Dark Star

11. Ultimatum

Josef had been lost in thought after the news Varick had told him, he was worried about how tonight was going to end. However, when he felt Vesper move, he knew he needed to focus and pay more attention to what was going on around him. He scanned the crowd, looking at all the people enjoying themselves, and he envied their easy lives. If life was different, he would have liked to have brought a girl to a party like this, to dance the night away. Or, at least, one that he didn't have to kidnap to make her come. He suddenly found himself speaking aloud, and what he said shocked himself almost as much as it did the girl standing beside him.

“May I have this dance, Vesper?”

She looked at him with wide eyes, and Josef couldn't help but notice how electric of a blue her eyes were. “What if I said no?” She asked.

He led her out onto the dance floor, and pulled her close to him. “I only asked to be nice,” Josef answered her, in a quiet voice. “But you know, as well as I, that you don't really have a choice.”

Right then, as if on cue, a new song started to play. He recognized it, it was “Ashes & Wine” by A Fine Frenzy, a beautiful, slow song. Josef placed his right hand upon her waist and began to lead her in a slow dance. He held her gaze for a few minutes, then she looked away suddenly. She had a strange expression on her face, but he couldn't seem to place what emotion it was. Instead, following her lead, he looked away and scanned the crowd.

After a few moments of awkward silence, she turned her face back towards him. “Why did you ask me to dance?” She asked, something similar to anger flashing in her eyes. “Why did you even want to?”

“Well, we are at a dance,” He replied, sarcastically. “Although we do need to blend in. I figured this would be the best way to do that. I can keep an eye on you, and everything else, at the same time.”

“Still, why bother asking me, if you didn't plan on giving me a choice?”

Josef sighed. “I guess that it was me, feigning the part of being a gentleman,” He replied. “Though I knew the moment I spoke, you would never say yes. So the only alternative is to force you.”

“You never gave me a chance to say yes,” Vesper said, quietly, then clarified. “Or no.”

Her answer had surprised him, and he was caught off balance for a moment. He was about to reply when he saw Varick motioning to them urgently, out of the corner of his eye. He immediately pulled Vesper along after him, and walked quickly over to where he was standing. They would have to finish this conversation later.

“He's here,” Varick told him. “He just walked in. I think he's looking for you.”

Josef looked to where Varick was pointing, and although no one would have seen it from his face, he stood frozen with fear for moment. There was the man he had been waiting for, as well as two of his men. As he looked, their eyes met, and the man who had just entered motioned for him to come over, and that was the reason that he used to make himself start moving again. He couldn't come undone now, to much depended on these next few moments.

He spoke to his friend. “Take the girl, and keep a close eye on her.” He turned to Vesper, and pulled her close to him and whispered in her ear. “Varick has a gun as well, and if you try anything, he will not hesitate to hurt you.”

When he let her go, and was able to see her face once more, he knew he'd made his point. She wouldn't try to do anything while he was gone. With that, he turned and began to walk across the room. As he did, he looked at the man he was walking towards. It was a face he had seen many times before. He was in his mid twenties with dirty blonde hair, styled to make it look a little messy, and just a little bit of facial hair so it looked like he had skipped shaving for a couple of weeks. His clear blue eyes always looked kind of stormy, like he was thinking deep thoughts. He was a good looking guy, but he also looked like someone not to mess with.