Disclaimer: I don't own Victorious or any of it's characters. I make no money at this.
:}
Jade was ready to exit the safe room. She grabbed Festus's Keffiyeh, the traditional Arab headgear worn in the desert, and used it and the cord holding to distract the guards, planning on rolling out of the door while the guards hesitated. Only they didn't, and the people in the safe room were only spared the bullets because the gunfire followed the white cloth as it moved away from the door. Since Jade had dropped it to roll under, the bullets sailed above her head.
"Obviously not my guards." Fesrus observed. "Mine are elite Persian immortals, who'd never fall for as simple a trick as a headgear on a stick."
"Hello, Festus." Tori said menacingly. "Now your gonna answer my questions, cause I'm beyond pissed that a man who used to sell me food now thinks he owns me." Festus struggled in Bills arms, but it was no use, he wasn't going anywhere.
Jade used a gun, one of the ones she'd confiscated from the guards they'd captured, to take a couple of shots at the two guards outside the door, before moving away from the room in an attempt to draw them off. It wasn't as hard as she'd though to get away from this group of men, since they took shelter when she fired. Luckily for everyone, immediately after confirming that they were no longer being shot at, they got up and ran after Jade, not bothering to try and force the door. They followed the bodyguard through the house, to a nearby doorway that doubled as a corner, where they hesitated to make she she wasn't waiting right there. Satisfied that she wasn't waiting around the corner, they stepped through, moving cautiously forward. That was when she she dropped on the second man from her hiding place up near the roof, having used the door frame and the wall as braces to help her climb up and crouch near the high ceiling. One quick blow to the side of the head left that guard dazed, then she pulled the other man to her, placing him in a choke hold. The dazed guard recovered in time to have the now nearly unconscious guard pushed into him. Jade finished them both with a sweeping kick.
Beck was getting worried. While there where close to sixty swat team members deployed for this assignment, they were assaulting a big house, so it'd take time for them to make their way as far as the living room. The two guards he'd been trying to hold off had pinned him down, and now had separated, each circling in different directions, from cover to cover, trying to draw a bead on him. He knew, it was only a matter of time.
"Well, buddy, it looks like we're gonna have to make a break for it." Beck said, trying to guess the best way to hold the wounded man as they ran.
"You'll do better if you leave me behind." The cop replied.
"No, cause you have some body armor, and if I use you to shield my side, we may both make it out of here." Beck calculated. "I can be a hero, and you'll live to see whomever it is you have waiting for you at home. Like I said before, all the pussy you'll ever want is just one quick run out of here."
Beck got his arm around and under the cop, getting ready to pull the man to his feat and make the desperate run, when he stopped to take a quick look, to see where the guards were. Thats when his face broke out in a huge smile. "Or maybe we let her handle this."
Jade had arrived. She was dodging and ducking to avoid the men who had Beck pinned, as well as the hand full of men of men chasing after her. Jade was pushing her advantage, she knew what she was doing, and where she was going, while none of the guards had a clue what she was after. That advantage allow her to duck over one piece of furniture and around another, sliding to a halt near Beck. As she arrived, she tossed him something. "Over the couch, that way." She gestured. "I'll take care of the others."
"Others?" Beck asked.
"I've got at least four more here. Any idea how many guards we're dealing with?" She asked.
"Maybe thirty." Beck guessed. "That Arab faker fuck had a dozen men he'd brought, and I think the fixer had as many, if not more."
Both of them set their grenades to burst, and threw them, not worried about where they hit. A second later, there was a popping sound, and the sound of movement. "Deep breath, hold it, we gotta go now." Beck announced, pulling the cop up and helping drag him with them. Jade took the other side of the officer, helping to support his weight. They ran past where the guards had been, as they were also trying to get out, cause they all knew, in time, those grenades would take out anyone still in the room. The guards, for their part, had no desire to trade killing Beck for the certainty of being captured and tried for killing a police informant. Now was the time for escape.
Jade and Beck made their way towards the safe room. However with all the confusion, men suddenly remembering who they were trying to gun down, or take hostage, they had to divert a couple of times. As they moved, carrying the wounded officer, they saw tear gas, and Beck realized where they were. "Head towards that." Beck urged. "We're near the front door, and that way leads out."
"No, cops may be trigger happy. We find a safe place to bunker down, and have the cops head towards the safe room." Jade countered. "They do know she's in the safe room, right?"
Beck just glared at Jade. "We're heading out, through the front door, through the tear gas." He called, pulling them that way. "They'll be waiting for us."
"We'll be vulnerable." Jade protested, but they were already moving, the injured cop having sided with Beck. Jade, busy complaining while the others took a deep breath and covered anything vulnerable tot he gas, wound up taking a lung full of the tear gas. The normal effects, nausea and blindness, hacking and coughing, was having an enhanced effect on her injured body, so she was was having trouble doing much of anything beyond coughing and wheezing as they emerged from the gas into the outside. Immediately, and armored car drove up, men in gas masks hoped out and shuttled them into the vehicle, and then they drove away to the far side of the yard.
Tear gas usually caused irritation to the eyes, throat and skin, as well as some dizziness, possibly temporary blindness, or even vomiting. But in Jade, the effects were amplified, and she felt she needed to sit down as soon as the police had her, trying to catch her breath, maybe focus, or clear her eyes. She closed her eyes for just a second, to try and focus…
Jade was revived by some oxygen, her first hint that she was in an ambulance. Her face was wet from where they'd washed out her eyes and nose, while her body was still coughing up some of the gas. "How the fuck stupid are you?" Beck growled. "You're hurt, cracked ribs, and your out fighting? Whats wrong with you."
"You were in danger, and we owed you." Jade tried to argue.
"And if they'd been smart, the guards would have given up as soon as the fucking army of cops started arriving. And I do mean an army. Turns out, when they asked for volunteers to help backup the swat team, the police let it slip who they were helping, and as a result, there was a hoard of them. Nearly three hundred off duty cops in riot gear guarding all the exits." Beck explained. So yea, you should have done what I chizzing said and come with me without arguing. I expect better from you. And no fucking fighting until you heal, got it?"
Jade nodded, but had to take a deep breath of oxygen before she could say anything more. Choosing her words carefully, she asked "And Tori?"
"Their getting her now." Beck assured her. "They just had to wait for the teargas to dissipate. Cops pumped a ton of that shit into the house, pacified the fuck outta everyone, only had to play watcher for anyone trying to get out. Point is, the cops, they took the place with no losses, and managed to avoid injuring most of the guards."
"What about Tori?" Jade asked. The effects of the gas were mostly passing now, but she was still dizzy and would not be able to get up for a bit longer.
"The safe room, it's got it's own air filters." Beck explained. He sighed. "The plan was to put you guys in there, and for me to leave, then they'd assault the house with teargas and whatever else they could."
"And how'd you know we'd be able to lock down the safe room?" The blue eyed girl asked.
"We didn't." Beck said. "Nevel Papperman, the fixer, he doesn't like his name attacked to the things he does, so he had me rent the mansion, then took control of it from me. But while I was renting it, I got the combination to the safe room, and made sure he didn't even know it existed until I'd tossed you and Tori in. It was all part of Shapiro's plan, to keep you guys safe while the police raided."
"Wait, Shepiro was in on this?" Jade asked, playing catchup.
"After Nevel there contacted me with the blackmail demands, I wanted to get in contact with the police, but it turned out to be harder then I thought. I needed a safe rout, one where no one was listening in. Shapiro contacted me, and after a bit of verbal sparring, he offered as my go between." Beck said. "He's the one who insisted on a safe room, a really high end safe room, as well as me being the one renting the place, while staying in another mansion. That way, we could tell Mister Pappermen I'd have an excuse for where I was staying, with my crew saying it was a different mansion, while he'd keep both his and that fuck, Festus was it? Well, their names wouldn't be on any of he paperwork. Turns out, that was the same instructions that runt Pappermen gave me, minus the safe room, which he must feel so stupid for not asking about now, cause he's caught, and gonna get his ass raped in prison."
"And you did all of this why?" The bodyguard asked. 'Well, at least he sounds normal now.'
"Cause this way, I'm all over the news, shown in a positive light, and Trina and I can have our feud be a bit more personal and less professional." The actor beamed. "I look good, Shaprio gets a story, so he looks good, and you, well..."
"Wait, this Nevel guy, he was blackmailing you, right?" Jade asked. "Aren't you afraid.."
"Not if Trina goes along with me and pretends that whatever chiz she had on me was just rumors." Beck said. "So, assuming she does that, Nevel had nothing. That meant, I was able to set his ass up. I just had to be an actor, which you know I am, and pretend he had something major on my ass. Now, it's his ass on the line. Literally, cause he's a runt, and I believe we covered..." He didn't get to finish because Jade jumped in.
"So that meeting in Hawaii, that was you setting everything up?" Jade was amazed at her ex.
"No, that was me covering my ass." He admitted, looking just a bit more sheepish. "This all fell together after the whole New York abduction fell apart. So what, a week? Man, this happened fast. Anyways, Siobhan called me to let me know about what had happened, and it was maybe an hour after that when that hob knocker, Nevel, called to coerce me. I did my part, but was in contact with the police, through Shapiro, the entire time. And before you say anything, I realized that Robbie had the best chance of not having this fuck pouring all over his intel. I was right, since Rob is fanatic about spyware. I even suspect he had some on me, seeing as he knew to contact me after that wanker Nevel called me. I'll have to find out, before he janks me up good."
"Doesn't Siobhan hate you?" Jade asked, trying to grab onto anything that made sense.
"She loves you, and she loves that your about to get seriously involved with Tori." Beck replied. "Sides, I'm practically family, so she had to tell me, or I' find out another way." He gave a big, smug grin.
"You're employing Wayne, aren't you?" Jade asked.
"Her hubby needed a job, and I needed someone to watch my place in new York while I was out and about." Beck replied. "They even live there now, in the servants quarters. But thats not important, they have a nice place on Manhattan, with a chizzing view, and they use all of it when I'm not there."
Jade had something fairly obscene to say about Beck's spies, but never got that chance. At that moment, the door opened to reveal a pissed off looking Tori. "Jade, Beck, someone had better start talking."
"I told you what I was gonna be doing." Jade shrugged. She was sitting on the gurney now, still too dizzy to stand.
"I had an armored car waiting for me, to get me to safety, but Jade refused to run through a cloud of teargas to get there. Yes, we'd be hacking and coughing, and out eyes would sting, but we'd be fine. Instead, she took a lungful of gas, and passed out from it, all while aggravating her chizzing injuries. I'm wazzed at her for taking the risk, but she got me and an injured cop out of there, so it's all good."
"No it's not." Tori scolded them both. "Jade, if this costs you even one opportunity..."
"Like L.A. Undercover won't offer us the roles, even do what they can to protect Jade here, after this hits the airwaves." Beck smirked. "And since Nevel there was a high end independent, we're even in the clear as far as mob retaliations are concerned. Now Mister Papperman, if he squeals, they'd be real wazzed."
Tori's glare didn't diminish. "If you cost us so much as a single night..."
"So you're an item now?" Beck looked even happier. "Way to score, Jade. Tori here, she can be a real freak in the sack. But don't worry. I'm sure, once you've healed up, you'll be able to keep up."
Bill's strong arm kept Tori from lunging at the actor. "It's okay, Jade's okay, nothing too bad. She'll just need a bit of bed rest for a few days, thats it." The huge man assured his boss. "Everything's okay."
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to let that chizzing fuck know how janked up his ass it gonna be once they get him to prison. I hope they send him to New York, to face charges over the whole fake bar incident, cause I know for a fact the Aryan brotherhood is hella stronger there, and his ass will look so ripe to them." Beck did a couple of thrusts with his hips or emphasis.
Bill heard, in stereo, both Jade and tori ask "What did I ever see in him?"
Tori, Jade, Bill and Kasey rejoined the tour for the last days of the south American leg, and everyone was in a better mood. "And here you can clearly see Beck reminding Festus that he had, and I quote, 'A stubby pencil dick.' Yea, I was with that for ten years. I must have been gay, and a masochist, to keep letting that dominate my life." Tori was telling the dancers as she showed then the slide show on her pad. They were backstage, in that magic time between sound check and the show, when sometimes there's not that much for the performers to do. She was so engrossed in her story, she hadn't noticed the shadow of her sister watching the presentation.
"Okay, Tori, business meeting. Grab Kasey and meet me in my office, cause we got to get this meeting going." Trina said before walking towards the office they'd arranged for her at the show. "Hurry, everyone else is here, and they're waiting." She called back as she disappeared into the room
Tori grumbled, but walked to the office with her assistant. Jade wasn't out and about where she could see her, so was probably at the security station in the office. Tori smiled at the thought of her girl, forced to sit by despite the doctor saying she could do some of her job. 'Just not the fighting.' Tori reminded herself. 'Or the sex. Not until she'd past her next checkup.'
Tori and Kasey joined the others in the office. "Okay, lets get things going." Trina smiled. "First, lets all congratulate Jade here, who's gonna be moving to part time while she pursues her dream. We've negotiated her roll on L.A. Undercover, and it's got the potential to be a recurring roll. The bad, it's as Beck's partner, but we'll overlook how happy he was to put Tori here in the line of fire to get our stalker. A stalker who turned out to be the guy who owned the 'Grub Truck' from school. Man I wish I'd kicked his ass when I had the chance. I mean, I saw the way he used to leer at the girls. I just never..."
"I never found out, how'd he afford the high end mercs he was using." Malcolm commented.
"According to Robbie, Shapiro, Festus invested in exploring some of the resources of his home country, Yerba, and made a fortune." Kasey said, glancing at her brand new Pearpad. "He was even a silent partner in their dictatorship. Their Chancellor must not have liked him, cause as soon as Festus was arrested, the Yerbainian government traded information on his slave camps, where they made the prisoners dig up resources, for a better relationship with the U.S., as well as a good deal with the company who's now getting those rare earths out."
"Getting distracted." Trina growled. "The point is, Jade here will be leaving the tour in a week for a couple of weeks of shooting for the show, and then she'll be back for a few days before her next roll, which I haven't found for her yet. The thing is, we'll be keeping her on as part time, but we're also replacing her. Not immediately, cause our security situation is far better then it had been. But we'll have too. Jade'll be in and out until her first movie, then she'll just be gone. Oh, and Tori, I've got you set to film an arc of L.A. Undercover as well, once the tours over. We'll be looking for other ways to keep you out there acting."
"Goodie, I'll be on the show with Jade." Tori did a happy dance.
"Lets hope." Trina smiled. She now knew to negotiate them working together. "Andre."
"Okay, We have another thing to discuss, and thats our post tour security." Andre started. "We're looking at our options and have come to the following conclusions, we need to add two new people to replace the one's were leaving, and we have others who's jobs are being revamped."
"Wait, who's leaving?" Jade asked.
"You." Tori said with a smile.
"Oh, right, having my dream come true." Jade said, looking down. Tori reached over to squeeze her hand, giving the grumpy girl a kiss on the cheek. Trina smiled at that, knowing Jade's reaction was a combination of nerves and embarrassment over forgetting she was moving on to bigger and better things.
"Then there's Bill and Ron, who will continue to be security, but are also gonna be attending a wrestling school for a while, just cause they could use the break." The head of security added. "After that, once their back from their little vacation, I'm gonna train them to act as liaisons for whatever local security we wind up using for the next tour. Given their learning curves, that could take most of the time Tori here uses to recharge and then record her next album."
Trina took that moment to look softly at her sister. "Tori, for the record, no more hit everywhere tours. Pay per view, baby. You're gonna do movies, and television, and whatever it takes to sell that music of yours." Her hand went up, silencing any outburts from the megastar. "I know you love performing live, but we're not touring like a struggling artist any more. From now on, when we travel, we go in style, and take as many as we can that way. Now you stay quiet, cause there's more to discuss."
Trina's smile broadened, as her brown eyes were now focused on one particular member. "The last person leaving normal security is Ryder here."
"What?" He started. "What did I do?"
"Ryder, I'm ready to have a family." Trina's eyes softened, belying her stance. The predator in her was standing, moving, stalking her prey. "I figured now's as good a time as any, since I'm gonna have a lot more free time after the tour. So I figured you'd like to help take care of my kids. I'll even give you a choice of titles, manny... or Daddy." By then, she'd backed the tall boy into the wall.
"Daddy…?" He asked.
"I had my IUD removed a couple of weeks ago." The manager explained, mostly to him, but everyone in the room could hear. "Depending on how long it takes for things to get back to normal, I could already be expecting." She noticed how close she was to him now, and took a half step back.
"Just think, soon she could have a whole new life she's micromanaging." Malcolm gushed. His smiled died when Trina glared at him.
"I guess I'm saying, it may already be too late for you to run." Trina told her lover.
"And why would I want to run?" Ryder asked. "Trina, I.. I don't know what to say. We need a list of names, boys and girls, cause you know we won't agree on the first ones. And godparents, in case something happens to us. You gotta be prepared. And..."
"And maybe you could get married." Andre chimed in. The look Trina gave him was enough to cause him to shrink back. "What was I thinking.." He mumbled.
Trina looked back at Ryder, allowing the strong feelings she had for him to wash over her. She gave him a soft kiss, thankful for his understanding, only for the kiss to deepen. Her hands found his belt, and followed it around until she was pulling him closer, while letting her hand slid down his body to a more tactilely satisfying place to hold him. He stated to shift, to move her around, instigating a struggle fro dominance that Ryder knew he'd lose, even if he won...
"Um, sis, not to break things up, but it looks like your getting ready to conceive right now, and I don't think I wanna see that." Tori chimed in. "Cause, well, your my sister, plus I think I'm done with penises."
"Oh deary, I got you a couple of toys, as a congratulations for coming out of the bi closet." Malcolm said. "And thats a tough closet to come out of, because no one seems to believe in you. It's like forty year old virgins. They exist, people see them all the time, but they just can't seem to wrap their minds around the fact that they exist."
Trina and Ryder had broken apart, now very aware that the others were still there. Ryder was blushing, while Trina was thinking, trying to decide what she needed to say to get some alone time with her man. 'Do I have time?' She asked herself.
"So she has a dick?" Jade said, smirking.
"Don't laugh." Tori warned. "Who do you think I'm gonna be using them on?"
"I think maybe this meeting is over." Andre chimed in. "I'll go over stuff with the rest of security, including our cyber security, and you Vega girls, you do what you have to make it through the show. Ryder, Jade, good luck. I suspect you'll need it."
"Whats that supposed to mean?" Jade growled.
"That we need to go to my dressing room to go over my latest adventure." Tori purred in her ear. "Just as soon as I contact your doctor and make sure you're cleared for everything I'm gonna do to you." She pulled out her phone, hesitated, then spoke to her assistant. "Kasey, I need you to call Doctor Howser and see if Jade's healthy for, um, I'm sending you a list."
"Not calling yourself?" Jade wondered.
"Guys, gonna have sex here." Trina urged the others out of her makeshift office.
"I get embarrassed." The pop princess replied.
"Everyone out, baby making time." Malcolm urged as he all but pushed them out of the room. The door closed with a resounding thud. Malcolm was standing guard.
"Jade, would you escort me to my room." Tori purred, smirking. "Then maybe tie yourself to the bed. I'm not sure I'm strong enough to do that."
"We still have a show to do." Andre reminded them. "And for the love of my loins, lets not have that kind of discussion in public. Kasey, when Jade's cleared for sex, you make sure Tori and I both know. Tori, cause she looks like she ready to explode, and me, cause I need a few days warning to get away from this new side of the tour."
Tori and Jade walked over to her dressing room, with the bodyguard reminding her that it lacked a bed. It did, however, have a couch, so they could play a little, as long as it didn't go too far. "Tori, I love you, but it's part of my job to make sure your up to performing." jade cautioned the starlet, only to be met with a kiss.
As the group broke up for the next couple of house, Andre pulled Bill and Ron aside. "Um, guys, I don't know how to broach this subject, and I'm not gonna say it anywhere near Tori, Trina and especially Jade, but we've been given an offer, and I feel I should let you know..." His voice faded, worry etching it's way onto his face.
"How bad is it?" Bill wondered aloud.
"It's Beck." Dre said, his voice low. "He's let us know he doesn't want some of the girls he's dating hanging around him, not after he's done, so he's not asking his entourage to take them."
"And since you used to be friends, he's offered them to you?" Ron asked.
"He's offered them to us." Andre corrected. "Fits his mindset, girls are either not feminine, or their hoe's to be traded out when he gets board of them."
"Jade's feminine." Ron defended her, a surprise to Andre, who was expecting that from Bill. The two had been paired a lot more in the past year plus. "She'll just rip your dick off if you insult her, and I see now why Beck doesn't include her among the girly girls he likes to date."
"Point is, Becks made the offer, and I know that sometimes, you guys have trouble getting dates, so.." Andre got ready to continue.
"I'm out." Bill said. "Of the offer, still like girls. Fact is, after everything we've been through, Kasey and I kinda bonded. We've started seeing one another, even though I'm far too young for her."
"You're older then she is." Ron pointed out.
"But she was dating Bebop, and he's like ninety." Bill said. "Anyways, we're keeping it casual, cause she wants, well, I don't think she knows what she wants, but she knows she's not getting it from Bebop. Sides, once this tours over, he's going on tour with another band, so she's gonna be alone for a few months. They broke up, and he's out doing..."
"Groupies." Andre finished for him. "What about you, Ron?"
"I'm in." The other guard said. "What? I wasn't partnered with Jade, so I didn't have her corrupting girly morals influencing me. I'm still a man looking for something, and Beck dates hotties."
"Good." Andre said. "Lets just keep the girls out of the loop on this one, okay?"
Over the next couple of months, a new new normal settled on the tour. Tori was privileged to watch as someone else was the focus of Trina's considerable media savvy. Tori would always be Trina's number one priority, but Jade was now a focus too. Jade had to do a dozen plus interview classes, with Tori acting as the peanut gallery, before the manager felt she was ready to face the media.
Beck loved it. For the actor, it was a new push in his career. He played it off as having suspected, for a while, about Tori's sexuality. He made a point of being upset that they broke up, and even more upset that he'd been lied to for years, to the point where he blamed Trina, and she blamed him, and it led to bad blood. "I doubt we'll ever really be friends, all things considered, but we have a workable relationship now." Beck explained to as many news organizations as would hear him out.
Beck had signed on with Trina, having her act as his manager and media consultant. She would allow a real public relations agent to handle his image, not wanting any part in that aspect of his life. Instead, she worked with him to plot out his career. Like Jade, he was going to do a lot of short runs on L.A. Undercover. Unlike her, Trina had a plan to get him into a regular show, probably a sitcom, where his charisma and appeal would help him earn a regular paycheck. She just needed to wait until they could find a project. 'Or have someone create on, all around him...'
In return for Trina's help as a manager, Beck agreed to act as Jade's one man public face while the goth was still acting as Tori's bodyguard. So while he was making the rounds, telling his side of the story to any talk show that would listen, he made a point of mentioning Jade, just not directly enough to cause problems. Instead, he hinted at what she'd done, but played coy, not going into who did what until later, after he'd decided it was "The timming was right."
Trina had told him "Just three months, that all the time we need, and then Jade can be all over the press. Just three months. But we both know the time to strike on the arrest of Nevel Papperman and Festus Al-Yerba is now. So, in return for my forgiveness, and my help in plotting your career, you keep the fires burning, mention the projects she's attached too, but keep your mouth closed about who it was who helped get your ass out of that bad situation."
Lucy Spiller, working with Robbie Shapiro, did a wonderful job of speculating, slowly working out who it was who helped Beck, as well as Jade's roll that night. Robbie, to his credit, even covered the whole New York scenario, all while keeping exactingly who Jade was a secret. He had the exclusive first interview with her, and Tori, for after everything blew up and she could be outed as a hero and celebrity.
Robbie did a whole expose on Festus, all his dirty dealings, and even when he started working with Nevel. They discovered that, up until the failed abduction attempt that injured Andre, Festus relied on his own people to hire mercenaries and plan the snatch. Despite the intelligence involved, it was a failure. Festus had no contingency plan. So he approached Nevel, hired the man to help plan things out, and the new york plan was born. Festus had previously worked with Nevel to plant spyware on Kasey's pad, and from there infect the whole cloud account. But the inclusion of Nevel added the mercenaries, deeper layers of misinformation, and contingency planning, leading to Tori being the one who got lucky to escape in New York. There was even a plan to have Tori housed in Yerba until she was forgotten. It was a well received piece that would win Robbie an award.
Tori, for her part, managed to keep her head, not spill the beans about who had helped rescue her, for the entire remainder of Jade's time on the tour. It helped that Jade was in and out so much, working on projects. Still, the day came when Jade was walking Tori to her car, after the show, for the last time before heading out to make her movie.
"Wait, I wanna sign a couple of autographs." Tori announced. It was hardly new, and the raven haired bodyguard just rolled her eyes and looked over the gathering of fans. There were a lot more paparazzi there that night, but they'd started following the tour more since Beck started his media blitz. It was expected. Bill and Ron had already gone out to flanking positions, with a couple of local off duty cops filling in the open spaces. Security was tight.
Tori signed a few autographs, quickly working her way through the fans. Jade was almost amazed how quickly this batch was being cycled through, even with Tori smiling and chatting with each of them for a moment before moving to the next person. It was the last time Jade would miss a crucial warning, and it was because she was so busy looking out at the crowd she missed it.
"Okay, I need to say something." Tori announced. "I never had the chance to properly thank my bodyguard, Jade West, for saving me in New York, or for her roll in Los Angeles that led to the arrest of several dangerous men. She, by the way, directly captured Festus, so I need to let her know just what she means to me."
Jade had turned to look at the pop princess, now very aware of the many cameras, most taking video. She saw how close Tori had gotten to her, as well as Bill, who was right behind them while Ron had moved to covered the limo door. "So, Jade, this is how I show my appreciation. Well, this, and other things I discussed with Robbie Shapiro in an exclusive interview thats airing, I believe, tomorrow."
"Tori, you don't...' The rest of the sounds Jade made where muffled by Tori's lips, now locked in combat with her own. The kiss went on far longer then the blue eyed girl was ready for, ending with a last deep kiss. "Now that your not guarding my ass, I think it's time I saw all of your again." Tori said in a low, husky voice.
Bill ushered them into the waiting car, and it took off. Jade was bright red, embarrassed at how Tori had handled the whole announcement. "OH MY CHIZZING GOD, VEGA!" She screamed. "WHAT THE CHIZZING HELL?!"
"What the fucking hell." Tori said casually. "You're allowed to use grown up words."
"You made it look..." Jade tried to think of what to say. "Like, like..."
"Like I was gonna nail that ass?" Tori asked, smiling an innocent smile. "Pla-eeze, I've already had that ass. I believe I've had just about all of you, haven't I? Well, not in public."
"I think you meant..." Bill started.
"She knows what she meant, sweetheart." Kasey interrupted the big guy. "No, doing it in public, thats our thing." She added with an evil smile, watching as her man looked both panicked and a bit excited.
"Jade, sweety, your going off to make your movie, and I'll only see you on your frequent conjugal visits." Tori cooed. "Of course I let the world know about our relationship. As much as I'd like this whole romance to stay between you and me, I'm a very public figure, and your about to become one. No, this is when you accept that your not my bodyguard anymore. You're my girlfriend. That means holding hands, kissing, and who knows what else, all in public. So, we good?"
"I choose my swimwear." Jade protested.
"Just as long as I get to see you naked." Tori smiled. "Thats for me, only, and if Beck tries to wrangle you into some kind of script or story where he see's whats mine, he'll need a bodyguard."
Several months later:
The limo drifted through the crowded streets of Los Angles, slowly making it's way to the church. Jade found herself watching out the window, not quite seeing how the world flowed by. Her thoughts were on a million other things. Things like how she was in love with her one time client, and had even moved in with the girl. Or how Trina was even more intimidating pregnant, which had thankfully allowed them to travel in two limos.
"Miss West, once we get to the venue, I'll need to be sure you won't be deviating from the program, okay?" Mister Unger was saying. Jade pulled her attention from the scattered clouds decorating the blue sky to focus on the speaker. "The church is secured, but the parking lot, everything around it, that open territory. Public buildings and open streets that are too accessible. I go first, then you, and we have Mister Madison taking up the rear."
"Andre? Really?" Jade questioned the head of Tori's security.
"What?" He looked far too amused.
"I don't need to be lectured on what to do." She snapped. "I was a bodyguard."
"And a damn good one too." The security chief cut in, not letting her get off on a rant. "But that was before you and Tori hooked up. I'm sorry, but rules are rules, and your a client now. That means you have a man watching your back, and you follow protocols. Mister Unger goes first, then you, then me taking up the flank, then Tori, then Mister Madison. Classic three man security spread. Meanwhile, Ryder has his security team, only needing two cause Trina doesn't draw as many crazies, so they can make do with Bill and Ron giving cover. And we do give cover, at least until you make it into the church, where there's heavy security and you can relax and enjoy the wedding."
"I'm gonna be a brides maid." Tori chimed in. Her dress, like the rest of the brides maids, was a beautiful burgundy gown that flattered her body. The darker lipstick and makeup that went with the gown looked different on Tori, less girl next door and more fem fatal. Jade liked it.
"I don't get it." Jade groaned, pointing at her girlfriend. "I thought the brides maids had to look hideous, so the bride would be the prettiest girl at the wedding. And why didn't I get a radio link?"
"B, you didn't get a link cause, in addition to ruining the lines of that dress, you a guest." Andre tried to explain again. "And A, Cat's not worried about the competition. Plus, there's gonna be a ton of paparazzi there, so we all have to be looking sharp. Even security is dressed up for this one."
"Ryder got a link." Jade pointed out. She was wearing a fairly classy black dress, simple with classic lines, that showed off her curves in a very flattering way.
"Trina's eight months pregnant." Dre shot back. "And in the bridal party. You, as much as I love you, Cat just doesn't know you that well, so you aren't considered necessary to the bridal party, or security. All Cat really knows about you was were her bodyguard a few times in New York, and the girl she secretly sent to have Tori fall for so our girl here could break up with Beck and find herself a happy relationship. Hell, even I was stunned when that made Beck more of a decent human being."
"You're not dating him." Tori snipped. "He's a jerk, and always will be. He's only nice to me now cause Jade's like a sister to him, and he doesn't wanna make enemies." She punctuated that statement by leaning over and capturing her girls lips in a deep kiss.
"Save it for the press." Andre joked, smiling.
"Besides, you only like him cause he sets you up with models." Jade teased. Her relationship with Beck was better, but it was a long way from where it had once been, even as friends.
"Miss West, a reminder, we'll be heading from here to the venue for the reception as soon as the wedding is over. Thats gonna be a crazy time, so we'll have you and the others wait for the majority of the guests to file out, then we move you in small clusters to your cars, have them pull up as close to the church as possible." Mister Unger reminded her.
"And from there, we're heading out to New York for a few days as I get ready to perform on Saturday night live, again." Tori gloated. "I'm hosting."
"When do I get to host?" Jade asked, feeling extra whiny. But as a New Jersey native, and having lived one bridge away from New York her entire early life, hosting SNL was a dream she could never have Imagined before.
"Maybe after your movie gets released, or they decide to do that spinoff for L.A. undercover with you in the lead, even if you'll be pairing with Beck." Tori said, smiling. "It's what we moved you to Los Angleles for, remember?"
"You mean it wasn't for the sex?" Jade asked, only to be silenced with a kiss.
The car came to a stop, and Jade held her girls hand. "Remember, Sweety, your a celebrity now, and the press is always watching." Tori reminded her.
"God I hope not, cause last night..." Jade was cut off by another kiss. Then the door opened, and Jade West was once more introduced to the public.
:}
And thats a story. Hope everyone was happy to be along for the ride. Yes, I gave Beck a chance to redeem himself, even if he's still a jerk. I mean, he was so pissed at being insulted by Festus, he was willing to help bring him down. But I like twists, and I liked that one.
I want to thank everyone who reviewed, everyone who read this story, and everyone who skimmed through looking for the cutesy moments. But mostly, the reviewers. You never know when something you say lets me see a hole in my plot I need to fill.
So, for the last time in this story, review. Let me know what you thought about the chapter, the resolutions, Beck's taunting dangerous men, anything. Was Trina direct enough in letting Ryder know her desires? What did you think of the new men on security? Anything you wanna ask, go ahead.