Chapter 21: A New Development

"Well this looks like a quaint little area," said Amanda as they drove through a neighborhood that was a mixture of mom-and-pop shops and demure brownstones. "You could never tell that a mercenary HQ is located here just by looking around the place."

"Being stealthy has always been an essential skill to have for a mercenary, and what better way to keep to this sentiment than by hiding the HQ in plain sight," Randy explained, a rare smirk appearing on his face as he turned the car onto an intersecting street. "The HQ here in Cleveland is just down this road. It shouldn't take us long now."

Amanda simply nodded her head before leaning back in her seat. Her mind was starting to become a jumbled mess as all that had happened to her in the past few days started coming back to her in one huge wave. Despite all those thoughts, one moment stood out. . .

. . . The one she remembered the least.

Amanda had no recollection of what she did to those goons that were chasing them after they left the safe house. All she knew was what she saw in Kaitlyn's mind, and what she saw slightly terrified her. The psychic never realized she can do something so macabre, so unlike herself. It was something, she decided, she'd not like to go through again if she could help it.

"Here we are!"

Amanda was suddenly broken out of her thoughts by Randy's husky voice, her eyes blinking into focus as she looked at the building they were now parked in front of. It was a three-story brownstone with a white sign that had the words "M & M Real Estate" in elegant black lettering right above the front glass door.

"The Cleveland HQ masquerades as a real estate agency?" Amanda couldn't help but ask as Randy finally cut the engine.

"Yep; Mike and his wife, Maryse, actually own the place. The entire building, including the underground levels, serve as the HQ. Only the ground level acts as an actual real agency." Randy explained as he unbuckled his seatbelt. "C'mon, let's get moving."

The two exited the vehicle and walked toward the door in silence. Randy opened the door for Amanda, gaining a small smile from her in the process, which also led to another pang erupting in his chest. Ignoring it, Randy followed the woman inside, stepping into a quaint waiting area that included a few chairs, a coffee table with a whole bunch of magazines on top, and a water cooler off to the side. Across the room were three desks, but only one was currently occupied.

There were two people seated at the middle desk. The man who had their back toward them was talking to the female realtor in a slightly confused manner. For her part, the realtor kept a cool facade, patiently answering all the man's questions with a smile.

"Let me guess: That's Maryse?" Amanda mumbled as she sat down in one of the chairs.

"Yep. She's a licensed realtor by day, and a killer assassin at night," said Randy as he remained standing. "Also, that's not what she really looks like."

"What the hell do you mean by that?" Amanda couldn't help but ask as she took in the woman's appearance. In all honesty, the model thought Maryse looked like a little pixie with her willowy appearance, complete with short brown hair, pointed nose, and sharp cheekbones. She also couldn't help but notice that Maryse was quite the sharp dresser due to the blue blazer and white silk shirt she wore underneath it, completing the look with matching sapphire jewelry that enhanced her look rather than distract from it.

"Maryse is a shapeshifter. She looks like this for her day job and reverts to her original look when she's not . . . You'll see in a minute."

Amanda gave him a confused glance before turning her head to see that the two in front of them were just finishing up their consultation. Maryse shot them a quick glance, but never skipped a beat as she walked her client toward the door. As soon as the man was out of sight, she turned her eyes to the two, her smile lessening into a smirk as she switched the sign on her door from 'Open' to 'Closed'.

"That was my last appointment. Mike told me that I should keep my schedule light because we were expecting guests today," she calmly stated as she crossed her arms over her small chest. "It's been a long time since I've seen your face in these parts Randal."

"Nice to see you too Maryse," said Randy, not even bothering to comment on her use of his full first name. He then gestured to Amanda. "Maryse, this is Amanda Evans. Amanda, meet Maryse Ouellet."

"Ouellet is the name I go by when I'm here, but outside this room, it's Maryse Mizanin." Maryse was quick to clarify when she noticed the suspicious look that crossed Amanda's face.

"Well that makes sense," Amanda couldn't help but say as the two women shook hands. Now it was Maryse's turn to look suspicious, so the model had to clarify. "You can't really use the same last name when you're a deadly mercenary maintaining a normal day job. It just seems too problematic to deal with."

"It's nice to know that someone understands my plight. My husband has been trying to get me to use my married name for everything, but I've told him every time that it's just not practical to do so. . . My husband can be quite an unpractical man at times." said Maryse as she heard a snort come from Randy.

"More like all the time," the Viper grumbled as he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Look, we don't plan to stay here for long."

"Of course, you're not. You were never known for your patience Randy," said Maryse, her smirk growing bigger when she heard the audible growl that threatened to tear itself out of the Viper's mouth. Randy didn't like it when people made slights about his troubles with patience. "Alright, follow me, but be warned. My husband is on the premises. He was hoping to see you two before you left."

"Oh, so I get to meet Maryse's famous, yet annoying, husband after all." Amanda said through their link as the two followed her past the desks and into a back hallway with a wrought-iron staircase on the side. "This should be fun."

"Don't talk to him much . . . Once he starts talking, he won't stop, especially if he goes off tangent." Randy warned as they followed Maryse up the stairs. As they walked, the shapeshifter started changingshape, and by the time they reached the second floor, Maryse was no longer a pale, willow-looking pixie. She was now a tan, fuller-figured woman with long light blonde hair that went down her back. The only thing that stayed the same were her eyes.

"So that's what she looks like . . ." said Amanda, her tone sounding slightly impressed as they now walked down a hallway of closed doors. "To be honest, I actually thought she was a pixie before you told me that she was a shapeshifter."

"She likes changing her appearance from time to time. It's a trait she's hung onto since her modelling days."

"She used to be a model . . . Okay, model, then mercenary, and now both a realtor and a mercenary . . . What a life she has lived." Amanda mumbled in thought as the three came to a stop at the last door in the hallway. Two voices could be heard speaking behind it, so Maryse knocked on the door a few times to signal their arrival.

"Come in!"

Now with the go ahead, the blonde quickly opened the door, and gestured for Amanda and Randy to step inside. The two stepped in to see two men dressed in suits looking down at what appeared to be a map on a large oak table. One man wore his hair slicked back and was dressed in a charcoal gray suit while the other man, whose hair was a mixture of brown roots and long blonde strands, was dressed in a more casual tan suit, sans tie. Eventually, the two looked up from their map to see the new arrivals, grins now blatant on their faces.

"Huh, long time no see Randy!" said the man in gray as he walked around the table, but his eyes were more focused on Amanda than the Viper. "And this must be the woman you're assigned to protect. I'm Mike, Mike Mizanin. I also happen to go by the Miz."

"The Miz?" Amanda couldn't help but ask as she noticed Maryse shaking her head from the corner of her eye.

"It's a stupid nickname he likes to go by sometimes," Randy quickly explained, earning a scowl from Miz in return, as well as a smirk from the other man. "You really should stop using it. It's not going to catch on!"

"We've been trying to tell him that for years now, but he still won't give an inch." said the other man as he walked forward. "He's simply just that stubborn!"

"Oh, you think my nickname is bad? What about your ENTIRE name Dolph?" said Miz as he turned to the other man. "Like seriously? Who chooses to go by the name DOLPH ZIGGLER?"

"Dolph Ziggler?" Amanda couldn't help but ask, inwardly agreeing with Miz on that assessment. "Is that some kind of alias you go by?"

"It actually is, but no one, except Dolph himself, knows what his actual name is," explained Maryse as she went over to her husband. "He's kept it secret ever since he came into the mercenary field years ago."

"Even if you used your psychic powers to look into my head, you still wouldn't figure it out." said Dolph, his smile lessening into a smirk as he watched Amanda, even giving her a quick once-over, which didn't go unnoticed by the Viper.

"Is that a challenge?" Amanda asked, her right eyebrow raised in anticipation as she stared Ziggler down. Randy soon found himself not liking the direction the conversation was suddenly going, already irritated with how Ziggler looked the model up and down with a flirtatious look in his eye . . . He just . . .

. . . He just didn't like it because it didn't feel right to him.

"If you can figure out what his real name is, mind telling the rest of us?" the Miz couldn't help but ask as he gestured to himself and his wife. "We'd really like to know."

"Or better yet: Can we get back to the real issue at hand?!" Randy grumbled, irritation blatant in his tone as he noticed that Ziggler hadn't stopped staring at Amanda, even when her eyes were looking elsewhere.

"Oh yeah . . . the info," said Mike as he walked back over to the map. He lifted one side of the paper and picked up a tan folder that was lying underneath it. "I'll be honest. I was shocked that John had asked for help on this one. He's one of those guys that offers help, definitely, but he's not one for asking for it."

"Things really have to not go his way to make Cena actually ask for help," Maryse added as Mike looked over the contents inside the folder. "Anyway, the only reason we even got a hit on your case was because one of the cases we're working on involves members of different covens around the world, including the main one in Romania."

"Apparently, you're not the first psychic that caught the Romanians' interest." said Maryse as her husband handed the folder to Randy.

"Wait . . . I'm not the first?" Amanda asked, shocked at the news as she wrapped her arms around herself.

"Yep . . ." said Mike. "From what we managed to gather so far, a high-ranking member in the coven has had an interest in 'certain' psychics for the past year now. No one knows what his actual name is. All he goes by is this 'Mr. S' alias."

"Oh, we know that part," said Randy as he started to scan through the pages, which were mostly some newspaper articles on missing people from around the world mixed with a few official looking documents. "Mr. S has even taken his sweet time to personally contact us in the past."

"Did you have his phone tracked during the exchange?" asked Miz as he placed his hands in his pockets, but his tone was a tad sarcastic, which was obvious to everyone else in the room.

"We didn't have the necessary equipment with us at the time to do so. Also, the exchanges were too quick. We wouldn't have been able to get a lock on his location in time." Randy was quick to say back, already not liking the tone Miz used when he asked.

"Plus, you have to consider that whoever Mr. S is was possibly very far away when he called. . . Tracking a phone can only take you so far." said Maryse.

"Also, there's also the possibility that this Mr. S called you via an untraceable phone." Dolph further added, sneaking another look at Amanda before turning back to Randy. The Viper noticed Dolph's staring, but chose to ignore it, even though he was starting to find it hard to do so. Plus, his chest pains were starting to act up again, which really didn't help his already darkening mood. "Anyway, from what we gathered, all the previous missing psychics had a particular trait in common."

"And what trait would that be?" Amanda mumbled.

"Has your eyes ever gone red before?"

Considering what he's seen so far regarding Amanda's powers, Randy expected this kind of question to be asked. It still made the Viper's eyes widen nonetheless. He turned his head to see Amanda's emotionless face, her head rigidly going up and down once as an answer to Ziggler's question.

"It's happened before," she mumbled, finally finding her voice as her mind continued to process what Dolph just asked. "I don't have any personal memory of it happening though. What I've found out about it is what I've seen from another's memories."

"Well apparently, whenever certain psychics' eyes go red, it signals a surge of power unlike any other. However, it's a very rare ability that's barely seen, and because it's barely seen, there's not that much info on it to begin with," said Mike, his shoulders going up in a quick shrug. "If you were hoping to find info on that particular side of your powers, I wish you a lot of luck."

"Randy, have you witnessed this power for yourself?" asked Maryse as she turned to the taller man

"Once," the Viper was quick with the one-word reply. "We were leaving town when some of Mr. S' goons started chasing after us . . . I had a front row seat for the entire thing."

"How bad was it?" asked Mike, now getting a little too curious for his own good.

"Let me show you. Actually, let me show all of you," said Amanda as she closed her eyes. Maryse, Miz, and Dolph all looked at her with confused gazes before their faces turned blank. Randy, who figured that the model was showing them what she saw through Kaitlyn's memory, waited until they were done, his chest pains agitating him as he snuck looks at both Dolph and Amanda.

"What was Dolph trying to do? Was he actually flirting with Amanda for a moment there?" Randy couldn't help but think as he looked down at the folder in his hands. "And . . . And wait, why the hell am I getting so riled up about it? It's not like I should care. Amanda's single, and last time I checked, Dolph was still single . . . Again, why the absolute fuck do I even care about this?!"

The Viper broke out of his own thoughts once he noticed that Amanda had finished her little 'show-and-tell' with the others. Judging from the shocked looks the three of them were giving the model, it wasn't hard for Randy to conclude that they didn't expect what they just saw, not in the slightest.

"Well, that was . . . something," mumbled Dolph as he now eyed Amanda warily, which actually pleased the Viper a little.

"I'll say," said Miz as his face went from shocked to absolutely impressed. "Sheesh, if only you had more control over that 'side' of you. You would be an absolute threat to anyone that dared cross your path."

"Uhm, that's probably the reason as to why she's being so sought after in the first place hon." said Maryse as she placed a hand on her husband's shoulder. "Once the Romanians' became aware of the psychics' 'special ability', it wouldn't take long for those psychics to go missing. Just, gone, without a trace."

"10 other psychics have shown that they have this kind of power, and all of them have disappeared off the map in the last year alone," said Dolph as he took out his phone, which had been vibrating for the past few seconds now. "If they get you, you'll be number 11."

"Good to know," Amanda mumbled as Dolph started to check his messages, his mouth turning down into a frown. "Is something wrong?"

"The scout stationed at the city's southern boundary line messaged me. Two SUVs with tinted windows and no license plates just crossed into the city limits. A third was following right after it, and guess who they spotted at the wheel," said Dolph as he put his phone back into his pocket. "Here's some hints: Slick back hair, pierced lip, has a really bad track record with authority figures . . . Ring any bells?"

"That's got to be Punk and some of his goons," Randy growled out, his face now all serious. "And I have a good feeling what their first stop is going to be."

"You guys need to get moving NOW!" said Miz as he turned to his wife. "We need to warn the others downstairs. Looks like we're going to have more guests."

"I'm on it." said the shapeshifter before quickly leaving the room, her husband following right after her.

"Do they have any idea what car you're currently driving?" Dolph asked the two as Randy took Amanda by the arm and guided her out the room.

"Nope," said Randy as the three walked down the hallway. "Thanks to a damn pothole, I had to abandon my Hummer on the side of the road . . ."

". . . Leaving you to hijack a ride from some unsuspecting victim. A ride that's most likely not suited for a potential dog fight with mercenaries." Dolph finished as the group reached the stairs. "We can loan you one of our cars if you need it."

"If you're willing to spare us one, we'll gladly take it," said the Viper, who figured switching cars was a promising idea at this point. "Just let us grab our stuff from the car. Let's go 'Manda."

"Hold up!" said Dolph as he grabbed Randy by the shoulder, successfully stopping the taller man in his tracks. "You're a vampire who can speed in and out of buildings in no time flat. You don't need Amanda to come with you. I'll take her to the car, and you can meet us in the back with your stuff."

Randy would have unleashed a scathing growl on the shorter man if it weren't for the fact that Ziggler had a point. In the entire time he was trying to lead Amanda out of the building, he could have had their stuff in hand already. Holding back the growl that threatened to escape his throat, Randy simply nodded his head before disappearing.

"C'mon, follow me!" said Ziggler as he took Amanda by her hand and lead her down the stairs. When the two reached ground level, Ziggler quickly detoured to a nearby closet, where he grabbed a set of keys from a box of them on the top shelf, before the two slipped out the building via a side door. They walked along the outside of the building until they reached the back parking lot, which held a mixture of cars and SUVs. "It shouldn't take him long."

"What shouldn't take me long?"

Amanda and Dolph stopped in their tracks when they saw Randy walk by them with the duffle bags in hand. The Viper walked a few more feet before turning around with a serious look on his face.

"C'mon, don't just stand there. We have to get moving," said Randy, his voice starting to take on an impatient undertone. "Dolph, which car can we take?"

"The one closest to the exit!" said Dolph as he finally got his bearings back together. He threw the keys Randy's way, which the Viper managed to catch in his free hand before walking to the black SUV. Amanda moved to join him, but was stopped in her tracks when Dolph quickly grabbed her wrist.

"Dolph, is there something you want to say?" the model asked as she turned to face him.

"Uhm, yeah . . . I wanted to ask you something," said the blonde as he let go of her wrist. "Has Randy been suffering from any chest pains recently?"

"Uh, yeah. Actually, he has," said Amanda, her interest now peaked. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, just a feeling," said the blonde as he placed his hands in his pockets, his tone so low that not even Randy would hear it. "Trust me when I say this: What Orton is going through is something that ends in a positive for him. Well, for both of you, to be honest. Those chest pains of his is just his body telling him something that his mind hasn't realized yet."

"And how do you know this? How are you so sure?" the model asked.

"I have some friends who are vampires. Trust me. Randy is not the first vampire to go through this, and he certainly won't be the last one. What he's going through will be worth it in the end, but only if he gets over his stubborn, hardheadedness to do so." said Dolph as he spotted Randy watching them. "I better let you go. Be safe."

"Thank you." Amanda said in a sincere tone, her sentiment genuine. Dolph simply nodded his head before leaving, never turning his head as he disappeared from view.

"What was that all about?" Randy couldn't help but ask as the two got into the front of the car.

"I'll tell you a little later," she said as she buckled up. "But first, we should get moving."

Randy shot her an unsure look, but knowing that she would explain her conversation with Ziggler to him later, he kept himself quiet. He quickly put the key into the ignition and started up the car, driving them out of the lot, down the street, and back on the road to Pittsburgh.

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