Chapter 9 - The Honorarium - Carmen/Phantom

Chapter 9 - The Honorarium [Co-written by Phantom and Carmen, checked by Chase (thanks again)] A few hours before ACME released Phantom to roam the Constituent Country of England, Carmen was in Glasgow at the same time Sarah Nade infiltrated the People's Palace, researching documents for something that caught her interest weeks ago. In the echoing Archives Search Room at The Mitchell, a cellular phone rested on a large wooden table supported by black metal legs. Without sound or movement, the clear orange face blinked until a hand interfered. "Nine hundred," She knew a contact was calling, and proved her identity by giving the local time. The caller reported that they followed rules of conduct, as instructed, and was arranging proper pick up for particular merchandise. "Wait," Carmen interrupted before agreeing with all the details. "Send for the FX3..." Moments later, as the doors of ACME's London facilities opened to unleash a precarious-looking shadow, a two-toned, black and silver 1958 FX3 Austin glided forward, designedly blocking the front of the building. A deep, reddish light atop the car's windshield glowed with the word 'TAXI'. With subtle gusto, the rear window of the car rolled down slowly, revealing a woman who decided not to wear her trademark coat and hat in a city so dominated by video surveillance. After a full moment of silence to measure the beaten, grim man in front of her, she exhaled and her face settled into repose. "Do you need a ride?" Her voice was clear as the latches of the Austin unlocked with a classical click. Not taken aback by an appearance of a V.I.L.E. representative, Phantom didn't expect the boss herself. He would have laughed at the fact that the most wanted thief in the entire world was right outside the London ACME offices but his jaw was starting to ache as the swelling began to announce itself, so keeping movement to a minimum was advisable. Therefore, he simply resigned himself to a nod followed by a faint grunt of appreciation. He gave a cautious glance over his shoulder and pulled the door open, just wide enough to get in but not wide enough for onlookers to see inside. The interior of the car was immaculate and expertly restored in the finest of materials but none of this registered with Phantom, who would normally lavish in such luxury, but this mind was still groggy from the blows and the aftermath of his release. "Is it wise for you to be out in the open like this?" he looked at his boss with a look of surprise and confusion, which was completely lost behind the bandages and glasses for he wondered her motives for coming in person and not sending a note or waiting for a secure location to be arranged. "If wisdom guides us, then we may all be in the wrong profession." As she said this, Carmen checked her secondary mode of escape: two henchmen on motorcycles, inconspicuously following the Austin. Satisfied with their positions, she placed attention back to her employee. As far as V.I.L.E.'s ringleader could remember, blood made her uncomfortable. While this was not a guarded secret, it was hardly something she spoke of frequently. Perhaps worse than seeing actual injuries was imagining what they were like through damaged bandages. A hint of such perplexity breached into her eyes before amiability doused it away. Between the driver's seat and the passenger's was a cabin made into a small refrigerator. It normally held a bottle of Pinot Noir champagne of the Récoltant manipulant variety and two specialized Reidel stemware. For today's purpose, the icebox contained a few cold bottles of Perrier, an ice pack, and a spool of sterile elastic bandages. "I'm surprised you were... interrogated," she opened the cabin and handed her guest a fresh set of bandages. "But the men, they seem to know better." At her words, the henchman sitting on the passenger side lifted a hand in short salute. They rarely talked, but they had their moments of competence. Phantom nervously glanced around at the people in the car and then back to the bandages offered to him. His mind was racing trying to think of what to do, for he knew the reason to change them because he was not the most appealing man to look at normally, without adding the brownish red of drying blood, but to expose himself to a car full of relative strangers could raise 'awkward' questions. He finally came to a decision and turned his entire body into a corner, pulling up his collar as he did so. With one hand, he ripped the old, blood stained rags off his face, placing them in his pocket to burn later, with the other hand, he gave his face a quick check over before re-wrapping his head in the fresh, clean bandages. Carmen watched the apprehensive man next to her. Having observed him as outspoken with some unpolished manners, she felt prudently guilty for making him nervous. Her own modesty emerged as she averted her eyes to give him partial privacy. When Phantom finished, she moved to open a monitor panel behind the headrest of the seat in front of him. "On to other matters," the screen, while off, doubled as a reflective mirror. "Who, precisely, did this?" The newly re-bandaged man looked back to check his work in the mirror that was provided and finally faced his boss. "Urm pardon... oh yes this," tapping his pocket containing the blooded bandages, "This was the handy work of a certain Agent Zeal, Janus Zeal or you may know him as 'Rook'. And do not be alarmed, I have seen him do much worse." Phantom allowed himself a slight chuckle as he thought over the events he had just encountered with the man he once knew, "How time can change a man, not just his appearance." The one-time ACME Agent was not entirely happy to hear about Janus Zeal, but something in Phantom's tonality informed her it was a private matter with its own course. Removing a bottle of water from the chiller cabinet and, after quickly testing it with a thin sliver of pink paper, Phantom took a quick sip then asked a question that had been bothering him since his arrest. "Did the buyer get his prize?" Carmen was vaguely amused as she saw him test the water, but she hid any sign of that when asked about the buyer and the prize. "Thank you for taking care of that so quickly. I wouldn't count on anyone else." Eluding the answer, she exhaled lightly. "I never took you for a shy man," Carmen quietly commented in jest, placing the remaining fiber gauze back into the ice cabinet and changing the topic in the process. "Shy? What are you talking about? A man can't have some privacy without being shy or vulnerable?" Phantom sensed something was amiss from Carmen's body language but was too distracted by the 'shy' comment to enquire into it. His reply was so harsh and so uncalled for that even the driver could not help but notice the agent's obvious issues regarding his face. One of the things Carmen understood about the male ego was its reluctance to admit certain weaknesses, whether or not obvious to everyone else. That defensive burst was exactly what V.I.L.E.'s ringleader wanted from her comment, in addition to deterring any suspicion on her lack of answer about the buyer. Phantom proved that he was still outspoken, quick tempered, and the same man who used to complain when he could about the identification module for the elevator. This pleased her. "The cab will be taking us to Heathrow. Would you like to arrange a stop?" She suspected from his pronunciation that he might have spent time in the area. He paused for a few seconds, breathing heavily trying to regain his posture. He had to control himself; he could not lose it in front of the boss like that, so he muttered a hastened apology. Then he grumbled, "No, this city holds nothing for me... anymore, I will accompany you to the airport and we will part our ways there." A self-congratulatory quirk of her lips appeared. Any other woman, if not a wife or beneficiary of this irritable man's good favors, might have already turned him into a frog... figuratively speaking. From the moment they met, Carmen saw Phantom's temper as potential. "What are your plans once we part?" Hoping he would head back to headquarters, this was her way of introducing the idea. Phantom contemplated his options. He should ideally go into hiding for a while, to allow any heat that surrounded him to dissipate but that would be a waste of time and that does not pay the bills, not that money mattered for a while, once the heist money came through. He looked at Carmen and could sense she wanted him for something. He had come to a decision. "I think I will go back to headquarters," he looked out of the window to see the glass and steel monstrosity that was Heathrow in the distance, "...Lick my wounds and await your next task." Such a secure complex and the world's most wanted thief was just going to 'hop' on a plane and fly off, Phantom shook his head subconsciously in disbelief, then realized she must have some other arrangement organized. Carmen turned sharply to the man next to her in reaction to his answer. She might add mind reading to his cache of skills if he did this more often. Her eyes followed his glance out the window to the airport where a plane baring the golden mark of Emirates descended against clouded skies. This reminded V.I.L.E.'s dignitary that within hours, she would be in Jordan. "Good, because I'll need you," she stated quietly. "This cab will take you to a jet ready to leave the runway." She began speaking of a rough itinerary, "There will be a few stops for fuel on the way to headquarters, but you won't need to leave the plane..." While she may not know exactly how much pain a man with his condition suffered daily, she understood that resting was universally beneficial. "You won't mind that I withhold where I'm going," that was not a question. It was better for both of them, albeit exponentially better for her, if he did not know. "Will you need some time to heal, say, one week?" She had other questions in mind but would respectfully save them for later, in some measure, when other pairs of ears were absent. Phantom nodded as Carmen gave him his instructions, but when she came to taking time off he stopped. "There will be no need to take time off; it is only a few cuts with a bit of swelling." The airport was now looming above them; people were passing by the car like so many ants. Security guards sat behind desks and lurked menacingly by metal detectors as CCTV cameras wired absently from the ceiling. He disliked flying due to the vulnerability of being in the air and there was no real escape if he became cornered, he would normally never get on a flight he had not organized himself but he trusted Carmen for her stringent security checks and it would be a great dishonor to show such distrust to his boss. The taxi passed through several cautionary audits as it entered the airport towards Heathrow's Terminal 5. A short discussion between one of the henchmen and an employee of British Airways revealed the car was expected. Presumably, other information exchanged hands prior to their arrival and the man in bandages was promptly ushered to an outbound jet. Carmen remained in the Austin. "Nice of you to come with us, boss," the driver said lowly, "that guy gives me the creeps." "Nice," she replied in a light tone, "is an overstatement." Trust was vital to the Mastermind's operations, so much so that she would squander immeasurable lengths for absolute certainty. Phantom remained one of the few agents whose decision to join V.I.L.E. was unclear to its leader. Carmen remembered offering him a spot among the ranks, but was surprised when he accepted, almost doubting his sincerity. Eventually, she needed to weigh if his skills were worth her unanswered questions. The result was perfect for now, and she may one day apologize for this charade... but not while conditions were favorable.