28-03-2019, 03:18 PM
"Well, then," Mander said, understanding where she was going, but not wanting to. "If detached, professional protection is your need, I know some blokes..."
She cut him off.
"There's a reason I came to you; I think you already know what it is."
"Yeah, I guessed it." Mander shrugged, leaning back and looking down at her. "But ya do recall that my lack of personal integrity is how we met, right? If you're lookin' for someone to trust with yer life, why the bloody hell would ya come to me?"
Helena's cigarette had burnt out, so she lit another.
"A trusted friend once said that 'danger' isn't a word that I use often. Well, I'm using it now, Mander. I am going to walk into danger." She took a deep drag and a long drink while she let that sink in.
"Danger the likes of which, I couldn't possibly expose a trusted friend to. The kind where I need someone who's more valuable than a friend; far rarer than a man I trust."
Contessa Helena de San Finzione took a longer drag this time.
"I need a man I've already bought."
Mander grinned at that and downed his pint. Helen did the same.
"Therein lies the snag, Your Countessness. I'm bought and paid for. I've got my island, got the birds, got my lawn; the pub's a work in progress. And 'alf the fun of that is tracking the stuff down online, and doin' it meself, so that's not somethin' I'm after. Your 'little check,' covers anythin' else I might need."
"Certainly true." Helena took out her phone, searching through her photos. "And you're bringing it all here via the motorboat. I imagine the snooker table had to come in... what? Two, three trips?"
"Three's right." Mander said, thinking.
"I don't even want to know about the satellite dish. But I think we understand each other, Mander. The way Warren understood me. I know two people who were lucky enough to be born best friends. I'll tell you about them; you'll meet them soon. But you and me? We're both born criminals, man. I didn't stop being one just because they put a fucking tiara on my head."
"You've a throne an' you buy islands, Countessness. At your level, I think the proper term is 'crook.'"
Helen backed up a bit, frowning.
"That genuinely fucking hurts, Mander. Please don't ever call me that again. A crook is a politician, or an oil baron, or an internet health guru. A used car salesman! A banker, a fucking BANKER, Mander, is a crook! The people whom absolutely nothing you do to them is wrong, because they don't steal politely like us; they live, eat, and breathe fucking people over. THAT'S what a 'crook' is!"
"You're correct. I apologize. Your Countessness is absolutely a proper criminal."
"Thank you. That, from an Eastender, means a lot. Now, Mander, you like things you never had. I'm running out of them, but I enjoy that feeling, too. My yacht, for example." She showed him the photos. "It's only three years old. I don't really need a new one, but I'll likely get a decent trade-in for it. Same with the helicopter. Eurocopter isn't even around anymore; bought out by Airbus, so I need a whole new model. I'm sure I'd get some kind of deal on one or the other or both if I bought two. Of course, then you'd need to put down a proper helipad and build a bigger dock. You'd have to clear some more land and level it out, but hey, you're right about having plenty of palms left after. Then there's the concrete to lay and reinforce all by yourself, who wants to do all that? And the maintenance, ugh! I don't know if you can even fly one, anyway. If not, you'd need lessons; but Ernst is certainly qualified to teach. He lets me take the other stick for fun, now and then. I'm learning a lot."
Helena stood and walked back into the lighted area of the pub.
"Wanna take a spin?" She said with a smile.
Mander smiled back.
She cut him off.
"There's a reason I came to you; I think you already know what it is."
"Yeah, I guessed it." Mander shrugged, leaning back and looking down at her. "But ya do recall that my lack of personal integrity is how we met, right? If you're lookin' for someone to trust with yer life, why the bloody hell would ya come to me?"
Helena's cigarette had burnt out, so she lit another.
"A trusted friend once said that 'danger' isn't a word that I use often. Well, I'm using it now, Mander. I am going to walk into danger." She took a deep drag and a long drink while she let that sink in.
"Danger the likes of which, I couldn't possibly expose a trusted friend to. The kind where I need someone who's more valuable than a friend; far rarer than a man I trust."
Contessa Helena de San Finzione took a longer drag this time.
"I need a man I've already bought."
Mander grinned at that and downed his pint. Helen did the same.
"Therein lies the snag, Your Countessness. I'm bought and paid for. I've got my island, got the birds, got my lawn; the pub's a work in progress. And 'alf the fun of that is tracking the stuff down online, and doin' it meself, so that's not somethin' I'm after. Your 'little check,' covers anythin' else I might need."
"Certainly true." Helena took out her phone, searching through her photos. "And you're bringing it all here via the motorboat. I imagine the snooker table had to come in... what? Two, three trips?"
"Three's right." Mander said, thinking.
"I don't even want to know about the satellite dish. But I think we understand each other, Mander. The way Warren understood me. I know two people who were lucky enough to be born best friends. I'll tell you about them; you'll meet them soon. But you and me? We're both born criminals, man. I didn't stop being one just because they put a fucking tiara on my head."
"You've a throne an' you buy islands, Countessness. At your level, I think the proper term is 'crook.'"
Helen backed up a bit, frowning.
"That genuinely fucking hurts, Mander. Please don't ever call me that again. A crook is a politician, or an oil baron, or an internet health guru. A used car salesman! A banker, a fucking BANKER, Mander, is a crook! The people whom absolutely nothing you do to them is wrong, because they don't steal politely like us; they live, eat, and breathe fucking people over. THAT'S what a 'crook' is!"
"You're correct. I apologize. Your Countessness is absolutely a proper criminal."
"Thank you. That, from an Eastender, means a lot. Now, Mander, you like things you never had. I'm running out of them, but I enjoy that feeling, too. My yacht, for example." She showed him the photos. "It's only three years old. I don't really need a new one, but I'll likely get a decent trade-in for it. Same with the helicopter. Eurocopter isn't even around anymore; bought out by Airbus, so I need a whole new model. I'm sure I'd get some kind of deal on one or the other or both if I bought two. Of course, then you'd need to put down a proper helipad and build a bigger dock. You'd have to clear some more land and level it out, but hey, you're right about having plenty of palms left after. Then there's the concrete to lay and reinforce all by yourself, who wants to do all that? And the maintenance, ugh! I don't know if you can even fly one, anyway. If not, you'd need lessons; but Ernst is certainly qualified to teach. He lets me take the other stick for fun, now and then. I'm learning a lot."
Helena stood and walked back into the lighted area of the pub.
"Wanna take a spin?" She said with a smile.
Mander smiled back.
Like, Comment and Give Rating.
![[+]](https://xossipy.com/themes/sharepoint/collapse_collapsed.png)