Chapter Five: Failure to Communicate
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Pulling his car up to the curb at the Montecito, Danny took a moment to glance at the passenger seat next to him. Seeing as how she had taken his car to the meeting place, Leah had left her own vehicle in town. Danny had offered to give her a ride as far as the Montecito when he reported in for work, and the petite, brown (with blonde streaks) haired woman had gratefully accepted.
"Last stop!" the tall, brown-haired man grinned as he shifted his car into park. "Everybody out!"
"Aren't you going to park?" a curious Leah asked as she noticed that the car was still running.
"Nah." a cheerful Danny waved off as a bald, African American man ran up to the passenger's side of the vehicle. "It's what we pay the valets for. Right, Mike?"
"You'd better haul ass to Mr. D's office." Mike Cannon advised as he shook his head. "Dude is about to explode!"
"The whole Professor thing?" Danny guessed, quickly glancing up at the nearby security camera. He knew that his mentor had to be watching as Ed rarely missed anything.
"And your little disappearing act." Mike added as Danny groaned and shook his head. A charming smile found it's way to Mike's face as he noticed Leah. "I hope my friend here treated you all right." He teasingly glared at Danny. "If not, I'll be glad to pound some sense into him."
"I wouldn't worry, Mike." a woman with dark blonde, shoulder-length hair commented as she appeared out of nowhere. Her eyes narrowed at the sight of Danny and Leah. "We both know that Danny knows how to treat a woman."
My day has just gotten worse, Danny thought to himself. The woman was Mary Connell, his best friend since childhood who had always had a crush on him. However, McCoy didn't think that she would let that stop her from strangling either him or Leah at that exact moment.
"I'd better get going." he said quietly to Leah, who was staring at Mary.
"Yeah." Leah agreed as she took one look at Mary's eyes. After the two got out of the yellow and black Camaro, she walked over and planted a kiss on the cheek of the tall, brown-haired man. Her big, brown eyes met his. "I'll be in touch."
"Okay." Danny smiled as Leah waved to both Mike and Mary before continuing out of the parking lot. As he watched her walk away, Danny could feel Mike clamp a hand on his shoulder.
"Remind me to ask you where you found a girl like that." Mike grinned, also watching the petite, brown and blond haired woman walk off. Danny could sense that his best guy friend was a little jealous of him at the moment.
"All right." Danny agreed as a leaving Mike slapped him on the shoulder. Rubbing the back of his head, the ex-Marine turned to see Mary still standing nearby. Her arms were folded tightly across her chest and a disapproving look was very prevalent in her eyes. Not knowing what to say, Danny simply stared back at her. Suddenly, she turned and headed back into the Montecito. Although he knew what sort of conversation would follow, Danny decided to follow her.
"Come on, Mary!" Danny urged, "Talk to me at least."
"I hope that she was worth it." Mary replied, not turning and facing him.
"Worth it?" Danny asked, still tailgating her.
"Whatever Ed is going do to you." Mary clarified.
"It's not like Ed's going to murder me or something, Mary." Danny pointed out at the pair reached the hidden doors that led into the innards of the casino. As the pair finally stopped, Danny sighed. Mary still wasn't looking at him. "It's nothing serious."
Finally, Mary did turn to look at her best friend, and Danny instantly wished that she had remained facing away from him. Concern, sadness, and pain were all present in her eyes, and the ex-Marine could feel guilt immediately pierce his heart.
"It never is." Mary commented as she turned and walked away again.
Watching her walk away, Danny felt the burning desire to go after her, but remained where he stood. He knew that Connell had had feelings for him ever since childhood, and he could admit to himself that he wanted her too. However, part of him had always blocked the ex-Marine from committing to Mary, and wasn't about to yield now. Rubbing the back of his neck, Danny slowly pushed open the doors next to him and headed inside.
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"Well," came the sarcastic voice of Ed Deline as he noticed Danny walking into his office. The grim-faced, older man, who was sitting behind his desk, mockingly seemed impressed and gestured with his hands. "If it isn't the Invisible Man!" Any hint of teasing was suddenly dropped from his voice, as were his hands to the desk in front of him. "Where in the hell have you been, Danny?"
"Busy." Danny quietly shrugged, thinking that it was a good an answer as any. To make their scam on the Professor seem more realistic, Luis and Danny had agreed not to tell Ed, if they didn't have to, until everything had played out. Of course, Danny wondered if he would even still be alive at that point, seeing as how the Professor or Ed himself was likely to kill him.
"Too busy to answer your home or cell phone?" an interested Ed asked with a raised eyebrow. He was skeptical that McCoy would actually be that busy.
"I wasn't at home." Danny replied, sitting down across from Ed. His mind was quickly trying to figure out an excuse as to why he didn't answer his cell phone. He couldn't tell the truth and say that Leah confiscated it. "And I guess I must have turned my cell phone off, or I just didn't hear it."
"So, you were with some girl." a disappointed Ed guessed, leaning back in his chair.
"I'm sorry, Ed." Danny apologized, looking at the floor. "This won't happen again."
"It shouldn't have happened this time, Danny." Ed calmly admonished, "I don't need my second-in-command disappearing on me," He shook his head. "Especially at a time like this."
"I heard about the whole Professor thing." Danny nodded as he spotted that morning's paper on Ed's desk.
"Did you?" Ed asked a bit surprised. "That's, uh, that's very unusual pillow talk."
"Leah wasn't the one to bring it to my attention." Danny corrected, thinking about the events of the previous afternoon and that morning.
"Good to see that you got the first name at least this time." Ed remarked quietly, mistakenly thinking that Danny hadn't heard him.
"What was that?" a slightly angered Danny asked.
"Never mind." an apologetic Ed waved off. "Something I shouldn't have said out loud."
"It bugs me that you're even thinking it." Danny commented, cooling down. He knew that Ed had to be pretty frustrated at the moment, and was looking for an easy target to lash out at. The ex-Marine nodded at the Professor's picture in the paper. "Got any ideas on how to get this guy?"
"Can't get any ideas if I don't know what he's going to do." Ed replied, shaking his head slowly. He sighed deeply in frustration and ran a hand through his gray hair.
Saying nothing, Danny looked away from his mentor. He contemplated relenting and telling the older man about his and Luis' plot, but decided against it. However, Danny found himself wondering what kind of plan Ed would cook up to combat one of his employees turning against him. Especially if it was his own protégé.
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"A girl like that?" an amazed Mike asked in disbelief. "You found a girl like that at a fast food joint? At like 3 am in the morning?"
"Yeah." Danny nodded as they walked around the casino floor. "We just got to talking and it went from there." Noticing Mike looking at him strangely, Danny chuckled and opened his arms innocently. "What?"
"To have your luck and magic." an envious Mike shook his head. Danny was about to reply when he saw Mary walking ahead of them. After clapping the African American man on the shoulder, Danny ran up to his best friend's side.
"You got time to get a bite to eat?" he asked, reaching her side. "I'm on break."
"I see you survived your encounter with Ed." Mary commented with a slight smile, giving no indication that she had even heard his question.
"Yeah." Danny nodded, "What about you? Have you forgiven me?"
"I just wish that you would actually use that brain of yours sometimes, Danny." Mary replied, stopping in her tracks. She turned and looked at him. "Instead of thinking with another part of your anatomy."
"I tried that once." a joking Danny replied, rubbing his forehead for emphasis. "It hurt like a bitch."
Exchanging glances, the two friends since childhood both laughed hysterically at Danny's comment. As she laughed, Mary slipped her hand into her best friend's and squeezed it tightly. Danny's laugh turned into a smile as he noticed this. Feeling him squeeze her hand back, Mary also smiled as the two headed off towards Club Mystique, the casino's restaurant and nightclub.
To be continued...
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Pulling his car up to the curb at the Montecito, Danny took a moment to glance at the passenger seat next to him. Seeing as how she had taken his car to the meeting place, Leah had left her own vehicle in town. Danny had offered to give her a ride as far as the Montecito when he reported in for work, and the petite, brown (with blonde streaks) haired woman had gratefully accepted.
"Last stop!" the tall, brown-haired man grinned as he shifted his car into park. "Everybody out!"
"Aren't you going to park?" a curious Leah asked as she noticed that the car was still running.
"Nah." a cheerful Danny waved off as a bald, African American man ran up to the passenger's side of the vehicle. "It's what we pay the valets for. Right, Mike?"
"You'd better haul ass to Mr. D's office." Mike Cannon advised as he shook his head. "Dude is about to explode!"
"The whole Professor thing?" Danny guessed, quickly glancing up at the nearby security camera. He knew that his mentor had to be watching as Ed rarely missed anything.
"And your little disappearing act." Mike added as Danny groaned and shook his head. A charming smile found it's way to Mike's face as he noticed Leah. "I hope my friend here treated you all right." He teasingly glared at Danny. "If not, I'll be glad to pound some sense into him."
"I wouldn't worry, Mike." a woman with dark blonde, shoulder-length hair commented as she appeared out of nowhere. Her eyes narrowed at the sight of Danny and Leah. "We both know that Danny knows how to treat a woman."
My day has just gotten worse, Danny thought to himself. The woman was Mary Connell, his best friend since childhood who had always had a crush on him. However, McCoy didn't think that she would let that stop her from strangling either him or Leah at that exact moment.
"I'd better get going." he said quietly to Leah, who was staring at Mary.
"Yeah." Leah agreed as she took one look at Mary's eyes. After the two got out of the yellow and black Camaro, she walked over and planted a kiss on the cheek of the tall, brown-haired man. Her big, brown eyes met his. "I'll be in touch."
"Okay." Danny smiled as Leah waved to both Mike and Mary before continuing out of the parking lot. As he watched her walk away, Danny could feel Mike clamp a hand on his shoulder.
"Remind me to ask you where you found a girl like that." Mike grinned, also watching the petite, brown and blond haired woman walk off. Danny could sense that his best guy friend was a little jealous of him at the moment.
"All right." Danny agreed as a leaving Mike slapped him on the shoulder. Rubbing the back of his head, the ex-Marine turned to see Mary still standing nearby. Her arms were folded tightly across her chest and a disapproving look was very prevalent in her eyes. Not knowing what to say, Danny simply stared back at her. Suddenly, she turned and headed back into the Montecito. Although he knew what sort of conversation would follow, Danny decided to follow her.
"Come on, Mary!" Danny urged, "Talk to me at least."
"I hope that she was worth it." Mary replied, not turning and facing him.
"Worth it?" Danny asked, still tailgating her.
"Whatever Ed is going do to you." Mary clarified.
"It's not like Ed's going to murder me or something, Mary." Danny pointed out at the pair reached the hidden doors that led into the innards of the casino. As the pair finally stopped, Danny sighed. Mary still wasn't looking at him. "It's nothing serious."
Finally, Mary did turn to look at her best friend, and Danny instantly wished that she had remained facing away from him. Concern, sadness, and pain were all present in her eyes, and the ex-Marine could feel guilt immediately pierce his heart.
"It never is." Mary commented as she turned and walked away again.
Watching her walk away, Danny felt the burning desire to go after her, but remained where he stood. He knew that Connell had had feelings for him ever since childhood, and he could admit to himself that he wanted her too. However, part of him had always blocked the ex-Marine from committing to Mary, and wasn't about to yield now. Rubbing the back of his neck, Danny slowly pushed open the doors next to him and headed inside.
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"Well," came the sarcastic voice of Ed Deline as he noticed Danny walking into his office. The grim-faced, older man, who was sitting behind his desk, mockingly seemed impressed and gestured with his hands. "If it isn't the Invisible Man!" Any hint of teasing was suddenly dropped from his voice, as were his hands to the desk in front of him. "Where in the hell have you been, Danny?"
"Busy." Danny quietly shrugged, thinking that it was a good an answer as any. To make their scam on the Professor seem more realistic, Luis and Danny had agreed not to tell Ed, if they didn't have to, until everything had played out. Of course, Danny wondered if he would even still be alive at that point, seeing as how the Professor or Ed himself was likely to kill him.
"Too busy to answer your home or cell phone?" an interested Ed asked with a raised eyebrow. He was skeptical that McCoy would actually be that busy.
"I wasn't at home." Danny replied, sitting down across from Ed. His mind was quickly trying to figure out an excuse as to why he didn't answer his cell phone. He couldn't tell the truth and say that Leah confiscated it. "And I guess I must have turned my cell phone off, or I just didn't hear it."
"So, you were with some girl." a disappointed Ed guessed, leaning back in his chair.
"I'm sorry, Ed." Danny apologized, looking at the floor. "This won't happen again."
"It shouldn't have happened this time, Danny." Ed calmly admonished, "I don't need my second-in-command disappearing on me," He shook his head. "Especially at a time like this."
"I heard about the whole Professor thing." Danny nodded as he spotted that morning's paper on Ed's desk.
"Did you?" Ed asked a bit surprised. "That's, uh, that's very unusual pillow talk."
"Leah wasn't the one to bring it to my attention." Danny corrected, thinking about the events of the previous afternoon and that morning.
"Good to see that you got the first name at least this time." Ed remarked quietly, mistakenly thinking that Danny hadn't heard him.
"What was that?" a slightly angered Danny asked.
"Never mind." an apologetic Ed waved off. "Something I shouldn't have said out loud."
"It bugs me that you're even thinking it." Danny commented, cooling down. He knew that Ed had to be pretty frustrated at the moment, and was looking for an easy target to lash out at. The ex-Marine nodded at the Professor's picture in the paper. "Got any ideas on how to get this guy?"
"Can't get any ideas if I don't know what he's going to do." Ed replied, shaking his head slowly. He sighed deeply in frustration and ran a hand through his gray hair.
Saying nothing, Danny looked away from his mentor. He contemplated relenting and telling the older man about his and Luis' plot, but decided against it. However, Danny found himself wondering what kind of plan Ed would cook up to combat one of his employees turning against him. Especially if it was his own protégé.
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"A girl like that?" an amazed Mike asked in disbelief. "You found a girl like that at a fast food joint? At like 3 am in the morning?"
"Yeah." Danny nodded as they walked around the casino floor. "We just got to talking and it went from there." Noticing Mike looking at him strangely, Danny chuckled and opened his arms innocently. "What?"
"To have your luck and magic." an envious Mike shook his head. Danny was about to reply when he saw Mary walking ahead of them. After clapping the African American man on the shoulder, Danny ran up to his best friend's side.
"You got time to get a bite to eat?" he asked, reaching her side. "I'm on break."
"I see you survived your encounter with Ed." Mary commented with a slight smile, giving no indication that she had even heard his question.
"Yeah." Danny nodded, "What about you? Have you forgiven me?"
"I just wish that you would actually use that brain of yours sometimes, Danny." Mary replied, stopping in her tracks. She turned and looked at him. "Instead of thinking with another part of your anatomy."
"I tried that once." a joking Danny replied, rubbing his forehead for emphasis. "It hurt like a bitch."
Exchanging glances, the two friends since childhood both laughed hysterically at Danny's comment. As she laughed, Mary slipped her hand into her best friend's and squeezed it tightly. Danny's laugh turned into a smile as he noticed this. Feeling him squeeze her hand back, Mary also smiled as the two headed off towards Club Mystique, the casino's restaurant and nightclub.
To be continued...