After the limo got moving towards the Rockefeller's, Nathan reached over and put a hand over Heidi's. "Thank you again for coming with me to this. I appreciate it."
She looked distant, like she was preparing herself to endure the evening. "Why are you going? I thought you were getting back into law, not politics."
Law first, politics later, he thought. Aloud he said, "My mother wanted me to go in her place."
"Mm." Heidi looked back out the window. The distance between them seemed to grow without either of them moving.
Nathan gave her hand a squeeze, trying to bring her back. "You know those people with abilities?"
Heidi kept looking out the window. She nodded.
He looked at the partition separating the driver from the passenger compartment. It was supposed to be soundproof. "My mother… runs a company that involves itself with those people."
Heidi turned to look at him, listening.
He swallowed. What he was about to tell her was more dangerous than telling her about abilities by themselves. "I've been working with her. The Company finds people, tracks them, watches them. People who have abilities can be dangerous. The Company takes them out when they are. It's been in operation for decades. My parents… they were always involved."
She blinked at him slowly. He went on, "I didn't like some of how they did business. No oversight, no authorization. When they felt someone was a danger, they'd take them out. Rapists, murderers, thieves, controllers… there's people who can mess with your mind, make you forget who you are, change who you are, make you do what they want you to do. Some have abilities that make them strong or they heal, like I do. If they heal, police bullets won't stop them. Some can kill with a touch. Others have abilities that make them kill. That disintegration I showed you? Think about if someone used that on a person, directly. There are people who can walk through walls. No bank vault would hold them out, no prison can hold them in. The Company has been trying to keep people with abilities under control for a long time. I thought… I thought I could do it better. So I got the government involved. I told them… I revealed what we were."
Heidi continued to listen to him silently and intently. "It got out of hand. I'd thought… I was wrong, but I'd thought it would be limited to dangerous people, people who were taking advantage of others or hurting people. I couldn't stop things once they were set into motion though. They were rounding up everyone, no matter what they'd done. They went after Peter. And my mother. They weren't… I mean, they could be dangerous, but they weren't doing anything. Peter was a paramedic, for God's sake. He was trying to help people." He shook his head. "Eventually they found out about me and things went… even worse." He shook his head again, looking down.
Heidi turned her hand to twine her fingers with Nathan's. He looked up at her. He chuckled. "Heh. My life story - if anyone finds out what's inside, it all goes bad. Anyway, what this has to do with tonight is that my mother is trying to keep ties with groups that are influenced by people with abilities. This party, for one. There are people there who need to know I'm still out here, she's still out here and the Company still exists. She's sending me so they'll see me, know the Petrelli's aren't out of the picture after everything that happened." He concluded, "I thought you needed to know. I know… I keep a lot of secrets from you. I'm sorry for that."
She inhaled slowly. "Nathan… you've been more honest and open with me since you've come back than you ever were before." Her eyes went distant for a moment. "If you've been… fighting people with abilities, dangerous ones… that's why you left, so we wouldn't be involved? You were protecting us?" He'd said as much before, but she wanted to hear it again.
He nodded. Well, that and Peter died. Or, I thought he did. He got betta! He smiled at his joke, looking at Heidi and warming the smile to make it look like it was for her. It was easy enough. She'd dropped the restraining order a few days ago, since it was awkward and compromising for them to go out socially with it still on the books. He was grateful. He wanted to be in her life.
"Do you know who at this party has abilities?" she asked.
He shook his head. "No. I don't remember, assuming I ever knew." He looked at her cautiously. "I don't… remember… everything N-, I used to know." Damn! He chastised himself for his mistake. Why don't I tell her I'm a stranger named Gabriel while I'm at it?
She nodded, saying, "You've been through a lot. Just knowing… changes how I think about things. Your mother? She has an ability?"
"Mrm," he said, realizing he'd said too much earlier. She cocked her head at him and he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that slipped in there, didn't it? Heidi, I really can't tell you about her, about her ability. I'm sorry, but I can't. Not right now."
Heidi nodded and patted his hand. "It's okay. I'm sure it involves manipulating people. She's always been good at that." Heidi scooted across the seat and turned to lean back against Nathan, who was blinking and looking shocked. He was glad she couldn't see his face. That wasn't Ma's ability - that was Dad's. Or one of his. What does she think… that Ma's controlling me?
It occurred to him that it wasn't far from the truth and as a theory, it would fill in a lot of holes about his memory and personality changes. He decided it was useful to let her believe that. He put his arm around her, enjoying the warmth of her body against his. It's been ages… a lifetime. He gently kissed the side of her head, breathing in her scent. He looked out the window and watched the scenery go by. He wasn't alone.
The party was as difficult as he'd expected it to be, given that he'd gone missing, been announced dead and been politically replaced. He alternately told stories that he'd been on an exclusive leadership retreat and that he'd been on an island avoiding "complications" from his stance against the terrorists. He let his audience fill in the blanks and connect the two on their own. The best lies were the ones the listener made up themselves.
His influence was definitely diminished. The only things he had going for him at this point were the immense wealth and power his family wielded. His career was laid bare to him by Gabriel's gift, ruthlessly picking out times when he'd thought his own merit had propelled him into authority and showing him how his path had been paved by the power of his name. It made him feel inadequate. He wondered why he'd never noticed how much of a tool he'd been. Gabriel was merciless.
His life had gone smoothly until he'd been manipulated into turning on his father. He was sure the hand of another family of influence was in there somewhere, though it was also possible he'd just been rebelling, feeling his oats and trying to prove to his father he was a man of reckoning. Instead he'd been wrecked. Odd that it's a salve to my ego to think I was an immature idiot. I suppose that's better than being a dupe. Seems both of my fathers got their revenge on me. He took some consolation in the fact that he'd killed both of them in return.
Shortly after he arrived, a close friend of the host came over with a great grin and a friendly hand, saying, "Hello there! If it isn't the scion of House Petr-" It was at that point that their hands clasped. The man's bearded face twitched with a nervous tic as he stopped talking suddenly and looked down at their joined hands. His free hand hovered nearby, but then he moved it conspicuously behind himself.
Nathan smiled politely at him and supplied, "Petrelli, Nathan Petrelli. You remember me." He pumped up and down on the man's hand. He remembered meeting the man at fundraisers in the past. He was a member of the Carlsons, a wealthy family currently located in the upper Midwest. He'd been a major backer and always struck him as an uncommonly good man.
"Yes, yes I do. I've met Nathan several times before." The older man nodded, his cheer returning, but it was clearly false. He looked down at his hand, trapped in Nathan's. He seemed apprehensive about it. "Of course. It's good to know that the Petrelli's are back in business after all. I see rumors of your death have been hardly exaggerated."
Nathan let his smile slip somewhat, but not his grip. "Largely exaggerated."
"Yes, of course. Angela sent you?"
Nathan finally released his hand, nodding and searching the other man's face. "Yes, she did. In person. You can call her if you want. She'll confirm it."
"Oh, I'm sure she would. No one would impersonate a Petrelli without permission." The man stepped away from Nathan like Nathan might attack him at any time. "It's good seeing you. Sorry about my… eh, confusion. It won't happen again. Give my regards to Angela." He hurried off.
Great. I wonder if I need to kill him? He always seemed like such a nice guy. Of course, he might still be. It's just that I'm not. Nathan sighed and caught Heidi's eye. He walked over to her and gave her a small kiss on the cheek.
"Everything going well?" she asked him.
"Yeah, I guess so. Just ran into one of those people my mother keeps up with. He saw right through me."
Heidi searched his face. "Is that such a bad thing?"
Nathan looked back at her, slightly puzzled. "Well… I don't know. He seemed to think so."
She shook her hair back. "Maybe you're just not what he was expecting."
Nathan looked at her, especially appreciative of her at this moment. Moreso than Nathan ever was, a Gabriel-tinged voice in his mind said. His mood lifted to hear her confidence in him. He smiled. "Come on, let's get something to drink."
She nodded and accompanied him, saying very quietly, "It's still early. If you need to stay alert, get something light."
He shook his head and answered her in the same low tone, "I don't get drunk anymore. Not unless I put a lot of effort into it." He saw that she was looking at him and he added, "It's a new thing. From just last year." He settled for champagne anyway, to please her. It wasn't like the stronger stuff actually tasted good. Without the buzz of inebriation, there was little point in drinking it except habit.
After sipping together for a minute, she said, "Oh! I see someone I went to finishing school with. Do you mind?"
"No, not at all." He watched her cross the room. He liked the view. He tore his eyes away and went back to the business of making the rounds.
His next two encounters of any length were much more mundane. He was cornered by a man who wanted to argue with him about the no-fly list, seeming to think Nathan's previous involvement with Homeland Security would enable him to add or remove people from it. He was briefly sucked into another man's argument about how Giuliani was going to turn New York into a communist state. It was ridiculous. The man had had too much to drink.
His last discussion had more substance to it. It was with a sharply dressed, good-looking young Arab man who claimed he represented a group who could destabilize economies. That perked Nathan's interest. The man listed three collapses and one booming economy as being the work of his group. They were looking to cultivate interest in manipulating the money markets of first world nations and always on the watch for financial backers of the caliber of the Petrellis. Nathan had the impression the man was almost asking permission to play in the US sandbox. He wouldn't quite come out and say it though.
Nathan collected his card. It had a picture of an eclipse embossed on the back. Nathan flipped the card to face the man and pointed at the symbol. The man leaned in and looked, then smiled at Nathan. "One day, we'll blot out the sun." He sounded cheerful and certain. It was a bizarre thing to say.
Nathan looked at the card himself, silently. He looked up and said in perfect seriousness, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
The other man laughed loudly. "It's a metaphor! Haha! Just symbolism. Don't think too much about it. Call me, let me know, okay? There's always more money to be made." He moved on to someone else, working the room like a professional.
Nathan eyed the card, troubled. Is it possible to blot out the sun? Why would someone do that? This isn't like blowing up New York. It's more on the scale of killing nearly everyone with that virus. Have they… were they the ones who caused the eclipses in the past? The scientists never could explain how we had two worldwide total eclipses that lasted so long. Pocketing the card, he continued with the festivities. He wondered if Angela would explain it or tell him to find out on his own.
XXX
He was silent for most of the drive home. So was Heidi, seemingly lost in thought. Shortly before they returned to her house, she said, "What did you mean that you have to work to get drunk anymore?"
He looked sideways at her. "I have to drink high proof and a lot of it, on an empty stomach. Then it doesn't last very long. The drunkenness, that is." He furrowed his brow. He hadn't had anything serious to drink since he'd seen Claire. He wondered if he could get drunk at all now, with the enhancement of her ability. Apparently she couldn't get drunk at all, or so he assumed from the incident in Tijuana - what he could remember of it. His lack of memory there had nothing to do with Parkman and a lot to do with too much to drink. As Sylar, he'd been drunk several times, but it was difficult to get that way. Most recently had been the night before Thanksgiving as Nathan had tried to drown out Sylar's voice in his head.
"Why is that?" she asked, interrupting his thoughts before they became too depressing. None of his various component parts had enjoyed that evening.
He answered her, "The healing. It's a poison. My body purges poisons."
"Oh." After a pause she said, "So in addition to healing… um, wounds, you're really healthy all the time?"
He smiled a little. "Yeah. There's still a few things that affect me. I think viruses, but I'm not sure. I haven't been infecting myself to find out."
"Then there's old age. What would you eventually die of?" She was genuinely curious, but mostly asking herself.
He turned to face her, one brow going up.
"You do age, don't you?" she asked, looking at him.
He answered honestly, "I don't know. Other people with regeneration don't. My ability… I wasn't born with it. I got it from other people. I don't know if I get the immortality too. I suppose I'll know eventually."
She breathed heavily as the car pulled up to the curb, "You… you might live forever?" The driver got out and opened the door.
Nathan smiled thinly at her. "We can talk inside."
She nodded and invited him in. He hung up his jacket and put his hands in his pockets, thinking it had been a wonderful evening, all things considered. What a matchmaker Ma is. First dancing lessons, now this. I wonder if she intended it? He looked at Heidi and walked over to her impulsively, catching her hand. "Heidi? Thank you so much for going with me this evening. I looked across the room and there you were: beautiful, lovely. And I knew you'd showed up with me. With me!" He smiled warmly.
She smiled back, stepping close to him and kissing him lightly. His tongue pressed softly at her lips. She leaned her upper body away from him, looping her hands behind his neck and regarding him. He told her, "A man's gotta try, you know?" He looked away, cooling his ardor. They still hadn't been together, despite three dates and a number of meals. She leaned back slightly and rolled her shoulders with her fingers still laced behind his neck. The motion put her hips into him in all sorts of good ways. He breathed in and kissed her again. This time she responded readily, accepting him and pressing her body to his.
"Let's go upstairs," she said.
"Lead on," he answered, appreciating her form as they went up. I thought you might never ask, that you could tell what I was like that man did at the party. Or… maybe I just wasn't what you were expecting.