Lucy kissed Spetto on the head quickly, shoving her phone into her purse. "Spetto, I'll be back late tonight! Just leave something in the fridge for me!" The old woman laughed at Lucy's spastic sprint out the door, but she didn't have time to worry about how rushed she looked. She was late for her meeting again, and the client might actually kill her if she wasn't there soon.
For the hundredth time, Lucy thought about getting a cab or a bus to the pub, but she could never get over her pride. She wanted to figure out the layout of the streets on her own, so when the next raid happened she wouldn't have to rely on Natsu. It would probably never happen, but it was a dream of hers nonetheless.
She weaved through the crowd effortlessly, not even looking up, trusting the patrons would let her through. She was in such a rush that she bumped into someone, the collision nearly sending her to the floor. Her phone and paper dropped to the floor, and she bent to get them only for scarred hands to gather them and hand them back to her.
"Natsu," she breathed, looking up to see his black eyes looking at her warmly. He took in her flustered appearance, and Lucy realized she must look like a wreck. Looking down, she saw her top was crooked, two of the four buttons on her jeans weren't fastened, and her hair had fallen out of its ponytail to be free in all of its unbrushed glory. She whined hopelessly; her first day and she looked like she'd slept here. That was not the image she needed.
Natsu laughed at her, but shook his head and pulled into the office. "You're a train wreck," he said snidely, a laugh hiding behind his voice. Lucy glared at him and he laughed again. "Luckily for you, I am an expert at fixing train wrecks."
"Why, because you're one too?" Lucy shot back, sticking her tongue out. "At least I've never been so drunk I cleared out the whole floor."
Natsu huffed indignantly, gathering her hair to braid it while she straightened her tank in the chair. "That was only once, and you can't talk; you aren't even hungover." He paused briefly and muttered under his breath, "Even though you look like you stole a whole bottle of my fire whiskey."
Lucy spun and smacked him, her freshly braided hair swinging in an arc behind her. He laughed and jumped away, darting out the door like an imp. "And by the way, you ain't late; I told you fifteen minutes early." Ignoring the huge swell of relief she felt at that information, Lucy huffed and flung the first thing she could grab at him, but he shut the door just in time. The paperweight collided loudly and dropped to the floor.
Sighing, she got up to get it and returned to sitting in the chair. She fished the letter she'd read a hundred times out of her pocket, smoothing it out on the desk; her desk. She'd found it the day after he father, the Cobesons, and Don were arrested. They were all processed now, with their sentences varying. Don was in for life, but had talked his way into one of the nicer facilities through his network.
The Cobesons were an odd case, and Lucy had been on edge about their case for days. Jacob had gotten eight years in prison, with therapy for a possible bail at four years due to his circumstances. His mother, however, had received the same fate as Don, but without the nice ending. Her contacts had fallen through in the end and she was in Hargeon's maximum security prison. Lucy believed se deserved it.
Lastly, Jude had been given twenty years for his contact and activity with the Cobesons. His circumstances around Alyssa's entrance into his life had been taken into consideration, with Lucy even testifying secretly on his behalf, but ultimately he had been judged guilty. Lucy was still a little broken up about it, but she was getting used to the house being quiet all the time now. She had met with every lawyer on her father's payroll the past week, and had sorted out all of the inheritance and property issues. She now owned half of the land and businesses in Hargeon…including Don's pub.
When she'd found the envelope on his desk, she'd been shocked to find it addressed to her. She figured she would be the last person Don would want to leave a last letter to. But its contents were the most shocking part of the whole ordeal. In the envelope had been the deed to the pub, a birth certificate, a small handwritten letter, and a ring of keys. In the letter, he explained that he was leaving everything he had to her; his will would attest to it if he died in prison. The birth certificate had belonged to Natsu, who now kept it stashed away in his room safely. The keys unlocked an infinite number of safes, cabinets, and drawers across the building, including the files on every contact of Don's.
She read the last five words on the letter. "You are now the Keeper." The power in those words never failed to give her a high. No last name looming above her, defining who she was or who she belonged to. No previous assumptions by being the heiress, or the girl people whispered about. It was total freedom and control over her life. What she'd always wanted.
A knock echoed on the door, and she crumpled the letter back up into her pocket. She blew a stray strand of hair out of her face and put on a straight face. She folded her hands on the desk and yelled out, "Come in."
End. Thank you guys so much for sticking through this story with me!