The Hearts Have It
Location: Denon [Library/Archive]
Tag:
Shai the Jaded
"I want you to investigate, immediately. My suits are disappearing and I need to know who, where, when, and why. Surveillance only.", she breathed into the encrypted holo-comm without glancing away from the city-scape that sped by from the transparisteel windows of her chauffeured aircar. Business never stopped. At least, this was familiar territory. It was true that she hadn't spent too much time on the densely populated planet, but it reminded her of home.
It had the same rules. Busy skylanes, busy people.
"Don't make contact no matter what you see or hear. If you can get the data package back to me by the end of the cycle, you'll be paid three times your normal fee."
A wry smile crossed her lips when her contact seemed exceedingly anxious as to what form the payments would arrive it. She ignored it. Blackfyre always made good on their debts, regardless, the monetary compensation required.
"Who are you missing?"
She remained silent, quiet, and let the pause become well known. If he was worth half of what he charged these questions were superfluous at best. He was on a fishing expedition to see what she knew. To see how well she knew her people, or, to make his job easier. Neither of these reasons were sufficient enough to warrant an answer. Not, when it was the exact information she would be paying him for to verify.
"Won't even give me that, will ya?"
"You already know everything you need to. I don't want copies of the clean-washed, redacted reports provided to the authorities either."
"I'm not at liberty to discuss official business—"
"Note, that I did not ask."
It was true. She hadn't. Merely, brought the terms of their agreement to bear. The discussion went back and forth for a few more minutes but ended with a definitive click. Bella left the ear-piece in though switched her comm to silent for the time being. She was behind schedule in the grand scheme of things but it was an impossibility for her to be everywhere at once. The Jacks would need to handle the worst of it in her absence, however, it wasn't as if they were truly alone. The Black Queen always lingered nearby. Waiting.
The aircar stopped before a smooth walkway and the door released a small hiss of air while she deftly slid from the seat. "I'll send for you when I'm ready."
The driver didn't reply. She didn't need him to.
The statuesque woman smoothed down the fabric of her form-fitting dress around her hips before straightening and tying a slim dark trench coat around her waist. The heel of leather boots met the sidewalk and moved her forward without thought. A slouchy purse rest over her left arm while lengths of crimson-colored hair bounced in waving curls with every movement. Black gloves hid her hands.
Her biometrics were scanned at the entrance. Of course, they would match her identification. The Library of Denon was very fond of their materials and tended to keep spotless records of who borrowed what. It didn't matter to her. If anything, the log-in helped to create the very real paper trail that she was a great distance from Coruscant. That would be best.
It wasn't her first visit.
There were some things that were only available on Denon. They did not share, did not transfer, and certainly didn't allow for copies to be made. Bella held in her possession a very unique artifact that a repeat client had been seeking for quite some time. She'd had it looked at on Coruscant but she still needed to authenticate it to the specifications of the buyer. Else, he wouldn't buy.
That simply wouldn't do.
The young woman moved through the stacks with relative ease. She was new to Denon; Not to an Archive. A library was merely that. Only, less exclusive. The interior was well-kept but she had to fight the urge to reach into her bag and pull out a pair of dark-tinted glasses. The lighting was adequate enough. It was habit, more than anything. The fiery woman slid through the people that milled about without incident; but her presence seemed to turn heads. Her confidence filled the area around her like water filling the room. In a heartbeat, silvery-tinged blue eyes could become solid as two antique coins. Sharp, like steel.
But here? In the moment? She was merely a beautiful breath of fresh air. A blast of color to an otherwise boring and drab building that was even grimmer on the inside than it was on the outside. She gave one of the attendants her best professional smile, empty of meaning as a light bulb, but dazzling nonetheless. "Is this the terminal to access verification materials for antiquities?"
The employee was nearly the same height as she was. Brown eyes, soft features, with small nervous hands. Her smile lingered, almost playfully, and he finally seemed to get his bearing as he blinked a few times to clear the fog.
"Ah, yes. Right over here ma'am—"
"—Ms.", she corrected amiably, tossing him a throwaway, cheshire grin. He walked right into a waste bin and nearly tripped over it. Bella pretended it hadn't happened and let him collect himself. There was no need to mock the poor boy. "And the directories are still in order by origin, year, and rarity?"
He nodded his head rapidly and mumbled out a very flustered "Yes Ms." before checking to see if there was anything else she needed help with. Bella let him go. If she kept him any longer, she worried that he might fall faint there and then, truly at an age where he could only become further mystified by a member of the opposite sex. If she didn't have further engagements, she might have toyed with him a little while longer. Cat, and mouse. "Thank you."
Her appreciation was met with a very quick reply and an even faster departure.
He almost tripped over the same trash bin on the way back to his workstation.
Bella chuckled, softly, but began to move through the directly. A quick tap here and a swipe there. She frowned. This was going to take a while.
