Author's Note: Welcome new followers! I hope you are enjoying the show so far. Look at me being all regular, got a fresh new chapter for you guys this week.

Enjoy, and as always, please read and review! ~

Shepard stops as she reaches the walkway on the presidium, looking out over the lake. "It's not right." she growls in frustration.

"It's the council." Deunan steps up beside her. "They've never been any good to you. Why should that change?"

"We still have those dossiers," Miranda steps up. "And you have your Alliance rank and spectre status back."

Shepard scoffs, "For all the good that does me."

"We'll make this work." Deunan takes Shepard's arm and pulls her around, "C'mon, you need a drink, and we can sit and talk this out."

"Drinks won't help the situation." Miranda warns as she follows the two women.

"Won't hurt either." Shepard says simply as she makes for the transit station.

A few short minutes later sees the three women walking into a run down, old looking bar. Shepard sighs softly in a sense of relief and a small smile quirks the edge of her mouth as she hears Miranda say,

"What kind of place is this?" She waves her hand to clear some of the cigarette smoke from the air. "I didn't think places like this still existed."

"Murphy's Law." Deunan says with a smile, clapping Miranda on the back. "One of the golden gems of the Citadel."

"A diamond in the rough, if you wanna call it that." Shepard leads them to the bar and grabs three seats.

"Who's callin' us a diamond?" A deep gruff voice growls from the far side of the bar. The man that comes down the bar line is a huge hulk of a man, enough to make Miranda blink at his sheer size.

"Same gal that's always called your place my diamond." Shepard says cheekily. Grinning crookedly at the man.

He stops dead in shock, his face blanching. "Sweet mother above…"

"What's the matter Bane?" Deunan teases, "Look like you've seen a ghost."

"I swear I be lookin' at one now." He steps closer and looks Shepard over. "God woman, I heard you'd died. Hardest news I ever had to hear. What happened?"

Shepard reaches across the bar to pat Bane's hand that rests on the bar. "Can't say, still a shock to me too. It's good to see you old buddy."

"What? No greeting for me?" Deunan complains mockingly, "I'm hurt. Shep's getting all the attention as usual." She makes a fake pout that has Shepard grinning and Bane guffawing.

He slaps her lightly on the shoulder, tousling her hair as she grins, "You bringing her back is a good thing. I heard you was stuck on Omega, making a right name for yourself."

"Bah, I got bored and Shep came along at the right time."

"Oh, Bane." Shepard claps Miranda on the shoulder. "This is Miranda, Miranda Lawson. She's the one that brought me back."

Bane extends his hand to Miranda who takes it and shakes it briefly. "Welcome to Murphy's law little lady. Any friend of Shepard's is a friend of mine.

"Thank you. It's quite the place you have here." Shepard can see she's holding something back, and has the sense it might be this place making her uncomfortable. She can't help feeling a little glad of that. Miranda needs to be out of her comfort zone more.

"What brings you down my way?" Bane pours out two whiskeys, handing them to Shepard and Deunan. "What you drinking?" He looks to Miranda expectantly.

She holds up her hand, "Nothing, thank you. I don't drink."

Shepard looks back to Bane. "Got our asses handed to us by the Council. Came to drink it away, and see an old friend."

Bane gives a shrug, like a what can you do. "You're always welcome here, you know that."

"So I do." Shepard takes a drink of her whiskey then pauses, an idea coming to her. "Say, Bane…"

"Yes?" He replies hesitantly, "What have you on the brain?"

She pulls up the dossiers on her omnitool and looks to him. "I've got a list here, people I'm looking into, maybe you've heard of some of them."

He takes a look over the list and whistles softly. "Quite the collection there Shepard. What are you getting into?"

"Nothing." she says innocently. "Just doing some brushing up on a few contacts. You know some of them I take it?"

"Yeah sure. Everyone who's anyone underground knows of that Jack character, she's a mean piece of work. deadly as all get out, and plum crazy to boot. Last I heard she got picked up by some prison ship, you'd need a right boon to pop her free of that."

"She worth contacting?"

"If you've got a job crazy enough for her and the credits she'd be the right one for it. Dead set that one is. I've heard of merc jobs she's pulled. Her biotics are insane. You'd think she was part asari the way she wields them. I'd watch out for her."

Shepard exchanges glances with Miranda, knowing that this is one person to track down, she could be very useful to them, if she can be trusted to keep a cool head. "Who else did you recognize?"

"This Thane fellow. He's a drell, hell of an assassin. Has never missed his mark so I've heard. He's got a cool head on his shoulders, be worth it if you need someone who can move like he does."

"Sounds like someone we could use.." Shepard muses softly as she finishes off her whiskey, Deunan a pace behind her. "Know where to find him. The dossier I have lists no known location."

"Can't help you there sister, I haven't heard hide nor hair of him for months now. I think he's on a job. Could be soon we hear word of him."

"Looks like this Jack is the one we find first."

"Getting to her shouldn't be a problem." Miranda says matter of factly. "Not with the resources we have. We'll just need to make contact with the ship."

"Right then." Shepard pushes herself up from the bar, extending her hand to Bane, "Thanks for the help old friend."

He shakes her hand and pulls her into an awkward hug across the bar. "Don't be no stranger now, ya hear me?" He lets her go, giving her a stern glare.

"I promise. Next time we're back in I'll stop by again."

"You do that." Shepard steps away, giving him one last smile before walking out, Miranda follows her, she doesn't see Bane wave Deunan back to him.

"You keep an eye on her. Ya hear?"

Deunan nods solemnly. "Oh, I am. she's in good hands."

"She was in good hands the last time too. You better watch out for her."

"I will Bane," She clasps forearms with him, hugging him tight. "She won't get away from me again."

"Alright then." He hugs her back and gives her a good natured shove, "Go on with ya."

She smiles at him and trots out after Shepard and Miranda.