Disclaimer: Not mine, obviously.


Chapter Two

Red wanted to approach her alone – their interaction would be monitored anyway, but he preferred at least the semblance of privacy. He was edgy and the actual presence of his friend would make him even more nervous;he felt embarrassed enough by his previous thoughts. Red was a practical man and he needed to focus on the fact that Keen was dangerous, especially for him.

The walk towards Keen's box took only a few moments. The woman was smiling and watched him closely the whole time. He sat down and took a deep breath, forcing his body to be still under her scrutiny. He had shaved in the morning but he was dressed in a black sweatshirt and well-worn jeans –he had been just leaving – and his clothes were obviously not enough for a meeting with anyone, let alone her.

"Hello Mrs. Keen. I was told you asked for me." Red's deep voice was calm. That was a good thing.

"Hello Raymi."She addressed him with hereyes mischievously sparkling, and Red's carefully constructed mask of indifference shattered. He gaped at her. No one called him Raymi. Not even his mother had done that.

"I hoped you would be wearing your uniform;I have a thing for uniforms and you look so good in yours, honey."

"I'm off duty."Red gave her a look full of disbelief. "Not that it's important…"

"And I'm so glad you finally decided to shorten your hair." She nodded to herself and watched him with a pleased expression. "I like my men that way;sharply dressed and with cropped hair."

What exactly she had meant by 'her men'? Her employees or lovers? Red rubbed the top of his head inadvertently and blinked at her, trying very hard not to think about her preferences in men.

He had cut his hair only two days ago. How did she know how long it had been before?

"Have you been following me, Mrs. Keen?" He was pleased with himself – his answers came off more cutting that shocked. That was very, very good.

Keen laughed and tugged at her handcuffs. "Are they afraid I would try to – what? Strangle you? I am not into that sort of thing. Well, maybe if you ask nicely, I might be interested, but…"

His ears turned red and he cleared his throat before she could continue. "What can I do for you, Mrs. Keen?"

"A great deal of things, Raymi. But we will get to that later. For now it would be nice to simply come here and get these damned cuffs down. No?" She tossed her head back, her hair impressively cascading around her face. Red was sure that she had done that on knew very well what effect she had on him – on men in general – and she shamelessly used it to make him feel uncomfortable.

He suddenly understood why Hal found her so irritating; ask her a question and she would say something unrelated – the more outrageous the better.

"Sorry, no keys." He grumbled and rubbed his head again.

She burst out laughing and leaned forward. Red couldn't help himself; his eyes slid down from her face to the neckline of her averted his gaze quickly and found her looking at him knowingly with a suggestive smile that made him swallow.

"Found something you like, Raymi?"She laced her fingers together, the two golden bands on the ring finger of her left hand catching Red's attention. He immediately sobered.

"You wanted me here. What now, Mrs. Keen?"

"Oh, you are no fun,so straight to the point… Well, I couldn't expect any better from a naval officer, now, could I?" Keen gave him a quick smile.

Red grimaced."Perhaps you should have asked for a CIA agentinstead(,) if the FBI is not enough? I've heard they love to play these kinds of games, and that they are also superbtour guides."

His dry tone surprised her and she examined him with renewed interest, amused smile playing across her lips. She nodded briefly, something like honesty flashing briefly behind her eyes."I love your sense of humor. We're going to be a great team, Raymi."

The certainty in her voice and the use of the diminutive were enough to make him sigh was unable to describe the effect this woman had on him – her looks, her voice, her smiles and the things she kept saying combined together were just too much for felt weary and tired and it was too early for this nonsense.

He needed to keep his distance; she couldn't get under his skin. He couldn't let her do that to him. "Why did you ask for me?"

"I'd like to get started, Raymi. Where's Harold? We need those keys…"

Red cleared his throat and remained seated. "I believe I asked you a question, Mrs. Keen."

"So you did. I chose not to answer, honey." She breezily waved her hand and winked.

They stared at each other for a minute and then Red scowled, a muscle under his left eye twitching.

"I doubt you understand my situation." He leaned forward now and watched her impassively, his admiral persona finally taking over. Mrs. Keen sat up straighter and gazed at him with narrowed eyes.

"Please do tell, Red."

"You want me to do abandon my hard-earned position in the Navy to work undercover with you as if I were a mere… field agent of the FBI. I am not."

She grinned, "Thank God for small mercies."

He clenched his teeth and ignored her. "Give me a reason why I should consent to this. You're not doing an adequate job of convincing me so far."

The playful and relaxed woman who had enjoyed teasing him disappeared immediately and in her place was a cold and calculating criminal. Red stiffened, his sixth sense warning him to be prepared for an attack.

"You will do this, Raymi." Her voice was steely and self-assured. She nodded at him. "You will work with me. I can't make you, of course. Harold can't make you. You are an admiral, and that comes with certain advantages; no one can really force you. But you will do it, no matter how much you think you don't want to."

"No." Red stood up and turned. He started to walk away, blood thumping in his ears. She had sounded so certain…He simply wanted to prove her wrong. Red despised people who wanted to control him and she already had more control over him that any women in the last 20 years.

He should have known better than to believe that this could somehow help him break the stereotype of his life. This would have pulverizedthe pieces of his broken self to dust.

"You want to know what happened to your wife and daughter, do you not?"Keen called after him calmly.

Red stopped, his hands fisted and his eyes closed tightly. She had just not said that. She had not said that. With a great effort to remain calm, he turned back to her.

She was inspecting her fingernails – they were painted green to match her dress and shoes, but they were not too long; that would be too impractical for someone who needed to be cautious and ready to kill. He briefly wondered what she was capable of – could she kill him with a nail file? He bet she could.

He was actually looking at a killer. Strange, Red had known that before, but the fact had registered just … what was she suggesting? That she knew something about his family?

It had been more than twenty five years since his wife left him and his family had been torn apart. It still pained him, like a wound that refused to heal. He had searched for them, of course, and he never stopped. His wife – her betrayal – had left him with bitter taste in the mouth, but it was the image of his sweet little girl that kept him going. He didn't know where they were, if they were alive, he didn't know how his now adult daughter might look like – he didn't know anything and sometimes Red thought that the lack of information would drive him insane.

Her eyes glanced in his direction and she made a surprised sound.

"You're still here, honey?" She blinked several times with an expression of false astonishment. "I thought you were leaving."

"What… do… you… know… about… my… family?" Red stalked towards her, each word was hissed through clenched teeth and he was not asking a question, he was demanding an answer. His family was off limits topic. Keen was obviously well informed about his life, so she was well aware of that.

He loomed over her in a heartbeat and was actually shocked back into reality when he saw her flinch. It was just a fraction of a second – more a tightness in her eyes than an actual movement of her body – but it had told him about her more than he wanted to know. She had been expecting a blow and Red was deeply, deeply ashamed that she had expected it from him.

His shoulders slumped, his gaze softened for a moment, and he let out a deep breath."What do you know about my family?"

His silent apology was accepted just as silently– Keen's eyes brightened and both of them knew that she had him exactly where she wanted him to be. Maybe her reaction, the fear in her deep blue irises had been just a ploy to snap him out of his rage?

He could hardly blame her for it. Red was fearsome when he was angry. It wasn't something he liked about himself – but then again, there wasn't much he did like about himself anyway.

"Now, Raymi, this is hardly the time and place to discuss this."

She didn't confirm it but she didn't deny it, so he nodded. Maybe she knew something and that was enough for him, at least for now. Even the tiniest bit of hope of finding his little girl would make him do anything. Of course Keen must know that. Maybe that's the reason why she had asked for him. Why else would she have mentioned it?

He should not jump to conclusions, though, it was too soon – and Keen's reasons were her own. He had a better chance of discovering the truth if he would cooperate with her. That's what she wanted. That's his only chance. It was so damn obvious that she would tell them only what she wanted them to know and when she wanted them to know it.

He fished out the keys from his pocket reluctantly. Patience, patience.

"Aha, I knew you have the keys!" Keen smiled widely. Upon seeing her smile Red suppressed his dark thoughts. It was dangerously appealing smile.

"No, you did not." Red felt his lips tugging upwards as he unlocked her cuffs and then tried in vain to avert his eyes while she stretched her limbs. He liked what he saw. He liked it very much indeed.

When she was finally standing next to him, Red discovered that she was a tall woman – with her shoes on she was only slightly shorter than him. She then reached out and touched his hair with a wicked grin.

"Hmm, so soft. I like that." The suggestive smile was back on her face and she casually put her arm through his and started to tug him along before Red managed to form a reply. Her expensive perfume was light and sweet, but Red enjoyed the smell of her hair more. He loved strawberries.

Red was certain that this was her usual modus operandi. She touched him, she teased him, she flirted with him – with any man – and it was no big deal. He was beyond embarrassed, beyond mortified by his behavior, thoughts and reactions. Worst of all, having her so close to him didn't bother him in the slightest. The warmth of her body was seeping through the layers of his clothes and washed away all the remaining tension in his was almost dizzying.

He welcomed it, he even enjoyed it. It had been far too long since he actually felt this alive – hot and cold, but felt like flying or swimming in a cool soothing water after a long day spent under the merciless sun. Red well knew how pathetic he was being. He tried to control the whirlwind of his thoughts and confusing feelings but he was not very successful. The pain Keen had so effortlessly brought to the surface lingered, the pleasure of her closeness was tainted with remorse at his previous behavior.

Oh, what she did to him!

Then he decided that for the remainder of their walk to Harold's office, he would shut off all thinking altogether and simply breathe in and out and enjoy strawberries. It didn't require thinking or feeling. Of course, he was unable toget Keen out of his mind when she was so close to him, and quickly glanced down at caught her observing him.

"I'm sorry, Raymi."

"What for?"

"For making you upset with me." Her free hand landed on his forearm and she squeezed shook his head and continued walking, this time he was the one who tugged her along. He knew her apology probably wasn't genuine, just another calculated move, but it was nice to hear, nonetheless.

Keen dug her heels in and Red obediently stopped. She resumed walking at her own pace and gave him a sweet, cheeky smile. He shook his head again and grumbled, "I'm not a gumball machine, Mrs. Keen. You don't just get to push my buttons like that and expect a treat."

Her laughter made him smile, again. She needed to stop doing that or he needed to learn how to ignore it. In spite of the situation, Red was smiling like an idiot an awful lot around her; orlike a lovesick teenager. He didn't know which possibility was worse, so he focused on the only thing that felt real in this terrible morning: her touch. Keen's hand was on his arm grounding him.

"Of course not, honey."She patted his forearm fondly. He looked down at her and his vision filled with the color of the wide seas during a sunrise. "However, you'd make a wonderful teddy bear… Or a pillow."


Edited by a wonderful artemisfae. Thank you!