The Heart of a Villain (a Tom Hiddleston fanfiction)

The Meeting

[Tom]

"I wish be left alone."

He kept himself just separate from her, mostly as a test of his own resolve, but also to test to hers. She didn't deserve him trying to manipulate her into bed with him. The whole point to bringing her back was to keep her safe – still – if there were perks to be had...

Somewhere deep within him he can hear the gentleman howling. He does his best to stifle the echoes.

He is tempted to stop by his study, center himself once more before heading back out. Does she think him so paranoid now that he would need to keep her under lock and key? His enemies were not so numerous, nor so foolish, as to try to attack him in his own home. Perhaps he should have told her that the lock on her door was not to combat intruders but rather to save him from himself.

No – he would never admit that to her. It had been a hard lesson. He still couldn't drink whiskey without flashes of that first year coming back in extreme detail.

He needs to focus now. Decisions that were required of him were easier without her voice providing comment in his head. How could you, Tom. How could you?  It takes effort but he shakes the memory loose and shuts it away.

Traveling by helicopter between the estate and his house makes transit time hardly noticeable. They circle around the estate before landing – perimeter check or just showing off. It gives him a nice view of the approach to the landing pad. Tom watches the helicopter lift off again. He pauses his progression up the driveway to watch it lift off and fly into the inky sky. "Looks like I'll be driving the Jag home..." He mutters to himself.

He's very late for the meeting now. He indulged himself, dawdling with Rose rather than turning immediately back to the estate. Hadley's interruption had been ill timed but the news was welcome enough. It had been regarding the status of Tom's cleanup crew. He was willing to allow the American team that had found Rose – Rosaline – it seemed he would forever be correcting himself – to bring her back to London, but he would only allow hand selected individuals to rummage through and secure her things. It meant a delay in the collection and transferring of information to allow for transit time – the Americans only being allowed to sit and watch her place until his crew arrived. If it ensured keeping anything and everything about Rosaline within his purview, it was worth it.

 Ben's text had interrupted what would have been an entertaining dispute. She accused him of finding a mistress in her image. The thought was both wounding and entertaining. If he hadn't been interrupted he probably would have made up a woman or two, just to see if it would get a rise out of her. If she did react, would that change anything? He shoves that thought away.

Ben did give his blessing for the slight delay – in his own way – by sending Mark out to supervise the street cleanup. It was probably as penalty for shooting out the street lamp. Taking out the threat was fine, but the street lamp had been for show.

Never cause more damage than absolutely necessary, Tom. It draws attention. Subtle moves to produce the desired result are more fitting a man of power.

Ok – so the maneuver in the road hadn't been a small move, per se, and the Jag had paid the price for it – but he'd removed the problem. Maybe one of the drivers of the other vehicles in pursuit had survived their respective crashes so they could be questioned. He needed to know who was controlling the pieces on the board – why  they had been watching Rose, why  they had waited until he had brought her back to London to converge upon the pair of them. He is at the mercy of Mark and whatever might be revealed in his report on the status of the other drivers.

The feeling doesn't sit well.

Noting that Mark's vehicle is still missing from the driveway, Tom takes his time getting back to the meeting room. He rests his hand atop the roof of the Jag while he peers in the passenger window. Is there anything left in the vehicle that he might need for the meeting? Nothing that immediately springs to mind. Onward then to wait with Ben and perhaps be reprimanded for his personal errand.