Author's Notes:

It's been a while. Again. I'm sorry.

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Chapter 4

Anna had awakened before Remy the next morning. It was only five in the morning when she carefully slid out of the bed she shared with her lover. She decided that she would go for a run while most of the manor's inhabitants were still asleep. She liked having that free time to herself to clear her mind. She changed out of her nightgown into a pair of dark green, stretchable jogging pants and a matching jogging bra. She strapped her iPod Nano to her bicep. Finally, she pulled her hair up into a neat ponytail before she slipped quietly out of the room. She had decided to leave her gun behind, seeing as there was nowhere to properly conceal it from others.

Anna jogged furiously around the property limits, listening to an eclectic mix of songs ranging from rap to pop. Although Anna was a southern girl at heart and loved some good old-fashioned southern rock, she had recently taken a liking to the band Green Day. She was mouthing the words to Last of the American Girls when she returned to the house and poured herself a drink from the water cooler in the kitchen. She bopped her head up and down to the rhythm of guitar.

Anna nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw Mercy seated at one of the kitchen tables with a smile on her face. She immediately pulled the earplugs out and started to turn two shades redder.

"Oh my God, Mercy," Anna laughed. "You scared the hell out of me, girl."

"Sorry, Rogue. I didn't want to disturb you. It sounds like a good song, non?" Mercy smiled in return. "Why don't you come and join me?" Mercy pulled out one of the chairs next to her and patted the seat with her hand.

"I'd love to," Anna obliged. Anna continued to drink her water when Mercy spoke up again.

"I envy you Rogue," Mercy commented.

"What?" Anna raised an eyebrow, giving Mercy a confused look. "Girl, you're crazy. I'm not the one with a loving husband doting on me day and night."

"No," Mercy replied. "But you have, Remy. That boy would die before he ever let anything happen to you. He nuts about you, Rogue."

"He's wonderful," Anna agreed. "But, it's still not what you have with Henri. You guys have the bond of marriage."

"Is that what you want?"

That was a good question on Mercy's part. It was one that Anna had thought about from time to time. She and Remy had joked about it in the past. But, the talk of marriage had not come up since after they reunited. Remy had come close to proposing, but it wasn't to her. Anna thought back to the day when she saw Remy walking out of the jewelry story in Westchester months ago (*TL). She had never brought it up to Remy; after all it wasn't any of her business. That was personal between Remy and his ex, Lanie. But, still, Anna wondered why Remy had never approached her with marriage.

"I don't know," Anna replied simply.

"Well," Mercy started as she stood up from her chair, "if my lazy brother-in-law leaves you waiting too long, there's always that devilishly handsome M'sieur Taylor. He's got a thing for you, you little Rogue." Mercy gave her once last wink and smile before exiting the kitchen. She was already gone before it registered whom Mercy was talking about. Damon. Anna was not used to hearing him referred to with that alias.

Anna washed and dried her glass before returning it to the cupboard. On her way back to the room, she thought about what Mercy had said. How could she have picked up on Damon's feelings for her? Was he still so obviously projecting his feelings for Anna? Anna could not pinpoint any moment last night where Damon would have led anyone to believe so. Anna walked back into the room and saw that Remy was up and their bed was already made. She decided to take a hot shower to relax her muscles after the long jog.

She had just finished washing her hair with her lavender scented shampoo when she felt a pair of strong hands begin to massage her lower back. This impromptu massage coupled with the hot water pouring over her naked body was sending her skin on fire. She turned slowly to meet a pair of red eyes with her own emerald green. She smiled shyly as he moved his hands behind her head, pulling her closer for a kiss.

"Missed you this morning, chere." He whispered in between kisses.

"Missed you too, sug," she replied, placing her lips back onto his. She parted her lips, allowing him to kiss her deeper. Anna moaned in pleasure and Remy ran his hands over her wet body. As Anna felt Remy's warmth against her thigh, she knew that it was time for them to relocate back to their neatly made bed.

Remy and Anna lay in bed with their legs intertwined when Henri tapped lightly on the door. "Breakfast is in twenty minutes you two. And, I know you've worked up an appetite!"

Anna blushed while Remy rolled his eyes at his brother's remarks. He traced his fingers along her face, marveling at her beauty.

"I hate to admit it, but you're brother's right." Anna smiled. "I'm starving!"

"Just five more minutes, cherie," Remy replied. "Then we head down, d'accord?"

Anna nodded in agreement and moved herself closer to her lover. She nuzzled her face into his chest and inhaled his intoxicating scent. "I love you, Remy. Forever."

"Forever? That's a long time, chere. You sure you can put up with this thief for that long?"

"Forever." Anna removed her face from his chest and gave him a kiss on the lips. Married or not, Anna was determined to never leave his side.

Five minutes turned into fifteen by the time Remy and Anna made their way downstairs for breakfast. Damon was already seated at the table, chatting it up with one of the chambermaids. His diamond blue eyes sparkled when Anna walked in to the room. The look in his eyes made her blush, more so because of the comment that Mercy had made earlier that morning. Henri's beautiful wife did not miss the sudden perk in Damon's mood either. Mercy gave Anna a look of "I told you so" and Anna took her seat between Damon and Remy.

"Morning, Mercy," Remy said, reaching for the pitcher of orange juice. "Where are Henri and Jean-Luc?"

"Hmm," Mercy replied as she spread orange marmalade on her toast. "I think Henri said that they had some business to take care of. They said that they should be back this afternoon, and that they would fill you in on the details."

"Well, seeing as they won't be back for some time, Roguie and I were thinking of taking Damon into town to see the sights." Remy shoved some bacon into his mouth. "See, he's never been."

"Well, mon cher, try not to get lost in our little city of mystery," Mercy smiled at Damon who was finishing the last of his breakfast.

"I'm sure I'm in good hands," Damon smiled over his empty plate.

"I bet you are." Mercy gave Anna a wink, unseen by Damon or Remy. Anna's eyes widen at her insinuation. She looked at Remy out of the corner of her eyes and was grateful to see that he was busy with his cell phone.

Anna was glad to have finally gotten out of the house and into the city. She had been dying to start their investigation into Pierre's murder. Brookes had phoned them and told the pair of agents to check in with the local police unit that was handling Pierre's case. Remy thought it best that a known member of the Thieves Guild not step anywhere near a police precinct. Anna and Damon agreed to meet with Remy in two hours at a small café three blocks away.

Damon walked over to the reception area and showed the man his badge. Anna surveyed her surroundings and took note of the hustle and bustle of the room. To her right, was a man sitting in a chair with his hands cuffed together on his lap. She tried to listen intently to see what he was being charged with. He was covered in dirt, and his smell was quite offensive. Anna guessed from his tattered clothing that he was homeless.

Anna looked back over to Damon, who was now waving her over. They were both required to sign into the visitors' log, and then were each given a visitor's badge to wear around their necks. She and Damon were greeted by one of the detectives working on the case.

"Paul Laporte," the detective introduced himself, extending a hand out to Damon and Anna. He was a gruff man, shorter than Anna. He looked like he was about forty years old. Years on the force had obviously taken its toll on Laporte. He kept himself fit, although he had a tiny potbelly. "Guess he likes his beer." Anna thought to herself.

"Don't know why the captain decided to bring the Feds in on this," huffed Laporte. "We can handle this case."

"I'm sure you can," Damon encouraged. "We're only being brought in because of the fact that this guy was a mutant. See we're part of a special division…"

"Yea, I know all about you guys," Laporte interrupted. Damon and Anna gave each other a glance. Local cops never like when the FBI is called in. They feel like their toes are being stepped on. Laporte's reaction was nothing they hadn't seen before.

"Mr. Laporte," Anna spoke up. "If you don't mind, my partner and I would like to take a look at the case file." Anna was a bit abrupt, but they were wasting time. She hated wasting time while working, especially murder cases.

"Yea, I've got it all ready for you. Your boss called mine this morning. It's in conference room 3. Come on, I'll show you the way."

Remy sipped carefully on his espresso while he waited for Anna and Damon to finish their business at the precinct. He smiled at the flirtatious waitress who brought him a slice of cake "on the house". Remy rarely indulged in such sweets, but he wasn't one to turn down a free dessert. She had conveniently written down her phone number on a napkin she handed to him with her dessert. He smiled politely and winked as he slipped her number away in his pocket.

Remy was finishing his dessert when he noticed someone veering over a newspaper. Dressed in a pair of jeans, dark sunglasses, and a hooded sweatshirt, the stranger was unnoticed by everyone on the busy street, everyone except for Remy. Remy left twice the amount of his tab and quickly walked down the street. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the stranger fold up the newspaper and follow. Remy had an endless list of enemies, so he was anxious to see who had sent this latest spy. Remy quickly ducked into an alleyway and crouched behind a large dumpster. He could hear a quick shuffling of feet nearing where he hid. Once the stranger walked past, Remy sprang from his crouch and placed his pursuer in a chokehold. As gracefully as if he were dancing the waltz, Remy maneuvered from the chokehold, pinning the stranger up against the brick building. Remy grabbed the sunglasses from the stranger's face. His jaw dropped when the realized who had been following him this entire time.

"You," Remy snarled.

"Me," the stranger replied, a devilish smile growing on a pair of ruby red lips.

*TL – Occurred during Tangled Lines

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