Resident Evil: Tangled Web

By: PhantasmBabeIvory

Chapter One

Two years prior

Ironically, it began with news of a pregnancy. One of Claire's friends in Terra Save, a human rights organization she'd been a part of for almost four years, had announced that she was expecting her first child. On the day that her life had officially entered a decidedly downward spiral, Claire was out shopping for a gift for next week's planned baby shower. She had just abandoned the baby clothes section and was turning her attention to a Baby Bjorn carrier. She was trying to remember if one of the other partygoers had mentioned plans to purchase one when her cell phone announced an incoming call with a burst of lyrics from Bon Jovi's 'Living on A Prayer'.

Claire blushed when the loud ringtone caused several nearby shoppers to look her way in annoyance. She shot them an apologetic look even as she frantically dug the phone from her purse. Flipping it open silenced the music. Claire was still turning away from the display counter as she checked the caller ID and put the phone to her ear. "Ola, big brother," she answered in a cheery tone, heading towards the front of the store. "I hope you're calling with the best news ever."

After a second of silence, a sigh reached her from the other end of the line. "Honestly, kiddo," Chris answered in a tired tone. "I wish I was, especially after you went to the trouble to help find Oswell Spencer's location. In case I didn't say so earlier, I commend you for that."

Claire hesitated, her smile fading. She was so sure that pooling her resources within Terra Save with those in her brother's own organization would lead to the arrest of one of the most corrupt CEOs that she knew. For the purpose of keeping the conversation more private, she waited until she'd exited the store before guessing, "He wasn't there...?"

"Oh, no, he was there alright," Chris responded quickly. "But he was already dead by the time Jill and I found him. According to the security tapes we pulled, he'd been murdered almost a full day earlier." There was a slight pause, and then, with a derisive snort, her brother went on with, "Too good for the old bastard, if you ask me."

Claire sought to hide her disappointment when she said, in a convincingly chipper tone, "Careful, Chris. You're starting to sound cynical... Just think, it's one less employee of Umbrella that we have to worry about, and a big fish at that."

If her attempt to cheer him up was working, she wouldn't know by his tone. "Yeah, a big fish that I'd hoped would point us towards a bigger, more dangerous one. Instead... Wesker's the one who killed him, Claire."

Claire blinked. "What? Why?" She was quick to realize how absurd she sounded, and followed it a second later with, "I thought they were in the same boat."

"When have you known Wesker to be in the same boat with anyone?" There was a moment of silence, then Chris continued in a guarded tone. Claire guessed the details had been deemed classified. Such was the drawback of having an older brother working for the government. There were certain things that Chris wasn't allowed to disclose to a "civilian" sister, even though she'd seen her fair share of horrific creatures generated by Umbrella. "To put it mildly, they had a difference of opinion. The old man's madness ran pretty deep. That's all I can tell you."

Claire took a moment, then responded with, "So... I'm guessing that you weren't given any clue where the bigger fish has gone." As she hoped, the pun earned a laugh from him. At the sound, Claire smiled. She didn't care if it sounded bitter or not; she was simply glad to hear Chris snicker once in a while. Lord knew she'd been heckling him enough lately to not be so serious all the time.

"No, but that doesn't mean that Jill and I will stop searching for him. It'll be nice to finally close that chapter."

Claire shifted her weight. "When you do, be careful... I remember that he has just as big a grudge against you as you do against him. And I'm not ready to lose you yet, big brother." Without waiting for a response, she turned to regard the store entrance to her right, recalling her reason for being here. "By the way," she said, suppressing a laugh as she thought of how the abrupt change in topic would surely make his head spin. "If you had to pick a gift to give to someone at a baby shower, what would it be?"

Chris was too caught off guard and grumpy to offer much of a helpful response, and Claire opted to let it go. The two siblings shared a few more words before ending the call, but Chris did promise to call her again next week. After she folded the cell phone closed and tucked it away, Claire leaned back against the granite store front, closing her eyes and working to dispel the ill feelings that the conversation had stirred up. The one bright spot she had to latch onto was that she was secretly glad that Wesker had no longer been there when Chris and Jill showed. That could have ended very badly in any number of ways since they wouldn't have expected him.

The cries of seagulls circling the parking lot overhead and the aroma of coffee from a nearby diner was starting to put her at ease when a sudden voice with a mild British accent interrupted her reverie. "Having trouble finding something?"

Claire opened her eyes and gasped. She hadn't even heard anyone approaching. She looked to the left, soon finding that the voice belonged to a young man with tousled black hair who'd been partially concealed behind a Romanesque pillar accenting the hair salon next door. He too was facing the parking lot, a lit cigarette that was almost burned out tucked indifferently between two fingers on his right hand. Had there been a steady breeze coming from his direction, Claire surely would have smelled the smoke. He was that close to her.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, dropping the cigarette and grinding it out underneath a brown leather boot. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, or to scare you." Turning slightly in her direction, he added, "I promise I wasn't trying to intrude on your phone call, but I overheard you asking your brother for advice."

Claire hesitated, unsure how to react for a moment. She had been through enough, been burned enough times, to have some trust issues, but there was something about his polite tone and the way it went against his appearance that intrigued her. Tilting her head slightly and hoping that she wasn't coming across as confrontational, she said, "You don't strike me as someone who would know what to look for."

He took a step forward, pulling a packet of mint gum from his pocket and unwrapping a piece. "Maybe I'd surprise you... I come from a big family, and my third oldest sister is expecting her second child. When you have to buy baby gifts every two to three years, you get to become something of an expert."

Claire shrugged after a few seconds. "Sure. I have nothing to lose." She smiled slightly when he offered her a piece of gum. While she took him up on it, she still tucked it in her purse for later, explaining offhandedly that she was a loud chewer. In response, he stepped forward, popping the gum in his mouth and deliberately chewing it. Claire fell into step next to him as he passed her, and his arm instinctively darted towards her lower back though he didn't actually touch her.

She was still marveling over what a gentleman he was as he steered her towards the baby books section. However, once Claire realized where they were headed, she stopped and shot him a dubious look. "So, big family, yet you automatically go for something generic?" she said with a raised eyebrow.

There was no malice in his tone or dark brown eyes when he looked at her and said, "There's nothing generic about it. One thing I've learned, that if you're going to give a gift to someone, is to make it as unique as possible – something that they'd want to hold onto instead of get rid of once it's served its purpose. Plus, I had a plan prior to coming here. That said..." He trailed off as he turned and wandered into the aisle, and, her curiosity roused, Claire moved to follow him. When she watched him zero in on a specific title, she was given a better sense of what he meant. She had to admit it was a good idea. While she wasn't familiar with the board book he selected, she did spot one of her personal childhood favorites on the shelf.

"Okay, point taken," Claire admitted, shyly ducking past him to grab her personal fave for herself. "Thank you."

He gave a warm smile. "Anything for a beautiful damsel in distress," he said in the same polite tone that had won her over to begin with. "Might it be too presumptuous to ask your name?"

She stepped back down the aisle towards him, extending her hand for him to shake. "Claire Redfield."

He parroted her name back to her; she wasn't sure if he'd wanted to see how it sounded or if this was a means to commit it to memory, but she didn't ask. "Very pleased to meet you," he responded, grasping her outstretched hand and giving it a light shake. "Elliott Gregory... And, if I might ask, who's the gift for? I'm already guessing it's not a relative, or your brother would have given it more thought."

Claire was suddenly even more intrigued. "Hmm, so you're both charming and perceptive? That's a rare find these days." She paused, then went on to inform him of her co-worker. "Thank you again for the suggestion, Elliott. You just made my day a whole lot easier."

He tilted his head slightly to the side, giving her a relaxed smile. The pose was a little disconcerting, as it reminded her of a friend, Leon, but that was where the similarity ended. Claire quickly shook off the bewildered look that had risen to her eyes, praying that he hadn't seen it. He must not have, for he didn't question her about it. Instead, he hesitantly asked, "Would you like to grab a cup of coffee?"

Claire hesitated as well. Typically, she wasn't the type of person to be spontaneous, especially with someone she'd just met, but she couldn't help but wonder if this was someone who she'd get along with swimmingly. And, he was obviously interested in her as well, or he wouldn't have taken the chance. So it was, in spite of herself, she found herself giving an enthusiastic yes.