- Chapter Thirty-Six -

I'm The Hero You Think You Deserve

Amethyst and amber sprouting defiantly where they would, the rampant growth crept as far as the innermost sects of the cathedral halls, although it was a rare stalk to actually penetrate the worn stone cracks. Pitted tawny and dusted dapple, glowing faint sherbet in the flickering torches and falling hollow cobalt in the dismal darkness, the walls played a rather fetching contrast. Only they weren't there for a nature tour or the dated architecture: armed with almost brand new chisels and well-used flashlights instead of the usual dynamite, they were there for Avery's treasure. Miraculously one of the few corners that Shoreline hadn't blown to smithereens yet, the collapsed passage wasn't undiscovered so much as it was given a second look.

Options running out as desperation mounted, Rafe had just brought in the criminal from Panama, and frankly everyone was curious to know what he would add to the operation. Talk was that he had the best insight into the pirate they were attempting to steal from, that he was in fact the foremost authority. Except he had been out of the game for more than ten years, so what could he hope to accomplish that the paramilitary company hadn't?

Turned out the answer was to start by reviewing every single action and transaction taken these past thirteen years with a fine-tooth comb. Files, ledgers, billing statements and employment histories, books, articles, news clippings (had anyone stopped nursing paper cuts long enough to remind the man what year it was yet?), every last resource was being channeled into reexamining the records. At one point the search had become so exhaustive that Adler had even called in some of the so-called sharpest minds on his payroll to have a go at the receipts, the team of temps spearheaded by none other than his right-hand woman.

Dividing the tale into halves at that point, while both of the stories were true one focused on said woman, whereas the other was about the ex-con Rafe had quickly grown to favor.

[Bai]

Positively blood-thirsty and possibly even more adamant about pleasing her superior than he was obsessed with digging up the loot, almost all of the mercenaries had come to see the businesswoman in the same light they saw their own boss in. Not that any of them were stupid enough to say that within earshot of Nadine. One-sided as it appeared to be, there was a certain animosity the outsider felt for the other woman, so it was better to keep them as far apart as possible. Not quite jealousy per say, it was virtually a death sentence to so much as utter the woman's name in a non-professional context.

Some of the greener recruits were almost vocal about noticing that miss Wen (or Mistress as she was sometimes referred) was quite the stunning woman. Easy on the eyes and from a background that bore some resemblance to what they did, the lure of the forbidden served to only sweeten the pot for the rookies. Understandable enough when there weren't too many women around, many a soldier had watched her work her stiletto heels and tight pencil skirts in tortured silence. And then someone had made the mistake of bringing their approval to her attention.

Mother-mode on full tilt, at that time Bai had also been balancing a sick daughter and last-minute applications to all of the best kindergartens; not just back in America but anywhere there was a program for children her little girl's age. Ordinarily she would have had all the forms filled out and on all the right desks long before the public deadline neared, however work had been consuming every free minute she had. In her mind Rafe adding an extra zero to the bribe was the least he could do for his little girl, but as he hadn't bothered to get involved at any stage, there was some debate as to whether Daniella was an Adler or not. Daniella would end up going to only one of the schools in the end, however every rejection letter would become a cautionary tale.

In the meantime, there were bigger fish to fry. Not afraid to pull employees when and where it was advantageous, so far as the research team under her instruction went, there were only so many leads they had turned up. Largely the effort was just a massive waste of everyone's time, and she knew it as well as anyone else, yet that hadn't stopped her from cracking the whip.

Enter the sap from Shoreline that had thought it would be a good idea to whistle suggestively at her passing. A small enough offense and even flattering on a good day, too much had been eating at Bai to not be bothered by the old-world display of sexism in the workplace. She took what she wanted, when she wanted it. Less making an example and more a pure act of lashing out, the businesswoman hadn't hesitated to pull the very visible pistol from her hip and let out some steam. Usually she had only used her gun to deal with large spiders or the rats that had the misfortune of crossing her path, yet as she fired she couldn't distinguish much difference in eliminating vermin.

Venture anywhere near miss Wen, and risk a horrible fate - that was the type of reputation she had earned after dispatching the mercenary. Nadine had went ballistic when she had heard, but what could she do against the mother of their financier's offspring? Drake had enjoyed that little episode, even though he'd only heard the ghost stories secondhand while playing cards with the hired guns. Rafe hadn't found it particularly amusing, although there was little doubt in anyone's mind that he would have done anything different if he had been there. In fact, some even speculated that the deceased had been fortunate that the bank and his bitch hadn't done worse, that he had had the luxury of a quick death.

Having said all of that, for the sake of appearances Bai had been called into the office for a stern talking to; whatever was said, it had been a short meeting. Technically speaking they had been interrupted by a small child disobeying direct orders to stay in her room, tears in her eyes as she sobbed about a nightmare. Supermom had moved to remove the child and return her to their room, however the tot wasn't having it and would only go if her father took her.

"No, I want Daddy!" Kicking her mother away with surprising force after falling to the floor, a young Daniella had zipped on all fours to hide under the desk, her tiny hands like baby pythons as she clung to her father's legs for dear life. "Mama's gonna send me away! I hate her!" Fueled in part by her nightmare, it was obvious that her fear had stemmed from overhearing plans to look at schools across the world. Mortified by the implications, since the girl barely got to see her father as it was, the way she saw it in her head was that if Mama had her way she might never get to see him again! At least not until she was full grown and old like everyone else... "DADDY DO SOMETHING!"

In a bad mood already, the last thing Rafe needed was having to set aside a moment to calm his offspring. Glaring pointedly at Bai for not just leaving the child back at home with a nanny as he'd repeatedly advised, he sighed in exasperation. "I can promise you that your mother isn't going to send you away," ice chipping back a layer of warmth that never existed, he leered at the woman with a hundred unspoken threats, "she isn't going to do anything I tell her not to. Isn't that right?"

"Of course. Daddy knows were my loyalties lie." Ironically timed words, spoken without much consideration for the child they shared.

Loyalties, an interesting choice of words. Anyone on the outside of their situation would have seen the ultimate imitation of the ideal mother, a protector that would do anything for her kid, except that wasn't the whole story. Not with the woman he came so dangerously close to caring about. To her credit Bai was actually somewhat decent at managing their daughter, however there was a disconnect somewhere in the woman's brain - a specialist would probably have a few ideas about what it was, but that would mean letting someone else see the truth. Guard a foreign concept when it came to the father of her progeny, the cracks shone through at the best of times. At the worst... Well that was a road she wouldn't be too thrilled to explore.

Innocence of youth blinding her to the weighted stares dancing the Argentinian tango across the room - passion in one hand and a sharpened dagger in the other - Daniella was equally deaf to the undertones warring over her future. Or their own futures, more like. "So if Daddy told Mama to let me stay, I'd get to stay with Daddy?" The possibilities were so strong in her eyes that for a moment they seemed less pale and more like her mother's.

"Daniella!" Bai knew full well what her daughter was aiming at, and she knew what Rafe was going to say before he said it.

Choosing to not engage with the little girl clinging to his knee directly lest she get her little hopes up, the multi-billionaire shook his head, "Not so fast, little girl. That's correct in so many words, but that's not going to happen here. I have important work to do, and you'd only be in my way. No, your mother is going to take you home, and then she's going to put you in a good school, because my daughter will not be an uneducated little ingrate that thinks she can just order everyone around her to do every tiny little thing she wants. Life's not fair, and it's high time you learned that."

[Sam]

Locked out of the makeshift mess hall for making one little comment about how the rations the mercenaries were being fed wasn't much different from the slop served in prison, Sam wasn't all that hurt by the consequences of his actions. A little more comfort than he would have expected, why bother with Shoreline's sorry excuse for cuisine when he had access to the private chef Rafe employed? Or maybe it was the little woman the maniac had somehow coerced or otherwise emotionally abused into loving him; class through and through, she definitely screamed the sort to need a personal household staff where ever she went. A psycho match made in heaven... if they didn't kill each other first that is.

Not technically his business when he'd been scarcely more than a quick escape, the brunette found it was better to not dwell on that three-ring circus or the bespectacled beauty that was struggling to be both star and ringmaster. Assuming of course that there had been any room left up on the pedestal she had put Rafe on (his guess was that there wasn't normally, although she had a pretty flexible frame). It actually reminded him of this one street performer he'd met in Greece... Or was he thinking of the one from Prague?

Shrugging it off in the salty breeze that ruffled his hair and pulled at his coat, the adventurer purged all thoughts of adultery from his mind as he strolled around the corner to the old living quarters. Almost feeling like the idea had come from a past life, there was a small part of him that worried he might turn into salt if he allowed so much as a single wayward thought while on hallowed ground. Obviously he was being ridiculous to entertain the notion, but at the same time it didn't feel so crazy to err on the side of caution just this once.

Cigarette a more comforting friend than any he had known the last decade, Sam rolled the slender white stick between his teeth as he fished out his lighter from an inside pocket. To be fair there were a handful of guys in Shoreline that didn't completely make him want to bash his skull into a brick wall, yet he'd hardly felt compelled enough by their company to honestly want to seek any one of them out. Forget about the time after he'd befriended a guard, being largely isolated for his crimes - and the crimes of his two more fortunate companions as well - loneliness wasn't exactly a new feeling for the thief.

It did however seem to be a strange new feeling for one of the cuties that Rafe's other half had brought in. Strawberry-blonde, possibly Irish or Scottish from her remaining accent, not too tall, green eyed, the woman seemed to be something like an assistant to Bai, except her only job was to supervise the research effort when the hardass herself had to bail. Common enough these days, what with the kid being sick, Drake had managed to speak with her quite a few times.

Most everyone treated him like garbage, like some horrible monster that had broken free of its cage, yet she hadn't. Jaded by the reception of Rafe's missus, the brunette's first thought was that her almost tender treatment had more to do with the kind of scum she worked with on a daily. A reasonable jumping point, after a few conversations and a purely coincidental coffee date, he reasoned that she just might have been a kinder soul than anyone in the business should have been. Adding to that surprise was the discovery that she was working towards being Bai's go-to.

Odd as it was, they had clicked. Trouble was, Sam wasn't the only one - a Shoreline shitheel, one of of the guys had actively gone out of his way to speak to the woman at every opportunity, not taking no for an answer. It hadn't been disruptive to their work just yet, but smart money was on Nadine stepping in soon to make a rule about not fraternizing with outsiders. Sensing that that move would go over well, while the thief did strongly support the idea, he hadn't been too vocal about it.

But since when does fate care what any one person wanted? Correction, when had it ever cared about what Sam Drake wanted?

Time and circumstance no man's friend, as the historian stole a private moment to himself to honestly just breathe in the fresh air that had long been denied him, who else should stumble upon his little slice of paradise but the woman and her shadow? Half tempted to just slink back into the deep shade before anyone realized that he was there, there was no ignoring the conflict that had sought him out. Loathing the forces of destiny with just about every fiber of his being, naturally he had stepped in to intervene on the woman's behalf - no one had asked him to, it was just the right thing to do.

Long version of the story going into great length about the way baby Ging found herself backed into a literal wall, the stalker making no secret of sniffing her hair as he pinned her in place, the short version went on to summarize what happened next. As happens all too often in these type of situations, one thing led to another: first it was razor blade barbs and harsh words, but that had escalated all too rapidly into blows. In almost no time at all, all that had remained of a bad scenario was little more than a pulp that uttered threats and a scared little mouse that had seen too much to be comfortable around her protector any more.

Scrapes and bruises little more than just another part of any given day, maybe the ex-con had taken the violence a little too far, however it wasn't like anyone had ended up in a body bag! Not yet, although once word had reached Nadine and subsequently Rafe, nothing was very certain...

Wifey already granted full amnesty for what boiled down to cold-blooded murder, any idiot could see that there was no way in hell Shoreline would stay in line if the second outburst went unanswered. Mindful of what that meant, Rafe had been left no other alternative but to call Sam in for his actions. Had he not already "handled" the whole fiasco with Mistress Wen, the multi-billionaire would have easily pardoned the brunette over his on-again/off-again associate, no question. Sadly for all involved, as that wasn't in the cards now had been the time to prove who was in control.

Easily the kind that relished the position, the icy-eyed villain made a full show of having Knot bring the guilty forth to his study. Gliding from the open index on the desk to greet his guest, Rafe ordered the lieutenant away with a single wave of his hand. "Samuel." Never a good thing when he adapted the name to ring with an almost silky sound, he inclined his dark head at the brunette, eyes predatory as he studied the other man. "What on earth could you possibly have been thinking? Pulling a stunt like that..." Allowing a pause that could crush a weaker man, he was disappointed to see that prison had improved Drake's poker face. "Playing the hero doesn't suit you."

Pouring a scotch for himself and something a little stronger for Sam, Rafe offered the glass without a word; grateful that his 'partner' was in a kinder mood than he had been earlier that week, he accepted the glass and took a healthy swig. Aware of what the other man was getting at, the historian simply shrugged his shoulders, "You win some, you lose some."

"Of course." Enjoying his own drink until it came down to one or two more remaining shots, the rich investor turned fortune seeker set the glass down on the bookshelf before turning his attention back to the only other person in the room. "As your friend I just wanted to remind you not to dwell on Bai's little pet. Nadine thinks I'm going to reprimand you for the loss of her men, but we both know I'm not going to. You're too much like me. We're treasure hunters, Samuel, men of fortune! The only things that can satisfy us - truly satisfy us - is the glory and the chase itself. We can pretend otherwise, but family is just a distraction. Daniella, your brother, they may have their uses in our lives but in the end it will just be you and me standing there when we find Avery's treasure."