Fisher

---

“What are you going to do here?” Jade asked.

She still looked a little green around the gills, and I presumed her unexpected quietness during the ride to the hotel was a result of whatever had been bothering her this morning. But she had recovered a little, at least enough to ask questions that she knew I had no intention of answering.

“Gather information,” I responded.

“That’s really helpful,” she said.

“I try,” I said.

She scowled, then looked at me thoughtfully. “You know, Fisher, it’s not too late.”

I had parked and was looking at the facade of the hotel and the people who were busily entering and leaving. But I stopped and turned to her, and when I looked into her eyes, her expression seemed sincere.

“Not too late to what?” I asked, though I suspected I knew what she intended to say.

“Not too late to stop this. Whatever it is. No one knows you’re here, and no one knows that I know you’re here. So you could just leave. Whatever they did to you, and I wouldn’t say it was nothing, but whatever it was, it isn’t worth this.”

“How long did you practice that little speech?” I asked.

For once, Jade didn’t take the bait, and her sincere expression didn’t change at all.

“I mean it,” she said.

She went silent then, looking at me with an expression that was practically begging me to change my mind.

To my surprise, that expression tugged at my heart. Not because I would be dissuaded, because there was no way that could happen. But because of Jade asking, the sincerity that I saw in her face, heard in her voice when she had told me that.

I had no illusions about the source of this sincerity. It would be much easier for her, much happier, if I changed my mind, let her go about her way.

It would be easier for them, too.

The person it wouldn’t be easier for was me.

All my life I had been subject to the whims of others, had been forced to suffer, endure, to make someone else more comfortable.

So as much as I might have appreciated Jade, though I knew her concern was more self-interested than anything, there was no way I was changing my mind.

“It’s a nice gesture, but that’s not going to happen,” I said quietly.

Jade sighed, then looked out the window at the hotel.

“I don’t know how much of this I can take,” she said.

Something in that statement, perhaps the surprising vulnerability I heard there, made me want to protect Jade, promise her that everything would be okay.

But I couldn’t do that, and I wouldn’t lie to her, so instead I said, “You won’t have to endure anything.”

“You seriously believe that?” she asked.

She swung her dark brown eyes back toward me, and the expression now was incredulous. It was more familiar, seemed more like the Jade I had come to know, but that expression also tugged at me. Because absent from it was bluster. Instead there was disbelief.

“I do,” I said.

“Then you’re out of your mind. You think this is easy for me, knowing that you’re going to do God knows what to people who have been nice to me?” she said.

“Count yourself fortunate they’ve been nice to you. Others of us haven’t had that same pleasure. So, Jade, you will endure, and I won’t change my mind. Now I have things to do,” I said.

Jade looked like she wanted to argue, but after a moment, slumped against her seat.

She was again looking out of the window, and were she anyone else I would think she was pouting. But as I looked at her, watched as she watched the building and the people who came and left from it, I knew this newfound silence was driven by something else.

I’d hoped I made it clear that she wasn’t going to change my mind, but I was equally certain that when Jade had set herself to a path there was nothing anyone could do to take her off of it.

So as serious as this was, as unwaveringly devoted to seeing this plan through as I was, I also knew that this conversation wasn’t over.

I’d deal with that when it came time, but for now I got out of the car and retrieved my suit jacket from the backseat.

I left the keys, partially as a show of faith to Jade, partially as an excuse to make a hasty escape if it came to that.

I hoped that it wouldn’t, but I long ago learned to be prepared for anything.

After I got out of the car, I put on the suit jacket, buttoned the buttons, and began walking down the block.

As I moved, with each step I became less Fisher Murphy, and more weary traveler looking for an oasis in the storm.

This facade, or any of my others for that matter, had yet to fail me, but I wouldn’t make the mistake of underestimating the Murphy brothers. So I would tread lightly, get as much information as I could as quickly as I could and then make my way out.

For a moment, my mind flashed to Jade, wondering what it was she was doing, and, to my surprise, what she was thinking.

I pushed that thought aside, didn’t allow it to take purchase in my mind like it so wanted to.

I wouldn’t allow Jade to become a distraction, so by the time I reached the front door of the hotel I was fully in my zone.

“Good morning, sir,” the doorman said as I entered.

I nodded and murmured a hello and walked through the door he held open into a grand and opulent lobby.

To the left was the lounge portion of the hotel. At this hour of the day it wasn’t occupied, but I could easily imagine it teeming with people late into the night.

In fact, I didn’t have to imagine it.

I had seen as much before with my very own eyes, and knew that as soon as the sun dipped below the horizon, the place would be full with an entirely different crowd.

I’d actually considered coming to the hotel then, but then changed my mind.

In clubs and bars and lounges, employees kept their guard up, had to try to keep guests happy while also making sure that nothing got out of hand. That meant they were less amenable to the various questions I might’ve asked, and potentially would have tipped the Murphys off.

But this, this was perfect.

I spotted the front desk and began to walk toward it, not moving at a fast pace because that would garner the wrong kind of attention, but instead walking with a leisurely pace and expression that told the world that yes I was a person in charge, one used to being catered to, but without being overpowering or intimidating.

It seemed funny that I was capable of doing that, but it was a skill I had learned very early on to survive.

I couldn’t do anything about my height or size, but I had been told I had a knack for putting people at ease. I wasn’t exactly sure where that came from, but once I’d learned that, I had used it to my advantage, and over the years I had developed an uncanny ability to extract exactly what I needed without disturbing the surface.

Which was exactly what I intended to do today.

Without stopping to look at the expensive decor and neatness of the hotel, all of it too much and certainly the thing that would penetrate my hard-won control, I walked toward the desk.

As I approached I plastered a smile on my face, and when the clerk behind the desk smiled back, I knew that I had her.

I brightened my smile.

It was show time.

---

Jade

---

I watched Fisher put on his jacket and walk toward the hotel, trying with all my might to ignore how absolutely devastating he looked in it.

Failing like a motherfucker, but trying nonetheless.

From the way he had parked his car, I could see some portion of the hotel but not all of it. I suspected this had been intentional, because I was certain that anyone inside the hotel wouldn’t be able to see this vehicle either.

That was the approach I would have taken, though I guessed I shouldn’t have been surprised that Fisher, apparent criminal mastermind, would have considered such a thing.

I watched him for as long as I could, ignoring the way his tailored suit perfectly fit his broad shoulders. And I certainly didn’t pay attention to his long, confident strides, the way the sunlight glinted off his hair, highlighting the deep auburn strands.

No, I ignored all that and tried to focus on what it was he was doing. What sucked for me was that I couldn’t see him.

I waited a moment, sitting in the car, considering.

A second later, I tossed caution to the wind, not that I could even claim to know what such a thing meant, not after what I had done yesterday. Still, tossing aside what little bit of reason I had left, I got out of the car and walked down the street parallel to the hotel.

From that vantage point I could see inside the lobby, though not fully.

I didn’t want to risk getting closer, but the desire not to risk it versus the imperative need to see what was happening was no contest.

I crossed the street, making sure to walk past the main doors of the hotel as quickly as I could.

It was fortunate for me that the building was centered on the corner of the block, which meant there were two sides of windows that I could look into.

I spotted Fisher immediately.

He was taller than most of the other people inside the lobby, though many were as well-dressed as, if not better than, him.

Still, I had been drawn to him instinctually, and my eyes fell upon him as I watched him talk to a front desk agent.

For a moment I felt the sting of embarrassment, somewhere between stalker and nosy intruder, but I bit that feeling back quickly. It was my responsibility to know what was happening, and that was the only way I could plan a path to stop it.

Still, as I watched Fisher and the front desk agent, my stomach began to twist, then dropped, though not at all from the bagel I had eaten, or the hunger that resulted from not having eaten anything else.

No, the source of this particular pain was one I didn’t want to acknowledge but one that I couldn’t ignore.

I watched Fisher as he talked to the clerk, and thought I might be sick.

A bit of an overreaction if ever there was one, but with the way my emotions were right now, as heightened as this situation was, I decided to cut myself some slack.

And besides, it was kind of sickening to watch.

She was eye fucking him with an intensity that I could see all the way outside of the hotel. Everything about her body language and demeanor screamed “Take me!”

Which I supposed was understandable. Fisher had broken into my house and I wasn’t immune to his looks. A woman confronted with Fisher in full-charm mode didn’t stand a chance.

So I didn’t begrudge her her reaction, but knowing who he was should have made me immune to him.

Fisher didn’t do anything untoward, but I observed the way he talked to her, a faint smile playing at the corner of his lips, one that promised and at the same time left no doubt that he would deliver.

Though I couldn’t hear what he was saying, I could practically imagine his voice, that musical lilt of his accent, the wit and charm that I knew he no doubt would have been conjuring out of thin air.

And when he reached over and handed the front desk agent a pen and then smiled, on instinct I curled my hands into fists, practically furious at what I was watching unfold.

I had no clue what was wrong with me, but watching him this way simultaneously angered me and made me feel incredibly small.

It wasn’t the time and place to think this, of course, but I wondered at the different reactions.

Yeah, I wasn’t nearly as trusting as the seemingly idiotic front desk clerk, but I was a woman. Why wouldn’t he have tried that particular set of tactics on me?

I might have responded to a nice smile, a few jokes, and a good voice. But what had I gotten?

I got the break-in, the ultimatum, and the not-kidnapping.

I tried to swallow back my bitterness at that realization, though doing so didn’t do too much.

In truth, I had no right to be surprised by this.

I wasn’t the kind of woman who got flirted with, certainly not by people who looked like Fisher. And I knew that if he had approached me that way, I wouldn’t have given him the time of day.

Still, knowing those facts as I did didn’t do anything to quell the discomfort, mostly anger and self-loathing, that I felt when I saw the way he interacted with the front desk agent.

I had told myself that life wasn’t for me, and I still firmly believed that, but having it shoved in my face, especially after what had happened before was a bit much.

“Jade?”

On instinct, I turned at the sound of my name and wanted to take off in a sprint when I saw who had called it.

Eden walked toward me with two bags in her hands from a local lunch place near the hotel.

“Hey. You dropping by the hotel?” she asked.

She had her friendly smile on her face, her hair pulled back tight, her entire being exuding warmth and professionalism.

I probably looked like roadkill, but I didn’t care about that, at least not now.

“No,” I said. “I’m meeting someone for lunch.”

I blurted out the words as quickly as I dared, using the first excuse that came to mind.

“Really? Where are you going?” she said.

She looked at me expectantly, her face still in a smile, the demands of social obligations making it impossible for me not to answer.

“That place,” I said, pointing at her bags. “The same one you went to.”

“Oh. It’s great. You gonna grab takeout and eat at the park since they don’t have tables?” she said.

“Yeah,” I replied, frowning.

“That’s great. It’s a really good place, and it’s a nice day out. You’ll have a good time. Someone joining you?” she asked.

“Yeah someone. It was nice to see you, Eden,” I said.

I didn’t wait for her to respond and instead started to walk away.

“It’s good to see you too, Jade,” Eden called.

I looked over my shoulder and waved, but didn’t speak again.

I turned around as quickly as I could, but not quickly enough to miss the expression on Eden’s face.

And if I had felt small before, I felt microscopic now.

I had just given her the coldest of cold shoulders, but that in and of itself wasn’t out of the ordinary.

No, the problem was, that when I looked at Eden I could see that she wasn’t surprised. I tried to think of a time when I had been as welcoming to her as she had been to me, but gave up quickly, knowing that there was no such time.

No, even before all this, I had been a straight-up bitch to her. Had been the same to all of Nya’s new friends, who just so happened to be Murphy wives.

And I freaking hated that.

Those were really nice women, and if I could have just let myself, I might have been able to build real relationships with them. But I hadn’t.

And now, that wouldn’t ever be a possibility.

As much as that stung, made it difficult for me to keep going, I knew that there were other issues at play.

I didn’t dare look back to see if Eden still watched, but I wanted to.

My mind was racing as I thought about what could happen.

If Eden went back to the hotel and saw Fisher there, this entire thing would be over. There was no way she would look at him and not immediately think of her husband or one of his brothers.

That would, invariably, lead to questions, and though I knew very little about Fisher, I had become very familiar with his stance on questions. He wasn’t a fan, and I had no idea what he would do if Eden tried to press the issue.

It occurred to me then that she had been carrying two bags, and it didn’t take a huge leap to figure out who the other one had been for.

Which meant that Michael was in the hotel.

Which meant this entire situation had just gotten kicked up another notch.

Because if Michael was there and saw Fisher, there was no way he wouldn’t see the resemblance, and I had no idea what he would do when he did. But I knew it wouldn’t be anything good.

I shouldn’t have cared about that fact, and tried to tell myself that I didn’t, but the bottom line was I didn’t want to see him hurt. I didn’t want to see Eden or Michael hurt, or Sean and Jess, or Declan and Grace, and certainly not Patrick and Nya.

No, I wanted everyone to make it out of this, wanted this not to even exist.

I had done a shit job of talking Fisher out of this awful plan so far, but I would have to get better.

And hope that Fisher was smart enough to avoid being seen.