Disjointed Bits And Pieces

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elisabeth2_icon.gif richard3_icon.gif

Scene Title Disjointed Bits and Pieces
Synopsis It's been a long time since Elisabeth has been 'at work' in quite this way.
Date April 29, 2019

Raytech NYCSZ Branch Office; Richard Ray's Office


It's already become her habit not to bother him in the office. In the evenings when he joins her at her apartment or she takes Aurora to his, after the little girl is asleep is usually when they talk about things like what's happening in Raytech and occasionally more serious matters. She has, for the most part, avoided certain topics up until now — the speculation about who took Devon and why, for example, is something that until Kaylee went visiting in Dev's head Elisabeth has skirted around.

The time has come, however… for the rabbit hole is deep and she's already more than hip-deep in small bits of information.

Carrying a couple of coffees from Eleanor's place in Red Hook — because the woman is a marvel with magic coffee from nobody-dare-asks-where — Elisabeth slips into the office quietly so that he has time to finish his call without interruption. She sets the dark brew in front of him and perches on the corner of his desk until he hangs up. "Morning!"

“Yes… yes, absolutely. Get it done, thanks,” Richard says, setting the phone down and bringing his hand back up to rub over the side of his face. “I hate talking on phones,” he informs Liz with a wry smile, his other hand scritching over the neck-fur of the cat nestled in his lap, who miaows at Liz as if in greeting.

Then he reaches for the coffee with a chuckle, “What’s the occasion, love?”

Rolling her eyes at him, Elisabeth comments, "You hate talking on phones, you still try to fix computers with a hammer. It's nice that some things stand the test of time." She grins at him over the rim of her cup. After taking a sip and savoring it a long moment — coffee is still a hideous luxury, one she will likely never again take for granted since it's not exactly the most common thing around even here — she sighs and sets the cup on his desk. Swinging her feet, she leans on her hands and offers, "I'm coming back online, I guess." Strange way to put it, but there it is.

"Two things, chronological. Okay? First one… do you have any idea what Yamagato might have that Kazimir Volken would want to take?" Left field, anyone? That question seems like it probably came from there.

“Volken?” Richard’s brow furrows as he leans back in the chair with a creak, coffee cradled in his hands. Thus abandoned, the cat makes a little sound and shifts, curling up against his stomach in what’ll be an awkward position if the executive wants to move at all, in that way that cats have.

“No… Volken’s dead, gone, contained,” he notes, “Unless you know something I don’t?”

The line of her mouth compresses as she considers. "Contained… maybe. Definitely contained in Eileen's body, but… given that she kidnapped Manuel and Addie, and she still has Addie… It seems to me that Volken's still the one in control. But maybe that's just an assumption?" Elisabeth's gaze has been on her kneecaps while she thinks aloud on that one, but they come back up. There's a wealth of regret in her when it comes to Eileen Gray — she told him what happened to Gabriel back in Bright.

"The night of the Yamagato gala… all of that mess? It was because of her. She was there, and she was definitely instigating whatever was going on. She's… why I had the panic attack. And honestly, I've been thinking about it ever since. It really had all the earmarks of a heist."

“I’ve known them both, and let me tell you, it’s her… Kazimir never would’ve let me bicker with him,” admits Richard in rueful tones murmured to the edge of his cup, taking a slow sip of it before motioning with it back up towards her, “Not surprised.”

“They’ve been hitting Yamagato shipments for awhile, on behalf of Praxis. Praxis gives their people materials, they hit their rival, it’s a— thing. Don’t think they know about Monroe yet, though.”

Two things in that series of words make her go stiff, shock coloring her expression. "Eileen herself is in control?" is the first question Elisabeth asks, paling slightly. There is a debt Eileen is owed that she will never be able to pay. But now, knowing that the other woman is actually herself… that, she has to put on the back burner for this moment because the latter bits of information are even more troubling. Especially considering the flash of rage that the word 'Praxis' sends across her face.

That hum is happening again, fluttering across the skin like angry bees. "Then it might be time they do know," she replies tightly. "Because between whatever the hell they're stealing for him and the fact that Adam had Devon… I'm thinking Praxis is about to turn into a massive problem." Elisabeth visibly works to swallow back the physical reaction. "I asked Cassandra to come in and see what she might be able to glean from the clothing he was wearing when we found him. But … Devon said Adam and Dr. Bao-wei Cong were both there."

“I don’t know… which Eileen,” Richard grimaces, “It’s possible that she somehow merged with what was left of Ruskin, because I was told Gray had died when they attacked our forces but— she’s being evasive about the whole thing. Still, she doesn’t seem as hostile as before.”

His free hand lifts in a helpless gesture - he simply isn’t sure there.

“Praxis… yes,” he grimaces, “And yes, they mentioned Cong, which is never good news. Interestingly, just before Nisatta died she claimed Adam was the only one who knew how to handle the entity. ‘The Dragon’ she called it. I’m organizing a network to try and find out more before it’s too late, I want to get ahead of this.”

The quirk of one side of her mouth is is a rueful grin, despite the humming. "Of course you do," Elisabeth observes softly. Because it's what he does. She pauses and then sighs. "Round and round and round we go… Have you spoken to Ryans about this whole thing with Adam?" she asks. Picking up her coffee cup, she purses her lips and considers. "In the Flooded world… Adam was aboard Ben's ship. I never saw him. I didn't know until I got back here and really looked at some of the pictures that Ryans sent back here with me for his son. One of the pictures showed him." She offers him a small shrug. "I don't think that Ben had an overlay that included that world, if he had one at all — he seemed surprised in some ways to find Adam there. But… I don't think Adam in that world had the abilities that we see in him here. For whatever that tidbit is worth to you."

Which… actually brings up another thought that she wasn't sure he was aware of. "I don't know if you know or not, but Eve didn't die when we came through."

“I’ve become aware, although I haven’t seen her myself,” Richard admits, shaking his head slightly, “I… really haven’t been on good terms with Eve for a long time, but I’m glad she survived at least.”

His gaze hoods a bit, and he takes a slow sip of the coffee. “Mm. Makes sense. Monroe and Ryans were always close, not that he remembered it until recently. I expect that Ryans is on the move already, although he should be briefed about the Entity… I’ll make a point of stopping by to update him.”

She takes a sip of her coffee and then murmurs, "She didn't deserve to die when we got here… and neither did Eileen Gray. Remembering Volken taking her still makes me feel sick," she admits. Elisabeth doesn't think she'll ever forget that sight — another of her mental box of horrors.

"Bleah," she opines. "Okay… So you're not surprised by the fact that Eileen was involved in hitting Yamagato," Liz observes. "But…. it sounds like we still don't have any idea what they're actually looking to obtain from a hit like that? Or are they just harassing?"

“Yes, well, you’re not the one that had to go over the casualty list of all the people she had killed trying to stop us in January,” Richard says a bit bitterly at the mention that Gray didn’t deserve what she got, gaze dropping down to Richelieu and a hand stroking over the cat’s soft fur for a moment.

“No idea,” he admits, “Could’ve been harassment, could’ve been a heist, you’re right. Nothing’s been publicly stated as having been lost, of course.”

He's not wrong, and Elisabeth flinches slightly. "No, I didn't," she agrees softly. Reaching out, she touches his forearm, regret in her expression. Getting home had a massive cost, and she hasn't forgotten that. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded," she apologizes. Because ultimately if Eileen had just stayed out of it, they wouldn't have lost so many.

"I was figuring it was something Volken was after. But if it's something Adam sent them after? That gives me the willies. So … That's your puzzle piece from me for the day," she offers with a faint smile. "I haven't been here long enough to have a clue what the new jigsaw puzzle looks like, so once more, lover —- you get to be the ringmaster of this circus." She pauses and then purses her lips slightly. "Mixed the metaphor there, but…"

“I know,” Richard says quietly, one hand sliding over hers where it rests on his arm, and he looks down at Richelieu for a long moment as if hoping that the cat might have some answers. He does not.

“I’ve been out of the game for too long, and I’m being slow in catching up,” he admits, “Time to get a new team moving.”

She turns her hand in his and twines their fingers together, holding on firmly. "Do I need to turn Donovan down?" Her voice is soft as she asks the question, the only indicator of her weariness of such a mindset the subtle reluctance. She's begun to look forward to the idea of building the NYPD back into what it should be. But her blue eyes on him are level — she'll walk away if he tells her it's needed.

No rest for the wicked. (The weary? Hell, maybe both. No rest for anyone.)

“What? No, don’t be ridiculous— “ A warm squeeze of her hand, and Richard flashes her a crooked smile, “That’s the opposite of what we need to do. We’ll need you, and Kaylee, just where you’re going. We need more eyes and influence, not less.”

He breathes out a chuckle, “It’ll be a nice change to have the cops on our side for a change.”

The relief that flashes through her expression gives away how very much that answer means. She squeezes his hand in return and seems to breathe a little easier. Looking down at their twined fingers, Elisabeth observes mildly, "A good number of them always were… or would have been, had they known there were sides and what the sides entailed." She smiles at him.

"Thank you for that. I… don't know if I'll stay there for career-level amounts of time, but… I have to admit that working for the NYPD is another small piece of me slotting into place, feeling like we finally made it home. I was only ever a cop here, at home… so it feels like solid ground finally. You know?" There's a pause and she laughs suddenly. "Now let's hope Marcus never had the overlay I saw with him in it. I don't want to have to slap my boss."

“Oh…?” Richard’s smile widens into a teasing grin, “Well, you can’t say something like that without giving me details….”

Shaking her head, Elisabeth laughs. "Well… I had a couple of them, you know…" There's a momentary flash of something across her face but she rolls her eyes and covers it with the explanation. "Coming through the tunnel, just before we landed… there was a flash. Apparently in some world, and I've got no idea which — but I suspect it wasn't one of the four I saw, because it wasn't familiar — Marcus Donovan gave me a lovely present." She raises both her eyebrows and sounds positively gleeful. "It was a gun. All gift wrapped and pretty. And I'm pretty sure he was well thanked," she teases.

“In a world where you never had to be a revolutionary, I can see it,” Richard laughs, taking a sip of his coffee and relaxing back into the chair - a movement that startles the cat, who zips suddenly out of his lap and disappears under the desk. He gives him a bemused look, then back to Liz, “The man’s a dog, but he has good taste.”

"Thank you," she flirts with a theatrical batting of her lashes. "So good of you to approve." Her nose wrinkles up, eyes squeezing tight closed as she laughs for a minute. "It cracks me up to even think about it," Elisabeth admits. Then she shrugs, amusement still glimmering in her expression as she looks at him. "You're a nut. Get back to work, slacker," she teases.

Sliding off his desk, she leans down and kisses him softly, lingering there for a long moment with her hands braced on the arms of his chair. "I'll see you tonight," she murmurs and then leaves the office with a grin over her shoulder as she closes the door.


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