Act XXIII

"The resemblance cannot be denied, Grandmere."

"That may be so, but it could also be pure coincidence this stranger resembles her so."

"All the same, this might provide us with a clue as to the whereabouts of your missing daughter and her family."

Sigh. "Very well, you can run a GENscan on her, but do so discreetly; I don't want any trouble coming out of this."

"Understood, Grandmere."

"Alas my love, you do me wrong

To cast me out discourteously

And I have loved you oh so long

Delighting in your company…"

Esther raised the volume a few decibels to hear the song more clearly. It was an old tune; no one knew the composer's identity, though there were a few theories. In any case, she wasn't really thinking about the song.

Sometimes, she liked to analyze people. The redhead liked to study their behavior and mannerisms, which often clued her in to their natures…and how they behaved around certain individuals.

In the case of Abel, Esther knew that something in her person and character pained him sometimes. Out of respect, she didn't pry; Esther had faith that the Crusnik would tell her someday.

And while he was not blatantly obvious about it, Esther suspected Abel loved her. It was all in the little details that made the big picture.

But right now, Abel wasn't the one who held her chief interest. It was Tres and Maria.

The few times Tres had discarded his automated soldier facade for something more humane usually led to Maria being the cause. The night she was abducted by Radcon in Venice was the best example; the Gunslinger had dashed off into the dark streets, not even bothering to read the letter that had been addressed to him.

His behavior had been particularly impulsive, as well as possibly brash and foolish.

Not unlike a concerned friend…or lover.

Esther smiled at the thought.

"Are your thoughts good ones, Sister Esther?"

She looked up to see the Crusnik looking down at her, smiling.

"Yes." Abel's smile widened and he leaned down, kissing her forehead lightly.

"Good."

"Greensleeves was my delight,

Greensleeves was my heart of gold

Greensleeves was my heart of joy

And who but my lady Greensleeves…"

It was when they decided to go out into the city that the day began to turn a little gray.

Maria was sitting by herself at the fountain. Abel and Tres had gone to buy lunch for all four of them, while Esther was browsing the nearby stalls. She was currently trailing her fingers in the water when she heard a voice behind her.

"Beautiful subject, no?"

Maria glanced towards the fountain. It showed an angel and a mermaid caught in an embrace. What shook her was the voice, however.

It was incredibly erotic; she wouldn't be surprised if someone became aroused or even had an orgasm the moment the voice's owner spoke. All the same, something told her to be wary; this silver-tongued stranger had claws.

Breathing in deeply, she turned around.

Only to find herself facing an eerily familiar visage.

"…You're not Abel."

The man looming before her smiled. "No, I'm not." Delicately, he took her hand and kissed it lightly. The man did not let go, however, but continued ravishing it, going as far as to suck her fingertips.

The sensation of cold metal pressed into the back of his head as well as the sound of the gun's safety being pulled down told him that he'd gone far enough.

"You rarely show yourself in public, Cain." Abel's teeth were gritted, and his glare spoke volumes of hostility.

Cain turned around, chuckling lightly as he pushed Tres' gun aside. "Don't worry Abel; this time I'm being a good little boy. Even we need vacations you know…" He trailed off, his eyes flicking towards Maria, his gaze caressing her person in an all-too liberal manner.

It was all she could do to keep herself from running and all Tres could do from throwing himself on the man and pummeling him.

Abel looked down at Tres' clenched fist and noted the thin blood streams.

So far, no one has met Cain for the first time and not be annoyed, irritated, or pissed… Looks like Tres isn't immune to this, either.

The Crusnik did a double take and glanced at the Gunslinger's fist again.

Come to think of it…have I ever seen Tres bleed before?

"What does it say, Eduards?"

"The scan checks out positive." Pause. "Still, it could just be coincidence that the girl bears so strong a resemblance, Andrejs."

Andrejs glanced towards his companion, his hazel-green eyes containing a quiet blaze.

"That may be so, Eduards. But tell me this…" Pause.

"Do you know of any other family with such a uniform pattern in their hair?" As Andrejs asked the question, he loosened the ribbon holding up his hair and proceeded to tie it up again.

Brown, with black highlights.

End Act XXIII

V-ko: Man! This chapter was hard to do! But I completed my deadline! (celebrates) Things are starting to change in this story...sort of; SOMEONE seems to be desperately clinging to DENIAL right now. Or it could be a lot of someones. (shrug) Anyways, Read & Review!