Shield

27.- Blue Eyed Demon.

Oli could smell her before she even entered his humble abode, the excuse of watching cell his childhood bedroom offered in his wild mania. The disgusting sweet scent of vanilla made him want to projectile vomit all over his sweet sister.
"What do you want? I'm busy," he called out in a raspy voice, not turning over on his mattress on the floor to face her."
"You seem pretty free to me," Nel said standing over him, projecting a long shadow over his crumpled form, discarded aluminum foil body.
"I am here as a friend with a warning," she sang in high spirits, still he refused to acknowledge her "There's a new player in the game and you are no longer Milo's fancy. I don't think you will even get to see him, now that he's out of the hospital and all," she cleared her throat loudly "Criss, his name is Criss if you're wondering, a cute young thing, obedient, a bit to kind in my opinion. All you aren't."
Nel could feel his body burning, sharp, and deadly but oh so tired, so run down by his own doing, oh so broken. Dulling little by little.
"Anyway, just a heads up, no one's coming to save you if you don't save yourself." Oli could not see it, but he felt Nel's quiet delight "I have to go now, I have our empire to run and stuff."
He heard two loud poundings on the door and several latches opening to promptly be closed up.
He was alone once more cursing under his breath as he felt his skin break out in hot shivers Oli clamped his eyes shut wishing he had something to pray to.
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Nel got in to her beaten up Volvo lowering her hoody as she rested back on the seat of the car, sighing she ran her hand over her scalp, her hair grew back so fast, soon it would be a pixy cut instead of a buzz.
It wasn't her hair that grew fast, it was time.
How long had it been since the warehouse? A month? "Shit," she whispered to herself turning the key in the ignition and pulling out of her parking space "I should call my driver back," she thought too herself and Charlotte's face came to mind. She could wait a bit longer, loosen his chain a bit longer, enjoy her own company a bit longer.
As she turned on to Shelby avenue, she noticed a black chevy that had been tailing her for a bit, going round and around aimlessly back tracking and stopping at every stop light and sing it was still there.
She drove slowly, annoyingly slow, and still there was no sign of it passing her by. She could not go back to the hotel like this, Doc would kill her if they did not get to her first.
She pulled into the parking lot of a fast-food chain and stepping out Nel leaned on her car with crossed arms, watching the other vehicle do the same. There was a parking box of distance between them, she half expected the greeting of a gun barrel when the darkly tinted glass of the window came down.
Instead, two piercing blue eyes faced her, unblinking, expression lines deep from laughing hard every day framed them in a facade that more than comical was cynical.
"Hey Butch," Nel greeted "You are pretty far East, aren't you? You lost?"
He shot off the engine immediately exiting the car, also resting on it his fidgety hands to his sides, his fingers opening and closing slowly, accompanying his breathing.
"I saw you pass me by, I thought I'd say hi," his voice was cheerful, exited "Long time no se, I like the new style,"
Nel smiled amicably, uncrossing her arms, diving her hands in to the pockets of her baggy jeans. The Butcher always caried knifes, better safe than sorry.
"Thanks, did it myself," She could not hear or see any other person in the car with him, her senses where tense listening hard.
"We have a date to be kept," he told her with a comically wide grin.
"Do I? with who?" Nel had no recollection of such a thing.
"Such a bad memory," he sulked pouting "hard to keep all your suitors in mind?"
Nel shrugged with a smile, not taking her eyes of him for a second.
"I will remind you," the Butcher kindly guided her "On your wedding night we danced a lovely dance, accompanied by a lovely song, I invited you West for a lovely good time," He grinned even wider the skin under his neck rippling in too deep waves as his face lowered in the exaggerated gesture "it's time you pay up, let's go for a ride," his voice was soft like creme as a small drop of spittle found its way down his chin and fell silently to the ground.
The butcher was starving, he had finally found a delicious meal Nel doubted he would let her go.
Nel's smile remained amicable and with a gesture that signaled "after you." she turned around to enter her car "il take us, don sweat it," the Butcher was quick to say going around to open the passenger door of his car "it's only polite for a gentleman to drive a sweet lady on a first date,"
Nel swallowed silently, her poker face intact "I see no gentleman and no ladies here,"
The Butchers hyena laugh boomed out of him so suddenly Nel almost flinched "I really am your admirer, so funny, so tough," he liked his lips hungerly "I insists, my lady."
Nel nodded with another shrug, she could feel her hands clamming inside her pockets "Well, if you insist,"
She had not given a step forward when  another car pulled up screeching loudly behind them, from the silver sedan emerged a robust man in a tight suit that breathed with him, his salt and pepper hair neatly pressed to his skull under a thick coat of glistening gel, as he hastily exited the car he gave Nel a small reverential nod of respect "Mam, the boss requests you immediately," he mopped his forehead with a white handkerchief that had seen better days side glancing to the Butcher "sorry to interrupt," there was no trace of that sorriness.
"And you are?" Nel asked, suddenly uneasy by the immediate attention she was receiving from every side.
"Max mam," he said casually, like everyone knew who Max was, he certainly looked old enough to have been playing the game for a while, then again that by itself did not make you a reputation.
"Max?" Nel repeated, she could see in the side of her eye how the Butcher grew restless, his never stopping hands taping noisily on the top of the car, the door swaying slowly as he played with the hinges.
"Max," he repeated with another slight bow "The boss awaits. Please,"
Nel sighed loudly "I am very sorry SIR," she addressed the Butcher whose mouth open wider and wider extending his grin with every word Nel said "It seems it's an emergency, I can't leave THE BOSS waiting."
The Butcher moved his head in a slow shaking circle, all his self-control in keeping his ground, his grin never faded but became steadily more human less clown from hell as he spoke "I understand. I will be waiting," his upper lip twitched "I hope we meet again... soon,"
As Nel entered the silver sedan and it sped off, she saw in the mirror the unmoving shape of the Butcher and finally gave her body permission to shudder and feel sick "Where to Max?" she said drily wondering if she had not prayed herself out of one bear trap to fall face first in to another "South, the boss has a treat for you."
Nel shuck her head grinning silently "He better,"
Max nodded, his eyes glued to the road "He's got it, early Christmas,"
Nel texted Milo half-heartedly "Shun's got a surprise, he says its good," the answer was almost immediate, Milo was also on the phone "surprise? Keep me posted."
So, the big bad boss knew nothing, that was interesting, Shun had made a conscious effort to run to her first. This better be good.
She had left the hotel early enough to run too many errands and personal visits, as the car drove cautiously through side streets and backtracks her body started to feel tired with the day's encounters, un relaxed she leaned back taking in the details of her surroundings and preparing for an emergency exit she never required.
Entering in the old office building with vines growing on the sides of its aggressively grey concrete walls Max accompanied her to the top office, opening the door he stepped aside and closed it behind her.
"I guess Max will not be accompanying us," Nel announced unimpressed, Shun only shook his head standing up from his desk there was no smile to receive her but he did offer his hand for her to come closer, inviting her in to his arms she rose an eyebrow "This does not feel like Christmas,"
Now Shun smiled "Give me a second,"
So, she did.