Investment, A Night, More Money
ANS, in the capital state.
Laen Worfield, a young, aspiring senator in one of the most powerful governments in the world. He walked towards the capitol, with the day soon commencing as the first lights of the day would descend in about an hour. It was still very early in the morning, but he was going to work at this time, besting most middle-aged and elderly who had a lot to give still.
“Hey, what’s everyone checking?” He moved closer to a person of attending status near the capitol’s entrance, watching his phone with most attention. The attendant looked up before nodding, focusing back on his phone, letting Laen see.
Laen watched news from Lýmoca, of how another ‘incident’ occurred, only for a ‘good reason’ this time, although virtually all new anchors there weren’t exactly ‘positive’ towards it.
“Huh. Well, this is bad. Something tells me we’re about to get a lot of research to do.” Laen Worfield continued watching, tilting his head as the news showed more and more detail on the happenings. Seeing the lawyer involved and some names made his eyes narrow.
Beep, vrrrb. Indeed, just a few seconds after his comment, Laen’s phone vibrated. Reading its screen, he grimaced with a smile pressing his lips together, before tapping the younger man attendant’s shoulder. “Get to work, then. I have to tire this ass again, ugh…”
Laen threw his head backwards before rushing into the capitol, going up the stairs step by step with a good trotting motion.
***
Lýmoca. Proteros, still deep in the night, in the first hours of pure dark skies.
Fox drove a stolen taxi, driving the lawyer back to his residence with a doubtful driving skill. In reality, Fox wasn’t bad, he would just rather drive pointlessly inside a box. But that was just his mentality.
Exiting the car, he checked the area before the obedient Armando stepped out and rushed to his door. He took out several keys, cards, and even poked his thumbs with a needle before smearing his blood around it. Once at the door, he unlocked the first locks, but then, several contraptions showed up from the side of the door, sliding into view.
One by one, as Fox was baffled but still working, Armando deactivated each of them before the door finally opened. Immediately, when Fox walked backwards into the house with his small pistol aiming around to check for any tails, the opening door revealed a wonderful young woman.
She had Dawn supercontinent’s aesthetics, from a more slender and sharp end, whose features were just divine, even if she didn’t have many attributes to turn her into an unrefusable goddess.
“Ay, mi bebito osito!” The young woman exclaimed, already knowing it was her hubby from inside the house, spreading her arms and hands before hugging his face. Fox watched with startled silence, ‘Ah, that must feel so good.’
Armando unglued his face from his wife’s delicious honey brown skin and hurried her, sounding tense. “No time for affection, woman. Let’s go inside, Fox won’t be able to protect us out here!”
“Yes, mi bebé oso.” The young woman nodded before helping him in, as if she would die of grief if she couldn’t hold him, even if just by hand. Fox followed inside, restraining himself from rolling his eyes, and closed the door, with which many mechanisms sounded, locking up.
Once inside, Armando introduced his wife to Fox, “Fox. Thank you for helping me, I- I- I never thought-”
“Mn, not necessary,” Fox shook his head. The young woman looked at them with wide, beautiful eyes open, concerned. He continued, “I can discern some sound isolation but good ventilation despite the clear echo from the hidden armoring of the walls. You might be safe here, indeed.”
“But neither you nor your wife can stay in one place forever. How are you supposed to remain safe here?” Fox asked without much expression. If it wasn’t ‘protocol’ and instructed in the training regimen to identify every tiny bit of an issue for future follow-up tasks, Fox wouldn’t have bothered.
“We’ll contract some of your guys to safeguard us. Isn’t that right, darling?” Armando held his wife’s hand and voiced, nudging his head up towards her. The young woman nodded, clarifying to Fox and backing her hubby, “You’re very capable. Thank you so much for helping ba-bear.”
“…” Fox felt a little helpless. So, Armando had a fortified house, but his great plans to defend himself from an enemy was to hire capable guards to have them buy groceries for them?
“Guarded or not, anyone who seems ordinary and knocks on your door might be a suspect from now on.” Fox stared sharply at Armando, “As you’ve said, something of this level was never imagined, not even PSD thought it would be like this.”
“Dozens came for you tonight, your wife will be next. You have to plan something, not just stay and see if there will be a next time.” Fox looked at the wife next, “Moreover, I only had to protect you, not escort you or protect anyone else. You can check that with other agents, it’s not my problem.”
“Then, what would you require? Any payment?” The wife asked him, taking a step forth. Fox looked at her and saw her without her husband nearby. He nodded, “Double my pay.”
“Done,” Armando said without a second passing by after Fox spoke. Both Fox and wife looked at Armando, the latter smiling sweetly and proudly. If Fox wasn’t here…
“Okay, take 2 hours to rest and we’ll return. They, whoever might be, should have fled by then to rearrange another operation. The police should have also cleared things up.” Fox nodded, satisfied. He looked at the married couple before unstrapping his guns.
“Ah, but my manners, again!” Armando suddenly voiced when Fox stepped towards a sofa to also rest. He looked at the man, who gestured to his wife, “This is Yue, my life’s love. Yue’er, meet Fox, my life’s savior.”
‘That was… smooth.’ Fox half praised and half commented in his mind. He extended his gloved right hand, “Fox.”
… 2 hours later, they returned to the PJPH firm. Before that, Fox spent a good night in their house. Yue made food, not only preparing both Lýmoca’s and Dawn unique specialties, but also mixing a few other plates. It was… perfect.
Now, returning to the building, with police elements everywhere, Fox was a sight to behold. Not only were the police here, some employees had returned to give some reports and information to the former. As they saw Fox, whom they discussed a lot when news of him arriving spread in the building, they were startled.
He ignored them, along Armando, to return to the second-highest floor. Nobody was there, with the elevator already working, and some police elements’ voices coming from upstairs. Ignoring everything else still, Fox bought Armando to check whatever else he wanted to recuperate.
Armando didn’t hide his actions from Fox, directly grabbing a thin case beneath the floor near a corner, behind a tall shelf. In the case were semi-transparent, high-quality documents and blueprints, which Fox didn’t prove out of courtesy of not getting involved.
“Thanks, Fox.” Armando said after checking them, confirming they weren’t touched, missing, or ruined. He heaved a sigh of relief, staring at Fox, his ‘hero’. Fox nodded at him politely but had nothing to say. Understanding him a bit, Armando grabbed the case and a few other items hidden in the open view before heading down the elevator.
Fox had a last exchange with Armando, bidding each other farewell, before they went parted ways. Armando returned to his house, soon to quit from his job, for more than a single reason, while Fox headed back to the capital’s center.
… Returning to the center, Fox first went to his boutique, spending only a little over an hour and 50 minutes to return. The first thing he saw, at the first morning lights, was a few of the youngsters playing with some of their bions, playing some games and listening to music.
Without saying anything else, he opened the shop and waited inside, feeling a bit more at ease. It was almost like returning home after being forced to stay elsewhere, for whatever reason, for at least a day.
The youngsters kept playing outside a little more, still a bit early for them to start working as intended. On the other hand, Fox checked his new earnings. From the initial 80,000 credits, another 80,000 created new 160,000 credits for himself in just a day, or 2, for that matter.
He now had 700,000 credits, returning to that massive amount from earlier. And this was without the sales of the small boutique. They would be much lower than his personal earnings through tasks in the District, but Blackflower was still a small store, with many floors to conquer still.
Before long, sales began. Fox checked a few data from the days the store has been open and unhesitatingly invested in another model of pieces for the boutique. The expected gains might increase by at least a third, if all went well.
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With the news of the boutique opening for the entire day, and serving the goods just as it was rumored, and these words spreading further in the center, it was only a matter of time.
Thus, the day continued, and Fox meditated within the backrooms, using his breath to spend some time, going out a few times. When evening came, and the boutique still had some time to go before closing, Fabiola visited.
She brought slices of cake for everyone with at least 2 per person. She had just come from a teacher’s birthday in the academy, and obviously heard of the incident in the notorious firm. Everyone in the business world in Lýmoca overall knew, let alone a baby gem like her.
Fox met her, eating a bit of his slice over the counter and chatted with her, “I’ve invested another 60,000 this morning. The supplies should arrive in 2 days.”
“‘Kay, I’ll get it ready.” Fabiola replied obediently, supporting her jaw with her fists, and with upturned eyes. Then, she asked, “Is this because of the job you had just yesterday?”
“Mhm,” Fox didn’t bother and responded in a casual manner, eating some more. It was chocolate, after all. “Just don’t ask too much. You shouldn’t.”
“I know, I know~!” Fabiola shut her eyes and stuck her tongue out. Fox looked at her before inquiring, “Don’t your parents worry you come here after news from yesterday?”
“Yup, but they also seem reassured for some reason. They must know I need to grow, right? That’s what parents do,” Fabiola responded, one thought at a time. Fox just ate and finished his cake, exclaiming with a light, “Mm.”
Afterwards, the youngsters left, with Fabiola second-last, and Fox closing the shop. Even though the month had just begun, the first ‘layer’ of clothing everywhere was nearly bought off. They would have to replenish the store with the storage rooms in the back in a few days at most.
Fox didn’t go to his lavish apartment, which still charged him even if he wasn’t at least sleeping there. Instead, he went to meet with his therapist. He owed her a date, after all. Not a romantic one, but more of a reunion. Either way, Fox didn’t care, he just went to her office.
This time, it was closed, practically. The receptionist lady wasn’t there, nor was her older ‘boyfriend’. And while the lights were mostly off, those around Mona’s office were on. He knocked on her office’s door after checking around the entire block.
“Come on in,” Mona’s voice sounded from the other side. After these few weeks, and especially after his first assignation, Fox could hear better thanks to his breath. Although his breath hasn’t received an enormous improvement, just a little allowed him to hear clear muffles of movements inside before her ‘loud’ voice sounded.
Opening the door and stepping in, Fox saw his therapist with her usual appearance. Only her hair was picked up a bit towards the lower middle, not too thick and curly everywhere anymore, and her outfit was an elegant bodycon dress. It was beige-brown and light, but it hid her undergarments’ outlining well.
“Miss Mona, are you ready yet?” Fox stopped at the entrance and asked, watching his therapist arrange some things in a small bag. She stopped, looked up at him, and smiled. “Sure. Let’s go.”
… Later in the night, after walking to a nearby local restaurant, where they drank and ate roasted chicken like animals, Fox and Mona went to a relaxing site. It was a tall building from a poorer district, atop a rooftop, and with a warming system keeping the already fresh yet not too cold night calid.
They drank cold-hot tea, staring at the far, faraway ocean that wasn’t exactly seen from Proteros, but tiny bits of the land ending could be somewhat discerned by the mind. Many places had lights on everywhere, while others were mostly dark. There were some trails of lights amidst darkness, while the obscure blue ‘ceiling’ above everything contrasted it all with the occasional wall of clouds.
“Tell me, how was it? Your last mission,” Mona looked into the distance before asking. Fox also stared away. He blinked and thought before parting his lips, “As expected.”
“You… enjoyed it? Are you okay continuing like this?” Mona was cautious, but not afraid. She looked at Fox with clear eyes and a blunt voice. Fox smiled for a moment before elaborating with a slightly emotive tone, “For the first; more than I should, I’m sure. But yes. I do not find it uncomfortable. I don’t know other tasks, but PSD shows we can be compatible. I like it, so far.”
“The last thing the PSD wants from you is to let you believe they’ll also betray, sell, or abuse you.” Mona said before taking a few long sips from her cup. Fox turned his face to her and asked, forming a superficial grin, “You think so?”
“They better,” she contested with a solid tone. Fox smirked from the left corner of his mouth, for real this time. Mona added, clinking her empty cup with his before standing up, “Eh, come. We should relax a little more before going back to being client and employer.”
Fox followed her to the edge of the rooftop. There was a net below it, gaining a light, whispered scoff from Fox. It looked that this place was far too peaceful for some in the past. But there was nothing wrong with trying to keep ugly things away from one’s business. Although Fox did feel offended, somehow.
“Will you make lots of money with your business?” Mona inquired, sitting on his right with their legs dangling to the outside. Fox nodded a few times, a bit. “It will do well. Oh, it’s a boutique. I bought it from a nice girl’s hands. I’ll see how things go in due time.”
“Eh? How nice? Is she pretty enough for you?” Mona smiled and brushed her shoulder with his, teasing him. Fox smirked politely, shaking his head, “No. She is a beauty, and I could just guide her to a sexual relationship if things aligned, I suppose. If only…”
“Ah, yes. You’re not like it, Fox. But not trying to find someone isn’t something that matters. If anything, you avoid the useless time wasted and ‘experience gain’ many failures and broken hearted love to say it’s necessary.” Mona nodded, understanding him better than most.
“Oh, your meeting with ‘him’ is soon, right? Don’t play with people’s time. Well, at least not mine, and his, of course.” Mona suddenly remembered and said, taking the atmosphere to another little place momentarily. Fox scoffed, throwing his neck backwards with a slight frown, “Or what, would he berate me? Pfft. I’m not a kid anymore. How would that happen?”
Mona shook her head and remained silent. There was nothing he could do when it came to those games between men. Just as men getting involved in women’s stuff is off the charts. A while passed before either of them spoke.
“… I don’t need of the person I would love to do ‘something’ to be broken hearted,” Fox commented, not knowing why, really. Mona’s eyes drooped when she heard this. Her left hand brought his head closer, landing below his nape, and let him rest on her left shoulder.
“… Fox, this is your new time, opportunity… You can’t know if it’ll be the last. Make it count. You said many things that made me believe you know more of the world, the nature of it all, and the human heart way before you became a young man. That must not change. Don’t let go of your principles.” Mona spoke with breathed words after a while, with him on her shoulder.
“…” Fox remained silent, hearing her out as she made sense. Suddenly, not only the thoughts of maybe not really having a choice of anything else or the emptiness from not owning a path that was his disappeared, even the notion of his previous irritation also left him. He felt… just calm.
Enjoying her presence and the fact she let him lie on her shoulder not only to rest, but for support. Fox closed his eyes, wishing he could fall asleep, but he didn’t. It would be too embarrassing. Furthermore, his therapist bringing him to a lavish mega hotel… no no.
… Some time later, Fox brought Morena to her house, ensuring her safety. Then, he went to his mega hotel, in a good mood and quiet all the way there. He couldn’t wait to get his Myertha back out of the HQ.
He rested his eyes for a couple of hours before heading to the HQ, worked some products in the workshop, and then, he finally had the time to go to the president’s office. Selecting another series of codes so people could bring him inside, Fox walked in the presidential building.
It felt a little more common this time. Fox completed an assignation, his business was just beginning, and it was blooming, and his therapist was more than that. A support of his new life. Yet, when he stood before the ‘presidential’ gates and waited a command, it was Roam who sounded, “Come in, Fox.”
‘Oh, I was being expected already?’ Fox thought, but feeling the tone and manner of speech despite Roam wanting to hide it, he grinned. When he opened the door, Luis was at his desk again, this time with his intertwined fingers supporting his chin. He briefly glanced at Fox before staring down at his desk.
Stepping inside, Fox carelessly walked to them and greeted Roam with an upwards nod. Roam nodded at him, stopping halfway and frowning, as if he wasn’t supposed to do that.
“President?” Fox looked at Luis and voiced, somewhat inquiringly. Luis sent his eyes upturned right after, giving him a premonition, but it was too late. Luis stood up slowly, but his lips moved fast, with a heavy pressure accompanying them.
“You went to a mission of ensuring someone’s safety, and you bring the police forces more than a hundred corpses to deal with, and half the personnel of one of the most important buildings in the country to terror?!” Luis was exploding, already seething.
Fox… wasn’t prepared. His eyes widened a bit. He took a quarter of a step back with his right foot, which Roam seemed to notice, but he couldn’t say something now. Fox opened his mouth, trying to defend himself, “It’s not my fault, I did not send anything nor anyone to provoke anything! Many people suddenly came, and I had no way of knowing if every single one of them inside was an employee moving around to do their work or hired goons to kill my target.”
But that meant nothing to a seething Luis, president of a nation, and not a small one for that matter, or with little to few geopolitical impotence. Luis stood up, finishing his previous motion, and swung his left sleeve up into the air, resting it diagonally.
“Half the building! In terror! Corpses, everywhere! The firm’s sole owner called me to complain! Everyone knew you were there. So did those people who went after you showed up!!” The president raged on, unrestrained, and definitely not feeling guilty of his behavior to a servant of the country.
“There’s no way to confirm that. If they wanted to take my target, they could have accomplished it with a dozen people with ease, why so many? It doesn’t matter!” Fox’s argument, impassively spoken, was valid, but did he care? He lashed out, too, not going to be slighted like this. No, not ever!
“I could have tried to jump down from there, as you probably think you knew after seeing some footage from a random passerby. I am not a person with unlimited resources, my bions there only allowed me to traverse a third of the building, no more. I still didn’t know if they had more people elsewhe-”
“The next time you go out with a target who’s in danger, you will look for the best opportunities to keep everything safe! I don’t care if there’s too many— MINIMIZE all damages! Or you’re out of this president’s eyes!”
“Huff, huff…” The president swung his coat for a few times before pointing down at his floor, at his office, at his status. He breathed harshly, reddening what his skin could show, and flaring, furious, wide open eyes. In retrospective, Fox looked at Luis with calm impassiveness, like he was only an observer, but engrossed in the scene.
His opened polycoria eyes had all he wanted to say, because this president ‘of his’ didn’t deserve any more word from his lips. From him.
…