PART 2/4
A few days prior. The sky no less welcoming than before.
*
She didn't react when she spied him taking the old screwdriver hidden in the pantry. Moments passed and scrapping noises emanated from the second story hallway. Rather than tromp upstairs and risk being heard, she made her way to the center of the house to the Control Center itself. Knocking on a seemingly benign wall panel, she was greeted by the hum and whine of electronics. Without any sort of pretense she leaned over the technician and tapped a few keys bringing up access to security cameras within the mansion.
*
Tap. The front gate with Lions standing in loyal and lethal guard.
Tap. Tap. The main lab, a lone man in an outwardly pristine lab coat hunched over a metal table. His head is grasped tightly in his hands, as though debating over great and future things.
Tap. The Great Room with the fireplace – slowly going out. She made a mental note to inform the staff before Irons noticed as well.
Tap. The Great Hallway with paintings of those faceless women and Irons himself. She looked at one of the many clocks decorating the wall; according to Greenwich time, he had been there for over three hours.
*
She joked with him once. She made the claim that he had more security than the White House, while sliding deeper into the cushion of his body. A response cool and refined followed as he rolled her nude form away from him. "My dear, where do you think they got the idea?" He quietly and gracefully stepped to the cabinet to pour himself a dark liquid remembrance.
*
Or was it to forget?
*
The screen blipped one last time and finally displayed a young Ian dismantling the wooden panel belonging to the lights at the far end of the hallway. The technician was now overtly intrigued and turned another knob to zoom in on what the young boy was doing. Snap. Twist. Snip. The panel was off and Ian placed it gently on the antique chair he was standing on. He was careful not to touch the wood and smear the recently applied polish; the scent of citrus smelled nice, he'd have to tell the upstairs maid that.
*
Tech and Nanny alike watched in morbid fascination that the young boy would so openly defy Irons and do something potentially destructive to his property. Their hearts quietly echoed that same desire.
*
Ian could feel the small beads of sweat as they traveled down his neck and onto his back tracing the lines of his new injury, he could tell this one would scar. The cotton bandage absorbed the initial wetness, but the few more determined drops seeped into the wound causing him to twitch ever so slightly. This became nearly as distracting as the familiar voices, which charged into his mind. Without any sort of prior warning, they began noisily chattering away about the "strategic" move he was making. Ian waved a tired hand by his ear, trying in vain to get the raspy voices to go away. Subterfuge was another form of battling, he reasoned with them. Their unusually nervous reply suggested he be aware that unhonorable men attacked, even when they could not see their true opponent. He should no longer welcome the Night, for it no longer held adequate cover.
*
Ian tried to digest this new information and wanted desperately to cry to someone about it. That luxury denied, he instead returned his full focus to the task at hand and tried very hard not to cut the wrong wire. He never did like the strong tingle that came from open circuits. He really was doing what he could. It was all he ever did. He just wished it could finally be good enough for someone. Anyone. Or anything for that matter.
*
Even without the volume at maximum, the occupants in the control room could make out the SHH! which escaped the boy's lips, as he rubbed and swatted at his ear trying to make something, unseen to them, go away.
*
"Does he always…" the technician trailed off before realizing the idiotic nature of his question. He'd watched the boy long enough to know something wasn't right with Irons' dark haired little freak. He leaned in closer to watch the boy's face, almost enraptured by the ingenious nature of his plan. The twerp was gonna catch the screwdriver against his ear if he kept swatting at imaginary bugs like that. Though, he'd have to admit watching the kid screw around was a lot more entertaining than running diagnostics for the security systems. But, he'd have to make sure he was too busy to carefully watch the screens for the encore, which would undoubtedly come later.
*
The tech shifted again in his chair surreptitiously edging closer to the newest Nanny, who, at the moment, looked lost in thought and in no mood to converse. His eyebrows arched slightly as her chest was conveniently getting closer to eye level. He wasn't complaining. She smelled like Lilies and spice.
*
"Yes. Sometimes. He does that when he believes no one is looking or paying attention." She answered to fill the silence, before it became thick and uncomfortable, much like the man beside her. "It's been happening quite often lately," she mumbled to herself before darting a glance at the monitor that captured Irons' visage.
*
With action both swift and decisive, she reached over and stopped the tape recording Ian's ill deeds. Her breast brushed the side of the man's face as she returned to a standing position. She heard the swift intake of air and mused over which one of her actions had caused the change in his breathing rhythm. She clamped tightly onto the inside of her cheek to keep from smirking.
*
"Hey don't! You can't do that!" he screeched, abruptly pulled from his perfumed reverie. He scrambled to re-start the tape. He KNEW better. He shouldn't have let her in. Again. Not after last time. She was messing with his order; his sterile perfectly controlled perfectly comfortable environment. Bitch even had the audacity to invade his dreams, which if comparisons could be drawn, weren't nearly as clean as his workplace.
*
"I will and I just did," she remarked before attempting to calm his frantic and jerky movements. For such an inactive individual, she was surprised by his burst of strength. The loud creak emanating from Irons' monitor gave pause to their impromptu wrestling match. They waited with baited breath for his next move.
*
Slow even steps carried Irons down the hallway and out of sight of the first and second monitor.
*
Sweat beaded on their foreheads and blood pressures escalated collectively as they heard Irons' light movements directly above the control room. This could turn out to be a bad day to be employed here.
"Oh man. Oh shit. Oh god. Oh..."
"Aaaahhhh…"
*
The sigh came from her first; from him it sounded like the wheeze of old bellows. Irons had reappeared moments later in the monitor for the Great Room stopping momentarily to "tsk, tsk" at the low flames in the hearth. They watched intently, as he turned and glided towards his newest legal acquisition - the marble bust of a striking young female. He ran his hands over every marvelous corner, memorizing and mapping out each crevice, like a dedicated lover would do. A true warrior would again greet his presence. Time would tell. He stepped back to admire his most recent toy from every angle; the low light from the fire really did do it justice.
*
It became evident to his watchers that Ian heard the noise as well. He darted away like a frightened rabbit, but only after putting the finishing touches on the light cover. The tools were safely secured within the pocket of his little jacket and it was like nothing had happened at all. Almost. He hoped in his carelessness that no one noticed the tiny spot of chipped paint on the bottom left corner. A smile nearly slipped out during the moment of pride he felt. Ian was careful not to jar the bandage out of place as he fled from the scene of his crime. Nanny had been so careful when she had applied it the other day. She didn't even ask questions that time.
*
"Ian is a naturally curious child and I have encouraged this trait in him. He has found many interesting things in the mansion unbeknownst even to me. Specifically in here." Without even a civil look, she tapped the heel of her black pumps against a metal drawer, jarring the unseen contents within.
*
Blinking several times did not erase the blank and deliciously confused look on the Tech's face. "What did she just say?" his mind's voice screamed out for a plausible answer. An eerie echo was the only reply. "How d-did you know about that?" he stated aloud, wondering how he was rapidly losing control of the situation. Did she know about the OTHER things too? A shudder wriggled through his large frame and he could feel the tightening in his chest. He hoped to God the inhaler in his shirt pocket was full.
*
The tech reassessed the current situation. This was a solid job. He liked it. He liked the pay, the hours and truth be told - he preferred watching people to interacting with them. And sitting here in his own space, they didn't have to see him either. He was the one in charge here, surveying everything within the realm of his cameras. There wasn't a spot in the mansion he didn't have access to, unlike certain other hired help. He saw and recorded everything in this place and he could watch the tapes later during his own time if he so chose. Hence, the predicament the Nanny had him in now. But what the hell did she care if he had tapes of her and Irons engaging in activities he'd only seen occasionally in his magazines. She'd never been bothered by it before, so why now? He had many favorite tapes, but the most memorable one had been the time when she looked directly at one of the hidden cameras and clearly mouthed the words: "I. See. You."
*
Christ…
What kind game was she playing now? Okay, so yeah, maybe she had something to bargain with, but for what…a tape of that little snot-head doing something stupid? But why? Her actions had never shown she had the kid in mind. Why the change? And why come to him about it? He wasn't involved. He had nothing to do with it. Maybe her conscience was finally stabbing at her for leaving the boy unprotected so often. Maybe she was just being manipulative and acting all superior again. Or maybe the alarm on her biological clock was going off seeing how vulnerable the kid was. He mentally snorted at that last thought, which oddly enough bolstered his confidence to ask her "So what do ya want for 'em?"
*
She raised an eyebrow; surprised he'd put together a coherent sentence in such short notice. And he was ready to cooperate. Good. This would make things marginally easier. She cleared her throat; the heat from the electronics coupled with the Tech's profuse sweating was creating an odor that was steadily getting to her. She blinked once more and stated, "You will hand over the one tape of Ian in exchange for the three tapes hidden in your desk." She paused making sure she had his full attention. "And for the dozen or so you have at your residence." The man looked like he was going to choke again.
*
She made no move to help him as he sucked down two shots of his ever-present inhaler. He merely nodded and handed her the copy she'd requested. The look in her dark eyes stopped him before he could even ask how she knew about the tapes at his apartment. She'd already mentioned Ian had a curious bent; the tech could use his over active imagination to fill in the rest of the blanks. She turned the tape over examining it as though there should be something special about it, considering what was on it. Honestly, she was unimpressed, but she held tightly onto the tape anyway. She could burn it later in the Grounds Keeper's tool shed. No one would notice the smell there.
*
She turned back towards him as if to say something, not "Thankyou" but something else. His unblinking gaze and tensed shoulders told her that their conversation and transaction was completed. She left quieter than she entered. She missed the Tech shaking in relief at her exit as well as the smell of disinfectant as he wiped out her presence from the room.
*
If anyone had cared to review the tapes from that day, nothing at all would have appeared out of the ordinary. The hallways were especially empty. The Master of the house was admiring his antiquities. A well kempt woman walked brusquely to locate the whereabouts of her young charge. A small boy molded himself into a dark neglected corner of the house, so that no one might notice him too much. Nothing out of the ordinary at all. The daily routine of Faust Street went on uninterrupted.
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A/N: Same disclaimer as PART 1. Sorry for the long wait and any inconsistencies you may find. I like to play with the POV, but let me know if something was unclear. I made it a bit longer this time around. More to come. The importance of reviews has really sunk in. I thought I knew before I posted a story, but I had no idea. Once I get some free time I'm going to catch up on all of the stories I missed thus far. Thank you so much to everyone for reading and reviewing. The giant spaz in me exploded with joy and even did a wiggle dance in utter happiness. Scooter – you demonstrated once again how much you rock.