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Permalink Reply by 2jwh2k4e79hlv on December 22, 2020 at 12:28

 Evelyn was confident that she had been set up. How could something go so wrong so quickly? The ambush came out of nowhere and it had been perfectly set up. Her ambushers had struck as quickly as a snake. Evelyn had to leave behind the car that was part of this job. She would rather get an earful from Sirius than have holes filled with bullets on her.

Eve rarely ever went to any kind of clubs. Sirius’ club was the one she was in most only simply because he would give her jobs and the pay was more than good enough. Evelyn was late as usual but that could have been prevented. The reason she was late was because she had succumbed to the need to smoke before going into the club. It was not an addiction. It was more of silencing the voice in her brain which would pipe up every time something had gone wrong. She was able to deal with it at first but the more stressed she got over the years, the more it would slither around in her brain, attempting create a power struggle between it and her.

“Do you ever smile?” Evelyn questioned the head bartender. The bartender did not respond and just led her to the office where Sirius was always in. The bartender shared a couple words with Sirius before giving a nod to Evelyn, indicating her to go in where the male was waiting. Before she stepped foot in the office however, the bartender held her hand out. Evelyn pulled out her pistol which had been pinned between her jeans and back and placed it into the bartender’s hand before giving a sarcastic smile as she walked into the Celestial’s office.

She sat in the chair opposite Sirius, not even bothering to greet him. She placed her right leg on top of her left leg and locked her eyes onto the Celestial. They were not friends or anything of the sort. To Eve, he was just a means of getting money so she could get back on her feet in Evermore City.  The displeasure on his face was clear yet Evelyn scoffed at the idea that he was the one who should have been angry at what happened. Eve had been shot at and barely made it out with her life. “Let me tell you exactly what happened,” The human leaned in, her eyes locked with his. This was her issue. She hated authority so she never knew how to properly behave in front of someone who could end her life with the snap of his fingers, 

“I follow all your instructions to a tee. Everything was going smooth until out of nowhere, two cars pulled up in front of me, got out and started shooting. I barely managed to get out of the car and the fact I’m sat here before you, is clearly because they didn’t give a shit whether I lived or died. They wanted the package.” She explained, speaking a little too loudly than she should have. She leaned back into her chair, but her eyes remained locked on the Celestial. “My turn,” Evelyn was beyond angry that the job had gone this wrong and she wanted to find out who the culprits were. “How would anyone know I was travelling with the package? Because I sure as shit didn’t tell anyone.”                                        

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CelestialPermalink Reply by ✓ Sirius Othello Iordanou on December 23, 2020 at 11:40

Probably any other higher-ups involved in the black market wouldn't have tolerated Evelyn's crass personality. However, Sirius was usually a lot more laidback compared to others, and simply took it in stride. Something must have made her this way, and he wasn't the type to pry and demand reasons. However, this wasn't a good day, so at her words, he raised an eyebrow, and his gaze turned cold. "You may want to watch your tone, Stonewall," he uttered dryly. "This was your operation. It was your responsibility." An exasperated sigh parted his lips then, shaking his head as he processed her explanation, and formed his next words carefully in his mind. He was used to her attitude, but Siri simply wasn't in his usual carefree mood at the moment, given that if they didn't recover the goods, there would be a rather deep hole in his own pocket. He wouldn't take kindly to arrogance and aggression at the current time.

An incredulous look spread over his chiselled features as the woman questioned him, his vibrant blue hues widening slightly and a scoff parted his lips. "You really have the audacity to blame this on me?" Sirius queried, his stern gaze daring her to agree. Although, knowing Evelyn, she probably would talk back to him. "This entire run was on a need-to-know basis," he informed her. "The only people who knew that you were travelling with the package today were you and I. Not even my employees here knew about it." A thought travelled through his mind as the last words left his mouth: could they have been betrayed by one of his staff. No, he chided at himself, the doors were locked and any information of importance was secured---both electronic and hard-copies. There was no way someone had intercepted the run on his end. All other possibilities exhausted, only one explanation glared at him in the face. "Someone must have figured out that you were my regular, Ev--that's the only explanation," the Celestial concluded, his gaze unwavering as it met the human's. "They must have been following you for a while until they were satisfied that you were delivering something important, and intercepted you then." A sigh sounded from him, followed by a shake of his head. "Have you noticed anyone following you lately? Any cars that seemed too familiar, or even faces?" He was getting clumsy, if someone noticed Evelyn relationship to him. How was that possible? Sirius was incredibly cautious when it came to covering his tracks, but someone had apparently outsmarted him. That though alone further fuelled his drive for revenge---no one stole from him, and no one would make him look weak.

"Well, I'm glad you got out alright, at the very least," the Greek male said after a moment, his gaze flickering across a few papers before meeting the mocha irises of the human. "Because you're going to go back in and recover what they've stolen." His tone made it clear that there was no room for argument---not unless Evelyn was willing to forfeit a percentage of the agreed payment he'd offered upon completion of the job. "I'm just wondering how you didn't see them coming---are you getting careless, Ev?" He rolled his eyes as he leaned back in his chair, his attention returning to the papers strewn across the mahogany desk. "Anyway, I need you to tell me about what cars they were driving. They're probably stolen and already dumped outside the city, but it'll be worth a shot trying to trace them." He then looked up once more, eyeing the dark haired human, preparing himself for the outburst that would definitely follow his next sentence. "You can also make up for this fluke by going to the cops and asking them for street footage from around the area." A wry smirk toyed at the corners of his lips, the male then tilting his head to a side. "You can do that, no?"

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Permalink Reply by 2jwh2k4e79hlv on December 23, 2020 at 13:51

He was right. It was her operation and duty to make sure the package had reached its destination. Yet she got this feeling that someone had set her up. As much as she and Siri argued with each other every time they saw each other because of her terrible attitude, she knew the Celestial would not have set her up at all. He had too much to lose from this operation going wrong. This was serious. His tone made that clear as well as the look on his face. She could not even figure out a response to his statement. She hated the feeling of failure. In that moment, her eyes wandered around the room, avoiding his as she cursed herself in her mind for failing.

“Well, someone has to be blamed. Whilst you were sat in the comfort of your office, I was being shot at.” She quickly responded to his question, but quickly regretted it. Her stubbornness was getting the better of her. It made no sense for Sirius to damage to his own business. “I’m sorry,” She muttered, looking down at her boots. For once she was apologising for abrasiveness because for the time that she had known Siri, she got the feeling that he would not set her up. What if someone overheard their talks though? Maybe one of his employees did overhear and to make some cash themselves went to the culprits with information in exchange for cash. It had gone wrong because Eve was still alive, and she was determined to amend her mistake for letting her guard down whilst travelling with the package. Siri seemed adamant that this information was only between them, but Eve could not shake the feeling that someone could have overheard them.

 The human leaned in; her voice lower than its usual volume in case the potential backstabber was listening in. “Siri, are you sure no one heard us? We have to make sure.” She whispered, before leaning back into her chair, her right leg still on her left. Eve listened to another possible explanation which caused her eyes to narrow. She did think it odd at first, but she felt like she was being watched the entirety of the week. She thought she may have even seen one of her captors from when she had been sold into the black market. I TOLD YOU IT WAS HIM! The voice in her head screeched, in response she clenched her eyes shut and shook her head to get rid of the voice. “Do you have anything I can drink?” She asked, her eyes still clenched. “And to answer your question, maybe. I saw someone familiar, but you wouldn’t believe me if I told you from where.”

When he heard him say she was glad she got out alright, her eyes opened to meet his. She had never heard someone care for her well-being in the slightest apart from Kiara… Then it was clear that it was only because he wanted to send her into grab the package back. She quickly rose to her full height, her volume rising too. “Are you fucking kidding me, Sirius? Can I at least breathe for a minute before being sent in again?!” She began to pace around the room, trying to stop herself from cursing at Sirius. “Careless? How about next time you go and get ambushed by a militia whilst I sit in your comfy chair and tell you how much of a fuck up you are.” She hissed. She was close to storming out of the nightclub and just letting Siri deal with the situation himself. Luckily for him, Eve respected him. Disgust clouded her features when he suggested that she stroll into the police station and ask for the footage. She quickly raced around his desk; anger was driving her forward. “You think this is funny, Sirius? How about I let you clean up the dirt all by yourself? Better yet, get someone else since I’m so careless, you asshole.” She stood over him, looking down at the Celestial. Now she really want to hit him. 

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CelestialPermalink Reply by ✓ Sirius Othello Iordanou on December 23, 2020 at 17:27

"The comfort of my office?" the Celestial scoffed, shaking his head some. "No, Evelyn---I deal with my share of danger, with people whose very presence would shut you up. I'm going to have to meet with those same dangerous people and explain why their package never came. It won't be your neck they come after; it'll be mine." He sighed then, composing himself. The brunette woman did already apologise---there was no reason for him to go off like that. "It's okay---we'll figure out how to come back from this. What's done is done." The last sentence was partly directed to himself, as the man reminded himself not to go down the spiral of worry. It'd only waste time and get them no close to retrieving what was taken from him.

At her query about how sure he was that no one overheard them, Sirius let a coy smile stretch upon his lips as he shook his head. With an airy wave of his hand, he gestured around at their surroundings. "Don't you realise that you can't hear the music coming from outside?" he urged her to observe, pausing for a moment to let her hear for herself. What he said was true: there was a rave in full swing right outside the office doors, the nightclub filled to capacity as the music pounded loudly through the underground location. Only the vibration of the heavy bass could be felt, only slightly even at that. "This entire room is soundproof," he explained. "There's a reason I only have business meeting when there's an event outside---there is no chance of anyone dropping any eaves. The day I gave you this operation, there was an event just like this going on." After speaking he paused, his eyebrows pushing together as a thought flickered through his mind. "However," he continued, his tone hushed this time as he leaned in, a glint of paranoia flashing in his vibrant hues, "I'll check if the place is bugged after you leave." He was sure none of his employees would betray him---he had everyone thoroughly checked out, and he knew that they were happy working for him. Still, he'd be a fool to disregard the possibility altogether without a second thought.

Her request for a drink brough tan impish smile to flash upon his features. "This is a nightclub, love---of course I have something to drink." He then stood up from his seat and walked towards a cabinet, which stood next to a water cooler, listening silently as Evelyn admitted she thought she saw someone familiar. "What'll be?" he asked, looking over his shoulder as he retrieved a crystal glass from a shelf. The Greek man didn't respond to her latter statement just yet, choosing to give that his complete, unadulterated attention once he'd begun to address it. "Water? Or the harder stuff?" Once Evelyn told him what he wanted, he nodded, fetching it for her before returning to his seat, where he'd nurse his own glass of single-malt whiskey. 

At her outburst, a glimmer of amusement flickered across his face, the man taking in a deep breath before speaking. "Did I say you were going to head out tonight itself? Or even in the morning?" He tsked at her, shaking his head in mock-disappointment. "Although, if I required you to right this wrong right away, and this was the only window open to us, are you telling me you'd still try to argue your way out of it?" Another scoff sounded from him as he leaned back in his seat, looking up at the human as he folded his hands across his chest. He watched as she paced, though at her next remark, his features grew sullen as his jaw clenched. "If you think you're the only person in this room whose gotten shot at multiple times, I suggest you check yourself. This is the job you signed up for, Evelyn," he said sternly. "Are you expecting me to coddle you? Tell you that I'm so so sorry that this happened? That it wasn't supposed to go down that way? You know the risks of smuggling and dealing with what we do. You've accepted it. So don't come into my office screaming and cussing me out about it." 

He held her gaze for a moment longer before letting out an audible breath, lips pursed as he shuffled around some papers. "I hired you, Evelyn. You took the deposit, and if you want the rest of your pay, you'd better just do what's got to be done." Looking up through his lashes, his hands remained busy. "I'll make some calls to the ECPD, and once you're ready to get back to work---preferably tomorrow---you can head down and get whatever they have. Is that understood?" Siri knew for a fact that Evelyn wasn't the type to acknowledge authority, which in a way was part of her charm, and a big reason to why he found himself hiring her on a usual basis. However, it was times like where the human found new ways to push his patience, testing his control over his temper as she went off on her usual tirade. "You get paid once the job is complete. The package has not reached the client, so it is not complete. If you refuse to even do this, you're not just careless, you're irresponsible, Evelyn---or just acting so."

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Permalink Reply by 2jwh2k4e79hlv on January 2, 2021 at 13:23

It was clear that her comment had set off the Celestial. Her hues were locked on the desk as he explained the dangers of his job. She sucked in her cheeks as he continued but once it was clear he had calmed down from the rant, she finally moved her brown hues from the desk to the Greek male. She could not figure out whether these dangerous people had instilled fear into Sirius or not. All Evelyn did the delivering and smuggling of goods. She never once had the opportunity to negotiate or meet these people. Not that she wanted to either. If she could make Sirius angry, then there would be no telling what kind of reaction she would get from the people he would negotiate with.  She began looking around the room, “Yeah,” was her only response to the male.

She really could not hear any of the music, yet she did not get any kind of relief from that. It was easy for any of the staff to slip into this room and plant some listening devices to listen to his every conversation. However, this had always been Evelyn’s problem. No one could be trusted because all they would do is break that trust. So, if it were her in Sirius’ position, she would be paranoid to the point of calling all the staff into the room and striking fear into them. Letting them know if she caught even just a whiff of them listening to sensitive conversations, there would be punishment. Alas, that was the reason why Sirius was the boss, and she was just someone taking jobs. She refused to be in his position. She did get some relief from him claiming that he would check to see if the room were bugged after she left. “If you find anything, you let me know.” She had a feeling that even if he did find something, he would keep it to himself and deal with it in his own way. Evelyn could be too reckless.

“Hard stuff.” Tonight, was one of those nights where she wanted to drown her sorrows. That face. She had nightmares without failure at least once a week about the face. Being tested on to see how far the human threshold could go. His face was the one she always remembered. He was the one that enjoyed inflicting the pain on her, mocking as she screamed for mercy every time a new session had taken place. “Gruber.” She thought out loud, whilst her eyes narrowed. Her hues then moved to Sirius not realising she had named the face she spoke of out loud. If she ever got her hands-on Gruber, she would inflict the same amount of pain that he had inflicted on her. It had to have been him. There was no one else with a face like his. The scars on his face were too unique. When she had been sold to Kiara, he had made her a promise that he would find her again one day and finish what he started. She shook her head, trying to shake the thought out of her mind. If Kiara had not found her, there was no way he did.  

She thought carefully about what he had just asked her. She would probably have continued arguing, but ultimately, she would have gone to the ECPD if that was there only window. With anyone else, she probably would have flipped off, but she had respect for Sirius, and she would do it out of respect for him, not because he had told her to do it. She simply nodded at his next statement. Not in agreement, however. “You know what, Siri, you’re right. I’m not the only one who has been shot at multiple times. The way I see it though, is you have fucked up just as much as me and you hate the fact that you’ll have to tell your client of your-” She stopped in her tracks, closing her eyes for a second. “Our fuck up. Hell, I’d be pissed too if I were you. There goes your 5 stars on Tripadvisor.” She knew exactly what she was doing. The human was trying to get under the Celestial’s skin. She believed that thoroughly however, this was not just her fuck up. It was theirs.

She still stood on his side of the desk, but now she leaned herself on it with her arms crossed as she looked down at the Greek male who was shuffling paper around, probably looking for his list of contacts or whatever. She did admire how organised he was. Very professional for someone who broke the law every second that he breathed. “I’ll complete the job. Don’t worry. I’m just not liking your method right now.” She stated, her brown hues moving from the male to the paper he was still moving around. “Got nothing else better to do tomorrow so I guess I have no choice. You have any specific contacts at the ECPD station I’ll be able to talk to?” She questioned, her eyes now moving back to the male as she awaited an answer from him. If there was something that really annoyed her, it was when people tried to act like they knew her. She spun the Celestial’s chair to face her as she stood to her full height before placing her hands on the arm rests of the chair, bending over slightly so she could stare directly into his eyes. “I told you I’ll do your fucking job. One thing though, I respect you but stop acting like you know me. You don’t.”

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CelestialPermalink Reply by ✓ Sirius Othello Iordanou on January 2, 2021 at 15:10

A stiff nod was all he gave in response to Eve's request to keep her in the loop if he found any bugs. Sirius was certain those employed in his bar had no way of getting itno his office when he wasn't around, but he'd make sure to do a thorough search. A dry smirk then toyed at his lips when Eve asked for the harder stuff, though a look over his shoulder told him that the human woman very much needed it. Something clearly haunted her, and it would seem that her ghosts had finally come back to life. "Gruber?" he repeated as he walked back to her, handing her a crystal glass filled halfway with whiskey, ice cubes clinking together as the glass moved from one person to the next. Creases formed across his brow as the name left his lips, and if Evelyn was looking at him, she'd see the faint tinge of recognition flicker in his cerulean hues. He'd heard the name before, but at that moment, it was all a blur in his head. Shaking it away, he figured he'd come back to it later, and not think too hard about it.

His jaw clenched as Evelyn went on another tirade. He wondered not for the first time why he kept working with the woman who found it incredibly easy to get on his nerves. If she wasn't so good at her job, Siri may have parted ways with her long ago. Still, he never could bring himself to never hire her in future jobs, so here he was no, seething and frustration as she talked back at him. "Fine, maybe it is I fucked up too. Maybe, just maybe I missed a detail that would have hinted to someone following you. But whatever the case, we both have to face the music: me to the client, and you to me. While I have to make sure not to have my head blown off, literally, you're going to help me clean up this mess." He sighed once more at her snide comment, fingers raising to rub this temples, which had started to throb during their exchange. The Celestial glared at her from under his lashes as she snidely made her five stars comment, the Greek male visibly frustrated with every moment the conversation went on for.

Her presence hovering him was annoying to say the least as his fingers pushed papers away. Her comment warranted another glare from the man, who then gestured to the mess. "I'm sorry, would you like to have a go? Maybe you'd know my system better than I do," he uttered, every word dripping thickly with sarcasm. Rolling his eyes, he pulled out a folder. it was thin, but it would contain all the information on a particular officer that he knew would help him. Of course she would---he had blackmailed her into doing so for years. "This is everything you need to know about Officer Isobel Montgomery," Sirius told Evelyn as he handed the folder over to her. "She's been an informant of mine for years, but if she gives you any trouble, just tell her I'm one call away from her loving father." The last two words dripped with malice, hinting that the officer would definitely respond to that threat.

Returning to look at his paper, he was unpleasantly surprised to find his chair swivelling in the other direction, the human having her hands on his arm rests and leaning into him. Irritation flared in his vibrant hues, his jaw clenching once more as a vein visible throbbed by his temple. He stood up from his seat then, resisting the urge to not shove the woman away as he glared down at her. "You claim to respect me, but you act like a little shit?" He spat out a scoff at her, and after low, growl-like chuckle rumbled from his chest, his fists clenched at his sides. "It'd do you well to remember who i am, Evelyn, and to maybe not do anything like that again. And please, don't flatter yourself---I don't need to pretend to know you, nor to do I want to." It was clear her actions had gotten to him, and any more pressing from Evelyn would uncover a side of Siri that not many had seen before; a side that he usually had no struggle in repressing. His breathing was heavy, the man biting down hard on the inside in a mouth in an attempt to hold himself back; to not lash out at Evelyn's behaviour.

Holding her gaze for a moment longer, he then reached for his drink, downing it in an attempt to rid himself of the annoyance that coursed through his veins and threatened to take over his senses. Shaking his head, he then turned away, glass in hand as he walked towards the drink cabinet, and he poured himself another glass of whiskey. The name Evelyn had quietly said earlier, Gruber, still bounced around his mind. He did know it, and in an instant, it came to him. That was a name thrown around the market, and his gang usually asked for one thing in particular, the one thing that Sirius himself did not supply: humans. He moved back the table, taking his seat before raising an eyebrow at Evelyn, resting his glass upon the mahogany surface before he rested his hands on the table, fingers interlocking together. "You mentioned Gruber earlier," he said in an attempt to divert the subject and dissolve the tension still hagning between them. "Don't tell me you're involved with his crew," he slurred at the human. "Let me guess: old German dude, face only a mother could love, with enough scars to make you wonder if he's been run over then dragged by a car?" He rolled his eyes at his own comment: if that crew was interfering with his jobs, Siri didn't want to think what they may want with him. "How on earth did you get his attention?" Taking a sip of his drink, he leaned back in his chair, looking up at Evelyn. "Whatever the case, I'll get rid of him. Shouldn't be too hard. I just hope that they're not going to hold the package for ransom. They've been wanting me to supply them for a while now, and they hate that I've been refusing."

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