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Venom: Beautiful Killers. Part 53.

"You have transference issues. I get that."

Wilson's Curtains and Bedding is a luxury furniture paradise located about ten miles from downtown Los Angeles. 7th street is usually packed this time of the day, and that is where a tan swift fox and his light-colored bobcat companion find themselves this morning. They are driving in a shiny, red sedan with pinstripes on the side. It is quite gaudy next to the other simple vehicles that they are passing by. The bobcat is at the wheel and he looks excited to see the furniture store. He points to it and drives in to the small lot.

The engine is cut off and the partners look out the driver-side window. “There it is," Pica says.

“Yeah, that's the car, but where is he?" Dunn wrinkles his nose. “Don't tell me he's inside."

They are looking at a black, two-door sports car with a black-and-white checkerboard pattern on the sides. The rims flash a shiny, silvery color. The antenna has a small globe on the top. It looks gaudier than their car. Sure enough, it is empty, but the keys have been left in its ignition. Pica points it out to his friend.

“Pretty careless," Dunn says.

“You wanna take 'em out and give them to him? It would be a good way to break the ice."

“I already have a speech prepared in my head. That's my icebreaker."

The two undo their seatbelts and start to groom themselves. Pica runs his fingers through the follicles on his head. He is trying to depress the cowlick on his head and the fur on his ears. He is not making much headway. Dunn is combing his hair and the fur on his arms. He looks really buff in his short-sleeved golf shirt. Combing his arms makes him look slicker and more muscle-bound.

“What are you doing?" Dunn asks. “You trying to upstage me? You're not the one meeting the man."

“I'm your wingman."

“You're not supposed to look better than me. I'm the one who asked him out."

“Well, I bet if I were the one who initiated contact, he wouldn't have taken so long to respond."

“He called back. That's all that matters."

Pica looks himself over using the rear-view mirror. Satisfied with his appearance, he turns to the fox. “You ready to turn on the charm?"

Dunn frowns. “It bothers me. Why did he want to meet here?"

“Who cares? Go grab his keys."

“I'm a bit nervous, so don't stray far, okay?"

“What kind of wingman do you think I am? And what do you mean by nervous? You're the most put together fox I know. And I'm not just saying that because I care about you."

Dunn pulls out either a gold or gold-plated watch from the pocket of his dress shirt and applies it to his left wrist. He leans to give Pica a kiss on the cheek and opens his door.

The two exit the car looking like they mean business. They close their doors in unison and walk cautiously to the black vehicle. While Pica admires the interior, Dunn opens the front door and removes the keys from their place.

Pica whistles seductively with approval. “Damn. Your mark is loaded. This car doesn't match the picture you have."

“It's obviously stolen and redesigned. The rims don't look like they match the body at all."

“Let's move before someone notices."

The pair keeps its cool and heads inside the store; Dunn wears the keychain on his middle finger and spins the keys around as they enter. It looks like he is doing it to keep himself calm. He stops once Pica caresses the back of his neck with his right hand. They look at each other for a minute longer before separating. A young bystander looks at them with morbid curiosity until they separate. Then he shrugs and goes on his way.

The establishment is indeed large. There are aisles on one end of the place, but most of the floor contains displays of beds and bedroom sets. The designs on most of the pillowcases and blankets are intricate and flowery. The mattresses have memory foam and all the sheets have excessive thread counts. The curtains that hang near those bedroom sets are mostly either velvet or silk. Their designs are just as intricate and complex as on the beds.

Even though they are well off, Pica and Dunn seem out of place in this lavish setting. They are dressed too casually and too brashly for such an intimate environment. The bobcat probably realizes this, or else he would have left his sunglasses on his face. He puts them in his shirt pocket and looks up in time to see a human wander into view. He stops right in front of the hitman and looks down at the price tag of the bed in front of him.

Pica smiles and backs away slowly. As inconspicuously as possible, he strides quickly away from the display and heads to the aisles near the checkout counters. Dunn is perusing the large selection of curtain rods nearby when his partner approaches him.

“I found him. He's about thirty yards behind us."

The fox clears his throat and follows. “Here goes nothing."

“We better hurry. There's a crowd starting to form."

There is a small gathering of people piling up near the front door. They are being distracted by something in the street behind them, but many ignore it to enter the store. The two friends are essentially about to pick up a date in a highly businesslike atmosphere unsuited for such things. As Pica leads the way, Dunn continually looks over his shoulder, as if the wandering crowd were following him.

They eventually see the human moving through a couple of displays and stop right in front of him, not quite knowing what to do. The man looks young, easily five to ten years younger than either of them. He too looks uncomfortably out of place; he has on acid-wash jeans and a white T-shirt mostly covered by a dark, leather jacket. Not quite the business attire being worn by the store's other patrons.

Dunn sighs nervously and waits for the man to stop his wandering. He eventually does, stooping to run his hands through a red bed sheet, priced at three hundred dollars. With his partner right behind, Dunn sneaks up to the human and stands next to him. Their shoulders are a couple of inches away from touching. The fox looks back at the bobcat, who gives him a warm smile and two thumbs up. The human is too busy feeling the sheets to notice he has company.

“You know those sheets don't really have a fifteen hundred thread count." Dunn's voice is velvety soft; whisper-thin while still being audible. “That's false advertising. You're gonna get robbed if you buy that."

If the human is startled, he hardly shows it. He takes a peek to his left to see the fox towering above him. “You're here," he says shakily.

“I am."

“And you're dressed just like the picture you sent me. That's a good start."

Dunn stands up straighter, less nervous than when he started. “You know, there's a coffee shop just a block away. You could have chosen that place for…."

The man straightens up and shakes his head. “No. I wanted our first meeting to be uncomfortable for both of us…so that we can both think on our toes. If you agreed to meet me here, that means you're serious about a relationship."

“That's new to me. Dating sites don't usually recommend the first meetup to be so antagonistic."

“You say antagonistic, I say precautionary. I was originally gonna have us meet at bikram yoga."

Dunn chuckles. “Now that would have really been uncomfortable."

“Sorry if I caught you off guard, but that was the point. You sound nice, by the way."

“So what's your name? Or do you go buy just your screen name?"

“It's Francis. Nice to meet you." He sticks out his right hand and turns to face the fox. Dunn smiles and shakes it. “I thought the only foxes to find in LA were either red or white, but you've got this…dusty, brown deal going on."

“I'm a different species of fox."

“A swift fox. I saw that in your profile. I thought swift was just an adjective you use to describe yourself. I didn't know it was actually a thing." He chuckles loudly. Their hands are still enclosed in the same handshake. It looks like they are hitting it off.

“You look different from your profile."

“Yeah…it's long past time to update my photo…." He hears a huffing sound behind him and turns to see Pica staring at them. He quickly dissolves the handshake. “I said come alone."

Dunn glances at the bobcat and stiffens his posture. He has clearly forgotten his friend was there and looks a bit embarrassed, but he simply clears his throat and smiles. “He's just there for protection."

Frances squints at him. “You don't trust me?"

“Well, you chose this location based on mistrust, didn't you?"

“Good point. But now that you know I'm not a danger, could you tell him to get lost?"

Pica can hear everything and opens his mouth to respond, but he stops when Dunn points at him and points to the front door fifty yards away. The bobcat's whiskers flutter and his tail tightens, but he does not protest. He takes one more mad glance at the human before he leaves the couple. He hears his boyfriend say “Sorry about that," and picks up the pace.

He makes it to the glass double doors and is about to leave. There is a commotion just outside that has caused a crowd to plug his exit. He leaves the door and walks to the nearby window to see what is happening. Right on 7th street, just in front of the establishment, is a fender bender involving three vehicles. A black SUV has been rear-ended by a white sedan, which itself has been hit by another black vehicle. The street is filled with nervous drivers and passengers, panicky bystanders, and greedy rubberneckers. Some of the Wilson's employees are trying desperately to clear the entrance so their customers can have clear access.

While watching the commotion, Pica's ears are tuned in, like an antenna, to the conversation behind him. He growls softly as he keeps his eyes at the window.

“Look, I gotta go," Francis says.

Dunn scoffs. “Are you kidding? We're just getting started. And I came all the way here…which is a long way from home."

“I'm sorry about that. They're just too many people here."

“I thought you wanted us to be uncomfortable."

“Well I didn't account for the accident right outside." He shoves his right hand inside his pocket and pulls out a folded card. “Call me at this number in a couple of hours and I'll tell you where we can really get to know each other. Don't call sooner; I won't be there."

Pica turns for a split second in time to see Dunn giving something back to the human. He sighs with dread and turns back to the goings on outside. The police have arrived and activity in the street is a bit more muddled. His eyes widen and he leans into the glass until his nose touches it. For some reason, he gasps loudly.

With Francis now gone, Dunn breathes easier. He takes a couple of deep breaths and turns to find his friend. He hears more noise filter in from the outside and decides to jog instead of walk to the bobcat. His mood suddenly changes from relief to consternation. It seems like not much went as planned.

He reaches his friend and gets his attention with a hard shoulder tap. “What the fuck's the matter with you? You almost blew it back there."

Pica looks at him, then turns back to the window seconds later. Something has caught his attention.

“I know that look. What's the matter?"

“Behind the SUV."

Dunn huffs and stares at the window, trying to see beyond the accident. “I don't see anything. Just a lot of people…and a lot of smoke." His eyes scan the area and eventually spot a white face. The face looks at the accident like the people around it. It has a white muzzle, slightly ragged fur all over it, and two pointy ears sticking up. A wolf, no doubt, but a certain kind of wolf.

Dunn looks at the female face, then back at his angry friend. “My God," he whispers.

“It's been a long time," Pica snorts. “Too long."

“She hasn't been in the office in a while."

“Well, neither have we. Matter of fact, I've actually gotten past her as a threat."

“You what?"

Pica looks down as if not interested in the wolf. “I said I've gotten over her. We haven't seen her or Shiloh in weeks. He's obviously too busy working on hunts. I'm sure she's moved on too." He looks at his watch and sighs impatiently. He looks like he is ready to go. “Look buddy, you're mad at her. I get that because I'm mad too. But I'm not the type to hold prolonged grudges. I think we should just drop the matter. Hell, Francis is worth eight thousand. That makes up about half of what she owes us." He looks lovingly at his partner, hoping to see him come to reason. The reaction he gets makes him close his eyes instead. “You're not listening, are you?"

As Pica looks on, Winter slowly backs away from the sight of the cars before turning and escaping the crowd.

“You want to follow her, don't you?"

Pica looks at his partner and says, “With or without you."

“Well…it's not like I got anything better to do today."

The bobcat quickly bolts with the fox in hot pursuit. For a second, it looks like a chase with Dunn trying hard to catch up. The gathering of gawkers in front of the store makes for a huge obstacle and they bump into several people trying to get by. By the time they reach where Winter had been, she is well out of reach. However, she is not out of sight.

Having bobbed and weaved through a mass of people, Dunn is a bit winded. Pica is too, but hardly reacts. They watch the wolf as she maneuvers through stopped cars waiting at a red light. “We're not gonna go too far, are we? Our car is still out at the parking lot."

“Then just go wait in the car. I'll tell you where I end up, and you can come get me."

Dunn sighs and shakes his head. “Yeah. Sounds like fun."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

When St. Croix opens the office door for the first time today, the time is exactly 8:00. He turns the lights on to see everything in its place. Nothing looks changed or off kilter. The wall-to-wall carpet still has vacuum cleaner marks, the desk and windows are spotless, and the chairs are arranged for the next meeting. There is no sign of Friday night in this room.

He goes through the hall way and quickly scans every room there; the three offices, the restrooms, the locker room, and the conference room. It is something he does every morning if he is the first one there. Everything looks to be in order. In just a couple of minutes, he is right in front of the chief's room. The door is slightly open.

St. Croix calls out Tobias' name before slowly pushing the door open. For some reason, he looks surprised to see the resident who owns the room. He chuckles with slight embarrassment. “Sorry chief."

Vivian Cross is writing something on a notebook on her desk. She barely glances at the wolf at first, but then raises her head. “Well, hello there. Long time no see. How are you?"

She is not angry and does not seem suspicious of anything. St. Croix smiles in return while cautiously looking around the room. “Just fine, ma'am. Please forgive me. You've been away so long, I've forgotten it's your name on the door." He laughs sheepishly. “How was your trip?"

“Not bad. I could have come back earlier, but Eagle needed me. There's an election to win."

“You know we don't support the governor, right?"

“I know I'm in the minority, but you surely don't think I agree with his every proposal, do you?"

“Well…."

“I mean, I'm not a fan of Prop 20, for instance. If I was, you hitmen wouldn't be here."

“True, but why do you support him?"

“Besides being a good friend, he's got California's economy on the right track, he's got plans to keep it growing, he's going to cut taxes…um…he's got a jobs plan in the works that'll increase our GDP…."

As Vivian continues stating her defense, St. Croix looks beyond her to observe the liquor cabinet. Just like the rooms in the building, everything inside the fancy display case is in order; more or less arranged as normal before Pamila got her hands on it. It has the same number of liquor bottles and the Scotch is right in the middle, on the top drawer.

“…so I can't see myself supporting the other guy. He's just not ready. Don't you agree?"

St. Croix inhales loudly and looks at the ceiling. He had not been listening and is searching for something to say. He shrugs after a few seconds. “I'm not sure."

“You don't know who the other guy is, do you?"

He shakes his head. “Not a clue."

“But you still don't like Governor Cartwright. So who are you gonna vote for?"

“I think I'm just gonna stay home. I got a lot of DIY projects line up anyway." A loud ringtone blares from his trousers, startling both of them. He chuckles and plucks it out while still looking at her. “Sorry, ma'am. I'll go somewhere else."

“Nice to see you again." She shakes her head and laughs while he nervously answers his digital device.

The voice on the other end sounds nervously loud. St. Croix knows who it is right away; the voice makes the phone's digital display redundant. “Good morning, Tobias." He makes his way to the cafeteria, well out of the chief's hearing range. “Hold on. You're talking too fast."

As the voice on the other end wails on, the wolf brightens the cafeteria by turning on the lights and opening the windows. All the while, he laughs at the phone. “Dude, you can relax. The chief is here. I checked in on her room and everything's in order. Well…everything looks in order. The important thing is that she doesn't suspect a thing." He waits for the boy's response and laughs some more. He seems to be making light of a potentially dangerous situation. “No, I wasn't able to get a close look at the liquor cabinet; Mrs. Cross is sitting at her desk. If I tried it now, she might get suspicious."

While a calmer Tobias talks, St. Croix inspects the floor and the tables. He comes short of inspecting the exercise equipment when he decides that everything there is clean. When the boy stops talking, he pulls up a chair. “Frankly, I'm surprised she hasn't caught on, but I'm glad it's working. Pamila and I looked everywhere for that particular brand of gin. We were able to replace most of the stuff that she drank." He chuckles as he sits. “Yeah, it was quite expensive, but she was able to pay for half it. It's the least she could do."

St. Croix's head pokes up to see a couple of cars approach the rear lot. One of them belongs to an executive. The other is a taxi. His eyebrows raise and he stands. “Um…no, Tobias. I wasn't able to replace the bottle of scotch. We couldn't find that brand at our usual hangouts. The Shark Pit doesn't have it. So we…." He pauses as Tobias complains. Meanwhile, more cars are coming into the lot.

“I poured water into the bottle to fill it. After that, I taped up the box it came in. So…now it looks intact. Don't worry about it. She's not gonna use that thing for a while yet, right? We have enough time to find that brand and replace that bottle."

Just outside, the taxi leaves the lot, dropping off Hoeness and his girlfriend. They hold hands as he leads her to the cafeteria door. St. Croix looks like he disapproves. “Hey, Tobias? I gotta go. Talk to you later." He hangs up and runs to the cafeteria door. He holds it open for the couple, who are so into each other that Hoeness walks backwards up the steps.

“Sunset, right?" St. Croix asks.

She smiles shyly and steps gingerly into the room. “Yeah. Sorry about this, but I wanted coffee and Hoeness told me about the new brand from Hawaii that you guys have." She nods at the wolf, then turns to her beau. “Are you sure I'm not getting in the way?"

“Of course not," Hoeness says. He leads her to the chair that St. Croix once occupied. “Take it easy and I'll get coffee started." He kisses her forehead and peels away to the sink where the appliances are stored.

With the man occupied, St. Croix approaches his woman. “So, you and Hoeness are now a thing?"

“Yeah, it's been fun," she answers. “I was the one who had to…initiate proceedings. Sometimes, it's like he's never seen a girl before, but most of the time, he acts like a real gentleman. Still though, I can't help but feel that he's hiding something from me. I get that feeling more often than not. You know what I mean?"

St. Croix just shakes his head. The mild allegation caught him by surprise, but he nonchalantly shrugs it off, hoping that Sunset will not dwell on it.

“Speaking of secrets," she continues, “I got a question to ask that I don't want him to hear. I'd like to buy a yacht and surprise him for his birthday. It's quite a handful, so I was wondering…so can I get a loan here for that?"

“Wow. A yacht? On a schoolteacher's salary?"

“I'm good for it. My dad's loaded. He helps make the yachts and he owns some patents. Can I get a loan today?"

Before he can answer, the cafeteria door opens. Simon Blank enters, standing tall and looking every bit the executive he is. He is dressed in all black and is holding a black binder. Starting business really early, he points at St. Croix and approaches him. “All right, listen. Crevecoeur and the others are gonna be late, so I need you to help moderate the meeting." He hands the binder to the wolf. “Here's the new list. It's quite extensive. I won't be able to laminate…what's wrong?"

Using his nose, St. Croix points at Sunset, silencing the executive immediately. She quickly stands and jams her hands in the pockets of her jacket. “I knew it. I am in the way."

“Oh, no ma'am," Simon says. “I was just surprised, that's all. We don't usually get customers before nine."

“I'm here with Hoeness. He tells me he's a model worker."

“Oh, you said it. Truly a paragon in our industry." He glares at St. Croix for a second before heading into the hallway.

The wolf breathes a sigh of relief that nothing incriminating was said in front of her and bows his goodbye before taking off. He follows Simon through the hall and into the lobby, which has started to fill up with the workers. The two inseparable red foxes, Benny and Boris, are hanging around the front desk. Inverness is talking to Stefano. Prosper, the beagle, is sitting in front of desk, talking with Greenleaves, the lion. Rory and Paraná are about to enter, both greeting Baua who is holding the door open for them. Also further in the parking lot are two more cars—the blue Jetta belonging to Tivoli and a new, never-before-seen silver-colored car.

St. Croix looks at it with interest, but hears someone calling his name and snaps out of his trance. “Um…hello everybody. I got the marks." Light cheers ring out and some of the men step forward. “Not so fast, boys. You know we gotta wait for our leaders to show up. Today, Simon's gonna go over the marks with us and it feels like there should be enough for everybody."

A voice from somewhere in the back yells, “Give us a sneak peek." St. Croix sees the young hare, Honor, enter the room. Everyone is starting to get settled, so it looks like the hare is late even though there is still plenty of time.

The wolf nods in acknowledgement. “Come right in. Hey, how's your porn shoot going?"

“Oh, I'm done! I finished just two days ago. It took longer than expected, but I'm glad to be back here and doing what I love to do."

A couple of the guests laugh at his words as he makes his way through the aisle. “You're lying," Baua says. “You got laid by a whole bunch of females, which is the whole point of your movie. You wish you were still there instead of here."

Honor nods and laughs. “Yeah, you all got me. I should do this moonlighting thing more often." He chooses a seat behind Paraná, who is in the right side of the aisle. He taps the jaguar's shoulder and clenches a fist in front of him. “You and me have a score to settle."

Paraná, who had been talking quietly with Rory, flinches at the fist and turns to the now stoic hare. The fist now pulled back, Honor stares right at the front desk like nothing happened. The jaguar, smirks and nods, remembering the last time they met. “Oh, that's right. You don't have to worry."

“Huh? What you mean?"

“I didn't have sex with your girlfriend."

“You didn't?"

“Well, I did, but I didn't enjoy it. Too many stitches and not enough time to get into position. I might as well just have slept the whole time."

Honor grows angry at the jaguar's smile. “Whatever. You had sex with Gladys. I'm glad it's over. Now I can be together with her…since we've finished shooting our films."

“You know the funny thing?" Paraná smirks. “I cannot remember how that came to be. But I did feel better after it was over."

“Like I said, whatever." The hare leaves his seat and heads to the front desk to see what St. Croix is doing. The wolf has the pictures of the marks spread around the surface. “What the hell are you doing?"

St. Croix glances at the gathering crowd, but quickly looks back down at his work. “I'm just trying to arrange these in a certain order so the meeting can get done faster. I'm gonna arrange them so that the highest paying are the first ones mentioned. I mean…those are the ones we want the most, right? So why not?"

Baua laughs. “It's too early. It's not even 8:15."

“Yeah, but Simon's the only executive here. That means until the others show up, he has to conduct the meeting and set us up with our hunts by himself. That'll take a lot longer than thirty minutes. And we've got more marks than usual."

“Got one!" Honor yells.

“Not yet!"

“Too bad. I've found a good one.I wanna make eighteen thousand."

“Fellas, just wait 'til Simon gets here. He's…." The sight of Greenleaves' large face looking at him gives St. Croix pause. He clears his throat nervously. “Just be patient."

Benny and Boris touch a few of the pictures, trying to see their monetary value. While St. Croix tries to shoo them away, the front door opens. Ravi and Gonal, the company's only tigers, slowly step inside. Ravi greets everybody while Gonal simply nods his hello.

St. Croix waves. “Hey guys. Come on in."

While Gonal wears traditional Indian garb, Ravi is wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants, both gray. “Sorry I can't stay too long. I've got a rather strong cold. Any chance we can start early today?"

St. Croix nods. “Matter of fact, Simon should be ready in a few minutes."

Honor looks back at the tigers and knocks on the table to get everyone's attention. “Hey, listen up! Nobody take the eighteen thousand dollar one! That's mine! All right?!" He covers his ears as everyone in the room groans. “Shut up, all right? I need this! I've been shooting porn for the past month. I'm not gonna get the money from that until the movie comes out in a few weeks. I need a big mark."

“Sorry man, but I think this mark's too political for you. This is the kind of work Shiloh gets. You're just too young and inexperienced."

The room murmurs at the mention of the wolf's name. Honor ignores them. “Shiloh nothing! You're talking nonsense. I can kill this one as easy as anybody else in here."

As if in a classroom, Ravi raises his left hand. “St. Croix, may I ask a question real quick?"

The wolf collects the marks in a single pile. “Yeah? What is it?"

The tiger's index finger goes from pointing straight up to pointing straight ahead. “Who's that?"

Everyone turns to see a German Shepherd staring at everybody through the hallway opening. It is not Hoeness. “Um…hello?" she asks. “I heard noises and I thought…are you guys open?"

Those who are sitting stand and those who are standing sit. Everyone's hearts thump faster as they stare at the cute-looking, female dog. St. Croix, unsurprised and ready for the unexpected, quickly approaches her. “Sunset? What are you—“

“Sorry. I thought you all were open. Is this—“

“It's nothing. Just…where's Hoeness?"

“In the restroom. I suppose I should just go back to the cafeteria, huh?"

Leaving the marks behind, St. Croix escorts the female back through the hallway, whispering something in her ear.

Inverness lets out the loudest sigh. “Jesus, that was close."

Everyone relaxes. Stefano looks around and smiles nervously. “All right. St. Croix's gone. Let's look through those things."

All the men crowd the table. There is a little pushing and shoving, but a minute later, almost everyone has a piece of paper with a mark on it. Honor is still empty-handed, looking for the big prize he saw earlier. “Seriously, nobody touch mine."

“Oh, just shut up!" Rory yells. “But still, he does have a point. Someone should grab that one before Shiloh comes in here and takes it."

Ravi and Gonal look at the papers they hold and decide to keep looking. They throw those marks on the table and pick up two others. Gonal looks behind him to see Tivoli trying to come in, but has no thought of helping her inside. He just turns back to the marks. Meanwhile, Ravi asks, “Is the one worth eighteen thousand a member of the Cartwright campaign? Is anyone here really qualified to get as close as Shiloh can?"

The men boo and hiss at the wolf's name once again. Stefano shouts, “Even if we don't know, it can't be that hard if a bumbling fool like Shiloh can do it."

The front door opens once again and Tivoli enters. The slightly less chubby ocelot smiles as she looks around the room, getting almost no looks in return. She smiles wider when she notices the back of Paraná's head. “Good morning, everyone," she says. Nobody responds. She is a bit taken aback, but hardly minds it so much since the jaguar is there. She sidles up to him and taps the back of his head. “Hey there, cutie."

He looks up at her, scans her, and shrugs like she is no big deal. “Nice boots."

Both her trench coat and boots are the same shade of black. “It's starting to rain. Are those marks?"

“Hmm. A really good amount."

“I can see that. It looks like…a lot."

Her voice trails off shakily. Paraná turns to see her look the other way. She was smiling earlier; now she looks tentative and shy. Her demeanor makes him toss the mark he is holding on the table. “What's wrong? You nervous?"

She blows a breath and chuckles. “Well, I haven't done this in quite a while, and I was wondering…." She looks over his shoulder for a few seconds, paying attention to the men in front of her. Some of them have stopped what they are doing and are staring back at her. It makes her more cautious. “I just wanted to take this moment with you, while I have it, to apologize. I sensed you've been mad at me for the last couple of weeks. I wanted to be mad in return, but I've been thinking about you for the last…two days! And I've had nothing but good memories the entire time. So I just—“

“Apologize for what?"

Tivoli swallows. She can sense eyes on the back of her head. Inverness happens to be behind her, watching them. “For whatever is keeping you mad at me. Whatever it is, I just want to say I'm sorry."

“What makes you think there's anything to apologize for? You didn't stab me and keep me from work."

“You have transference issues. I get that. I just want us to be friends again. Just agree to that and I promise I won't nag you anymore."

Paraná opens his mouth to answer, but is interrupted by “That's just his way, my dear," from Inverness. “He's always been surly."

She sighs in frustration and tries to move away from the interloper. “Is there a place where we can talk by ourselves?"

Paraná shrugs. “Well the meeting is about to begin."

“It's only 8:15. We got fifteen minutes."

“I don't think so."

Just then, Simon appears from the darkness of the hall with a notepad and a ball point pen in his hands. There are two more pens in his white shirt. It is partially covered in a red blazer, which he promptly unbuttons. “Let's get started. Everyone have a seat." He is about to take his designer covering off when he spots the ocelot. “Well, well. Look who it is."

She looks on as he waves, suddenly shocked out of her comfort zone. She had gotten the jaguar's attention, something she has had trouble with for a while. Now she has lost him again. Whatever she is planning to say is just going to have to wait. “Good morning, sir. Could you wait a minute? I'd like to go to the restroom."

“Sure thing. Just be quick about it. If you see St. Croix up there, tell him to get over here, okay? I need his help."

She nods and runs through the hall, cursing under her breath. As the darkness envelopes her, she stops in front of the ladies' room. Her ears then catch the sound of the gray wolf and she decides to go to him first. She again takes off to where the voice is coming from. That is when Sunset's voice comes through. Tivoli stops in her tracks to listen. It sounds soft and lilting, not the kind of voice owned by anyone who works here. She slows down as she enters the cafeteria.

Sunset and Hoeness are sitting at one of the tables, drinking coffee. St. Croix is leaning in close to them, his face squinting with much interest. “Say that again!" he exclaims.

Hoeness' girlfriend shrugs. “I said it's only a rumor."

“Before that! Everything before that!"

“The chief of police has resigned. That's not the rumor. The good stuff is that Cliff is rumored to be taking over."

Hoeness looks more surprised than St. Croix does, but they are both in shock. The wolf clears his throat and swallows. The news comes with a twinge of pain and the two men both close their eyes. Tivoli creeps closer, wanting to hear more.

“It happened just last night," Sunset says. “It was all over the news. I'm surprised neither of you knew. The rumor I heard earlier this morning. I heard it from a friend who's close to the secretaries at the police department. The rumor started as a joke; the janitors were wagering on who would be the most likely to take his place. A couple of names were thrown around until one of them threw Cliff's name. Needless to say, the wagering stopped right there."

Hoeness scoffs. “Why Cliff? Why that bastard?"

St. Croix hangs his head. “I still remember getting grilled by him during one of those Shark Pit raids. It was all I could do not to slug him."

“Think about it, boys." Sunset takes another sip. “A bomb blows up, kills five, and the case is still unsolved after all this time. All of LA is still on edge. Of course the police chief was gonna hang! And who do you think is the most dogged of our policemen when it comes to solving this case? You've seen him at the Shark Pit. You know what he's like. There's no way Cliff's not gunning for the job. Any other choice wouldn't make sense!"

“Nonsense. I'm friends with some of those police dogs. They're plenty of them who are just as capable. Humans too."

“If you say so, but our luck isn't that great. You and I know it's Cliff. I'd bet the bar on it."

Hoeness chuckles angrily. “Apparently his reputation precedes him if even lowly janitors are paying him that much respect."

“Of course. He's on TV almost all the time now. He promises incessantly to solve the case. He's now become the de facto face of the LAPD. It's only a matter of time until…." She stops when she hears foot falls close by. All three of them turn to the windows behind them. “You guys have guests," she says.

St. Croix looks at his watch. “Shit. I forgot. I got a meeting to help put together."

The cafeteria doors open, yielding to Pica and Dunn. They have big smiles on their faces, as if they had just passed something funny. They enter the room boldly and ready to hug the first people they see. As Hoeness and St. Croix greet them, Tivoli uses this time to leave since St. Croix is on his way anyway.

In the meantime, Hoeness introduces his girlfriend to the pair before asking, “So what are you guys smiling about?"

Pica is bursting at the seams with joy. “Man, have we got news for you!" He then notices Sunset and calms down. “But I'll tell you when we get to the lobby."

St. Croix nods. “Yeah, let's hurry." He puts down his coffee in front of Sunset. “You gonna be all right by yourself?"

She nods contentedly. “Yeah, I'll be fine. You'll come to me when your meeting's over so we can talk about that loan, right?"

“Of course."

With that, the men leave her behind. Hoeness looks back at her for a few second before turning to the wolf. “What loan?"

“She'll tell you later. We got work to do right now."

Pica's hands fidget in anticipation. Dunn is behind him, rubbing the bobcat's shoulders, trying to calm him down, but his efforts are not very effective. Pica clearly wants to divulge something. Hoeness notices the bobcat's skipping feet. “What's wrong with you?" he asks.

Dunn sighs in response. He is as happy as his partner is, but is keeping his cool. “We saw something that made us happy. Naturally, it's gonna make all the workers happy too."

“Me included?"

“Oh, you'll love it."

“It wouldn't be that we're getting a bump in pay to make up for our lost wages, is it?"

Pica laughs and points at the German Shepherd. “My friend, this bit of news guarantees that we'll get paid more."

Hoeness and St. Croix stop suddenly and stare at the couple suspiciously. St. Croix says, “Don't kid about that."

“Would I kid you? I promise you'll like what we got to tell you."

Dunn scoffs at the wolf. “What do you care anyway? You barely hunt marks anymore. This news is for the rest of us non-elite workers."

The walk to the lobby resumes. On their way, they run into Tivoli exiting the ladies' room. The exchange is short; she says hello and they answer her in kind. They return to the lobby together. Tivoli is surprised to see Mieri sitting in the back, away from the men in the first two rows. She is interested in the red panda, but wants to sit by the jaguar. Parana has Prosper on his left hand side, Rory on his right, and Honor directly behind him. She decides to sit next to the white hare.

While St. Croix helps Simon set up the computer and projector, Pica stands in front of the crowd, goaded by Hoeness who is interested in hearing the news. Dunn is among those in the front row, smiling as if the announcement is going to blow everybody's minds.

Pica claps his hands to get everybody's attention. “Hey, listen up everyone. Before the meeting starts, I have an announcement to make that I'm sure you're all going to love."

The bobcat's projectile voice draws everyone to his eyes. Even Mieri, looking like the loneliest creature in the world, watches him with interest. Simon is surprised and stops setting up for a few seconds to listen.

“Dunn and I were meeting a mark this morning when we saw a certain individual mulling around the scene of an accident. The meeting with the mark was a bit of a failure but our fortunes would soon turn. That's because the individual in question is a certain white wolf that you all may know."

The men murmur among each other. Simon quickly loses interest, tired of the feud between the bobcat and Winter. He and St. Croix resume setting up for the meeting.

“We noticed her looking at a huge fender bender on 7th Street . When she left, we decided to follow. After about a half mile, we eventually caught up to her at St. John the Baptist. We couldn't go too much further in, but we overheard a phone conversation she was having with Mr. Crevecoeur. It turns out that Shiloh's there. He's a patient!"

Most of the room sits up eagerly at the news. Most everyone looks glad to hear the announcement. Among the loud discussion, Inverness asks, “What's he in for?" It most likely was not heard.

Pica claps his hands a couple of times to quiet everyone down. “Now, we don't know what he's really there for, but from what Dunn and I could tell from her conversation, he had some sort of accident during a hunt. Before we had to stop following, she mentioned that she would be with him until he's out! So she's not coming back here for a while!"

Dunn clasps his hands in anticipation of a favorable response. There is scattered applause by a few, but most everyone agrees that this is good news. Mieri looks on without making a motion either in favor or against. Tivoli folds her arms in disapproval.

"That is big news," Stefano says.

"Agreed," Hoeness says. "I thought you guys were pulling my leg for a moment. But that is significant."

Pica takes a seat next to his partner. "Yeah, so it's time to celebrate. Shiloh's absence means more marks for everyone. It ensures that we can get the juiciest morsels on that table over there."

"Knock it off, Pica!" yells St. Croix, taking a seat."

"Sorry, man. I know you two are friends, but we're better off with him out of commission for a while. Some of our less well-to-do members can get more lucrative bounties. Besides, you don't hunt much anymore, so you're too irrelevant to give your opinion."

St. Croix watches Dunn chuckle at him before growling and running towards Pica angrily.

"Knock it off!" Simon yells. "Sit down and pay attention!"

The wolf stops seconds before he can give the bobcat a mauling. "Sorry, sir."

The executive turns the projector on and holds up the first mark, the one Honor wants. "Before I begin, I'd like to ask you something, Pica. You and your partner were following Winter...why exactly?"

Everyone is silent, awaiting for a response, now that they have been made curious. Neither of the wolf's followers have an answer.

"You idiots are still not trying to extort money from the girl, are you?"

Inverness hangs his head, impatiently waiting for the meeting to commence. Dunn fixes his tie uncomfortably and tries to explain, only to be interrupted by his lover. Pica stands and clears his throat to force a "No sir!" from his mouth. Dunn rises as well, looking confused.

Simon points. "You sure? I hate to see Ted suspend you two again."

"Yes, sir. The issue is no longer an issue. We are totally over it." He nods at his partner and the two sit down confidently.

Inverness whispers "Bullshit" under his hung head.

Simon nods and holds the mark up high. "Good. Since the other execs aren't here, we're gonna do both the meeting and the setups in this room. Now let's begin with...Randle Phillips. Eighteen thousand dollars! Who wants it?"