ITS SO GOOD TO BE BACK. After trying to use PowerPoint at school on my laptop, my hard drive crashed and I nearly lost EVERYTHING I'VE WRITTEN EVER. Its been slow in coming back to life, but my computer whizz of a dad has managed to restore everything to what it was, and all my files were saved! So expect more updates at their old regular rate! :D
Anyway, to this chapter: after some really concrete advice from a reviewer who put what I was thinking in words, I'm taking my fillers in a different direction - mostly away from Darren and Maria. I hope you enjoy them, and you guys can expect a LOT of past stuff to come.
Enjoy! :D
5th May, 2012. Scotland.
'You really have nothing to tell me?'
In front of Vidic's desk stood the man in the motorcycle helmet, who had his hands behind his back and a stiff posture. He didn't make any move to answer. In fact, he didn't move at all. Vidic grimaced in frustration, and from behind his desk stared out at the workers. His eye fell on Crane for a brief moment – she looked as empty as ever, the spirit sucked right out of her. As he turned, his eyes met Hastings' for a moment, who stood in the corner as he'd been instructed. Vidic saw something he didn't like – a flash of resilience and defiance. Hm. Something was going on here that he didn't know about, and Vidic was a man who liked to know everything.
'Nothing in the Scottish government? The local Assassin activity?'
The man in the helmet remained silent.
'Nothing at all?'
Silent again.
'Darren's activity?' Vidic tried. And then – success! The man in the helmet tilted his head ever so slightly. Vidic was incensed. 'Show me!'
The man in the helmet reached into his pocket, and took out a memory stick before laying it on the table. Vidic snatched it up and put it into his computer, accessing the files stored on it in an instant. A video loaded, and he was watching footage that was slightly curved in format, having been recorded right out of a visor. It was watching a corner lit dimly by a flickering street light, and the footage abruptly tilted when a figure struggling with boxes emerged around the corner and the man in the helmet dived around his corner. The footage tilted again after a moment, and Vidic was looking at McDonald's lanky figure struggling with what looked like pizza boxes as he pressed an intercom on a block of flats. There was a moment of silence and feedback before the intercom was answered. McDonald's voice was heard dimly, and Vidic grimaced again.
'Rewind, increase volume and decrease background noise,' Vidic demanded from the computer. It obliged instantly, and Vidic heard a brief conversation.
'I've got the pizzas,'
'About time, I'm starving.' A female's voice replied in the intercom.
'Freezing my bollocks off out here.'
'Lovely.'
The door was opened, and McDonald struggled through before shutting the door behind him. The footage continued to run a few minutes longer, just in case he came back out, but then the watcher swung around and walked the other way. The video stopped.
Vidic took only a second.
'I know that voice…' He said slowly, his brain throwing up dim memories of someone blonde handing him coffee and saying yes sir and no sir and those files will be up with you in a moment sir. He knew this woman – he knew her! But who was she?
He looked up at the man in the helmet, who had remained as silent as ever. 'It's time. Activate the microphone.'
It had been so easy to place. A moment where he'd forgotten his coat, nearly gibbering in fear, and all Vidic had to do was pick it up and slide that neat little device in under the collar. He never thought he'd have to activate it but, well – it seemed like McDonald was giving them more trouble than previously thought.
The man in the helmet didn't respond, but turned on his heel and went smartly from the room. Vidic watched him go, and then he raised his eyes to the corner. Oh. Oh – ho! There was Hastings! Shaking in fury and glaring at him! He almost laughed.
'Oh? Mr Hastings? Do we know anything about this?'
Hastings didn't answer, but his glare didn't falter either. Vidic chuckled gently, and made his way over to him. He was quite a bit shorter than Hastings, but that was no matter when it came to intimidating. Warren Vidic was a man who knew how to intimidate.
'Thinking about warning someone, are we? No, no, don't answer,' Vidic said airily. 'I can see it in your eyes. Got someone to protect, have you? Or has someone promised you protection? Oh my, Mr Hastings – don't you know that in the end, all promises are empty?'
Hastings didn't answer. Vidic stepped closer.
'There's no one quite like her, is there? Blue eyes, hair like the night, a quick and witty tongue. She's quite a desirable woman. Not just to you –to a good handful of staff members, too. The guards. The brute force…' Vidic allowed himself to trail off, enjoying Hastings expression of defiance become one of anger and horror, the sound of air rushing in and out of his nose and the shaking. Oh, the shaking. 'Warn anyone about this, and I'll let who I like have his way with her. And then I'll give you a gun – ' he abruptly stopped to seize Hastings' front, yanking him down towards his level. Powerless and scared, Hastings stumbled forward and found himself nose to nose with Vidic and his cold little eyes staring into his soul. 'And I'll make you do it.'
Silence.
'Am I understood?'
Shaun nodded.
'I can't hear you.'
'Yes sir,' Hastings managed. Vidic released him, and brushed some dust from his shoulder.
'Good man,' he said, patting his shoulder before striding out of the office. 'There's a meeting in the conference room in about half an hour. Tea and coffee would be wonderful,' he called over his shoulder before shutting the door behind him.
Hastings fell back against the wall, covering his mouth with one hand as he shook uncontrollably. Oh god. There was nothing he could do. In one last act of desperation, he looked up out of the window, and saw Rebecca's head turned straight towards him.
Had she seen?
Did she know?
He staggered over to the window, and pressed his hand against it, staring at her like a starving man staring at bread. She stood abruptly in her seat, looking up at him, and Shaun could only watch as the guards at the end of the room strode smartly to her side and forced her back into her seat with heavy hands on her shoulders. She submitted, almost looking as if she's been snapped out of some state, but she still craned to see Shaun in the office. Shaun sank to his knees. Oh god. Could she get word to the Receptionist? They had to tell someone – they had to know -!
And then he saw her. Rebecca. Shaking her head in the tiniest tilt.
She knew.
And she was telling him to do nothing.
With a choked sob, Shaun put his face in his hand and began to cry.
She'd been threatened, Rebecca knew that much. Shaun wouldn't have been acting like that had she hadn't. With what? Death? Rape? She could take it all. But she knew these people. She knew Abstergo. Security would be tightened and everybody would be watched, even the people doing the watching. She could trust no one, and they could say nothing – only hope that the Receptionist was observant enough to notice the changes in security.
And so that was why she told Shaun to do nothing with the slightest, meaningful shake of her head. It was almost physically painful to watch him break down as he lost all hope. She wanted to get up out of her seat again, run to his side and hold him tightly, but if she tried that again she'd be shot in the head, no questions asked. She could only watch painfully as Shaun's other hand fell from the glass as he drew into himself, shuddering. After a moment he staggered to his feet, cast one desperate look in her direction, and took himself out of Vidic's office.
Rebecca looked back at her computer.
She felt wet on her cheek, and she brushed it away hastily.
It wouldn't do her any good to show any weaknesses.
Not here.
Not now.
There'll be a lot of updates later in a way of catching up, there's some stuff I have to do first before I sit down and write, but there will be updates nonetheless! So please do give a review, and let me know what you think. :)