Hello again, all of my dear readers! I am SO sorry for the late update! I started college before I could finish this chapter and it was so much work week after week (the curse of the quarter system I suppose). When summer break started, I swore to upload more but I had a job (actually 2) so I haven't really had time. I've been super stressed and writing helps with the stress so I will try to update a couple more times before college starts again. All I ask is that you review and favorite this story! Pwetty pwease? *insert puppy dog pout* -lovesjak

Disclaimer: No, no, no, no. *wags finger* "The Finder" isn't mine. But what I wouldn't give for Toby Hemingway to be…

Recap:

"How was it meeting the Papadakises?" Grigori asked.

Willa smiled. "A lot better than I thought it would go," Willa replied. "They're all so nice and I start tomorrow."

"You should go rest then," Grigori noted. "I will tell you the other rules later."

Willa yawned. "Thanks Grigori. Goodnight," she mumbled before she headed back to her room and collapsed in her bed.

Chapter 4: The Calm Before the Storm

Willa woke up at 7 AM and dragged her coffee-desiring, tired body off the bed and into the bathroom. She took a quick shower and decided to leave her hair loose so it could air dry and relax into soft, black waves. After brushing her teeth and getting dressed in a pair of jean shorts, black flip-flops, and a turquoise tank top over a light grey cami, she headed downstairs. The clock in the kitchen read 7:30 but when she got downstairs, she was surprised to see Giovanni and Gavin chatting over some coffee.

"You two are the last two I would have ever expected to be up at this time on a Monday," she commented as she looked over the assortment of coffee capsules in front of her and popped a French Roast Extra Bold one inside the brewer. "Why did the sun rise from the west this morning?"

"Well, little Cass," Giovanni said. "Unlike you, we have to go to this place called school, where I have to attend a biochemistry lecture and Gavin has…whatever he has."

Gavin rolled his eyes. "Honestly dude?" He turned to Willa. "I have a lecture on processing models of ecological systems," he further explained. "Normally, both of us actually wouldn't be up right now but we were too late when we signed for classes and got the evil slot-8 AM."

Willa smirked as she picked up her coffee and took a sip. "Serves you right Mr. Crankypants," she teased Giovanni.

He grumbled and rose to make himself another cup of coffee.

"Aww. And I was even thinking about making breakfast," Willa continued. "But it looks like Gavin and I will be the only two enjoying my delicious meal."

"Hey, don't forget about me!" Stan exclaimed as he joined the group.

Gavin turned to Willa. "Naw, lassie," he said, putting on a Scottish accent. "Make it a meal for two!"

Willa laughed. "While that does sound tempting," she began, "His family pays me. So I'll make it a meal for three," she ended.

Giovanni grumbled while Stan and Gavin roared with laughter. Willa rolled her eyes. "OK G. If you stop acting like your thong is all in a knot, I'll feed you some scraps maybe," she teased again while the two others laughed. She headed to the kitchen, got out some potatoes, onions, tomatoes, eggs, and ham along with some bread, and popped the slices in the toaster before chopping up the vegetables and ham. Afterwards, she mixed the eggs, vegetables, and ham and made scrambled eggs.

While she had been cooking, Willa had been making more toast and Stan and Gavin had set up the table with the usual mismatched cutlery and some orange juice for Willa and more coffee for each of the boys. Willa loaded up plates with the food and brought them out to the table.

"This much for all of us?" Giovanni asked.

"Stop thinking like such a pig," Willa retorted. "The leftovers can be microwaved by those who can afford to sleep in."

"Alright everyone, let's eat!" Gavin exclaimed.

Willa hopped out of Stan's pick up and nervously fidgeted with the hem of her shorts. She had met the Papadakises already so she wasn't so worried about that part of her work, and she had already worked at the The Ends of the Earth so she knew how to make any of the drinks available on the café menu. However, this was a new place and she was trying to start a new life so that meant getting used to new people…and she wasn't sure she could do that without Timo. He had always been there for her, even when she had been an annoying little girl (she remembered some of the questions she used to ask and she wasn't sure if she would be friends with the younger Willa herself). But now, Timo was away in Florida, and she was in Mississippi. Would she be able to find someone else she could depend on, who would understand her?

Stan killed the engine and got out. "Come on Cass!" he shouted. "Don't wanna be late on your first day!"

Willa rolled her eyes. "You sound like a dad on his kid's first day of preschool."

"Cass! No slacking off on my watch!" he called to her.

"Yessir," she muttered under her breath.

"Oh good, Cassandra! You're here!" exclaimed Isadora.

"Oh yes. Chopped liver checking in," Stan commented.

Isadora ignored him. "I know you know how to work the coffee machines and whatnot but I want to explain a little more about each of the pastries and give you a crash course on this register that was probably made in the 70s or something." She saw the nervousness Willa was trying to reel in and gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry," she said, comfortingly. "Yia-yia* Tiffany is always here to help you and you can also always call for me. I'm going to be right there," she pointed out to Willa a small door off to the side as the two women and Stan walked into the bakery café.

Willa hadn't gone into the bakery the previous night because there was a set of side stairs that led straight up to the family's living quarters. She took a good look at the inside of the café; there were display areas with little tags which explained the name, ingredients, and calories of the bread as well as display cases for what she assumed would be the cakes and pastries. When she went behind the register, she saw that it really did look like it was from another time. Thankfully, the espresso machine, blender, microwave, and toaster were all modern day products so she would have no problems. There were also two nice chairs set up; one Willa guessed was for Tiffany and the other for, as of today, herself.

"Alright Willa. So first off," Isadora began.

After Isadora's explanation of what Willa believed was everything she could ever want to know and more about pastries, bread, coffee, and old cash registers, Stan left with a cheery goodbye and a reminder that he would pick her up at 5 and Willa sat down on one of the chairs, waiting for a customer.

Instead, Tiffany popped out from what Willa guessed were the stairs that led to the family floor. "Hi Tiffany," Willa greeted.

"Hello Cassandra dear," Tiffany replied. "Did you sleep well last night?" she asked.

"Pretty much. I guess," Willa answered. "I'm a little scared now though."

"Oh? What are you afraid of?" Tiffany enquired.

Willa laughed. "This register. It looks ancient!"

Tiffany joined in the laughter. "Don't worry Cassandra, dear. It's a nice machine. It'll work just fine for you. And if not, I'm always here to help."

"Thank you," Willa said. She looked around at the empty bakery. "How long till the customers come in?"

"Oh, don't worry," Tiffany assured her. "The bakery doesn't officially open till 9 so people will start coming in soon. Just go in the fridge and make sure we're stocked with everything we need for drinks and whatnot. The lemonade is quite popular and the coffee drinks are always ordered, so make sure that we have a lot of lemons, ice and milk."

"Will do," Willa replied as she opened the fridge doors.

Sure enough, Tiffany had been right. Maybe five minutes after 9, customers started creeping in, and then suddenly, there was a huge crowd. Willa tried her hardest to go as fast as she could, starting up the juicer for the lemonade, washing out the blenders for the smoothies, calling out orders, and making sure some of the pastries and stuff were still in stock.

Tiffany, in the meanwhile, helped out Willa by telling her how much sugar she needed for the lemonade, telling her where the extra stock of creamers was, and laughing and talking with the customers as to distract them from the time required to get and ring up their orders. After 10, though, most of the people had already left and the café only had a few patrons.

Willa had been enjoying the lull and chatting with Tiffany about the tips for her job when all of the sudden a young man in what looked like his late twenties walked in. One of his hands raked through his close cropped brown hair as the other clutched at a police cap.

Willa froze. Had Walter teamed up with law enforcement to somehow track her down?

"Oh Benjamin!" Tiffany said. "It's so good to see you!"

Willa relaxed a little. Tiffany knew this man; he might not be here to take her back. He might not have even heard of the fugitive Willa Monday.

Benjamin tipped his cap and nodded at Tiffany. "Ma'am," he said. He looked at Willa with questioning eyes.

"Oh, this is Cassandra!" Tiffany introduced. "Cassandra, meet Officer Benjamin Stanton, a frequent customer who knows how to appreciate our baklava. Benjamin, this is Cassandra Proud, a friend Stan made who wants to start a new life. She's taken Isadora's job at the register so Isadora can help more with the pastries.

Benjamin nodded. "Nice to meet you Cassandra," he said while extending his hand.

Willa nodded. "Likewise," she murmured, after quickly pushing her hand out and extracting it.

"What would you like today?" Tffany asked with a twinkle in her eyes.

Benjamin turned and gave her a big grin. "Why, my usual, of course!" he exclaimed.

Tiffany rolled her eyes. "My son and daughter-in-law uses my own recipes handed down from my great grandmother to create the most delicious pastries ever but you will only have baklava and an iced coffee." She sniffed in mock anger. "Poor para yia-yia*, probably rolling in her grave every time you order the same thing.

Benjamin laughed. "Well, I mean, at least that recipe is hers too!"

Tiffany rolled her eyes. "The day you order something else is the day my husband returns from the dead," she retorted.

Willa quickly put the baklava in a paper bag. "Anything else?" she asked Benjamin.

Benjamin shook his head. "I have some coffee left over from earlier," he replied.

Tiffany smiled at Benjamin. "Come again sometime soon! And next time, try something else~"

Benjamin laughed. "Maybe next time, Mrs. Papadakis!" he exclaimed as he exited the shop, baklava in hand.

Tiffany shifted in her chair. "That man" she muttered, rolling her eyes good-naturedly.

Willa subconsciously relaxed. He was gone now. But he was also a regular—a potential threat to her new life in Mississippi.

'Stop looking so anxious,' she told herself. 'The key to pulling off a successful ruse is looking convincing.' It was funny how her background in pickpocketing came handy in the oddest ways.

"Cassandra. Cassandra?" Willa suddenly became aware of someone trying to get her attention.

"Sorry Tiffany!" she exclaimed. "I was just…lost in thought," she mumbled.

After the last customer left, Willa helped Tiffany sweep the floor of the bakery.

"I hope today wasn't too hard for you." Tiffany commented.

Willa smiled. "Not at all! It was great. I usually didn't have anyone working with me when I was in Florida."

Tiffany smiled back. "Time always flies faster when there is someone for company. I have a feeling you and I will enjoy many more days together, here at this counter."

Willa nodded. "Do you need help with anything else?"

Tiffany surveyed the rest of the room. "I think you have done everything that you can do, dearie. Now all that is left is—"

"Me picking her up?" asked a familiar voice.

"Konstantine!" Tiffany cried as her grandson came into the bakery and gave her a kiss and hug.

Stan smiled. "Hello yia-yia." He turned to Willa. "Hey Cass."

Willa smiled back. "Hey Stan."

The two walked to Stan's truck and Stan bowed exaggeratedly in front of the passenger door and opened it with a flourish. Willa mimicked the older female "cousins" she had always seen, but had never actually hung out with (Uncle Shad had always put her in Timo's care) and pretended to titter behind a well-placed hand but lost it and started laughing. Stan joined her as they flopped into his truck and tried to catch their breath.

Willa could only remember one other time when she had been so happy with someone. She must have been around six and Timo eleven. It had been her birthday, and her mom had been too drunk to care for her, so Timo had once again dutifully taken her for the day even though he had made plans with Cosmo. She had been eyeing a set of cupcakes in the window of a nice bakery when Timo suddenly told her to wait outside and walked in with Cosmo. Cosmo "accidentally" walked into one of the bakers who had been moving 2 sheets of pastries over and caused a commotion. In the meanwhile, Timo had swiped the cupcakes and then casually walked out of the bakery. Cosmo apologized profusely for a couple of more minutes and then walked out and met up with her and Timo.

As soon as they all met up, they all laughed partly due to the exhilaration of pulling off their major heist and also because Cosmo kept impersonating the baker who had run into him and had gotten very red in the face as all his hard work had fallen on the floor.

"Cass?" Stan's voice brought her back to reality. She would never see Timo or Cosmo again.

"Sorry Stan, just thinking about my old family." Willa said with a bittersweet smile.

Stan understood that this was a sensitive topic for her and steered the conversation elsewhere. "How was work?"

"It was good," she answered. "Your grandmother is the best."

Stan solemnly nodded while pulling into the driveway. "The only woman who can get away with kicking my ass."

Willa laughed. "I wonder what Tiffany would say if I repeated that!"

Stan went from serious to scared 2 seconds flat.

"Cass! You know you love me," Stan begun when someone's throat was cleared rather loudly.

"Ahem! Stan!"

Stan and Willa turned to the source of the noise. Deanna stood a couple of steps away from the pair with her eyebrow raised.

"Hello Cassandra. Dinner's ready."

Her tone of voice put Mrs. Farrell's to shame, Willa noted. She took the hint and scrambled to grab something to eat.

After dinner…

Grigori and Willa were back at Grigori's intricate chessboard again.

"How was work?" Grigori asked.

"Good." Willa replied. She stretched her arms up and cracked her spine. "The cash register was a little scary for a while but Tiffany is a miracle worker. The thing would sometimes malfunction and not listen but she would just press a couple of buttons and the thing would magically start working!"

Grigori smiled. "Are you ready for your first game, Cassandra?" he asked her.

"As ready as I'll ever be," she replied.

He laughed. "It should be fine. No violence or bloodshed is involved in chess. Seeing as it's your first time playing, you should play white. White goes first."

Willa nodded. "Okay." She looked at her pieces.

Grigori continued. "There are a couple of opening moves that people prefer to use. The game begins when white, in this case, you, make the first move." He moved the pawn at e2 to e4. "This is a traditional opening. The pawns may seem insignificant because they can only move one space at a time, but they are your first line of defense. Also, if a pawn reaches the very end of the board on the other side, it can become any piece you want it to be."

Willa looked at the piece moved. "But chess isn't a one sided game. Obviously your opponent could use a number of pieces to counter this opening," Willa remarked.

Grigori chuckled. "Well said, Cassandra. Black can use a lot of different moves.

Every chess piece plays a significant role in the game. Do not lose sight of that." He moved the black pawn at c7 to c5. "This first move is the beginning to what is known as the Sicilian Defense. There are quite a few variations based on which move you choose afterwards. The strength of the Sicilian is that black is allowed to still fight for the center of the board."

He moved the piece back and instead, moved the black pawn at e7 to e5. "This move is the first move of the Italian Game," Grigori explained. "The Italian often leads to an aggressive game and interesting results. He moved the pawn back to the original set up and then gestured at the black pawn at f7.

"This is the last counter I will show you today. It is called the French Defense." He smiled. "It may not seem like much because the pawn only moves one step, but the French Defense allows the black pieces at the center a greater range of movement."

Willa nodded. "Okay, so it's best if white moves to e4. Don't throw away pieces. Black can respond with three moves—Sicilian Defense, Italian Game, French Defense."

Grigori nodded.

"I think I'll go to bed now," she said, standing up and stretching. "I have work tomorrow," she added.

Grigori bowed his head. "I will teach you more later." He smiled. "I am glad. I have no one to play with here and very few are interested and willing to learn."

Willa smiled. "I'm glad you're willing to teach me. See you tomorrow morning?"

"Yes," Grigori answered. "Goodnight."

All right a lot of this was filler and chess but I promise, there is a point to all of this and Timo and cases will be coming soon! To all of those who kept asking me if I was ever going to update, I'm sorry it took me so long but hopefully I'll be able to update more often now.

Stay tuned!

-lovesjak