Wicked Game

Chapter 9

            Natsu was pissed.

He moved briskly down the salted sidewalk, fighting the urge to take off at a run.

Lucy's set was almost up, and he was going to be late.

His 8 o'clock meeting this morning had been pushed back four times. He'd only just been able to get out of the office.

If it weren't for Gray he would have been out in plenty of time. But the guy had to have his say, and Natsu had been forced to listen.

It wasn't even Gray's operation, it was Natsu's. But Makarov wanted to consult all the department heads, and that meant Natsu had to sit there and listen to Gray pick apart everything he thought Natsu was doing wrong- which was, apparently, everything.

Luckily Erza Scarlett, who tracked all their government contracts, had backed him up. This case was a grey area, a private client with intent to bring in law enforcement, so it didn't quite fall under her jurisdiction.

But that was why Makarov wanted the whole team.

Natsu knew he'd be just fine on his own. As long as he kept his head straight. There was nothing going on at The Blue Kitten that would be anything he hadn't seen before. It was only Tartaros's involvement that made the situation precarious.

A point which Grey had made when he suggested they should send in a team and stop tip-toeing around. Clean out the club, pick up Ivan, and leave Tartaros for another day.

Leave it to a security operative to want to go in guns blazing.

There were too many things that could go wrong, too many potentially innocent people that could get hurt. And walking the line of what they could do legally speaking, well, they would be playing with fire.

Natsu caught a glimpse of the neon sign and made his way through the front door.

The stale smell of cigarettes and alcohol hit him like a brick wall. Lucy's song had just started. He caught a glimpse of her moving down the catwalk at the far side of the room, her loose blonde hair dancing around her as she swayed.

Natsu headed toward the crowded bar and caught Rob's eye. The bartender nodded at him and went to the shelf for his best scotch.

After grabbing his drink he made his way to his booth, a sign that said "reserved" sat on the table.

He slipped off his snow dusted jacket and slid onto the red leather.

Lucy looked beautiful. Hot as the fire that burned Natsu's throat as he took a sip of his drink. But it was more than just the seductive dance that captivated Natsu. It was in her smile. It was the memory of the sound of her laughter that rung through his ears.

It was the necklace hanging around her neck.

Natsu smiled.

She'd worn the necklace. She'd accepted his apology.

As happy as that made him, Natsu was uneasy when he thought back to their conversation that morning. What Lucy had said, her reasons for staying at the club, it didn't add up.

Lucy was an intelligent woman. She had a confidence that shown through when they would talk. And yet she had basically said she wasn't good enough to get what she wanted on her own.