Dark Reign (Side): Meeting a snake in a uniform.

Miranda simply clicked her tongue in response to Ise. The officer was far from trustworthy, and due to their interaction the scientist doubted she could keep her mouth shut. She had known Ise was close to being captured, and learning about her foolish Golden girls meant that the officer’s time was shorter than had been expected. The risk was high going in, but dealing with this…woman was turning out to be an illogical decision. Ise was a frozen snake that Miranda offered refuge...she was all too happy when Ise denied the chance to bite Miranda where she slept.

The woman in the purple suit stared at Ise once again. Despite the emotionless gaze, Miranda could see the hidden bloodlust in Ise’s gaze. After watching the manic and sadistic attitude of Kassidy for so long, Miranda had learned the patterns. But unlike Kassidy, Ise was a dog with an ego...a danger in itself. If she thought she could kill Miranda right now, she likely would try. Selling her out would be a pleasure, not a threat.

“...”

“......”

“No.”

The simple word crawled out of Miranda’s air filters and cut the silence like a blade cuts butter. She reached over and snagged the case that contained the drug, settling it in her pocket before moving away. Miranda didn’t spare the officer a glance as she spun on her heel and walked towards the entrance, knocking on the locked double doors in a very particular pattern.

“Our dealings are done. I appreciate you coming to me and showing me your true nature. I can see you pose more risk than benefit in this situation. I will approach this situation with a different tactic.”

The door unlocked, and the two men from before stood waiting outside. They looked as though they had been smoking, judging by the still lingering cloud around the door. Without a word, they walked up towards Ise, ready to escort her out towards the car. Neither of them put their hands on her, but they were both wearing gloves now. Something they had not done before.

Along with the two thugs was a smaller woman in red, who stuck close to Miranda. Likely one of the woman’s grunts, the woman seemed much more excited and chipper than her colleagues, who were contrastingly grim.

“So? How’d it go?”

“Burn it.”

“Aww...Like that, huh?”

The red head sighed before walking back outside, muttering about how nice the warehouse was and that it was a shame. Finally, when her assistant was gone, Miranda would return her gaze once more towards Ise. Her expression hidden behind her mask as her eyes narrowed towards the police officer. Her voice was as cold as ever as the two grunts surrounded Ise with silent, empty expressions.

Spoiler:

“You will be compensated for your time here, Officer Ise. You will be escorted home. You know what will happen if you tell anyone what happened here. If nothing else, this is where we part ways.”

”My true nature? Cute."
Ise had watched how the situation did unfold, putting her head to the side when she had been addressed again. Sighing lightly with relief, she heard the denial of Miranda. Good. This woman just rubbed her the wrong way. Unprofessional, yes. But it was how it was. Maybe she would or rather should resign from the position of drug consultant for AFW as long as there was still time to do so. Things surely would get ugly in the next months if this woman came in. Should her successor take care of the situation.

”It was a pleasure meeting you. Spare the escort, I will find myself a ride."
She replied with the thickest of set up courtesy while standing up, meeting the gaze of Miranda with indifference. No, it hadn´t been a pleasure. Not at all. Certainly she would send an enclosed file to her lawyer in case that Miranda tried something funny.
”I expect the same behavior of you."
That would end the conversation from her side, walking away without looking back.

Ise had assured Miranda that she could find her own transportation, apparently distrusting her goon’s motives and attire. The masked woman simply nodded and walked out with Officer Ise, her goons walking just behind the both of them. One was carrying the party tray, still sealed in it’s store bought wrap. It wasn’t long before Miranda stood in the officer’s way, her red eyes looking at the officer with indifference.

“You are near the waterfront, Officer Ise. Have your driver meet you down the road near the seafood restaurant. This place will not be safe for long. My men will follow behind you to make sure you make it home without issue. Do not attempt to make any calls nor make any attempt to contact anyone once your vehicle arrives. I will know if you do.”

With that, Miranda stepped to the side and allowed Ise to leave. The red head would walk back over to Miranda, handing her a cell phone. It seemed Miranda had an important call, and left her goons to take care of their guest.

“Speaking.”

“I want to know the status of your meeting.”

“Failure. Officer Ise would betray us the moment it became beneficial to do so. I predict she would have tried to copy our formula, as well. Officer Ise also has a pair of subordinates that attract reporters attention. She has no plans on dealing with them. Her work will bring unwanted attention to ours. The risk is too great for our project.”

An annoyed sigh was the only response Miranda would get before the phone line went silent for a couple of minutes. A few bits of cursing could be heard in the background, along with something shattering, but when the voice came back on the line it was as calm as when they first started the call.

“Alright, I’ll trust your judgment. Of course, I expect you to come up with a replacement for Officer Ise’s place in our plans, Miranda. You don’t get to throw away a valuable piece of the puzzle without reconciliation.”

“That...is a logical conclusion.”

“Mmm...Glad you agree. Now, since we are still planning to move forward with this on schedule, that gives you a week to come up with someone capable of covering our tracks long enough for our side to gather momentum. Once you have established this contact, then make sure to implement them quickly. I don’t care how you do it, so long as it is done.”

The line abruptly ended, leaving Miranda silent on the other end. One week to find somebody...difficult, but not impossible. Chances were below fifty percent success, but Miranda didn’t have a choice in the matter. It was time to sink or swim, and as the night drew to a close, she quickly realized that she truly only had six days to complete her mission, five if she were to count the background check she would need to perform to assure her choices loyalty. It seemed like the odds were getting stacked against her the more she thought about things.

“Miranda? The building is ready to go.”

The small, red headed woman was suddenly by Miranda’s side. She held a gasoline can in one hand, and a book of matches with the other. She offered the matches to Miranda, who plucked them out of her hands as she approached the building that now reeked of gasoline. Thankfully, her mask did indeed work. The filters made the obnoxious fumes bearable as Miranda drew closer to the shadowy building. Thought ran around in her head, trying to connect to each other to devise a plan or strategy for her current predicament. It was only when she lit the match did her head finally clear, all doubt burning away with that single flame.

What do I care? So long as my work is done it doesn’t matter what happens to me. I will find a suitable replacement, even if I have to make said replacement myself.

With a simple flick, the match flew from Miranda’s fingers and rolled through the air for a bit until…

The entire side of the building suddenly went up in flames! Miranda’s eyes blinked a couple times as her eyes suddenly adjusted to the now bright plume of fire that was crawling along the side of the shed and quickly engulfing the roof. Even from a good few feet away, she could feel the crackling heat as it began to devour the building. Of course, she felt nothing from gazing at the invigorating flames. She had a job she needed to do.

Miranda turned and beckoned the red headed woman to follow. With the two goons now following Ise, and the building up in flames, there was nothing else to be done here. Miranda needed to find a candidate that could be trusted to do what they needed to when the time came...and she had an excellent idea on where to start…

The End.