Notes - First off, a big THANK YOU to the following reviewers: Kenshinin, Drogan, Zithromax, Lady Razorsharp (hey there!), Volk Zyta, and Nova Raptor83. Thanks to you guys, I was encouraged to get off my ass and finish the second chapter...So here you go. Please read and review, polite criticism is much appreciated.
Warning - This chapter is rated R, for a disturbing act of violence towards the end, among other things. I hate to change the rating on the front page, because it means people aren't going to see it the first time they load the Bebop page of FF.Net, but the rating are only going to go up from here. The later chapters may include graphic sex. What it comes down to is if you are bothered by this, don't read it. Simple as that.
The Loveless Business
By Ginny (GinnySeta@aol.com)
Chapter 2 - Blood Tinted Booze
And we are all caught in the middle
Of one long treacherous riddle
Can I trust you?
Should you trust me too?
We're all alone in this hell
And we all have secrets to sell
And there comes a day
When we sell our souls away
~ From The Scarlet Pimpernel (one version, cripes knows I can't keep em straight.)
Faye was currently savoring the few luxuries that surrounded her. The quarters that Vicious' men had led her too were not too shabby, not at all. It wasn't exactly large, but it had the basic necessities, and the furniture was all in good condition. It was much better then the last dump she had been residing in.
"Who says crime doesn't pay...?" She smirked at the cliche-ness of her own words, arms behind her head as she stretched out across the couch. This deal might not be too bad, for the time being at any rate.
He didn't even bother to knock, Vicious just made his way into the room, as if he owned the place. Well, technically he did, so Faye couldn't exactly hold that against him.
"You could have knocked, you know. I might have been taking off my clothes or something." Faye remarked, pulling herself up into a sitting position. Vicious chose to stand in the door way, leaning against it with his arms crossed.
"Che'. One thing you should know about me, Miss Valentine, is that I go where I please in my own territory. Which is exactly where you are right now. On my turf." He closed the door behind him, stepping further into the room. She was a feisty one, that was for sure. But it was best, Vicious thought, if she learned who was in charge early on. It caused less of a mess later.
"Yes, well...haven't you ever heard of privacy?" She crossed her arms over her chest, looking back at him. If there was one thing that she couldn't stand, it was men who tried to execute power over her. Even if he was her boss now...there was only so far that she would bend. It was best, Faye thought, if he learned who was in charge early on. It caused less of a mess later.
"Yes, I have, Miss Valentine, and you'd best enjoy what you get of it while you still can. Tomorrow I have a job for you. I've done a background check on you, and it appears you have some bar tending experience, is that correct?"
"Some. Don't expect anything fancy."
"That'll be fine...you see, your real job is going to be to stick a transmitter on one of your customers. It's small, about the size of your finger tip, and sticks like a magnet to fabric when its brushed against it. You stick it on the guy, linger around the bar for a time until he moves on. Then you report to me, or someone else who you'll be designated to, and take it from there. Think you can handle that?"
"Piece of cake."
"There'll be a little chaise, though I'm not sure if you'll be involved in that. No matter what, however, you don't kill him. We need this one breathing. Got that?"
"...Yeah. I got it." Faye sat there, carefully listening to his words. He was giving her serious work. No funny stuff. Just work. "...And what about my debt?"
"...If you prove to be a worthy investment into this syndicate, that debt will be nothing. You take care of us, we'll take care of you." He then left the room, leaving her to ponder those words.
~*~
"Get me scotch on the rocks. Now."
Faye sighed inwardly. Three hours. Three fucking hours, and no sign of this guy. And bartending was not as easy as she remembered, every once in awhile she had to glance through some notes she kept hidden under the counter. She never could keep the names straight, already she had mixed up a cactus cocktail and an acapulco. Mixing drinks was too much memorization for her tastes. Scotch on the rocks, now that one was simple. She glanced towards the one who had shouted the order, feeling extremely grateful for it.
Dirty, with a three o'clock shadow, long shaggy salt and pepper hair, and brown eyes stared back at her...and her chest. This was him! It was about fucking time.
"Right away, mister." He was clad in a black muscle shirt, and dark green cargo pants. She didn't even want to think about what kinds of weapons he might be hiding in there.
So now she just had to get the transmitter on him, without calling too much attention to herself. And for this she had a plan. The drink was set in front of him, and she picked up a cloth, pretending to wipe off the counter top. Her hand then went to her ear lobe, clutching it slightly.
"Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" she said out loud. She ducked down, staring at the floor, pretending to search desperately for a tiny object. If the man had not been interested before, well, with this nice shot of her rounded ass through the material of the black slacks she was wearing...It most certainly perked his interest now.
"....Is there a problem, miss?"
"I lost a diamond stud earring! They're the only thing I have left from my late husband...oh, if I can't find this, I'll never forgive myself!" Faye's hand motioned to her other ear. "It looks like this...do you see if its on the other side of the bar?" And, as if to also look, Faye leaped over the counter top, carefully examining the tiled floor on the other side. By this time, the man had taken a swig of his drink, and gotten off his stool to help her search...most likely to get another glimpse of her bent over body. When his eyes were in the other direction, her hand lightly brushed against his cargo pants, inconspicuously placing the transmitter on him.
"Is this it, Miss?" he asked, picking up the carefully planted earring from the floor.
"Oh you've found it! Thank you ever so much!" And the relief on Faye's face as she took the earring from his hand was genuine. She was glad to finally be done with this whole bit. "Your scotch is on the house! I'm gonna go on my break now so I can find another earring back..." And with that quick excuse made, she hurried off, heading into the back room to let the real bar tender know she could take it over again. The actress had just had another successful performance.
She stepped out the back door and into the alley way of the seedy little place, pulling out a cigarette from her pack. Of course, her lighter was no where to be found. An arm stretched over, igniting the tip.
"Got another?" said Vicious, extinguishing the flame. Faye shrugged, offering him the box. They both took a moment, taking long drags from the cigarettes.
"Is that all you wanted me to do?"
"I believe so-" His response was cut off by a low, beeping sound. From his pocket, Vicious pulled his communicator.
"Yeah, boss, Lee is down and out, and Jackson's starting to move. Looks like he's headed towards the local brothel, not much of a surprise considering his history and all."
"Right. Well, I suppose Miss Valentine will have to do on this one." Vicious cast a look in her direction. "Give me the brothel's address and his coordinates, and update me if he tries to change course."
"Yes sir!" After a moment, Vicious pocketed the communicator, and glanced in her direction.
"It looks like you're not done for the night after all. Grab your coat and your gun, we're moving three blocks down to a prostitute hang out. The man you just bugged, Jackson, is there." Faye didn't waste any time grabbing her jacket, and soon the two were walking silently down the street. Vicious wasn't offering any conversation, and the silence was uncomfortable to Faye. After a moment or two, she finally spoke up.
"If I'm allowed to even know...What exactly did this guy do?" She was expecting him to tell her some kind of bullshit about classified information, even though here she was, helping to apprehend this guy so they could do god knows what to him. Much to her surprise, he actually gave her a straight answer.
"He's a drug dealer, who paid us with false currency." There was a long pause, before he finally spoke again, his voice having an angry, vengeful tone to it. She had known right from the start that Vicious was not a very happy person, but the look on his face right now was that of utter contempt and hatred, more so then she had seen on any man for the longest time. "He also helped...a disloyal member of the syndicate get away. Mark my words...he will regret that he ever laid eyes on that woman. I will make him pay for everything that she can't..."
"Sounds almost like a lover's quarrel to me, hmm?" Vicious didn't respond...only stared off into the direction in which they were walking.
The building was old and run down, probably long since condemned. Vicious didn't hesitate for a moment, he just barged on in, hand on the katana at his side. Faye found the sword to be a very odd choice of weapon in this day and age, but if he had lived this long using it, he must have been good. She drew her gun, and inched inside the building. There was what had probably once been an elegant staircase, but now it looked as if it may collapse at any given moment. She really didn't want to go any further, but much to her dismay, Vicious took to darting up the unstable stairs.
"The trail stops here." he said...kicking at the lump of clothing at his feet.
"...I wasn't exactly expecting him to take off his pants." Faye grumbled, gun cocked as she peered down the hallway.
"...You go that way. I'm going to check down this way. Remember, if you kill him, you'll have to answer to me."
"Right." Faye burst into the nearest room...glancing about to find it filled with old furniture and lots of dust bunnies. The next room was more of the same, only she could here a mild giggle, coming from a spot she couldn't see. Ready for anything from a pile of bodies to a massive orgy, she stepped inside.
The room was a master bed room, or had been in its day. There was a ancient canopy bed, beautifully made, but it was probably home to a rodent nation by this time. Before Faye even had a chance to examine the rest of the room, however, a gun was pressed to the back of her head.
"Look girls, it's the bitch from the bar! Did you want to come and play, too?" As Faye slowly tilted her head so that she could see behind her, she saw that it was indeed Jackson, the one she had bugged at the bar. And he was completely nude, not exactly something she really wanted to see...or feel as he yanked her figure closer to his.
Like many master bedrooms, this one had a small bathroom, or what was left of it, and from it tumbled two light haired bimbos, only towels covering their forms. They were laughing, as if this were all some kind of game.
"You owe me one for findin' your pretty earring....now drop your weapon." Faye didn't really have much of a choice but to do as he said. The man's hands wandered down over her well filled out chest, giving each of her breasts a nice squeeze.
"It's a damned shame you're not blonde. I like blondes with racks, you'd make a damned fine on-" Jackson never completely finished that sentence, because a fist was sent to his face, knocking him completely off balance. Vicious stood over the man, looking down at him like the devil himself. The katana was quickly drawn from its sheath.
"You fucking slime...I've waited for this day." The naked man screamed as he lerched backwards. "The money you scammed us out of....will be replaced. The woman you stole...well...you'll never know women again." And with a flick of his sword, Vicious made sure of that. The scream Jackson made sounded almost inhuman, blood gushing from his groin. All he could do was curl over at Vicious's feet, where he was promptly kicked from. "Don't mess up my shoes."
Faye, stunned by all this, found herself following him silently back down the hallway, where Vicious paused just long enough to snatch any money cards lying around in the pockets of the cargo pants. And then they left, the screams of the girls, and the moans of the man still echoing in the background.
"Yeah...well...." It took a few minutes for her to find her voice. The whole situation was disgusting and disturbing, and quite honestly made her want to vomit. But what really frightened her most was the fact that those disgusting hands had groped her...and would have done more if not for Vicious's timing. "...Thanks."
"It wasn't for you, I promise." It was too soon for him to care, too soon for him to see her as a useful tool. Too soon for them to trust each other. But at the very least, it was the start of trust. And of being able to tolerate each other, should they have to work side by side again.
"...I guess you don't take men sleeping with your woman lightly, huh?" said Faye as they walked.
"Oh, he didn't sleep with her...I'm sure he would have tried to, but Julia doing sexual favors as payment. No, all he did was help her get out...and took quite a bit of money with them." His communicator was pulled out of his pocket. "Yes, we're finished. Send a car." He looked back to Faye. "No, the man who fucked my woman...he's an old friend. And when I find him, well..I have something very special in mind for him."
Vicious grinned in his devil like manner, and Faye could only wonder just what was going through his mind.
Some things were probably best kept secret.
