maze_builder | (no subject)

Entry tags:

dontthinkabout

(no subject)

Ariadne had arranged a peaceful, quiet life she for herself after the Fischer job. And then he showed up. All smiles and charm that sent her head in a frenzy. It seemed like every time he was in town, he would visit her and she would be conveniently available. She knew the kind of work he was still involved in and the risks that came with it. But she didn't think that he would be under surveillance or that anyone would notice his infrequent visits to Paris.

But someone had found out about her. Someone had been in her apartment and was looking for something other than money. They even went to the trouble of leaving her a note. A friendly enough note to try and inspire her to come out of retirement. That sickeningly sweet kind of note that felt like it was laced with cobra venom. They wanted an Architect.

She called the only person she could think of.

"Hey..."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

She let out a snort. "I never unpacked."

He fought the urge to roll his eyes and went to check his email on laptop. There were no new messages. Harris wasn't going to communicate with Arthur at all, it appeared.

After packing his things, they left the hotel for a pricier one by the Seine.

Ariadne resisted the urge to smirk when Arthur's face contorted slightly to keep from responding to her.

She tried not to grumble as he had the cabby pull into one of the posher hotels. "Are secure and expensive synonyms in your book?"

"Not necessarily, but with this hotel, you have to show your key card to at least make it to the elevators." After checking in, the bellhop took their bags up to their suite. Arthur tipped him after and locked the door securely.

She walked the around the suite, closing the curtains on every window before plopping backwards onto the bed, the day finally catching up with her.

Arthur sat back down at the desk in the corner of the bedroom and took out his laptop, checking his email again.

When he didn't immediately return to her side, Ariadne rolled onto her side to see what he had gotten up too. Seeing him at the desk, she stood and walked over to him placing a hand on his shoulder. She gave him a questioning look.

"Nothing," he said when he felt her hand. He looked up at her. "He must be new. We don't conduct business like this."

She shrugged. "Could be from a different business entirely as well."

"I thought he wanted you as an architecture?" He asked, a creased forming between his brows. "A contact of mine IDed him. He must be in Dreamshare."

She shook her head. "I meant that he could have come from another... line of work. One that might be interested in having a pet Dreamer. Or has a specific job in mind."

He frowned and turned back to his computer screen, thinking. "He included a phone number in the letter, right?"

Nodding, she went to her bag and pulled out the letter before handing it over to him. Looking at it, she could tell it was a European phone number, but that could just be a number that would redirect to another phone. She shook her head at herself as she thought through the possibilities, concluding that she read too many intrigue novels.

Arthur took out his work phone, one with an untraceable number, and dialed the number on the paper. He waited to see if Harris would pick up.

The phone rang three times before the tone changed, sound of the phone transferring their call automatically. The phone repeated this several more times before the receiver picked up. "Hello Arthur. Please put her on the line." The voice was thick and smoky but otherwise unaccented.

"Not going to happen," Arthur said without pause. "I've given you a warning and yet you persist. I'm not sure you understood how business is conducted within Dreamshare."

"I'm not entirely concerned with how it is conducted currently. I need her now." Haris sounded like a man that didn't have much patience for games or having his proposals dismissed. "I promise it will be worth her while."

"What do you want to hire her for? A dreamshare job? She's not currently looking," Arthur said.

"She might not be looking but she'll take this job. It's the opportunity for her to do what she does best. What she misses so desperately. What you seem reluctant to let her do." He sighed as his patience reaching its end. "Put her on the phone and let her make the decision. Though I'm certain she'll accept."

Ariadne listened at Arthur's side, her arms wrapped around herself. 'His voice sounds familiar.' She watched as his face went from his suave smile to cold and businesslike.

"Her staying out of the business was her own decision, not mine or anyone else's, so I'm very certain as to what her answer will be in regards to your offer," Arthur said.

"Arthur, the only reason she didn't decide to continue is because you didn't have anything to entice her away from that comfortable life. Where as I, do."

"Alright, tell me this offer of yours and I will relay it to her," he said. "If you're so sure she'll take it."

"Cute. No. You will put her on the phone or I will make sure you never work again. And I will still get her help."

Arthur rolled his eyes at the "never work again" part. As if Harris had the authority. "I don't have time for your whining. Tell me the offer or I'll be forced to take action."

Haris chuckled on the other side of the phone. "Ask her about her father."