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Loyalties

Xen Hets sat behind his marble desk on his proverbial throne over Palamont. He sat in the darkness, muzzle resting in his paw, waiting. His desk was neatly organized, with the appropriate files that he needed for this late night meeting. There were questions for which the person he was meeting needed to account for.

Hets was very disappointed.

Light crept into the room when one of the large doors to his office was pushed open without warning, even though Hets expected no less. When the door closed, cutting off all light, Hets could hardly see the figure walking toward him, and had to guess where he was based on how fast he had seen him walking.

A sealed manila envelope flopped on the green desk. Hets's eyes darted to it, then back to his guest, still not moving.

"Done." Alias said aloud.

"That was completed rather quickly." Hets replied, in a low tone.

"Because a drunken, overweight gopher isn't much of a challenge. Hell, you could have had Sylvia do it."

Hets shook his head. "Trust me, I have you both doing very different things that the other would doubtfully ever consider doing."

Alias's eyes narrowed, slightly cocking his head to the side. "What happened to the happy-go-lucky spirit from last night? Can't find another female to abuse?"

Hets sat forward, rolling his eyes. "Please." He dismissed. "You just murdered another in cold blood, and you are condemning me?" He grabbed a folder and slid it across the desk. Alias picked it up expecting another assignment, but found a stack of photos. "How long have you been working with the Lambdas?"

Alias examined the photos of a meeting he had with a mid level capo from the Lambda mafia. One of which showed the black fox accepting an envelope of cash.

Alias closed the folder and slung it back to Hets, hitting his chest and sliding to his lap.

"Since when do you have the audacity to follow me?" He growled.

Hets leaned forward. "When I have reason to be concern about your affairs with a rival organization. I thought we had an understanding." Hets replied in an acidic tone, however did not lose his placid outer appearance.

Alias scoffed amused. "Understanding? The only understanding I have is that I do a job, and you pay me. My services are not exclusive to you." The black fox replied heated. "Maybe you got Atir to be your bitch, but believe me, I'm far from that."

"What did they contract you for?" Hets asked in a demanding tone.

"Are you kidding me?" Alias asked, giving Hets a flabbergasted look. "Do you really think I'm going to tell you that?"

"I am sorry, but even though you are not a businessman, can you not see the conflict of interest here?" Hets shot back. "I suppose the real question is, did they contract you, or should I just buy some radio time?"

Alias's face went from annoyed to somewhere between pissed off and that of bloodlust.

"What are you saying, Hets?" Alias hissed. "Are you calling me a sell out?"

Even at the top of the ladder, Hets knew that the greatest insult you could ever bestow on someone was calling them a snitch. If word got out that you were accepting bribes and payoffs for information, usually two things happened. First off you lost all your street credit and you'd never find work in The Underground again. Second, whomever you sold out would surely have you killed as soon as possible. Not that it didn't happen every second of the day, as information trade was as highly lucrative as it was dangerous. But openly accusing someone of that was not only insulting, but also dangerous for both parties.

"I call things as I see them, Alias." Hets replied. "I need to know where your loyalties lie."

"You know as well as I when I accept a job, that it stays between me and my client." Alias shot back at Hets, anger getting ahold of him. "I'd no sooner sell you out to Lambda than them to you!" Alias leaned across the desk, getting in Hets's face. "Where you come off thinking you can keep tabs on me, I have no idea. But in the future, I'll be sure to keep a closer watch. Believe me, if I ever find someone who's tailing me, and you know I will, I'll mail them back to you in pieces!"

"I suppose if I requested you severing ties with Lambda, you would refuse?"

Alias sighed, stepping back in exasperation. "I do jobs for you, but I don't work for you. There's a reason why I'm a mercenary. That doesn't mean I'm on loan to you!"

"I don't suppose there is anything I can say to dissuade you?" Hets asked.

"Hets, I keep our work between us. But that's as far as my loyalty goes. You knew this when you became a client of mine."

Hets slowly nodded. He remained quite, thinking about what Alias told him. He then shrugged.

"Well, I assumed that our work relationship was stronger than that. I am simply surprised that is all." Hets rose to his feet and held his arms out shrugging. "However, if you assure me that our business is our own, then I see no reason for not believing you."

Alias didn't respond. Brow furrowed, he raised an eyebrow. "That's it? You call me a snitch, and then everything's cool?"

Hets plucked a folder from a steel holder on his desk as he walked around to Alias. "Alias, you have completed every task I've assigned you with efficiency and ambiguity. Your meeting with Lambda was surprising. However, you must understand my concern. If I cared little, well, my tenure as CEO of the Lazarus Institute would have expired long ago." Hets extended his arm, folder in paw. "If you are still interested." He offered.

Alias looked down at Hets's paw, then grabbed it. He didn't say another word, as he turned and walked out the door. Hets watched him leave, the same look returning to his eyes that he held when Alias first walked in. Hets sat quietly, thinking. Alias was a good wild card to have in his back pocket. But if anyone could use that same card, that lessened his advantage.

Hets had finally set in motion something that had been building for a long time.