Chapter Text
Throbbing headache? Check.
Nausea from the throbbing headache? Sure, why not.
Her gear missing? Sounds about right.
Waking up in a strange place that suspiciously looks like a cell? No sweat, be out in time for tea.
Handcuffed in addition to being locked in a cell? Oh you have got to be fucking kidding me.
Chloe has had worse nights. She’s sure of that, but at the moment, she is hard-pressed to think of any worse than her current predicament. One moment she was surveying a temple of Dahak on the hunt for the royal torque of Queen Boudicca, and the next she was knocked out by an unseen assailant. Harry Flynn had warned her she was walking into a warzone, but the few barely trained rebels she had met made her realize the local government was overhyping this threat to crackdown on the population in general.
She’s still not entirely clear on how someone snuck up on her. The rebels did not have the resources to waste on a collector of antiquities like herself, and from what she saw of the local government, they preferred shock and awe to stealth. Oh well, don’t plan on being here long enough to get to know my captors anyway.
Fighting off another wave of nausea from her head injury, Chloe begins looking around the cell for anything to pick the lock on her cuffs. She figures at some point her jailors will want to interrogate her, and she can use that moment to escape.
She doesn’t get very far in her search before she hears the tell-tale sound of boots approaching her cell door. Well shit. Whatever escape plan she improvises will have to be without the use of her hands. She tenses waiting for her cell door to creak open, but instead of hearing a door open, she hears a South African accent that she is sure she would find attractive in a less incarcerated state.
***********************
“A couple of books on the region, some climbing gear, and a small golden trinket, and you are convinced this woman is a spy. She is most likely an archeologist or a tourist, which would make us kidnappers not mercenaries,” Nadine sighs.
She is so over this job- has been from the start really. And now with a potential kidnapping situation developing, Nadine wants to wash her hands of this whole mess. She had warned her father that there was little profit in becoming the government’s instrument of terror, but he has been obsessed lately with finding a military campaign that would earn him back some of the prestige he used to have. This latest job is just another in a string of failed jobs that have left Shoreline on the brink of financial insolvency.
It’s only a lifetime of having concepts like duty and preserving her family’s honor etched into the very fabric of her being that keeps her in Shoreline. It’s hard to imagine a new life when this is all she has ever known.
“Ma’am, the briefing we received when we took this job warned us the rebels would use any means necessary to overthrow the government. ”
“Look around Orca. Have you encountered any real rebels? They are mostly university students. Shoreline is here more to put fear in the locals than to put down any real rebellion. And now you have most likely kidnapped some hapless tourist. If this gets out, do you think anyone will want to hire us?” Nadine nearly growls. Normally, she has more patience with her men, but this job has her on edge. Shoreline literally cannot afford another disaster at the moment.
Orca starts to speak, but Nadine puts up her hand and says, “Just open the door and let’s meet your spy.”
***********************
Shoreline. Mercenaries. Chloe could work with that. Her headache slowly receding, she begins running through her options: Forget the treasure and play the tourist or appeal to Shoreline’s bottom line.
Chloe knows she has the skills to play the tourist angle and pretend she just happened to stumble into the wrong temple at the wrong time. Shoreline would then turn her over to the local government where they would use her as a PR stunt to warn against the “dangerous” rebels. She knows it would be easy to escape from that scenario, but it also would rule out her hunt for Boudicca’s royal torque for a long while. Fuck that. Chloe knows how to walk away, but she also knows when she can still walk away with a buck or two.
And as much as she hates sharing her treasure, Chloe knows telling the truth is her best play. Mercenaries like money, she likes money, and this treasure was worth a lot of money to her client. A win, win in her book if she can only convince Shoreline’s leader to go along with her racket.
When the cell door finally opens, Chloe is not surprised to see the enchanting accent she had heard moments before belonging to an equally attractive woman. The woman’s drab Shoreline fatigues try their best to obscure the woman’s beauty but ultimately fail spectacularly. Then again, Chloe thinks it would be hard to make an Amazonian Goddess look bad in any outfit. A light dusting of freckles on gorgeous dark skin, muscles carved from a lifetime of training, and flawless curls framing an elegant face made Chloe suddenly wish she and Shoreline’s leader were meeting for the first time under completely different circumstances. Unprofessional much. Chloe chides herself for lusting after this woman whom she assumes to be Shoreline’s leader.
Pushing aside her lascivious thoughts for a moment, Chloe offers Shoreline’s leader and her male companion a cheery “G’day, mates. Chloe Frazer, collector of antiquities, at your service. I would shake your hand, but I seem to be a bit locked up at the moment.”
Nadine’s face remains passive at the greeting, still assessing Chloe for any threat she may pose. Her brain and other parts of her body helpfully supply the fact that even slightly disheveled, Chloe is stunning. Ignoring the flare of decidedly unprofessional interest in Chloe coursing through her body, Nadine runs through all the potential scenarios for trouble and concludes that Chloe is a minimal threat. Turning towards Orca’s direction, Nadine remarks, “See Orca, not a spy.”
“Not a tourist either, Ma’am”
Ignoring Orca’s comment, Nadine turns back towards Chloe and holds out her hand to Orca. “I am Nadine Ross, Shoreline’s leader. My father is usually in charge, but for this job, I’m running the show. I am going to unlock your cuffs now, but if you try anything, I can assure you, you will live just long enough to regret it. Understand?”
“Oh yes, Ma’am,” Chloe mocks. She already knows she is going to have a lot of fun with Shoreline’s leader. Meeting Nadine almost makes up for the concussion Shoreline assuredly gave her.
After retrieving the keys from Orca, Nadine moves to unlock Chloe’s cuffs. As Nadine is turning the key, Chloe cannot resist stroking Nadine’s hand with her fingers.The slight touch of Chloe’s fingers feels like a jolt of electricity to Nadine, and it takes a considerable amount of discipline to not audibly gasp at the contact.
Needing to put some distance between herself and Chloe, Nadine quickly finishes up her task and moves to stand beside Orca. She berates herself for allowing a practical stranger, who may be strikingly beautiful in that you would have to be dead not to notice how magnificent she is way, affect her so much. She is Nadine Ross. She can bring an entire region to it’s knees on her order. She needs to get back in control of the situation and figure out what she wants to do with Chloe. “So Frazer, you are a collector of antiquities, eh? That’s a fancy way of saying petty thief.”
Chloe takes no offense at the term. She knows who she is, and if she had any moral qualms about what she does then she would have left the business ages ago. “Harsh. But as a hired killer masquerading as a soldier you would know all about dressing up job descriptions.” Chloe watches Nadine shrug as if she was saying fair enough.
In a perfect world, Nadine would let Chloe go on her merry treasure hunting way...but neither one of them live in a perfect world. Nadine knows if she lets Chloe go free without nothing to show for it her men will begin to think her soft, leaving her with the option of selling Chloe out to someone Chloe has crossed or for a take of whatever treasure Chloe was after. While Nadine is not really interested in getting involved with the treasure hunting racket, Shoreline desperately needs the money right now. With the rebel threat proving to be almost non-existent, she can spare the time and resources on this excursion. And she’s not terribly opposed to spending more time with Chloe. Not that she would admit that to anyone, especially herself. “Now that we all know each other, what kind of antiquities were you collecting in that temple?”
“Just a little trinket, nothing that would interest a professional mercenary like yourself.” Chloe knew Shoreline would be interested in finding the treasure.
Nadine just stares at her, knowing Chloe would have never came to an active warzone if there wasn’t serious profit to be made. “Try again, Frazer.”
“Now that would be telling. However, I’m sure that we can come to some agreement. Say you let me out of this cell, maybe provide safe passage back to the temple, and I could see myself cutting you in for say….” Chloe pauses so she can appear to think about the percentage. She knows she is not getting out of this cell without giving up half of the take, but she also knows that the percentage of the take cannot be her idea. “... 25 percent of the take.”
“25 percent of the take,” Nadine scoffs. “I don’t think you understand how much a night in my brig costs, and I do have a policy for charging extra for handcuffs.” Chloe’s brain short circuits for a second while she ponders another scenario involving her, Nadine, and handcuffs. By the time, Chloe’s brain catches up, Nadine is wrapping up her counter offer, “...and I will accompany you on this excursion. ”
Having missed most of the counter offer with thoughts of Nadine in a much less clothed scenario, Chloe just assumes it was ridiculous and counters with, “40 percent of the take. You may think you have enough c4 to blow holes in everything you encounter, but there will be traps and puzzles that you will need an expert on.”
“50 percent of the take or I start calling my contacts and seeing if we have any mutual acquaintances. I’m sure a woman in your line of work has stolen from a few of the evil bastards I know.” Nadine dislikes even making the threat, but she does have a reputation to protect.
“Now, now love. No need to play rough just yet. I’m agreeable to 50 percent.” Chloe smiles rakishly and extends her now free hand for Nadine to shake on it. Nadine stares at the proffered hand warily. She doesn’t fully trust her body not to react to Chloe’s touch- however innocent it may be. She’s still more than a bit annoyed with herself for letting a stranger, even one as magnetic as Chloe, affect her so much.
Nadine decides to ignore the offered hand and starts moving towards her quarters. “We have a deal Frazer. At first light, we head out to the temple. Talk to Orca if you want to sleep somewhere besides this cell.”
“Is your bed on the table?” Chloe is not disappointed when she sees Nadine’s retreating form stop for a moment, as if to contemplate such a scenario, before continuing her escape. It seems Shoreline’s leader is not so impervious to Chloe’s charms after all. Chloe turns and looks at Orca. “So, thats a no? Felt like a no.”
Well, well, well the hunt for Boudicca's royal torque is back on, she has some Shoreline muscle to handle any armed conflicts, and the opportunity exists for some fun with Nadine.
So maybe not the worst night she has ever had.
***********************
Watching Chloe scale the mammoth temple wall like it was barely an obstacle, Nadine’s level of respect for Chloe grew immensely. She had briefly worried that her new partner was just a pretty face and a merciless tease with little substance, but over the past few days, Chloe had proven to be quite the capable treasure hunter, easily solving the temple’s complex puzzles.
The current room they were stuck in had no discernible buttons to push in sequence or objects to place in a specific pattern. Nadine had offered to blow up the door, but Chloe was concerned about the temple’s structural integrity. Nadine deferred to Chloe’s judgement and asked her how they were going to get passed the door then. Chloe just smiled and pointed upward before leaping towards the nearest ledge.
Nadine didn’t have to wait long before the door began to rumble to life, slowly creaking its way upwards. When she enters the next room, she finds Chloe already working on the next puzzle, deciphering Greek text written on a stone pedestal. Nadine feels a smile forming on her face at the sight of Chloe in her element and she doesn’t even bother fighting it. “Impressive work with the door, Frazer.”
Chloe offers Nadine a grin in response, basking in the compliment for a moment. She is about to return to deciphering the next set of clues when Nadine interrupts her. “I still do not understand how a temple for an evil Greek deity and a relic from Britannia ended up here of all places.”
Chloe will admit to being surprised at finding out about Nadine’s love of knowledge. Buff, badass, could kill someone ten different ways with just her right hand, Nadine Ross is a nerd. Chloe finds it wholly adorable, but she resists teasing Nadine about it. Instead, she tries to remember every random fact and lore her father taught her about the region. Chloe tells herself that she indulges Nadine in these history lessons in an effort to improve their working relationship and not because she gets fluttery feelings when Nadine stands too close to look at her notes on the treasure. And Chloe totally doesn’t have a burning desire to share with Nadine some new discovery she has made. And she most definitely doesn't feel a spark of elation when Nadine opens up just a little and shares some personal detail about herself. Nope, not at all.
Besides Chloe knows it would be very foolish to feel the things she totally doesn’t feel because she can sense that they are very close to solving the remaining puzzles of Dahak’s temple. After they have the treasure and Nadine gets her cut, Chloe will be off to convince Harry to help steal a Mongolian oil lamp and Nadine will be back to her day job of running an army.
Chloe tamps down the wave of disappointment she feels at this job being nearly over and regales Nadine the story of Boudicca’s royal torque. “Well you see in a time of ancient gods, warlords and kings two Grecian women roamed around the countryside fighting evil and righting wrongs. One of the women...well let’s just say she had issues with Julius Caesar and that’s how Boudicca comes into play. While she was fighting Caesar with Boudicca, her partner got mixed up with some of Dahak’s followers and things quickly spiraled out of control. To make a very long story short, they defeated Caesar, Dahak, and got Boudicca’s royal torque for their troubles. The thing is though they didn’t actually defeat Dahak, and on their way to the land of the pharaohs, they found this temple. The legend has it that Dahak was much stronger than before and planned to destroy everything including the Greek pantheon. Naturally, the Greek Gods wanted to live so they imbued the torque with their power, granting whoever wore it unimaginable strength. During the final battle with Dahak, the torque was lost here in the temple.”
After Chloe wraps up the legend of the torque, Nadine just raises an eyebrow and asks, “You are having me on, ja?”
Chloe smiles at Nadine’s incredulous response. “No, it’s all true. At least according to my dad, he was the one who taught me about Greek history.” The thought of her dad brings on a sudden, completely unexpected wave of sadness. Nadine misses the subtle change in Chloe’s demeanor and asks, “So being a collector of antiquities is a family business? That must have been fun growing up.”
“No, he was much more reputable than I turned out. He was an archaeologist.” This time Nadine doesn’t miss Chloe’s muted behavior. She wants to say something comforting, something to mend whatever is causing Chloe so much distress regarding her father...but she is so much better at blowing shit up then putting it back together. So she settles on changing the subject. “I don’t know about you, but I could use dinner and a hot shower. Let’s head back to the base, Frazer. I’ll even buy you dinner.”
“Thanks, Nadine.” Chloe is truly grateful that Nadine didn’t press the subject of her father. That is a topic she wants to run away from until she can’t. She waits a beat before asking, “Dinner is going to be an MRE, isn’t?”
“They happen to be very tasty.” Chloe grimaces in response.
“You have to say that, your company logo is on the package.”
****************************
MREs have been a part of Nadine’s diet since before she can even remember, but one has never tasted as spectacular as it did last night. Nadine is not self-deluded enough to deny that the MRE’s quality had everything to do with the company rather than the food itself.
Last night’s dinner had turned into recollection of their greatest exploits with Chloe providing stories about all the crazy treasure hunts she had been apart of and Nadine trying to top that with her stories of grand adventure as a mercenary. Saying goodnight had been surprisingly hard for Nadine.
BOOM! BOOM!
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
The sound of explosions and rapid gunfire outside of the temple’s doors draws Nadine out her daydreams of how last night could have ended.
Rebels. And at the worst time. Nadine had sent off the majority of her men to help the government in the South-West quadrant this morning, leaving her and Chloe with just a skeleton team. Unholstering the gun she has on her thigh, Nadine meets Chloe’s eyes before asking, “Know how to use one of these?”
After getting assurance that Chloe can defend herself, Nadine tosses her the gun and starts running towards the gunfire outside. She can’t stop herself from looking over her shoulder and adding, “Don’t die, Frazer.”
“Aw, you do care.” Chloe cannot help but grin despite the potentially dangerous situation brewing outside. It’s not everyday you find out that the girl you like might, possibly, perhaps like you back.
“I am only concerned about the treasure.” Nadine responds, but both of them know she is lying.
Nadine arrives outside to find that the fighting has already stopped. She’s sees three dead rebels and becomes confused. Even though the rebels are poorly trained, she knows that they know better than to try a frontal assault on a temple with just three people….. Nadine racks her brain as she thinks of the other possible scenarios in play. She realizes the frontal assault was a distraction at the same time she hears a large explosion in the temple area where Chloe was working on solving the last puzzle. Ordering her men back into the temple, Nadine begins to feel fear and regret creeping into her gut. Pushing her feelings down, she rushes back inside, hoping that Chloe can hold on long enough for her and her men to get there.
**********************
Chloe had just finished aligning the stone pedestal to match up the staff and chakram symbols when a large explosion rocks the temple, sending her flying backwards. When she regains her equilibrium, she can see the door to the treasure creaking open, but the rebels are pouring in the temple at an alarming rate from the hole they created. To make matters worse she can feel the temple shaking, indicating that in less than an hour the temple will be nothing but rubble.
Chloe knows she has no hope of taking on the rebels by herself with little cover and only Nadine’s pistol. She maneuvers behind the rubble and hopes Nadine gets here before the rebels take off with the royal torque. As she is waiting, she hears two rebels closing in on her position. Shit. She could take one out quietly, but not two. Without any good options left, she realizes she is going to have to shoot them, exposing her position to the remaining rebels. Wonderful. Chloe takes a deep breath and rolls out of cover, landing so she has her gun aimed at the first rebel’s head. The surprise of her appearance allows her to get off two clean headshots before the rest of the rebels open fire on her position. She manages to get back into cover without getting shot and blind fires to fend off the rebels’ advance as long as she can.
After a few minutes of exchanging gunfire, Chloe starts to feel like her luck has finally run out. She’s out of ammo, she can feel the heat coming off the rebels’ bullets, and the gunfire around her is deafening….Chloe closes her eyes and desperately thinks of any possible way she can get out of this alive.
A few moments which feels like an eternity to Chloe, the sound of gunfire tapers off and she feels a foot nudge hers. Time’s Up. Not bothering to open her eyes, Chloe makes peace with the fact that this is to be her end…
“Sleeping on the job, eh Frazer? I thought you were a professional.” Chloe cracks open her eyes to what she thinks will be the best thing she will see all day, Nadine Ross with a big ass gun here to save the day.
“Oh you know, I just got tired of doing your job and mine, china.” Chloe takes Nadine’s offered hand to pull herself up and continues, “I thought you said these guys were jokes.”
It takes Nadine a second to respond. She is a bit overwhelmed at finding Chloe safe and being so close to her at the same time. “They must have been desperate and needed the torque to fund their rebellion. Problem solv-“
“BOSS!” The yell of one of her men pulls Nadine’s attention away from Chloe and onto a rebel who must have been hidden outside. His gun aimed at Chloe, Nadine doesn’t have time to kill him before he gets off a shot so she tackles Chloe to the ground, covering Chloe’s body with her own. She remains tense until she hears her men dispose of the remaining rebel.
Pinned underneath Nadine and breathless, Chloe didn’t even realize that she was in mortal danger for the second time today. All she can focus on is the fact that Nadine is on top of her and that her weight is stirring a delicious ache inside of Chloe. She needs to get out from under Nadine like now, or she is going doing something really embarrassing like moan in front of Nadine’s men.
“Nadine, love. While I‘ve imaged this very scenario more than a few times this week, your men really weren’t a part of it.” Nadine ducks her head in response and quickly rolls off of Chloe and onto her feet. Embarrassed but definitely intrigued at Chloe’s admission, Nadine offers Chloe a hand up, ready to get the treasure and get out of here. “Come on Chloe, let’s get the treasure and call your buyer. I’ll even buy you a real dinner this time.”
“No MREs?”
“No MREs.”
They never made it to dinner.
***********************
Watching Chloe get dressed, Nadine knows that the end of their partnership is quickly approaching, but she wants to do anything to delay the inevitable. “Ja know this doesn’t have to be goodbye. Shoreline can always use someone with your skills, and you are not a horrible shot for being a collector of antiquities.”
“Oh, I have come a long way from a ‘petty thief’, have I? I am truly flattered, love, but I prefer not getting shot at on a daily basis”
“That’s not fair. Sometimes there are explosives instead”
“Smartass.” Chloe feels a rush of emotion when a playful grin appears on Nadine’s face. “Well as thrilling as that offer sounds, I’m going to stick to the treasure hunting business. All this military discipline really cramps my style.”
Chloe pauses for a bit before doing what she does best, plunging headfirst into the abyss. She knows Nadine can’t stop being a soldier anymore than she can stop being a thief, but she thinks she may have found someone she can stick around for so she has to try. “You know, china, I could always use a partner, and you are not a horrible treasure hunter for being a soldier.”
Nadine closes her eyes for just a second, and she can suddenly see this whole new life stretching out before her. No more of her father’s legacy driving her life. No more paying for his mistakes. A life of adventure with someone she is already having more than casual feelings about. However, when she opens her eyes, her sense of duty and a lurking fear of the unknown overwhelms her, making it impossible for her to accept.
“Maybe in another life, ja?”