Picking his t-shirt up from the wood floor, he exited the loft with Madeline behind him. Both of them went their separate ways to get cleaned up. She didn’t do a lot of sweating, and neither did he, but there was just something about being clean after a workout, not matter how slight it was, that they both shared. Madeline was out first, heading to the kitchen to start browning the ground beef for the shepherd’s pie she was making tonight, as part of her agreement. She managed to get the entire meal prepped and into the oven before Levi came out of his room, which she thought was odd.

“Everything okay?” she asked as she rinsed off the mixing spoons and measuring cups in the sink.

“Yeah, fine,” Levi answered her, coming in from the living room. “Just another job offer. I’ve decided to take it, so I’ll be gone for the next few days. I’ll go over it with you, to show you how things are handled.”

He sniffed the air with a pleasant look on his face.

“That smells really good,” he complimented. “Cottage pie?”

“Well, I call it shepherd’s pie, but yeah,” Madeline replied. “I made it with extra vegetables. Oh, and before I forget, Caslon said his sister was staying at his place for Halloween. He wanted me to come over and meet her, but you’ll be gone. Would it be okay if I paid a short visit while you’re out?”

“Definitely not,” Levi replied without giving the idea any thought as he uncorked a bottle of red wine.

“May I ask why?”

“To protect them. To protect you. Pick one.”

Deciding she wasn’t going to press the issue any further, she watched him pour two glasses of wine and carry them out to the coffee table where he had set out a small stack of printed papers. Levi reclined on the plush sofa lazily and patted the cushion next to him, inviting Madeline to join. As she sat, he handed her a glass and fanned the papers out in front of them.

“So, job offers come in via email off a private server from my broker, unless they are from someone really important, then I might get a call instead. That’s this sheet here,” he began, separating one of the papers from the rest. “As you can see, it is very brief and to the point. It’s a retrieval job, and in this case, the object in question is at a specific known location. If it wasn’t, it would say unknown, and I would have to figure out where it was myself, if I decided to take the job. The initial email will only give the basics, in case I turn it down. If I did, it could be offered to someone else, and keeping it brief without a lot of details means the client keeps their sensitive information from being exposed to multiple sets of eyes. Also on this email will be any delicate issues, like how much non-human presence is involved, and the payment.”

Taking a sip of wine, Levi handed the sheet to Madeline to look over. From what she could deduce, it sounded like a piece of art of some sort. Client is canidae requesting retrieval from a felinae. And the fee was five figures plus expenses.

“And then once I confirm acceptance,” Levi continued. “I get the next email with attached files, if any are included from the client. Those are these sheets here. I get an address, so I map out the location and see it’s a small gallery in suburban retail space. I also get a picture of the object, which is a large fang. The attachment also indicates it’s a family heirloom of the client’s, and that the gallery is owned by the felinae in question.”

“Seriously?” Madeline laughed. “So basically the cat is peacocking the wolf’s tooth in a display case out in public.”

“More or less,” Levi smiled. “And it’s very important to get the names of the client and the person he’s in disagreement with, so you can research them before you accept any job. There have been times where a seemingly simple job turned out to be ridiculously dangerous because the target was related to a crime family, or a prominent clan.”

“What do you do in those cases?” Madeline asked, feeling like she was finally starting to learn important skills.

“Ask for a higher fee,” he laughed as he drank some more wine. “But seriously, you can always renegotiate if you feel the client hasn’t been fully forthcoming with information. Normally the client will already feel guilty about what they are hiding from you, and once they are caught, they will cough up the respectable fee. I haven’t gotten that treatment in a very long time because of my reputation, but once you start taking jobs, you will most likely come across it early on. My broker tries to be fair, but don’t expect to be coddled. Researching is a way to protect yourself against that. And after you have all your information, it’s time to come up with a plan.”

They were interrupted by the oven timer.

Excusing herself, Madeline set her wine glass down on the table and when into the kitchen to remove the cottage pie from the oven. Setting each of the four individual mini casserole dishes on the counter, she brought out the rest of the bottle of wine and couple of trivets to protect the coffee table from the heat of the ovenware. After leaving two of the baking dishes out to cool, she carefully placed spoons into the other two, and brought them out to the coffee table. Levi finished pouring more wine into their glasses and then clasped his hands together in his usual thankful gesture. After taking a spoonful of his cottage pie, he smiled in satisfaction.

“Very good,” he complimented, still smiling, after swallowing his bite. “I didn’t think I would like it with the extra vegetables, but I do. It’s delicious, thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Madeline blushed a bit. “It was my grandma’s recipe actually. A way to sneak more vegetables into me when I was young.”

“Getting back to this job,” Levi continued. “In most cases the type of job will dictate how much prep work needs to be done. For ones like this, it’s best to visit the gallery during the day to see what their security consists of, and then observe how they open and close the store, checking for anything out of the ordinary. Most retail locations have the same kind of theft prevention, so I am not expecting anything odd. But let me make something perfectly clear, you never go into any job with the expectation that it’s going to be the same as a similar job. It might, and it might not. Even what seems the like simplest job requires the same cautionary measures as the more difficult ones. I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I have known of a lot of people in the same line of work who have died because they got too complacent. You don’t ever want that to be you. Ever. Treat every job like there is going to be some nasty surprise. Then, when you’re back safe in a warm bed, you can thank your meticulous nature.”

Eating a few more bites of the savory meal, Levi briefly studied the expression on Madeline’s face. She was lost in thought, absorbing his words. Good. That was possibly the most important lesson she could learn. Not to assume anything and to second guess everything. He was born with the instinct to look at everything from two perspectives - how to improve a situation and how to take advantage of one - so staying out of sticky situations was second nature to him.

But that wasn’t something you could teach someone.

“I’ll be renting a car and driving up there tomorrow, so I want you to be a good girl and stay in the house,” he said, giving her a playful grin. “Don’t let Caslon in, and don’t go visiting him either. I’ll talk to him on my way out so he knows not to be a pain in the ass.”

“How will I know when you’re coming back?” Madeline asking, feeling a twinge of panic set in. This was going to be the first time she’d be truly alone since she was kidnapped. She’d been okay with it in the past, but with all she knew now, she felt like without Levi around she could be kidnapped again at any time.

“If it makes you feel better, I’ll call you when I first check into my hotel,” Levi answered, understanding of her paranoia. “Would that be okay?”

“Yes, thanks. It’s just that…”

“Sshhh,” Levi said raising a finger. “I understand. There was a time when all I did was look over my shoulder. After I check in, I’ll be taking a few days to scout the place and complete the job, and then I’ll be driving back. I’ll call on my way back.”

“What if something happens? Like an emergency?”

“Caslon will still be next door, and although he’s not allowed in, he’ll still keep an eye on you in case there are any emergencies. Tiff should be there too, and she’s a hell of a lot more dependable in situations like that. You’ll be fine.”

 ------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, Madeline could hear Levi packing up a small suitcase through his open bedroom door. She didn’t approach him, not wanting to show just how nervous she was about him leaving. Damn. She honestly didn’t consider that she would be scared of being alone now. It never bothered before, but now she carried a scar. Pouring coffee out of the fresh pot Levi had made, she grabbed her laptop and took a seat at the couch. Logging into her Japanese language program, she tried to distract herself.

“Well, I’m all set. The car should be here soon,” he said rolling his suitcase through the living room and setting it by the front door. He was wearing a very sophisticated pair of gray trousers matched with a crisp, white, button-down shirt. His black tie was loose, hanging a bit below the unfastened top two buttons of his shirt, and again his brown contact lenses were in place. “You’ve got phone numbers for anything that might arise, and a list of things you need to practice.”

As he unlocked the door, he reached into his breast pocket and retrieved a pair of dark sunglasses. He'd be lying if he wasn't feeling awkward right now. He normally would just lock up and leave. Having to make small talk was a bit alien.

“Stay inside,” he warned, as he slipped them over his eyes.

And then he was out the door.

The first couple of hours went okay. She worked on her Japanese, and then went to go practice throwing shuriken in the loft until her arm ached. It felt too rubbery to climb the wall, so she decided to go take a shower.

It was then that her phone rang.

In a panic, she quickly turned off the water and dried her hands on the towel so she could grab it before he hung up.

“Hello?” she answered breathlessly, standing naked just outside the shower.

“Haha, you sound like you honestly wouldn’t know who this would be,” Levi laughed on the other end. “You’re out of breath. Why?”

“I was taking a shower,” Madeline replied. “I was trying to hurry and get the phone so I wouldn’t miss your call.”

“Ah, what lovely imagery you’ve given me,” Levi fantasized. “I will carry it with me when this job gets lonely.”

“Just stop,” Madeline grimaced, cheeks warming a bit.

“You’d have to let me get started first.”

She could almost feel him smirking all the way from Vancouver.

“Anyway I just checked in, so it will be at least a couple of days before you hear from me. How are you holding up?”

“Pretty good,” she said, although she was starting to get chilly.

“Well, keep busy and follow the rules.”

“Okay,” Madeline answered. She was about to tell him to be careful. She wanted to say it, but there was something about uttering those words to him that seemed too personal, so she didn’t. “Talk to you then.”

“Ja ne.”

Pressing the end call button on her phone, she set it back down on the counter and stepped back into the shower, turning the water back on.

The next couple of days when by slowly. She did her language practice in the morning while she had breakfast, and then the throwing and climbing exercises in the afternoon. Then she showered and watched tv while eating the leftover cottage pie. Each night she played some of her otome game before she went to bed, which made her feel a lot less lonely. Oddly, she wondered if this is how pets felt when their owners went off to work for the day.

The night before the Halloween party, Levi called to let her know he was about an hour out. She was so happy he was coming home that she decided to order pizza from his favorite place to surprise him. When he arrived, he disappeared into his room for a bit, closing the door behind him. When he finally came out, he had changed into some comfortable lounge clothes.

“Margarita pizza in the oven?” he smiled.

“I didn’t make it,” Madeline quickly responded, not wanting him to think she was up to that level of cooking just yet. “I ordered it for you. It’s just in there keeping warm.”

“I appreciate it nonetheless,” he thanked. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d gotten any sort of a ‘welcome home’ treatment.

Madeline took the pizza out and divided it up into two plates she carried out to the living room. As they ate, Levi confided in her that the job was pretty straightforward with no surprises and that he would probably get further information on what to do with the piece after the holiday was over.

Until then, he said, they needed to finish eating and get some sleep. Tomorrow’s Halloween party was going to make for a very busy day.