Here's the fourth chapter. I hope you all enjoy this one. I'm still loving the reviews and I hope you are all still liking the story. I'm starting to introduce some Shal/Bren angst cos every story has to have some of that. And I have had some requests for a Jesse/Lexa subplot so if that's what rocks your boat then please let me know and I'll be sure to write something along those lines.
***
'How are they getting on?'
Lexa looked up to see Jesse walking towards her across the main hall of Sanctuary.
'Shalimar just updated me as to how the missions working out. It seems to be going fine but I can't imagine that Shalimar would really confide in me if anything had gone wrong so...'
'Do you want me to talk to her?' Jesse asked. He knew that Shalimar didn't trust Lexa yet, despite his many attempts to get the two women to talk. And he really couldn't blame her all that much. Lexa was a closed book as far as he was concerned and he had spent more time with her than either Brennan or Shalimar. He had the feeling that he was just scratching at the surface of what Lexa was really like. Unlike Shalimar and Brennan though, he really wanted to knock down her walls, uncover what lay beneath the exterior. He had a feeling that Lexa could turn out to be quite a woman once you got to know her.
'If you think you can get anymore out of her, then please, feel free,' Lexa offered as she turned back to the computer screen. The Dominion had sent her another e-mail to check the progress of Brennan. Lexa knew exactly how much pressure was being placed on her shoulders, the Dominion had made that perfectly clear to her in the correspondence. She was young and new and had a lot to prove.
It seemed like nobody truly trusted her. The Dominion clearly thought she was going to screw up, Brennan and Shalimar thought she was the antichrist. Jesse was the only one she couldn't figure out. He had been nice to her ever since she had shown up in Sanctuary, despite the events previous to that moment, and even when she didn't tell the team everything, Jesse still supported her. She couldn't work out whether it was because he was being genuinely friendly or because he was covering up his suspicions really well. Either way, she wasn't that bothered, she could really do with a friend and figured she couldn't do better than Jesse.
'I'll call her in a while. She gets two calls from us in the space of five minutes she's gonna get really pissed off.'
He walked across the room and sat down at one of the computers. His priority was Shalimar and Brennan but that did not mean that all the other new mutants slept. They still had their problems that needed solving.
***
Brennan walked slowly down the stairs, trying to stall the moment when he would have to face Lucy or whatever the hell her name was. He didn't want to make any more mistakes, but it was hard, trying to remember everything that he was supposed to whilst trying to make the lies convincing. Plus, it didn't help that she was a telempath. He knew, from his experiences with Emma that it was going to be nigh impossible for him to trick this woman into thinking he was Thomas Carter, not a new mutant. He paused, wondering how on earth he was going to fool her. He had to believe that he was Thomas Carter, as schizophrenic as that might have sounded. It would be just like when he conned people before he joined Mutant X. That had always been fun and even though the stakes had been raised, he could still have a good time with this mission.
He walked down the remaining stairs with a spring in his step, thinking more optimistically than he had been before. He could get through this, it would be a complete breeze. He had fooled Emma a couple of times and if he could do that to one of the most powerful empaths ever, then he could certainly fool this chick.
She turned to face Thomas as he strolled into the room. He looked more at ease than he had done before and his attitude relaxed her too. She smiled, slightly more genuinely than before. She often wished that her psionic abilities were slightly more in tune than her feral ones. It would have made her job a whole lot easier but instead of being half and half she appeared to be more like 70/30 with her feral side being dominant. She only really received vibes, instead of getting actual images. It was like these feelings in her gut instead of a head thing. But she could manipulate people's feelings, her main reason for picking the business she had. She had found, from an early age that she could get anybody to fall down on their hands and knees and worship her. Or hand over a ton of cash. It was a helpful gift, one that she didn't necessarily relish using, but one that served her well.
'Sorry about that,' Brennan said in most charming manner. He motioned with his arm for her to take a seat.
'Would you like something to drink?' She nodded in reply and Brennan made to leave the room when he remembered the reason why Shalimar was there with him. He walked to the door and called out into the cavernous house, hoping that she could hear him. A few seconds passed before he heard the sound of Shalimar's shoes, and a few more went by before he saw her disgruntled face.
'Would you mind getting us some drinks?'
Shalimar's jaw dropped. She had certainly not expected when this job was forced upon her that she would have to actually play at being Brennan's servant.
'Be right there,' she said in a sickly sweet voice.
Brennan smirked as he turned. He knew that would piss Shalimar off. He sat down in one of the chairs opposite the couch which Lucy had taken.
'I'm sorry, I never introduced myself. My names Thomas Carter.'
'I'm Gwen Tyler,' she replied. She looked across to the entrance as Shalimar walked in, wearing a false smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
'Can I get you something to drink? Something to eat, maybe?' She was bored with the mission already and not too worried about hiding her emotions from the telempathic radar. She, unlike Brennan had taken it upon herself to read the profile given to the team by the Dominion. She didn't trust them and had taken everything they said with a pinch of salt but having double checked it all on the new mutant database she had found out exactly what kind of mutant Lucy was. And she knew that she could get away with a certain amount in the psionics presence. She wasn't like Emma, didn't have that kind of power.
'I'll just have water, thank you,' replied Gwen. She was definitely picking up on some bad vibes from the woman standing in front of her. Aggression and frustration were coming off of her in swells and she had the distinct impression that not all the bad feeling was directed at her.
'The same, thanks Lucille,' Brennan said.
'So, have you lived here long?' he asked as Shalimar left.
'A few months. I moved here from Chicago.'
'Why did you decide to come here?'
'I guess the weather pretty much swayed it for me. I've never really been one for cold climates so it was a relief to get out of the windy city,' she said, trying to maintain an open, cheerful tone. She didn't want to tell him too much but at the same time had to make sure that she didn't appear suspiciously unwilling to give any information.
'Must have been quite a change.'
'Yeah. So why did you decide to move here?'
'I'm moving my business over here. And the climate won me over too. The company is of course an added bonus,' he replied smoothly, really getting into character. He looked up to see Shalimar standing in the doorway. Gwen glanced over too and Shalimar barely managed to plaster a smile on her face in time. She could not believe Brennan. The woman had only been in the house five minutes and he was already hitting on her. Shalimar knew it was all part of an act but she reserved the right as his girlfriend to be completely pissed off.
She walked towards Gwen and placed her drink on the table in front of her. She then proceeded to walk over to Brennan and held the ice cold water out for him to take. He raised his arm to take the glass but milliseconds before his hand reached hers she let the glass drop. It sailed through the air, the water spilling instantly, right onto Brennan's jeans, leaving a huge wet patch on the material. The glass continued to fly and landed on the polished wooden floor with a smash as the glass cracked and shards slid across the wood.
'Oh my God! I'm so sorry. Are you okay?' Shalimar asked Brennan, her eyes wide and innocent.
'Yeah, I'm just fine!' Brennan snapped. He looked into Shalimar's eyes as she bent down in front of him and saw two golden orbs staring back at him. He frowned at her as her regular eyes returned and she smirked. Shalimar straightened her legs as she stood up.
'I'll go fetch the dustpan and brush, shall I?'
'I should leave,' said Gwen. She had no idea what was going on between the two people stood in front of her but she did not want to get in the way. She stood and picked up her handbag.
'That's probably a good idea,' said Brennan. He walked her out into the hallway, leaving Shalimar behind to tidy up the mess she had inappropriately caused.
'Would you like to meet up for a drink sometime this week?' asked Gwen, hoping to regain some of the ground she had lost.
'That would be good. How do I get hold of you?'
'Here's my phone number,' she said as she pulled a piece of paper and a pen out of her bag and proceeded to write her digits on it. She handed it to Brennan and turned, opening the door and walking out into the blazing sunshine.
'I'll call you,' Brennan said, as he resumed his charming business man exterior.
He watched as Gwen walked down the tree lined drive and out through the wrought iron gates, before turning back into the house and closing the door behind him with a push of his foot. He returned to the lounge but Shalimar had disappeared.
'Shalimar?' he called out, knowing that she wouldn't reply. He had no idea what it was that had warranted her 'accident' but she was not going to get away with it.
He took the stairs two at a time and pushed open the door to his bedroom with such force that it hit the wall, leaving cracking plaster and a dent. He saw the glass doors leading out onto the balcony swinging lightly in the breeze and walked forward purposefully. He went through the doors and saw Shalimar looking out at the view, her back towards him.
'Shalimar? What is your problem? You're completely screwing up the mission...'
His voice trailed out as Shalimar spun around and glared at him.
'I know I'm screwing up the assignment. But do you really think that I care about the goddam mission when all I can see is you drooling all over her.' She had moved past pissed and had reached furious. Yes, the mission was important but didn't Brennan think the same could be said for their relationship?
'What do you mean, drooling all over her? I was being nice, I was playing a part,' Brennan replied. He closed the gap between them, took hold of her shoulders and lowered his tone. 'Look, Shal, I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I was just trying to make it convincing.'
Shalimar sighed as she leant into him. 'I know, I'm just being stupid.'
'Yeah, you are.' Brennan smiled to himself. He knew Shalimar was protective but this was a whole new level. 'And do I sense the green eyed monster?'
Shalimar pulled away sharply and crossed her arms over her chest. 'I can't believe you're making this into a joke.'
'Shal...'
'No, Brennan. My feelings are not something to be laughed at.' She pushed past him and as Brennan's shoulders drooped and he leant against the stone balustrade he heard the door to his room slam and a fainter bang as Shalimar's own door shut behind her.
***
'How are they getting on?'
Lexa looked up to see Jesse walking towards her across the main hall of Sanctuary.
'Shalimar just updated me as to how the missions working out. It seems to be going fine but I can't imagine that Shalimar would really confide in me if anything had gone wrong so...'
'Do you want me to talk to her?' Jesse asked. He knew that Shalimar didn't trust Lexa yet, despite his many attempts to get the two women to talk. And he really couldn't blame her all that much. Lexa was a closed book as far as he was concerned and he had spent more time with her than either Brennan or Shalimar. He had the feeling that he was just scratching at the surface of what Lexa was really like. Unlike Shalimar and Brennan though, he really wanted to knock down her walls, uncover what lay beneath the exterior. He had a feeling that Lexa could turn out to be quite a woman once you got to know her.
'If you think you can get anymore out of her, then please, feel free,' Lexa offered as she turned back to the computer screen. The Dominion had sent her another e-mail to check the progress of Brennan. Lexa knew exactly how much pressure was being placed on her shoulders, the Dominion had made that perfectly clear to her in the correspondence. She was young and new and had a lot to prove.
It seemed like nobody truly trusted her. The Dominion clearly thought she was going to screw up, Brennan and Shalimar thought she was the antichrist. Jesse was the only one she couldn't figure out. He had been nice to her ever since she had shown up in Sanctuary, despite the events previous to that moment, and even when she didn't tell the team everything, Jesse still supported her. She couldn't work out whether it was because he was being genuinely friendly or because he was covering up his suspicions really well. Either way, she wasn't that bothered, she could really do with a friend and figured she couldn't do better than Jesse.
'I'll call her in a while. She gets two calls from us in the space of five minutes she's gonna get really pissed off.'
He walked across the room and sat down at one of the computers. His priority was Shalimar and Brennan but that did not mean that all the other new mutants slept. They still had their problems that needed solving.
***
Brennan walked slowly down the stairs, trying to stall the moment when he would have to face Lucy or whatever the hell her name was. He didn't want to make any more mistakes, but it was hard, trying to remember everything that he was supposed to whilst trying to make the lies convincing. Plus, it didn't help that she was a telempath. He knew, from his experiences with Emma that it was going to be nigh impossible for him to trick this woman into thinking he was Thomas Carter, not a new mutant. He paused, wondering how on earth he was going to fool her. He had to believe that he was Thomas Carter, as schizophrenic as that might have sounded. It would be just like when he conned people before he joined Mutant X. That had always been fun and even though the stakes had been raised, he could still have a good time with this mission.
He walked down the remaining stairs with a spring in his step, thinking more optimistically than he had been before. He could get through this, it would be a complete breeze. He had fooled Emma a couple of times and if he could do that to one of the most powerful empaths ever, then he could certainly fool this chick.
She turned to face Thomas as he strolled into the room. He looked more at ease than he had done before and his attitude relaxed her too. She smiled, slightly more genuinely than before. She often wished that her psionic abilities were slightly more in tune than her feral ones. It would have made her job a whole lot easier but instead of being half and half she appeared to be more like 70/30 with her feral side being dominant. She only really received vibes, instead of getting actual images. It was like these feelings in her gut instead of a head thing. But she could manipulate people's feelings, her main reason for picking the business she had. She had found, from an early age that she could get anybody to fall down on their hands and knees and worship her. Or hand over a ton of cash. It was a helpful gift, one that she didn't necessarily relish using, but one that served her well.
'Sorry about that,' Brennan said in most charming manner. He motioned with his arm for her to take a seat.
'Would you like something to drink?' She nodded in reply and Brennan made to leave the room when he remembered the reason why Shalimar was there with him. He walked to the door and called out into the cavernous house, hoping that she could hear him. A few seconds passed before he heard the sound of Shalimar's shoes, and a few more went by before he saw her disgruntled face.
'Would you mind getting us some drinks?'
Shalimar's jaw dropped. She had certainly not expected when this job was forced upon her that she would have to actually play at being Brennan's servant.
'Be right there,' she said in a sickly sweet voice.
Brennan smirked as he turned. He knew that would piss Shalimar off. He sat down in one of the chairs opposite the couch which Lucy had taken.
'I'm sorry, I never introduced myself. My names Thomas Carter.'
'I'm Gwen Tyler,' she replied. She looked across to the entrance as Shalimar walked in, wearing a false smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
'Can I get you something to drink? Something to eat, maybe?' She was bored with the mission already and not too worried about hiding her emotions from the telempathic radar. She, unlike Brennan had taken it upon herself to read the profile given to the team by the Dominion. She didn't trust them and had taken everything they said with a pinch of salt but having double checked it all on the new mutant database she had found out exactly what kind of mutant Lucy was. And she knew that she could get away with a certain amount in the psionics presence. She wasn't like Emma, didn't have that kind of power.
'I'll just have water, thank you,' replied Gwen. She was definitely picking up on some bad vibes from the woman standing in front of her. Aggression and frustration were coming off of her in swells and she had the distinct impression that not all the bad feeling was directed at her.
'The same, thanks Lucille,' Brennan said.
'So, have you lived here long?' he asked as Shalimar left.
'A few months. I moved here from Chicago.'
'Why did you decide to come here?'
'I guess the weather pretty much swayed it for me. I've never really been one for cold climates so it was a relief to get out of the windy city,' she said, trying to maintain an open, cheerful tone. She didn't want to tell him too much but at the same time had to make sure that she didn't appear suspiciously unwilling to give any information.
'Must have been quite a change.'
'Yeah. So why did you decide to move here?'
'I'm moving my business over here. And the climate won me over too. The company is of course an added bonus,' he replied smoothly, really getting into character. He looked up to see Shalimar standing in the doorway. Gwen glanced over too and Shalimar barely managed to plaster a smile on her face in time. She could not believe Brennan. The woman had only been in the house five minutes and he was already hitting on her. Shalimar knew it was all part of an act but she reserved the right as his girlfriend to be completely pissed off.
She walked towards Gwen and placed her drink on the table in front of her. She then proceeded to walk over to Brennan and held the ice cold water out for him to take. He raised his arm to take the glass but milliseconds before his hand reached hers she let the glass drop. It sailed through the air, the water spilling instantly, right onto Brennan's jeans, leaving a huge wet patch on the material. The glass continued to fly and landed on the polished wooden floor with a smash as the glass cracked and shards slid across the wood.
'Oh my God! I'm so sorry. Are you okay?' Shalimar asked Brennan, her eyes wide and innocent.
'Yeah, I'm just fine!' Brennan snapped. He looked into Shalimar's eyes as she bent down in front of him and saw two golden orbs staring back at him. He frowned at her as her regular eyes returned and she smirked. Shalimar straightened her legs as she stood up.
'I'll go fetch the dustpan and brush, shall I?'
'I should leave,' said Gwen. She had no idea what was going on between the two people stood in front of her but she did not want to get in the way. She stood and picked up her handbag.
'That's probably a good idea,' said Brennan. He walked her out into the hallway, leaving Shalimar behind to tidy up the mess she had inappropriately caused.
'Would you like to meet up for a drink sometime this week?' asked Gwen, hoping to regain some of the ground she had lost.
'That would be good. How do I get hold of you?'
'Here's my phone number,' she said as she pulled a piece of paper and a pen out of her bag and proceeded to write her digits on it. She handed it to Brennan and turned, opening the door and walking out into the blazing sunshine.
'I'll call you,' Brennan said, as he resumed his charming business man exterior.
He watched as Gwen walked down the tree lined drive and out through the wrought iron gates, before turning back into the house and closing the door behind him with a push of his foot. He returned to the lounge but Shalimar had disappeared.
'Shalimar?' he called out, knowing that she wouldn't reply. He had no idea what it was that had warranted her 'accident' but she was not going to get away with it.
He took the stairs two at a time and pushed open the door to his bedroom with such force that it hit the wall, leaving cracking plaster and a dent. He saw the glass doors leading out onto the balcony swinging lightly in the breeze and walked forward purposefully. He went through the doors and saw Shalimar looking out at the view, her back towards him.
'Shalimar? What is your problem? You're completely screwing up the mission...'
His voice trailed out as Shalimar spun around and glared at him.
'I know I'm screwing up the assignment. But do you really think that I care about the goddam mission when all I can see is you drooling all over her.' She had moved past pissed and had reached furious. Yes, the mission was important but didn't Brennan think the same could be said for their relationship?
'What do you mean, drooling all over her? I was being nice, I was playing a part,' Brennan replied. He closed the gap between them, took hold of her shoulders and lowered his tone. 'Look, Shal, I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I was just trying to make it convincing.'
Shalimar sighed as she leant into him. 'I know, I'm just being stupid.'
'Yeah, you are.' Brennan smiled to himself. He knew Shalimar was protective but this was a whole new level. 'And do I sense the green eyed monster?'
Shalimar pulled away sharply and crossed her arms over her chest. 'I can't believe you're making this into a joke.'
'Shal...'
'No, Brennan. My feelings are not something to be laughed at.' She pushed past him and as Brennan's shoulders drooped and he leant against the stone balustrade he heard the door to his room slam and a fainter bang as Shalimar's own door shut behind her.
