Chapter 20

"You won't get a rematch as long as Vince has anything to say about it." Shane said flatly, holding up his hands defensively when Tahlia's head shot up, her amber eyes piercing him. "He wants that belt on Sable, not you, especially after your run with the Undertaker and his... Ministry." Shane tilted towards using the word cult, but he wasn't trying to offend her. "And if I, or any other official, tried to give you one, Vince would declare it null and void and strip you of the title. I can... however, give you Chyna again without Kane." He stroked his chin thoughtfully, eyes lighting up with just a hint of McMahon malice.

She would never be the champion again because of Sable. Vince was enthralled with Sable's…assets more than her incredibly horrible wrestling talent. The scowl on her face changed to resignation and then an evil curved her lips at Shane's offer.

"What do you mean?" She scooted closer to him, feeling much better and searched his eyes, amber meeting devious brown. "Could you really do that?" Was it possible to have Chyna all to herself in the ring with no help whatsoever? It was too good to be true. Vince wouldn't allow it since Chyna was a Corporation member…unless Shane went over his old man's head. "Shane, I don't want to cause you trouble with Vince…"

"Vince has some business that's going to take him away from the company for a week." Shane wondered just how much he should, could, tell her. She might've been kicked out, or cut ties voluntarily, with the Ministry of Darkness, but everyone in this company had an angle. If hers was solely Chyna and getting a fair shot at the title, that he could work with. "I'll be in charge." This was a test run and he was pretty sure he'd pass it. One incident and it was someone Vince didn't like at that, so he passed with flying colors. "And now that I know Kane is prone to interfering in women's matches, I have every reason to make sure he doesn't." That would leave Chyna at the mercy of her own capabilities.

"And you won't get in trouble for this?" Tahlia giggled softly at his shrug and found Shane relatively attractive at that moment.

Nothing compared to Taker, but he definitely had looks and charm. Taker was more…dangerous, compelling and mysterious. Shane laid all of his cards out on the table and didn't hide what he was thinking; at least that's what she summarized.

"I would love nothing more than to get my hands on that Amazon bitch one-on-one with no interference from anyone. If you could do that, I'd be eternally grateful to you, Shane." The limousine came to a slow stop and Tahlia looked out, raising a brow at the traffic they were currently in. "Looks like an accident up ahead."

Eternally grateful... that caused so many thoughts to flow through his mind and Shane was tempted to capitalize, but he wouldn't. He was reading Tahlia and he knew while she said the words, they did not translate to sexual favors, not that he wanted those. He wanted someone who wanted him for a mutual night of passion, or maybe two nights. Rarely two, but it did happen occasionally. He shifted, eyeballing the accident ahead and then glanced around, taking note of where they were.

"We're about two blocks from the hotel. Feel up to walking? There's a place we could stop and eat at as well. They even have your salad."

The dizziness had dissipated and Tahlia felt like her normal self again, so she didn't see any harm in taking a small stroll with Shane. "Lead the way, boss."

She laughed at his eye roll, having a feeling he didn't like being called that, but for some reason it did fit him. Scooting out of the limousine, Tahlia smoothed her pink skirt down her thighs and took Shane's extended arm, looping hers through it. Luckily, they were in the south, so it wasn't that cold outside compared to the north. Still, she had a black thin cardigan to be on the safe side and had slipped it on.

"It's a beautiful night." She commented, looking up at the sky while Shane guided her to their destination.

Shane followed her gaze upward, nodding. "I'm surprised we can actually see the sky with all the light pollution." He commented thoughtfully, being the perfect gentleman as they strolled leisurely down the street. He was aware he had a bodyguard trailing them, he always did, thanks to Vince. The man kept out of sight and that meant Shane could normally forget him. "You did say you'd eat." He reminded her gently, pointing up ahead at the lounge they would stop in at. This was the nicer part of the city, so hopefully the place was on the upper end of the food chain and would not give them some kind of food poisoning.

Weren't they a cute couple...

By the time they arrived back at the hotel, Tahlia had convinced Shane she was perfectly fine and didn't need a physician. She even walked a straight line and recited the alphabet backwards cheekily, not missing a step or letter. Shane rolled his eyes, held his hands up in defeat and made her promise to call him if she started feeling dizzy again. It was past midnight, she was full from a delicious salad and chicken fried steak meal, ready to collapse in bed for a few hours of sleep.

Shane offered a ride to the next venue and, since it was her task to get closer to him, Tahlia took him up on it. She had to meet him down in the lobby at 7 AM sharp so they could depart for the next area. At the very least he wasn't a jerk and relatively easy to get close to. Maybe this wouldn't be as hard as she thought. Stepping into her room, Tahlia tossed her keys on the nearby table and padded inside, reaching up to let her hair down to pool down her back in a loose twist.

"The master wishes to know how your... date... went." Mideon stated from the corner of the room, where he had been lurking.

He had not been the one following her. That had been the Undertaker himself, but he was the one who got to check in with her. Mideon knew why because, if he was caught coming out of the room, he was a tad more expendable than the boss. Of course, he was being trusted not to get caught and it was an honor.

"And how is your head, Tahlia?" He asked gently, knowing Kane had attacked her.

So now Taker couldn't even come to get the updates himself, he had to send his fanatic. Hell, for all she knew they were probably lovers now that she was gone. Scoffing in disgust at the thought, Tahlia shrugged off his question about her head and tossed her cardigan to the side, folding her arms in front of her chest.

"It wasn't a date, first of all. He was helping me because of a dizzy spell I had from what Kane did to me. I'm not that easy to date. Secondly, inform the master that Vince will be gone for a week and Shane is taking over everything." There was no reason to divulge what Shane planned on doing for her as far as Chyna went since that was solely her business. "Also, Shane loathes Vince, from what I can tell. They don't get along and Shane has been doing things his way since gaining power. I don't know what all that entails, but I will find out."

Mideon got the impression Tahlia wasn't pleased and he didn't blame her. He wasn't privy to the details of what had happened between her and Taker, or about her new role. He had been told just what he needed to know and nothing else. Same with the rest of the Ministry, which now included Viscera. The only people who knew everything were Taker, Paul and apparently her.

"Tahlia, you know if we... we could have, we would've come to help you with Kane. We weren't there when that went down." He said softly. They had been friends once and he wanted her to know he was still here. Mideon might've been wormed his way into her spot with the Deadman, but... that was just business.

"I'm sure."

Tahlia didn't believe that for a second and pulled her skirt off, tossing it to the side, wearing a pair of pink cotton panties. She refused to wear any of the lingerie or negligees Taker made her buy prior to sending her away. They were for him…unless Shane wanted to escalate their friendship to something more, then she would probably have to break one of them out. Oh the thought of doing that and Taker finding out about it…Tahlia couldn't wipe the devious smirk off her face that developed.

"I'm fine, I'm not mad at you. Sorry. I'm just…confused about this whole situation, but I'll figure it out." Sitting on the bed to face him, Tahlia smiled more genuinely when Mideon joined her and took her hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. "My head is fine, I promise. I can handle myself, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss being in the Ministry. Just gonna take some getting used to, I guess."

It was a mark of how much he did not look at her as anything except a friend, or maybe the obsession with the Undertaker everyone assumed he had, that he did not eyeball her like she was candy. Mideon viewed it as he was a good friend and a dutiful minion. He wasn't going to take advantage of his friend or Ministry... sister, if that was what she was anymore.

"You'll be fine, Tahlia." He returned the squeeze. "Someone will check in with your every so often and he has eyes on you, whether you notice or not."

That was a comforting thought, though it made her wonder why he hadn't done something, anything, with the Kane situation. Kane was part of the Corporation along with Chyna, so wouldn't they construe as Ministry business since the factions were currently at war? Tahlia didn't understand Taker's mindset or method to his madness, knowing she simply had to go along with it until the time came where she could rejoin the Ministry.

"I know he does. I trust him and all of you." That was a lie, but Tahlia had to get back into Mideon's good graces somehow. "If he wants me to do something specific, he has to let me know because I'll admit I'm out of my element and comfort zone with this task."

"Yeah, I'm sorry Tahlia, but he didn't really tell me anything other than to ask about the date thing."

Mideon coughed, feeling awkward because that was just a horrible way to word it. As if she would date someone from the Corporation and why would Taker even call it that, in the tone he had, to begin with? He would mull over it later. Mideon rubbed the back of his head, sighing.

"We can't help you, not like that. I said if we could, we would have, but Paul says you need to be 'free' of the Ministry. Without doubt. I guess us coming along and helping out, even just for the sake of beating down Corporation dickheads, makes it look like we're throwing you an assist."

"I know. It's frustrating and I hate it, but…I understand." Tahlia heaved a sigh and fell back on the bed to stare up at the ceiling, her black hair fanned around her face. She missed the purple streaks, but for the sake of the task, it had to be changed. Everything did. "How are you holding up with the Ministry? Are they treating you better now that I'm gone? If Bradshaw and Farooq get too rowdy, let me know and I'll put those boys in their places." She still felt protective of him and it was clear he felt the same toward her, even though they were in competition when it came to Undertaker.

"When you come back, you mean." He corrected, twisting on the bed to stare down at her. "You're not to be in touch with any of us." The secrecy was what would destroy most people, even he knew that, but he was also accepting of the need for it. Taker had his reasons and Mideon trusted the man completely and, perhaps, a little blindly. "It's live and let live, we've had our hands full with Viscera. That's his name now – Viscera. Taker didn't like the other." Mideon had honestly forgotten it at this point. He'd forgotten his own name at times... he was simply Mideon now. "He's... assimilated now."

"Yes, that's what I meant."

There was a strong possibility she would never be able to rejoin the Ministry again. It broke her heart, but Tahlia had come the conclusion Taker had brought her in solely to go after Shane. To use her assets against him and gain information. As much as it pissed her off, it also fueled her to do whatever necessary to accomplish her task while proving herself in the ring just how much passion she had for the business. Almost all of the women in the company didn't care about it and didn't want to wrestle actual matches the way she did. Maybe overtime, Taker would notice her ability and raw talent, but for now she was his eyes and ears to the Corporation through Shane, nothing more.

"I'm tired, I'm gonna head to bed and you should go. Lingering isn't smart since this is supposed to be top secret."

"Yeah I know, I'm going out the window." Mideon gestured to the way he had gotten in. "Shane doesn't have security like Vince does. He's not as paranoid. But... don't want to risk it regardless." He stood up and grinned down at her. "Get some sleep, Tahlia, you look like you need it." He wanted to ask her what her assignment was, what was going on, but he knew she'd tell him to take it up with their master or mind his own business. He'd find out eventually, regardless of who told him. "And if you want, we can get Kane for you on the sly."

On the sly meant off the clock, away from everyone and making sure nobody seen them at all, so there would be no way to trace it back to the Ministry of Darkness or Tahlia. He knew for a fact Bradshaw and Farooq would be on board. They had not been happy campers when she had gotten jumped tonight during her match.

"Better take it up with the master first before you do anything. Shaw and Rooq too. Don't you boys go getting yourselves in hot water because of me." Tahlia slid from the bed and hugged Mideon around the waist briefly, watching him open the window to hop out of it with ease. "Though, if you DO decide to do something to Kane, I want it videotaped."

Winking, Tahlia heard Mideon chuckle and watched him scale down the building after he sent her a salute in response. Shaking her head, Tahlia went to close her window and thought better of it, leaving it open since the slightly cool breeze felt wonderful against her skin. Then she slid back into bed and closed her eyes, falling asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

This was the most brilliant yet dumbest idea Taker ever had. Brilliance came into play at the fact that this was what he had planned from day one, when he first started considering Tahlia for the Ministry. She was beautiful, brilliant, could wrestle... she was the total package. That was a perk because he had not wanted some brainless bimbo in his Ministry, his baby. He had wanted someone, a woman, he would not be ashamed by, someone who would do him credit and Tahlia had been the perfect fit. The downside to this was the fact he had let sex enter into the equation, against his better judgment.