Parking the truck, Aurelio remained in the cab and took a moment to stare at the massive house before him; not the small cabin he initially anticipated. How on earth did John manage to get this gig? Aurelio wondered as he stared at the pale two-story structure before shutting off the truck. He knew the man was popular on both ends of the social spectrum; he hadn't realized just how influential John Wick's name really was.
Getting out, he moved towards the front door; the front porch light flipped on, nearly blinding Aurelio as he approached. Two silhouettes were backlit against the lights. A tall frame and a smaller, unmistakably feminine one.
"Aurelio?" A familiar voice called.
"John - Christmas came early!" Aurelio replied, disbelieving laughter in his voice.
The taller figure stepped out of the doorframe, meeting Aurelio halfway.
John Wick…!
His friend stopped, unsure of how to approach the situation; Aurelio decided for him and pulled his friend into a firm, relieved hug.
"Good'ta see you, John." Aurelio murmured against John's shoulder, palming his back.
"You too, Aurelio." John stepped back and gestured toward the now empty doorway of the house. Once inside, John locked the door behind them and led his friend further into the house.
"Wow...!," Aurelio slid his gaze sliding appreciatively over the rich, western-style decor carried throughout the open but comfortable space. He noted the mounted stag head, supple leather furnishings and weathered, rustic wooden tables; turning to his friend, their visitor pointed at the wall mounted pair of longhorns wider than Aurelio's wingspan, his facial expression conveying what he lacked in words. John merely shrugged. From the rear windows, the cerulean illumination of a pool beckoned beneath a starry sky. Everything about the home was far from the modern chic decor frequently sought in New York City.
He kinda liked it.
"It's like The Godfather and Walker, Texas Ranger had a love child." he chuckled while John led him towards the couch, seating himself within a full-grain leather cigar chair.
"Thank you," a much more delicate voice replied. Aurelio turned in his seat, spotting the second smaller figure.
Where were his manners?! He quickly rose to his feet, but the woman insisted he remain seated.
"Logan," she said, extending her hand.
Neutral expression firmly upon his face, he appraised her with a single glance. Late twenties, long dark hair pulled into a tangled bun, slender, athletic build; the mechanic's gaze lingered briefly on her piercing, crystal-grey eyes, before automatically returning her wide, friendly smile. He found himself admiring the view; a bona fide southern girl. Hovering above his seat, Aurelio reached up to shake her hand.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Aurelio."
"Nice to meet you, too."
After the introduction, Logan retreated to the kitchen and returned with two beers, handing one to each man before turning away and disappearing up a marble staircase. Aurelio waited before she was out of earshot before speaking.
"Who is she?"
John took a swig before answering.
"The owner of this house."
"Oh really?" Aurelio was surprised, "Is she aware-?"
"She is."
"Wowza," Aurelio muttered, taking a drink himself. A beat passed.
"So, uh ... y'gotta nice thing goin' on here, John," he muttered.
"How did you find me, Aurelio?" John deadpanned.
Clearing his throat, Aurelio studied the bottle in his hands.
Better question was 'how did they find him?'
"Your friend from the Continental contacted me."
"Winston?"
"Charon, actually." Aurelio sat back, trying to get comfortable under such circumstances. "He paid the restorations in full and gave me your address."
"This address?" John queried.
"Yeah," Aurelio sat his beer down on the low table before him and leaned toward his friend, an earnest expression upon his face. "Don't worry 'bout people followin'. I threw a tarp on your car, logged in a fake address an' everything. No one knows I'm here."
"Except for Winston."
"Except for Winston," Aurelio echoed cautiously. He sat up, resting both elbows onto his thighs and gave John a hard, concerned look. "What're y'gonna do John? You just gonna sit here 'til the mob comes gunnin' for you?"
"Not exactly."
"What 'bout her?" He gestured towards the stairs. "Y'gonna take her down with you? Does she understand the severity of this? Because there's a giant bounty on your head."
"She knows."
Aurelio scoffed, sitting back against the leather cushion rather defiantly. "She knows, but does she understand? There's just two of you! There's easily thousands - maybe millions, of people looking for you, for fourteen million!" He was getting worked up just thinking about it. Beyond the chop shop business Aurelio operated, he'd made a friend in John Wick.
Despite Aurelio's overt concern for John's well-being, the man remained coolly indifferent. Aurelio wiped a hand down his weary face then took a long pull from his drink, hoping to alleviate his nerves before setting it back down. Whether Aurelio or John were prepared, every passing moment brought Wick closer to inevitable death.
Lacing his fingers together, Aurelio sighed. He was worried. In truth, he was more than worried; he was devastated. When the news reached him, though he hated the prospect, he assumed John was already dead; a costly price exacted once the hour struck. How John literally disappeared and resurfaced in Texas of all places, was a complete mystery, which Aurelio had simply attributed as just another trick up the Baba Yaga's sleeve.
Time for a different approach.
Aurelio did not want his old friend to live a life in fear. He knew John would never admit to such insecurity; Aurelio was no fool and in the end, John Wick was just a man. A living, breathing, feeling, formidable...man.
"How would Helen feel if she saw you like this? Homeless, penniless" he stared into his folded hands. "Death on the horizon."
Aurelio felt the sting of his own words but he pressed on, feeling the intimidating weight of John's disconcerting stare upon him. "I know she loved you more'n anything. What happened t'her was beyond anyone's control. This ain't no different, John. You may think you have it all under control, but the numbers aren't adding up. You're a one man army." Finally, Aurelio met the man's steady, impassive gaze. "The John I know doesn't run. He buckles down, he fights. There's not much I can do. I'm a mechanic at a chop shop, but I know a losing battle when I see one."
John's disquieting stare remained trained onto Aurelio, who held his gaze resolutely, committing every detail to memory.
It might be the last time he ever sees John alive.
"Stop fighting it, John. You can't live like this. No man can." Aurelio's somber words were painful to speak and left a bitter taste in his mouth. John's dark, complicated past forged him into the very thing that made him a revered underground legend; cruelly, it would also drive John towards an unalterable, violent end ... and Aurelio was asking him to put it all behind, to come quietly and without fuss into the eternal good night.
"Surrender," John spoke carefully, his voice dangerously low. "That's your suggestion."
Aurelio blinked. He was only a mechanic, not an assassin and certainly not the recipient of a fourteen million dollar bounty. He and John were very different men, leading very different lives. What the hell did he know when it came to giving advice? If Aurelio was under the watchful eye, he would be laden with panic, unable to withstand the pressure of all, but there John sat cool, collected, perpetually composed. As if chaotic storm ensued around him, battering everything in his path except John Wick.
Aurelio was unable to answer; he didn't want to say it anymore than John wanted to hear it. In the end, delaying the inevitable only worsened the outcome.
John finished his beer quietly. He set the empty bottle down and reclined back, eyeing Aurelio with his steady gaze; too comfortable for what lied ahead.
"I appreciate what you've done for me, Aurelio," he said. "But it's late and time for you to go."
Of course, much credit goes to Holly and her impeccable editing skills and helping me crawl inside John Wick's head.
Inkandtrees: I'm glad you're enjoying it thus far!
Thank you for reading/reviewing.
a calm before the storm, indeed! Now that John has his car back, maybe he'll have a small spark of hope?