SNIP

The woman’s eyes trailed Jessica up and down. This woman did not fit the profile of Aedan’s appetites. Aedan always had preferred his women with dark hair and eyes so the blonde haired blue eyed sweet tart next to him had to be a blip on the radar. Not wanting to rile up the escort on Aedan’s arm, the woman used the play on words to avoid conflict. Snapping her fingers a waitress showed up with a crystal glass filled with whiskey. “Mr. Wright is waiting for you. May I show,”

“Jonas Wright,” Jessica interrupted the woman. “Jonas is here?” The simmering anger in Jessica bubbled over to fury. If Jonas was here there was a good chance Harper was here also. Releasing Aedan’s arm, she pushed past the woman knowing exactly where to head.

Across the room a set of double doors had opened flanked by two large men. “Jessica,” Shaw snapped out her name in a low growl. Zachary had a good idea what Jessica would do when she came face to face with Wright. He had to postpone that meeting as long as possible to ensure the mission was successful.

Jessica Teller XO

Reaching out he grabbed her elbow preventing her from charging into the room at the end of the room. The room was too conveniently placed and too innoculous looking for it not to be a trap or set up.

“What,” Jessica snapped back looking at Shaw with daggers in her eyes.

Glancing at Aedan, Shaw released her arm. He had no doubt the man would get physical if Shaw over stepped a boundary but it was pure instinct as to why he stopped Jessica.

“Patience…” Aedan said firmly as he looked around the room.

“Patience,” she directed her anger at him. “I have been more than patient sitting up in your office waiting. I am done waiting.” Moving to stand directly in front of her husband, Jessica blurred out the rest of the room as if no one else existed. “You have the money, the power, and the connections. I want the kid but I also want Wright dead.” Her tone was icy. Her eyes indicating there was going to be no remorse later with her request.

He could see the eyes on everyone on the two, and he knew a few of them had fingers on triggers as well as Aedan pushed Jessica to the direction he knew they would find their mark from as he pulled out the chair for her to sit in in one of the corner bar areas that gave them plenty of line of sight with little to their backs. It was a safe spot, the casino had quite a few built this way and for good reason. “You can’t go making demands when you have zero reputation… Mrs. Teller will get you much farther in this place but the only real power it gives you is to not be shot on sight if you ask too many questions.”

~Aedan Teller, CEO OMAP

“I’d like to see them try.” Her tone was condescending as she took the seat Aedan held out for her.

“Honey most of them see you as nothing more than a door prize they get if they shoot me… and trust me that is the only reason you made it this far. I’d hate to have to fight my way of another night club. I always feel bad for the civilians I put out of jobs, end up having to buy the club to keep people working… I didn’t use to be so weak when I took out someone that had gotten too uppity, it’s exhausting.” Aedan said as he pressed his fingers between the bridge of his nose as he seemed to be massaging stress out of his face.

“You are a regular Will Bates,” Shaw rolled his eyes listening to Aedan discuss the trials and tribulations of his career. The irony however was not missed on Shaw. Aedan did compete head to head in the philanthropic arena with men like Will Bates who created the software industry’s standard for personal access programs. Most financial experts joked that if Will and Aedan ever merged companies they would take over the universe.

“Get someone to call you daddy just once without having to tie them up and it makes you think of others… damn voodoo…” he said with a near growl in his words. Aedan was in no way unaware of the change in himself. He was just as brutal as always, but the aftermath of his explosive and violent takeovers made him want to make sure the ones left after he left didn’t have to suffer more than he intended. They were called innocents bystanders, a term he never really cared about before. The irony was, this new brutal sensitivity he had found made some people to wish he came in to clean house. Almost like a robin hood of oppressions, giving hopeless saps a reprieve from their burdens.

“Mr. Teller,” a new woman that had an uncanny resemblance to Jessica Adams approached the table. She was dressed more sophisticated than Yuki providing a more refined distraction. “We have more comfortable accommodations for you.” The woman did not say more but gestured to a section in the back corner. It was lined with couches and deep cushioned chairs. “I was also told that everything you require is on the house compliments of Asfar Qatala.”

“Shut up. We are not here for pleasantries. Get me Jonas now or I will tear this place apart board by board and brick by brick.” Jessica was losing her ability to retain her role of arm candy. It had been a long time since she was just an ensign in the field. Ten years ago, it was easy to bat her eyelashes and speak with a sultry tone. Being the XO of a space station and wife of a highly influential man in the Federation gave her far more confidence and the expectation people would follow her orders.

“Too much coffee impacts her manners. Bring her something girly with an umbrella,” Shaw suggested trying to smooth the tension out some.

“I heard it makes her bloodthirsty,” Jonas stepped out from behind the red hair attempting to provide refreshments to the table addressing Shaw. “That will be all Magdalana. You know what Mr. Teller likes. Bring it.” Nodding her head almost imperceptibly Margo let the table.

“Mrs. Teller,” his voice had a smooth cadence that belied confidence and charisma, “you are as beautiful as ever. Marriage looks good on you. Mr. Teller,” he directed his gave to and stuck out his hand, “welcome to Club Ecstacy. I heard you had some business you wanted to discuss. May I?” Gesturing for a chair across from Aedan, Jonas paused long enough for polite purposes. It wasn’t like Aedan could tell him no. Aedan showed up in their casino. This confidence and slight feeling of superiority seeped out in the oily smile Jonas was giving Aedan. Adjusting his coat as if this was a casual meeting, Jonas leaned back in his chair taking in Aedan.

In this line of work everyone knew of Aedan Teller and what the man was capable of doing. The trick was surviving such encounters when you were about to tell the man no. Jonas had no real reason to tell Aedan no nor did he care about why he was here. He was just cocky enough to want to see Aedan in action.

Jessica seethed seeing the casual manner in which Jonas was acting. The man was the filth of society but like scum, it always seemed to rise to the surface. She stood up clenching the edge of the table debating how much it was going to cost Aedan when she ripped off Jonas’ head. Jessica’s hand moved towards her purse. At one time, Jessica dreamed of bring in Jonas to pay for all his crimes. Today all Jessica cared about was putting a smoking hole in his chest.

Lt. Commander Jessica Teller XO

“I’m not quite sure you can help… if I recall you are just hired gun status lately after the Viriant incident. Really need to remember which lies you tell to the Rihannsu, they have lost quite a bit since Hobus… they tend to get pissed if someone tries to take more from them than they feel is fair.” Aedan the man, he had a vague curiosity of how he made it out, and almost admiration for the task at hand. “I will give you this though, you made it out alive, not many can survive the Rihannsu, jolan tru!” Aedan said as he lifted a glass up as he took a brief drink before setting it down.

“We are not,” she stabbed a finger into the table, “toasting this man Aedan.”

Jessica bit back the words hovering on the edges of her lips. Gripping the glass tightly, she waited for Aedan to finish whatever he had planned. Then she would act as she wanted to.

Jonas didn’t like where this conversation was going, Viriant wasn’t something many knew about. He had a mysterious benefactor who had tried to barter the peace with the Romulan people on that world. Only the benefactor never called them Romulans, but by their formal name… Rihannsu. Aedan using that term twice now made the hairs on the back of his neck stand. The mission on Viriant was to obtain a Romulan cloaking device, in exchange for medical supplies and weapons to defend against rogue Tal Shiar attacks. The colony was a farm world, well away from the eye of the former bulbous Star Empire.

“It was…” Jonas said softly as he stood up a little tighter as he felt that he had made the wrong choice to make himself known just now. His scars had taking a lot to heal from the disruptor plasma burns that Romulans inflicted when they learned of his deception. The medicine had been halved, replaced with placebos in order to sell the rest to others for greater profit, and the weapons had all their energy cells removed for much of the same reason. On surface these wouldn’t have been discovered as the testing crates where untouched.

“I had to meet them personally to repair what you did, they asked me to give you something.” Aedan said as he quickly reached forward as he grabbed Jonas’s hand as he placed it on the table as his other hand in a near lightening reflex placed a dagger right through the middle of his hand as it pinned him to the table. The blade had a split double edge with a crested bird of prey on the hilt as the blood began to spurt from the hand as Jonas screamed loudly, weapons could be heard drawn as the attention of the room shifted directly to the pair.

“Just reminding Jonas here of manners… ” Aedan said as a rolling sound could be heard as a small rolling ball entered the middle of the club as Aedan reached into his pocket as he pulled out a pair of sunglasses as he looked back to the others. “I would look for yours.” he said as he placed his on his face as a bright flash went off as a deafening blast could be heard as all who didn’t have the special multi spectrum glasses on would be for a blinding flash before the dozen armed men Aedan had placed within the bar stood to disable the armed men.

As the ringing and carnage subsided the room would look a lot different with the Club’s staff were on their knees with phasers behind there head in execution poses as two men had flanked the sides of Aedan’s table to give a sign of just who was running the club at the current moment. “If the flinch… kill them.” Aedan said as he looked back at Jonas with a wicked smile as he twisted the blade before pulling it out, as he handed it over to Jessica. “I believe you had some things to ask him.

Aedan Teller