Sam walked out of the Museum, his thoughts far away as he lit a cigarette, following Victor back to their hotel. He couldn't get Maggie out of his head. He was sure it was her, the girl he had seen at the funeral all those years ago. He'd almost forgotten all about her, pushing her and the old lady to the back of his mind, never dwelling on the past that he and his brother ran away from. But Sam would recognise those penetrating eyes anywhere. Sam inhaled deeply, feeling the instant calming effects of the nicotine, as his cigarette flashed and burned while he pondered silently. He hadn't know her name before, but he was almost certain they were one and the same.
Sam himself had changed much over the last five years. He'd finally lost the boyish charm which had clung to his cheeks, and his thick brown hair, which once swayed to the side, was now slicked back loosely. Stubble now speckled his chin, and his nose was ever-so-slightly crooked from where it had been broken, in one of many fights Sam had found himself caught up in. Thankfully, all the years of running and climbing Sam had done since that night were made worthwhile, as he had developed a strong, muscular body and a decent stamina. Something which helped him with the ladies, Sam had discovered more than once. That, coupled with his debonair smile and devilish charm, of course. A smile crept into Sam's lips at the thought.
Sam's mind travelled back to his first meeting with Victor Sullivan. After they had changed their names, Sam and Nathan had spent most of their time researching the secrets of Francis Drake's heirs. Well, Sam spent most of his time split between helping his brother investigate leads, and looking for a quick way to make money to fund their new lifestyle. He began taking work, from some pretty dangerous people, as a hired thief. He would often be away for days, even weeks at a time, and as he got older, Nate would sometimes help by acting as a distraction. The two boys had been caught more than once, with Sam even being arrested on a few occasions. But Sam was a quick learner, and he'd managed to pick up a few evasive tricks along the way.
As the years passed, it was proving difficult to find any hard evidence of his mother's theory, and Sam's interest in Drake's fabled heirs had started to wane. Nathan, however, was determined to succeed and when he was 15, he'd said to Sam he wanted to go to Cartagena to see a Francis Drake exhibit, and follow up on a potential new lead. Sam had said no, which led to a rare fight between the two brothers, and he'd woken the next morning to find Nathan missing along with his false passport and all of their money gone. Sam had been pissed, but he knew his younger brother could handle himself well enough. Sam had landed himself a job with a local underground antique dealer, so he distracted himself with that whilst his brother was off having his own adventure.
Sam had been hired to act as the getaway driver for a Museum heist; a guy he'd met during a stay in a youth correctional facility had made contact with him about the job, and he'd promised Sam a big reward. "It'll be right up your alley!" Sam had been told, and he'd accepted the job with few questions asked. Unfortunately, the job didn't go quite according to plan, and by the end of the night, Sam found himself in the back of a police car, and looking at a stint of 3 years in real prison for his role in the heist. Sam had been inside for 6 months when he first received word from Nathan, who'd written to him to say he'd returned from Cartagena with some excellent news. He'd been able to retrive the ring that had once belonged to their "ancestor", and had also met Victor Sullivan, a man who claimed he might be able to help them with their search. However, Sam was suspicious of anybody that tried to interfere with him and his brother, and he particularly didn't like it when he heard Sullivan had originally been hired to steal the ring for somebody else, and had been ordered to kill Nathan. Sam expressed his concerns in letters to his younger brother, but Nathan had insisted, so when Sam was finally released 18 months early, he'd reluctantly agreed to meet Nathan's new mentor.
Sam got off at the bus station where they'd arranged to meet, relief flooding through him as he saw the familiar messy hair of his baby brother, as Nathan looked anxiously among the throngs of people. Sam's smile grew wide when Nathan spotted him, and came running through the crowds, yelling as he leaped into Sam's open arms. Sam laughed as he spun his brother round, ignoring the people trying to hurry past them in annoyance. "Oh, it's so good to see you baby brother!" Sam smiled as he placed Nathan back safely on the platform, brushing his shoulders off as Sam examined him closely. "You missed me?"
"So much, Sam!" Nathan exclaimed excitedly, "You won't believe it, I've got loads of stuff to tell you!" The two brothers wandered aimlessly for a while, laughing and talking animatedly. Sam listened with enthusiasm as Nathan recounted his trip. Nathan's eyes sparkled as he spoke, giving as much detail as he could think of, from the artifacts that were on display (which included some of the recovered cannons from Drake's lost ship, The Golden Hind) all the way down to the colour of the floor tiles in the museum (A disgusting reddy-brown colour, according to Nathan). Nathan explained how he'd finally found what he'd been looking for; A cabinet, containing the ring which had once belonged to Francis Drake. Not only that, a bizarre instrument called an astrolabe, a disc shaped instrument with a hole in the surface, that was decorated in strange patterns and markings.
"So, I was just making notes, you know, like Mom used to," Nathan said excitedly, "and then I saw this guy come walking in, looking all shady. So I started watching him from a distance, and he just wanders up to the display cabinet, really casual, and I notice he's holding something in his hand, and it looks like a key! I was going to go after him when the stupid Museum security threw me out, but then I saw him outside, so I followed him." Nathan looked so proud as he talked, as though he'd been given a medal of honour for his efforts. "Anyway, he ends up in back alley, and he goes up to this guy, and he gets a new key to fit the cabinet lock! And I climbed up the drainpipe, just like you, Sam! And I stayed hidden, and I watched him in secret, and it was so cool!" Sam laughed at his brother as he narrated his adventure. Nathan went on to say how he flew over rooftops and down building signs to follow this guy in order to get his wallet with the key, and that's when he met Victor Sullivan.
"I sneak up, grab the wallet out of his back pocket, and make a dash for it!" Nathan exclaimed. "And just when I thought I got away with it, he snuck up on me and grabbed me! He started lecturing me on my technique, and at first I thought he was just some dumb phoney, but he's the real deal!" Nathan beamed at his brother, who smiled weakly in return. Sam really didn't like the sound of this guy. "Just trust me, Sam!" Nathan continued, sensing his brother's worry. "Victor's a good guy, he looked after me a lot while you were away."
Sam swallowed the guilt that suddenly threatened to consume him, and smiled brilliantly at Nathan. "Hey, if my little brother says to trust him, then I do!" Sam clapped his brother on the shoulder and turned them back the way they came. "Well then, I guess we should go meet this guy, huh?" Sam sighed, smiling gently at his brother. Nathan beamed at him in response, and hurried Sam along to where he was staying with Victor.
When they arrived, Sam greeted Victor cooly, puffing his chest, as if to show he was Nathan's protector. Victor just smiled in response, which instantly irritated Sam. Nathan of course, was oblivious. "Hey, Sully! This is Sam, my brother! Isn't he just like I told you!" Sam's eyes narrowed as Victor laughed loudly and grabbed Sam's hand, shaking it hard. Sam squeezed hard in response, and his eyes narrowed slightly at the gesture.
"Pleasure's all mine, Victor." Sam replied with a false smile. "I hear you've been taking care of my little brother."
"Something like that, sure." Victor chuckled. "Call me Sully, kid, please. I hear you are a bit of a... recovery expert yourself?"
Sam smirked at the older man. "Something like that." He echoed.
"That's interesting." Victor pulled out a cigar, and offered it to Sam. Covering his surprise, Sam accepted the cigar and sat down opposite Sully. "What would you say, if I told you I could get you some work using your recovery expertise? You'd be able to make a decent living out of it, I'd make sure of that."
Sam laughed coldly in reply. "Yeah, I've heard that before, and look where that got me!" he sneered.
"That's because you're dealing with the wrong people," Victor replied harshly, pausing to light Sam's cigar and then his own. "If you get in with those people, you're bound to end up in prison! But if you get in with the right people, you boys can be sorted for life."
Sam was hesitant, but after much persuading from Nathan, he'd finally agreed. Victor began introducing him to his contacts, and the jobs soon came though swift and steady. There were a lot of rich people who were willing to do anything to get what they wanted, Sam found. They weren't easy jobs, but they were more organised than anything Sam had seen before, and he soon found an awkward feeling of gratitude towards Sullivan. He still didn't trust him, but he apprecitated the opportunities he'd been given.
That's how he'd found himself at the Museum today. The old guy they met earlier had called Sully in a panic, and Sully instantly offered it to Sam. He shook his head in disbelief, and glanced up, suddenly aware that Sullivan had stopped.
"You with me, kid?" Sully asked, scrunching his eyebrows at Sam.
"Huh, yeah sure. What were you saying?" Sam rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. Sully sighed in annoyance and walked to catch up with Sam.
"I said, we need to think of a new strategy, it's not gonna be so easy now."
Sam's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean strategy?" he asked suspiciously.
"Did you not hear me at all? To get the necklace."
"But I thought we were already getting the necklace, with that girl and the Museum?"
"Come on, kid, think!" Sullivan rolled his eyes in exasperation. "There are other interested people out there, people who would pay a lot more too! You always gotta keep your options open, kid. And stay one step ahead. Always remember that."
Sams eyed Victor suspiciously. He found if very difficult to trust a man who could double-cross people so easily. "I see," he replied, calmly. "And when were you going to tell me you wouldn't be participating in this little pow-wow, huh? What personal business do you have to attend to anyway?"
Victor sighed and began to walk ahead slowly, avoiding Sam's eye as he hurried to follow him. "Listen, Kid." Victor growled softly. "I don't want you to get mad okay?" Sam's footsteps haltered slightly, as Sullivan continued. "There's a pretty urgent situation I've got to take care of. It's to do with your brother."
"Nathan?" Sam asked, shocked. Victor closed his eyes and nodded in regret. "What's happened to him?" Sam's fists began to curl up at his side, as fear and anger began to surge through his body.
"He's fine, he's not hurt!" Victor tried to reassure the elder brother, who glared at him in response. "He just got himself into a bit of trouble, and I've got to go help him out."
"What kind of trouble? What have you gotten him into?" Sam enraged, fear for his brother beginning to rise in his throat.
"He's gotten himself arrested, for theft. It'll be fine!" Victor replied hurriedly, worried that Sam may punch out at him in anger. Not that Victor was worried about being punched. He just didn't want to have to beat the kid up in public. "Listen, Kid. I know people that can help, he'll be out and back with you in no time!" Sam paused for a moment, as he considered what Victor said to him. Seeing this as an opportunity, Sullivan darted to safety as he continued to offer an explanation to Sam. "Trust me, Sam. I'll look after Nathan. In the meantime, you concentrate on the task at hand, and get a hold of that necklace!"
Sam relaxed his position in defeat. He knew what Victor said made sense. As long as somebody was looking after Nathan, that was the important thing. He just hoped that Nathan's new "mentor" would stick to his word, and didn't land Nathan in any more trouble than he was already. Sullivan, sensing the fight was over for now, cleared his throat and carried on plotting his scheme for the necklace.
"Look, I think the best plan of action now is to use that girl." Victor said, turning to face Sam, who had stopped and was scowling again. "She's definitely smart, and will be useful in locating the necklace. She seems like a tough nut to crack, but I think once you do, you'll find she's all warm and gooey inside, so play on that. I'm sure it won't be too much of a challenge for you." Victor smirked. "For now, we're on the same side, but I've been working on a deal with somebody who I think will pay a hell of a lot more for this stupid old necklace. As soon as I have any developments I'll let you know. In the meantime, you keep her sweet and suspicion free, so you have a quick getaway when the time comes."
Sam scowled as Victor continued lead the way, no longer interested in making conversation. Sam found it very difficult to tolerate Sullivan, and he often had to remind himself that Nathan was the reason he did all of this. As he walked, Sam took another cigarette to his lips, trying to distract himself from what lay ahead of him.