Lounging on the couch was that cowboy; blue jeans, black button up t-shirt, pair of red boots, and a brand new hat. This hat was going to be one of Budd's favorites. It was white with a brown band. He picked it up in some pawn shop during his last assignment had finished. The best part was after killing the store owner he had picked up the hat for free.
He was idly fiddling around with the thing as he waited patiently for his brother to get off the cell phone on the back patio. It had been a good two weeks since Aiyana, the new gal, came into the squad and Budd could see the drastic change in his brother.
This change was good on account it didn't involve large amounts of drinking and wallowing in self pity. Budd liked to believe things were picking up again and perhaps certain things were coming to a close. He could only hope, and thus his mood was considerably chipper, especially with his new hat.
Bill took his precious time talking on the phone. He knew Budd was waiting for him, but if anything that made him stretch his phone conversation on longer.
Finally, finishing up, he shut one of the partially shaded patio doors behind him as he re-entered the house.
His hard gaze fell on his brother. "Nice hat Buddy Boy," he said dryly, using his long, long unused coy little name for his younger brother. He sat down across from his sibling, putting his own black booted feet up on one of the rooms many chic Oriental footstools.
He idly picked up one of the Guns and Ammo magazines from the neat pile on the nearby table. Frowning, he leafed through the magazine, "I take it the assignment was a success," he said softly and without too much interest. When it came to Budd, Bill pretty much knew what his brother was capable of and that he had little to worry about. Budd had been in the 'employment' of Bill the longest after all, they had their own little communication down to a subtle art.
Bill froze on a page in the magazine, whispering something to himself that sounded like "Jesus...," obviously finding something he wanted.
Moving on, he glanced up at Budd, "Easy assignment then eh?"
"Eh, yeah," Budd replied casually and tipped his hat to settle a top his head. As long as Bill knew the assignment was a success, cluing in on the new hat, Budd didn't need to exaggerate. He never was one for telling recaps of his assignments and as long as nothing important that needed to be transacted back to Bill it was on a need to know basis.
He shifted on the couch. God, Bill hadn't called him by that nick name in ages. Buddy Boy had been a shitty assed nick name or more of a taunt that Bill used just to piss off Budd or coax him into doing something not entirely legal. Either way it was a fond childhood memory no matter the context it had been used under.
At this moment Budd wasn't sure if Bill had used that in well or ill context. The current vibes he was receiving from his brother were fairly normal considering their relationship. He cleared his throat nonchalantly and spoke up, "Who were ya on the phone with?" No one ever said Budd wasn't a nosey body.
Bill looked up at his brother again, this time with far more substance. He was silent for a few seconds, then he tossed aside the magazine with perhaps just the slightest bit of hostility, "I was talking to a contact of mine in LA….a former courier for the San Francisco Chinese underground. We go way back, over thirty years. We used to work together for the same crime boss." Obviously Bill was referring to the years he'd slowly rose from underling to big wig to potential target with the Chinese underground back in the late 60's, early 70's...the sort of 'Bill background' that Budd would be familiar with, but perhaps not the rest of his employees.
Bill leaned back, looking pensive, "I was trying to get some information on Lisa Wong...," he paused, a dark look coming over him, "….not to my surprise, she's quite alive and there were no reports of any of her associates being killed during the time I sent Beatrix on that assignment. As far as Beatrix, according to my contact, there were no reports of the murder of an outside assassin...nothing...no remains, no cover up story...not a goddamn thing."
He fell silent. He'd yet to really state the whole point of this little monologue and knew that there was no point beating around the bush with Budd. He turned his gaze fully back on his brother. This time, it was full of a chilling murderous glint...one that was certainly not for show, there was a most definite and frightening intention behind it.
"I'm going to track down those fucking assholes who killed Beatrix," he said softly, "...and when I do...," his frown turned sadistic, "...I swear to you Budd, I'm going to make sure they fuckers wished they'd died before I do it for them." He leaned forward, eyes gleaming like two dark coals, "And not just that...," he hissed, finger pointing "...I'm going to find every single goddamn fucking person associated with and related to those miserable pieces of shit and have them watch me do it…..before I fucking kill them as well."
He leaned back, his look still murderous, "I don't care how long it takes me, or what I have to do to do it...I will find them." And when it came to Bill, he had a tendency to back this sort of promise up with a very violent action.
He seemed to have been simmering over this idea for sometime.
Woah, that was unexpected. Budd let out a low whistle as he pulled himself into an upright position. He had seen Bill act like this before, years ago, but not too such an extent. Sure, he had had things 'personal' done to him but nothing like Beatrix. It was a tad unsettling but he didn't feel bad for the fuckers that Bill would end up killing. They deserved it, and hell Budd would even help out if needed, but he knew Bill would want the 'pray' all to himself.
A hand came up and his thumb and index finger traced along the rim of his new cowboy hat. "I had been kinda wonderin' when you were gunna put all-this to a type a shit to a finish, and I suppose killing off the assholes that killed Bea is the best way." He had the thought that Bill may even find her body, but when he mentioned there was no collection of it he wondered. Not too much, the assholes could of buried, hid, or mauled her so much a body would be impossible too find. A sad thought considering Beatrix had had a fine body.
He cleared his throat, "So, do your friends in LA think they can find 'em?"
Bill still looked scary, obviously he'd gone into full 'killer mode' there and was taking his time coming out of it, savoring the feeling.
He blinked, letting out a sharp breath, "No," he said shortly, letting the word hang in the air for the moment.
Oh, he'd been thinking about this all right. Subconsciously he'd been thinking about it all along. At first he'd been far too upset and fucked up to put much solid thought into it. But, as the weeks went on and he slowly began to return to a more "stable" mental state, the thought of avenging Beatrix's death began to dominate his thoughts...nearly as much as Beatrix herself did.
The arrival of Aiyana and all the things that surrounded the employment of a new Viper had kept him momentarily distracted from his vendetta. But, with Aiyana doing well and on track with the group, Bill's attention once again fell on the matter of resolving perhaps the biggest personal fuck over he'd ever received in his entire life. It had to be resolved, not just as a matter of 'closure' as Budd had referred to, but also for the matter of personal vengeance.
Nobody who had personally fucked over Bill was still alive; he'd damn well saw to that...each and every one of them. Some had little time to consider what they'd done; others had gotten by for years until he'd tracked them down. Needless to say, people tended to not fuck over Bill nowadays.
Bill's gaze slid back to Budd, a little more toned down now, "I don't think my contact in LA is going to come though. He's given me all he knows, but he's older...says he's retired, heh," Bill laughed shortly, "...well...either way, he's not the route I need to go with. No," he mused, "...I need to go elsewhere..."
"Elsewhere," Budd pondered thoughtfully. When Bill referred to elsewhere that usually meant he was going to dig himself further into this shit, not that it wasn't worthy shit to dig into, it was just frustrating as hell. He puckered his lips and settled hands on his thighs, a position Budd usually took when he was thinking really hard on something. As silly as it was usually when Budd thought hard it had good outcomes.
He slapped his thigh suddenly. "I 'member long time back, friend a mine, he's dead now," a minor trail off before he went back on track, "He thought his wife was cheatin' on him so he found this guy to track down and spy on 'er. Now, I thought that fucking shit was only done in movies but yeah now, people actually do it. People make a goddamn good pay outta spyin' on people." He chuckled lightly. "Anywho, this fella he used, was real good, got all a the shit he could want. I'm thinkin' you could use this guy…or someone that works in the same field too track down Bea's killers. I'm sure that'll give ya more information than some retired asshole in LA."
Bill scowled, which...he was pretty much doing before, but only worse. But he let Budd's last comment go. Instead, he pondered on his brother's suggestion...which wasn't all that bad of one actually. Budd certainly had his more informative moments.
Bill nodded, signifying he knew what his brother was talking about and then he was thinking it over. He plotted. A more subtle approach to finding Beatrix's killers would allow him for a better surprise attack. If he could get somebody to track the person...or person's who had killed her, watch them from a distance...make sure they were firmly planted somewhere. Bill could move in and get down to the bloody business of avenging Beatrix Kiddo. He didn't have time to play shadow anymore; he'd have to have somebody else take that role.
He realized, as nice of a thought as it was, that going in guns blazing would prove to be a big risk...and he could possibly lose the chance to kill the extended contacts of these murderers as well. He was out for the full hand here, a mass execution...a big ol' fucking murdering spree, the kills of his life...and that required some quiet and careful planning.
"Good idea Budd," he finally spoke up in a rare moment of sibling flattery. Within that few second span he'd already made a connection to a possible contact for this new idea. "I think I might have the perfect guy for the job...but, if this one falls through, we'll try your contact."
He leaned forward again and a sadistic smile spread across Bill's face, "Ya know Budd, you certainly have your moments...and...believe me...I'm going to create a new category of homicide with this one...it'll be worth that moment of deep thought you just used up."
Back to the egomaniacal and insulting, but at least Bill had given Budd some credit along the way.
Budd tipped Bill a lopsided grin of satisfaction. "Yeah and considering how much I used up, if this works I want full creditability…or at least a bottle of Jack put on yer card." It was rare occasions such as these when Bill and Budd got along. They didn't have a normal type of sibling relationship and it wasn't even the large age gap between them…they were just different. But, they had their moments, fond memories, and past together. That counted for something.
He rose up and took a step forward. "I'm off. Keep me updated on that tracking. I've heard ya can find some whacked out shit when usin' these types a people. Can't wait to see what they can dig up for ya." With a full out cowboy styled tip of the hat Budd left Bill to his own sadistic thoughts.
"Oh gosh, Arlene that's gorgeous." Tommy had 'proposed' to Beatrix early that morning and the word of that beautiful diamond engagement ring was out to the public, or rather Tommy's friends like old ladies chattering about the latest gossip on a street corner. The ring was beautiful. Twenty four carrot gold; a medium sized diamond in the middle, with diamond studs dusted half way around the rim. It wasn't overly flashy and it wasn't entirely plain, it was perfect. Beatrix tried to talk Tommy into returning the ring and that he couldn't afford something so pricey, but she eventually gave in because it made him happy. And honestly, having the ring on her finger and able to flash it off to her friends was really nice.
"Isn't it?" Beatrix agreed full heartedly. Okay, she was fully allowed too gloat every now and then. The past week had been tough anyway. After Tommy's family having dropped by and that whole ordeal about the baby's real father things had been tense. Tommy and Beatrix had their day to spend together and they spent it almost reorganizing their entire relationship, they went to the movies, a café for coffee, looked through bridal magazines, narrowed down a few catering choices, and various other things. Not to keep their mind off the fact that she wasn't carrying Tommy's baby, but to reiterate that it didn't matter and they loved each other anyway. Needless to say, by the end of the week they had everything worked out. Everything was back to normal; Tommy was the father, they wouldn't tell anyone; although Janeen, Joleen, and Erica took Beatrix off to the side midweek to inform her that they knew. They were fine with it, and promised it was no big deal. They all showed sympathy towards her cause and everything was turning out fine.
"Damn this makes me wanna go out and find some guy to marry," Janeen inclined thoughtfully as she and the other three were idealizing Arlene's ring. They were gathered in the record store, Tommy was in the back, and the girls were at the counter. The day had been slow so there 'idealizing' wasn't hurting anything.
"I'm sure Jack would marry you," Beatrix teased the brunette gently with good humor.
Janeen scrunched up her nose. "Ugh, God, wait…never mind. I take it back."
Erica had her face pressed so closely to Arlene's hand with an expression of awe that Joleen couldn't help but smirk behind her friend's back.
"It's beautiful," Erica breathed, "And it's so you...so perfect for you."
Joleen nodded in agreement. She'd already taken her turn to oogle the engagement ring. "Tommy knows you so well Arlene, I mean seriously, I can't see another ring on your hand."
"I just hope the rest of us can be so lucky," Erica looked up smiling, "I mean...finding the perfect guy...and the kind of guy who would pick out something so perfect."
"There's always Jack," Joleen spoke up, not forgetting his recently brought up name, "Although, I think Janeen's got dibs on that fine piece of meat." She ignored Janeen's glare.
"Augh," Erica made a face, stepping away and finally giving Arlene some breathing room, "I wouldn't touch him if the fate of humanity depended on our very procreation."
Joleen laughed, giving Janeen a look. "Pretty harsh there Erica."
"Well, it's true...anyways," she turned her warm smile back on Arlene, "We were discussing Arlene's ring and her fortunate engagement...not Jack."
Tommy was keeping busy in the back doing some inventory of back stock, but he could clearly hear the excited female voices out in the main store area. He was very happy, happy that he and Arlene were getting married, happy that things were working out, happy that she liked the ring so much...he'd spent a good two hours agonizing over his choice, and overall just happy with his life. He would have liked to have had more money, so he could buy her something even nicer...have a fancier wedding, a bigger house...he wanted to spoil her, but he simply wasn't in a financial position to do that. Yet, he knew that love and care were far more important than silly material things anyways.
Overall he couldn't complain about a thing.
"This is going to look so sweet when you put the wedding ring with it," Joleen was back on the subject of Arlene's ring.
"Agreed," Erica nodded.
Just then, Tommy emerged from the back room with a stack of boxes in his arms. Luckily he was a strong guy, because they looked pretty damn heavy. He glanced around the edge of the stack, spotting Arlene and the girls. He met Arlene's gaze, getting her attention over the chatter.
"Hey, kiddo," he said, voice a little strained with exertion, "could you give me a hand with these boxes here real quick?"
Beatrix felt as if she had just been hit in the gut or maybe it was the fact the baby was kicking. Either way, she took what Tommy said as a hit along with pent up emotional turmoil. But, she wasn't too taken a back to cover it up. "Of course," she said and slid off the counter stool. The tall blonde sauntered over; she wasn't to the point of waddling, yet.
She came up in front of him, blue eyes peeking over the rim of the boxes. "Tommy," her hands lifted up and she jerked the top box from the stack he had been trying to carry himself. Her moves weren't hostile; the smile she had plastered on her face was honey coated, but coated to such an extent it was too sweet. "Don't call me that," she took a step back. "…again." With that she turned and moved down the aisle to put the box in its proper place.
Tommy blinked, staring at the back of Arlene as she moved away down the counter. He hadn't missed her overly sweet vicious smile and tone in her voice. "Ok...hon...," he said tentatively.
He made a mental note, 'don't call her kiddo again.' He wasn't sure what the big deal was about a perfectly innocent pet name, but the last thing he wanted to do was irritate Arlene. He did not want to have a fight with her.
He set down the rest of the boxes and strolled over to where she was; quickly putting away back stock in the empty cabinet at the end. "Hey Arlene," he dipped down to look at her face, speaking softly, "...sorry about that, the kid-, the name thing...and...I...I should have asked one of the other women to help." He placed a big but gentle hand on her shoulder, "I guess I just forgot for a moment that you were pregnant….," he offered a lopsided smile that came off as somewhat dopey. It was a little hard to miss Arlene's pregnancy at this point.
"I'm sorry honey," he said again, and crouched down to help her.
Bright blue eyes met with those softened cool blue ones. Beatrix froze in motion of stocking the cabinet. Her mood could sway either way. In most situations she would most likely become highly irritated and take on that smart assed bitch persona, but with Tommy she went for the less argumentative side. Her lips thinned out into a gentler smile, "It's okay, Tommy." She eased the cardboard box containing empty album slips that she was still holding into the cabinet.
"You didn't know," she didn't turn to face him but tilted her head down cast. "It's a…pet peeve of mine." She gave him a quick side glance. "And," she stifled an almost amused laugh. "Shit, the huge bulge protruding from my clothing surely wasn't a dead give away that perhaps you should have asked someone else," her tone came out a bit more snappy than she had intended. Actually, she didn't mind helping Tommy at all. She enjoyed being able to do something other than sitting around being treated like a fragile china doll. "I'll go get the other boxes," she half muttered and turned to move past him back to the front.