A/N: Welcome a new co-author (for this fic) SkyeElf! She wrote this chapter.

Enjoy!

Chapter 4

Blade smirked. He was good at that, better than his wannabe-dictator father or his goth-wannabe sister. His eyes flicked to the Disneyland screen, the number of unknown characters fascinated him.

And all they all cared about was their loving boyfriends, or your best friend having a crush on your boyfriend, or your sister having a crush on your best friend.

Blade snorted - bunch of stupid, lovesick teenagers.

Not that he was any better, only he didn't jump onto his love every chance he got, and she didn't want to spend eternity with him carrying her around.

Blade was tall. Exceptionally so, his skin was a dark tan, his eyes were unable to decide which colour they were (at this moment they were a murky green, but Shaz always told him his eyes were gray when he was with her), his hair was several shades darker than his skin and had a soft curl in them.

"Again?" A bored voice asked. Blade's dark lips twisted into a smirk as two small hands landed on his shoulders, "You need a hobby."

His eyes flicked back to the screen his sister was on, "This is my hobby."

"Truly? Stalking your sister and her friends is considered a hobby?" She asked, her voice still in its ever-bored tone.

Blade whipped around at lightning speed, already on his feet, ready to attack her, but she forced him back into the chair by bringing her body close to his. She was the only one that had this effect on his body.

Blade always wore either leather or dark skinny jeans, and when she did this, when she pressed her body close to his, when she was the goddess of seduction, his pants would become tight and uncomfortable.

"This is my hobby." she whispered to him, biting his ear, causing a shiver to run down his spine.

He pulled on her hair, tugging her backwards, his other hand on her neck, slipping down her back.

He pulled her down, pressing a wanton kiss to her lips.

She laughed, pulling back, "Anything new on the daily lives of your sister and co?" She cast her eyes to the array of the screens behind Blade.

"My sister has a thing for that bigshot," Blade turned them around so he could see too, pointing at Adam (who was currently busy in a submarine in Disneyland).

"Really?" Shaz sounded vaguely interested, "He's young..."

Blade let her go, studying the various screens.

Shaz Zeemann to him. His wife. Or they were to be married in a month's time.

Her family didn't approve of the wedding, or the relationship, or ANY relationship, so she ran away.

That and the Zeemanns were known idiots. He always laughed at her public display when she distanced herself from them.

He would never forget it. She'd come knocking on his door with a duffel bag (which only contained her artistic equipment; paintbrushes, paint, apron, her laptop and its charger, and, of course, money) and made herself comfortable on his chair.

That was a year ago. She'd been planning the wedding ever since. She pretended to be bored and nonchalant, but he could see past it.

She was an artist, the wedding would be bizarre and weird, but he'd do anything for her. They hadn't even slept together yet, and they'd been living together for a year now.

He'd been amused to find that she was still a virgin, and she possibly laughed her butt off when she found out he was one too. At that moment they swore to wait until they we're both ready.

But that didn't mean Shaz wasn't a tease. The tightness of his jeans was evidence of that.

"Oh, this is turning into a soap opera," She mused, tapping a finger at one screen in particular, "Matt's forgetting his job, Blade." Her tone made red lights flicker in his mind.

Blade looked at Matt, who was with Isabella. Blade knew the names as Vanessa introduced them. And Matt was stepping over the line.

He'd been assigned to the twins, to keep an eye on them and to guard them. Interest in the areas of romance and friendship were forbidden.

"We'll sort it out later," He promised, sitting again. Shaz got a sadistic smile on her face.

"What if..."

"No," He said firmly, "we are not fixing that submarine and letting them be caught,"

"Not my idea, that," She said, "I meant about Vanessa - you haven't introduced us yet."

"I know - I haven't introduced myself back into her life either."

"You're basically her guardian angel, Blade, you've been looking out for her for ten years, since you were thirteen!"

"And you've helped with eight of those years, since you were sixteen," He said, feeling the need to remind her of her age too. She was a year older than he was.

"So? My presence is a minor," She snapped suddenly,"we've been protecting her from Perry for years - she's old enough to look after herself."

He fixed his gaze on her. Shaz was pretty. Dark hair curled gracefully onto her shoulder, her eyes violet in the dim light of the screens.

"I didn't forget what I promised," Blade said lightly, "but she's still my sister."

"I know. Just like Matt's my kid brother, but the kid's evil -"

"Which was why we took him in in the first place," He cut her off, "Perry'd been fooling my dad for years. So Adam went ahead and killed dad. I'm not saying my dad's good, but he's certainly not as evil as they all think."

Shaz glared at him, "Don't snap at me. She's older, smarter and trained in six kinds of combat - she can handle herself," Shaz sniffed indignantly, "I know she'd want to handle her own man."

"And what makes you the expert?"

"Darius?" She reminded him of her psychotic brother. He was currently in solitary confinement for interfering in her life too much. They, at least, hadn't left her on her own. Matt idolised his sister, and Darius just adored his kid sister.

Blade nodded, "I understand, Shaz, but now I show myself," He drew her close to him, "I tell her the truth. Heinz wasn't what she thought he was. And she'll try to kill me for pretending to die at thirteen."

"Insert some suitable sarcastic comment here," Shaz retorted, pulling away from him, "So I guess I go tell the others about you?"

"And scold Matt," He added quickly.

"And scold Matt," She sighed, turning to leave.

"I love you, Shaz!" He called after her. She paused, gave him a sideways glance before continuing.

He laughed, sagging back into the chair to watch it unfold.

He wondered how they'd react. Mostly because they were for Vaness, not against her... But they also weren't exactly at war with Perry either.

Matt and Isabella got off the ferris wheel, only for the colour to fade from the boy's face.

Isabella noticed, "Matt?"

Matt began to swear repeatedly, his eyes fixated on one spot.

Isabella followed his eyes, finding a very bored looking woman.

"Matt, front and centre," she ordered in a soft voice, "and Isabella, you too, please."

"How did you know my name?" Isabella asked, already on her guard.

"Oh, calm down, will you?" The dark-haired said, her face still the same expression, "Matt here has a job to do, and it isn't galivanting with Vaness' friends."

"Vaness? How do you know Vanessa?" Isabella demanded hotly, jumping quickly to the defense of someone she would've liked to kill just a month ago.

"I'm her sister-in-law," Shaz said bluntly, "I'm Shazz Zeemann, pleased to meet you."

Isabella knew about the Zeemann family. They were a bunch of ruthless idiots.

But the one known as Shalana "the Shadow" Zeemann was the most ruthless of them all, not to mention she had more than enough to brains to make up for her family's idiocy, she was a borderline genius.

Which was why Isabella was surprised when she found out the woman had discarded her family in a very public manner. Firestorm had a massive database, and the Zeemann's were a family under watch. Safe for, surprisingly, her. And her two brothers: Darius and... Matt.

Isabella slapped herself on the forehead. The guy she'd been hanging out with all day was from of family of killers, mafia bosses and drug dealers.

"You know me - not surprising, Firestorm knows me," Shaz continued, "and so you probably know about... Well, everything. Come along, kids, back to base."

Isabella freaked out, "Why would I follow you? You're a murderer! You're a psychopath and just plain evil!"

People stopped to gape at her. Matt groaned loudly.

Shaz sighed and tutted, "Yes, sanity is lost too, you didn't mention that, or that I'm an arsenist and a physician."

"That's irrelevant!" Isabella insisted, wondering why Shaz would add "physician" to the list.

"So is the fact that I'm evil," Shaz shrugged, "Call your head - that redhead? I don't know if she's still there, but call her and she'll let me in."

With that the admittedly pretty woman grabbed Matt's arm and pulled him with her. Isabella followed, wondering where Adam and Katie were. They'd been at the park for almost five hours.

Adam and Katie stumbled out of the submarine - they almost sufficated in the sub, but, by some miraculous happening, it randomly started working again.

"Adam, Katie," A voice called them to attention, Adam saw his sister and the boy from earlier next to a woman that looked older than them all. His first thought was to run, but when he spotted her hand on Matt's arm, he slackened. He didn't know why.

"Yeah?" Adam called back, wary to approach them, "How do you know our names?"

"Vanessa," she answered, "I'm Shaz Zeemann. Before you rant, yes, I am insane and psychopathic as well as vastly misunderstood."

Adam gaped at her, "What?"

"Come one, we have to go, Vanessa will be more shocked than you two are."

"You're supposed to be dead!" Katie yelled, pointing at Shaz as if the latter was a ghost, "How are you alive?"

"That's beside the point," Shaz commented icily.

"Vanessa!" Katie yelled the minute they stepped inside. Vanessa glanced up from her work and her pen clattered to the floor.

"Shalana?" She asked, getting up slowly, convinced this was an elaborate daydream, nightmare or she'd been locked in a virtual reality - it was possible

"Shaz, kid," Shaz corrected her, "I hate that name and legally changed it to Shadow Zeemann."

Vanessa wondered how she'd missed it. Someone from the Zeemann family had done a very public distancing of her family, but the name used on the news was 'Shadow' and not 'Shalana'.

"I thought you were dead,"

"I'm not. You just assumed I was."

"With good reason!"

"Yes, finding a grave with my name on it on the date I supposedly died couldn't possibly have been me."

"Sarcasm is not your thing."

"Goth isn't yours."

Vanessa grinned, throwing herself in Shaz's arms, who (surprisingly) hugged her back.

"And Blade?" Vanessa asked. Shaz nodded, and Vannesa tightened her hug.

Vanessa hoped this was real. She'd always had the childish dream that her big brother would show up in all his glory (preferably on a bike with Shaz with him - Blade and Shaz had always been best friends).

She'd been training hard, because she felt it would dishonour him if she became a little sobbing princess. She'd be a cool princess, always up to date and with a sense of style to kill.

"Okay, kid, you gotta let go of me, I need to tell you something," Shaz patted Vanessa's head (Shaz was one of the only people who wouldn't smile when she was happy).

Vanessa nodded, leading them all to the conference room.

This was bound to get interesting.

A/N: Leave a review. See you next chapter!