Chapter 22

One black eyebrow rose slowly as the emerald green of his eyes turned venomous. His grip tightened almost imperceptibly on his tumbler, his knuckles flashing white before he raised the glass and finished his drink. He tossed it carelessly in the tiny sink, ignoring the shattering of the glass and her slight jump as she whirled to look at him. Taker had known for a long time now that Mideon was eventually going to be a problem, especially when it came to Tahlia. Mideon seemed to tolerate the other men well, but something about Tahlia had set off Mideon's inner suicidal clown. Mideon was a fanatic and not turning out to be a very good one.

"Don't worry about Mideon," He growled, all pretenses of civility gone. "I will deal with him."

It crossed his mind that, if Tahlia did confront Mideon, the idiot might do something stupid like try to attack her. While amusing, because no doubt Tahlia would rip him to shreds, it wasn't happening. Ripping Mideon to shreds would be too kind of her. It would be a mercy and, right now, she was feeling pretty vindictive.

"That son of a bitch came to my room. He was waiting for me inside and claimed it was your orders. Then made me feel guilty when I tried dismissing him quickly. I can't believe this…" Tahlia should've known something wasn't right with that meeting and now it was too late. "He asked me about my 'date' with Shane and I sort of snapped at him because this is business to me. I'm not dating McMahon. He was just being nosey, wanting to know what the fuck was going on and I didn't see it. Then claimed the Ministry would take care of Kane for what he did to me and apologized for not protecting me. It was all a ploy to try getting me to tell him what the hell was going on. And I nearly fell for it. I'm going to kill him when this is all over." Not only was Sable on her 'to kill' list, but now Mideon was as well. "I'm not having fun doing this, I did confide to him I was out of my element because I am. And I thought I could trust him. Now I don't know who to trust except you…"

"I am the only one you should trust." He ordered, shaking his head in disgust. Mideon was going to be dealt with. Before he actually did do something to either put Tahlia in danger or jeopardized Taker's chess board. "Paul, if need be, but the less others know, the better."

He didn't like having to many people in the loop. It meant there were to many variables to factor in because not everyone played the game the way they were supposed to. Obviously. Look at Mideon and how he had decided to branch off the path he had been set upon. Taker would take Mideon back to his mansion and barbecue him in that fire pit he had taken Tahlia too. The one at the center of his little maze. Maybe he would spring the traps and let Mideon run it first, though.

Hearing the anger in his tone just made Tahlia feel worse. She couldn't believe she'd been stupid enough to actually trust Mideon, knowing how fanatical and obsessive he was with Taker. "I understand, sir."

Walking over to him, Tahlia lowered to her knees in front of him and kept her head the same way, knowing better than to look up. It was part of her training when she was first brought into the Ministry. The punishment would be justified for not thinking and nearly destroying what her master had planned for the Corporation. Mideon was truly a dead man.

"Do with me as you will, sir. I failed you…and it won't happen again." Her voice remained monotone and low, the anger in her body fading for the moment.

His massive hand came to rest on the top of her head. Long fingers drummed against her skull as he considered it, studying her hair thoughtfully. So obedient. So willing to do whatever he wanted. The anger was still there, but it wasn't directed at her, not really. More at Mideon, and himself, for not realizing just how sly and shifty Mideon was turning out to be.

"It won't happen again." He agreed, knowing she was going to be doubly cautious from here on out and he would rectify these problems within the next 24 hours. Too many players in his game, not happening. Taker gripped her hair and gave a tug, allowing her to get to her feet. He moved his hand to cup her chin, forcing her to meet his piercing stare. "I want you to focus on Shane. Nothing else. Not Mideon. Not Gangrel. Get Shane to trust you. Make him need you."

The way she needed him. "Whatever you want, Taker."

Tahlia couldn't believe she hadn't received a punishment. Pulling her hair was a turn-on and he knew it, but now wasn't the time to think about sex. They both had problems to deal with and she had to do everything in her power to convince Shane to side with her master and trust her. How would she do that though? Granted, they hadn't gotten a little closer, but nowhere near where she needed them to be. It would take time and patience…both she didn't have enough of.

"I'm not worthy of your forgiveness and don't take it lightly." Resting her hand over his beating heart, Tahlia hated they would have to part soon and go their separate ways in order for the plan to come to fruition.

She had been punished; she just didn't realize it yet. He knew exactly what pulling on her hair did to her. Taker knew exactly what she would have to do to gain Shane's confidence. His fingers curled around hers, squeezing for a moment before pulling her hand off of him. Taker stared down at her intently, wondering if Tahlia really would be able to pull this off. With all these distractions, the hurdles that were cropping up… her infatuation with him, which he was banking on to carry her through his commands. He rewarded her with a kiss.

Simply kissing Taker would never be enough. Tahlia could already tell there was heartache in her very near future, but the man was a drug. A dangerous, seductive drug that pulled her in every time and she couldn't stop the attraction or addiction. As she lay in bed staring up at the ceiling, Tahlia's brain worked overtime on how to get Shane to trust her. How to lure him in. She had to be the spider since he was the fly. Helping him in the limousine was only the beginning and suddenly, she thought of Sable's friendliness. That still unnerved her; she didn't trust the blonde bitch at all. But…if she could use that friendship to her advantage, since Sable was Vince's meal ticket and all…After a few more ideas fluttered through her mind, Tahlia let sleep overtake her.

If not for the fact that he had plans, big plans, Taker would have probably just killed both Gangrel and Mideon outright and been done with it. As it was… he made plans. Paul would have to be spoken to, in private, and he'd proceed cautiously. If Gangrel was in the McMahon pocket and Shane knew about it, chances were Vince would be expecting a double cross somewhere and that put Tahlia in a tricky position. Best to alienate her completely, or give that impression. She was probably going to hate him when he was done.

Over the next two weeks, Tahlia and Shane spent an extensive amount of time together. At the arenas, he invited her to join him in his private office, asked her advice on what to do with the show and even gave her a match against Chyna one-on-one. No outside interference – a legitimate match. Tahlia annihilated Chyna, using her speed to her advantage and brought down the so-called 9th Wonder of the World. That was a joke if Tahlia ever heard one! It was surprising that Shane asked her opinion when doing his job. He trusted her…far more than he should.

Tahlia gave her true input on the subject matter and Shane simply jotted notes down on what she said. The fact he actually did 80% of her suggestions on the shows Vince allowed him to handle shocked her further. It was Raw again as she stepped out of her rental vehicle, having gone home for the weekend since she wasn't scheduled for the house shows and headed inside the arena. She had no idea just what awaited her on this night and what she was about to be offered.

Shane was reviewing last minute plans and documents, groaning inwardly as he rubbed at his temples. On one hand, it was great that Vince was finally trusting his opinions and giving him more responsibilities. On the other hand… if Vince knew Shane was getting input from Tahlia, he probably would have sent Shane straight home. He knew Vince had no faith in the former Ministry member and he had never bothered to hide his feelings on the subject. Vince only tolerated her because of Shane and the supposed value she could have. Whereas Vince was still set in his way of doing his own thing, taking his own advice and to hell with everyone else, Shane was open to hearing alternative viewpoints. Then there was also the fact that he had something important to discuss with Tahlia. Something to offer her. Something real, something that wasn't a cult. Something with a future. He had grown rather… fond, of her, he admitted to himself. Taker was a dipshit for letting her go.

After stopping at catering to grab coffee, Tahlia made her way to Shane's office and tapped on the door before entering. "Evening boss." She greeted, setting down his coffee in front of him and could tell he was deep in thought about something. "Shane, everything okay? Hey!" Raising her voice a bit jolted him back to reality as his eyes snapped up to lock on concerned amber orbs. "Welcome back." She joked, gesturing to the coffee and tried not to eyeball the computer screen…much. "Are you okay? You were in another world, it seemed. What's on your mind?"

Shane glanced at the time on the clunky monitor and realized that he had been sitting at this desk, in this tiny office, in the arena for several hours. Why did they have to drag these clunky things everywhere? Groaning, he pushed away and stretched his arms over his head before twisting at the waist sharply on either side. A series of cracks echoed around the room as his back popped in a very satisfying manner.

"Much better." He breathed, grinning down at her before noticing the coffee. "You're the best, Tahlia." Shane reached for it and took a sip, his eyes never leaving hers. "Lots of things are on my mind tonight." He said after a moment, wondering how this would all play out. "You'll find out as we go, I promise."

Her black brow arched slightly at his choice of words. "That sounds ominous, Shane." She quipped with a smirk of her own, sipping her coffee and shrugged when he shot her another boyish grin. If Tahlia wasn't loyal to Taker and hadn't pledged her life to him, Shane would've been a nice distraction from her everyday life. He was smart, funny and handsome, not in the devilish way Taker was, however. "Fine – fine, don't tell me. I see how it is." Winking, Tahlia turned her gaze to the monitor and felt her upper lip curl in a snarl at the sight of Sable walking down to the ring with HER Women's championship.

Shane wasn't overly impressed with the current women's champion either and it showed in the disgust that flashed through his eyes. Did Sable have talent? Yes, sort of, but she only seemed to pull it out as a way to get people to be impressed. Beauty and brawn, oh my! That sort of deal. He wasn't into blondes to begin with and spared a quick glance at Tahlia, taking in her ebony locks with a smile. She looked pissed, and he remembered her last time facing Vince's favorite play toy.

"You really want to tear her apart, don't you?" He asked quietly, moving so he was standing right next to her, barely any room at all between them.

If he had his way, she'd get her chance but… it would take time. While Vince was calling shots from his ego, Sable was fairly untouchable. Eventually, the blonde would mess up, her type always did and it would stem from her own arrogance, her own belief that she was untouchable because of the boss. When that happened, Tahlia would have her shot.

"Come on," He looped her arm through his, leaning in to nudge her with his shoulder. "Let's go for a short walk. I need fresh air." And probably a good shot of something strong for the proposition he was going to be laying on her.

Fresh air sounded good because, if Tahlia had to watch that bitch with her title a second longer, she would've smashed the monitor. She smiled up at Shane, walking out of the office with him and ignored the looks shot her way. This was her duty to the Ministry – to infiltrate the Corporation and find out information while getting close to the McMahon son. The prodigy.

"As much as I want to rip Sable apart, I want MY title back more. And I know it's going to take time. I have to be patient, but…the fact she cheated to take MY title away from me, instead of winning it the right way, pisses me off." She kicked a nearby rock into the gravel once they arrived outside and closed her eyes, letting the warm wind blow through her hair. "Thanks for listening to my bitching."

"Bitch away." Shane encouraged, fumbling in his breast pocket for a moment before pulling out a silver case for his tiny, expensive cigars that he occasionally enjoyed. He lit one of them up, turning away from her to avoid getting her with the initial smoke, but soon enough their sweet scent was in the air. "Sable… has a hard time winning fairly." He said finally, returning the case back to its place. "And because she's currently sucking Vince's… ego," A half smirk ghosted over his lips. "And is in his favor, she thinks her shit don't stink." It was getting worse because the idiot blonde had actually been ordering him around earlier, screaming over something or another, probably another perceived slight to her very delicate ego.

That was disgusting. Taker watched the pair as he headed inside, solo for once, and in street wear to avoid drawing too much attention to his already attention-grabbing self. Shane was obviously smitten with Tahlia. She was… quite good at her job. Perhaps too good. Which was what he had wanted, of course. Disgusting.

"Want to try it?" Shane offered when he caught Tahlia eyeballing the cigar.

"No thanks, I'm not a smoker, but you enjoy."

Tahlia agreed with what Shane said about Sable, all of it true. The fact the bitch could yell at Vince McMahon and get away with it proved she was untouchable. How would Tahlia ever get back into the title picture? As much as she wanted to follow Taker's orders, she also had to think about her career. No man, not even the Lord of Darkness, was worth destroying her career over.

"Enough stalling, Shane. I know there's a reason you wanted to come out here for air. I can see it written all over your face and it's eating you up inside." Placing a hand on his shoulder, Tahlia smiled warmly up at him. "You can tell me anything."

"Yeah, I know." Shane took a deep breath, suddenly nervous. "Maybe we should have this conversation inside?"

Because while he was fairly certain they were alone, he was also aware they could probably be eavesdropped upon. Maybe. Hell, did it even matter? He was just the Boy Wonder and she was, sadly, a nobody at the moment.

"I think proposing marriage might be easier."

What the hell did that little piss ant just say? Marriage? Taker wasn't getting any closer, they'd notice him. No, he needed to head inside and let Tahlia do her job.

"I'm not proposing, Tallie!" Shane said when she looked ready to run, laughing. "Though… that face," He mock pouted, feigning hurt. "Am I that bad? I know I'm a McMahon but I'm not like them."

Maybe he wasn't going in just yet.