Raging Storm {book 2 in SOSfanfic series} [ON HOLD]

Alone At Last

"Don't tell me that's all the questions you've got." Reyna managed to sound cocky even after she got her bones handed to her by go knows what.  She looked downright bored.

"As if. Who did this to you?" Mr. Ambrose fired back.

"I- wait. What?" Her face pulled into that same confused expression as it does when something really stupid or disgusting happened. Mr. Ambrose was thoroughly amused by it.

Mr. Ambrose raised an eyebrow at her in response.

"Uh... yes. Sorry, I just wasn't expecting that. Should I tell you from the beginning?"

Mr. Ambrose nodded once.

"From the moment you told me that I couldn't do my job properly and not carry on my own investigations, I knew I had to investigate personally too."

Mr. Ambrose smirked and Reyna gave him a glare that made him swallow and not utter a single sound till she was finished. Reyna continued, "So I did my investigations after you all were asleep-"

"How did you leave the hotel without the informers knowing about it?" Mr. Ambrose cut in. He was really curious.

"The front door."She shrugged, "Don't interrupt me now.

" I found out that Lord Dalgliesh was here under a false identity and he was looking for someone important, a European millionaire. Considering the beautiful blooming friendship you both have I did not doubt that he tried to hunt you down. By the time I was permitted to have an appointment with him he had already ordered hits on any person who filled out your profile. I couldn't let more innocent people die. One died in this very hotel.

"The man who died here yesterday night went by the name Will Hamish. A European, black hair, middle class, spendthrift. Considering that Lord Dalgliesh has focused his attention on this hotel, it was a matter of time before he found you out.

"I went to make a bargain with him. Well, actually, I took the snipers position and a body double of mine whom I hired this very morning went to meet with him. According to the plan, this woman who was pretending to be me would inform Lord Dalgliesh that she was a servant in The Luxor Hotel and she was assigned to clean your room. She would not tell him anything about the room you actually stayed in, or under what pretense you were staying here. She would sell information she would be able to get her hands on and in return I would keep feeding Lord Dalgliesh lies through the girl.

"That way I could twist information that went out of here and provide additional security and shielding to you." Reyna finished with a hoarse voice.

Mr. Ambrose would not deny it, he was impressed. The plan was risky but if it worked it would work to an advantage. Not that he would ever tell Reyna that, of course.

"What went wrong?" He gestured to her torn clothes and skin. Her eyes grew stormy.

"I don't know. The man the girl met with was also Lord Dalgliesh's body double. The real one saw me take aim. I noticed him too and I knew that I could not escape the building, he must've had it surrounded so I shot his body double to warn off the girl to escape. Then I managed to leave the building but they managed to catch me-"

"They managed to catch you?" to  say that Mr. Ambrose sounded shocked would be a mild understatement. Reyna would've smirked in pride if she had the energy.

"Yes it was unusual. That was the second time he managed to be a step ahead of me. It's almost as if-" she broke off, her eyes were unfocused and Mr. Ambrose could almost see the gears turning in her head. Then she shook her head, "Nevermind. I will make sure that it does not happen again."

Mr. Ambrose just silently regarded her, no, scrutinized every inch of her. Feeling self conscious in her not-so-flattering state she piped again,  "Where was I? Oh yes, so they took me to a place on the outskirts of the town where they store the grain. They left me alone, what a stupid thing to do, and I escaped. I had some.... resistance, but nothing I can't handle. And here I am!" she mumbled, fingering a rip in her pants.

Then she broke out of her day dreaming haze again and animatedly snapped her head back up again. With pseudo-energy she chirped, "Is that all?"

"Why did you throw a shoe at me?"

Reyna blushed. Mr. Ambrose felt relief that she still had enough blood left to blush. No of course he was not thinking about how adorable she looked when she went tomato red and started sweating in embarrassment.

"Well, um....uh....you see.. I-" she swallowed, eyes determined not to match his piercing gaze.

"I just- got... very angry that's all. Yes. It won't happen again and I'm sorry." She rushed it out.

She noticed a little spark of amusement in her employer's eyes when she looked up to his emotionless face again.  She ducked her head again and blushed harder.

"But why would you say anything like that in the first place?" she feebly protested.

"Because the maid did come in when you were asleep. She left in a hurry when I whispered her to leave so she wouldn't wake you up. It could've happened again." He made the tiniest movement as if indicating a small shrug.

"Oh."

There was a silence after that. Reyna slightly swayed drowsily and Mr. Ambrose just gazed at her. The night had arrived in her full Egyptian glory but the sounds of the evening city were drowned out. Here there was just soft silence lulling Reyna to sleep.

Mr. Ambrose had his fingertips together and his elbows on his knees. He was leaning forward, towards Reyna. He had a lot to think about but he couldn't right now. Reyna was here in front of him, he couldn't think of anything else that a satisfying feeling of believed relieved.

That lasted for only a short while though. Reyna's eyes closed and she fell asleep sitting up. Her muscles loosening and her back slouched. Unbalanced she toppled to the side and fell to the floor with a thump. She didn't open her eyes as she hit the bottom.