River O'riley

... a few days later ...

-KNOCK-KNOCK-

"Come in!" A cool feminine call echoes from the other side of the office door and I twist the doorknob to step inside at her confident beckon..

"Afternoon, Mam'." I close the door behind me, pacing through the spacious office to stand before the commander and chief.

Specter's Head Director, the refined matriarch, Iris Santiago, looks up at me from her paperwork with her sleek, honey blonde bob shimmering under the fluorescent lights.. "Mr O'riley! When I saw your name in my schedule, I almost fell over.. I'm pleased to see the most decorated of my Marines remembers who I am.. I don't think you've ever come directly to me, in all your six years with us.. To what do I owe the honor?"

"I had'ney reason to bother ya before, mam'.." I reply with a polite nod, folding my hands behind my back to stand at attention in front of her desk.

"Oh? But you do now?" She chuckles humorlessly.. "Outstanding.." Steepling her fingers beneath her chin, she leans forward to place her elbows on the glass table-top and focuses her laser-like stare on me..

I skip the small talk and get straight to the point, having a sneaking suspicion that Iris would prefer a more direct approach.. "It's my understandin' that ye' have a workin' relationship with The Red Dragon.. One that keeps Triad activity limited to Little China."

The smile slips from her face to be replaced by a disapproving scowl.. "I wouldn't exactly call it a 'relationship'.."

"But Fei Xiao takes yer' calls." I assert surely, certain of the fact and refusing to be persuaded otherwise..

"Have you been talking to Logan?" She frowns over her folded hands..

I shake my head.. "Ney.. I dunno who that is, mam'.."

She breathes an alleviated sigh, spiking my curiosity about this 'Logan' lad she doesn't seem to want me talking to.. I wonder who he is and what kind of secrets he knows.. But that's a question for another day..

"Specter has no conflict with the Triad, River.. Whatever this is about, I would advise that you leave well enough alone." She waves me off, as if hoping to end our meeting right there, determined to say no more on the matter..

I shrug before I continue, unapologetically pressing her.. "I can'nae do that, boss.. It's already been done.."

"What has been done?" She questions me unenthusiastically, edging on bored and working overtime to convince me to drop the subject as she returns to her paperwork, picking up her biro to begin signing pages..

"I sunk a Mountain Master." If looks could kill, I'd be a dead man right about now.. The way her hazel eyes snap up to mine and scold me in maternal disappointment would make me laugh if she weren't so genuinely terrifying..

The bosslady isn't exactly known for her soft-touch.. Actually, she isn't known for any kind of tolerance. Iris runs a tight ship and deals with the biggest dogs.. She is a formidable opponent for any intelligence heavy hitter or federal fuckwit to face..

She holds me in her scathing stare, her left hand curling mercilessly around the pen in her fingers, bringing the plastic to its snapping point.. " You fucking what?"

"I need ye' to facilitate a meetin' with the Red Dragon.." I make my request, wading deeper into dangerous territory..

"YOU FUCKING WHAT!" Iris turns white.. Then red.. Then finally.. Calm and still.. The roll of her emotions are unreadable, bar for the obvious anger.. She looks as if she'd like to shoot me, or maybe climb across the desk to strangle me..

"You absolute-fucking-idiot-paddy-prick-jar-head-dumb-irish-fuck-asshole!" She hisses between gritted teeth.. "I'm not setting up shit--"

I hold up a hand to placate her.. "Ye' will set it up, Iris.. 'Cause I know it was ye' who contracted Beckett to boost cargo and disrupt Triad shipments.. I just don'ae know why.."

She flushes, chewing on her rage and figuring me out, catching up quickly.. "You shot Dylan.."

"O'Aye, and you covered it up.. Ya know, I wondered how Homicide managed to pull nothin' about Beckett, couldn'ae even get a rap sheet on the guy, records were sealed up tighter'n a ducks arse.. Even weirder how Johnny just disappeared.. I started thinkin'.. Who has that kind of pull? And the clean up team to make it happen?"

She says nothing, confirming through silence that I am on the right track, so I continue with confidence..

"The way I see it, ye' sent a random psycho out to do a job any one of ye' agents could've handled.. Which leads me to thinkin'-- if ye' maybe didn'ae have authorisation from the higher ups.."

I rub my chin thoughtfully, trying to work out her play while she stares back at me blankly.. "Nah, ye' wouldn'ae risk that.. Somebody cleared ya.. But maybe-- ye' didn'ae want Specter involved for a reason.. Maybe so that Fei Xiao couldn'ae trace the missin' shipments back to you? Ahh-- see-- that second one is startin' to makes a lot o'sense to me.."

She sniffs a dismissive snort.. "Beckett was as competent as any of--"

"Bullshite lady.." I scoff.. "Ye' know he killed Kempsey! He wanted me to take out a witness too.. Was part of the deal or'd he come up with that all on his own'?"

"There's a witness?" She ignores my question to focus on the part that interests her most..

The witness.. Frankie..

There's not a chance in hell I'm about to offer Frankie up to The Lioness.. Fuck knows what kind of trading pieces she'd be turned into in Iris's possession..

So, I lie convincingly, something I'm becoming increasingly practiced at of late.. "Just some pretty little downtown trick.."

Iris glowers at my non-answer.. "I never authorised those orders, O'riley.. No collateral was approved.. And neither was John Kempsey's involvement.."

I roll my eyes.. "Aye, well Beck just about had em' both put down to save his secrets.. He wasn'ae tryin' to take out the Mountain Master, the son'of'a'bitch was workin' with him.. So now, tell me again how competent Dylan was?"

"Since you were the one who ended up doing the job he was hired for, I'd say his resume stats were greatly exaggerated.." Iris growls beneath her breath.. "But his value was never in his competency, River.. It was his expendability.."

"What?" I blink, taken aback to hear her admit her operational tactics so freely..

But truthfully, it makes sense from a risk minimisation perspective.. Iris hadn't wanted to place any of her agents in unnecessary danger.. A decision I can actually respect..

"He wasn't there to disrupt anything.." She points to the chair opposite her desk, directing me to sit and reluctantly I comply, giving her the chance to explain herself.. "I caught word that Jun had been looking to move up in the ranks, to take the Dragon's throne for himself.. I couldn't allow that to happen.. Beckett was employed to eliminate the threat.."

My suspicious gaze narrows on her as she straightens the collar of her crisp white blazer with a nonchalant half shrug.. "Since when did ye' give a fuck what the Triads do to eachother?"

She sighs.. "It might be hard for you to understand, since this is about diplomacy.. Swinging cocks and big guns don't solve every problem, Marine."

I smirk, sure she just insulted my intelligence but it doesn't bother me if she thinks I'm an idiot.. Really it only works in my favour.. Keeping her expectations low.. "O'course.. I'm just a big dumb dick with shite-for brains who takes ye' orders, so why don't ye' explain it to me real simple like, Mam.."

"I didn't say that.." She rolls her eyes.. "Sometimes, River darling, the devil you know is the lesser of two evils.. Fei Xiao contains his Triads, he is the only thing keeping the balance.. If his men were to spill out of Chinatown to cross with the Bermuda gangs, it would mean the end of all Specter negotiated truces.. Pandora's box would open and there'd be no putting the Dragon back to sleep.."

"Alrite'.." I accept her honesty, but still something feels off.. Not quite right.. "So why outsource it? Why the need to keep yourself clear?"

She smiles faintly, her peach painted lips tightly pursed.. "If I've learned anything in this thankless position, it's that no man wants to be rescued by a woman, Mr O'riley.. Emasculation can lead to volatile reactions.. Especially from men like Xiao.. Like I said, I'm not about to risk the peace that has taken me over a decade to construct."

I nod slowly, starting to see the bigger picture she speaks of.. Between the constantly warring ternion of bikers, the Italian families and the Russian Bratva brotherhood, the city doesn't need anymore gang violence spilling out onto the downtown streets.. "Ye' meanto say that ye' agreed to stay out of his affairs.. That's how you keep the peace?"

She taps her nose with the tip of her finger.. "Now you're beginning to get it."

"S'poze I am.." I hum unhappily..

"Good.. So now you tell me, Marine.. Where is she?" Iris queries cooly..

"Who?" I act as dumb as she assumes me to be.. I know exactly who she is asking for and no way is she going to get it..

I won't give Frankie up, not to her..

I won't see her used as a political pawn in whatever game Iris wants to play with the Triad..

"The prostitute.." She snaps with all the grace of a pissed off swan, elegant but engaged and on the attack..

I shrug lazily.. "I dunno, probably back on the street somewhere.."

Iris eyes me, doubtful and dark, assessing me with so much scrutiny in her firm stare that its practically palpable.. "You just let her go?"

I toss an easy grin back her way.. "Nahh, she's not gonna say nothin'."

"Hmm, yes... I'd heard you have a soft spot for the streetwalkers.." Another condescending smirk purses her peachy-painted lips..

I can't help but chuckle at her dig.. "I wouldn't call it soft."

"Charming." Her jaw tightens at my inappropriate humour.. But she asked for it, I mean, set me up for it she did..

"Mam' I can assure ye', the details of yer' operation are safe with me, I've never breeched confidentiality, 'ave I? All I need is an introduction.. Get me in a room with Xiao and yer' little problem disappears..."

"Little problem?" She waves me off.. "Yeah right.. I'll have twice the mess to clean up, because the Dragon will kill you--"

"He's not gonna kill me." I assert with all the confidence of a man who is in possession of a precious princess worth literal millions..

"Oh.. And why wouldn't he? You've disposed of his Deputy." She quirks a curious blonde brow..

"I happen to have somethin' he wants." I wink..

Her honey-hazel eyes glimmer with intense interest.. "Oh? What would that be?"

"Sorry mam', but I can'ae say.." I take Frankie's approach of 'can't say', surprised to find that it actually works on the she wolf, Iris..

Iris looks me up and down.. "You know.. I'd fire an Alpha Agent over this kind of insubordinate fuckery.."

"Good thing I ain't Alpha, I'm Bravo.. I work recovery so moonlightin' is written into my contract, mam, I made sure o'that.. And it's a good thing too since all us boys seem to get is yer' scraps and the shite that's too messy for ye' precious A-team.." With my arms folded across my chest I grin across at her, undeterred by anything to come out of her mouth so far..

She sniffs.. "I think you'll find that conflict of interest is written in there too."

"There's no conflict here, not yet anyways.. And if ye' set up the meet, there don'ae need to be.." I reply patiently.

I might do some dumb shit, but I'm not a stupid man, despite what Iris seems to think of me.. I wasn't about to walk into the lionesses den and risk my paycheck without a solid play.

Her defensive bristle gives way to irritated apathy, as if she already knows she has lost this negotiation.. "If you fuck me on this--"

"I wouldn'ae dare dream of fuckin' you, Iris." I grin a cheeky smirk.. "I doubt I could even handle it--"

She expertly ignores my flirtatious japes.. "I will set up the meeting-- and then this conversation never happened.. Understand? And you better never come in here again, after fucking up one of MY operations, trying to blackmail me with it.. Do I make myself clear, Marine? Next time I see you, all I want to hear is the sound of you licking my boots."

"Aye' Mam." I nod.. "Get me that meetin', and I'll lick whatever ye' tell me to."

She laughs, feathery soft and thoroughly entertained.. "Good Lord.. Get the hell out of my office, River, before I change my mind.."