Chapter Twenty-Six:
"...And I told Paris, if she wanted to see me again, she simply had to ditch that television career or all I would ever see when I looked at her were the pigs!"
The room exploded into new laughter as Pietro Maximoff disparaged yet another of his celebrity conquests. Life in New York for a rich playboy was so easy it was almost a chore. And, Pietro certainly did not mind complaining. The woman next to him slapped his knee playfully and swooned with false outrage.
"Oh, Pi, you simply are the worst," the woman chided, her words slurred, "Personally, I can't believe you took her to the Black and White ball. I mean...really...when I was so available..."
Pietro shrugged and grinned wickedly. He was the only one in the room who did not seem bothered by the effects of too much alcohol. He always claimed it was his metabolism that burned the booze out so quickly... and he was telling the truth. Not that he would ever tell anyone he was a mutant. He preferred to enjoy the range of his powers privately. His feet were quick, and his body always kept up.
Everything about him was just... fast... and that included the brief associations he had with the city's female population, celebrity or not.
When the phone began to ring, Pietro glanced over his shoulder with annoyance.
"I bet that's her now," one of the men remarked wryly, "Hey, if she's outta your game... give her my number!"
Pietro chuckled politely and excused himself before heading into the study. He was still smirking when he picked up the receiver, wondering which of his lady friends was pining for him tonight.
"Hello, hello, you've reached the home of hot and sexy, how can I help you?" Pietro greeted the caller, words running out of his mouth quickly.
"Hello, brother," the female voice on the other end replied, "How have you been?"
Pietro felt his whole world come to a screeching halt.
"W...Wa..." he stuttered into the phone before clearing his throat and continuing, "Wand... Wanda. Wanda? Oh... holy shit..."
There was soft laughter on the other end, though the sound was not at all like the voices of his friends. It was cold, bitter and humorless.
"What?" Wanda Maximoff replied to her brother, "Not happy to hear from me?"
"No...no..." Pietro stammered, feeling prickly sweat begin to form on his neck, "I mean, yeah, it's good to talk again. How long has..."
"Five years," Wanda replied before the question could be totally asked, "I hate to think I've neglected our relationship for such a long time but... I've have been busy..."
His sister's voice was dripping with sarcasm and Pietro felt a measure of relief. If she had wanted to fight, hexed furniture and appliances would already be flying at his head.
"Hey, no hard feelings, right?" Pietro said quickly, "You should come out to New York sometime. You'd love New York. Right on the coast. I know you love the ocean. And all the sights! You've never been to Radio City. Time Square. Central Park. Statue of Lib..."
"Have you talked to him?" Wanda interrupted, that familiar rage filling her voice so suddenly that Pietro did not have to ask which 'him' she was talking about.
"No... no... not since before he went to jail," Pietro insisted quickly, "Why..."
"Because he's looking for us," Wanda said and then reconsidered, "Well, he's looking for me anyway. It's never that hard to find you. How was Paris, by the way?"
Pietro ground his teeth angrily and ignored the jibe, "What makes you think..."
"I have sources," Wanda interrupted again, no patience for her brother's ramblings, no matter how fast he talked, "Apparently, two of the Brotherhood are in the city. They're looking for mutants on some list he has put together. Frankly, I thought we'd be hearing from him sooner. It's been almost a year since he escaped from his imprisonment..."
Pietro struggled again not to wince as his sister spoke. Her insinuations were not subtle.
"What do you want me to do?" he finally asked and he heard Wanda laugh bitterly.
"Always trying to please..." she chided with amusement, "Always trying to keep your neck out of the fray..."
There was a pause and then she continued.
"Do whatever you like, Pietro," she said, "I really don't care. It's not like you know where I am. What could you tell him about besides our oh-so-frequent phone chats..."
"What are you going to do?" Pietro asked before Wanda tried to hang up. If she was going to have the last word, it might as well be an answer to his question.
There was another long pause, and Wanda's voice spoke one more time before the line went dead.
"Do you really want to know?"
