The Viper

Maxim and Ira

"Maxim and Ira are both spending their week in a small town on the outskirts of Santa Fe, they visit it very often, in fact they rarely leave." John pauses to point on a small dot he'd made on the map, right on the edge of the mountain range and just outside of the city.

"According to Valeria, the Bratva has been trying to edge their way back into the underground by stealing from other families and trying to blame it on another - thing is, the other families speak to each other often - the underworld has reached this... unspoken agreement, as long as territory isn't crossed and people aren't killed things are fine. Seems like the Bratva doesn't know that, seems like not even the other families can tolerate them." Valentine explains softly as she leans in closer to view the map, her chocolate perfume greets him and it takes more will power than he'd like to admit to not lean closer and inhale more of her like it was oxygen.

Instead, he calmly moves the map closer so she could see it better. Thinking about how he'd have to set up an eye appointment for her soon if she continues to squint so hard at things - silently beating himself for not noticing earlier.

"They're riding on very thin ice, pulling this shit on the edge of Cartel territory - Valerias unhinged enough as it is." Soap adds, a teasing lift to his words.

John's so distracted by her plump lips curling in the way that had his blood rushing from one head to the other, that he doesn't see what she's doing until its too late. Triangles, circles, asterisks. Decorated the different places they'd been so far and places they hadn't been yet. He tries to follow along with her but it's futile.

"Mind filling me in on what you're doing to my map?" He teases lowly before he can stop himself - his own lips twitching, though he tried as hard as he could to stifle the growing smile. She finishes making her marks before reaching into a small pocket of her bag. Pulling out a very worn, pink sticky-note that had looked like it had been folded and re-folded a million times, written on it was the key to her markings. Her small hand shoves the pink slip too close to his face, wiggling it around before he grunts and snatches it from her grasp - causing her to giggle.

⩠ Success.
⩢ Failure.
⩥ Target.
✵
࿏ Victims Found Here.
⤑ Route Taken.
⊗ Possible Locations of Safe-houses.

He stares at the blank spot, there was one spot in the map with that marking and she hadn't labelled it. It pulled at him - maybe it was morbid curiosity - or maybe it was possible intuition he had.

But there was something she still wasn't telling them and he needed to know what it was.

Clearing his throat as she finishes, he continues. "They hold poker tournaments there often while they wait on supplies to be delivered in the small town. Its a very small town, just over five hundred residents. So our presence needs to be as minimal as possible." The Jeep stands its ground as they fly through the mountains, wanting to get through them before sundown. It felt as though the trucks wheels were barely touching the solid ground beneath it, it made John nervous - and by the looks on both Val and Gaz's faces, he knew they were feeling the same way.

"Then two of you should go in and request rooms, it'll be less conspicuous if its men. They'll assume you heard about the club from a town near by, wanted to check it out. If a woman shows up - they might get more paranoid than they already are." Valentine adds before one of them can speak.

"You're right. I'll go with Gaz." He amends quickly. "I'll get two rooms if I can-"

"One." She interrupts - glancing at him from the side of her eyes. "Like you said, town is too small, we'll have to leave as soon as its done. Two rooms makes it messy." He nods, his only reply before running them through their plans.