Renegades: A New Dawn
Chapter LXXIII: Pieces of Valentine
2:40am, Ashworth Brook Farm
Hannah was asleep on the sofa, Skylar in his cot beside her, when she was woken up with a start by a key turning in the door. Shooting up to her feet, she readied for a fight with any potential home invader, but her stance softened when she saw Phil walking in, clearly exhausted after the double trip to Africa. She didn't speak, but flung her arms around him instead. 'I'm sorry I'm coming back so late, the plane got delayed and they're doing roadworks on the motorway.' She just hugged him tighter. 'You never need to apologise to me, I get it. Now you get some rest.' 'No no, you go to sleep, I'll stay up for when he next needs feeding.' 'No, I insist, I've had a few hours, and you look exhausted.' 'I'll be fine.' 'No, I insist' she stated firmly while directing him to the stairs. Not in the mood to argue, he just accepted and went to bed.
The next morning, 8am
As a groggy Phil stumbled down the stairs, Hannah was tying her hair up, wearing a red shirt with a blue puffin on that was only mildly stained with baby vomit. 'I'm sorry, my alarm didn't go off.' 'It's fine. Look, you can stay here this morning, I'll go and do the shopping, we don't need a lot anyway. Lasagna ok tonight?' He responded by kissing her. 'I would love nothing more.' 'Ok, well I'll see you in a little while, I'll leave the little guy with you.' As Hannah went to leave, she saw a huge smile beam across his face.
This left Phil with Skylar. 'Hello little guy, you've got me today. I hope your Auntie Astrid and your Mumma have been taking good care of you, I'm sure they have.' As soon as he was in his Dad's hands, the quiet baby burst into giggles, warming their hearts as Astrid walked into the house, having come back from her run. 'Good morning' she stated cheerily as the sun shone brightly through the slightly murky windows.
'God, the sunlight just reminds me that I really need to clean those windows.' 'Astrid, you've practically been running the house with Hannah, you don't need to do anything more today.' 'Honestly I don't mind, it gives me something to do. See, when I'm doing nothing I get a bit lazy, and all of this? It's the absolute domestic bliss I used to dream of when I was younger.' 'Well it isn't fair that you have to do all of this for us. At least I can'
Before he could finish his sentence, his phone started ringing. 'Just a moment.' He then answered the phone, but as the conversation wore on, his face turned from contentment, to concern, to absolute despair and frustration, and Astrid could tell exactly what he was going to say when he came off the phone nearly 10 minutes later. 'I'm sorry about this, but I need to go to Alderley Edge, one of the suppliers wants an urgent meeting, I'm just hoping they're not bailing. I'm sorry to drop this on you, but'
Astrid just touched his heart in response. 'I get it, you're making the best life for Hannah and Skylar. Hopefully it's all good news.' 'Let's hope so, I don't think we can afford for this one to slip.' 'Well just get yourself out there, we all know you're the best guy for the job.' He smiled at her, but it was a cold smile, hiding the pain inside. As the door slammed, Astrid muttered 'Poor guy, hope he's ok…' under her breath, and as if reacting to the situation, Skylar started crying again. 'I feel you kiddo… I feel you.'
10:50am
Hannah returned from shopping, but immediately realised a problem. 'His car isn't here… please don't say…' As she walked into the house, she found Astrid eating some drytoast while hoovering up the crumbs as she walked around. 'Go on then, give me the bad news.' 'He was called to a supplier in Orderly Edge?' 'Alderley Edge… oh boy, that's the really big one, about 40% of our produce comes from there. Basically anything vegetable wise that we don't grow here comes from there. If that goes, the business goes.' 'He did look really depressed when he got the call, seems like he doesn't stop at the moment.'
Realising she needed to talk, Hannah made a coffee, and then sat down, inviting Astrid to do the same. 'When we started the farm, it was supposed to be both of us as equals, down to the meetings, it was always the two of us together, and then we'd look at adoption properly in the future. But between me getting pregnant unexpectedly, and that flaring up my back, he's basically taken over all of the responsibility for the business, I've only just started doing the accounts even. He just needs somebody to take over the responsibility for him, but we can't afford anyone because we're still paying off the house, and we've got a ton of other debts and loans from starting the business.'
'So him becoming WDC Champion' 'Being the champion gets you more money, and that gets rid of the debts quicker. We'll be clear in a couple of months, but I don't think he can take it for that long.' Sighing, Astrid stated 'I wish I could do something to help him.' 'You already are, the amount you've done here' 'That's not sorting any issues though, the issue isn't him doing the dishes or washing the windows, it's not spending time with you and Skylar. I've never seen him happy like I have with you and with him.'
'I know you mean well, but between the talks with suppliers, the shop and its cafe, the turnover for the cafe's gone down recently as well, we're not getting the amount of people in because there's less call for hearty stuff.' Astrid nodded, and then seemed to have an idea. 'Hannah, do you have Rio's phone number?' 'Rio's? Why would you need that?' Not wanting to spill her speculative idea, she refused to say. 'I… just need to discuss something with her.'
Shrugging, Hannah passed Astrid her phone. 'She probably won't recognise our home phone number, so just use this, it's saved under Pest because she used to phone me every single day.' 'Ok, thanks.' As Astrid left the room to phone Rio, Hannah went to the home phone, and made a call of her own. 'Hi, it's Hannah. Look, I know this is short notice, but are you available tomorrow? Just ring me back when you know. Thanks Megs.'
1pm
As Hannah was preparing Skylar's food, her phone rang again, and holding it between her head and ear, she answered. 'Hey baby.' 'Hi Hannah, look I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm needed down in Wolverhampton for a while.' 'But we've got your Mum and Dad coming round tonight.' 'I'm sorry, I want to be home, but I promise this is for a good reason.' Huffing, she played her part. 'Ok, I understand. How did the first meeting go?' 'Really well, they said they're really pleased with the partnership and they'd be interested in expanding it in the future. I also managed to knock them down slightly on prices, works out about £900 cheaper across the year.' 'That's fantastic. I miss you.' The slightest hint of crying was then heard from the other end of the phone. 'Yeah, me too. I'll be back as soon as I can. I'll have to go now, just pulling into the petrol station.' 'Ok, well I'll see you later.' 'I love you.' 'I love you too. Bye.'
As the call ended, Hannah wiped her tears away, and then saw a text message on her phone. Reading it, she smiled, and responded in the affirmative, before feeding Skylar. 'You know, your Dad really does care about you. And when he's back home, he'll dote on you like nobody else would. Because he's doing all of this for us, we just need to remember that don't we? We just need… to remember that. He's doing this for us.' However much she tried to convince herself though, she just couldn't feel better about the situation, she could not reconcile with his frequent absence. She would wait up until 11 that night, but still ith no sign of him, she casually threw her dinner plate into the sink, splitting it in half as she did, and went to bed.
12:45am
After being on the road all day, Phil finally got home in the small hours, switching on the light to see that everyone was fast asleep in bed. After taking his shoes off he slowly undid his tie as he walked wearily into the kitchen, finding the broken plate as he did. As he opened the oven, he found a cold portion of lasagna sat there, on a plate. He warmed it up in the microwave, and while it was heating, opened the fridge and poured a bottle of beer into a wine glass. After the meal was ready, he sat down with it and his drink, and just ruminated, asking 'Is this really all worth it?' Is this really worth losing out on his life for, on her life for?' into the glass, before eating, alone and in the dead of night.
7:15am
Phil woke up having fallen asleep sat up, to see Hannah sat on his legs. 'Morning.' 'I thought I'd make sure you couldn't go anywhere' she joked, but it was clear she was missing him. 'So what've you got on today?' 'Not a lot strangely, I'm in York tomorrow afternoon, but today all I've got is a training session with Rio and Freja at 1:45.' 'When did they start training together?' 'When Belle had the hair brained idea that she should be trying to spend more time with Lydia, even though Lydia's not interested in the slightest. So now Freja's started training with Rio as an escape. Also, Rio will actually put up with her idolising of me.'
His phone then rang much to his frustration. 'Excuse me a moment. Hello? Morning Maddy, I take it you're not ringing to explain why you've not been over here in over a week? What - now? Ok, fine, I'll be there soon.' As he put his phone down, Hannah rolled her eyes. 'What now?' 'Maddy wants to talk to me, she's had a breakthrough regarding the situation with Akiza, and for some reason she thinks I'd be better than you on that.' 'More like she doesn't want Astrid to have to change Sky's nappy again, they were arguing about it the other day apparently. You go, I'll still be here when you get back.'
After he left, Hannah sighed. 'Well, I guess it's breakfast for one again.' After quickly brushing her hair, and putting on the slightest hint of lipstick, she walked out of the door, and noticed that the door to the shop was ajar. So curious, she crept towards the door slowly, and poked her head round, only to find that it wasn't any burglars in there, but Astrid and Ally, busy cooking up a storm. 'You see, gentle stirs and it doesn't go everywhere. And if it doesn't go everywhere, Auntie Astrid doesn't get shouted at.'
'Who says I'm not going to shout anyway?' Hannah responded, startling Astrid and making her spill the chocolate brown mixture. 'Morning, sleep well' she asked sheepishly while being glared at. 'Astrid, what happened to asking whether you could come in here? And more to the point, how did you even get in here, the spare key's still in the drawer, and you've not forced the lock.' As she asked this, the answer became apparent as Rio walked in from the pantry, carrying her mother's cookbook. 'It says to add three ounces of buttermilk, to make the top feel thicker and (clearing her throat) luxurious' she stated in an oddly seductive tone, before she noticed Hannah. 'Long time no see.'
'Rio, what are you doing?' 'Was the voice too much? Sorry.' 'You know that spare key's supposed to be for opening up to customers, right?' 'Yeah, but I've got a good reason.' 'Can't wait to hear this one.' 'Well, I spoke to Phil the other day, and he's being stubborn, he won't let me pay for extra staff for here so he can take more time off, like getting an accountant in or something. And I noticed that there are a bunch of things on the menu which just aren't selling. So I thought we'd try and freshen things up a bit, work on some new stuff.'
'With a book that looks about 100 years old?' 'Sorry, it's a lil' dusty still. It was written by my Mom.' 'Nana Kastle was your mother?' 'Oh you've heard of her?' 'Yeah, used to watch some of her shows when I was younger, you'd be amazed the sh*t British channels import over.' 'Anyway, Blair and Jade found it in a thrift place in Paris and bought it for my birthday.' 'But your birthday's in December?' Hannah pointed out, still confused. 'Yeah, but Jade was kind of out of the country for it. So I just thought if I could come up with some new stuff, then maybe we'd get more cash in hand and Phil could take more time away from here to spend with you and Sky.'
'That's really sweet, but' 'No buts, I bought the ingredients, all I'm going to ask is that you help with the taste testing afterwards.' Hannah shook her head and laughed. 'You are unbelievable. Tell you what, get Ally to write down the recipes, and then we'll look at them after the tasting to see what we can do.' Rio was delighted, but also confused. 'Why Ally writing it?' 'Simple, she has the best writing of all if you. Your writing has to be read with a microscope, and Astrid, no offences, but I can't even read yours.' With a mouthful of chocolate, she responded sharply with 'It's not my fault I didn't learn to write as a kid.'
Rio then inquired further about this. 'Astrid, when DID you learn to write?' She shrugged and indignantly replied 'When I was 12. Mum was too busy drinking, so I home schooled myself. By the way, your Mom's mud pie batter is divine.' 'Well when you're done eating it all, I'd like to actually cook some of it. That's a pro tip, never work with kids or very hungry… what's the word?' 'Norwegians' 'I was actually thinking idiots, but that works.'
At the base
Phil arrived, being greeted by Dakota. 'Maddy asked me to make sure you didn't get distracted talking to Blair, she really needs to talk to you about this bullshit with Akiza.' 'Why me specifically?' 'Beats me, all she said to me was to make sure you made it up there. We'll probably be in enough trouble for talking, she's been totally psycho recently.' With the warning ringing in his ears, Phil went with Dakota up to the office, where she leant up towards the door, quickly knocking on it and backing right off, as the door swung open. 'Cheers Dakota.'
Walking into the office, Phil looked around and saw utter carnage, as paper was all over the floor, random notes being written all over the board in English and Welsh, and a duvet and pillows situated in the corner. 'What've we said about sleeping in the office, it's not going to do you any' 'You know you sound just like Jana when you're talkin' like that' she snapped in response, before immediately being hit by a wave of guilt.
'Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you, I'm trying to work out what the hell's going on.' 'Meaning?' 'Akiza's behaviour, it just doesn't make sense.' 'Right, let's discuss it then. But first, why don't you tell me what you know.' 'Fuck all, that's what. She doesn't want to hurt me, yet she's getting some masked attacker to ambush us, she wants to face me but then keeps backing down, I just don't get any of it. She isn't making any sense.'
Phil nodded, but then a lightbulb went off in his head. 'Unless she isn't the one in charge.' 'Pardon?' 'Akiza's the one going after you, but what if she's a footsoldier? What if the real threat is hidden behind the scenes? Because it would make total sense for whoever's pulling the strings to use Akiza, they know she's got a grudge against you.' 'So she's the face, but someone else is pulling her strings, and that person had to know so much about me, they know that I'm eager to get Akiza out of the way, they probably know why I had to cut her loose.'
'Don't forget, they also got to Jessica, so they clearly not only knew about her and about your history, but they knew about where she lived, they probably did surveillance for a while, and they had to know that you would not only remember her, but also keep her safe and protected, to the point where you would sacrifice an opportunity to get to Akiza just for her.' Maddy paused to think for a split second, and then shouted 'SHAN!'
'She knew?' Speaking manically, Maddy explained. 'Shannon knows about me and Jess because we were inseparable at the time, she knew I'd protect Jess because we kept in contact for a while after school, and she knew where Jess lived because Shan's Dad would sometimes drop me off on the corner near her house because I didn't wanna be seen being dropped off by him because Jess and Shannon didn't get on grand, they were both kind of clingy around me, there was this time they got into an argument on the moors, and Shan swore that she'd mean more than Jess ever did to me. Thanks, you're a genius.' 'Welcome.'
As he walked out of the office, she whipped her phone out. 'Hi Mam, it's Maddy. Yeah, I know I was supposed to phone you yesterday, but I got sidetracked. Anyway… you still have connections in Toronto don't you? Yeah, well could you ask them to keep an eye out for Shannon there, I think she might be getting herself into some trouble. Don't ask me how I know, I just… I just do, k? Alright, thanks, I'll make it up to you both. Love you too. Bye.'
Meanwhile, Phil had gone from the office to the arena, as Freja and Rio had a training session. As he arrived though, Rio wasn't there, with Kenzie present instead. 'Rio's a lot more… blonde and Scottish than I remember. Go on then, what's her excuse?' Kenzie laughed, stating 'Not a clue, I just happened to be in here', but Freja was a lot quieter and clearly pensive, which was noticed. 'Fancy talking Freja? You seem nervous.'
'I've been called in to a meeting with Maddy, I'm hoping I've not done something wrong again, or Jade's not been saying stuff about me. She clearly still hates me.' 'She doesn't hate you, she just has a bit of a grudge and a lot to deal with. And it's nothing to do with Jade, because I was in Maddy's office a few minutes ago and there was no sight of her.' Just as they discussed this, Belle walked into the arena, wearing a leather jacket and flat cap, her hair rustling around her ears as she hastened across the floor.
'Hey Phil. Fre, why does Maddy want to talk to us both? You don't think we annoyed her do you?' 'You might have done when you suggested that she was a paranoid schizophrenic, and I really don't think she appreciated you giving her the business card of your therapist.' 'God's sake, I was only trying to help her.' 'I don't think it worked to be honest with you.' Kenzie then approached them. 'If it helps, I heard her saying earlier that she was a little harsh on you.' 'I hope you're right.'
An announcement then came through on the Tannoy. 'Will Belle and Freja please report to the President's Office, that's Belle and Freja to the President's Office immediately, thank you.' Straight away, Freja stood up. 'Right, better face the music.' 'Just remember, if she mentions Jade, point out that she's the one starting all the issues now, and you did pay Blair compensation.' 'Got it.' They walked off together, leaving Phil with Kenzie.
'So, how you finding the pro ranks?' 'Really tough, I'd like to maybe try the Amateur circuit next season.' 'That's fine by me, but you're best talking to Astrid about that, she's the real expert on it all.' 'Can you do the Amateur circuit and still compete at Pro events or do you not know?' 'Honestly, you're better choosing one because of the travelling. You can do both theoretically, but that would be a very rare situation. As I say though, talk to Astrid and she'll signpost you in the correct direction.' 'Thanks.'
In the office, Belle and Freja walked in to see Maddy holding two wallets, as Jess stood quietly in the corner. 'Just to put you at ease, you're not in any trouble.' 'What did you want us for then?' 'I have a theory regarding who the person who keeps attacking us is, but I need some kind of proof. So I want to send you both to Toronto for a couple of days before Witchunt, just to see what's Akiza up to.' 'And you wanted us because?' 'Belle's great at looking totally inconspicuous, and you can morph in and out as and when you need to.' 'You realise it needs to charge right?' 'You're quick charging though.' 'I guess, I don't time it or anything.'
'Look, I know I'm asking a lot of you both, and if you say no, I totally get it.' Belle then put her hand on the table, and took one of the wallets. 'There's a reason you're trusting us, I just hope I don't let you down.' 'Belle, if I didn't have total faith in you I wouldn't have asked. Freja?' After taking a moment, she had an idea. 'Can I have some time to think about it?' 'Yeah, you've got a week to consider it. Just text me or whatever when you know.' 'Thanks.' 'No problem, if you need time just ask.'
Ashworth Brook Farm
As Phil got home from the base, he hugged Hannah, and then started talking about his workload. 'So I've got the rest of today, and then tomorrow I'm in Rochdale first thing, then I'm getting lunch on the go so I can get up to York for Half 2' Hannah cut him off there, smiling. 'You don't have anything on tomorrow.' 'Well I mean if you want the bailiffs to come round.' 'No, but I've hired you a Personal Assistant.' 'Hannah, I know you mean well, but we don't have the money.' 'Don't worry, this one comes cheap.'
As she said this, Meghan walked into the room, dressed in a sharp blazer and blouse combination, a singular hair pin in her hair. 'Oh hi Meghan, I didn't know you were here. You going to an interview?' Hannah then giggled and stated 'Meet your new PA.' Phil's look turned from confusion into disbelief and then back into confusion, as Meghan and Hannah hugged each other.
Over a coffee and a sample of Rio's Mud Pie, everything was explained. 'So what's going on?' 'Well, I didn't move back to the UK to be near Hannah… well not just that anyway. I'm actually enrolling in uni, doing a degree in Business, and I managed to arrange sorting your business meetings to be part of my first placement. Might stop this one moaning that she never gets to see you now!' Phil smiled to himself, but it was clear that he regretted the effect his working was having on his beloved.
'So tomorrow, if you can run me through the cliff notes of the meetings, I can sort the meetings. I'll just explain that I'm your assistant because you're dealing with the shop.' 'And how are you getting there?' 'A boyfriend with lots of money and no job. Well not lots of money, but enough for diesel at least.' Hannah then looked at her suspiciously. 'Boyfriend eh?' 'Hannah, I'm 24, I can have a boyfriend' 'I know, I just thought you might tell your big sister so I could embarrass you.' 'By the way, who made this cake? It's absolutely divine.'
Hearing this, Rio walked out of the kitchen, beaming, chocolate mix covering her right cheek. 'I'm glad you like it, my Mom's recipe. When did you get here anyway Megs?' 'A while ago. How you doing Rio?' 'Yeah, alright honestly. Look, I'll leave you guys be.' Having excused herself, she went back into the kitchen, as Meghan looked at her pensively. 'Don't know how the hell she carries on.' 'I wonder sometimes. She's special.' Phil then looked at his watch. 'I forgot about that…' Hannah immediately remembered what he was talking about. 'The Duellist Weekly interview?' 'Yep.' He then walked away to jump onto his laptop for the meeting.
As it opened up, the interviewer dived straight in with the questions. 'So Phil, a cursory question, how are you?' 'Busy, but my lawyer has reliably informed me that I have to do this.' After this awkward start, the conversation moved to the WDC Championship. 'Phil, you recently won your sixth WDC Championship, equalling the record. But you've never held the belt for longer than 48 days. Do you believe this win makes you one of the greats?'
'Quite frankly I don't care if you think I'm great. That might have mattered to me once, but not now, now all that matters to me is whether I win or not, because if I win, I earn more money for my business and my family.' 'But do you think this puts you in the legion of the greatest duellists of all time?' 'I believe I should be, whether I am is up to personal opinion. I'm not going to waste my time worrying about things like that.'
'But do you not think you're on the verge of being recognised as such?' 'People who want to recognise will recognise, that is their choice. I know my accomplishments, I know what I've given to duelling, I know what I'm continuing to give, and I can just as easily take that away. People think being champion is a privilege, but it's not when you have to put in such long days, travel across the world for an ungrateful company who clearly don't want you around.'
'I think what you need to understand here is that the WDC have a duty to every competitor, and they still have concerns regarding the Renegades' influence' 'No, it's because Maddy refused to be their golden child. So now they'll take it out on me by forcing me to defend this belt at every event. I have a wife and a young son, not that you'd know because I never get to see them. I have sacrificed so much because I still have a lot to offer this company, but I could very easily leave, take everything with me and never come back! I think this interview's done.' 'But you still have a contractual obligation' 'F*ck the contract' he stated angrily before closing his laptop again.
The next day
Phil woke up around 8am, to find Hannah sat on the edge of the bed, with a tray containing three slices of warm toast, and two boiled eggs. 'Rise and shine sweetie.' 'What did I do for this?' She cuddled up to his bare chest, and lay on him, giggling. 'Be here. Do you know how long I've waited to be able to do this? All I want right now is to tell you how much I love you, and how much I miss you every day, and how… cold you are! Do you ever sleep with the duvet on?'
'It was a warm night.' 'I was freezing! Absolutely fuckin' freezing!' 'Probably because you weren't wearing anything. Seriously, when's the last time you slept without a shirt on?' 'Probably when I was about 8' 'Oh yeah, there was that one time' 'I thought we agreed not to talk about that' Hannah snapped in embarrassment, as Meghan laughed, while walking in with a file in hand. 'I want more of this story.' 'Concentrate on the meetings first, then I'll tell you later.'
Around an hour later, Phil brought his tray down, and started going through the meetings with Meghan. 'So there's 10:15 in Rochdale, I'm due to meet with our linked dairy farm to negotiate a larger delivery of goat's milk because we're going through it like crazy.' 'What price are we talking?' 'We're currently at £1.23 per litre, I'm hoping with a larger quantity we can cut him down to around £1.10, and I also wanted to discuss sourcing chicken with him, because our current source is up in Doncaster.' 'Ok.' 'Just be careful though, the guy down there is called Neils, he's from Belfast and talks extremely fast.' 'That's fine, my boyfriend's from Derry. And don't worry Hannah, you'll get to meet him eventually, he's called Malcolm, and he's an absolute pussycat.'
'And after that I'm due up in York at 2:30, I'd suggest getting the train up to Leeds and then jumping on a fast train from there. You could get a lift but Junction 29's closed meaning you'd have to weave your way through Wakefield.' 'And what are you doing there' Meghan asked, writing notes all the while. 'There's a big supermarket up there who wanted me to come to head office to discuss stocking our sourdough loaves, they've pitched £1.05 a loaf but I'm hoping to push them up a bit by pitching pizza bases to them, we'd be marketing them around 75p per unit.' 'Ok, I'll see what I can do for you.' 'Thank you.' She smiled at him in response. 'You know, I can't believe I used to hate you.' Hearing this, Hannah patted the two of them on the head. 'I'm so proud of you both, no longer hating each other… well I mean he never actually had an issue with you, but still, I'm so so proud of you both' she said sarcastically.
Meghan then picked up her handbag and went to leave, only for Phil to call her back, and pass her a file. 'This has all the financial information you're going to need as well as a few notes on things.' 'Ok, is there anything else?' 'I think that's it honestly.' 'Ok.' As Meghan walked out, Hannah sat down with her husband. 'So, I need to go to the supermarket later, do you fancy… coming with?' He just kissed her as a response. 'I'll take that as a "yes" then.' 'Well I mean I was supposed to have a training session on, but Rio's got the flu, apparently she was duelling Donny in the arena yesterday and nearly collapsed on his first turn. She's feeling brighter today but Sakura's not going to be letting her duel at Warzone.'
'Seems harsh.' 'I thought that but it's nothing to do with me, she's the medical expert after all.' 'Take it she's cut up?' 'Cross certainly, gives us time to work on her deck though.' 'Fill me in then.' After taking a deep breath, he laid out the issue. 'Right, so she's got your Nekroz deck, but she's just not taking to it' 'I did expect her to grow out of it, I just wanted to give her something.' 'So she's got a Harpie deck, quite good, built 90% of it herself, did a really sweet job actually, but it's just not strong enough to take her to where she wants to be.'
'I thought she had that… what's it, the low level deck.' 'Lyrilusc?' 'Yeah that's the one.' 'She does, but she's seeing that as an ace in the hole if you will, she wants something that she can use consistently. So we're looking at some options, but she wants to lab them out online before she makes a decision. We're down to about 3 or 4 options, but she doesn't seem enamoured with any. I mean it would help if she actually knew what she was looking for, but'
'She's Rio, she doesn't do decisive.' 'Exactimundo. So I told her, pick a deck by the time she's good to go and we'll have a few practice duels. Just enough for her to get used to the deck.' 'I
get you, a little tune up, just to let her get into the swing of things, probably using some pile of shit' 'I'll have you know that my Fire deck is still very good.' 'It stopped being "very good" around the time you last won the WDC Championship.' 'Vegas?' 'Before that.' 'Long enough for me not to remember.' 'Exactly.' She then leaned over to him and whispered 'September 2013.'
Half an hour later
.
After the near half-hour drive to the nearest supermarket, Phil and Hannah were working out what they needed, but Phil's mind was still on other subjects. 'Don't know if you fancy pasta tonight?' 'Yeah, I'm sorry about the lasagna the other night.' 'To be fair, I'm glad we didn't have it together, I overcooked it to hell.' 'Could have fooled me, I thought it was great.' 'By the time you got back you were probably just thankful for food.' 'You're not wrong to be fair. Got another late one coming up, the flight back from Alabama's due in at half 3. Still don't know what I'm using to beat Caleb.'
Trying to divert the conversation, Hannah focused on their plans for the rest of the day. 'So I'm thinking, we go home after this and take in some daytime telly? Obviously we'll take turns in keeping an eye on his lordship, I've told Astrid to go to a climbing centre down in Oldham, you heard that she wants to climb Scafell Pike, right?' 'Yeah, I mean I still need to contact Declan to see what's going on with her return, seeing as I am her agent now.'
Growing tired of Phil's inability to focus on anything aside from work, Hannah came up with a solution. 'Right, after we're done in here, we're going for a coffee. I know a lovely little cafe about 10 minutes away, very quaint, no wi-fi, do a mean soy espresso.' 'What is this soy milk thing with you?' She grinned, and tapped him on the back. 'Welcome back babes' she sassily stated, kissing him on the neck as she did.
A few minutes later, Phil had an idea to thank his wife for her support. 'Right, I've decided you're not cooking tonight. I'll sort you a pizza, pick whatever you want on it and put your feet up tonight.' 'Ok, I'm never going to complain.' As she collected ingredients, Phil just watched her go along, grabbing various jars and fresh vegetables off the shelves and launching them towards the trolley with him slowing them down just enough to avoid the glass jars shattering on impact.
As she returned to him, she noticed him watching. 'I knew these jeans were too skin-tight.' 'I mean I'm not complaining' he joked, which Hannah took as a sign to start twerking in front of him. 'Come and get me baby' she taunted, so he did, tapping her on the backside. 'You can wear those any day as far as I'm concerned, I'll never turn it down. Especially when you relearn the splits.' 'It's not "relearning" it, it's losing enough weight so I don't tear my thighs in half when trying. Just need to get rid of the puppy fat.'
He responded by holding her around the waist and kissing her. 'You look perfect just the way you are.' 'You're lying and you know it.' 'I wouldn't care if you were 5000 pounds, you'd still be drop dead gorgeous.' 'Especially the middle bit' she joked while reciprocating the affection. 'And I already tried being dead once, I didn't like it, it didn't have you there.' 'Well they're never going to separate us again.' 'Never.'
After their shopping, they went for their "non-work" coffee, but as they did, he got a phone call. 'Phil, you promised' 'It's Meghan, I promise I'm not answering any other calls today, ok?' He then answered it as Hannah rolled her eyes. 'Hi Meghan, how are you doing?' 'Yeah it's good, I just wanted to update you on what's happened today. Are you somewhere you can write this down?' 'Yes, just gone for a coffee with Hannah.' After he got a notepad out, Meghan ran him through the situation.
'So with the guy this morning' 'Neils' 'Yep, I had a good laugh with him, real nice guy when you can actually understand him.' 'How did you do with the negotiating?' 'Yeah, not bad, I managed to squeeze him down to 98 pence per litre in exchange for a 2% cut of all sales of goat's milk recipes, but the lower fee should still see us make a tidy cut, I've also signed a 3 month exclusivity deal with him, so he's going to only supply us in exchange for using the shop's branding for advertising.'
'That's incredible, thank you Megs.' 'Thank me after you hear the rest.' 'Oh, go on then.' 'Well I went up to York, and I took the samples that you forgot to remind me about. Lucky Rio was in the kitchen still.' 'I didn't prepare any samples though.' 'Oh, I don't know then. But I took the samples with me, and they absolutely loved the sourdough, they said it was absolutely beautifully cooked.'
'So they're making an order?' 'Subject to branding being okayed, they've ordered 80,000 units of the bases at 71 pence a unit, and 50,000 loaves of sourdough bread at £1 a loaf as a trial, with an agreement to go up to £1.10 after six months' trial. That's to be stocked in around 125 supermarkets across the north of England. They also want to get one of their branding experts in touch regarding marketing because they want to build a relationship if all of this goes well. I know it's not quite the price you were after, but'
'Never mind that, you've got us stocked and that's the important thing, I was pitching a ridiculous margin to be honest, even now we're looking at upwards of 30% per loaf.' 'I told them that you could be available for a video call next Thursday, is that alright?' 'I'll check with my PA' Phil joked while winking at Hannah. 'Now you need to send me your bank details so I can pay you' 'I don't want paying. How about this - I work for free for the first month, and then you decide how much I'm worth afterwards. No being nice because I'm your sister-in-law, god saying that sounds weird after I spent so long denying it.' 'Ok, that's what I'll do then.'
As he came off the phone, Hannah saw the smile. 'The girl did good then?' 'Your sister might just be a genius.' 'Takes after her older sister then' she boasted while grinning. 'Obviously it's all those years of my influence that did it for her.' 'Or it could be the chat she had with me this morning.' 'Yeah, totally. A few minutes versus 20 years.' 'Apart from the three months you spent under my mind control.' 'Which was all worth it by the way. I'd do it all over again.'
Over a coffee, the new parents talked about the future. 'You know how much I've missed you, don't you? Like, and I'm not saying this for sympathy or guilt tripping, but when I found out you weren't coming back the other night, I absolutely broke down, I've just spent so long missing you, I can't explain it.' He didn't speak initially, but put his hand over hers, gently stroking it. 'You know, a pulse of electricity goes through me every time you do that.'
'Look, all this, the duelling, the title, the travelling, I could give that all up tomorrow if you wanted to, because it's you, you're the thing I've always wanted. And I've lost sight of that. And I'm sorry. When I first got you, I promised that you would be my queen, and I would treat you that way every single day. But I haven't done, and that's on me. I don't just want to be a bit-part of Skylar's life, I want to be his Dad, I want to make memories with him, and with you, from Day 1. So this is my line in the ground, say the word and I'm standing there in Alabama and Caleb's not getting his title duel, because I'm laying that fucker on the ground and never looking back.'
'I don't expect you to do that, not at all. You're doing this for us, remember.' 'What do you suggest then?' 'Honestly?' 'Honestly.' 'Go to the office, tell them you're going part-time, you'll defend your title every 2-3 shows, and in the meantime they can set up a proper challenger. And if they don't like it, then they can talk to Frances. You can just pick and choose whichever events based on what's easy to get back from, because you're totally more of a day person than a night person.'
'You know, you might have an idea there' he responded in delight. 'Another thing though, we need to nail down who's living with us. There's us three for a start.' 'I'll talk to Maddy in a couple of weeks after the Akiza stuff blows over.' 'Astrid's just moved her stuff in and I want to nail down that she's living with us.' 'Absolutely, she's family as far as I'm concerned.' 'How about Freja? Blair's not here anymore so there wouldn't be any issues there.' 'They've started to make up a bit. And I'd love Freja here, but it won't be for too long because she and Belle are talking about getting some kind of bedsit together to ease the tension with Lydia.' 'Sounds good to me. Stops the moaning anyway.'
That night, Phil and Hannah were sat in front of the television with their pizzas, with Skylar fast asleep in his cot and Astrid fast asleep, using the cot as a pillow. 'Peace and quiet eh?' 'Just me and you. Forever.' 'I just want you to know that this has been one of the best days I've had in a long time.' He then looked at her with slightly sad eyes, whispering 'And I don't want it to end.' 'There's plenty more where this came from, I promise.'
Next time: Phil battles Caleb in a dogged duel, Belle steps up to Akiza once more, and Maddy and Rio come to blows in Renegades: A New Dawn Chapter LXXIV: Faithless