Flowering - Part Ten
This episode is part of a larger story, Soft Touch. If you haven’t yet, you can go back and read it from the beginning right here.
Aiden and I stare at the safe key for a long moment. Then we both look up at the glass wall of the shower, just in time to watch as a final shard falls away and breaks with a gentle shattering sound on the tile floor.
It looks like someone threw a brick through the glass. The Guardian energy that the key was traveling on must be what did this, not the key itself. It’s too small to have caused so much destruction on its own.
“Um,” Aiden says guiltily, blinking hard and fast. “So - we probably should’ve gotten out of the shower first.”
“Yeah, oops.” I push a dazed hand through my hair, then whip around to face Aiden, pointing excitedly. “Hey, though - you did it, man!”
Aiden stares down at the safe key, brightening up. “Yeah, I - I fucking did it!”
He looks up at me again, and we both break into wide, victorious grins. I let out a little laugh, then give Aiden a smack on the shoulder. He laughs, too, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Where the fuck was it?” He holds the key out to me, his blue eyes wide. “We looked everywhere!”
“I don’t know,” I answer, trying to pull myself back together, “But it doesn’t matter, right now - the AG is gonna be back any second, and we need to get the key to Ralph and Calla before any more problems can-”
The radio on Aiden’s belt crackles to life, cutting me off. This isn’t the first instance of that since we began our search for the key, but this time it freezes both of us.
“Hey, Gigante,” comes Luis’s voice, fuzzy with radio static. “Can you go give that bachelorette party in 502 a second warning? We’re getting more noise complaints. Argument’s getting pretty loud, apparently.”
“Shit. That’s probably because I never gave them a first warning.” Aiden unhooks the radio from his belt, then pauses, looking at me uncertainly. “Should I answer?”
I hesitate, pressing my fingers to my mouth.
The radio crackles with Luis’s voice again. “Gigante, come in.”
“Okay, I feel bad,” Isaac jumps in, his voice similarly roughened by the static. “Should’ve been me. It’s his first night, and we sent him to do a bachelorette party fight? He probably died in there.”
Laughter comes through the radio, followed by a new voice. “You guys are fuckin’ cruel, man.”
“The fuck we are, Kendrick!” Luis protests. “The guy’s built like Everest, alright? He can handle himself.”
“Do you want me to come up for the call with you, Gigante?” Isaac offers. “Show you the ropes?”
Aiden freezes, then hastily lifts the radio to his mouth. “No, I’ve got it! I’ll head up there right now. Everything’s under control.”
“Copy that, keep us posted.”
“Fuck!” Aiden fumbles the radio back onto his belt, his eyes wide with alarm. “Should I actually go break up the-?”
“I mean, I think you have to!” I take the key from Aiden’s hand and stuff it into the pocket of Carter’s jacket, trying to scramble a plan together. “Just go do that really fast, okay? I’ll call Ralph and see if we’re okay to bring him the key. Meet me back here?”
Aiden nods, then steps over the pile of broken glass, leading the way out of the shower. “Let’s hope this experience isn’t as terrifying as the other guys are making it sound.”
I reach up to give his bicep a squeeze. “I’m sure you can handle it, Gigante.”
“Ha, ha,” Aiden groans, striding back out into the living room. “Maybe it’ll be less like an actual brawl, more like a sexy pillow fight situation? Walking in on one of those is something I definitely dreamed of doing, as a teenager.”
“Well, if it is one of those situations, you better behave yourself, Callahan!”
He winks at me over his shoulder. “Tell the ladies, not me.”
I let out a sputter of indignant laughter, then swat Aiden’s arm. “I can’t trust you on your own for ten minutes, can I?”
“Hey, Kendrick, that just reminded me,” comes Isaac’s voice through the radio. “D’you get your kiss yet? There’s a guy downstairs giving them out to all the security guards.”
Aiden points to the radio, arching an eyebrow. “You were saying, Keane?”
“Oh, my god.” I steer Aiden towards the door, my cheeks burning as he dissolves into snickering laughter. “Just go handle it and get back here as soon as you can, please!”
Aiden stops by the door, grows quiet, and bends to press a kiss onto my forehead. I grow serious, too, the laughter simmering down in my chest.
It felt good, though. A moment of calm and warmth amidst the madness. I can always count on Aiden for that.
I allow myself one long, deep breath of vetiver, holding a tight handful of his jacket. Then I let him go, take a step back.
Aiden ruffles my hair affectionately before he goes, the door quietly clicking shut after him.
I slip my phone out of my pocket and call Ralph, then head back to the bedroom as it rings. I want to make sure that the explosion of breaking glass didn’t wake up Brent or Carter.
They’re still sprawled across the bed, motionless. Breathing deeply and slowly. Carter hasn’t shifted at all from the position that Aiden dropped him in, and Brent hasn’t moved, either. I prod Brent’s arm with my finger, to no response.
“Hey,” Ralph says, snapping my attention back to my phone. “Please tell me you’ve got the-”
“Yes,” I interrupt hastily, and he lets out a sharp breath of relief. “How are you guys doing with the managers?”
“There’s one more we need to talk to, and then we think we’ve got everyone.”
“You think?” I repeat, my heart hammering against my ribs. “You think or you know?”
Ralph blows right past my question. “Where’s Aiden?”
“He had to go break up a fight at a bachelorette party.”
“What the fuck?” Ralph sputters, thoroughly bewildered. “What the hell are you guys doing, up there? Didn’t I fucking say no more chaos?”
“It’s a long story!” I wander back out into the living room, crushing some grapes from the fallen fruit displays as I go. “We had to get rid of some cocaine, and we, um - we kind of smashed the shower to bits, by accident-”
“Jamie, what in the goddamn - okay, forget it. Just - is Aiden gonna be back soon?”
“Yeah, I think so! I’m in the hotel room waiting for him.”
“Okay…” There’s a silence as Ralph thinks for a moment. “Listen, get our stuff. Get it and put it near the door. We’re gonna need to grab it and run after we do this. Time’s running out on the AG getting back.”
He’s right. We need to move fast.
I tuck my phone between my ear and my shoulder, then reach for Ralph’s jacket. “Okay, I’m on it!”
“Get down here as soon as Aiden gets back. Where was the key, by the way?”
As always, unfortunate honesty gets the better of me. “I - don’t know.”
“You didn’t ask Aiden?”
“He doesn't know, either.”
“I thought you said you guys found it.”
“Yeah, we did! We just don’t know where it was.”
“What the f-? Oh, Christ. Never-fucking-mind. Just get our stuff, get Aiden, and get down here. Um - please.”
“See you soon!” I answer quickly, then hang up and stuff my phone in my pocket so I can bundle my jacket and Ralph’s into my arms.
The sense of urgency makes me want to sprint from room to room, but I force myself to slow down. We really, really can’t afford to forget anything.
I move slowly and carefully through each room, and I don’t stop until I’m absolutely sure that I’ve got everything here that belongs to me, Ralph, Aiden, or Calla.
By the time I’m done, I have a neat pile by the door. Calla’s clothes, all of our jackets, Aiden’s shoes. I leave it all there and do one last sweep of the entire penthouse.
The place is a wreck. Ralph and I trashed it on purpose, and then Aiden and I trashed it all over again in our frantic search for the key. Brent and Carter are going to wake up to a sight tomorrow.
But there should be no evidence that we were here.
My work is complete, so I stop to take a breath. I stand by the massive, floor-to-ceiling windows of the living room. I look out at the city below, which has turned slick and shiny in the steady, gentle rain that’s falling. The flickering neon lights each cast a wider halo in this weather, reflecting against the drizzle. The crowd on the sidewalk hasn’t thinned at all. Cars are pulling up to and away from the hotel in a ceaseless flow of activity.
I just look for a long moment, leaning my shoulder against the wall, breathing deeply. Absently turning the safe key over and over in my hand.
I jolt upright as a knock comes at the door. I slip the key back into my pocket, then cross the hotel room.
It’s a relief to open the door and see Aiden standing there, but I’m startled by the sight of him.
“Oh my god - what happened to you?” I ask, alarmed.
He’s splattered with glitter, up the side of his neck, in his hair, a little bit on his face. There’s also what looks like a handprint made of pink frosting on the sleeve of his security jacket.
He looks more than a little flustered.
“Jesus Christ!” He strides inside, takes one of the designer t-shirts from Brent’s open suitcase, and starts wiping the frosting off of his jacket. “That was a disaster. My goddamn life flashed before my eyes.”
“Why are you covered in glitter?”
“They had these glitter bombs they were supposed to use for their bridesmaids photoshoot tomorrow.” Aiden drops the frosting-covered shirt back into Brent’s suitcase, then straightens up to look at me, still out of breath. “They were throwing them like goddamn Molotovs in there!”
Aiden’s glittery appearance is not exactly going to help us blend in, but we have absolutely no time to try and get it off of him.
“Okay, just - don’t worry about it,” I tell him, anxiously checking my watch. “C’mon, we have to get back downstairs.”
“Ralph and Calla are ready for us?”
“Yeah,” I answer, then stop, realizing what this means.
Aiden pauses as he realizes, too.
We’re rapidly running out of time, which means that Ralph will probably ask Kate to open the safe as soon as Aiden and I hand the key over. Then Calla will have to make the switch with the files, and then we need to get our stuff and get out before the AG makes his arrival.
The groundwork got us here, but this, how we do right now… everything comes down to this. I suspect that it’s going to feel like an eternity, but it’s probably all going to happen in the span of, like - twenty minutes. Once we go down there and give the key to Ralph, it’s in motion, and we can’t stop.
Aiden and I both take a deep breath, looking at each other.
Then I slip the safe key into my pocket, take Aiden’s hand, and reach for the door.
~~~~
The elevator doors slide open, and the clock starts.
Aiden and I stride out of the elevator and stop, eyes searching for Ralph and Calla. The lobby is just as bustling and busy as it was before, late-night crowds weaving around the huge, glittering fountain at the center. But through the sea of bodies, I catch sight of a flash of gold.
We’re lucky that Agatha picked Calla such an eye-catching dress. Aiden spots her, too, and we both set off across the lobby towards her.
There are brightly-polished stone benches placed along the walls of the lobby. Ralph and Calla are sitting together on one. A huge, abstract painting of some vividly colorful flowers hangs in an ornate golden frame above their heads. But Calla, in her radiant dress, outshines it all.
She’s sitting turned towards Ralph, the fabric of her dress falling in graceful, shimmering waves all the way to the floor. Ralph is facing her, too. Looking right into her eyes.
Ralph and Calla are talking intently, seriously, quietly. Almost - intimately.
“They’re selling it, aren’t they?” Aiden murmurs, and I make a soft sound of agreement.
Then again - are they? Is this part of the act?
Ralph and Calla haven’t broken their gazes away from each other, not once since we laid eyes on them. They haven’t stopped to look around, to see if Aiden and I are coming, or if the AG has shown up. It’s like both of them are completely and genuinely absorbed in the conversation they’re having.
They’re not touching each other at all. Calla’s palms are flat against the bench, and Ralph has his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped loosely between them.
I blink in surprise as - without unclasping his hands, without breaking his gaze from Calla’s face - Ralph unfolds his index finger and very lightly touches it to one of the golden folds of Calla’s dress.
It’s the tiniest movement, and he instantly draws his finger away again. He didn’t actually touch Calla, only felt the texture of her dress, so she didn’t even notice. I don’t think that Aiden saw it, either. It was remarkably swift and subtle.
Ralph shows no sign that anything happened. He bites the inside of his cheek a little bit, nothing else.
It occurs to me that Ralph could get away with a lot more contact than that, given the situation. He’s playing Calla’s boyfriend. He could put his arm around her, as Brent, for the sake of the act. But it seems like he hasn’t taken the opportunity. Only that one, stolen little touch.
Aiden and I stop before Ralph and Calla, and they finally look up at us. They both freeze, then get up immediately, snapping back into business mode.
Ralph wordlessly holds out his hand, and I slip the safe key from my pocket, hand it over to him. He takes a quick look at it, then slips it into the pocket of his jeans.
“Why the fuck is Aiden covered in glitter?” he asks quietly.
“Don’t worry about it,” Aiden grumbles.
Calla shakes her head at him, baffled, then runs her hands up and down her arms like she’s cold. Ralph glances down at her, grey-green eyes following the movements of her hands.
He silently unzips Brent’s jacket, shrugs it off, and gently drops it onto Calla’s shoulders.
Aiden and I exchange a stunned glance as Calla slips her arms through the sleeves of Brent’s jacket. It’s too big on her, but it looks nice, and it works for the Brent and girlfriend act. That was a very boyfriend thing of Ralph to do.
Before any of us can say anything, Isaac appears from nowhere, clearly in a rush, and tugs on Aiden’s sleeve.
“Perfect timing,” he says breathlessly to Aiden, then nods towards the bar. “C’mon, let’s go.”
We all turn around to see that some kind of drunken scuffle has broken out just outside of the entrance to the hotel bar. A handful of sloppy, fired-up guys in suits are arguing at an increasing volume, starting to push each other.
Aiden flashes us a very fast little glance, then takes off after Isaac, who is already on his way, speaking into his radio as he breaks into a run.
Just like that, we’re down a team member. But we don’t have time to wait, and besides - this part really comes down to Ralph and Calla.
Although… oh, no.
“Shit!” I whip around to face them, dropping my volume to a frantic whisper. “Aiden has the file we need to swap in! It’s in his jacket!”
Calla shakes her head at me, then very covertly pats the too-big jacket she’s wearing. I stare at her blankly for a moment before it dawns on me.
“Holy shit,” I sputter, my eyes widening. “How’d you get your hand in his jacket without him noticing? When did you even do it?”
“When everyone turned to look at that stupidity,” she says, tossing her head at the bar.
I glance over at the bar, where Isaac is dragging one of the brawlers out of the fray. Aiden reaches in and picks up a struggling businessman, easily lifting him into the air as he tries to kick Isaac’s guy.
I point at the fight, turning back to Ralph and Calla. “Did you guys cause that, somehow?”
“Nope.” Ralph shrugs his shoulders. “That was just good luck. Nice big distraction, and right on time.”
I stare at Ralph, just now realizing that him giving his jacket to Calla was all part of the plan. This way she can bring the file into the safe room, make the switch without having to get it from Ralph first.
They’ve been busy plotting, these two.
And now we’re all ready to go.
I look between Ralph and Calla, my heart leaping nervously for them. They’re both people who don’t consider themselves team players, but they have to be a team tonight. They’re gonna have to work together, play off of each other perfectly in order to pull this off. If they’re caught with either file, at any point…
“Carter,” Ralph says pointedly, catching my eye. “You should come with us to talk to Kate. And wait for us in the lobby while we go down there.”
I take a shaky breath, trying to smooth out my increasingly fragged nerves. “Okay.”
There’s a short silence. Calla looks at Ralph, searchingly and seriously. He looks back at her the same way, and somehow I feel like they’re having a whole conversation with their eyes.
Ralph gives Calla a tiny nod, and she lets out a breath, then gives him one back.
They both turn to look at the front desk. I follow their gazes there and see Kate standing near the long stone counter, reading something on a clipboard.
Ralph and Calla both take a deep breath, then simultaneously take a step forward. Side by side, they set off across the lobby.
I fall into step behind them, stumbling a little as I rush to catch up. My cheeks start to burn, but Kate thinks that I’m very drunk, so maybe it’s fine if she saw that. Hopefully she’ll put it down to the tequila, not to the fact that I’m a nervous wreck.
I can’t help it. With each step we take towards Kate, I’m increasingly terrified. The AG could turn up at any minute. Nora, who knows that I’m not the real Carter, could return to her place at the front desk at any time. There are unlimited ways that this could all go wrong.
Kate sees us coming. Her eyes catch on Ralph, and even if I hadn’t overheard her conversation with Nora earlier, the look that flashes across her face would have told me that she has views and opinions about him.
She’s got her expression back to a calm, professional smile well before we get to her, though.
“Hello, Mr. Windsor,” she says politely, setting aside the clipboard. “What can I help you with?”
“Hey, Kate.” Ralph holds up the safe key between two fingers. “I need to get into my box in the safe room. Understand I need a manager for that?”
“Oh - I’m afraid you can’t take anything from the safe unless your father is present, too, Mr. Windsor,” Kate says apologetically. “You’re both registered to the box. But I’d be happy to open it for you when he returns to the hotel.”
“I don’t need to take anything from it.” Ralph slips the key back into his pocket. “Just need to double-check some paperwork I’ve got in there. Confirm a few things with my bank.”
Kate hesitates for a moment, uncertain.
Ralph gives her a cold, unfriendly smile, then adds - “If that’s alright with you?”
Calla suddenly makes an annoyed little sound, turning to Ralph. “Brent, just call the bank back and tell them you’ll take care of it tomorrow.”
Ralph shakes his head at her. “They need it by tonight, baby, or I’m gonna lose a lot of money.”
Calla pouts deeply, smoothing down her insanely expensive dress. “But I wanna go out, and this is taking so long.”
“I was just thinking the same thing,” Ralph says, turning his irritated gaze on Kate.
Faced with two increasingly dissatisfied VIP guests, Kate blinks hard, then hastily strides around behind the front desk.
“Just let me get the key,” she tells them, straining hard to sound calm and upbeat. “And a second manager to escort you.”
“Great,” Ralph says, then rolls his eyes, glances down at his phone in a bored kind of way.
“You guys let me know when you’re done.” My voice is thin and scraping with anxiety, but I’m hoping it sounds alcohol-induced. “I’ll wait up here.”
“Mkay,” Ralph says absently, still looking down at his phone. “Try not to blow any more of my money in the lobby shops.”
I steal a quick look at him, then step back to leave him with Kate and Calla.
Ralph has the most on the line, doing this. By a lot. You’d think he’d look at least a little bit nervous. I know that he must be just as terrified as I am, right now, if not more. It just doesn’t show.
Just like it doesn’t show on Calla, who I know is terrified on Ralph’s behalf.
No matter how well we’ve done so far, if Ralph and Calla get caught switching the files, or sneaking one in or out - we’re done.
I cross the lobby and stop to stand by the tremendous, grandiose fountain at the center. It splashes rhythmically behind me, a soothing thrum in my ears.
I peer through the dancing formations of water, watching Ralph and Calla. Kate has retrieved her copy of the safe key, and she’s got another manager with her. Not Joel, but he must be someone else that Ralph and Calla have already persuaded. He greets them like he’s met them, then falls into step with Kate.
I watch as they all walk together into one of the guest elevators, where Kate presses a very low button.
I catch one last glimpse of Ralph and Calla. They’re looking at each other, standing shoulder to shoulder between the two managers.
I think I see Calla give Ralph’s wrist a very fast little squeeze. And then the doors have shut, and they’re gone.
I take a deep breath, then turn around, my anxious eyes searching for Aiden.
He and Isaac have subdued the drunk, belligerent suits by the bar. Isaac is dragging one towards the doors. Aiden has two more by their jackets, holding them as if by the scruffs of their necks as he follows Isaac.
My gaze goes to the revolving doors they’re headed towards, and stops there.
My whole body goes icy cold.
A tall, unsmiling blonde man has just pushed his way through the revolving doors, stepped out of the drizzling rain, and into the hotel. I’ve never met him before, but I recognize him instantly. I saw his picture earlier tonight, on Ralph’s phone.
The Attorney General is here.
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