"Y'know who would know some great buyers? Victor Sullivan. Guaranteed. Now, hear me out. Let's say hypothetically: we give him a call, set up a meeting, smoke a few– ouch!"
Sam is cut off as Chloe slams on the brakes, pitching him forward off his seat in the back of the 4x4. Well, that's certainly one way to get the point across. The throbbing of his shoulder makes him wish for a less violent solution but compared to what he's just been saved from he isn't really in a position to complain. Although he does make sure to shoot her a betrayed glare as he gets back up. Of course (he should have known) this has absolutely no effect on Chloe and instead attracts the attention of Nadine. A threatening tilt of her head has him scrambling to open the door so that he can start putting some distance between them. (Her face then changes from dangerous to amused, which is really not as comforting as it could be.)
Completely - or maybe deliberately - oblivious to this exchange, Chloe strides past them, stretching her aching arms above her head and announcing "Here we are." with a happy sigh.
She begins strolling towards the bustling market, not bothering to check if the others are following. It's freeing, in a way, not to have to watch her back for once; it's been too long since she's had a partner she can trust so completely.
Sure, Charlie had been nice. He was honest – maybe a bit too honest sometimes – and wore his heart on his sleeve. Certainly handy when it came to puzzles and historical context. But seeing him strangling Nate - even knowing it was under the influence of Talbot's weird mind-control drugs - had put her on edge and opened up a trap-door of dangerous possibilities that they'd never quite managed to close again. Which was a shame for the both of them.
Nate himself would never stab her in the back but he does have a knack for unintentionally dragging her into life-threatening situations where someone else would. Plus there was the whole shit-show with Harry that had her running between sides trying to stay alive that had proved that maybe they just weren't meant to be.
She hadn't known Sam long before this job. Nate had introduced him to her after declining his own invitation to get in on it and they'd become friends pretty quickly, after she'd got over the initial shock of a second Drake appearing seemingly out of nowhere. He had the same heart as his brother, when it counted. But those long years in prison had made him rougher and less honest than Nate. Fond as she is of him, only time will tell if they could grow into a more stable professional partnership. For now he's still trying to get his rights and wrongs straight whenever money is involved and no lives in immediate danger. The fact that he's still coming up with ideas of alternative uses for the Tusk was a testament to that.
"So…what are we doing here again?" Nadine appears next to her. Chloe smiles a little. If you'd asked her a few months ago if Nadine Ross would ever follow her into the unknown without knowing the destination beforehand…well, okay, she had had a feeling since she'd first laid eyes on her. But she's pretty sure Nadine had never considered the possibility until now. It was flattering to know that the trust she had in her was mutual.
"I promised a little girl that I'd come back and buy her pizza. I'm nothing if not a woman of my word."
"Sure you are." is Nadine's sarcastic reply but it lacks the conviction and malice to be believable. Still, as payback, Chloe bumps her shoulder against Nadine's own and to her delight is rewarded with a playful bump back. Nadine is stronger – there's no disputing that (good god that woman's arms) - so the push actually makes her stumble sideways…
…straight into a middle-aged man who, up until now, seemed to be in a negotiation for an ornate-looking pot. The pot slips from his hands, hitting the ground with a crash and splitting into three pieces.
"Shit. Oh my god, I'm so sorry." she tries over the stream of angry words from both the seller and the buyer. It's useless of course and so Nadine grabs her by her bicep and drags her away, quickly through the crowd. They weave past stalls and bustling shops until they round a corner to the more secluded part of the town. Nadine finally lets go of her arm and they both collapse against the wall.
"Sorry about that." Nadine says breathlessly after a few seconds. "Didn't mean to push you so hard."
"Oh. No worries." Chloe waves her hand dismissively. "It's not the first time I've accidentally destroyed expensive artefacts." Neither of them say anything for a moment.
Then there's a giggle. An honest to god giggle and it didn't come from Chloe. She looks at the Nadine out of the corner of her eye. Looks at her smiling mouth and breathless, heaving chest and suddenly she's giggling too. It's infectious. She can't help herself when she doubles over laughing and tears begin to prick her eyes. It really is ridiculous but hilarious at the same for almost no reason other than it makes Nadine laugh too. All those stupid jokes and jabs but apparently it's moments like this that really gets Nadine wheezing. Just like that moment in Halebidu when they'd exchanged a pathetic high five in celebration of cheating death yet again, only this time there are no stakes involved. Barely anything has actually happened to set them off.
This is how Sam finds them when he rounds the corner; out of breath and clinging to each other to stay upright.
"Yeah, thanks for waiting for me."
They ignore him, too caught up in…whatever this was that they were doing. He raises his voice a little, trying to drown out the…laughter? Did he miss something here?
"So, about the Tusk…"
Chloe finally collect herself enough to push up from the wall and take a calming breath. She fishes a few hundred rupees out of her belt (how they've managed to survive through all of the water and dirt and yet be legible is beyond her).
"Do us a favour mate," she slaps the money into his hand "Go get a couple of pizzas. We'll be just around the corner from here. A left that way until you see the lights. You'll find it easily." He opens his mouth to protest so she pats him on the back and pushes him gently in the right direction. "Cheers, man."
He almost looks like he's going to start griping again but, after a quick look over her shoulder, his jaw clicks shut and he walks away.
Nadine, who's calmed down considerably by now, stands up and rests her arm on her shoulder. "Nicely handled."
"Thanks. I have a way with children."
"I'll bet." Nadine smirks "Come on then. Where's this little girl you've been telling me about? Is this the same one who supposedly caused the two hour delay back in the warzone?"
"The very same, as you'll soon find out. It's this way." They walk shoulder to shoulder down the alleyway until they arrive at a green door. When Chloe knocks there's an immediate scuffling of rushed movement but the door doesn't open until after its occupant has checked through the peephole. When it does Chloe is faced with an armful of child.
"You came back! You're all right!" said child bounces up and down, arms firmly around her waist. Then she rushes inside and comes back out with a red shawl. "I kept this for you. It was two for one on the one you bought but I decided to wait to see if you came back. And you did!"
"I told you so." Chloe responds although she looks at Nadine when she says it before looking back down at Meenu. "A promise is a promise. The pizza man is on his way to the market to meet us."
Meenu hums appreciatively and ushers them back towards the market. She eyes Nadine up as they walk. "Is this the friend that you were helping?"
Chloe nods. "One of them. This is my partner, Nadine. Nadine, Meenu." She points between them in an introductory manner.
"Hi." Nadine says a little awkwardly, blushing slightly for some reason.
Meenu seems unperturbed and gives an enthusiastic greeting before announcing. "You're very pretty." Okay she's blushing a lot now. Damn kids. She stays away from them for a reason. She splutters a little not quite knowing how to reply.
"That she is." Chloe answers for her. Okay, that's not helpful in the slightest. Damn Chloe.
They arrive at the lights and soon find a bench wide enough for the three of them to sit on. The lights above them and the music from a player behind them emit a chill atmosphere for them to relax in. It's a nice change of pace from the last few days. They chat amicably for a few minutes, Meenu filling up most of the silence with questions and Chloe filling up the rest as she recounts their adventure, Nadine chipping in here and there.
"Sooo…what did you do to your arm?"
"This?" Chloe lifts the bandaged arm. They'd made sure to wrap their injuries and wash up before coming here. Sam had taken the longest, what with having the most injuries and smelling the worst (although both Chloe and Nadine weren't far behind on that account) but they'd managed to do it in a reasonable enough time to make it to the market before dusk. "Fell off a giant Shiva statue. Landed in some water though so it's not too bad. Plus it helped us to find the secret entrance afterwards."
Meenu nods, accepting the answer without question as if it were an everyday response. "And then what happnened?"
"And then…" Chloe spots a figure just entering the market and waves. "We found the pizza man."
"Hey," Sam greets. "Here's your pizza." He offers it as if it were a boring leaflet he's been forced to pass out. Obviously there's something more important than pizza still on his mind. Meenu takes it from him eagerly, ripping out a cheesy slice that sticks in strings to the pieces around it. It smells divine. Much better than the MRE's that they've been living off. Chloe is next to take the box.
Just as Sam begins talking again.
"So… On my way here I saw a lot of decent jewellers. I bet you somewhere in this town there's someone who'd be trustworthy enough to buy-"
"Hey!" Chloe shushes him.
"But- "
She shushes him again and takes a slice out of the box. "Dude. Pizza now. Bad ideas later. Unless you have something better than selling it to whoever you can find here or on the black market, I don't want to hear it right now."
"But- " Nadine kicks him. Not hard enough to hurt – they've been better together since the ordeal with Orca - but enough to make a point. He sighs in defeat and leans against the wall opposite to their bench.
They settle into a comfortable quietness, the sounds of the bustling market, music and eating filling the silence. Meenu bobs her head to the tunes playing behind them. Soon Nadine is copying her, much to Chloe's amusement.
"This is nice." She says finally. Nadine looks at her questioningly. "Celebrating I mean. We don't usually walk away with anything at the end of these kinds of jobs. It's nice to have a reward is all."
Nadine lifts her pizza up to her in salute. "Here's to walking away with something."
"Hear hear." Sam mutters, tiredly.
Chloe and Meenu bumps their pizza into Nadine's, predictably causing them to become a giant stringy mess that almost ends up in Meenu's hair by the time they've detached them again.
It's a good moment. One they can bask in.
"I got it." For the love of- "Private collector. Huh?"
She really doesn't have the energy to argue about this anymore. Out of the corner of her eye she sees Nadine munching deliberately on a new slice of pizza and decided to follow suit. Just as she's getting to the limit of her abilities to ignore him Meenu cuts in, holding out a fresh slice of pizza to him.
"Don't. Ruin. The moment." The corner of Chloe's mouth twitches at the intense look on Meenu's face. She acts so grown up for her age. But of course she had to be now that her father had left. Hopefully he'll return soon…
Suddenly, she's a little bit sad, the scenario hitting a little too close to home. How long had she waited for a letter, a postcard, anything to let her know her father was on his way? That she would be able to see him again…she sometimes still has dreams of meeting him, showing him everything she's accomplished. Would he be proud of her? She has just completed his life's work after all.
"Howwy shrt." She's cut off from her musings by Sam's muffled outcry. Muffled because he currently has his cheeks stuffed with pizza.
"What?" Nadine asks. The first word she's said to him in…a while. Chloe wonders what she's thinking sometimes. Other than – an hopefully not anymore – shooting Sam.
Meanwhile Sam is looking at the half eaten slice of pizza like it's the Tusk of Ganesh itself. He swallows harshly and gapes at it. "This is good!" He stuff the rest of it in, cheeks puffing up comically to accommodate it. "Ow mu grrd."
Nadine grimaces in barely concealed disgust and then shrugs. "It's not bad. I've had better."
Sam shakes his head. "I don't think you understand." He holds his hands up at the stink-eye she gives him. "I've not had pizza for over fifteen years, okay? This," he points at the pizza. "It, it's like…edible gold for me."
Nadine's face abruptly becomes impassive. Slowly, she reaches over and picks up the box next to Meenu, checking inside. There's two slices left. "Here." She proffers the box. "You can have the rest of this one."
There's a beat. Sam now looks at the box as if it could be either a trap or jewels and he can't decide whether to take the risk. Eventually his grumbling stomach wins out.
Nadine leans back in her seat looking satisfied. Turning her head she takes in the market, eyes roving over every stall and figure around them. Finally, they land on Chloe. What the-? There's a gleam in Chloe's eye as she looks straight into her own, lip quirking upwards.
"What?" she deadpans. Chloe says nothing but jerks her head in Sam's direction. He's now in a world of his own, wherein the only thing of importance lies within the pizza box. "I'm playing nice."
Chloe leans over to her and opens the new box of pizza besides her to pull out another slice. Just as she's pulling back she leaves a quick peck on Nadine's cheek. "I'm proud of you." Her eyes are still gleaming with mirth and…something.
Oh great, she's blushing again. Damnit Frazer, I have a reputation. But she's also smiling. Just a little.
"So," Nadine changes the subject. "What's the plan for you now, Drake?"
There's a millisecond where Sam remembers to be surprised that she's addressing him so civilly. But then he's right back to it. He's always been adaptable.
"Not got much for the next couple of months. I'm meant to be heading back to the States to do a job with Sullivan but that's not until September."
"Oh?" Nadine catches Chloe's eye. "We might join you then. Been meaning to visit the States soon."
"Umm..." Okay maybe not as good at adapting as he thought. Look, he hadn't prepared for Nadine actually being nice to him today. It's a lot to take in. "You do know…Sully was with us…for the, um…"
It's a pleasant surprise when Nadine doesn't even get angry at the reminder. Instead she looks…content? What even is his life right now?
She just shrugs. "I like Victor. On most occasions. He's a good drinking partner."
The indignant sound that Sam emits isn't as dignified as he was going for but seriously? She's okay with Sully, of all people?
Apparently she takes his expression as demand for an explanation. "He wasn't the one who betrayed me. Didn't even know the whole story from what I heard."
He smiles sheepishly. Okay. That's fair. "So, what are you guys doing next? Other than apparently high jacking my trip home."
The girls exchange a Look. Like a telepathic communication or a silent conversation occurred between them.
"Dunno really." Chloe eventually answers with a fond smile, her eyes still on Nadine.
"We were thinking of maybe going to Iceland."