A/N: sorry for the long wait, but I haven't been having too much free time lately, also it did took me a while to clean up this chapter since there's a lot of dialogue in it and I really didn't want it to sound too much like a script. So yeah.. sorry about the long wait.
Many thanks to my wonderful beta for her magnificent work.
I'd like to have the opportunity to talk with Delphine privately first, to prepare her for the meeting with Siobhan - or perhaps warn her is the better term, but Siobhan is too good to allow that to happen. She refuses to leave my side, and I have no other option but to text Delphine in front of her with the information.
We're set for the evening. The venue is the backroom of a restaurant where Siobhan knows the owner, and has worked with for several years. Privacy for the meeting is assured and so is a good meal, but a peaceful encounter is unlikely. The result of the meeting is anyone's guess; the two women reaching a satisfactory compromise is as likely as them ending up at each other's throat.
We arrive a full hour ahead of time, but don't go inside. Instead, we sit shadowed in the car, a small, nondescript Nissan, over ten years old, gray and dirty, like thousands of others that roam the city. Siobhan's alert, watching the traffic, noticing any car that stops for too long along the curb. Anyone who changes the pace of their steps is a blip on her radar, a potential person of interest and, unknowingly, subjected to her scrutinizing gaze. She wants to be sure this isn't a trap, that Delphine isn't setting us up to be caught. From our position on the opposite side of the road, a half a block away from the entrance, we can see any suspicious activity.
The waiting is made tedious by the heavy silence in the car. Siobhan makes no attempt to fill the silence, to make the waiting more bearable. The only interaction she has with me is a nudge on my left arm when she spots something that captures her attention.
Delphine herself arrives three minutes early, by taxi. From where we sit, we see her leave the vehicle and look around for a couple of minutes, hands shoved in the pockets of her long, pearl coat, before she pushes the door and goes inside. The manager of the restaurant has instructions to direct her to the backroom and leave her there. She'll be waiting a while...we won't be going inside until Siobhan is sure no one is following her or waiting for her to get in before they make a move.
After ten minutes, there's nothing suspicious, and only then is Siobhan satisfied enough to get out of the car and walk down the street with me right behind her. The silence continues.
Once inside, we're escorted through the spacious dining room, exquisitely decorated in earth tones, the low light giving it an intimate atmosphere. Despite the early hours, the restaurant is already half full, most of the empty tables sit ready with reserved signs on top of them. There are a few couples, and groups no larger than four people seated at the center of the room, and three people who are eating alone, eyes on their phones. No one pays any attention to two women being guided to the private area of the establishment, the quiet murmur of voices uninterrupted as we cross the room.
Our escort, dressed in black slacks and shirt, and with a white bowtie, opens a heavy, wooden door and waits until we step inside before quietly closing it.
Delphine is standing at the far end of the room, her back to the door as she admires one of the several watercolors hung on the wooden panel wall. The painting itself is nothing special, at least to my untrained eyes, but that's irrelevant. This is an act, with Delphine conveying a comfort with the situation, which I'm certain she doesn't truly feel.
The table is a dark wood, and is large enough to comfortably accommodate up to at least ten people. Her heels click on the hardwood floor when Delphine turns around, her luminous eyes land only briefly on me before they focus on the woman next to me. There isn't a hint of a smile on her lips as she approaches, only curiosity as she cautiously observes Siobhan.
The awkward silence persists for several seconds as the two women size each other up, as if they could access each other's vulnerabilities just by looking one another. There's a lump in my throat that keeps growing no matter how much I try to force it down, but neither Delphine or Siobhan seem to be suffering from the same symptoms.
"Shall we sit?" Siobhan finally speaks, and although her words are cordial, her expression remains closed, almost cold as she extends a hand to the table.
"Of course," Delphine answers with a curt nod, her own features a mirror of the older woman's.
Uncharacteristically, Delphine steps aside, inviting Siobhan to take the lead and choose her seat. Siobhan moves to the head of the table, and with a subtle tilt of the head, instructs me to take the chair to her right side. Delphine, after observing this, chooses the one right across from me.
"I suppose the first order of business should be proper introductions," Delphine says, her tone a little more diplomatic, almost friendly. "Even though it seems I'm at disadvantage," she observes right after. "I suspect you know a great deal about me."
"Not particularly," Siobhan answers. "But I certainly know more about you than the other way around, so I guess you're not entirely wrong." The older woman appears to consider something before continuing. "You can call me Ms. S, that's what I go by these days. Cosima here I assume you know pretty well," she adds with her bright blue eyes going briefly to me.
"I probably did, once," Delphine responds, not acknowledging the little provocation sent her way. "These days, I know very little."
"Enough to risk your career by trusting her," Siobhan comments immediately, showing her cynicism regarding Delphine's motivations.
Her eyes rest on me, lingering for a few seconds before the blonde shows me a thin smile. "Enough to know that she'd do the right thing," she corrects.
"The right thing for you, of course," Siobhan says, her own smile a lot less innocent, more cunning. "I never had any reason to doubt Cosima's loyalty until you came along, that doesn't mean she was not doing the right thing."
"For the sake of making this a pleasant encounter, Ms. S, I suggest we be honest with each other," Delphine says in a steady voice, her smile gone. "In your particular line of work, very seldom does one have the opportunity to do the right thing. You operate outside the law, thus making you criminals. There's very little ethics involved when you make your life thieving and scamming."
"If we're such bad people, then you certainly don't need the like of us to help you do the right thing," Siobhan says with sarcasm. "I knew this was a mistake," she adds in a lower voice, looking at me as she gets up.
My eyes dart from S's determined expression to Delphine's frown and clenched jaw. I try to discern if they could come to terms without my interference, see if they could work it out, but apparently that failed spectacularly. We haven't been here for five minutes.
"C'mon S, let's talk this over," I intervene in a pacifying manner. "I'm sure we can reach some common ground here. Delphine, you need help with your… investigation," I say, looking at the blonde, "and we need something from you as well. I say we help each other out, and when this is all said and done, you two can go back to despising each other's line of work."
Delphine raises a brow, curiously staring at me. "What do you need my help with?"
"Finding someone whose been causing us trouble," I answer, despite the ugly look I get from Siobhan.
"You want my help finding someone who's making your life of crime more difficult?" Delphine spins what I've said to accommodate her version of the world.
"Whoever this person is, they're not making our lives difficult to make the world a better place," I retort, slightly aggravated by the way she put it. "I can assure you. Besides, you can't really blame us for wanting something out of this deal," I add, noticing Siobhan sitting back down.
"I thought getting you out of the shit show you've mired yourselves in scott-free was payment enough for your cooperation," Delphine challenges, clearly displeased with the new demand.
"You make empty promises," Siobhan speaks again, apparently having a change of heart, at least for now. "From what I gather, you're just an agent, a cog in a much larger machine. So, I'm sorry if I have very little faith when you say you're going to help us get out of it."
"This is not what we talked about," Delphine states with a mild fire in her eyes. She probably feels cornered, knowing her and the way her suspicious mind works, Delphine's probably thinking I've set her up.
"Cosima doesn't speak for all of us, the same way you don't speak for the entire FBI," Siobhan, surprisingly, tries to deescalate the situation. "These are the terms, whether you like them or not."
At this, Siobhan gets back up, but this time she rises slowly, walking to the right side of the room and raps her knuckles on the wooden panel wall. A concealed door opens, no handle or any sign of its existence on this side. She says something in a low voice to whomever opens it, and the door is closed again quietly.
"May as well start eating while you make up your mind," she comments, sitting again with a small, satisfied smile on her lips.
In truth she has plenty to be pleased about. Regardless of Delphine's answer, Siobhan will have her way. If Delphine refuses the terms, then no harm will come to us, things will return to the way they were before this meeting, and more than likely, we'll pack our bags the tomorrow and disappear without a trace...or a word to Delphine or the Websters. The danger Delphine poses is minimal, since she can't out us without admitting to this unsanctioned meeting, and it will be presumed she went behind her bosses backs to try and make a deal with us.
On the other hand, if Delphine decides to agree with what Siobhan is proposing, then we'll have someone inside the FBI working on our behalf, providing us help, insight, and resources we would not otherwise have access to. Sure, we'll have to pass along information regarding a client, perhaps even weaken the possibility of attracting new clients, but it's not like we don't have problems already. Having someone sabotaging our every mission is equally bad for business.
It's the definition of a win-win for Siobhan and, by proxy, all of us.
Still, even knowing this, I can't help but feel somewhat guilty. It was not a set up, I didn't mean for Delphine to feel trapped, but that's what's happened, nonetheless. No matter what she decides, Delphine won't get what she wants without having to concede what she may consider too much.
Her expression says exactly that. The few times I dare look at her, I can see how much she loathes being in this position. When our eyes meet, she gives me a bitter smile, her glowing emerald eyes with specks of gold reflect the anger quietly burning inside. If spirit emitted a color, hers would be fiery red, hot crimson steam enveloping us all.
If Siobhan notices this, she's unfazed. Her smile remains unmoved, pleased with herself and the satisfying turn of events. She politely thanks the waiter who sets the table, and another follows with the mushroom risotto entrée that no one has ordered, but that I'm sure Siobhan had arranged beforehand. They work efficiently, getting in and out without much commotion. White wine is poured into Siobhan's glass for her approval, which she gives with a short nod after a taste.
During all this, Delphine has an unimpressed scowl, but other than that I can't guess what's in her mind. She's angry, but she hasn't gotten up and left after hearing the proposal, so I suppose that's a good sign, even if I doubt very much that she'll accept the terms Siobhan has laid out before her without discussion. Delphine is not the type of person who gives up easily. More than likely, she's thinking about a counter-offer, something that won't put her at such a big disadvantage.
"Say I accept this," Delphine starts thoughtfully. "Let's say I decide to do the dirty work for you…"
"It's not dirty work, Delphine," I interrupt. "You'd simply be helping us the same way we're helping you."
"No, it's not the same," she says in a calm voice, but the look she turns my way is enough to give me pause. "You helping me puts you on the right side of the law, while me helping you find this person makes me work outside of it."
"The person you'd be trying to find is not exactly a law abiding citizen," I counter, twisting my lips to keep my frustration under control.
"Maybe so, but whatever information I could get my hands on will be used by you, to do god knows what," Delphine states, her eyes moving between me and Siobhan.
"I can understand your concerns about that, Delphine, I really do," Siobhan says, her demeanor calm and unchanged, supported by the certainty that Delphine has yet to refuse. "We just want to protect ourselves from whatever he's planning to do against us. At most, we'll be disrupting his operations, but the way I see it, we'd even be providing help for the powerful federal bureau of investigation," she says sarcastically. "He's one of us, after all. A criminal. A bad seed that needs to be eradicated."
"Retaliation?" Delphine raises a brow. "Is that what you're after?"
Siobhan smiles, a subtle curl of her lips, a glint in her eyes. "All you need to know is that it'll be very unlikely that our actions regarding this person will end up being discussed in a FBI briefing session."
There's another long silence, during which Delphine picks up her fork, moves a few grains of rice on her plate and brings some of it to her mouth before reaching for her wine. I mimic her actions, occasionally looking at the blonde who continues to twist her lips, unconvinced by the older woman's assurances. Only Siobhan seems to be enjoying the meal.
"In order for this to work, I'm going to need you and your team to trust me," Delphine directs this at Siobhan, her eyes locked on the other woman. "If you truly want my help, I'm going to need you to tell me everything you know about this person."
"I assumed as much," Siobhan says without pause, and with a short nod, reaches inside the pocket of the the coat hung on the back of her chair and places a small thumb drive on top of the table, next to her own plate. "Here is all I have on him. Details of jobs we did for him, the means of contact, and a bit more information I could collect using my own resources, which is not a lot," she continues, her finger lightly tapping the table next to the pen drive. "How's that for trust, huh?"
"I'd say it's a very good start," Delphine replies, unable to mask her surprise while she eyes the pen drive. "Of course, there's also the issue of what I need for your side of the bargain," she doesn't relent. "What I need from you in order to dismantle the Webster's organization."
I'm only half listening. Ever since Siobhan produced the thumb drive, my eyes haven't left it. I had no idea she had it with her, she never mentioned it. More surprising than leaving me in the dark about its existence, is the fact that she's so willingly relinquishing that information to Delphine, who had only to mention it for it to materialize within her grasp.
Siobhan was prepared for the request, which in all honesty, was to be expected. Of course Delphine would need that information. But for Siobhan to provide it without even trying to redact it...well, that's entirely unexpected. There are two possible scenarios: either Siobhan is bluffing and she kept the most sensitive, most damaging information out of the files she's giving to Delphine; or the situation is much graver than she's led us to believe. If, in fact, she's opening up our operations to Delphine, it's because she has no other option than to truly trust a person who works for an organization she considers an adversary.
"What exactly do you need from us?" Siobhan is saying, the casualness in her voice contrasts with the severity of the situation.
"As I've told Cosima, I'm going to need her to tell me everything Daniel discusses with her," Delphine answers as she attends to her food, more actively now that some of the tension is gone. "Any new development in his relationship with the Russians, a new meeting, any type of request he makes, or any other element that she'd find relevant. I need to know everything that's going on, we need to be one step ahead of them if we're going to get them."
"Your people knew about yesterday's meeting before it took place, and still weren't able to get them," Siobhan points out with some mockery in her voice, as if to bring to the light the FBI's incompetence.
"Your people did too good a job," Delphine says after another forkful of rice, not addressing the insult. "Besides, it's true we knew about the meeting, but we didn't know where it would take place. We had to follow from a distance to make sure we weren't made - and look! We weren't!" She pauses to show us a brief smile.
"In my opinion we shouldn't even have gone ahead," she continues in a more serious semblance. "We had little time to prepare, couldn't properly scout the surrounding area. We should've waited to see how it all played out, maybe put a tail on the Russians... But it doesn't really matter now. We did the best we could with the information we had," she finishes with some disappointment in her voice.
"And how exactly did you get that information?" I ask, my mind returning to the present, slightly surprised that Delphine would share so much of what she thinks with us, specially the criticism to the FBI's strategy.
"That actually brings me to something else I need from you," Delphine answers, in this instance looking at me.
"Which is…?" I prompt.
"Your search into William Webster's electronic correspondence, I need you to stop it," she says with an edge in the voice that I associate when someone is giving a command but doesn't want to sound too overbearing.
"He's the leak," I concluded.
Delphine nods, takes a sip of wine. "He's been providing us with some information, but as you know, he's not exactly invited to the inner circle, his brother doesn't trust him."
"With good reason, apparently," I comment immediately.
"I don't see why that should bother you," Delphine raises a brow.
"It doesn't," I reply. "But the fact that your people do a piss poor job protecting your informants does." I reach for my wine and gauge Delphine's reaction. So far she's been rather indifferent to the way Siobhan and myself have been targeting the bureau's actions. "It wasn't really that difficult to discover that Will was talking with someone he shouldn't. What if Daniel had hired someone else to do this job? What if it was someone who was loyal to him? Did the FBI had a plan to protect its source?"
"We did our best with what we had," Delphine uses the same weak excuse. "William is not exactly tech-savvy, it was the easiest way for him to get in contact with us."
"And he know who's on the other end of his communications? Does he know you're one of them?" I ask, as a few more pieces of the puzzle fit into place. "Did he know who you were when he introduced you to his brother?"
"He did," Delphine nods, answering casually. "He knows all about it, and of the danger he's putting himself in, but he's ready to accept the consequences."
"Why would that be?" Siobhan asks, reclining in her seat, having finished her food and reaching for the glass of wine,
Delphine shrugs. "Resentment, maybe," she says. "Perhaps he wants to prove to his father and brother that they made a mistake by keeping him out of the family business. Quite honestly, we don't really care, we're fine with being the instrument for his little vendetta, as long as he continues to cooperate with us."
"William Webster will have immunity?" Siobhan states more than asks.
"For what little he knows, yes, we have an agreement with him," Delphine says. "But he has agreed to testify against them, if it comes to that," she adds, knowing that Siobhan's question was not made entirely out of curiosity.
S is alluding to the difference of treatment. Delphine has not made such promise to us; if we agree to do this - and all indicates that we will - we don't have the same benefit. Everything is unofficial and nothing says that, when this is over, we won't have the FBI coming after us. Both women look marginally defiantly at one another. Even as they're starting to land on the same page, the mistrust persists between them, and I suspect this won't change as we move forward. This is merely a temporary truce, made out of necessity. They're reluctantly setting aside their differences, fighting their instincts. It's not much, but it's progress nonetheless.
The knock on the hidden door makes them break eye contact, and Siobhan rises to knock back. The silence lasts for as long as it takes for the waiters to remove our nearly empty plates and replace them with the main course: pan seared salmon that they cover with lemon and garlic sauce, and grilled vegetables.
"Cosima mentioned that you have some Russians in custody," Siobhan steers the conversation, flaking some of the of the fish's pink meat. "One would think that you could use them to your advantage, get them to talk."
"Three, and it's no good," Delphine shakes her head. "They're not talking. We've tried to make a deal with no results, and when we threaten them with jail time, they laugh to our faces," she scoffs bitterly. "Apparently our prisons are a relaxing vacation when compared to what they have over there. Truth is, unless we have a significant break in the investigation, we can only charge them with illegal entry in the country, which at most, carries a small jail sentence followed by deportation," Delphine continues, not masking her frustration with the situation. "We have nothing, and they know it. There's no reason for them to talk." She pauses briefly and raises her eyes to me. "I was hoping you saw something that might tip us as to what they were doing here."
I shake my head. "They were extremely careful not to talk business when I was around," I answer. "I saw very little."
"But little is not nothing," Delphine prompts.
I look at Siobhan and she gives me permission with a subtle head nod. We discussed it earlier today, when we were getting ready for this meeting. What little I knew I told Siobhan, and she instructed me to speak only if an agreement was reached.
"A list of names and addresses…" I answer.
"What names? What addresses?" Delphine presses, impatiently.
"I wish I had photographic memory, but alas… I do not," I reply. "You can't expect me to remember all of that, Delphine."
She rolls her eyes at my answer. "Fine! Could you at least tell me what you do remember," she asks with a touch of irony.
"I recall that the names were all female, or at least that's what looked like. They were probably all Eastern European, same with the cities in the addresses," I say.
"And you don't find that odd?" Delphine asks.
She's starting to lose her temper, I can hear it in the edge of her voice, which is rather interesting; she's usually so collected, so in control of her emotions. Had I been someone who's easily intimidated, I would be more careful not to stoke the anger in someone as volatile as Delphine. However, self preservation was not what got me where I am. Either way, Delphine is much more honest whenever she's in touch with her emotions, so it really is for her benefit that I keep pushing her. I consider this, finding it a reasonable justification for the slightly dark satisfaction I get whenever I push her buttons. Or maybe it's just because I know where this is heading, with me getting orders from Delphine, whose magnetic presence I fought so hard to live without and is coming back into my life with renewed strength. And maybe I should've seen it coming, I should've predicted that this was, at the very least, a possibility, but I dislike it nonetheless, regardless of how necessary it is.
"Of course I find it odd," I say, "that's why I'm telling you."
Delphine twists her lips, her eyes narrow slightly at me. "We need to get our hands on that list," she says, not addressing the way I choose to respond. "Perhaps try to get in contact with these women, try to see what connects them. Or even if they exist..." she reasons aloud. "The names may be fake..."
"Fake visas perhaps..." Siobhan suggests.
"I'm not sure, but we definitely need that list," Delphine insists. "You think Daniel has a copy?" This she asks me.
I raise my shoulders. "Maybe. He had one in front of him when they were meeting, but I don't think I remember him having it when we pulled him out as your guys stormed in."
"Maybe not an hard copy," she says. "But they might have sent it to him electronically." She stops abruptly and looks at me more intensely, as if something just came to her. "You have access to Daniel's computer."
"Hmm… no, I don't," I answer with a head shake. "Everyone's but his. He's not stupid, despite appearances."
"But you can get it," Delphine presses.
"Not remotely, I don't think so," I continue to push back. "And he'll probably see me coming if I tried. It'll be easier for you to get it, you have access to the library where he keeps his personal computer, which is where those files would be stored, if he has them at all."
Delphine shakes her head, her disagreement with my plan apparent. "I can't get in library without him being there and not raise suspicions."
"But you're okay with me doing that, risk myself to get you what you need," I say in a somewhat accusatory tone. "C'mon, what's the worst thing that can happen? Are you afraid he'd call off the wedding?"
"My engagement is what's giving me access to the entire family, so yes, that would be very damaging," Delphine retorts, the tone escalating all of the sudden. "Is that what is bothering you so much? My fake engagement?"
I don't answer because I don't know what I trust myself to say. From the corner of my eye I see Siobhan's passive expression, not taking sides in the argument that broke unsuspectingly between Delphine and I, but clearly interested in the outcome.
"The sooner we bring them down, the quicker that charade ends," Delphine continues to press. "I, more than anyone, want this to be over as soon as possible."
It's only now that I fully comprehend Delphine's unrelenting insistence, the sense of urgency in her demands, the unyielding pressure she puts into making this agreement. Even when she doesn't seem to have any sort of emotional connection with the FBI's actions or their poor choice of approach, she was always implacable in seeing an end to this. No one wants to see this over more than her. The longer this goes on, the longer she has to act like the dutiful fiancée to a man she likely despises, whose affiliation with a criminal organization makes him an enemy.
No less relevant is the potential danger she's in. We really don't know the extent of Daniel's ambition, but he's ruthless enough to associate himself with the Russian mafia. We don't know what sort person he really is when tested. Daniel has shown weakness when the Feds interrupted the meeting with the Russians, but we don't know how he'd react if he found out the woman he's chosen to spend the rest of his life with is a plant from the FBI.
"We'll find a way to get our hands on that list," I relent in a more conciliatory manner. "I'm sure if we put our heads together we'll find out how. Perhaps we can enlist William to assist us."
"Alright," Delphine assents in a low voice. "Meanwhile, it would be a good idea for you to probe a little, try to get Daniel to talk about it."
"And how do you suggest I manage to do that without raising any red flags?" I ask. "In case you haven't noticed, he's not exactly the most trusting person."
"You have his ear," Delphine says, as if the answer is straightforward. "It's true that he doesn't trust a lot of people, but for whatever reason, he seems to hold you in high regard."
"You can even suggest that if he had fully trusted you, the meeting with the Russians wouldn't have been such a colossal debacle," Siobhan says, apparently fully on board with the newly forged alliance.
I notice Delphine twisting her lips as she swallows some food, she disagrees with this approach. "You need to make yourself indispensable in his eyes by any means necessary," she says, not entirely rebuking Siobhan's suggestion. "It'll be easier to do so whenever the conversation comes up by his own terms."
"You want me to wing it?!" I ask astonished, with a trace of humor, finding it curious that Delphine, who prefers to have everything planned out, would propose such tactic.
She shrugs. "Improvisation seems to work well for you," she notices, a smile curling the corner of her lips. "I don't see why you should change that."
I raise a brow at her and tilt my head to the side, a smirk on my own lips. "You better remember those words in the future," I warn her.
"I'm sure I'll regret them," Delphine replies with a pinch of her dry humor.
"Dear god…" I hear Siobhan murmur by my side. "Well, I'm certain we all are going to regret one thing or another that comes out of this meeting," she adds in a louder voice. "I suppose the only thing that's left to discuss is how we're going to get in contact with each other," Siobhan goes down the list of things to do, taking charge of the conversation again.
"I'm returning to Boston tonight, I can't delay it any longer without raising suspicions," Delphine informs us, her expression becoming more somber. "The only way I can see this working is to deal directly with Cosima," she says this looking at me, and I give her a small nod. "How you contact each other is up to you, and quite frankly, is best if I don't know."
"We have our system," Siobhan agrees. "I just ask you two to keep it discreet," she says, her head turns to each of us at a time, her meaningful stare locked in ours for a couple of seconds. "I'd prefer if Sarah and Felix remain unaware of our agreement, at least for the time being. They must continue to work as if nothing is going on, we don't need them to get sidetracked by all of this, especially Felix, who seems to be particularly on edge."
Delphine expels a soft sigh. "I still need all the information I can get. And that, of course, includes what Sarah and Felix have access to."
"I'm sure Cosima will be able to untangle what you need to know and don't," Siobhan comments with a subtle glance in my direction. "I don't see a reason why we need to bring the others into this. The fewer people who know about this, the better."
"Okay..." Delphine compromises, and now I'm under the scope of the two women. "I'll trust Cosima's judgement on this. And you're correct, them not knowing is for the best, that way their work won't be tainted..."
"That's all very nice, but I'm the one who'll have to deal with them," I cut their strategizing, a little annoyed that neither of them thought about consulting my opinion. "Sarah and Felix are not blind, they'll know something is up if I start meeting Delphine on the regular without giving them any explanation."
"Just say you're sleeping together," Siobhan deadpans, raising both her shoulders. "They already think you're doing it," she adds with a sly smirk as she gets up and goes to the door, knocking on it once more.