Running On Nothing

Hunter smiled and leaned back in his seat, "That's good to hear." he began, "...The lack of problems, not the who wariness issue. If you are feeling uncomfortable in my company you are free to leave; I don't think that there is much more to discuss. I'll contact you and Nadia in a couple of days with new information and the plan edited to fit within the time frame for escape. But there is one crucial thing that I need done... If you and Nadia can create a ruckus about three weeks prior to the library and examine how long it takes for the police to arrive, along with the kind of firepower they carry just in case we run into a roadblock."

She crossed her arms and drummed her fingers on her arms. "Sounds resonable. Just contact one of us and let us know when. We'll figure out something."

"I'm glad you agree." he said, "Like I said before you are free to leave unless you feel that there is more that we should speak about. Time is not an issue for me."

She shrugged slightly. "I have nothing to discuss. If I had something to say to you I would have already done so, which I did. Only thing I want to reitterate is that you should talk to Ali. Not tonight, but perhaps the day after tomorrow. I'll try talking to her but it would mean more coming from you." She barked out a hard laugh. "That sounds ridiculess." She shook her head slightly. "But still, you should."

A puzzled look formed on his face as she spoke, "Rediculous?" he asked, "What is so rediculous about it?"

She waved his question off. "The way I phrased what I said. Forget it." She stretched her arms out in front of her.

Hunter stood and made his way to the kitchen. Once there he opened the cabinet and fridge, reaching for a shot glass with his left and a bottle of whiskey with his right. The glass clattered on the shelf when he placed them there, "If you want a drink or something, just request it. But if you want to go you can do that too..." he thought about Nadia who was outside at the time and said, "Is Nadia still out there?"

"I'm fine thank you, and yeah, she's still outside."

Hunter nodded and waled over to the front door, cracking it open and looking to Nadia, "Hey, you can com in now if you want." he said, "I'll even let you drink some of my liquor." The last bit was a joke, but he had doubts that she would catch it without thinking of it as an insult.

Nadia looked up from her seventh cigarette since she got to Damien's place. She blinked once and stood up, slidding her gun back into her holster at her hip, smoothing her shirt to cover it. "Um... Sure. But I'll hold on the drink thanks." She flashed him a weak smile.

"That's alright... More for me I suppose." He returned the smile and went back into the kitchen, pouring himself a shot and downing it, "So how have you two been recently? From a social perspective not a work one."

Nadia stepped into the house and closed the door behind her, going to stand next to Tsuchi in the living room. She glanced from her aquantance to Damien and back, sticking her hands in her pockets and not speaking.

The sound of his glass was the only noise in the room and he shrugged as his question was ignored, "Okay, so you don't want to talk..." He turned to Nadia and folded his arms, "Was it something I said to you?" he asked her, "Or is it the alcohol in here?"

Nadia raised an eyebrow, wondering what having alcohol in the room has anything to do with it. She shook her head and tried to organize the thoughts in her head. She knew what had shaken her, but she wasn't sure how to explain. She bit her lip, figuring things out, and shot a sideways glance at Tsuchi to see if she would start talking to make the atmosphere less awkward. She didn't expect the other girl to help her out but it was worth a shot.

Tsuchi caught the look, caught the meaning behind it, but didn't act on it. She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms, growling quietly. "Just spit it out," she snapped. "We're probably going to be working together for a while so figure out what the fuck you have issues with-" She pointed at Damien. "-and tell him so you can sort this crap out!"

Hunter jumped slightly at the outburst and drummed his fingers on his thigh, "If you don't want to work with me or don't like me, you just need to say so and we won't need to speak to each other ever again... It would be a shame if you didn't like me for any reason, but at times like this we need as many allies as possible."

Nadia shot a glare at Tsuchi before looking Damien in the eyes and shaking her head. "It's not that I don't like you," she said slowly, choosing her words. "You've just made me cautious - put me on edge. I was cautious of you at first, which you probably understand, but what you said has made me a bit more..." She let out a quiet sigh, annoyed at her repetition and jumble of words. "You get what I'm saying though right?" She looked back at him.

Hunter folded his arms and shrugged, "If anything I thought that explaining my usual MO would be more soothing to hear... Unfortunately it had the adverse effect." He poured himself another drink and took a sip, "But I do understand. I could have been a bit less detailed and morbid in my explanation. Any sane person would have ran away, killed me, or cut me out of the circle right there, but in an attempt to disarm myself I only made things worse." he took another sip and swirled it around his tongue for a second, "I apologize for that and hope that it won't alter the way you think about me and how I do things."

((Sorry! I've had A LOT of work to do so I havent been able to get online))

Nadia bit the tip of her tongue and looked at the ground. "You haven't altered the way I think about you, only the way I perseve you. I knew you were a killer before and that didn't shake me, hell, look at who I run with." She shot a smile at Tsuchi, trying a little to lighten things up. She looked back at Damien. "You've just shown me that I have to watch out for you. Don't take it the wrong way, you've just unsettled me and there's nothing you or I can do to take that away. So we're cool, but I'll always be armed around you no matter how much you assure me." She stuck her hands in her back pockets and gave him a smile.

He nodded curtly and tossed the empty glass into the sink, "If I were to keep pressing you to stay cool, or to even consider not bringing a weapon; that should be an instant red flag unless I have a legitimate reason to request such. It it better ho have one and not need it than need one and no have it." He gave her a wry smile and continued, "But you're right; what has been done cannot be undone, so we need to focus on the task at hand."

Nadia nodded and looked at Tsuchi. She laughed quietly and looked back at Damien. "So are we figuring out anything else tonight?"

Hunter shook his head and took a seat in his chair, "To be honest I don't have much more to say at this point." he said, "You both are free to leave if you so desire, but if you want to stay there are a couple of empty rooms in the back." He leaned back in the seat and felt around for his glasses which were pressed in the corner. Once he adjusted them properly he placed them on his face and ran a hand through his hair.

Nadia nodded slowly. "I think I'm going to head back to my place." She looked at her comrade. "What about you? If you're leaving I'll give you a ride."

Hunter accepted her response and said, "Fine by me..." he reached to the coffee table for a cigarette and lit it before leaning back in his chair and taking a drag on it.

Tsuchi shook her head to both their offers. "I'm fine but thanks." She tugged her jacket tighter around her before turning and going to the door. She paused with her hand on the door knob and looked back at the other two. "Ali, you know how to reach me. Let me know anything you two discuss." She gave a simple nod before leaving, closing the door quetly behind her.