Wolves of the Pacific

by greenpeach20

In 1902, Renesmee Cullen grew tired of the tedious life of moving around with her family and decided to make the journey west as a mail order bride. Yet a chance encounter with a reddish brown wolf would change her life forever.

144. Chapter 144

Chapter 144

Embry arrived in New York bright and early. He'd not bothered with a flight but had landed somewhere inconspicuous and took a train into the City proper. He went to Kevin's apartment that he'd been given free access to. Embry had promised he'd find a place of his own as soon as possible but Kevin insisted it was no trouble and not to worry about it. When Embry arrived and said who he was, the Bell Man welcomed him as if he were a paying tenant and even helped him with all his luggage. Although Kevin had said he could use the master bedroom, Embry was happy to just sleep on the couch. It was a damn good couch. Embry took a few hours to relax before getting into the shower, making himself presentable and then leaving for the Law Firm. When he arrived, there was a redheaded young woman at the reception desk and she was on the phone when he entered. Regardless, she smiled politely at him and put her hand over the mouth piece of her phone.

"If you'll have a seat there sir, I'll be right with you," she said politely before returning to her call. Embry smiled back and took a seat in the waiting area while the young woman finished her call. Once she was off the phone, she stood up from her chair and Embry did the same. "I'm sorry to make you wait, sir. How can I assist you?"

"I'm here to see a Mr. Alphonse Heidelberg. It's regarding a project he has me doing."

"One moment, let me glance at the schedule," she said and opened up a large calendar book going down a row. "Mr. Embry Call?"

"Yes ma'am," Embry answered.

"One moment while I call Mr. Heidelberg," she said and got back on the phone to get Alphonse. She spoke with him briefly before ending the call. "Mr. Heidelberg will see you now. Did you need me to show you to his office?"

"That won't be necessary, but thank you," Embry answered and left the waiting area making the walk to Alphonse's corner office. The door was closed so he knocked and entered once Alphonse gave the permission to do so. Once inside, he went straight to Alphonse's desk and the man stood to greet him.

"Afternoon, Embry. How was your flight?"

"My arms are exhausted," Embry said completely serious.

"Funny," Alphonse said, "Let's get down to business. I have another two hours before I can leave the office, but once I can, I will take you to the property you'll be building on."

"I can't wait," Embry said. "I can start as soon as I have a team together and the materials to do so."

"I have someone taking care of finding a team for you," Alphonse said, "You are not starting building just yet. You're going on a little field trip first."

"A field trip, sir?"

"Yes," Alphonse answered. "Anastasia and I are going on a little trip to Gaal next week; have some father daughter time together. You will be joining us in Austria."

"You want me to join you on a vacation with your daughter?"

"Not necessarily. Anastasia and I will be vacationing. You will be working. There is a cabin I've rented that we will be staying at. Your job will be to take notes of the structure, the layout, the design and so on. Granted, it's not exactly the same as the home from my childhood; I'll fill in the blanks in that respect. However you need to familiarize yourself with Austrian architecture. I see no better way to do that than by going to Austria and staring at it for yourself."

"Well….I appreciate that, Alphonse. I look forward to some hands on research."

"Good!" Alphonse said and sat back down at his desk. "You are staying at Kevin's apartment?"

"Yes sir," Embry said.

"I will come get you when it's time to leave then," Alphonse said. "In the meantime, feel free to do whatever you need to."

"Will do," Embry said and left the office about as quickly as he'd arrived. When he stepped out, the young woman from before was a little surprised.

"Did everything go alright, sir?"

"Fantastic, thank you. He's a man of few words."

"Mr. Heidelberg?" the young woman asked unconvinced and Embry chuckled.

"He's a man that knows what he wants and expects it conveyed quickly," Embry said.

"That I'll agree with," she said. "Well, thank you for coming and enjoy your day."

"You too Miss…."

"Matilda Jenkins, sir," she smiled.

"You too Miss Jenkins. I'll make sure to call Mr. Black and let him know you've been so nice. See if I can't get you a raise."

"That is so kind of you to say, Mr. Call; thank you," Miss Jenkins smiled sweetly.

Embry said goodbye and returned to the apartment so he could relax until Alphonse was ready to leave for the site of his soon to be dream home. As promised, Embry did put in a good word for Miss Jenkins when he called Kevin and the two of them chatted briefly while Embry was at the apartment waiting for Alphonse. It was a few hours before the man came to get him and once he had, it was the start of a very long project.

Day to day continued from there. Sergei and Lee were getting acclimated more and more and their English was continuing to improve while Nadeshka was growing very quickly. Sergei, though he tried to, had a hard time bonding with his little sister given she was growing at such an unnatural rate and it was, to be blunt, freaking him out. Lee was far more receptive to his little sister but far preferred his days when Anatoli would visit with his siblings and he could play. Otherwise, his day was consumed with learning English although Heidi was sure to make the project fun for him. Boris and Dimitri were gone the remainder of April and the majority of May. Illyana became restless with his absence but kept the sentiment mostly to herself. When it was the end of May, Dimitri and Boris finally returned late in the evening just as Anatoli was getting ready to leave with Argo. The boys and Nadeshka were already asleep so they could not welcome their father home, but Illyana welcomed him home with a prolonged kiss.

"Почему ты ушел так долго?" (Pochemu ty ushel tak dolgo? / Why were you gone so long?) Illyana asked after they'd kissed.

"У меня было несколько побочных поездок," (U menya bylo neskol'ko pobochnykh poyezdok / I had a number of side trips I needed to make) Boris answered and pressed another kiss to her lips. "Говоря о побочных поездках; Анатолий!" (Govorya o pobochnykh poyezdkakh; Anatoliy! / Speaking of side trips; Anatoli!) Boris approached Anatoli after saying his name and then hugged him. "Я уехал в Литву после отъезда из Москвы." (YA uyekhal v Litvu posle ot"yezda iz Moskvy / I went to Lithuania after leaving Moscow).

"Зачем?" (Zachem / What for?)

"Для начинающих," (Dlya nachinayushchikh / For starters) Boris said with a mischievous smile and reached into his large duffle bag to pull out an open carton of about 12 boxes of cigarettes; and not just any cigarettes, but Belomorkanal cigarettes: the ones Anatoli actually liked the few times he would smoke. "Я посетил Вадима, и он поздравляет тебя с твоим браком." (YA posetil Vadima, i on pozdravlyayet tebya s tvoim brakom / I visited Vadim and he sends his congratulations on your marriage).

"Отправив мне открытую коробку сигарет Беломорканал?" (Otpraviv mne otkrytuyu korobku sigaret Belomorkanal / By sending me an open carton of Belomorkanal cigarettes?).

"Вадим по глупости оставил это на своем подоконнике. Я не думал, что он будет против, если я возьму их в качестве своего свадебного подарка тебе." (Vadim po gluposti ostavil eto na svoyem podokonnike. YA ne dumal, chto on budet protiv, yesli ya voz'mu ikh v kachestve svoyego svadebnogo podarka tebe / Vadim foolishly left this on his windowsill. I did not think he would mind if I took them as his wedding present to you) It took a moment but when Anatoli realized what Boris meant, he couldn't stop laughing.

"Ты украл его сигареты?" (Ty ukral yego sigarety? / You stole his cigarettes?) Anatoli asked through his laughter.

Boris nodded with the same laugh, "До конца месяца ему предстоит долгий путь!" (Do kontsa mesyatsa yemu predstoit dolgiy put'! / He will have a long road before the end of the month!) Boris took out two, handed one to Anatoli and then put the other in his own mouth.

"Can you please do that outside," Esme quickly said.

"Is okay; we not bother anyone," Boris answered unexpectedly.

"Нет, Борис, мы выйдем на улицу," (Net, Boris, my vyydem na ulitsu / No, Boris, we will go outside) Anatoli insisted and took Boris by the collar so they could go outside with Argo following by Anatoli's side. Once out, they lit their cigarettes and Anatoli moaned a little. "Я забыл, насколько мне нравится Беломорканал. Теперь мне тоже нужна водка." (YA zabyl, naskol'ko mne nravitsya Belomorkanal. Teper' mne tozhe nuzhna vodka / I forgot how much I like Belomorkanal. Now I also need Vodka).

"Один момент," (Odin moment / one moment) Boris said and reached in to grab a bottle out of his duffle bag.

"Вы принесли водку?" (Vy prinesli vodku? / You brought vodka?).

"Конечно я принес водку. С кем, черт возьми, ты думаешь разговаривать?" (Konechno ya prines vodku. S kem, chert voz'mi, ty dumayesh' razgovarivat'? / Of course I brought Vodka. Who the fuck do you think you're talking to?) Boris asked with a chuckle and Anatoli laughed too before accepting the bottle and pulling out the cork. He took a big swig and groaned from the burn.

"Может быть, в этой сумке есть соленья и черный хлеб?" (Mozhet byt', v etoy sumke yest' solen'ya i chernyy khleb? / Would you happen to have pickles and black bread in that bag?)

"Дерьмо; Я знал, что должен был принести," (Der'mo; YA znal, chto dolzhen byl prinesti / Shit; I knew I should have brought some) Boris said. "Также я остановился в Клайпеде, когда был в Литве." (Takzhe ya ostanovilsya v Klaypede, kogda byl v Litve / Also, I stopped in Klaipeda while I was in Lithuania.)

"Вы ездили в Клайпеду? Зачем?" (Vy yezdili v Klaypedu? Zachem? / You went to Klaipeda? Why?)

"Я думал, что ваши опекуны хотели бы знать, что вы женитесь," (YA dumal, chto vashi opekuny khoteli by znat', chto vy zhenites' / I thought your guardians would want to know you are getting married) Boris answered. "Ниеле отказалась присутствовать, но посылает тебе свою любовь." (Niyele otkazalas' prisutstvovat', no posylayet tebe svoyu lyubov' / Niele declined to attend but sends you her love).

"Она не сказала, что посылает мне свою любовь," (Ona ne skazala, chto posylayet mne svoyu lyubov' / She did not say she sends me her love) Anatoli said skeptically.

"Я перефразирую," (YA perefraziruyu / I'm paraphrasing) Boris said. "Что касается Миколаса, она сказала мне, что он больше не живет в Литве и бежал в Англию." (Chto kasayetsya Mikolasa, ona skazala mne, chto on bol'she ne zhivet v Litve i bezhal v Angliyu / As for Mykolas, she told me he no longer lived in Lithuania and had fled to England).

"Миколас покинул Ниеле?" (Mikolas pokinul Niyele? / Mykolas left Niele?) Anatoli asked with a gentle smile. He perhaps shouldn't, but he hoped that Mykolas had finally come to his senses and realized Niele would never love him and finally moved on.

"Видимо так. Она сказала, что он встретил кого-то, и они бежали в Англию. Лондон специально." (Vidimo tak. Ona skazala, chto on vstretil kogo-to, i oni bezhali v Angliyu. London spetsial'no / Apparently so. She said he met someone and they fled to England. London specifically).

"Хорошо. Я рад за него," (Khorosho. YA rad za nego / Good. I'm happy for him) Anatoli said.

"Я отправился в Лондон, чтобы пригласить его на вашу свадьбу. Он сказал, что был рад услышать, что вы женитесь, и будет честью приехать. Он будет здесь в апреле со своим другом и их дочерью." (YA otpravilsya v London, chtoby priglasit' yego na vashu svad'bu. On skazal, chto byl rad uslyshat', chto vy zhenites', i budet chest'yu priyekhat'. On budet zdes' v aprele so svoim drugom i ikh docher'yu / I went to London to invite him to your wedding. He said he was delighted to hear you're getting married and would be honored to come. He will be here in April with his mate and their daughter).

"Их что?" (Ikh chto? / Their what?)

"Их дочь," (Ikh doch' / Their daughter) Boris repeated himself. "Совершенно история. Миколас встретил молодую женщину, которая, как он надеялся, могла дать ему и Ниеле ребенка. Я полагаю, что он отчаянно нуждался в любви Нила, но он безумно любил женщину, которую хотел родить. Вместо того чтобы навязывать ей беременность, он нашел кого-то, с кем он мог действительно поговорить, и они были вместе с весны прошлого года. Одно привело к другому, и их дочь родилась в декабре этого года. Милая маленькая девочка; они назвали ее Надя. Марица - так зовут его помощника - изменилась после рождения Надя, и они живут в Англии с января." (Sovershenno istoriya. Mikolas vstretil moloduyu zhenshchinu, kotoraya, kak on nadeyalsya, mogla dat' yemu i Niyele rebenka. YA polagayu, chto on otchayanno nuzhdalsya v lyubvi Nila, no on bezumno lyubil zhenshchinu, kotoruyu khotel rodit'. Vmesto togo chtoby navyazyvat' yey beremennost', on nashel kogo-to, s kem on mog deystvitel'no pogovorit', i oni byli vmeste s vesny proshlogo goda. Odno privelo k drugomu, i ikh doch' rodilas' v dekabre etogo goda. Milaya malen'kaya devochka; oni nazvali yeye Nadya. Maritsa - tak zovut yego pomoshchnika - izmenilas' posle rozhdeniya Nadya, i oni zhivut v Anglii s yanvarya / Quite the story. Mykolas met a young woman that he hoped could give him and Niele a child. I suppose he was desperate for Niele's love, but he found himself madly in love with the woman he'd meant to have the baby. Instead of forcing a pregnancy on her, he found someone he could truly talk to and they have been together since spring last year. One thing led to another and their daughter was born this past December. Cute little girl; they named her Nadja. Maritza – that's his mate's name – was changed after Nadja was born and they have lived in England since January).

"Хорошо," (Khorosho / Good) Anatoli smiled, "Я рад, что он встретил кого-то. Он заслуживает счастья после всего этого времени. И спасибо, что пригласили его." (YA rad, chto on vstretil kogo-to. On zasluzhivayet schast'ya posle vsego etogo vremeni. I spasibo, chto priglasili yego / I'm glad he met someone. He deserves some happiness after all this time. And thank you for inviting him). Anatoli took another swig of the vodka and groaned from the burn again. There was a comfortable silence for a moment while they smoked and enjoyed the springtime air and light drizzle of rain. While they were outside, Anatoli looked at Boris and a thought occurred to him. "Ты будешь моим лучшим человеком?" (Ty budesh' moim luchshim chelovekom? / Would you be my Best Man?).

"Какие?" (Kakiye? / What?)

"Ты будешь моим лучшим человеком? Мой младший брат Леви - один из моих женихов, но мне все еще нужен лучший мужчина." (Ty budesh' moim luchshim chelovekom? Moy mladshiy brat Levi - odin iz moikh zhenikhov, no mne vse yeshche nuzhen luchshiy muzhchina / Would you be my Best Man? My little brother Levi is one of my groomsmen but I still need a Best Man).

Boris gave Anatoli a brotherly smile and said, "Для меня будет честью." (Dlya menya budet chest'yu / I would be honored).

Anatoli smiled back and even gave Boris a hug. Anatoli stayed long enough for him and Boris to finish their cigarettes and for Anatoli to get through a not so insignificant portion of the bottle of Vodka before returning home. The following day, Boris went to Nathan regarding possibly working for him at the police station. Though his English was still extremely limited, Nathan accepted Boris onto the team figuring there was no better way for the man to continue learning English than to effectively be forced to. Then the remainder of the year continued. By Levi's 12th birthday that year in July, Sergei's English had improved considerably and he, Caleb, and Levi seemed constant companions with one another. Sergei was happy to have good friends in a strange country and Levi and Caleb were excited to have an older friend. Lee was also a frequent companion, the twins having become very fond of playing with him, and was often at Amber's and Kevin's house or at Kyle's and Evalina's house – whoever was hosting the play date.

Anatoli and Ivory focused on the details for the wedding obtaining whatever help they could for whatever was needed. Alice already had the bridesmaids' dresses and Ivory's dress made and Scarlet and Jaedynn already tried their dresses on: a cocktail dress with a full skirt that went right below the knee and short sleeves with a high neck in gold fabric. Their shoes were also gold and their flowers would be white. Back in Las Vegas, there would be long stretches of no planning and then a burst of having to do other things. Ivory and Anatoli spent hours on the phone together one evening just trying to iron out their guest count which was far more frustrating than either of them wanted it to be. It seemed like the moment Ivory wrote someone down, Tamara would speak up saying to not forget to include one relative or another. It was always relatives Ivory barely knew or spoke to. Their Save the Dates had already been sent earlier that year but they needed to get their official invitations out no later than September which meant knowing who they wanted to invite. Anatoli asked Boris if he knew Mykolas's address to which he'd said, "он знает, что будет здесь в апреле - все хорошо" (on znayet, chto budet zdes' v aprele - vse khorosho / he knows to be here April – it's fine). When Anatoli gave Ivory and Alice that answer, it was not received well and Alice, kind as she is, pressed Boris for the address until they got a 'ball park' estimation that they could at least give to Siobhan when they called her.

"Who is Siobhan?" Anatoli asked Alice when she advised they'd ask Siobhan to find out Mykolas's address when they called to get hers.

"She is a family friend, so we would invite them to the wedding," Alice answered.

When Anatoli was about to argue, Kevin put a hand on his shoulder and said, "Take it from me: don't argue with her. Just let Alice do her thing and everything will be fine."

"But I do not know this woman?"

"Neither did I, but we invited her and her and her family to our wedding," Amber said. "If we don't invite her to yours and Ivory's wedding, it would be rude."

"Mama, I will bet you all the money I have she would not care in the slightest," Anatoli grumbled.

"Better safe than sorry," Amber encouraged and kissed Anatoli's cheek. "I know this is frustrating but the day of the wedding, it will all have been worth it," Amber promised.

Anatoli still muttered his irritation, but didn't protest any further. He was only relieved that Ivory was just as annoyed with the unexpected guest count as he was and the two of them were able to complain about it together for a bit. Although given Alice was working her magic and helping make the wedding perfect, planning the wedding wasn't nearly so infuriating and tiresome as it could have been. One evening when Ivory was on the phone with Alice about the dress, Alice promised her, "Come the day of, your job is to be beautiful and have a good time. Any and all logistics, screw ups, and set up will be my problem. You don't have to worry about a thing." That was the sweetest thing Ivory had heard the whole time they'd been planning the wedding. December would be when the real work would begin, though. Since she would be there as were her bridesmaids and Anatoli and, now, both his groomsmen, December would be 'get shit done' month as Ivory put it.

"Drake," Ivory said during her dinner break at work after spending hours brainstorming ideas for this and that while she was working.

"What?"

"When you get married, just elope. Less work that way," Ivory said.

"Way ahead of you," Drake laughed. "You don't mind if I bring a date to your wedding do you?"

"Put it on the RSVP and it'll be fine," Ivory said.

"When are you sending out the invitations?"

"Alice said she'll mail them out next week," Ivory said. "She's insisting we're behind, but it's August for shit's sake. We're getting married April."

"You want to make sure people get their invitations," Drake said with a shrug.

"Don't you dare legitimize Alice's point," Ivory grumbled.

"Hey, you've got a wedding planner, Miss Fancy Pants. You'd best take her advice," Drake said. "So how many people are you inviting?"

"Between my family, his family and extended family I don't fucking know about and friends? About 250; although I lost count if I'm being honest so it may have gone up."

Drake whistled, "Quite the guest count. How many people can the venue accommodate?"

"The coordinator assures me it can accommodate as many as 400 people, but I begged him to lie and say it can only accommodate 300. He tried but Alice got the truth out of him."

"Well, look at it this way: the more people come, the more likely you'll have a lot of guests that bring money instead of a gift. That ain't too shabby wouldn't you say?"

"I guess," Ivory groaned. "Alice promises once it's the day of, she will worry about everything and all Anatoli and I have to do is have a good time. I'm counting on it."

"It'll be great; don't you worry," Drake promised. "So what are you doing for your bachelorette party?"

"Something here," Ivory said with a victorious smile. "Mom is throwing my Bridal Shower and it would have to be here, so she suggested why don't Scarlet and Jaedynn come to Vegas for that and we can have my Bachelorette Party that same weekend. Daddy was very kind to help convince them to do it, although I've been tasked with picking what I want to do. Jaedynn is paying though. At least for me and herself."

"What do you think Anatoli will be doing?"

"From what I've heard of his best man? Drinking until he can't stand," Ivory said.

"You haven't met his best man?"

"Sadly no. I meet him in December. It's a long story," Ivory said as she waived her hand dismissively. "December is going to be our time to finish favors and things like that."

"What are the favors going to be?"

"I don't know yet," Ivory sighed. "I've been trying to think of something all day but nothing's coming to mind. Alice will think of something I'm sure. At this point, I'll green light it without hesitation."

"Sounds like a plan," Drake said. At the end of her shift, Ivory got her things from her locker and made the walk to her car. She felt dead tired, but it had nothing to do with work. She was still exhausted from collecting addresses, names and so on for Alice to send the invitations. While she was walking to her car, Ben walked up behind her.

"Hey, Ivory," Ben said. "You look tired. Are you alright?"

"Just a long day at work," Ivory lied. "I'm looking forward to going home and falling into bed."

"I know what you mean," Ben said. "So how's wedding planning going?"

"A logistical nightmare; thank you," Ivory joked. "My Aunt is acting as our wedding planner and this past weekend was making sure she had all the names and addresses of the people we're inviting so she can send the invitations. We aren't getting married until April but she's claiming August is getting them out 'late'."

"Well, it depends on if you have family out of the country. I never talk to them, sure, but my parents would insist on inviting family from the old country."

"You're Italian, right?"

"Yeah; family is from Venice," Ben said.

"I guess," Ivory groaned. "We're inviting people from England, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Or wherever they're from. Our guest book will be a God damn novel at this rate."

"No kidding," Ben said and then the two of them were quiet. Once Ivory made it to her car and was about to get in and say good night, Ben said, "Do you want to go to the Café and get some coffee?"

"No thank you, Ben. I need sleep and if I get coffee at this hour, I'll never get to sleep. I'll see you later."

"I'll see you later, Ivory," Ben said after looking a little dejected.

Ben continued talking to Ivory every day after her shift eventually asking her to coffee and she always said no. She went to HR about it earlier that year, but they weren't able to do very much given all he was doing was talking to her after work so she'd just decided she was sick of the drama and reminded herself she was moving to Washington after the wedding and wouldn't have to deal with this anymore. "Make it to April, make it to April," she kept repeating to herself over and over again. When December finally came and Ivory landed in Washington, Anatoli was the one to pick her up from the airport and the two of them embraced the moment Ivory exited the airport with her luggage.

"God, I missed you," Anatoli whispered to her as he was kissing her neck.

"I missed you too," Ivory said. "I hope you're ready for some painstaking arts and crafts; we need to make the favors while I'm here."

"Can it wait?" Anatoli asked and, for emphasis, reached his hand down to give her butt a squeeze and make her giggle.

"I suppose, but only long enough for us to catch up," Ivory answered and then squealed when Anatoli lifted her up by her hips and gently placed her in the passenger's seat of his truck. He ran to the other side and got in the driver's seat so he could drive them back to his house first. "So how's my baby?"

"Tired," Anatoli said. "I have been elbow deep in someone's kitchen all week took hook up a gas line."

"I meant our son," Ivory giggled.

"Oh," Anatoli said, "and here I thought you were concerned about me; I see how it is," he joked.

"How is Argo?"

"He is fine," Anatoli smiled. "He will be happy mommy is home."

"I can't wait to see him," Ivory said. "So when am I meeting Boris?"

"I can invite him over tonight," Anatoli said. "He can bring Illyana and the kids too."

"Sounds lovely," Ivory said. "If I spent the night with you, do you think we could get away with it?"

"You are welcome to, but you will need to run that by Nathan first," Anatoli said.

"You're my fiancé, Anatoli – I'm entitled to spend the night with you," Ivory said and Anatoli smiled at her.

He extended a hand to her so they could hold one another while he drove and once they arrived back at the house, the two of them took advantage of the time alone before going next door to pick up Argo. As Anatoli predicted, Argo was very happy to see Ivory and started jumping on her with excitement moments before Anatoli gave the order to Argo to stay down. He called Boris to invite him over and, since he was bringing Illyana and the children Anatoli called home and invited them over so the kids could visit. Illyana was kind enough to make dinner while the children had a snowball fight outside that the twins tried to engage in as well. Nadeshka, still very young but already appearing as a five to seven year old, was kind enough to help them.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Anatoli has told me all about you," Ivory said to Boris when they arrived.

"Is pleasure to meet you too," Boris said. "When Anatoli tell me he is getting married, I could not wait to meet you. This one break many hearts in his day." Anatoli elbowed Boris in the arm and the man laughed.

"Yes, I've heard about the time he made your mother feed one of his lady friends," Ivory joked and Boris burst out laughing.

"Mama never realize thank God," Boris finally said. "So Anatoli say you are gambler?"

"I work for a casino," Ivory corrected with a smile. "You work for daddy right? You are a cop?"

"Yes," Boris answered. "Is different from what I do in Soviet Union, but is not so strange."

"What did you do in Russia?"

"I work for Red Army," Boris said. "I believe in English you say Administration."

"I never understood his job when he explained it to me in Russian and I doubt it'll make sense in English either," Anatoli joked.

"Did you work for the KGB or something?" Ivory asked nervously.

"Maybe yes, maybe no; I not say. But always remember: walls have ears and loose lips," Boris said, his face suddenly dead serious and it made Ivory really nervous. Then he smiled and patted her shoulder. "I joke," he said.

"I hope so," Ivory laughed nervously.

"I promise, Ivory: he did not work for the KGB," Anatoli promised though, if he were being realistic, he had no idea if that was even true.

"You were a soldier though weren't you?" Ivory asked.

"Yes," Boris answered. "My papa and grandpa before me were too. My papa was patriot first for Royal Army, then for Red Army. He even help take down Romanov family."

"Did he?" Ivory asked.

"Please do not tell her that story," Anatoli pleaded.

"I tell you later," Boris said to Ivory with a gentle chuckle.

Once dinner was ready, they all sat together in the dining room at the dining table Anatoli had finally purchased not long ago. Nadeshka didn't eat of course so she instead talked to Heather and Evalynn the whole time. While Sergei was going to school, she was being home schooled much the way Anatoli was and her English was drastically better compared to her brothers, though she could switch from English to Russian on the fly depending on who was addressing her. Ivory couldn't help thinking about Jaedynn when she looked at Nadeshka. The two of them looked nothing alike of course, but both were pale with pitch black hair. Although she didn't want to have to stay in Forks, when it was the end of their evening Ivory accepted a ride from Boris and Illyana back to the tribe.

"Now, Ivory," Boris said after they'd left the house, "I owe you story of my father I believe."

Ivory listened politely while Boris told of how his father, a patriot indeed, was one of the men that had forced their way into the Romanov Palace and taken the royal family hostage. While he'd not received the 'honor' as Boris worded it of executing the royal family, he did contribute in the disposal of the bodies of the Royal family. After his father was away for several weeks on this adventure, Boris recounted his father returning to Moscow 'drunk and happy as pig shit' and he chuckled at the memory of his father boasting that Russia belonged to the people at last. "None month later," Boris ended his story, "My sister Victoria was born. She die at one year old – I do not remember why – but you can imagine father was very, very happy when he return home." Ivory laughed awkwardly at the ending to his story. The man certainly had a grim sense of humor Ivory thought to herself. Of course, given the man's life story as she knew it, Ivory couldn't pretend it wasn't completely understandable where it came from. The following day was when Alice came to pick up Ivory and bring her to the Cullen house.

"I can't wait to see my dress," Ivory said to Alice.

"You will love it," Alice said confidently.

Given all the children had the rooms save for Esme's and Carlisle's, Ivory's dress was being kept in there. When they entered the room, the dress was still on the mannequin. It was a silky white fabric that was loose fitting with a halter neckline and completely backless just as Ivory had wanted. The halter was held up with a large gold neck with the fabric sewn around it and a v neck that went just low enough. The dress synched just under the bust line and the fabric that accentuated the line was secured by the same gold necklace in the back making a diamond like pattern in the back of the dress and was completely sleeveless. Ivory nearly begged to get the dress on and once she was wearing it, she nearly cried.

"Alice, it's perfect," Ivory cried. "I feel like a goddess."

"I'm pleased to hear it," Alice smiled while she was doing a once over to ensure it fit just right, putting a pin in spots that either needed to be taken in or let out. "Do you want to try on your veil?"

"Yes, please," Ivory nodded eagerly. Alice retrieved the veil: a very traditional veil that covered her face down her chest and the back went down to the floor. Ivory turned around in front of the mirror looking over her shoulder to get a good look of herself and sighed. "You're amazing, Alice."

"I'm so happy you love it," Alice said. "Since I have you in the dress, do you want to decide on a hairstyle?"

"I just know I want it up," Ivory said. "I want Jaedynn's and Scarlet's hair up too."

"For your hair, was there anything in particular you had in mind?"

"Anything that makes sure the back of my dress is visible," Ivory said.

"We'll play around with it," Alice smiled.

That afternoon when Jaedynn was off work, Ivory asked for her and Scarlet to come to the Cullen house so she could see them in their bridesmaid dresses and once she gave her stamp of approval on them, Rosalie and Alice worked with Ivory to determine what hairstyle she wanted for herself and for her bridesmaids. Emma Leigh hovered at Rosalie's side offering her own suggestions saying they should put a flower in Ivory's hair. Ivory suggested she would love to have White Dahlias in her hair and with that train of thought they started thinking about what yellow flowers they could put in Scarlet's and Jaedynn's hair. That was the only aspect of the wedding planning during that December that ended up being enjoyable. The rest was tedious, mind-numbing work.

"No, Jaedynn, you need to make it look like this," Ivory nitpicked while they were writing out the guests' names on little cards.

"Ivory, your guests aren't going to give a single fuck about the way the dot above the I looks," Scarlet said.

"Well, I care," Ivory glowered.

"Anatoli, she's your wife to be – talk some sense into her," Scarlet said. Anatoli gave her a critical look as though she were nuts.

"I'm not sure why we're even working on this right now. We don't even have back all the RSVPs," Jaedynn said.

"Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it," Alice said, going down the guest list at the speed of light it seemed.

"Why are we even doing this? Alice is faster than any of us combined," Jaedynn said.

"Because it's not fair to make her do all of it," Ivory said. "No, Anatoli, like this," Ivory said and fixed the one Anatoli was working on. Boris stepped up to the table placing a shot glass on the table and filling it with Vodka.

"Вы выглядите так, как будто вам нужна водка," (Vy vyglyadite tak, kak budto vam nuzhna vodka / You look like you need vodka) Boris said to Anatoli. He didn't answer. Instead Anatoli took the shot back and put the shot back on the table.

"Anatoli, I know this is boring but please watch me," Ivory said and walked Anatoli through another card. Anatoli affirmed he understood and took back over his pile. Boris poured him another shot that Anatoli took back. "Anatoli, can that be your last one for now?"

"Is my last, I promise," Anatoli said and handed the shot glass to Boris.

Meanwhile Illyana was making an enormous batch of strawberry jam; specifically her late mother-in-law's recipe. Sergei and Lee hovered Illyana while she cooked the job, their mouths watering and begging for a share of the jam. She insisted that the jam was to be sealed in glass containers as gifts for the wedding guests and if there was some left over after they'd finished jarring the jam, THEN they could have some. By the end of that day, 375 tiny mason jars had been filled with strawberry jam and the name tags for the guests were filled out. The next day, those nametags were threaded with gold ribbon and tied around the jars.

"I swear if every single person that was invited doesn't show up, I'll scream," Jaedynn muttered while they were tying the ribbon around the jars.

"Amen to that," Scarlet said.

After they finally finished the favors for the guests, the following day was used for the favors that would be placed in the hotel rooms for people that would be staying in a hotel. Anatoli helped with everything but it truly did test his patience. After they'd finished the latest round of favors for guests, Boris dragged Anatoli away so the two of them could smoke at the shore. It was just what Anatoli needed to relax, especially since when they returned Alice cracked the whip so to speak on Ivory's behalf to work on the boutonnieres for the groomsmen, fathers of the groom and bride, and the corsages for the mothers of the groom and bride. They finished everything on their to-do list by the time Tamara made it to Washington and she praised all the favors and boutonnieres for how lovely they were though the enthusiasm wasn't really shared for the bridal party at the moment. They still needed time to decompress before truly appreciating all the hard work.

Amber also got to work on the Unity Candle while Ivory was in town. She stuck with the white and gold color scheme and put little pearls in the floral carve out on the candle. Once Ivory say the Unity Candle and its accompanying tapers, she loved them. She was scared to even hold it thinking she might drop it or scratch it or otherwise ruin it. After that, they finally relaxed a little. Anatoli would come to Nathan's house every day after work to visit with Ivory and the two of them actually made sure to enjoy themselves.

"You know, Ivory: the moment the wedding's over, you'll wonder why you made such a big deal about those name tags," Ariel teased Ivory when she and Anatoli came to the bar with Jaedynn.

"I think they look beautiful," Ivory defended.

"No, they do. I'm just saying you aren't going to care once this wedding's over."

"You'd better care for all the work we put into them," Jaedynn grumbled.

"Of course I care!" Ivory said.

"Here," Ariel said after he finished making some eggnog. "I'll even make it free." Ivory didn't answer but accepted the glass of eggnog taking a big gulp. "You want anything, Anatoli?"

"Beer is fine," Anatoli said and Ariel got the bottle of beer he knew Anatoli liked. "I cannot wait for this to be done."

"Me either," Ivory said. "Just remember: the day of, it'll all have been worth it."

"I know," Anatoli said and took a few gulps of his beer.

Ariel chuckled a little at their expense and added the beer to the list of drinks he'd be comping for the night for Anatoli and Ivory. I little while later, Boris walked into the bar with Nadeshka in his arms and Sergei and Lee following at his side. He sat at the bar with Anatoli. Sergei sat next to Boris while Nadeshka and Lee sat on his lap. Ariel was taken off guard when he saw Nadeshka.

"Boris, I do not think you can bring children in a bar," Anatoli said.

"Is okay; they do not bother everyone," Boris said and gently shook Nadeshka and Lee making the two of them laugh. "Sergei, Lee, tell the bartender what you would like."

"Can I have a soda?" Sergei asked.

"Me too!" Lee announced. Ariel was still looking at Nadeshka. He felt his world shift as everyone in the pack experienced when they found their imprint.

"Bartender?" Sergei asked and took Ariel out of his trance.

"I'm sorry; you said a soda?"

"Yeah," Sergei and Lee both nodded.

"Did you want anything?" Ariel asked Nadeshka and the little girl smiled politely at him.

"I would like blood, please," she said sweetly as could be.

"Не здесь, Надешка," (Ne zdes', Nadeshka) Boris said and looked at Ariel, "she is kidding."

"I'll get you some water at least," Ariel smiled and got the boys their soda and Nadeshka a glass of water. He put a little lemon wedge and maraschino cherry in the glass of water for her just to make it pretty for her. "Don't worry kid; I know how you feel."

Nadeshka accepted the water and sipped at it periodically while her brothers enjoyed their sodas. Ariel returned to work as usual but he kept glancing at Nadeshka, still in disbelief that he'd imprinted. By the time the bar closed in the wee hours of the morning, Ariel was cleaning the bar while Gabriel was ensuring the last of the patrons made it home safely or were put up in the hotel nearby so they could sleep off the booze. Once everyone was gone and the bar was cleaned, Ariel and Gabriel drove back home together.

"Me imprimí en Nadeshka," (I imprinted on Nadeshka) Ariel said after the two of them had been driving for a moment.

"¿Lo hiciste?" (You did?) Gabriel asked. "Felicidades." (Congratulations).

"Supongo que ahora puedo decir que sé cómo te sientes," (I guess now I can actually say that I know how you feel) Ariel smiled.

"No es tan malo como lo hiciste sonar," (It's not as bad as you'd made it sound) Gabriel smiled back.

"Emmett y Rosalie todavía no lo saben, ¿verdad?" (Emmett and Rosalie still don't know right?)

"No," Gabriel gently shook his head. "La mayor tarea es limitar la frecuencia con la que visito, por lo que no es sospechoso. ¿Crees que Boris e Illyana serán más receptivos?" (The greater chore is limiting how often I visit so it's not suspicious. Do you suppose Boris and Illyana will be more receptive?)

"No sé si quiero probarlo," (I don't know if I want to test it) Ariel said. "No puedo creer que haya impreso. No puedo creer que estés impreso." (I can't believe I imprinted. I can't believe you imprinted.)

"¿Que pasa conmigo?" (what's wrong with me?)

"Nada," (Nothing) Ariel smiled, "Solo estoy diciendo que las mujeres de la ciudad de Forks estarán desconsoladas una vez que las cosas cambien para ti." (I'm only saying the townswomen of Forks will be heartbroken once things change for you.)

"No te das suficiente crédito," (You don't give yourself enough credit) Gabriel said.

"Oh no, no me estoy despreciando. Simplemente no soy el que podría estar en un comercial de champú." (Oh no, I'm not disparaging myself. I'm just not the one that could be in a shampoo commercial.) Gabriel started laughing and Ariel joined.

"Supongo que guardarlo para ti por ahora y cuando Nadeshka haya crecido, entonces puedes decírselo. Para entonces, en realidad será algo más romántico que platónico." (I guess keep it to yourself for now and when Nadeshka's grown up, then you can tell her. By then, it'll actually be something romantic rather than platonic.)

"Yeah," Ariel answered.

Ariel kept his imprinting to himself though he couldn't keep it from the pack when he'd gone on patrol on a night when the bar was closed. Jaedynn unintentionally expressed a great deal of frustration at that Ariel had met his imprint but promised she was happy for him all the same. All the while, back in Da Nang, Salem was eagerly awaiting his official transfer back to Washington where he would retire. He had gone on land only long enough to call Natalie around November so they could talk and so Salem could assure he was doing fine and couldn't wait to come home. It was past his birthday and into December one afternoon while Salem was relaxing down below during a day to himself. While he was reading, Alex poked his head into the bunk area first to make sure Salem was there and smiled when he saw that he was.

"Salem?"

"Am I needed on deck?" Salem asked.

"No," Alex said, "it just occurred to me that it was your birthday recently. We all wanted to give you a birthday present." Alex stepped inside with a few of the other crewmen but alongside them came in a young Vietnamese woman. She was in a sun dress with sunflowers for a pattern and he hair was done up like Raquel Welch. She had a cute little smile and batted her eyelashes at him sweetly. Salem almost laughed.

"You guys didn't," Salem said, "Captain know about this?"

"Captain helped pay for it," Alex said. "Go on, Missy: make the birthday boy feel special." The young woman, Missy, (though Salem was positive that wasn't her real name) batted her eyelashes again and pushed her breasts forward in her dress by holding her hands in front of herself.

"Happy Birthday to you," she sang just as Marilyn Monroe had sung to the President, "Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday Lieutenant Black. Happy Birthday to you." All the guys clapped for her and Salem was smiling ear to ear and sat up from the bunk and got back on his feet.

"You treat him well, Missy. He's retiring in January and he'll be going back home, so make sure his last days in Vietnam are special," one of the other guys said.

"Don't worry about a thing. I'll take good care of him," Missy answered and extended her hand to Salem. "Follow me?" Salem laughed just a little under his breath and accepted Missy's hand. The guys all cheered for him while Missy led him elsewhere on the sub where they could be alone. Once they arrived at a place where Missy had been directed by the crew earlier, she closed them in and gave him that big smile. "Happy birthday, Lieutenant. How old are you now?"

"Just turned 34," Salem said. "It's weird to say that out loud."

"You're so young. They told me you were retiring; I thought you would be much older."

"Nope. I'm 34," Salem answered.

"You don't look a day past 25," Missy smiled.

"That's sweet of you," Salem said with a smile. "So, if you don't mind my asking, what's your real name? Or is Missy a nickname?"

"My given name is Yen," she answered, "but I much prefer to go by Missy."

"That's fair," Salem said.

"So where would you like to start, Sailor?" she asked seductively.

"I am at your disposal," Salem smiled and Missy giggled.

"Well then, Birthday Boy," Missy said and grabbed Salem by the collar so they were face to face, "give me a big kiss and we'll go from there." Salem grinned and complied, pressing a kiss to Missy's lips. It was possible the only time in his two years at Da Nang that he'd enjoyed himself at all.

Come Christmas Day the whole family was crowded into the Cullen house to open their presents and Sergei was shocked at the stack of presents he'd received. His memories of Christmas usually included a single present and a day off from school, so for him this was quite the pleasant surprise. Lee and Nadeshka also received a large stack of presents just as all the other children did and that evening Eun Mi made Jae Sun's birthday Ox Bone stew and Sergei and Lee discovered they quite liked the stew. As usual, Ivory remained in Washington until New Years and had to return to Nevada shortly after.

"Despite working for most of it, I'm glad we could see each other," Ivory said to Anatoli when they'd arrived at the airport.

"Until April," Anatoli said and Ivory smiled at him before they shared a goodbye kiss.

Once she and Tamara returned to Las Vegas, Ivory enjoyed one more day to herself before she had to return to work. That first day back after she parked her car, she stared at the outside of the casino and took a moment to just stare. Just four more months. She hadn't given her notice to anyone except Joe so far but she would be giving her notice to HR officially today. She'd thought she would be sad that she would soon be quitting, but she wasn't. Instead she smiled at the thought. After the wedding, she'd move to Washington for good as a married woman. She would find work of course, but she was looking forward to being Ivory Dahlia Dymek. When the thought of her married name crossed her mind, she blushed just a little and finally walked into the casino.

"Evening, Joe," Ivory said after she'd punched in and made it to the Wild West Room.

"Evening, Ivory," Joe answered. "How was your vacation?"

"Exhausting. Most of Christmas we were working on wedding favors, name tags and so on. I hope you like strawberry jam. All the guests are getting a gift of a jar of homemade jam."

"Who made it?" Joe asked with a chuckle.

"A family friend helped with it," Ivory said.

"I was going to say: I had thought you don't cook," Joe teased.

"Well, it that's how you're going to be, I'll just call Alice and tell her you don't get jam," Ivory played along.

"Don't be cruel, Ivory. My wife and I already bought you that fancy stand mixer you registered for."

"Thank you, Joe," Ivory smiled. "So I'm planning to notify HR that I'm quitting."

"Let them know over your lunch break. I don't know when, but they'll need to hire someone for you to train. You may be training a few girls actually."

"That's fine," Ivory said. "Will you miss me, Joe?"

"You know I will, kid," Joe gave her a paternal smile and even hugged her. "Now get your butt on the floor. You're assigned to Craps Table 8."

"Thanks, Joe," Ivory said and went to her assigned table.

During her lunch break, Ivory went to HR to give her official resignation for April. She requested that her last day be the Thursday before her wedding. They affirmed they would speak with Joe about it as per standard procedure and said they were sorry to lose her. The remainder of the night went on as usual and when she made the walk to her car, she did so alone and she was intensely relieved about it. For the next few days, that's how it stayed until Sunday when she was on her lunch break. She sat in the break room enjoying her dinner and reading when Ben stepped into the break room.

"Ivory?" Ben said and Ivory looked up at him. He didn't look out of the ordinary to her. "Do you mind if I sit?"

"Sure," Ivory answered and Ben took a seat beside her.

"I heard you're quitting?"

"In April, yes," Ivory said. "I gave HR my notice so they have time to find a replacement."

"No one could replace you," Ben said.

"That's sweet, but thankfully Craps and Roulette are easy to teach," Ivory said. "Joe said the casino may bring in as many as three more girls."

"Yeah, for the summer rush," Ben said weakly. "Is Anatoli insisting you don't work or something?"

"Not at all. I'll find work after the wedding."

"Can't you just keep working here?"

"Well no; after the wedding I'm moving to Seattle." Ivory was reading when she said that so she didn't notice Ben's eyes bug out in horror.

"He isn't moving here?"

"No," Ivory said. "I have my mom's family here, but my dad's side and Anatoli's family are in Seattle. Besides, he has a really good job in Seattle."

"What does he do?"

"He's a contractor."

"Can't he do that here?" Ben asked.

"He considered it, but I doubt he'd get the same salary. Not to mention Anatoli gets a percentage of the profits when they flip houses and that's not a bonus he should give up." Ben was quiet again. Ivory continued reading and didn't lift her head from what she was reading until she wanted a bite of her pasta.

"Did you tell Joe?" Ben finally asked.

"Yeah; he was the first one I told," Ivory answered. "I told HR after I got back from Washington."

"Are you sure? I mean….what does Washington have that Las Vegas doesn't have?"

"Rain for starters," Ivory joked. "Perhaps a little too much rain. But I'll come back to Las Vegas for the summer every year to visit mom and to get some sunlight." Ben was nodding a little but he was still rather shaken.

"I'd better get back to the Arabian Nights room," Ben finally said as he was standing from the table.

"What time is it?" Ivory asked and glanced up at the clock. "Shit; I'd better get back too. Have a good rest of the night, Ben."

Ivory left the break room while Ben was standing at the table not having walked away yet. He considered going to Joe about this, but quickly realized he'd be of no help. The next day was Ivory's day off and she slept in as she always did. She woke when she heard a loud knock at the front door. She'd wanted to ignore it but did force herself out of bed and went to the door. When she opened the door, there was a delivery man standing there with a large bouquet of assorted red flowers and a wrapped thin box.

"Miss Ivory Black?" the delivery man asked.

"Yeah," Ivory said. "Who is that from?"

"It is from," the delivery man trailed off as he looked at his sign off sheet. "Actually, it doesn't say; Might be a secret admirer." The delivery guy had a polite smile on his face and Ivory was trying her hardest not to get angry. This guy wasn't at fault and didn't deserve her frustration.

"I'm sorry, but if I do not know who sent them, I cannot accept them," Ivory said.

"Oh," the delivery man said, a little surprised by the response. Clearly it wasn't an answer he got every day. "That's alright, Miss. I'll just write down that the flowers were refused."

"I appreciate it. Do you need me to sign anything confirming I refused them?"

"No, miss, only if you're accepting them," the delivery man answered and wrote the refusal on his sign off sheet. "You said reason for refusal is due to anonymous sender?"

"Yes," Ivory said.

"Alright, I've got it. I'm sorry to bother you, Miss."

"No, it's alright. You have a good day."

"You too," the delivery man smiled and went to his car with the flowers and small package.

After the driver left and Ivory closed the door, she went to the kitchen to brew herself a pot of coffee. She grinded the beans in their manual coffee grinder and perhaps was rougher with that thing than she should have been, but it had survived since the thirties – it could deal with her irritation. After she had the beans ground and started the pot, she put the beans away in the pantry and her eyes fell on a bottle of coffee liquor she'd gotten in Brazil a few years ago. She picked up the liquor and saw there was only a little left.

"Fuck it; it's noon somewhere," Ivory muttered and poured the liquor into the biggest mug she had and mixed in some ground cinnamon, a little honey and milk mixing it thoroughly then pouring the fresh coffee over it. Once her drink was made, she decided she would call Anatoli. She wasn't really sure what he could even do, but she wanted to talk to him. Knowing he wouldn't be at the house, she called the office and got a hold of Gaeli. "Gaeli, it's Ivory. Is Anatoli there?"

"No, he's at a client's house right now. He should be back in another two hours. Is everything alright? I can try to call the client's house and get him on the phone for you if you need."

"No," Ivory sighed a little to herself, "it's alright. I'll wait until he comes back in."

"Are you sure you're alright, dear? You sound upset."

"I'm alright; just extremely annoyed about something. I just want to talk to Anatoli, but it can wait. I promise; I'm alright."

"Alright," Gaeli said hesitantly, "I'll tell Anatoli to call you once he gets back."

"Thanks, Gaeli," Ivory said and the two of them disconnected.

Wanting to try to relax, Ivory went outside to tend to the dragons needing to do so anyway. She sat in the sun petting the dragons as they wandered around her going about their day. She focused on one of the lizards that was basking in the sun. It might not be Argo's fur, but the lizards' rough skin still managed to help her calm down. She eventually went back inside and made herself a proper breakfast that she enjoyed in the living room while watching daytime TV. She didn't get a call until about 1:30 in the afternoon but when she heard the phone she picked it up at the first ring.

"Anatoli?"

"Ivory?" Anatoli's voice came through the receiver. "Gaeli said you called for me. Is everything alright?"

"Not really," Ivory groaned and laid down on the couch. "This morning, a delivery man came to my door with a bouquet of red flowers and a little present. I asked who they were from but he said the sender had remained anonymous so I refused them. I suspect I know who sent them, but given he remained anonymous, I can't really prove it."

"God damn it," Anatoli answered, clearly as annoyed as she was. "Do you think if you called the shop they would tell you who ordered them?"

"I don't know," Ivory said and grabbed the yellow pages under their coffee table. Trying to remember the name on the side of the delivery man's truck, she looked through the pages trying to find the shop. "Sorry, I'm trying to find the number."

"Do you want me to call?"

"No, it's fine; I can do it," Ivory said.

"Maybe they need an angry phone call from your fiancé," Anatoli grumbled and Ivory smiled just a little.

"It's not their fault, Anatoli," Ivory said reassuringly.

"Will Joe be able to help once the shop confirms Ben sent those flowers?"

"I hope so," Ivory said, "but I honestly wonder if it's worth it to bother anymore. I mean, I leave in April."

"It is worth it," Anatoli insisted. "He does not know where we are getting married does he?"

"I never told him," Ivory said, "and Drake and Joe are the only ones from the Casino I invited and they certainly wouldn't tell Ben."

"Good," Anatoli said.

"Okay, I found the number," Ivory said. "How long are you in the office?"

"Another hour," Anatoli answered.

"Okay. I'll call you back as soon as I've spoken with the flower shop."

"Alright. I will talk to you in a bit," Anatoli said. "I love you."

"I love you too," Ivory answered and they hung up.

As soon as she was off the phone with Anatoli, Ivory called the flower shop. As soon as she got an answer, she explained the reason she'd called and, thankfully, the rep was able to tell her that the person that paid for the flowers was Benjamin Bianchi. She made clear she would not accept any flowers from him and to please ensure that was made clear and the rep she spoke with, apologizing for any inconvenience or upset, assured they would make this clear. Once she was off the phone with the flower shop, following Anatoli's opinion that it was worth it, Ivory called Joe and told him what happened. Sadly Joe was not able to issue any real consequences given it wasn't on work property that this occurred but he did promise he would make Ben's new manager aware of the situation and make clear to Ben again that he was to stay away from Ivory. Once she'd spoken with Joe, Ivory called the office just in time to catch Anatoli before he had to leave for another site.

"I suggest buying mace," Anatoli said after Ivory had given him the update.

"I'm sure that's a little overboard," Ivory said, admittedly humored by the image.

"I do not know why you are so calm about this," Anatoli said.

"Because I'm over it at this point," Ivory answered. "And I've had time to calm down since this morning."

"I have not had time to calm down," Anatoli grumbled.

"Is there anything you can take a sledgehammer to where you're going next?"

"No," Anatoli said. "I have firewood I still need to chop for the fire pit so I may just do that."

"That's the spirit," Ivory smiled. "Spend time with Boris, chop fire wood, drink vodka and smoke those Belladonna cigarettes he got you."

"That sounds vaguely racist," Anatoli said, finally starting to feel better and willing to joke. "I may just do that, though."

"Yeah, I think it'll do you good," Ivory said. "Just don't have too much fun?"

"I promise," Anatoli said. "I had better leave, but I will call you later tonight okay?"

"I can't wait. I love you, Anatoli. And hey: it'll be fine. Until April."

"Until April," Anatoli replied, "I love you too."

Once they'd disconnected, Anatoli asked Gaeli to do him a favor and send Boris a request to come visit him. Later that afternoon when he returned to the office following the previous job, she let him know that Boris confirmed he'd be at Anatoli's house no later than five. Once Anatoli got home, he had time to take a quick shower and was out just in time for Boris to let himself into the house with the key Anatoli had given him and when he came downstairs in a pair of clean clothes, Boris was already slicing some black bread with an open bottle of vodka and a bottle of pickles. Argo was sitting right next to Boris, his tail wagging, hoping that Boris would drop a morsel. Boris chuckled and tossed a piece of bread to Argo and he hopped up a little to catch the bread.

"Give me a moment and I will prepare a zakuski platter for you," Boris said in Russian once Anatoli was downstairs.

"I'm sorry; I don't have any sliced meat in my fridge," Anatoli said. "I need to buy groceries soon."

"At least you had black bread and pickles," Boris teased and poured them both a shot of vodka. Anatoli came to the kitchen and accepted the vodka shot while petting Argo's head. The two clinked glasses saying За здоровье! (Nah zdarovhyeah / Cheers), blew out, took down their shot and Anatoli took a deep breath of the spices from the black bread before biting into a pickle.

"I missed all this," Anatoli said.

"So what is the problem? When Gaeli called me, she'd mentioned you were upset," Boris asked.

Anatoli sighed a little and then said, "Please promise you won't judge me?"

"Why would I judge you?"

"There is this guy that's been hitting on Ivory for a while. Ivory has made herself clear on numerous occasions that she is not interested but he won't let up. He'd seemed to finally get the message until this morning when he sent Ivory flowers over the mail."

"And you are letting this little bastard get away with this?" Boris asked.

"I've had no choice," Anatoli said. "All my citizenship paperwork is forged. If I get arrested for giving this brat a piece of my mind and authorities take the time to look into my paperwork, I could get deported. Worse, he went to the owner of the casino claiming she's a prostitute so she's on thin ice at work as it is."

"Where the hell did he get that accusation from?"

"The first time I went to visit her at the casino when we started dating, Ben walked up to me claiming he and Ivory were dating. I was furious and walked out and Ivory found out and came after me. She explained everything and we made up and came back together. He implied that was me taking her outside and paying her for sex. Ivory's manager has been doing what he can to deal with the situation but he can only do so much especially after the shit Ben accused her of."

"Ben is his name?" Boris asked and Anatoli nodded. "So he's trying to steal Ivory from you?"

"Yes and no matter how many times Ivory tells him 'no' he won't take the hint," Anatoli said.

"I say beat the shit out of him and be done with it," Boris shrugged and poured them 2 more shots.

"Trust me, I want to," Anatoli stewed before taking back the shot and taking another bite of the pickle. "Ivory keeps reminding me she's moving here in April and after that we don't need to deal with him anymore but the point's moot as far as I'm concerned."

"It is moot," Boris said. "Do you need me to step down as Best man so I can act as security?"

"No," Anatoli laughed just a little but it didn't last. "Although I would not mind telling the hotel if people don't have a copy of their invitation, they aren't allowed in."

"Does the invitation say that?"

"I don't think so, no," Anatoli said. "I suppose we can also give them a copy of the guest list too."

"Do you want me to beat the shit out of him? It's no worry of mine to take a little trip to Nevada and send this kid a message from Mr. Rimsa."

"Dymek," Anatoli smiled, "And don't tempt me."

"Ah, yes, Dymek," Boris said and then shrugged. "Although, if I use Rimsa, how will this kid know I mean you?"

"True, but still," Anatoli poured himself another shot and took it back. He finished the pickle and then ate the slice of bread from earlier. "The worst part is when I'm here, I can't do anything regardless. Nathan and I helped Tamara and Ivory install an alarm system, but that doesn't really work on flower delivery men."

"No, I suppose it doesn't," Boris said. "So this isn't a jealous ex-boyfriend? Just a persistent coworker?"

"Yeah," Anatoli muttered. "If he sends Ivory flowers again, I swear I might just send you after all. I already gave the son of a bitch a warning."

"Wait, you've already given him a warning?"

"Yeah. It was after he'd gotten Ivory in trouble at work by claiming I'd paid her for sex."

"Clearly he's not taken the warning seriously," Boris said. "When a man doesn't take your warning seriously, the next step is to make good on your threat. That'll teach the little fucker."

"Thank you for the advice," Anatoli joked. "I wanted to chop some wood for the fire pit if you want to help."

"Pretend the wood is the fucker's face," Boris said and Anatoli laughed just a little while Boris guided Anatoli outside, Argo following behind them, so they could chop some wood together.

They got the fire wood chopped rather quickly and all that was chopped was immediately thrown into the pit and a fire lit. They stayed outside in their coats next to the fire for hours while Argo sat on Anatoli's lap, his large size be damned. Once Boris left to drive home, Anatoli called Ivory and was relieved that the remainder of her day had been uneventful. He presented the idea that the hotel be given their guest list so that way no one was allowed unless they were on the list. Initially Ivory brushed off the idea as too far but eventually agreed it might be worth it and promised she'd call the hotel the following day with the request. Anatoli promised he'd talk to Alice about it as well. The two of them stayed awake for hours talking about anything else after that discussion until Anatoli had to get some sleep.

Ivory slept in again as she always did on her days off and was able to sleep in without interruption this time. When she finally did come out of her room, she poured herself a cup of coffee and went outside to check on the dragons and give them their lettuce and crickets. After she'd tended to them, she turned to return inside and when she did, she noticed a large box poking out of the mailbox on their house door. Ivory went up to it and grabbed that and all their other mail but unlike all her other mail, the box only had her name on it. She returned inside with the mail and put everything on the kitchen table but inspected the box more thoroughly trying to find a sending address or name, but it was just her name. Hesitantly she opened the box and there was a notebook in the box along with a note that read:

Ivory,

I'm at my wit's end. I've loved you since I met you but no matter how much I tell you or what I do, you ignore me and reject my affections. I was willing to be patient, to slowly prove that you and I are meant to be together, but you've forced my hand. I will prove to you that I deserve you more than that pretty boy. So here it is.

Love,

Ben

Ivory was speechless. She dropped the note and was about to call the first person that came to her mind: Anatoli. But the moment she picked up the phone she realized her first step needed to be calling the police. The dispatcher she spoke with promised a cop was on his way and as soon as she'd received that promise, she then called the school to tell her mother. For a moment she was as speechless as Ivory, but that quickly passed. Moments later, Nathan was at his desk at the police station when his phone started ringing and he answered.

"Officer Nathan Black," Nathan said.

"You will not believe what that little bastard did now!" Tamara screamed from the other end and Nathan had to take the receiver away from his ear initially.

"Tamara, take a breath. What happened?"

"That boy that's been harassing our daughter dropped off a box at our house!"

"Tell me you've called the police," Nathan quickly followed up.

"They were the first people Ivory called. She said a cop is on the way."

"Good," Nathan said. "Has she called Anatoli?"

"Not at the time she'd called me."

"Alright, I'll call Anatoli. Get back to me about what the police do. Regardless, we'll be there."

"Thank you," Tamara said, but she didn't relax in the slightest. If anything, she was about to cry.

"It's alright, Tamara. We'll have this taken care of. Even if I have to throw that brat into a cell myself, we'll get this taken care of."

"I just don't understand: why won't he just leave her alone?"

"We'll make him leave her alone," Nathan said. "Do you think you'll be able to go back home?"

"I was going to speak with the principle after we talked," Tamara said.

"Good. I'll wait to hear from you, okay?"

"Thank you, Nathan," Tamara said. Then Nathan called the office and wound up on the phone with Gaeli, but he informed her he needed Anatoli to call him back immediately. Once he'd hung up with Gaeli, Boris was already leaning against the door.

"You know, I tell Anatoli just beat shit out of him, but he say no," Boris said.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Boris," Nathan said. "If anyone's beating the shit out of this kid at this point, it's me."

"Either way," Boris shrugged. Back in Las Vegas, a police officer arrived at Ivory's house and she let him in pointing at what had been sent to her. The office first read the note that Ivory had read.

"So what's in this notebook?" the officer asked.

"I didn't get that far. I read the note and called the police. Ben has been harassing me for years and I want him to leave me alone. Would I be able to get a restraining order?"

"He's certainly acknowledged you've rejected his advances, so that part will be easy to prove to a judge," the officer said and started reading through the notebook. Then Tamara entered the home and the officer looked at her.

"It's alright; she's my mom," Ivory said.

"Good afternoon, ma'am," the officer said and continued reading. He read three full pages before shifting to skimming through it. "He's….uh...certainly been thorough."

"I want that boy arrested," Tamara said. "He has harassed my daughter for years. She has made clear time and again to leave her alone and he won't do it."

"You said his name is Ben?" the officer asked and Ivory nodded. The cop continued going through the notebook and found one page towards the end. "And how does he know you?"

"He's a coworker at the Casino I work at. My supervisor can attest that he's been told on numerous occasions to leave me alone. I can give you his number if it's needed."

"May I have that?" the officer asked and Ivory wrote out Joe's number and handed it to the officer.

"Also," Ivory said, remembering something, "Ben at one point accused me of accepting money for sex. The man he's accusing me of doing that with is my fiancé. He got me written up at the casino, but I want to make clear I have never accepted money for sex. My supervisor will be able to confirm this as well."

"No worries, Miss Black, I will be questioning your supervisor," the officer said. Just then, the phone began to ring and Tamara went to the phone and answered.

"Is Ivory there?" Anatoli asked as soon as Tamara answered.

"Just a moment," Tamara said and covered the phone. "Officer, my daughter's fiancé is on the phone. Is it alright if she speaks with him?"

"That's fine," the officer answered and Ivory went to the phone and took it from Tamara.

"Anatoli?"

"What happened?" Anatoli asked, getting straight to the point.

"Ben put a notebook in my mailbox and I called the cops," Ivory said. Anatoli was silent at the other end and that gave her a chill that she couldn't explain. "I'm consulting the officer about obtaining a restraining order."

"A restraining order means he cannot come near you right?"

"Right."

"What are the consequences if does it anyway?" Anatoli asked.

"He would be arrested," Ivory said.

"Is that it?!" Anatoli barked.

"Miss Black," the officer got Ivory's attention. "Can I have your fiancé's name? And would he be able to come in for questioning?"

"He's in Washington, but he can speak with you now," Ivory said and then, "Anatoli, can you speak with the officer?"

"Put him on the phone," Anatoli said. Ivory couldn't recall hearing Anatoli this angry and she complied immediately. She extended the phone to the officer who accepted it and brought it to his ear.

"Please state your name for the record," the officer said as he pulled out a notebook and pen.

"Anatoli Dymek," he answered.

"Thank you, Mr. Dymek. Can you tell me everything you know about this situation?"

"Ben approached me when I came to visit ivory about two years ago. He claimed that he and Ivory were dating. After I left, Ivory came after me and assured that was not true."

"So Miss Black and Mr. Bianchinever had a relationship of any kind?"

"None whatsoever," Anatoli said. "I was told her manager, Joe, had spoken with Ben after that and made clear he was to leave Ivory alone. Since then, he has approached her at work, he has sent her flowers unprompted – most recently yesterday – and has falsely accused her of prostitution nearly getting her fired from her job."

"Concerning that accusation, Miss Black states you are who she was with when that complaint was issued and there was no money involved in whatever occurred?"

"No!" Anatoli said louder than necessary. "She was my girlfriend! What I do with my girlfriend in my fucking car is none of his fucking business!"

"Alright, alright, Mr. Dymek, calm down," the officer said. "I just want to make sure I have everything clear. Now, Mr. Dymek, have you had any interaction with Mr. Bianchi?"

"I flipped him off once and I told him to stop harassing her," Anatoli answered.

"And when you confronted him, you were not violent?"

"I regret to say I was cordial," Anatoli said. "Or as cordial as I could be given that son of a bitch had gone to HR and claimed she was a fucking prostitute."

"Let me clarify: was there a physical altercation of any kind between you two?"

"No," Anatoli clarified.

"Thank you," the officer said and wrote everything down. "Aside from that, have you had any interaction with Mr. Bianchi?"

"No, those were the only times," Anatoli said.

"Alright. That should be all I need. I'll give you back to Miss Black," the officer said and handed the phone back over to Ivory.

"Anatoli?" Ivory said once she had the phone.

"I am here," Anatoli said. "Nathan and I will be there by tomorrow. If the cop wants to talk to me again, he can do so once we have arrived."

"Do you know how long you and daddy will be staying?"

"As long as needed," Anatoli said. "I already told Peta the situation."

"Okay," Ivory said. "I guess I'll see you when you get here."

"I will see you then," Anatoli said. "Have you told Joe?"

"Not yet, no," Ivory said.

"Let Joe know," Anatoli said. "I love you."

"I love you too," Ivory answered and the two of them disconnected. "Anatoli said he and my dad are on their way here and they'll be here by tomorrow. He said if need be, he'll be available to be questioned in person."

"I appreciate it," the officer said. The officer packed the box Ben's note and notebook were held in to a plastic bag. "I will be in contact with your supervisor about this and we'll talk to Ben as well."

"You mean you aren't going to arrest him?" Tamara asked.

"Unfortunately, ma'am, I can't arrest him. While I agree he's been harassing your daughter, it's been non-violent. What I would recommend is going to court and requesting the restraining order. I will release everything needed to you and I can be there to testify on your behalf. I would recommend you request that of your supervisor as well assuming he corroborates your story."

"I can't believe this," Tamara said, "so we have to wait until he does something? What if he snaps and hurts my daughter?!"

"You said your father and fiancé are going to be here tomorrow?" the officer asked Ivory and she needed. "My recommendation would be ensure one or both of them stay close as much as possible. A guy like this isn't going to do anything unless you're alone. If you're never alone, he won't do anything. Once he's been served with the restraining order, if he violates the terms – even if it's just being within a few feet of you – you can call the police and he will be arrested."

"How long will it take for that restraining order to take effect?" Tamara asked.

"It can take as long as 3 weeks."

"Three weeks?!" Tamara yelled. "That's absurd!"

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but that's the typical time frame. Now, if your daughter is in immediate danger, an ex parte restraining order can be issued that'll last 15 days, but given he's not been violent at this point, I doubt a judge would grant it. If your husband and son-in-law can be here long enough for the restraining order to take effect, then it'll help. In the meantime, I will do everything I can for you."

"I appreciate it," Ivory said. "Do you need me to come to the station?"

"Not right now," the officer said. "I'll reconvene with you as soon as I've had a chance to talk to Mr. Bianchi and your supervisor."

"Thank you," Ivory said. "I'm at the casino Wednesday through Sunday 3-1 in the morning."

"Yes, ma'am," the officer said and with Ben's 'gifts' in hand walked to the door. "You have a good day Miss. Black. I know this is stressful, but try to keep clam alright? We'll take care of you."

"Thank you, officer," Ivory said and the officer left.

"Ivory, you promise the package in our mailbox is all that happened?"

"Yes, mom, I promise," Ivory said and rubbed her eyes. "I don't even want to know what he put in that notebook."

"Let the cops and a judge worry about it," Tamara said and hugged Ivory. "It'll be okay, Ivory." Ivory didn't say anything and accepted the comfort Tamara offered.

She eventually called Joe and told him what happened. She also told him, at least for Wednesday, she was taking a personal day. Thankfully, Joe was very understanding and reassured he'd work with the officer. Tamara wanted to help Ivory relax, but also didn't want to leave her, so she placed a call to a friend asking them to bring them some food. Ivory's Uncle came buy with some McDonalds and asked if she was alright and if Tamara wanted to burrow their dad's gun, but she affirmed it wasn't necessary but thanked him for the offer. Before her Uncle left, Nathan and Anatoli drove up to the house in a rental car.

"Good to see you, Nathan," Ivory's Uncle said once Nathan and Anatoli were out of the car.

"I wish it were better circumstances, but likewise," Nathan said. "I'll get the bags. You go inside," Nathan said to Anatoli who bolted into the house and went to Ivory who was sitting at the dinner table with her food. He hugged and kissed her before taking a seat with her.

"You guys got here quick," Ivory smiled.

"We got lucky and found a flight within an hour of getting to the airport," Anatoli said. "Have you heard anything new?"

"Not yet," Ivory said. "The cop said he'd talk to Joe and Ben and help me get a restraining order."

"How long will that take?" Anatoli asked.

"The cop said three weeks."

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Anatoli said a little louder than he'd meant to.

"I know you mean well, but calm down," Ivory's Uncle said. Nathan came in then with the luggage and dropped it inside before going to Ivory and giving her a hug.

"Hi, daddy," Ivory said.

"Hey, Ivory," Nathan said. Then he looked at Tamara. "If I suggested she came to Washington, what would you say?"

"So long as Ivory's safe, it's fine," Tamara said.

"What about Tamara?" her brother asked. "That kid won't know Ivory's not here, so what if he does something while Tamara's here?"

"I have a security system," Tamara said. "If he tries entering the home, an alarm with go off."

"Alright," her brother said but was not entirely at ease. "What about work?" he then asked Ivory.

"Frankly, I'll probably be fired over this, so it doesn't matter."

"What the hell do you mean you would be fired?" Anatoli asked.

"I'm on thin ice because Ben claimed I'm a prostitute remember? If they see law enforcement in the casino and it's because of me, they'll cut me loose like a bad habit I promise you," Ivory said. Anatoli looked like he wanted to say something, but he was so angry he wasn't even sure what to say. "I don't know if I even want to leave. It's like admitting I'm scared of him."

"I'm fucking scared of him," Tamara said.

"Offer for dad's gun is still on the table," Ivory's Uncle said.

"Don't worry about it; I brought one," Nathan said.

"Good man," Ivory's Uncle said. "Do you want me to stay over?"

"No, that's alright. You can go home," Tamara said. "Thank you for bringing us dinner. I'll pay you back."

"Don't worry about it," he said and hugged Tamara. "Keep me posted."

Ivory's Uncle finally left and she ate her dinner and let Anatoli know she'd taken a personal day for Wednesday. Under the circumstances, no one was really interested in arguing over sleeping arrangements and Nathan stayed in Tamara's room while Anatoli stayed with Ivory. Ivory didn't go to bed until late as was her habit, but she and Anatoli stayed in her room after Tamara and Nathan went to bed enjoying beer together.

"Thank you for coming. I know it's last minute, but I appreciate it," Ivory said.

"You know it is no trouble," Anatoli said to Ivory and tugged Ivory to him so she was sitting in his lap. Once Ivory was comfortable, she rested her head against Anatoli's shoulder while his free arm was wrapped around her waist and his beer in his other hand. "I feel stupid asking this, but how do you feel?"

"I'm not sure how I feel right now," Ivory said. "First I was shocked, then I was angry, and now I just feel numb. I'm so sick of this; I just want it over now. At this point, I don't care if the casino fires me. To hell with them."

"They should not fire you. They should fire him," Anatoli said.

"I don't care anymore," Ivory groaned and tilted her head more towards Anatoli's neck so she could breathe in his scent. "Did you shower before you got on the plane?"

"I showered this morning," Anatoli said.

"I can smell the Old Spice," Ivory said. "I love it."

"Happy to help," Anatoli smiled and sipped his beer. Then he put the bottle on her nightstand and hugged her tight.

She sighed when he did so and snuggled up to him ready to fall asleep at a moment's notice. They were both dozing off when, suddenly, a blaring alarm went off that woke Anatoli in an instant. He got Ivory off him and bolted for the front door and Nathan wasn't far behind him holding his hand gun. The two of them opened the front door and looked around outside but no one was there. The alarm was still blaring and all the neighbors were turning on their lights ready to come outside and see what the fuss was about. Tamara was already calling the police while Nathan and Anatoli were searching outside to make sure there was no one outside. Ivory turned off the alarm after Tamara was off the phone with the dispatcher and a cop arrived within five minutes and took over searching the property.

"No one's hurt?" Nathan asked once inside with Ivory and Tamara.

"No," Ivory and Tamara agreed, groggy and shell shocked. The cop came inside after his walk around the property.

"Is everyone alright?" the cop asked first and they all confirmed they were fine. "Okay, I was able to find some footprints beside one of the bedroom windows. I have that marked and a picture taken of it. Otherwise, whoever tried to break in didn't leave anything, but I could see damage to the doorknob from an attempted forcible entry. I took a picture of that too."

"Earlier today, my daughter called the police because a man from her work has been harassing her. Today he'd given her a notebook that was extremely concerning and the officer took that as evidence. I think that kid that put that notebook in the mail tried to break in."

"What was the name of the officer?"

"Officer Gant," Ivory answered.

"Okay," the cop wrote down the name. "Give me a moment." The officer stepped outside to his car and pulled out a little radio. They heard him request the dispatcher to get a hold of Officer Gant. Once he was back inside, he said, "Dispatcher will get in contact with Officer Gant and he'll be here in the next thirty minutes."

"Thank you," Ivory said.

"Officer, I want that boy arrested," Tamara said again. "The officer said he wasn't able to, but in light of recent circumstances, that should no longer be the case."

"What is the assailant's name?"

"Benjamin Bianchi," Ivory answered. The cop wrote it down and once again went out to his car and got the dispatcher on his radio to issue the arrest.

"I can't promise he won't post bail," the cop said once he was back inside, "but if nothing else, we'll be able to question him. Worst case scenario, he'll lawyer up and won't talk, but that won't mean the accusations and investigation go away."

"I want an immediate restraining order. Officer Gant said we could get an ex parte?" Tamara said.

"That is typically reserved for domestic abuse, but I can look into it," the officer answered. A moment later, sirens were heard outside and then turned off, but the lights from the car continued flashing and Officer Gant stepped into the house. "Evening Greg," the officer said. "Sorry to wake you, but I was told you were working on this case."

"It's fine," Officer Gant said. "I was told you already issued the arrest warrant for Benjamin Bianchi?"

"Yeah, I did. Cops should be on their way to his house now," the officer answered. "I got pictures of footprints near one of the bedroom windows and the damage to the doorknob."

"Did you dust it for fingerprints?"

"Done," the officer answered.

"Alright," Officer Gant said. "I will need all of you to give me fingerprint samples so we can distinguish them from Mr. Bianchi's assuming his prints are found on that doorknob."

For the next twenty minutes, the officers took fingerprint samples from everyone so they were documented. Officer Gant took over that task while the other officer stayed at his car to receive any updates over the receiver.

"I just got confirmation: Benjamin Bianchi is in custody," the officer said from outside.

"Good," Tamara said as she crossed her arms.

"Bad news is he's already demanded to speak to a lawyer," the officer said while he came inside.

"Two can play that fucking game; trust me," Anatoli said. "Should I call dad?"

"We can call him in the morning," Nathan said.

"You're Miss Black's father?" Officer Gant asked.

"Yes; Nathan Black," Nathan answered.

"And you're the Fiancé? I think you said Anatoli Dymek, correct?"

"Yes," Anatoli nodded.

"So things with Mr. Bianchi escalated once you were in the picture as I understand it?" Officer Gant asked and Anatoli nodded.

"And just so I'm clear, Miss Black, prior to that you never gave Mr. Bianchi any reason to believe you were interested in him?" the other officer asked.

"No, I did not," Ivory said irritably. "I started working there in 1961 or 62 and ever since then, he's been pursuing me, but I made clear from the beginning that I was not interested."

"That notebook he gave her confirms that," Officer Gant said. "According to the dates, he started writing that August 1962 and one of his first complaints was to claim she was being 'stubborn' I believe was his wording."

"At least there'll be no question for the judge," the other officer said while Ivory shivered with rage. Anatoli took her hand in his both for her sake as well as his own. "Mrs. Black is requesting an immediate restraining order."

"I think given he just tried to break into my house it's not such an unreasonable request," Tamara said, once again not bothering to correct the officer.

"Come in tomorrow and I'll issue it for you," Officer Gant said. "As for an official permanent restraining order, that will still need to go through the court, but I'll issue to request for a date first thing tomorrow."

"Thank you, Office. It really is appreciated," Tamara said.

"Anatoli and I will go with her to the police station," Nathan said.

"Thank you," Tamara said.

"I will be at the station by six tomorrow," Officer Gant said. "I'll stay at the station and wait for you alright, Miss Black? When you arrive, just request me. I'll make sure you're expected."

"Thank you," Ivory said.

The officers finished whatever they needed to before finally leaving. Exhausted now, Ivory went right to bed and made sure her alarm was set. The next morning, bright at early, everyone was awake and ready to go to the police station. Tamara asked to go with them and, once they arrived, stayed at the station until she had to leave for school. By then, Officer Gant had brought Ivory back and was assisting her with her temporary restraining order and issuing the court date for the permanent restraining order. After she finished with Officer Gant, Ivory stepped out of his office and went back out to see Joe.

"Joe? What are you doing here?"

"I'm in for questioning," Joe said. "I hear Ben was arrested. He's still in custody as I hear it."

"Yeah," Ivory said, "I was told he demanded a lawyer."

"He'd better if he wants to get out of this without jail time," Joe said and looked at Ivory with regret in his eyes. "I was called into Rob's office."

"I'm fired?" Ivory asked.

"I argued tooth and nail for you, kid. I swear I did," Joe said.

"I know," Ivory said. "I kind of saw it coming."

"Either way, I talked to HR and they made sure you'll get the full two weeks for this pay period. I'll bring that to you Friday."

"Thank you," Ivory muttered a little. Even though she'd had a feeling this would happen, it didn't make it sting any less. Now she was beginning to tear up.

"Please don't cry, Ivory," Joe said and stood to give Ivory a hug. "Put me on your resume and I'll go to bat for you, alright? Drake will too."

"I know," Ivory said. "I'm just upset."

"I know; none of this was your fault, but Rob…the man has priors for prostitution way back when, so with that on record – false or not – once the police got involved he pulled the trigger."

"Thank you," Ivory said and started rubbing her eyes a little. "Am I not allowed on the premises or something?"

"Rob's not happy," Joe said. He wasn't about to tell her Rob's exact words (the girl needs to learn to take a fucking compliment and do her God damn job) but he couldn't sugarcoat it either. "I will be speaking with Ben's manager when I go in today. Frankly, you being fired is unfair but I'll see to it Ben is out of a job for this."

"Thanks I guess," Ivory said. There was truthfully no satisfaction in it for her. She was still out of a job herself. Ivory released Joe and rubbed her eyes again with a deep breath. "I'd better get back out there. Daddy and Anatoli are waiting for me."

"Is this a bad time to tell you I got my invitation?" Joe asked with an awkward smile, but Ivory smiled too.

"Not at all. I need the distraction," Ivory said. "Fill out that RSVP and we'll make sure there's a seat for you. You're still coming, right?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Joe promised and patted her shoulder.

"Joseph Henderson?" came Officer Gant's voice and he waived the man into his office once he had his attention.

"I'll talk to you later, Kid," Joe said and stepped away.

Ivory went outside to meet Nathan and Anatoli so they could return home. She'd told them Joe informed her she'd been fired and, as she figured, Anatoli was livid. She was able to convince him not to bother going to the casino, but he did not cool down for quite some time that day. Tamara was furious too when she found out too. Ivory was trying to be lighthearted about it, but it was a chore to be sure.

"Do you think Kevin would be able to sue the casino?" Tamara asked.

"I'll be asking; don't you worry," Nathan said, also angry about it. "All things considered, I doubt it'll make it to court though. From what I can tell, that casino will sooner settle so it doesn't get out rather than have a trial. But if anyone can bleed them dry for what they did to Ivory, it'll be Kevin."

"Daddy, I don't want to take them to court. I just want this to be over," Ivory said.

"Ivory, they fired you for being a victim of harassment. I won't let them get away with any less than a kick to the balls for it," Nathan said. Despite everything, Ivory smiled just a little at Nathan's declaration.