"Hello."

"Hey. How ya' doin'?"

"Took you long enough to call me back."

"Yeah, well, I had a Grade-A assassin on my tail. I wasn't about to take time to make chit-chat calls. Besides, he might've had equipment to listen in on any calls."

"I see. I presume you took care of him."

"He shoulda been more careful about going into certain bars in Berlin. Of course, now I gotta take care of the bitch who hired him."

"How soon can you take care of that problem?"

"Week or so. Maybe earlier."

"As soon as that's done, contact me. I'll need your services. Double the usual fee. "Half in advance. Half when it's done."

"Where's the hit?"

"Davenport, Iowa."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Dwayne had portrayed Batista's transfer to Davenport as a promotion of sorts. Working under the leader of the Bloodline and all. Batista saw it differently.

He followed Naomi and Matthews to the meeting spot where he would be introduced to Naomi's crew leaders. All the time, he was surveying Davenport with a critical eye. Compared to South Beach, it was a dump.

'There's no real money to be made in this place. Why is Reigns still here?' He knew Roman had grown up in Davenport, but that was no excuse for remaining in this Godforsaken city. As he parked his SUV behind Matthews', he knew he'd have to do some discrete digging to find out why. 'Sentimentality is for the weak. It'll take some planning to figure out how to make this work.'

As Naomi spoke to the crew leaders, he covertly studied Matthews. It didn't take him long to revise his earlier opinion of the man. He exuded loyalty so he couldn't be bought or intimidated. And, from what Batista knew of his reputation, he would be a bulldog in defense of Naomi. So, Matthews' name went higher on Batista's list.

He listened with a slight smirk as Naomi thanked the crew leaders for their loyalty and hard work. 'These guys have gotten soft. They're gonna have to shape up and bring in more money. Or else.'

Naomi exchanged a silent nod with Batista then walked with Matthews back to her SUV.

'Heading for that Foundation. That's not a money-maker so why all the fuss about it? Recruiting kids, maybe?' It was something else Batista would have to keep his eye on.

He turned to the crew leaders and slowly smiled. "I'm sure we're all going to be able to work together. But there are going to be some…minor changes in how things are done."

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Mayor Brodie Lee looked around the cafeteria of the MDM Foundation with a great deal of satisfaction. Like almost everyone else, he held a plate piled high with food. Finishing up the mashed potatoes and gravy, he inwardly sighed in pleasure. If this was the quality of food they would be feeding the kids at the Foundation, it wouldn't be hard to keep them satisfied.

Walking from the cafeteria to the front reception area, he spotted one of the people he wanted to talk with.

"Mr. Rollins. Congratulations on the opening. I think a lot of people are pleasantly surprised," Brodie chuckled.

Seth mischievously grinned in response. "I'm sure they are. May I present my wife, Nikki Cross-Rollins."

"The organizational genius!" Brodie reached out a hand to Nikki. "I'm honored. And impressed with your efforts in getting the Foundation up and running."

Nikki blushed and shook Brodie's hand. "Seth exaggerates."

"No, I didn't," Seth protested. He looked around and motioned someone to join them.

"Oh, great," Mox muttered under his breath. "The Mayor."

Alexa gently squeezed his left hand. "I thought you liked him."

"I do…I guess," Mox admitted. "It's the schmoozing I don't like."

Alexa chuckled. "Just talk to him like you would anyone else you like."

Mox grunted but smiled. "Thank you for coming, sir."

"My pleasure entirely." Brodie shook Mox's hand. "And the food was excellent."

Seth almost preened. "The staff at the deli is in charge of that. I'll pass along your compliments."

Nikki nudged Mox and meaningfully looked at Alexa.

"Oh…uh…Mayor Brodie Lee, this is my finance, Alexa Bliss," Mox hurriedly made the introductions.

"Ms. Bliss, it's good to meet you. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding. I wish you both all the happiness in the world." Brodie gently took Alexa's hand.

"Thank you, sir. We appreciate that," Alexa smiled.

Brodie looked around. "I'd hope to see Mr. Reigns here as well."

"He's on his way," Seth assured him. "He had a stop to make on the way." He looked at Nikki who was snickering.

Mox looked from one to the another in confusion. "Something happened?"

Seth, who'd been looking at the front doors, began grinning.

"UNCLE JON!"

Startled, Mox turned to see Roman's daughter running through the crowd towards him. "Princess?" Turning loose of Alexa's hand, he knelt and held out his arms. When Roman's daughter reached him, he picked her up and balanced her on his hip.

"I'm here!" Both small hands wrapped around Mox's neck.

"So I see," Mox grinned.

"Baby girl, don't run away from us." Roman and his wife appeared, Roman with a teasing expression while Galina shook her head.

"But…"

"But nothing," Galina gently but firmly interrupted.

Mox and his niece looked at each other then back at Roman and Galina.

"We're sorry," they said in unison.

Seth turned away to keep the Little Princess from seeing him laugh.

"Mayor Brodie Lee, this is my wife, Galina."

"How very nice to meet you, Mrs. Reigns." Brodie shook her hand, seeing the little girl whisper something to Mox who nodded.

"Excuse us," Mox said before walking off with the little girl.

"Well, I must be going," Brodie smiled. "Once again, congratulations on the opening. I have great enthusiasm for this project."

"Thank you, sir," Seth nodded.

With a smile and a wave of his hand, Brodie began working his way through the crowd.

"Interesting man," Galina commented.

"A smart man," Roman countered.

"Well, I think he's nice," Nikki said with a toss of her head.

Galina linked her arms through Nikki and Alexa's. "Let's talk about the wedding," she grinned.

Roman gave Seth a mock suffering look as the ladies walked away. "Time to mingle," he sighed.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Little Princess pointed at the photo recessed into the wall. "Baby Marie," she whispered to her uncle.

Mox sadly nodded, then was surprised when the little girl in his arms kissed his cheek.

"Don't be sad. She's with Tinamatua ma and Tamamatua."

Mox didn't know many Samoan words but he recognized the words for Grandmother and Grandfather. He slowly smiled and nodded. "Yeah, she is." He saw Roman's wife walking away with Nikki and Alexa. "I bet they're going to talk about the wedding."

"I'm the flower girl!"

"Yeah, so you should be in on that talk. Let's catch up with them."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Marko getting settled in okay?"

Jericho swallowed the last bite of the cheese ball and nodded. "I think he's still a little shell-shocked with having a house all to himself," he chuckled. "He's probably pinched himself into black-and-blue bruises thinking it's all a dream."

Roman ruefully nodded.

"Something I want to talk to you about though when we get back to the office." Jericho casually glanced around the crowded room.

"Anything critical?" Roman curiously asked. Then he saw the cold smile on Jericho's face.

"No. Personal."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Looks like we missed the Mayor," Austin commented as he and Malenko looked around the crowded room.

"He might be in the cafeteria where the buffet is." Malenko nodded at the sign posted on the wall.

"See anybody interesting in this crowd?" Austin asked.

Malenko casually glanced around the room. "Some of Reigns' top people. A few of the Authority people. Lot of press."

Austin spotted Seth and Mox quietly talking and said, "Think I'll chat a little with them. Meet you at the car."

Malenko nodded and walked down the hall to the cafeteria while Austin made his way across the room.

Seth spotted Austin coming and nudged Mox.

"Looks like a good turnout," Austin commented. "Hope that's a good sign for your Foundation."

"Our attorney is on his way to join us. I believe all communication is to go through him," Seth pointed out.

Austin shrugged. "I came with Chief Malenko as his guest. To be honest, I think this is a good idea. We lose too many kids to those bastards on the street."

Mox blinked once then forced his shoulders to relax.

"I would've thought you'd be back in…well, wherever you came from…by now," Seth calmly spoke.

Austin chuckled. "Still got a few loose ends to tie up. The DOJ prosecutor is a stickler for tying up loose ends." He appreciatively looked around the room once again. "Sure hope this works out. Hate to see it close down because of an unfortunate affiliation." He shook his head as he turned away. "Pity that would affect all those kids you're trying to help."

Mox glared at Austin's retreating back. "Motherfu…"

Seth put a retraining hand on Mox's arm. "Let him go. He's fishing and hoping one of us will give him something."

Mox took a couple of deep breaths and nodded.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Mr. Reigns, may I say I'm very impressed with what you've done here."

Roman turned to see Cesaro smiling at him. "Thank you. But a lot of people worked on this."

"Indeed," Cesaro nodded. "And I understand you're going to give me some serious competition in the hotel business."

Roman smiled at the twinkling in Cesaro's dark eyes. "That's the plan," he admitted.

"I enjoy competition," Cesaro admitted. "It's far too easy to rest on one's laurels. Competition keeps everyone on their toes and keeps the customers returning. Don't you agree?"

Roman nodded. "Exactly."

Cesaro widely smiled. "Well, congratulations on your opening here. And I look forward to when my competition is open for business."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Galina watched with a rueful smile as her daughter tried to convince Nikki that two deserts 'just had to be better than one' and 'how can I possibly choose?'. Then, resigning herself to a daughter on a sugar high, she turned her attention to Alexa.

"Thank you for allowing her to be the flower girl."

"Of course. She's Jon's niece," Alexa smiled in return.

Galina nodded. "It was a little hard for me, at first. Mox had been a part of Roman's life and family for over ten years when I started dating Roman. At first," she shrugged. "At first, I thought he didn't like me. He seemed standoffish and left whenever I was around. Then Roman's mother explained."

"Explained what?" Alexa asked.

Galina hesitated as though trying to find the right words to use. "She explained that Mox felt like an outsider when I was around. He didn't want to intrude on what Roman and I were building with each other."

Alexa slowly nodded. "I mentioned once that I'd always wanted to go to Japan. So, he decided that's where we're going on our honeymoon." She slowly smiled. "He got all these brochures on things to see and hotels and possible flights. Like he couldn't do enough to make the trip…"

"The absolute best for you," Galina grinned. After a few moments, she continued. "Roman's mother told me about his childhood. She cried and said it broke her heart even after all those years of him being a part of her family." She shook her head. "I swear I worked just as hard to make him understand that he was part of the family and I was the intruder." Reaching out, she touched Alexa's arm. "I hope you've already realized that Mox is someone who cares with all his heart for those he loves and considers family."

Alexa nodded. "I realized that when he…broke up with me."

"Our prayers were answered when the two of you got back together," Galina admitted. "You're good for him…and good to him. But, trust me, there are going to be times when you want to smack him upside the head. He can be an awfully stubborn shit sometimes."

Alexa giggled.

"But don't give up on him," Galina seriously said, looking into Alexa's eyes. "Don't let him give up. Give him a little space at times, but then reel him back in. He wants to be loved even if at times he doesn't think he's worthy of it."

"I will never give up on him," Alexa fiercely promised.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cole looked up at Malenko and Austin walked into his office. "How was the Foundation opening?"

Austin shrugged as he slouched in a chair.

Malenko sat in the chair next to him. "A lot of press were there so they're going to get a lot of publicity. Everybody was on their best behavior." He glanced at Austin who ignored him.

"I've given Spears a deal." Cole leaned back in his chair. "Contingent upon our verifying what he's given us."

"Which is?" Malenko asked.

"Spears admitted being paid by Randy Orton for the security codes of several offices and homes," Cole explained. "Paid in cash so there's no paper trail at Spears' bank. He told us where the money was hidden, and we've confiscated it."

"We know Orton worked for Helmsley as an 'independent contractor'," Malenko recalled. "Any way Spears can connect Orton to Helmsley in this?"

Cole shook his head. "Spears says that Orton never mentioned Helmsley or the Authority in any way. And he never asked."

Malenko sighed.

"However, I've got my investigators following the trail of when Spears gave Orton the codes," Cole continued. "We'll check each of those businesses and homeowners to see if we can connect them with the Authority." He apologetically looked at Malenko. "It's going to be a long process."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Roman tossed his tie and suit coat onto the couch in his office. "Glad that's over," he muttered as he sat down behind his desk and powered up his computer. He wasn't surprised when Jericho knocked on the open door a few minutes later. He was, however, surprised to see Black with him.

"Come in," Roman invited, watching as Jericho sat in his usual chair while Black closed the office door before sitting down.

"First, I want to explain," Jericho began.

Roman nodded and leaned back in his chair. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw an almost amused look on Black's face. Whatever was going on, Black was going to let Jericho sink or swim on his own.

"The place where Marko was living was…worse than deplorable," Jericho began. "Filthy. I'm surprised the stairs to the upper floors hadn't caved in. The place would be sweltering in the summer and freezing in the winter. I doubt there was a piece of insulation in the entire rattrap. One spark, and the place would've gone up in flames."

Roman raised an eyebrow at the anger in Jericho's voice.

"I asked Black to check on the building and the owner." Jericho handed over a folder to Roman who opened it. "The building's owned by a Flora Robinson aka Stella Grant aka Maggie Owens aka Constance Evans."

"And the reason for all the changes in names?" Roman asked, flipping through the file.

"She has a record of owning rundown buildings and letting them go to ruin while renting out rooms to people desperate enough to pay over the market price for them," Jericho explained. "She inherited the first one from her father, Robert Evans. When she can't avoid either being shut down or arrested, she leaves town. The property is condemned, and the residents are out on the street."

"Lovely woman," Roman snorted. "Some arrests but no convictions?"

"She jumps bail," Black answered. "I didn't have much time to work on it so I'm sure she's wanted in more than the places I found." He stared at Jericho. "What I don't understand is this. Marko had money to open a bank account?" When Jericho nodded, he continued, "How much?"

"Thirty-seven hundred," Jericho answered.

"Then why was he not living in a better place?"

Jericho slowly smiled. "Hackers live under the radar. Payment in cash, and you leave no paper trail. In order to live somewhere, even minimally livable, you need to have a credit history. And identification. Hackers avoid those things like the plague. You carry only what you can't live without. Because you may have to leave in a hurry. Hacking doesn't provide a steady income. You get paid for a job, but you may not work again for months." He shrugged. "So you hoard your cash and learn to like Ramen noodles and peanut butter."

Roman silently studied Jericho.

"When I got Marko yesterday, he wasn't waiting outside as usual so I went inside," Jericho slowly explained. "There was garbage…not trash…in the hallways that were barely lit. As for the stairs to the upper floors, I wouldn't've put a puppy on them. Marko's room was a studio, and I could hear her screaming at him halfway down the hall." He paused for a moment, then continued.

"The door was halfway opened so I walked in. She had Marko backed up against the wall, and he was clutching his backpack like it was his lifeline. It had his laptop and other equipment in it. She probably walked in as he was packing it because she was screaming if he had the money for that computer 'shit' as she called it, he had the money to pay her more for rent. When Marko refused, she raised her hand to hit him."

"Did she strike him?" Black coldly demanded.

Jericho shook his head. "I told her I was his attorney, and I'd have her arrested for assault and battery if she touched him." He notice Roman's eyes were cold chips of grey ice. "It was the look on Marko's face. He was always being hit while growing up. He wasn't going to defend himself…just cover up…protect his equipment…and take the beating." He took a deep breath. "She's gonna get someone else desperate enough to rent that room and take advantage of them." He pointed at the file. "There's a proposal to buy the building. We'll try to keep track of where she goes, then sic those local cops onto her."

Roman nodded. "If we tip Malenko…or whoever…onto the code violations, they'll condemn the building, and the residents will be homeless." He opened the file to the proposal and studied it again.

"Marko needs to learn to defend himself," Black quietly told Jericho.

Jericho nodded. "I thought about asking Mox to help me with him." He suddenly grinned. "No offense, but it's going to take some doing to get him to hit anybody. He sure as hell isn't going to hit you."

Roman smirked then glanced up at Jericho. "Personal?"

Jericho nodded.

Roman saw the shadows in Jericho's blue eyes and nodded. "Get the cash together. The two of you make her an offer she can't refuse."