Chapter Three: Quite the Deal
Hestia's feet began to hurt as the night went on, and she eventually found herself sitting alone at the bar. Most of her friends had left with others, and Amy was working on her own guest to take home off on the dance floor. She was currently sipping on her third drink as the music changed over to the next song. She reached into her clutch to check her pager and phone. Good. She didn't have any messages on either. She stood and went to go back onto the floor when she accidently bumped into someone. Her drink splashed a little on the person's jacket and she turned quickly to set her drink on the bar.
"I am so sorry. I wasn't paying attention." She called out to the person as she grabbed some napkins from the bar. She turned to hand them to the person, and as she looked at who it was, her heart sank. "Mr. Falcone…I truly am sorry." She instead began to blot the liquor off of his jacket herself. Once she had most of the liquid cleaned up she turned to place the soiled napkins back on the bar. She turned back to face him, but he was smiling calmly.
"It is alright Dr. Zaqar. The place is packed, there are bound to be accidents. You look lovely this evening." He assessed his jacket, but he could barely tell where her drink had splashed on him. He straightened her dress before holding out his arm. "Let's take a walk shall we?"
Hestia looked around the club before taking his arm carefully. She couldn't spot Amy anywhere and she began to internally curse at herself. He led her not through the front entrance of the club, but down a long hallway. They passed the restrooms and he opened a door at the end of the hall. This led them up a flight of stairs, and the music was faint in this part of the building. Her breathing began to pick up slightly. He wouldn't kill her over her accidently wetting his suit would he?
"I was actually on my way to talk to you at the bar before our little accident. I wanted to discuss something from last night, but I feel it is better to do so in private. Don't you think?"
Hestia simply nodded as he took her into an office. It was occupied with a few other people as well. She recognized a few of them from their visits to her clinic, and of course she recognized Fish Mooney. Falcone led her to a chair in the middle of the room and had Hestia sit down. She made herself as comfortable as she possibly could in her situation and looked towards the desk before her. Don Falcone sat behind it, and he rested his hands upon it. "I showed Mr. Zsasz the body to verify that the patient passed away. I didn't relay much information to the police other than he was a gunshot victim. I promise I didn't mention you nor Mr. Zsasz as being there." She shuffled lightly in her seat.
Falcone leaned forward and looked her over. She kept her eyes just over his head to make it seem as if she was staring into his eyes. He seemed to be thinking about his words carefully. Hestia kept her gaze forward and didn't mutter anything else aloud. In her mind she was attempting to call for help, to move herself to run. She knew it would be useless to do such a thing, and she nearly jumped out of her chair when a lightly touch moved over one of her shoulders. "Just relax and answer Don Falcone's questions my dear, and all will be well." It was a woman's voice. While she had seen Fish Mooney at the club, she had never spoken to her before. Given this, she could confirm that it was indeed Fish Mooney without facing her.
Hestia sat upright. She wasn't sure what this was all about. She did what she normally did for Falcone's men. She administered treatment when she could, and then reported the possible crime to the police. It was part of her job. The voice from behind her moved over to stand next to the desk, a small coy smile across the voice's face. "Boy, why don't you grab our guest a glass of water?"
Hestia heard movement from behind and then the sound of liquid pouring into a glass. She didn't want to upset anyone by saying she didn't want any, so she took it from the young man with a smile on her lips. Her eyebrows scrunched together as she made eye contact with him. She recognized him immediately as he was a hard person to forget. "Something the matter ma'am?" He asked, a wave of concern washing over his face.
She simply shook her head before taking a sip from the water. It was cucumber infused and was actually quite crisp. She inhaled slowly before looking back towards Falcone. "So why am I here? I was actually thinking about leaving before I ran into you."
"No need to be so hasty. I simply wanted to propose a business offer. In light of recent events I am offering to pay you a handsome stipend for you to treat my guys only. This means you would have to refuse to serve Maroni's men of course."
Hestia sat forward, her eye brows dipping together. "Sir, I must refuse this offer. As a doctor I took an oath to help those that seek my treatment. To refuse service to a dying or wounded person simply because you have issues with them is no fault of mine. I refuse to take sides in your guys' power struggle, and I made that VERY very clear when I first started my clinic. Do not ask me to jeopardize my practices and oath for some extra cash." Her hand tightened on her water glass in her anger. The smile had faded from Fish Mooney's lips, and instead her eyes narrowed at the doctor.
"You should maybe sleep on the idea. Falcone doesn't offer anyone such a payroll, you should consider yourself lucky."
The doctor rose to her feet and cleared her throat. "I think we are done here, I would like to leave." As she turned to leave however, a hand grasped her upper arm tightly and spun her back around. The water glass shattered on the floor beneath her. "Get your fucking hands off me." She demanded as she locked eyes with her captor. It was the strange man from last night, his gaze quite different from the night before. "Mr. Zsasz, you will let go of me this instance." Her words hissed through her teeth and they dripped with anger and had she been born with fangs, venom would have surely dripped through her words as well.
Victor Zsasz simply chuckled low in his throat, a devious smile spreading across his lips. He pulled her closer until their faces were inches apart. "I don't believe Don Falcone dismissed you. You are in one of his establishments and they have been hospitable towards you. So, how about we sit down and you play nice? Hm?" Hestia reached her free arm up and grasped his hand to attempt to pry herself free. Instead she was met a stronger grip causing her to gasp. In reaction she clawed his hand with her nails. She could tell that she drew blood, but the man before her didn't even flinch. He simply lowered his gaze towards his hand before looking back up at her.
"Zsasz, let her go. No need to be rough with our guest. She is obviously not interested. Please make sure she gets home safely though." Falcone spoke from his seat.
Before Hestia had a chance to protest she was being pulled towards the door by Zsasz. She could feel the eyes of the others on her back as they exited the room. Instead of taking her towards the direction she had entered with Falcone, Zsasz pulled her in the opposite direction. "Can you at least loosen your grip? He said not to be rough."
He didn't answer but instead moved his hand down towards her wrist. He still held a firm grasp upon her, but it wasn't the painful wrap from just moments ago. They were soon in the alley behind the club and he led her out towards the street. He didn't bother to hail a cab. He knew that the facility was only a few blocks away. His pace was rigorous for her high heeled feet, and she could feel the blisters starting to form upon her feet. She stiffened herself causing them to stop. "What are you doing?"
"I need to slow down, my feet are killing me. I am being compliant with allowing you to walk me home, so please just slow down." She began to take off her shoes in order to readjust them, and she heard a heavy sigh come from his direction. "Oh stop it. Lighten up a bit will you? I am sure this walk is better than just standing around looking scary for Don Falcone."
Zsasz was a patient man, but the way this woman challenged him in her words was beginning to grate on his nerves. He straightened his posture as she worked on her shoes. "If you can't handle wearing them, then you should probably opt for better footwear." He rested his hands on the front of his jackets, his jacket pulling taught from the tightening of his knuckles. She imply shot him a dirty look as she finished readjusting her heels. Her eyes glanced carefully to a cab. "Let's not make this difficult. You are almost home, and then I will be leaving. I am also very sure that I can out run you in those—shoes."
She simply started walking in their prior direction. Her heels clicked against the sidewalk as they walked side by side. The concrete was damp. It must have sprinkled while she was in the club. It was a rather quiet night for this part of town, but it was nice. The breeze tickled her liquored warmed cheeks and she looked up at the sky. She couldn't see the stars as well here as she could where she went to school. She had become lost in thought and had completely forgotten about her companion. She hadn't been out much after dark since she moved back to Gotham out of fear of the crime rate around her.
As they approached her treatment facility she reached into her clutch and removed her keys. She opened a side door and turned to say goodnight to Zsasz, but he held the door open and made a gesture for her to go in. He followed in behind her and stood by the door. "Oh. Let me look at that." She suddenly muttered. She reached towards the hand she had clawed earlier and examined it carefully. "Human scratches and bites can be particularly nasty." She walked towards one of the walls of the main hall and opened a first aid kit. She carefully cleansed and dressed it. "I apologize Mr. Zsasz, but perhaps you shouldn't grab someone like that when they are already on edge."
Zsasz's dark eyes watched her every move. He remained in anticipation should she try anything suspicious. His calloused rough hands rubbed against her soft well-kept hands. Once her task was completed he held out his hand to examine it. "Perhaps you should mind your manners then." He commented. He reached into his pocket and pulled out some money. "For your business." He simply stated as he waited for her to take the money.
She narrowed her eyes lightly at him before slowly pushing his extended hand back towards him. "It is on the house tonight, Mr. Zsasz. Have a good night and travel safely." He simply made eye contact with her once more before leaving. Hestia locked her door behind her and headed off for the adjoining building that she lived in. She stopped once inside only to wash the make up from her face before slipping into bed. She decided she would shower in the morning.