"So he's part of the Edolas family?" Ivan leaned back in his oversized leather chair, scratching his beard in thought.
Gajeel nodded in confirmation.
"Looks like he's new, but he's in deep," Gajeel said from across Ivan's heavy mahogany desk.
Ivan pondered Gajeel's story. The Edolas family was small, but powerful. They maintained a low profile, not a whole lot was known about them except that they dealt mostly in money laundering. He'd never dealt with anyone from Edolas himself, but he knew those who had, and they kept pretty tight lipped on their business dealings. One thing was certain, the family had reach. It wouldn't be wise to underestimate them.
"Did you find anything connecting him to Tartaros?"
At that Gajeel frowned. "I cornered one of their low ranking members, Lamy, but she didn't know much. She said she recognized him, but didn't know his name. She only saw him the once, he was speaking to Maud Geer's man, Silver, at their club in Old Town. But she didn't know what they were saying."
Ivan drummed his fingers on the wood of his armrest. So the kid was telling the truth.
"See if you can get more. If I'm bringing him in on this, I want to know exactly what he's after."
"What exactly is your plan with Tartaros?" Gajeel asked gruffly. "Those bastards seem to have their hand in every business in town. Why let 'em have a cut of yours?"
Ivan gave Gajeel a sharp glare.
"That's above your pay grade."
Gajeel cackled. "Whatever you say, boss," his voice was full of sarcasm. He didn't like Ivan, but Ivan could care less. He did his job, and that was enough.
Gajeel left with a loud thud of the door.
Ivan pulled a key from his pocket and unlocked the cabinet built into the desk revealing an old grey safe. He spun the knob several times until he heard the click of the lock turn.
He pulled out a stack of papers and a small lockbox. Using another key he undid the latch and reexamined its contents. Everything was still there.
Of course it was, he half chuckled. No one knew what he was planning with Tartaros, so there was no reason for someone to come poking around. Besides, he had the only set of keys.
He took another look inside the folder Maud Geer had given him. The numbers looked good. Ivan smiled greedily to himself. He was going to make a fortune.
It was five o'clock in the morning as Natsu walked the downtown pavement leading to the nightclub. The musty smell of morning fog filled his nostrils, but he didn't mind it. He liked listening to the city as it began to come alive. Lights turning on in the tall, dark buildings like an illuminated mosaic.
It was cold and just starting to snow again, but he had a loft nearby and the walk wasn't bad. He'd preferred it over driving.
Lucy was probably asleep by now. She kept late hours, had to, in her line of work.
Natsu grimaced.
He hated what she did. Not the dancing, really, but the other job, the one that no one talked about. At first he could ignore it. But now, after that kiss... The thought of anyone else touching her made him want to punch a hole straight through the concrete.
That was the real reason he'd cut the deal with Ivan. Yes, it meant he now had a key to the club, and that brought him one step closer to getting time alone in Ivan's office. And yeah, he wasn't limited to operating hours anymore, which would offer up more opportunities to sneak in while the place was dead and its inhabitants asleep. Especially now that he had Lucy's key too. If someone were to catch him looking around, he could simply say he was stopping by to surprise her.
Perhaps most importantly, the deal brought him close to getting in on a meeting with Ivan and Tartaros.
But when it came down to it, the truth Natsu would never admit aloud was that it was for her. It was all for her.
The blue neon sign of the club came into view. Natsu darted into the alley that led to the back door.
It had been just over two weeks since he'd started his nightly visits. Last night was the first of Lucy's show's he'd missed. He wondered if she had missed him...
He shook the thought away. As much as he'd like to believe the girl was feeling the same way he was, the fact was that it was her job to make men desire her. She was practiced at disconnecting from her work. He could see it in her eyes, when she would pull away, put her guard up.
Then, every once in a while, she'd let him in. The distance in her eyes would fade and she'd look at him, like she did when she gave him her key. No doubt, no distance, just an earnestness that damn near killed him.
He stopped at the heavy steel door and took a deep breath.
Time to get to work.
Silently he moved down the hall, passing Lucy's door without stopping. He would check out Ivan's office first, then go in and see the girl. She'd be asleep, but he had a present for her. He'd leave it in her room and then head to headquarters. He had a meeting he couldn't afford to miss.
The hallway opened to a large recreation room. Plush sofas and a giant television took up most of the space. To his left a pool table stood in the corner near the wet-bar. There was another hallway across the room with a door on either side. The right door led to the kitchen. The left was Ivan's office.
Natsu made a b-line for the office.
He had just entered the hallway when the kitchen door flew open and a woman crashed into him.
"Natsu?" Lucy's started voice cried in a hushed whisper.
Shit.
Natsu flashed her a sheepish smile, "I was looking for you. You weren't in your room."
Natsu was accustomed to thinking on his feet. The half-truth was part of what had become a natural reflex.
"I was just getting a drink," she said quietly, gesturing to the bottle of water in her hand.
"I thought you'd be asleep," he whispered back.
Lucy shrugged, averting her gaze. "I couldn't sleep."
Natsu looked at her sideways, "Why not?"
The girl looked in every direction but his. "It was a rough night I guess."
Instinctually Natsu took a step towards her, resting a protective hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay? What happened?"
Lucy's silence fanned the coals of aggression smoldering in his core. If someone had as much as looked at her wrong...
"Talk to me Luce," he said seriously, taking her chin in his hand and guiding her gaze back toward him.
She shrugged again. "There was a fight, some guy tried to climb on stage during my set-"
"Bastard," Natsu growled under his breath. "If he-"
"It's okay," Lucy added hurriedly. "Bacchus pulled him away and dragged him out back." Lucy shuttered, clearly uncertain what the giant bouncer would've done to the guy.
Natsu clenched his jaw. He should have been there.
"I'm sorry I wasn't there," he whispered, trying to restrain the anger in his voice.
Lucy took a step back, pulling away from him.
"It's fine," she said casually. Her guard was up again. He could see it in her eyes. "I'm sure you were busy with work or something."
"I guess you were to," he shot back, unable to stop himself.
Natsu knew she was suspicious of his work, who could blame her. But there was no way he could tell her what he really did for a living. He couldn't risk telling her too much about his cover story, either. If he didn't keep a closed lid on his business with Ivan he'd risk losing his opportunity to get to the bottom of this case.
The hurt in Lucy's eyes was instant. Natsu chastised himself for being so cruel. It was her job. Who was he to judge her? But if she left, if she gave it up, maybe there was a real chance...
Natsu brushed the thought away. It was inconsequential.
He still didn't know if Lucy was caught up in Ivan's business. He'd asked her about it before, if she ever met Ivan's new business partner, but she'd been cagey and unwilling to answer. It was incriminating, and Natsu had to remind himself of that. He also needed to stay on her good side.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I shouldn't have said that."
Lucy shifted her weight, not immediately accepting his apology.
"You know it's my job," she whispered. "I can't stop things like that from happening."
"Why do you stay?" Natsu couldn't help himself from asking.
Her eyes widened, surprised by his question. "It's not easy to get out of places like this..." she said reluctantly. "And it's not like I have anywhere else to go. I can't afford to quit and find a new place to live. And Ivan knows people who can get me into modeling. This is the best chance I have."
Natsu scoffed. "You really think Ivan's going to help the girl bringing in all his best customers to leave? He's not going to sacrifice his business for your dreams. There are other ways to get what you want." He had the urge to brush her blonde hair from her eyes but held back, maintaining the distance she had put between them.
"I've tried all that, before I came here. I couldn't get anywhere. That's how I wound up taking the job. Pay isn't great but with free room and board, it was my only option at the time."
"None of that sounds like a good reason to stay." Natsu replied in a low voice.
"You don't understand," she retorted.
Natsu fought the urge to yell at her, to make her see that she was wrong.
"Lucy," he said, taking a hesitant step toward her.
"I should really get some sleep," finitely she ended the conversation and moved past Natsu into the rec room. He turned, following close behind her. Making their way down the hall, the pair came to a stop at her door.
"Goodnight Natsu," Lucy said coldly.
Natsu slipped a small jewelry box he'd been carrying from his pocket and tossed it toward her.
Clumsily she caught the unexpected object. She looked up at him in confusion.
"I got that for you, an apology for last night." He watched as she turned the blue velvet box in her hands. "I guess it'll have to make up for today too."
He turned without waiting for a response and headed down the hall.
Anger boiled in his gut. She'd gotten under his skin and it seemed like it was going to take everything he had to get her out.
Swinging open the heavy door he took off up the alley. Dawn had come, grey light sifting over the city. The snow had picked up. Natsu pulled his collar high around his neck.
Not only had he missed a shot at Ivan's office, he'd risked losing the one thing that was giving him the opportunity to be there.
Natsu cursed himself for letting his emotions get in the way of his work. If he wasn't more careful, he was going to blow the whole operation.