Guilt’s Cost: Part LV

Watching

Reno pulled up to Quigley’s apartment complex in Midgar in the car he’d rented in Kalm. It was getting to be late in the evening and he was irritated with having to be away from Angel. He slid from the driver’s seat and stood looking up at the building before him. Reno checked the address one last time before going forward.

Eventually he found apartment number 203 and leaned against it’s door. He was disappointed that Quigley wasn’t already here but resolved that he would just have to wait until he showed up. The door to this apartment faced the street, and his second story vantage-point allowed Reno a good view of the neighborhood. His former Turk training forced him to examine the scene for any potential danger. Due to the continued rain there was not much activity outside. One man hovered under an awning across the street in front of a small newsstand. The figure was engrossed in some magazine and he had a dog sitting quietly at his side. Reno found himself staring at this man as he was the only thing of interest out. The stranger never seemed to notice Reno’s gaze, apparently unaware that he was being watched. Reno never suspected that he was the object of scrutiny.

A slow shuffling brought Reno out of his daydream. He turned to see Quigley walking toward him. The researcher stared down at the ground as he walked, obviously miserable from the drenching he had received on his way home from the Shin Ra building half a mile away. Quigley pulled a set of keys from his pocket and finally turned his gaze up spotting Reno before him.

Quigley was started to see the former Turk at his door and he jumped slightly. "Oh, Jesus Reno!"

"How goes it, Quiggers?" Reno moved from the door.

Quigley made his way past him and unlocked the door. Once it was open he motioned for Reno to enter. "Come in."

Reno obeyed and went in. He looked around the apartment amused to see that there was no furniture save a small table and chair in the corner. "God Damned, you really know how to live it up."

Quigley looked back over his shoulder at him. "I figured one day I might have to dart out of here without any of my belongings so I never bothered to accumulate more than I needed to get by. I suppose that’s why you’re here, to get me right?"

Reno nodded. "Bingo. Tseng thinks you might be in some sort of danger after spilling that little gem to us about a certain ex-SOLDIER."

Quigley looked thoughtful for a moment. "I figured as much. I don’t mind though. I was getting a little sick of what I was doing there anyway. Stupid Hojo assigned me to some retarded upgrade project for some converters. I’ve been board to tears for weeks."

"Aren’t you heartbroken about leaving Hojo’s employment?" Reno crossed his arms, looking quite serious.

Quigley just rolled his eyes. He disappeared into the other room of the apartment and emerged a few minutes later with a suitcase in hand. "Okay, let’s go."

Reno was impressed at how quickly Quigley was prepared to leave his home of two years. "Are you really that desperate to get out of here?"

"Yes, now can we please go?" The thought of not having to face Hojo again was more than enough to chase Quigley out of town.

Reno led him back down to the car. Quigley whistled to himself as he inspected his ride.

At the car rental station in Kalm, Reno had opted to take their most exotic auto. The fact that in order to get this particular car he had to pay seven times as much as any of their other selections didn’t matter to him since Tseng was picking up the tab. The foreign red sports car sat low to the ground, and the sharp angles of its body were enhanced by some selective black pin stripes. Reno couldn’t resist using this car as it absolutely had screamed ‘secret agent’ to him.

As the two men got into the car and drove away, Porter set the magazine he had been pretending to read back down on the rack. He looked down at D and smiled. "Looks like old Hojo was right and Quigley just skipped town with Reno."

The dog just looked up at his master and wagged the few short inches of tail that it had.

Porter checked his watch and saw that it was almost six thirty. He had checked in with Rayna before leaving the building earlier to let her know that he was going to be on assignment tonight and wouldn’t be around to take her out after work. She had accepted this news with a sad smile, letting him know that it was all right since it looked like she was going to have to stay late in order to catch up on some things anyway.

****

Hojo sat in his personal surveillance room staring at various monitors. Most of the building’s occupants had left for the day as it was well after six. He flicked on the camera in the accounting department and leaned forward. What he saw there brought a smile to his lips. Rayna sat at her desk typing away on her ten-key. All the other work stations in the room were empty.

Eager to take care of some business that he needed Rayna for, he picked up an expense report, a vial, and a small package and walked toward the elevators.

Rayna rubbed her tired eyes and slouched in her chair. She wanted badly to go home but was still knee deep in work and knew it would be a late night. When the elevator doors opened she looked over to see who was there, expecting it to be the janitor. She was a little unnerved when she saw it was Hojo.

He strolled from the elevator and over to a desk where he set down the report in his hand. When he looked over and saw Rayna he seemed genuinely surprised. "Oh, hello there. Late night?"

She forced a smile, recalling all the terrible things that Porter had said about him. "Hi Professor. To bad this company doesn’t pay overtime, huh?"

Hojo smiled in response and started to turn away but stopped. "Pardon me if I’m mistaken, but are you the woman that Porter has been seeing?"

A wide grin flashed across her face and she blushed slightly. "Yes Sir, I am."

Hojo looked pleased to hear this. "The boy seems to really like you. I’ve heard nothing but good things." Hojo hid the truth well. Porter had never said anything to him about Rayna as he and the scientist rarely talked. Most communication they did have was Porter sitting listening to Hojo’s violent verbal assaults.

The redness in Rayna’s cheeks deepened. The thought that Porter would talk about her at all was flattering. She had become terribly attached to the Turk. "You embarrass me, Professor."

Hojo waved a hand before him. "Sorry, that was not my intention. But you seem to be making him quite happy. I would be lying if I didn’t say he was a changed man."

She smiled again. "Thanks."

Hojo looked over to the right spotting a coffee maker. The pot was full and he wandered over to it. He took a Styrofoam cup from the counter and filled it. Hojo added some sugar and creamer and while hidden from Rayna’s view he poured in the contents of a tiny glass vial. He then turned and made his way to Rayna’s desk. Hojo held the cup out to her. "Here, I wouldn’t want you to fall asleep before you were done."

Although she normally would have refused anything from this man, she knew she needed to get something into her system to help her ward off the drowsiness setting in. "Well thank you very much."

Hojo smiled as he watched her take a sip. "You are welcome. I need to get back to the lab now, so I will bid you goodnight."

Rayna waved as he retreated. "Goodnight Professor."

As the elevator closed Rayna felt odd. Her world was starting to spin and she clung to the edge of her desk to steady herself. After a few more moments of dizziness, Rayna passed out and fell from her chair.

Hojo hadn’t left the floor and hit the door open button on the elevator. He immediately spotted Rayna lying unconscious on the floor beside her desk. As he walked toward her he pulled the package he’d brought with him from the lab out of his pocket. When he reached her side he knelt down and licked his lips. He had plans for Porter’s girlfriend and he needed to be quick.

****

Porter finally arrived at his home at eight fifteen. He picked up the phone and dialed Rayna’s number.

On the fourth ring she finally answered. "Hello?"

Porter was taken by the tiredness in her voice. "Rayna? Are you okay? You sound awful."

There was a silence from the other line for a moment. "Yeah, I think I’m coming down with something. I was trying to get some stuff done at work and I passed out at my desk and fell out of my chair. When I came to I felt horrible and decided to come home."

"God Rayna!" Porter felt sick himself knowing that Rayna felt that bad. "You didn’t hurt yourself when you passed out did you?"

Again, another silence. "I must have hit the file cabinet behind my desk or something, I’ve got a little cut on my side. Other than that, I’m not hurt. Mostly I’m just tired, but I feel a little better now that I’m home."

More concern for Rayna came out. "Do you want me to come over? Is there something I can bring you?"

"I’d really like that." She sighed into the phone. Rayna hated being alone when she felt bad. "Just let yourself in when you get here. I think I’m gonna go soak in the tub for a while."

"All right, I’ll be there in a little while." Porter hung up the phone and looked back down at his dog. Rayna always welcomed D to come along. "Looks like we got to go take care of Rayna tonight."

He drove a little faster than he should for the road conditions, but Porter wanted to get to his girlfriend’s house as quick as possible. When he got there he ran up to her front door and entered. The house was quiet and he knocked on the bathroom door.

"That you?" She called from inside.

"Yeah." Porter rested his head against the door, relieved that she was okay.

"I’ll be out in a sec, I just need to dry off."

"Okay." Porter backed away from the door and went back into the living room. He landed on the couch and flicked on the television.

After a short while she emerged from the bathroom, wrapped in a blue satin robe. The thinness of the fabric did little to conceal the contours of her body beneath. Porter caught his breath upon seeing her. He and Rayna had not yet been intimate and the sight of her with her hair down and in such a flimsy garment got to him.

Rayna saw the look on his face and smiled. "God, don’t tell me you’re getting turned on by this. I look like Hell."

Porter thought that was the furthest thing from the truth. "You look fine, and you sound better than you did over the phone."

She came over and sat next to him, nuzzling into his side after patting D on the head. "I feel a lot better now. The only thing that’s bugging me now is where I cut myself when I fell."

Porter kissed the top of her head and put his arm around her. He suppressed the urge to try and get her into bed, knowing that she would let him know when she was ready for that. Certainly she wouldn’t feel up to it tonight after the day she’d had. "I’m glad to hear you’re getting better."