Chapter 7
"Squall? Are you awake?" Rinoa asked, rubbing the remaining sleep from her eyes.
"Have been for hours," he replied from his spot on the floor.
"Sorry," she mumbled apologetically. "You don't have to worry about disturbing me you know." She had sensed why he had not yet arisen, and felt slightly guilty for it.
"Whatever," was the only reply she received. Seeing that he would not converse with her anymore, she decided that now was a good time to wake up and go for a shower.
"Erm, do you mind turning around please?" she asked tentatively, still mindful of what she was wearing. He shuffled around without protest as she headed for the bathroom. As soon as she had shut the door behind her, Squall rose from the floor and stretched, before setting about his daily routine of push ups and sit ups, revelling in the feeling of familiarity that this bred. When finished, he picked up the newspaper than one of the hotel staff had slipped underneath the door.
The headline immediately caught his eye.
"Crime Lord to be Freed from Prison"
"Notorious gangster, Raijin, will tomorrow be set free after one of the biggest legal turnarounds in history. In the light of new evidence, Raijin will be put on bail until the beginning of the retrial, scheduled to start at the end of next of next week. Unfortunately, the Deling police are unable to comment on the new evidence at this early stage, only saying that it could become crucial to the outcome of the retrial."
Squall didn't need to read on. His memory had suddenly been refreshed. He knew where he had heard that name before, and he knew that the Deling Guardian would not have the information that he required. At this moment, Rinoa emerged from the bathroom, and he threw the newspaper at her feet.
"What does this mean?" she asked after reading the article. "It hardly says anything about this Raijin, or what he might have to do with Seifer."
"I know. Look, I may be able to get the information," he revealed, seeming a little apprehensive.
"Where from?"
"I can't tell you," no emotion revealing itself on his features.
"Squall?" she screamed. "How can you not tell me? We're in this together. I have to trust you, and you have to trust me or we might not be able to find out what's going on."
"Hmph. I have no need of your trust, and I certainly don't need to trust you."
She was about to reply in earnest when Seifer burst through the door.
"Excuse me." He looked directly at Squall. "But I need to see my fiancée…now." His voice took on a threatening tone.
Squall returned the glare that Seifer was giving him, refusing to back down an inch.
"Be my guest," he replied. "I need to go into the city anyway."
Without looking back, he strode past the pair of them and into the elevator.
"Seagill," Squall growled as the door in front of him opened to reveal a middle-aged man with long, unruly hair.
"Leonhart?" the man replied, astonished.
"You were expecting someone else?"
"I never expected that you'd turn up here again. You're the last person I'd ever expect to ask for help." These words made Squall feel ill. Ill with shame of what he was doing. He was unable to protect her without help, and it was killing him inside.
"What makes you think I want help, Seagill?"
"People only come to me for help these days, and I thought I told you last time, call me Kiros."
"Whatever. This is strictly business, so I call you by your surname and your surname only. I'm not your friend."
"That's not a good way of persuading me to part with my info," he said, half joking.
"How's ten thousand gil sound?" Squall's face was expressionless, letting the older an know that he had been prepared for this very situation…and that he was serious.
"You'd better come inside."
Squall had been in this very room once before, only a few years ago, during his previous mission in Deling. Back then, he had been ordered to talk to Kiros and receive help from him, much to Squall's disgust. Even sitting in the same chair brought back the bad memories that haunted him like a nightmare.
"And now, here I am, of my own accord, begging for help like a child," he thought, disgusted.
To be fair to the man, Kiros had come up with the goods before. It seemed as though this man knew everything about everyone, and was willing to tell all…for a price anyway. It was a small wonder that he hadn't been killed by now, but he had friends in high places, and when it comes down to it, that's all that counts.
"You got the ten thousand on ya, kid?"
"Don't call me that," he replied, pulling an envelope out of his jacket pocket. "Here's five. Everything turns out well by the end of the week, you get the other five, understand?" Kiros began laughing at Squall, shaking his head.
"You've got brains kid. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise." He took the envelope from Squall's outstretched hand. "Now what is it you need to know?"
"Seifer Almasy. What've you got on him?" Squall was never one for small talk, and now was no exception.
"I'm guessing you already know the stuff they flash about in the papers, great guy, loaded, had his life torn to pieces when his brother committed patricide? Well, it's all a load of bull. He wasn't the least bit distraught when his father was murdered. Word on the street is that he did it."
"We're talking murder here then?"
"Don't take my word for it, it's not like I have any proof, just a lot of talk and my own inklings. Don't you think it's a little suspicious that the only other witnesses to the murder couldn't testify?"
"Witnesses? You mean his brother?"
"Yeah, he admitted killing his brother, but only in self defence. I heard there was another though. A domestic who worked on the job, heard she was pretty new. I know the gardener there, he says her and Seifer were an item, which was why she was with him when it happened."
"Where is she now?"
"Nobody knows. She just disappeared off the face of the planet."
"You got a name?"
"Didn't ask. Doesn't really matter anyway. Seifer always alters the name of his staff so the press can't track them down. He doesn't want the truth about him to be printed in the papers."
"Which is?"
"He ain't a nice guy. He doesn't want anyone knowing about his debts either."
"Debts?"
"Heard he's owes pretty big money."
"Who to?"
"Not sure exactly. I've heard he needs to pay 'the boss' by the end of this week."
"Raijin."
"What makes you say that?"
"Nothing." Squall immediately clammed up, not wanting to reveal any of hiss own information.
"Fine, you don't have to tell me. This is your money, and your cause, it's got fuck all to do with me."
"Anything else you know?" Squall growled, ignoring the man's last reply.
"Heard there's a hit arranged on his girlfriend, or fiancée, whatever she is now."
"What? When?" Squall's face froze and Kiros picked up on this rare show of emotion.
"Well, some of Raijin's men were sent to rough her up a bit, but that failed. Some guy she was with managed to fight all of them off, and now, they're not only interested in frightening Seifer into coughing up, they want revenge too, they really don't like being shown up Heard they're planning it for tomorrow night."
"You're sure of this?"
"The source is reliable. He owes me a big favour." Squall nodded, thoroughly digesting the information, letting the realisation of the danger that faced Rinoa, snk in. "Let me guess, you're the guy that protected her."
"That's got nothing to do with you," Squall said, getting up to leave.
"Come by some other time, I might be able to dig something else up for you," he offered, before Squall slammed the door in his face.
"That boy never changes," he thought, chuckling to himself.
"Do I tell her? Or will that make her more frightened? What do I do? Maybe if I tell her the truth, she'll pluck up the courage to leave. Or maybe she'll just want to stay even more to find out the truth. Hyne, why does life have to be so complicated now?"
He looked down at his wrist, checking his watch. Only an hour had passed since he left the hotel. He didn't want to go back to hotel just yet.
"I need a walk, need to clear my head."
Rinoa stepped out of Seifer's room to find Squall stood in the corridor with his back against the wall with a cigarette in his mouth, just underneath a sign that read 'no smoking.' A small distance away, a group of three hotel staff were staring at him, not on of them daring to approach and reprimand him.
"Squall."
"At least it's not in your room," he pointed out.
"Just put it out, okay," she shouted. He sighed, throwing the stub to feet of the staff, much to their indignation, and followed Rinoa into her room.
"What did he want to see you about?" Squall asked, not too sure if he wanted to know the answer.
"He was asking me what I thought of you and whether I trusted you to protect me."
"That's not an issue."
"It is to me," she screamed, exasperated. "And if it means anything to you, I said I did, alright? You saved me last night."
"That's what I'm paid to do."
"That's all I am to you isn't it, a paycheck?"
"Rinoa, please, this isn't what I need right now." She noticed that the look in his eyes was genuine, and knew immediately that something was wrong.
"What is it? What did you find out?" she asked, apprehensively.
"Nothing, yet. I need to check something though." He couldn't bring himself to tell her the truth. "You got a computer I could use?"
"Sure." She pulled a laptop out from underneath her bed. "The maids never go under there," she explained before handing it over to him. He connected it to the modem port in the wall.
"You have to turn around. You can't see this."
"Why?"
"It's classified. I have to login to Garden's network and if you see any of the files you're considered a liability and…dealt with accordingly."
His last statement made her go cold with terror, causing her to turn around and not even be tempted to sneak a look.
"You can look now," he told her. She breathed a sigh of relief and turned around, noticing a carrier bag had been placed on the bed. "Is it alright if I use your shower?" he asked.
"Sure," she replied. "What's in the bag by the way?"
"Nothing much."
"Tell me. Just what does a SeeD go shopping for?"
"It's not for me, alright?" he said, closing the bathroom door behind him. As soon as she heard the shower turn on, and was satisfied that he would not hear her open the bag, she took a look inside. What she saw took her breath away. It was a beautiful, flowing, full length night dress, in a blue which shimmered gracefully in the light. In spite of herself she smiled.
"Squall."