasn't useful," Jack added. "People who disappointment me tend to not live long."
"Indeed," she agreed easily. "You need to come sign these documents. I can finish up these other ones, but those require your signature."
The president groaned, rolling his eyes dramatically as he walked over to Rhys.
"C'mon, sweet cheeks, haven't you learned to forge my signature yet?"
"What? No! I may grudgingly do your paperwork for you, but that doesn't mean I'm going to sign off on this stuff without your approval."
"Ugh," he said by way of protest. "Seriously, babe, just sign them and get them out of here. I trust you to not destroy the company. Now, Rhys, these are for you."
Rhys accepted the book from the CEO even as he saw Nadie look up at Jack sharply, a surprised expression on her face that melted into genuine affection. Whatever exactly it had meant to him, it was clear that Nadie would remember his words.
"So this thing is the Manual," the president began, tapping the four inch book he had handed his subordinate. "A little light reading for you. This, however, is way more fun." He gestured with the small box and offered it to the young man. Rhys accepted it and opened it to see a jack for his cybernetic.
"This has an upgrade for your eye in it," Jack explained. "It'll give you control of most of the systems in Opportunity, as well as a fair amount of information not commonly available to the public. It also contains most of the passwords you will need for daily life. Not all of them, mind, but enough you shouldn't run into any problems for a week."
Rhys picked the upgrade up carefully.
"Thank you, sir."
"Don't get used to the power. The permissions are only good for 168 hours starting the moment you download them. So, chop chop. Get to it."
As the young man carefully inserted the jack into the port in his temple next to his left eye, the president turned back to regard his lover and his assistant.
"So, he runs the show, don't get me involved unless there's an emergency. Any questions?"
"Yes," Nadie replied. "Are you dying?"
He frowned at her.
"You would know better than anyone if I was."
"Well, I know, but I never expected to see the day when you'd hand the reins over to someone else like this."
"It's not for any real length of time," he retorted with a sigh. "I'm not setting him up to take over if something happens to me. That honor goes to Jimmy here. But if I'm leaving Rhys in charge anywhere, I want to make damn sure I trust him to not screw it up. Therefore, I want to make sure he's capable of not burning my city down immediately. Is there something wrong with that plan?"
"No, it's smart, honestly…"
"Sweet cheeks, are you saying you're surprised that I have a smart plan?" he demanded.
"No, it's not that!" she assured him hastily. "It's just that…" She struggled for a minute and then glanced over at Mister Blake. "Help me out here?"
"I believe what is perturbing Ms. Tirrell most is that neither of us was aware you were planning this, sir," Mister Blake began slowly, choosing his words carefully. "With her mother's presence on Pandora already putting her on edge, this abrupt change of the status quo has likely made her a tad nervous." He looked over at her. "I do hope that is an accurate summation."
"That's about right," she agreed. The Siren looked back at Jack. "And I'm compelled to add that I am emotional and hormonal, which is not fun, by the way. Screw everyone who says you're supposed to be happy when you're pregnant."
The president laughed at that.
"I guess I did forget about my girlfriend's current delicate sensibilities."
"Hey!"
"I'm sorry, sweetheart." He tugged her close and kissed her cheek. "I promise I have everything in hand."
"You usually do," she replied, a pouty tone in her voice. "But surprises have not been good to me recently."
"There, there," he responded, squeezing her once before almost immediately releasing her to turn back to Rhys. "Those permissions downloaded yet?"
As he walked over to his employee, Nadie glanced at Mister Blake.
"Thanks for throwing me under the bus there."
"He cares about your opinion on these matters, not mine," the assistant retorted. "It doesn't matter that this is an unexpected development for both of us—he is only concerned about making sure you stay happy."
She snorted.
"Jimmy!" the CEO called. Both Nadie and Mister Blake looked over to see him wave to Rhys. "Come give Rhys a tour of the grounds."
Mister Blake and the Siren exchanged a final look, but the assistant stepped forward and nodded.
"Of course, sir. Come with me, would you please?"
Mister Blake led the young man toward the door, the latter of who was still wearing a star-struck expression, though that may well have been from all the newly acquired data still processing.
Once the door slid shut, Jack approached and Siren and offered her an arm.
"Think your lackeys can handle the lab for the rest of the day?"
"They managed it just fine for the week I was gone. I imagine they can deal with one more day. Especially given it sounds like I'll be just about living there for the next week."
"Don't be like that," he chastised her gently. "It's not that long. We'll take an extended weekend once this is done, promise."
"I'll hold you to that," she warned him. He grinned.
"You'd better. I have a feeling I'll need the stress release when the week is over."