"Finding Another"
June 21, 2008 Jaime's Place 1210 hours Where to begin? She didn't know where, wasn't sure even how to yet, try to explain the hell she found herself in. She knew for certain only one thing, that Jaime could not know everything. She would have to tell him the bare minimum and even then she was putting his life in danger. She was going to have to handle this very carefully, very delicately. "Do you remember California?" her eyes shifted up to his just in time to see the panic cross his face for just a moment before he got himself under control again. "I remember," he breathed out slowly sitting next to her on the bed, staring at the wall. "Up until..." and he couldn't finish. Couldn't even say the word. "The water," she said it for him and his head dropped immediately. It had been months, and she supposed it could have been years, and it would still have felt like yesterday to him. "There's nothing...after that," he whispered the strain evident in his voice. "The man who was in charge..." "Pichalski," he said evenly, remembering that. "Section took him in, even Greenlisted him...or so I heard." He shrugged his shoulders with the last comment. "We should have killed him when we..." he looked up at her the question in his eyes: did she kill him? But there was something else there as well, something Paige picked out easily enough, a glint of hardness. And she knew a small part of him wanted it to be true, needed it to be true. "I killed him last night," she breathed out in barely a whisper. He stared at her as his mouth dropped open slightly. And for a second she wasn't sure how he was going to react. "You did what?" he asked, seemingly confused. "I killed him...last night. I left you here..." "He was Greenlisted, Paige," he said getting up and moving away from her. She said nothing, now, perhaps a little surprised at his reaction. He sat down in the chair across from her his arms resting on his knees and his hands dangling in the air above his bare feet. "What the fuck were you thinking?" "What?" Why wasn't he happy? "Have you lost your fucking mind?" he stared at her. "You're gonna have every available operative looking for you." That was it then. He wasn't bothered by the fact that she killed Pichalski, but rather for her safety. And rightly so. But it wouldn't be available operatives looking for her, no, available operatives would be busy doing other things...there was only one person that would be looking for her. "That's why I used you." Damn, she thought, she had said that a little too easily but maybe Jaime hadn't picked up on it. "I don't appreciate being used," he said flatly. Or maybe he had. "If they think I was with you last night...they have no reason to suspect me. And if you think that I was with you...you're technically not lying." It seemed reasonable enough to her. "I get that...what I don't get is why? Or even how? How did you even know where he was?" "I just did," Paige said softly. "Not good enough," he countered. She tilted her head, he was being difficult. "It was with other information, it was by accident..." "Bullshit," he snapped at her. She narrowed her eyes slightly at him. Damn him, he was pissing her off. "It was in the Directory," she stated matter of factly. He stared at her his jaw clenched slightly. "That means you would have gotten it recently." She smirked and arched an eyebrow at him. She knew the question that was going through his head in that instance: had he given her HIS current address? "I got the first batch coming into the SIA, it was part of a deal, my payback for being allowed to leave the Section." "I thought you were chosen to go to the SIA?" "Pfft," she scoffed, "so did I. But it doesn't matter because that was the deal, I got the Directory and I get addendums every so often." She shrugged, "I picked out Pichalski's address and took him down." Maybe she had said that a little too nonchalantly as well. "That's not like you..." "Oh, don't get self righteous on me," she snapped at him, "you'd take him down too if you had the chance." He stared at her for a moment, surprised it would seem, at the sudden outburst. But then he nodded his head, "you're right...I would." She inhaled deeply, "they can't know it was me...that I used the Directory for my own purposes...that's why I had to secure an alibi." "What was the purpose?" He asked the question but she was pretty sure he already knew the answer. "He didn't deserve to live," she said flatly. He nodded his understanding, but still his mind was restless. "Who else?" And she had to tilt her head at that question. Who else? What did that mean? As if reading her mind he explained further, "who else are you going after?" Well that was blunt of him. "There were others...at Stratus...that somehow managed their way on to the Section payroll..." "I'll help," he said without hesitation. Apparently Jaime had some bounce as well and she saw that clearly reflected in his eyes. She always knew he had a little darkness in him, she had seen that during the missions they had been on together. She never thought, not for a moment, that that darkness could become an ally. She got up slowly, deliberately, and walked over to him. The discussion was over. There would be time later for more, but for now, they had to bond their newly founded agreement. He did not get up or offer any resistance when she held his head against her stomach and stroked his hair. "It won't be easy," she whispered. He reached up grabbing hold of her pulling her down to his eye level. "But it'll be worth it," he whispered back. She could see the eagerness in his eyes and she leaned forward planting a bruising kiss on his lips. The king size bed was only a few feet away but neither made an effort to go to it, instead using the awkwardness of the chair to propel themselves to new limits. She was merciless with him as she pushed him to the edge over and over, burning him with her unforgiving fury and infatuation with dominating him. She did things to him, bad things, things she had never done before and might not ever do again. He reveled in it, letting her needs, her aggressiveness play itself out under his hands. He was not scared of her and only hoped to satisfy something, somewhere, deep inside of her. And maybe along the way...he learned something about himself. Maybe something awakened inside him. When they were done and sat panting and sweaty and exhausted, she took his hand and led him to the bed. They lay down together, their bodies entwined, completely in tune with each other. They would rest now. Later, there might be some talk, or maybe other things. She had hoped being with him, together, intimately, that they could remake what had been forged in the smoky darkness of California. She hoped to find something, some kind of emotion besides that needful lust. Something besides the hate and the anger and the intense passion for both that consumed her. But those things she'd hope to find had been pushed down for so long...sequestered and ignored under the tutelage and cruel hands (always these hands) of the creature Joshua. The damage had been done. Most of it, she feared, would be permanent. Return