Not an April Fools joke! This really is a new chapter!
As before, if you need a refresher, the summary of each previous chapter can be found at the end of this fic.
Summary: Beth gets an unexpected invitation from the Tops and she confers with Mr. House. Boone is given a letter to Beth from the NCR and he goes to see Ana.
Chapter 34: Civilization
Beth peeked her eyes open and looked at the clock on her Pip-Boy. It was already mid-morning, but Boone was still asleep. He always seemed to sleep better at the Lucky 38. She supposed they both did. Maybe it was the soft beds or the fact that they could be sure no legionaries or raiders were going to burst in. Even their nightmares seemed to be less frequent here. She slipped quietly out of bed so she wouldn't disturb him and put on her robe.
In the kitchen, she found a woman in a cowboy hat standing at the stove, cooking something that smelled very greasy. The woman certainly wasn't Veronica.
"Hello?" Beth said, wondering how this strange person got into the suite. Had Veronica picked someone up last night and brought her back here?
The woman looked over her shoulder casually and said, "Oh, hey. Morning."
"Cass? What are you doing here?"
"Ran into Ronnie at the Tops. Or rather, she ran into me. Took me a minute to recognize her, dressed up and away from her usual haunts. At the end of the night, she had a little...difficulty getting back here on her own, so I helped her out. Put her to bed, made sure she drank some water, put a bucket nearby. You know."
"I see." Beth could fill in the blanks. "She couldn't keep up with you, huh?"
Cass turned back to the stove and flipped over the sausages she was cooking. "I tried to tell her to slow down, but she was too excited about her first time on the Strip. These guys bought us some drinks. And then some more drinks. Then Ronnie won 25 caps at Blackjack and wanted to celebrate...and so on. Thus the greasy breakfast." She pressed the spatula down on the sausages, making them sizzle harder.
"I'm glad you were there. I should have gone with her."
Cass scoffed. "Don't worry, she was fine. One of the guys didn't seem to understand the word 'lesbian' and got a little fresh with her. She had his arm pinned behind his back before he could even blink. Damn near dislocated his shoulder." She laughed.
"Now I really wish I'd gone along." Beth laughed, too. "I would have liked to see that."
"You'll have your chance." From her shirt pocket, she pulled out some paper slips and handed them to Beth. "A gift for you."
"You got tickets to the Rad Pack Review?" she asked, reading the slips.
"Compliments of the Tops. Apparently, you've made quite an impression on the Strip." She looked over her shoulder and gave Beth a pointed look, then resumed cooking.
It was surprising, considering what had happened the last time she was in that particular establishment. "Why'd they give them to you?"
"The manager, some guy named Swank, said they saw Veronica coming out the Lucky 38 and figured we could deliver them."
"I see." She examined the tickets for a moment before changing the subject. "So, what are you doing in Vegas?"
"Meeting some new business contacts the day after tomorrow. I figured I'd make it a long weekend, so I came early." She scooped the sausages and eggs onto a plate, then set it on the table.
"Is business doing well?"
"It is-really well. We need more guards, though. The NCR is too busy fighting the fucking Legion to patrol the roads, so raiders are taking over in some areas. If you know anyone looking for a job, let me know. Of course, I'd ask you," she gestured at their surroundings, "but clearly, I can't afford you anymore." She smirked.
"Things have changed a bit."
Beth heard a loud yawn behind her and turned to see a bleary-eyed Veronica trudge into the room. "Please tell me there's coffee," she mumbled, rubbing one eye with a fist as she slumped into a chair.
"Right here," Cass replied, pouring a steaming cup of liquid that looked as black as tar and nearly as thick. "My own special blend." She handed it to the eager Scribe. "You want some, Evans?"
Having tried Cass's "coffee" before, she shook her head. "I'm good." She hoped the Lucky 38's bots had something that would clean that out of the pot or it would have to be thrown out. Perhaps burned.
Veronica took a sip and winced. "What's in this stuff?" she asked with a gagging cough.
Cass set out plates on the table. "Let's see...roasted coyote tobacco, ground honey mesquite pods, some Nuka-Cola, little dried Xander root, and a couple of other things. But trust me, it works." She dished out portions of sausages and eggs. "The first sip is the worst. It gets better as you drink it."
"Couldn't get worse," Beth mumbled and Cass made a face at her.
"Huh?" asked Veronica. She forced down a couple more sips before reaching for a plate.
"Nothing. Cass was just telling me what a fun time you guys had. Was Vegas all you hoped it would be?"
Veronica smiled, the "coffee" starting to kick in. "Yeah, it was great! Did she give you the tickets for tonight?"
"She did, but I'm not sure we should go. We're heading out early tomorrow, remember?" Not to mention that it might be some kind of trap.
"I know, but this is my first time in Vegas and those are special tickets!"
Beth frowned.
"Please? It would mean a lot to me. I've never seen a show like that before. I may not get another chance."
She sighed. "I'll consider it. But, if we do go, all things in moderation. Got it?"
"Don't worry," she said, rubbing her forehead. "After last night, I'll be off drinking for a while."
After she ate with Cass and Veronica, Beth took a plate of food to the master bedroom to see if Boone was awake. She found him sitting at the desk cleaning his rifle, still in his sleep pants and t-shirt.
"Hey. Brought you some breakfast," she said, setting it down by him and giving him a kiss.
"Thanks. Is there coffee?" he asked.
"...No."
He stabbed a sausage with a fork, took a bite, then continued cleaning as he chewed. "We still heading out tomorrow?"
"That's the plan. What do you want to do today?"
"I was thinking about going to see Ana. I told Gaby I'd check in on her when I could. Make sure she's doing okay."
"That's a good idea. But I'll stay here, if you don't mind." She didn't want to run into Arcade at the Old Mormon Fort. The letter he wrote her had made her feel somewhat conflicted, but she still didn't think she could bring herself to speak to him. She also couldn't afford to be distracted by all that now. There was too much to do.
"I figured. You sure you're okay with me going?" He shoveled some egg into his mouth.
"Of course! You should go. Please give her my best."
"I will." He gave an appreciative smile.
"I have some stuff you can take to Julie, too."
"Sure. Just put them by my pack." He reattached the barrel of his gun. "I'm almost done with my rifle. You want me to do your gun, too?"
"That'd be great, thanks!" He knew how much she hated cleaning. She retrieved her gun belt from the sofa and set it next to his breakfast. "There's something I wanted to run by you. Veronica and Cass were at the Tops last night and the manager gave them tickets for tonight's Rad Pack show to give to me."
"Who's Cass?"
"You know, from the caravan company? Where we sent the radio signal to the Boomers?"
"Oh, right, that Cass. Why'd they send you tickets?"
"I can think of a few reasons. Maybe Benny's back and is trying to lure me there to ambush me again. Maybe the other Chairmen want revenge for the goons we killed or because they think I offed their boss. Maybe they heard what happened over at Gomorrah and don't want the same thing to happen to them, so they either want to kill me or suck up."
"All those seem likely. What do you think we should do?"
"I don't know. I guess I'll run it by Mr. House. See what he thinks." She needed to talk to him about the data from Vault 22 anyway.
"He might know if Benny is back on the Strip."
"If he knew that, I would hope he would have brought it to my attention without me having to ask."
"Good point."
"Good day, Elizabeth," Mr. House greeted as Beth descended the penthouse stairs.
"Hello, Mr. House," she replied. "Did you have a chance to look over the data from Vault 22?"
"Indeed, I have. Your instincts were correct: it may prove quite useful. It was also prudent of you to bring me the data first. Some aspects of the Vault 22 research would be far too dangerous in the wrong hands."
"Were you able to figure out what happened? Why the spores caused the mutations we saw in the human inhabitants?" She sat down in the chair in front of the screen.
"Indeed I did. It seems that your hypothesis was accurate: it was a fungus. Specifically a mutated entomopathogenic fungus, Beauveria mordicana."
"What about those of us who went into the Vault? Are we in any danger?"
"I don't believe the length of exposure was long enough to cause infection, especially in healthy subjects, such as yourselves."
"That's one less thing to worry about." She didn't at all like the idea of mutating into one of those things. "What was the purpose of the experiment? Were they making a biological weapon?"
"Given prior knowledge of the nature of Vault-Tec's experiments, one would think so, but no. The human infections were unintentional. They were merely trying to kill insects."
It was not surprising that even Vault-Tec's seemingly beneficial pursuits had disastrous results. "Well, unless we can somehow re-purpose it to kill cazadores, I think it's safest to delete that portion of the data."
"Already done." A holodisk ejected from the console below Mr. House's screen. "While the data is now far more benign, I will reiterate that I don't see what attraction it will have for the Brotherhood. They have no interest in agricultural technology."
Beth held back a frustrated sigh. "The hope is that they will see the value in it, as you did. That it can convince them to take their chapter in a different direction, one that is more cooperative and altruistic. For them to see they have more options for survival than just taking whatever they need from the outside and giving nothing back. Then they might be more open to a truce with you."
"As you have said, but my skepticism still stands. As does our agreement." She hadn't forgotten: if the Brotherhood posed a threat, she would handle it. "Is there anything else you would like to discuss?"
"Actually, yes: the management at the Tops sent me four tickets to a performance at the Aces Theater for tonight. I wanted to get your input. Do you think it's a trap?"
"Swank sent you the tickets personally?"
"He did."
"Interesting. Recent events have no doubt been brought to his attention and he would like to get on your good side. Your previous adversarial relationship with the former management notwithstanding, no, I don't believe it is a trap."
"Have you seen any sign of Benny? Is there a chance he's behind this?"
"Benny?" House replied, as though he hadn't expected his name to ever be brought up again. Beth took a little pride in surprising him, even if she didn't get much of a reaction. "Doubtful. At this point, you no longer have the Platinum Chip, so killing you would do nothing to advance whatever goals he might still have. Regardless, with the Chip's upgrades all avenues in or out of Vegas are now under close surveillance, as is the surrounding area. Benny would not get within ten miles without me knowing about it."
All of that was good to know. "Tell me about Swank."
"He had been Benny's right-hand man since before they took over the Tops. He has always been a reliable employee. He does what he's told, but is also rather...unimaginative."
"Now that he's in charge at the Tops, do you think he will be a dependable ally?"
"I believe so, but I will leave the details to your discretion. You handled the Omertas quite capably. You can handle Swank."
Beth nodded, but fidgeted nervously. The prospect of going back to the Tops brought another potential complication to mind. "There's something else you should know." She paused, not sure how to tell him. "When I was searching Benny's suite after his goons ambushed me, I found something that I think we need to deal with: a hacked securitron."
"Pardon?"
"Benny reprogrammed one of your securitrons, or had someone else do it for him."
"And when were you planning on telling me this?" From his words, he was not pleased with this information, but he was holding back his reaction, she could tell. After Benny's betrayal, to find out that his "protege" had also exploited a weak point in his systems, he had cause to be concerned.
While she hadn't been the one to reprogram the securitron and hadn't used it against him, she'd still known about it for some time now without mentioning it. She supposed she had kept it hidden partially as a kind of backup plan, in case House turned out to be evil, senile, or deranged. Most of her worries in that regard had been assuaged-she certainly trusted him far more than some overly agreeable bot previously controlled by the man who shot her in the head.
"I'm telling you now," she said. "I don't really remember all the details. My last visit to the Tops is still kind of fuzzy and I wasn't really focused on the big picture at the time."
"I see," he replied skeptically.
"But now I am."
"Very well, Elizabeth. How do you propose we rectify the situation?"
"I'm hoping it won't be too difficult, actually."
Boone exited the Lucky 38 into the bright sunshine and immediately put on the aviators that were tucked into his shirt collar. It wasn't too hot yet and there was a nice breeze. As much as he was looking forward to seeing Ana at the Fort, he was also looking forward to the trip there. It had been a while since he had taken a walk by himself.
He was only a few steps from the doors when an NCR trooper approached him. "Excuse me, sir? Are you the Courier's bodyguard?"
"Among other things," Boone thought, then answered, "Who's asking?"
The man cleared his throat. "I'm here on behalf of NCR Ambassador Dennis Crocker."
Boone's eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses. It was strange that he would talk to him. Beth usually handled this kind of stuff. "She's inside. What do you need?"
"As you likely know, she has been making quite the impression around the Mojave. She should have received a letter from the Ambassador after her admittance to the Lucky 38 was brought to his attention. Unfortunately, she hasn't followed up on his invitation for a meeting. He has been hoping to speak with her about a very important matter."
"Uh huh." He remembered Beth getting the letter from Crocker. She had decided to go to the Tops instead, for fear of losing her chance at Benny. It seemed like ages ago now, and she hadn't made any attempt to speak to the NCR brass since.
The trooper leaned in. "To tell you the truth, the State Department has been breathing down his neck for weeks to meet with her. Would you please give her this letter? It's very important." He handed Boone a sealed envelope addressed to the Courier.
"I will."
The trooper gave a smile of relief. "Thank you. Have a good day."
Boone nodded, then watched the trooper leave before stashing the letter in his pocket and continuing on his way. He was grateful that was all that was asked of him, since he didn't want to speak for Beth or say something he shouldn't. She'd been helping the NCR unofficially for as long as he'd known her, but they wanted more than that, of course. They probably wanted her to work for them instead of Mr. House-maybe even use her to get to House.
As much as she'd helped the NCR, she didn't have much confidence in them. Boone's own faith in them had been declining since Bitter Springs; he just hadn't fully realized it until he started traveling with Beth. Before, he had wanted to believe that the massacre was an isolated incident, not a symptom of a bigger problem.
Reaching the Old Mormon Fort, Boone pushed open the heavy wooden gate and nodded to the guards as he went inside. The courtyard was more crowded than it had been previously. Glancing around, he didn't see Ana, so he decided to head to Dr. Farkas' office first. He found the spiky-haired woman sitting at her desk, flipping through some files. She looked up as he entered.
"Hello, can I help you?" she said, her fatigued tone making it clear she didn't have time for interruptions.
"Hey, uh, hello. Beth Evans sent me with a delivery for you," he answered. "Caps and medical supplies." Setting the bag on the desk, he stepped back awkwardly.
At the mention of the name, Julie's eyes brightened. "How nice of her. She's been such a wonderful supporter over the years." Julie stood up and opened the bag. "This will be so helpful. As you may have heard, we have been getting many more refugees from the Legion the last few months. People credit Beth for a lot of it, although I'm not sure how much I believe all those rumors. Most people don't even seem to know her name. They just call her 'the Courier.' Very strange."
Boone nodded, not sure what to say to that. Of course, he knew the rumors were more than true.
"Anyway, thank you very much for bringing this. And please extend my thanks to Beth for her continued generosity."
"I will. Um...I was also wondering if Ana Vida was around. I'm a friend of hers."
"Of course. She's probably working in the mess tent over on the other side of the courtyard."
"Thank you."
Exiting the office, Boone headed to where the doctor had indicated. At his approach, Ana glanced up and broke into a wide smile at the sight of him. "Craig!" she exclaimed, dropping the wooden spoon in her hand and rushing over to throw her arms around him. Despite her slight frame, she nearly knocked him over. "It's so good to see you!"
"It's good to see you, too. How are you?"
Looking up at him, her smile wilted slightly. "I'm...doing okay." She shrugged. "How are you? It's been weeks."
Suddenly, he felt guilty. "I'm sorry. I wanted to come by before, but we've been on the road."
"We've heard about some of your guys' adventures from refugees and traders, but not in at least a week, so I was getting worried."
"Hey, Ana," a gruff voice announced from behind Boone. "You still heading out?"
He turned to see the ghoul with the cowboy hat he'd seen guarding the gate earlier.
"Oh, I forgot. Hey, Craig, I was heading to Westside to get some food and supplies. Beatrix was going to guard me, but maybe you could instead?"
"Sure," he said. "I've got some time." He had come here to see her, after all, and he'd feel a lot more comfortable guarding her himself.
"Is that okay, Beatrix?"
"Fine with me," the ghoul said, adjusting the cowboy hat on her head. "You two watch yourselves out there."
Ana pushed the small cart along the broken streets leading out of Freeside. With his rifle slung over his back, Boone held one hand over the pistol hanging at his hip and kept an eye out for any movement. It was best to be prepared, but not seem like they were looking for a fight. Besides, they were much more likely to find trouble on the way back when they were carrying supplies.
"So, uh, how's therapy going?" he asked her.
She paused. "Could we not talk about that?" she asked timidly. "I'm sorry, I just want to not think about it for a bit, you know?"
Boone understood the desire to forget better than anyone. "Sure."
Ana gave him a small smile and resumed pushing the cart. After a couple of minutes, she asked, "Do you miss the ocean?"
"Not as much as I used to, but yeah." Being out on the water was one of the few things he missed about home.
"I do, too. A lot. Especially on days like this. It's not even summer yet. I don't know how people stand it."
"You kind of get used to it. But I do miss the foggy summers."
"You haven't been back home since you left, huh?"
"No. It's not really my home anymore." Ana knew enough about his family not to bring them up.
"I guess the Lucky 38 is your home now."
The idea struck him suddenly. He thought of the suite as the place he and Beth stayed when they were in Vegas; he hadn't thought about it more deeply than that. If she was going to keep working for Mr. House, however, it would likely be more permanent. Ultimately, wherever Beth was, that was home. He was good with that. "I guess," he said. "Are you thinking of going back to Rock Bay?"
"I want to see my family, of course, but I don't know if I want to go back to stay. Actually, I've been thinking I might want to join the Followers. Maybe train to be a therapist someday. Help other people who've been through stuff. You know? What do you think?"
Boone smiled at her and put his hand on her shoulder. "I think you'd do great."
She beamed at him. "Thanks."
They reached Westside without incident. Boone held the gate open while Ana pushed the cart inside. A couple of people waved hello to her and she waved back.
"You come out here a lot?" he asked.
"Only recently."
"Seems dangerous."
"Dr. Usanagi came with me the first couple of times, just to make sure I was okay. And I'm always guarded, usually by Beatrix. As she says, she shoots as hard with her glare as her gun." She chuckled at this. "Most of the time, no one messes with us. And it feels good to get out. I feel...freer out here." A momentary shadow fell over her features, but she took a breath and brightened again.
Boone nodded, unsure of what to say. He could understand why she would want to get out in the open air, even if it made him worry about her even more.
"She's even been teaching me how to shoot a little bit." Ana patted the small pistol at her side. "She says I'm getting pretty good."
"You'll have to show me. I might be able to help with some pointers, too."
She grinned at him. "I'd love that! Maybe I could even try out your rifle sometime?"
"Maybe."
They continued up the street. When they rounded a corner, Boone was surprised to see Arcade sitting at a table playing chess with an elderly man. The doctor saw him at the same moment and stood up quickly, hitting his leg on the edge of the table and knocking over half the pieces on the board.
"What the hell, boy?!" the older man exclaimed, trying to catch pieces before they rolled off the table.
The doctor glanced around quickly, probably looking to see if Beth was with them. His face was even more pale than usual. Hoping to dissipate the situation, Boone turned away.
"Hi, Dr. Gannon!" Ana greeted with a wave.
"Hello, Ana," he replied, his voice shaking slightly.
"Come on, we should go," Boone said to her, putting his hand on her back to usher her onward, not looking back at Arcade. Any more contact and he would have to tell Beth about it, which is the last thing she needed right now. A passing glance with no words exchanged, that's all this was. There was nothing to tell unless she asked.
"Did something happen between you guys and Dr. Gannon?" Ana asked as they continued down the street.
"What do you mean?" he returned, keeping his tone flat.
"You saw his reaction when he saw you. He's been acting weird for a while. I asked him if he'd heard from you or Beth, but he just got quiet with this look on his face," she affected a wide-eyed expression, "and walked away. Since then, I think he's been avoiding me. He's not even eating with anyone else. He just takes his food back to his tent, when he comes to get it at all."
While he didn't want to lie to Ana, he didn't want to spread around Beth's personal business. He also knew that if word got out about Arcade's secret, it could be very bad for him. The Enclave may have been wiped out in California decades ago, but some people in the NCR had long memories and wouldn't care that the doctor had been just a kid, or maybe not even been born yet, during the war. Boone didn't like that Arcade had hurt and lied to Beth, but part of him couldn't help but feel sorry for the doctor. After all, he knew first-hand that people don't get to choose their family.
"It's best to leave it alone," he said.
"Why?"
"Because it's their business."
"He's in love with her, isn't he?" She pursed her lips knowingly with a nod.
"What? With who?"
"Beth! Dr. Gannon is in love with her, but she chose you. It's so obvious."
His brow furrowed, baffled that she could leap to such a ridiculous conclusion. "No, that is not what happened, at all."
"Okay, then what did happen?" she asked, a little smugly.
Boone had forgotten how nosy she was. As a kid, she'd always needed to be in the middle of everything. It used to annoy him and Gaby all the time growing up, but now he was mostly comforted that even after all she'd been through, she was still the same Ana. "It's private. Just leave it alone. Please."
"Ugh, fine," she said, rolling her eyes. "No one ever tells me anything."
It was getting to be late afternoon when Boone returned to the suite. He could hear talking and laughing coming from the bathroom. Going into the master bedroom, he set his rifle down and unbuckled his side arm, then put them both next to his pack.
"Hey, I was wondering when you were getting back," he heard Beth say behind him.
Turning around, he was instantly struck by how she looked: she wore a tight-fitting black dress that flared out at the skirt and blue open-toed flats; her short hair was styled with one side clipped back; and the dark shadow on her eyelids made her eyes look even bluer than usual. "Oh," he breathed. He'd never seen her dressed up before.
She seemed to shrink a bit and shuffled her feet. "Too much?"
He shook his head, mouth feeling dry. "No, you look...amazing."
"Thanks. I'm not used to all this."
Reaching out, he took her hand and pulled her into a kiss. When the kiss broke, she smiled at him in a way that made his heart flutter. "I take it that House wants us to go to the Tops?"
"He's seen no sign of Benny and he thinks Swank can be trusted. I'm skeptical, but the four of us will be armed. If things go south, we'll draw them outside and the securitrons will take care of them."
It sounded like a decent plan. "I'd better get dressed, then."
"How's Ana?" she asked, shutting the door for privacy.
"Mostly okay, I think. Better than I expected. Sorry I was gone so long." Recalling that there were a few suits hanging in one of the closets, he flipped through them until he found one in his size along with a pair of men's dress shoes.
"No, don't apologize. I'm glad you had some time with her." She paused for a second. "Did you see..." She looked down and picked some lint off the bedspread.
He knew who she was talking about, although he hadn't expected her to bring him up. "Yeah. In Westside."
"Oh?" The look on her face told him she wanted to know more, but didn't want to ask.
"We didn't talk. He seemed nervous when he saw me, but we didn't stick around."
"Whatever. Never mind. I don't know why I asked." She cleared her throat. "What were you doing in Westside?"
"Ana had some things to pick up, so I tagged along to guard her." The suit pants fit pretty well, although they were about an inch too long.
"They're having her leave the Fort for deliveries? That's odd."
"She asked for the job. Said she didn't like being cooped up all the time." The shirt collar was a little loose, but with the tie, he figured it would be fine.
"I can understand that."
Standing in front of the mirror, he recalled the last time he wore a tie was on his wedding day, but pushed the thought out of his mind. "Still...makes me worry. Even if she's always guarded, something could happen. She's just a kid and she's already been through so much."
Beth nodded and reached out to put her hand on his arm. "I used to be a guard for the Followers. They don't hire anyone who can't handle the job. Julie is very careful. She wouldn't put Ana or anyone else in danger."
"You're probably right. I just..." He sighed. The tie hung too far above his belt line, so he forcefully pulled it out to re-do it. "But what about the Legion?"
"We haven't seen any Legion troops anywhere that close to Vegas. Besides, Caesar used to be one of the Followers, so the legionaries tend to leave them alone."
"That's not going to last long now that he's dead."
"I know. But she's back safe at the Old Mormon Fort for now and we are doing everything we can to make the region safe from them."
"We are, I know." Boone dropped his shoulders, not wanting to think anymore about this, since he couldn't do anything about it right now. The second time, the tie hung a little too low, but the jacket would cover it, so he didn't re-do it again. Finished dressing, he turned to her and asked, "Is this okay?"
"You look very handsome," she replied, giving him a smile and then a kiss. "Follow me, I've got a stash of weapons that are easy to conceal laid out in the lounge."
"Oh, wait! I almost forgot." He reached into the pocket of his folded cargo pants and retrieved the letter the trooper had given him earlier. "It's from Ambassador Crocker."
"What does he want?" she asked, opening the envelope.
"He wants to meet with you."
"I guess he was bound to ask again eventually. I'm surprised it took him this long." As she read the letter, she frowned.
"What's wrong?"
"He does want to meet with me, but it also basically says that if I continue to work with Mr. House, the NCR may 'refuse' my help. What the fuck does that mean?!" She shook the paper in her hand, her eyes wide with exasperation. "Refuse my help?! Unbelievable. As though they were doing me a favor in accepting my help? They really thought I would respond well to this veiled threat?"
He wasn't sure if it was meant to be a threat or not, but he didn't like it either, especially after all she had done. "Pretty ungrateful."
"You're damn right it's ungrateful! Fuck that!" She grabbed the edge of the paper and tore it in half, then crumpled up the pieces and threw them in the trash can by the desk. "The NCR can keep waiting. Come on. We have work to do."
The four companions entered The Tops, all well dressed and armed with hidden weapons. As they prepared to hand over their decoy weapons to the doorman, another man spoke up from behind the desk, "Vinny, don't you recognize our special guest?" He hurried over and loudly whispered to the doorman. "I told you to send them directly to me."
"Sorry, I didn't-"
Waving him off, he didn't wait for the doorman to finish. Instead, he addressed Beth. "Welcome to the Tops. My name's Swank. I'm running the place now. Anything you need, you come right to me."
"Oh? Was someone else in charge before?" Beth asked, playing dumb.
Swank smirked and exhaled a laugh. "You're good." He gestured to a side door. "Why don't we discuss the state of things in my office?" When Beth looked apprehensive, he added, "Feel free to bring you friends. And your weapons. All I want is a friendly chat. I think you'll like what you hear."
"Very well." She gestured for her companions to follow.
"Don't worry," Swank said over his shoulder. "I told them to hold the show for you."
Boone looked at Beth for reassurance that she really thought this was a good idea. She understood his hesitation. After all, the last time she trusted someone's word in this place, they both almost ended up dead. But that was when she was still suffering the effects of Benny's bullets. She was thinking clearly now and wouldn't be as easy to ambush. At the first sign of trouble, she would put a bullet through Swank's head, if Boone's bullet didn't get there first. Besides, House had said that Swank was a loyal employee, as well as "unimaginative," whatever that meant.
Swank led them down a short hallway into an office. After making sure the room was vacant, Beth told Veronica and Cass to stand guard outside while she and Boone went in. The Chairman sat down on the edge of the desk, keeping his hands visible. Beth appreciated that. "Please, have a seat. Can I offer you a drink?"
"No, thank you," Beth answered, sitting down, her hand still within easy reach of her hidden gun. Boone remained standing and also vigilant, she had no doubt. "What did you want to speak with me about?"
"For starters, I know Benny is a no-good fink."
"Is that right?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Drop the phony surprise, doll. At least you didn't insult my intelligence by asking who Benny was." He smiled. "I figured out a lot of things since the last time you and your friend were here a few months ago."
"Such as?"
"That Benny tried to kill you. Invited you up to the Presidential for a meeting, but he didn't count on the two of you taking out his four best guys. A gander at Benny's suite told the rest of the story. Seems he didn't expect you to survive that ambush in Goodsprings, either. That creepy bot told me everything."
"Oh?" Beth tried not to let her nervousness show. She and Boone had left quite the trail of evidence all over The Tops: Benny's dead goons, his ransacked suite—and in particular—Yes Man. At the time, her judgment had been cloudy, to say the least. She hadn't really given much thought to someone else coming along and finding the hacked securitron. She also hadn't felt any loyalties to Mr. House, so protecting his empire hadn't been a priority. She hadn't thought she would survive much longer, anyway. It had all been about killing Benny. Now she wished she'd come back to clean up after she recovered.
Swank was being rather forthright. Maybe Mr. House was right about his loyalties, although he seemed to underestimate him in other ways.
"Don't worry," he continued. "I'm not going to repeat Benny's fuckup. I want to stay on your good side. Yours and Mr. House's."
"That's smart."
"I also know about the shit that went down over at Gomorrah. Cachino ousting the big bosses after you spoiled their plans."
"You heard about all that?" She figured that he would have heard something. A change in management at one of the casinos would attract a lot of notice.
"Vegas is a small town. And I have a couple of gals inside who keep an eye on things. Or rather, Benny did. Now they report to me."
"I see."
"Good riddance. I don't have to tell you that the bosses were up to some nasty business and the guys they got to do their real dirty work were even worse. Don't know all the details, but I got the gist." He shook his head in disgust. "I gotta say, though...Cachino? He might not be making big plans, but he's still a rat. I wouldn't trust him, if I were you."
Indeed, Beth didn't trust him and had plans to remove him, but she didn't want to reveal that to Swank. He already knew too much. "I'll take it under advisement," she responded, echoing House.
He chuckled and winked at her. "Alright, doll. You keep those cards real close. I can appreciate that."
"How do I know you're being straight with me?"
"Swank is an open book, baby." He leaned back and put his hands out. "Besides, House has been good to us. Put us up in these digs, gave us a future. Some of the guys, especially over at Gomorrah, like to get nostalgic for the old tribal raider days, but they forget what it was really like. You'd be as likely to be knifed in your sleep by the guy next to you as killed by a stray radscorpion. That's if you didn't starve first. Given the choice, I prefer the cush civilized life. Then I find out that Benny tried to make his own play and ruin our good thing going here."
"You don't think you'd be better off without House? You'd have more freedom."
"Nah. His bots keep those Legion thugs out of New Vegas. The streets are nice and peaceful. The caps and liquor keep flowing." Picking up a glass of brown liquid, he shook it to make the ice clink before taking a sip. "I'm happy with my little slice of heaven right here. Heck, I was happy with Benny running the place, but that wasn't enough for him." He shook his head and set his glass back down, then looked at her more seriously. "I gotta ask, did you kill him?"
"No, I didn't."
"Huh." His eyebrows rose in surprise. "Do you know what happened to him? Last that bot in his suite knew, he was heading to some fort somewhere."
Yes Man had given her the same information, but he wouldn't know more than that. "He got himself captured by the Legion, but last I saw, he was running off into the desert. If he's learned anything, he'll never show himself around here again."
"Good. I can promise you, with me running things, you and House aren't going to have any more trouble from the Tops."
"That is good to hear."
Swank stood up and held out his hand, which Beth shook. "Anything you need, you come to me. Swank is your guy."
"I do have one thing to start."
"Name it."
"I'm going to need to take that robot from Benny's suite."
"Fine by me. Thing gives me the creeps." He went around the desk and reached into a drawer, then handed Beth a key. "Here. The suite is yours, too, as far as I'm concerned. You and your friends enjoy the show."
Beth sent Cass and Veronica ahead to the theater while she and Boone went to Benny's suite to send Yes Man outside for House to deal with.
When they got to the theater, it was almost a half hour after the show was supposed to start. Beth didn't feel much like going, since she had a lot to think about, but she'd promised Veronica that if it was safe, they would go.
The place was packed, but as Swank had assured, the show was waiting for them. A few well-dressed patrons, mostly men wearing suits and big cowboy hats and women in sparkling dresses, impatiently checked the time on their watches. The rest of the crowd was too busy enjoying their companions and beverages to care what time it was or if there was a show or not.
The staff, however, seemed to have been watching for her. As she entered, one waitress nearly spilled a drink on a well dressed man she was serving. The man scolded her, but she paid no attention to him as she stared at Beth.
"Good evening, Courier," greeted a man by the door wearing a brown tailored suit and an eyepatch. "Welcome to the Aces theater. I'm Tommy Torini, manager and talent agent. Allow me to show you to your seats. Your friends are already here."
Cass and Veronica waved from a table in the middle of the front row. Beth and Boone followed Tommy over and sat down. Cass's glass was already empty, but Veronica was only half done with her Nuka Cola. A second later, the waitress came to take their drink orders. A man at the next table complained loudly to his companion that they had gotten there first, but still hadn't been served yet. As soon as the order was placed, the lights dimmed and a fanfare of music sounded, prompting the audience to applaud.
From behind the stage's curtain, Tommy Torini jogged out to the microphone, waving to the crowd with both hands. "Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the Aces theater!" he said over the cheers and applause, which began to die down. "We have a great show for you tonight in honor of our very special guest." He gestured to the front row and a spotlight shined in Beth's face. She squinted her eyes and blinked rapidly, adjusting to the brightness. "The Courier!"
Every eye in the theater was on her in that moment. She hadn't been expecting this and wanted to sink down into the floor, but she managed to smile and wave a little to the crowd with one hand as she grabbed Boone's hand with the other. He gave her a reassuring squeeze. A few people clapped loudly and whistled, mostly the staff, but the rest of the crowd either gave a half-hearted clap or just looked at their table companions with confusion. Seemingly satisfied, the spotlight mercifully turned off.
When the big spot in her vision cleared, Cass and Veronica were looking at her with baffled looks. "What the hell was that?" Cass mouthed.
Beth shrugged in response, her cheeks burning.
"Isn't she great, folks!" Tommy said into the microphone. "Now, I'd like to introduce the best act in all of New Vegas: the Rad Pack Review!" As the crowd applauded again, four men in identical suits came from behind the curtain and sashayed to their places on the stage.
The big band music blared over the theater's speakers and the performers snapped their fingers to the beat, then broke into a choreographed dance. Tommy danced a few steps with them, then went back to the microphone and began to sing. "You make me feel so young..."
After a few minutes, Boone put his arm around her and she started to relax. Still, she couldn't help but worry about what other trouble this increasing recognition was going to bring.