Katie: Maria was a little insane there
and thanks.Ginger: I think she’s a little of both
Carolyn : Thanks.
Phyco: ‘Holy Candy Epicness!’ ha ha I love that. Thank you so much and welcome to my little Candy World. I’m glad you stopped by.
This chapter is what I consider a ‘light’ chapter, to move away slightly from the intenseness of the previous ones. Enjoy.
Chapter 11
Tess, Isabel, and Liz were all lounging by the entrance, Isabel and Liz each seated in the elegant, ornate armchairs set in the foyer.
“You know, this whole thing was her idea. You’d think she’d have the grace to actually be on time,” Tess was grumbling as she paced, the clack of her heels resounding loudly on the marble floor.
“Can I just ask just to be certain? The whole point of this evening to get Liz laid, right?” Isabel quizzed.
“Yes,” Tess replied with a huge grin as Liz stated, “No!” with her eyes wide.
“Well, I’m glad we got that cleared up,” Isabel laughed.
“Come on, Liz,” Tess groaned as she walked back to their seats. “You need to show Max that if he doesn’t want the goods, others do. There is no way better to get a man moving than to display your womanly assets elsewhere.”
“Is that intimate knowledge you have there, Tess?” Isabel asked her facing beaming to the smaller girl.
“Of course,” Tess returned, disbelieving that Isabel would even ask.
“Guys,” Liz interrupted them. “Will you please stop talking about my sex life?”
“Liz, you have to have a sex life for us to be able to discuss it,” Isabel retorted her expression serious.
“I have a sex life,” Liz whispered indignantly.
“Anything you do by yourself and/or requires batteries does not count,” Tess giggled.
Liz’s mouth fell open, her eyes widening again.
Their attention was drawn from their conversation to the large bannister, Maria standing at the top of it.
“Well, look out boys, because the babes are about to hit the clubs,” Maria smiled, as she sauntered down the grand staircase into the foyer.
“At last,” Tess griped, pointedly looking at her watch, ignoring the shocked look still plastered on Liz’s face. The blonde looked stunning in a short bubblegum pink halter backless dress and a wide black belt that cinched tight around her small waist. Her long curls hung in waves and bounced with every move she made. Her outfit was completed with a simple pair of black heels and a cute little clutch purse.
“Oh, pipe down, Shirley,” Maria retorted, pulling slightly on the hem of her short outfit. Maria wore a tiny green shimmering dress with thin spaghetti straps that dipped extremely low on her back, falling in waves just above her bottom and the hem falling few inches below what would be considered indecent. A pair of high green pumps with a glittering heel finished the outfit. She wore her hair up in an untidy mass of curls which only made her seem more alluring, a glittering rose secured within the curls. Maria never carried a purse out with her. She never needed the cash because the drinks were always freely given, plus she was very rarely on her own, so someone was bound to have a cell phone or money if she needed it.
“Shirley,” Tess repeated, her nose wrinkling slightly at the name Maria had called her.
Maria giggled as she reached out and pulled on one of the smaller girl’s pristine curls. “Shirley Temple.”
“Oh, keep it up, Tinkerbell,” Tess laughed at her friend.
“Are we ready?” Maria asked the group, ignoring the other agent’s last quip.
“For Christ’s sake, Maria. We’ve been ready for the last hour. We’ve been waiting for your sorry ass,” Isabel chimed in. She looked as glamorous as always in a red gauze-y shirt which seemed to gleam in the light and a pair of black leather pants with killer boots. She wore her blonde hair in an elegant upswept style.
“Hey, you can’t blame me. It’s all Michael’s fault,” Maria huffed.
“How is it Michael’s fault?” Liz asked. She was wearing a fabulous electric blue tube top which emphasized her tiny waist that Maria had found in the depths of Liz’s closet and a knee length silver skirt that moved like liquid over her. Silver strap heels and a plain gray purse completed her outfit.
“He didn’t like my original outfit. Tore it right off me,” she smirked with a twinkle in her eye as she turned and headed for the door.
Tess rolled her eyes as she followed her, Liz and Isabel falling in behind them both, linking arms and giggling quietly.
**********************
Michael wandered through the house by himself. He was still undecided about whether to give up his apartment and move permanently into the house or to keep his place so he had somewhere to retreat to if he needed it.
He did feel the need to return home to collect some of his belongings, there were definitely some of his personal possessions that he would like to have with him if he was going to stay. Though clothes seemed to be materializing in the his section of Maria’s huge his and hers walk-in closet. Mind you, some of that space was already taken by Maria’s garments. He had never known a person to have so many outfits. And that didn’t count the three drawers of underwear or the complete wall of double shelving that housed her shoe collection.
He walked through to one of the many living areas to find Max, Sean, Billy, and Kyle lounging on the leather sofas, beers in their hands and watching a re-run of some football game on the huge, wall-mounted TV.
He paused cautiously at the door, then figured – what the hell? – and walked into the room.
“Michael,” Max called, his voice open and friendly.
“You wanna beer?” Kyle offered. Michael nodded, reaching for one of the bottles that stood on the table.
As he sank into the luxurious sofa, he twisted the cap off and tossed it back in the direction of the drinks.
“How have your first few days been?” Kyle asked.
Michael shifted his eyes from Sean, who was smirking, to Max, who seemed genuinely interested in his
answer.
Michael took a drink before he answered. “They’re been different.”
“Yeah, I can imagine,” Kyle chuckled. “It must seem extreme to you!”
“Yeah, and the rest,” Michael returned with half a smile.
“So you all live here?” he queried. He knew Sean and Billy were permanent residents, but he was not sure about the other two.
“Yeah,” Kyle answered for them.
“You can live in the house if you want,” Sean provided. “But you are asked not to bring dates back unless you are in a committed relationship. Though I guess that won’t be a problem with you, seeing as she lives here, too. But FYI, in case that doesn’t last, the bosses don’t expect you live a celibate life. There are a number of downtown apartments that can be used if you don’t want to keep an apartment. It’s like living in one big frat house. It’s fun.”
“Though if it’s a messy break-up,” Billy said with a smile, “You might want to move somewhere else. Maria can be hard to live with after a falling out.”
“Talking from experience?” Michael asked.
“Ha,” Kyle laughed out loud. “He wishes.”
Michael smirked at him, then turned his head back to Sean. “Has she had many messy-break-ups then?”
Sean took a sip from his beer. “That’s something to discuss with her, not me.”
Michael nodded as another guy walked into the room. He was fairly tall with dark hair and tanned skin, the sort of guy who never had a problem finding someone to keep him warm on a cold night.
“Speaking of,” Billy muttered low and Michael swung his eyes suspiciously toward the newcomer.
“Beers boys?” the man questioned cheerfully, his accented voice ringing melodically and his hands held behind his back. “You disappoint me.”
“What do you have there, Vladimir?” Sean asked with a knowing smirk.
Vladimir returned his grin as he produced a tall bottle of vodka and a hand that held a shot glass on each finger. “Ah, mother’s milk.”
He placed the four shot glasses on the table. “I seem to have lost my drinking partner,” he said, shooting a glare at Michael, “so you shit-heads will have to take her place.”
Michael leaned over to Max. “I take it that his usual drinking partner is Maria?”
Max nodded as Sean added. “She’s the only one who can drink this guy under the table.”
“Maria!” Michael exclaimed, liquid spurting from his mouth in astonishment. Maria was tiny, and he highly doubted she could hold her liquor, never mind outdrink a Russian national.
“I swear Mariya was a Russian in a previous life,” Vladimir informed him, opening the bottle and filling the glasses with the clear liquid. “This is her favorite,” he added, placing the bottle carefully on the table.
“Only four glasses, Vlad,” Max observed. “Who’s gonna sit this round out?”
“Not to worry, Maxwell,” Vladimir replied with a glint in his eye as he walked over to a cabinet, opened the bottom drawer and pulled out two more glasses. “Mariya’s secret,” he added conspiratorially.
He moved quickly back to the low table and quickly poured into the extra glasses. He picked one up and held it in the air. The others looked at each other, then cautiously followed his lead. “Na zdarov'e,” he said simply, then swallowed the liquid.
“Cheers,” Sean grinned and slung the liquid down his throat, coughing as the vodka burnt his esophagus.
Max, Billy, and Kyle all looked skeptically at Sean but quickly followed suit. A chorus of hisses and profanity filled the room.
Michael was the only one left who hadn’t drank from his glass.
“Pff, this one will not last long with Mariya,” Vladimir laughed, his head nodding to Michael.
“Nah,” Sean agreed. “She’ll soon tire of his body, then it will be cold for Michael all alone in his bed.”
Michael brought the glass to his lips and quickly tipped it before he changed his mind. As soon as the liquid hit his throat, it burned, and he forced himself to swallow.
“Shit,” he breathed out eventually with a cough as the others laughed out at him. “And Maria drinks this often?”
“It’s tradition. Whenever I come back from the Motherland, I bring her the best vodka. We drink together to forget our woes.”
“Vlad, they have not created the drink to make us forget our woes, but when they do, I’m sure I will be first in line to sample it,” Sean responded, slapping him on the back.
“Does everyone in this place have a story?” Michael asked, discreetly wiping the water that seemed to be leaking from his eyes. ‘Damn, that’s strong,’ he thought.
The others looked at each other cautiously. This man was part of their group now, and it was said, a little knowledge goes a long way.
“My parents were high-profile lawyers,” Max started, his voice low and strained. “Isabel and I grew up in Las Vegas, which was where our parents had their firm. They were used to dealing with undesirables, shall we say? I was 11, and Isabel was 13 when they were killed.”
Michael looked nervously at Sean, who just nodded to him, silently telling him he needed to know this, and he should listen as the other man recounted his story.
“They were killed at our home while we were out at a school dance. We found them when we returned.”
“Hey, Max,” Michael interrupted him, not wanting him to share anything that he felt uncomfortable with.
Max shook his head and continued. “We went to live with our grandparents. I joined the Army straight from high school, but not before I looked into my parent’s murder. They were killed by a man called Karl Ellison, a contract from the mob boss Vincent D’Angelo.”
Michael nodded at the name. Even in the LAPD, Vincent D’Angelo was well known for his extravagant lifestyle and his violent dealings with the underbelly of Las Vegas.
“I completed one tour of duty with the Army before The Company approached me. My parents had given The Company legal representation in the past so I had heard of the name Deluca from them. The Company pulled some strings, and I was released from the Army with an honorable discharge. I have been here since then. My only stipulation was that my sister joined with me.”
Michael was bewildered. Not from Max’s story; it seemed he would hear a lot of backstories like this one during his time here, but by the fact that The Company could arrange an honorable discharge for someone so young, he couldn’t have been in the Army long.
“How long have you been a part of this organization?” Michael asked him, hardly noticing that Vladimir had refilled the glasses, and the others had already drunk theirs.
“Four years,” Max replied simply before swallowing his shot.
Michael automatically drank the contents of his glass, too. The liquid was now warming his insides instead of burning.
“And do you still have your bullet?” Michael inquired, knowing that Vincent D’Angelo was still alive.
“That opportunity hasn’t presented itself yet, but I can wait. I am a patient man,” Max answered with a slow smile.
Michael nodded, silently wondering about the bullet he would make. Who would that be for? Mason had indicated that his father’s death was not accidental. Would the bullet be for the person behind that or someone else?
The silence in the room was broken by another man walking in. The tall man’s hair was light brown and his youthful features were covered partially by a smattering of facial hair.
“You do realize the girls are out there, let loose on the city without anyone to rein them in?” he asked the room.
“Ryan, calm down,” Sean laughed. “You know those girls can take care of themselves.”
“Sean,” he said exasperated, then he turned to Michael and said again in the same tone, “Michael.”
When he had their attention, he continued. “Just to let you know, Maria is the chief protagonist in this outing of theirs, and when they left, whew, they were dressed to kill.”
“I trust Maria,” Michael stated, assuming this new person was indicating that Maria was on the make.
“That’s not the problem,” he returned
“What is the problem then?” Michael asked.
“Shit, Michael,” Sean mumbled standing from the couch. “Maria can get herself into a shitload of trouble in a paper bag.”
“Yeah,” Kyle chirped up, standing quickly then stumbling slightly, presumably from the alcohol. “Time to hit the clubs and look for the babes.”
“Seriously?” Michael questioned as he watched Kyle and Vladimir head out of the room, discussing appropriate shirts for the night. “We’re seriously gonna go and spy on them?”
Billy moved closer to Michael. “They are,” he said pointing to the door, “and did you know that Vladimir and Maria were once close, very close, if you understand me? Like, as close as two people can get - in the biblical sense.”
“Yes, Billy,” Michael growled out from between his teeth.
“When did we get on biblical terrain?” Sean asked, scratching his head in confusion but refusing to admit that the alcohol had affected him a little.
Michael had stood quickly, then wished he hadn’t as the room spun before his eyes. He held his head for a second, willing the motion to stop. “So, those who are going should meet at the door in 20.” And he rushed from the room to see what clothes he could find in Maria’s closet suitable for a night out on the town.
*********************
Michael was the last to enter the club, and the way the beat from the music thumped through him, he wouldn’t be surprised if his eardrums were perforated by the time they left. It was the same club where he had first seen Maria just over a week ago, the day his life had changed forever.
He followed the others as they headed straight to the bar and grunted a little when Sean pushed back through them to grabbed him by the arm and move him closer to the bar.
“Brett,” Sean called to the bartender, and when the man in question turned to him, he continued. “This is Michael. He’s the newest member of The Company.”
Michael looked at the man Sean was introducing him to. He was a tall man with arms covered in intricate tattoo designs and a neatly trimmed goatee that matched his short, sandy blonde hair. He had a piercing through his right eyebrow and several in each earlobe. He was also chewing on a small red cocktail stirrer which he moved from side to side of his mouth as he spoke.
Brett nodded in acknowledgement and leaned over a little. “Are you guys on the clock tonight?”
“No,” Sean replied for them all. He turned his head and looked into the depths of the club. “Is she here?” he asked him over his shoulder.
Brett nodded a slow grin spreading on his face. “They have taken over one of the balcony booths.”
Sean looked up and spotted Liz leaning over the glass banister, watching the dance floor. Michael looked up, too, and, seeing Liz he swung his eyes down, following her line of sight to find Maria dancing with Tess and a group of unknown males in the middle of the dance floor.
“Get the beers in, Sean,” Max said quickly as he, too, observed Liz up on the balcony, then he set off, heading for the stairs and the brunette.
Ryan slapped Billy and Kyle on their shoulders. “Come on, guys. The babes won’t come a running if they don’t get to see the goods.” And the three headed out to the dance floor.
Sean turned back to Brett. “Seven beers then?” he said with a smile.
“No, Brett.” Vladimir stopped him. “I will take the vodka.”
“Haven’t seen you around for a while, Ruskie,” Brett said goodheartedly before asking with a knowing smirk. “Has she been keeping you tied to the bed?”
“Brett, did I mention that Michael here also works for the LAPD?” Sean said with a glint in his eye.
“And?” Brett asked as he filled a couple of shot glass for Vladimir.
“And,” Sean drew out the word, “he has also taken on the often arduous task of dating my cousin.”
Brett almost swallowed his straw.
“I…..well…….I……….didn’t” the bartender stammered out.
Vladimir laughed at his uneasiness as he slapped a hand on Michael’s back. “Ah, Mariya was just too much for me. She is now under the wing of her newest …. How do you say….. conquest?”
Michael smirked at Vladimir, the guy wasn’t so bad, though he wasn’t sure how he felt about the fact that he actually liked one of Maria’s former boyfriends, especially since they obviously saw each other every day. He vaguely wondered what it was that broke the two up.
“Ah,” Vladimir commented, as if reading his thoughts, “Maybe she will tell you. One day.”
Michael did a double take of the handsome Russian as he swallowed his second shot and then headed out onto the dance floor.
“No, he doesn’t read minds,” Sean informed him as they watched Vladimir retreating figure. “He’s just very good at reading expressions.”
Brett placed a tray laden with beer bottles and a few cocktails, obviously for the girls, in front of them. “You want me to send them up to the table?” he asked the two men in front of him.
“Yeah and add double shots for everyone,” Sean replied.
“You want to start your own tab?”
“Nah. Put it on Maria’s,” he grinned back.
Brett nodded then indicated to one of the waitress to take the tray as he set another one up with several shot glasses.
“How bad do you want to find her now?” Sean asked Michael with a smirk.
“Maria is a grown woman,” Michael answered as he picked up one of the longnecks and took a swig from it. “She can do whatever she pleases.”
“Even if she’s doing whatever she pleases with an old bedmate?” Sean continued, purposely taunting the taller man.
Michael caught a flash of shimmering green and instinctively knew it was Maria. She turned almost as soon as he had seen her, and their eyes found each other’s just like they had a week ago.
Michael was moving before he even knew it, handing the bottle absentmindedly to Sean, and he grinned as he saw her moving away from Vladimir and toward him at exactly the same time. They met in the middle of the dance floor, their lips reaching for their counterparts before anything else.
Maria held onto Michael like he was her lifeline, and Michael clung equally as hard to her. When they pulled apart, Maria moved her lips to his ear.
She sucked once on his lobe and then whispered, “What took you so long?”
He pulled back so she could see his smirk as he answered her. “Sean couldn’t decide what to wear.”
It was a good thing they were so close, otherwise his words would have been lost, drowned in the pumping dance tune that seemed to beat from the walls.
“You like my dress?” she asked his seductively.
“Love it,” he replied, though he had hardly glanced at it, and then he quickly claimed her lips again, just in case anyone around them didn’t see that she was his.
Up on the balcony, two figures looked down and smiled at the two agents making out in the middle of the dance floor.
“They are so crazy, aren’t they?” Max said to the slim girl beside him.
“Yeah. Perfect for each other,” Liz agreed.
“So, you wanna dance?” he asked her nervously.
“I don’t know, Max,” Liz answered, trying hard to make her voice sound unsure. She was doing as Maria
had suggested, though she had no intention of just jumping some random guy. She wasn’t like that. It might be okay for Maria, but not for her. However, she had every intention of making Max work for it and maybe make him jealous without the actual sex with a stranger part. “I mean, you just want to dance with me until something better comes along. I’m not that kind of girl, ya know?”
“Who said that?” Max quizzed her.
“What? That I’m not that kind of girl?”
“No, that I only want to dance with you until something better comes along?”
He watched as her eyes shifted a little, as though she had been caught doing something she shouldn’t have.
“Liz,” he continued gently. “You know that’s not true.”
“Do I, Max?” she said with frustration. “We’ve been skirting around this whole dating thing for months now, and I’m still no clearer about what’s happening between us than I was at the beginning.”
“Liz, you know that I have trouble opening up, that I have…..”
“Issues. Yes, I know that. And you know you’re not the only one. But what if, Max? What if you’re so worried, so scared to take that next step that it passes you by? That I pass you by? If knowing Maria has taught me anything, it’s that you have to go after what you want.”
She sighed and turned back to the railing of the balcony, her eyes unconsciously drifting back down to Maria and Michael. They were now sort of dancing. Liz couldn’t think of a more polite way to explain what they were doing.
“Look at them, Max. They can’t keep their hands off each other, and why is that? It’s because they want to live their lives to the fullest. Maria was so close to death when she was 15, so close that I truly marvel at the fact that she’s still with us today. In fact, if her uncle hadn’t insisted of removing her from the hospital and moving her into a unit, she would never have survived. And several times after that, she should have died, but she didn’t. She held on. And why?”
Max grinned at her. “Revenge.”
“Apart from that. You know what happened to her, what that monster did to her, but look at her, look, Max.” and she waited until he had turned and looked down on the girl. “Does she look like she never wants to experience life, love?”
“Maria’s story is completely different from mine,” he said softly.
“I know that. Max, I’m sorry. I’m sorry the girl you loved killed your baby, but not every girl is like that.”
Max looked at her. Her doe eyes contradicting the strength of character she had.
He moved closer to her, his hand moving seemingly by itself until he held her face in his hand.
“I’m sorry, Liz. That’s all I can say.” He smiled at her, his best innocent little boy smile. “Come dance with me?”
Liz grinned back. She’d said her piece, laid her cards out, so to speak. “OK.”
*************************
Na zdarov'e = For health
