Starring:
Date: November 6th, 2009
Summary:
Tracy gets a friendlier visit and water, in lieu of liberty.
"Good Cop"
Building 26
Washington, D.C.
Tracy has been left alone for some time now.
People are sent to check on her from time to time, but that door has not opened in what feels like a day. It may have been just hours. She's far from 'left to her own devices', however. None of her devices are at her disposal, save for her mind and her voice; she can barely move, let alone battle the 24/7 heat. Which, obviously, is the point. No ice for this ice queen.
Sore from being forced into the same, restrictive positions on the single chair in the center of a room that's becoming very, very familiar, the prisoner-slash-lobbyist can do nothing but sit and swelter. She's so still that it looks like she might be sleeping.
That door that seems to define her life slowly moves to open, dragging open slowly as someone decides to come to visit the Ice Queen that's been put in the sauna. The man that walks in though isn't the last one that arrived to poke and prod at her, instead its a different one. One she has met though, and has forgone the jacket of the suit on account its too hot for words in here. The jacket is resting over one arm as Nick Drake strolls into the room with a laugh for the guards in the hall outside before he shuts the door behind himself and turns to look at the woman in the chair.
"Ya know," He says casually as he regards the almost-sleeping woman in the chair. "Never thought I'd be runnin' into you here of all places." He says all too casually as he strolls in a circle around the blonde.
It takes awhile for the woman to stir; when she does, when her visitor is already in front of her, she stretches her slender hunched over form up, sitting straighter and looking directly up at the ceiling. Nicholas is glanced past in the process with no surprise. Tracy's voices comes slowly and tiredly, but fresh on the cynicism. "Why, because I work for the Senator?"
"Mmmm, that's one reason," Nick replies as he shrugs slightly. "Thought you were smart enough to not get caught if you were one of the targets too." He adds as he pauses in front of the woman with his hands crossed over his chest. There is a slight smile on his face before he shakes his head slightly. "Still just a cynic aren't ya, even right now." Pause. "You sure did a number on Max didn't you Tracy?" Pause. "I can call you Tracy can't I?" He says with a flash of a grin coming to his features for a moment. "After all I saved your eyes last time I was in here."
"I wasn't a target," Tracy replies — corrects — defensively as she brings her head back down from its upward pose to face Nicholas. He hasn't been one of her tormentors, she does owe him for stopping Bert from clawing her eyes out, but the look she gives him isn't exactly friendly. By a longshot. Being trapped in a heat box isn't great for one's mood. She doesn't give Nicholas so much as a thank-you. "I made a choice. I had to." A choice that turned her into a target very fast. Blue eyes, their normally icy colour skewed under the light of the lamps that make everything orange and red, glance around her specialized prison. "Can you blame me for being cynical?"
"No actually, you weren't," Nick agrees. "You were just helping take down a target." He replies easily enough as he continues to watch the woman. No. He didn't exactly expect friendly from this one in the least. Especially when under the lights for as long as she's been. His own eyes have an almost reflective quality about them, a smile on his face that reveals very little before he chuckles. "No. Not really, I can't blame ya for being just a bit cynical and defensive." He adds after a moment. "But they think enough of you to have you in your own little spot at least." A pause again. "They been lettin' ya have anything to drink or eat yet?"
Tracy studies the "security consultant" with something akin to suspicion, her eyes moving surprisingly quick for someone who's been stuck under these heat lamps for days. "Some," she eventually answers; no reprieve from the suspicion for Nicholas, but for a second she looks hopeful. "Not— " the woman's voice cracks faintly against her will. " —for awhile."
"Just enough to keep you alive then," Nick says with a nod half to himself. "Hrmmm…well might I can fix that. Anyway, let me reintroduce myself. Nicholas Drake, Captain in Alpha Protocol. I head up one of the teams responsible for dangerous targets." He says with a chuckle. "Like you for instance, or Max."
The woman's features at least soften slightly, and although she doesn't smile, it wouldn't look out of place anymore. The mention of Max, however, prompts Tracy to glower— her eyebrows knit together darkly. "Max," she repeats, prying. "He was a target? But he works here now. What changed?" His story seems the opposite of hers. She worked here, in a manner of speaking, then got herself taken in.
"Oh I won't let him spoil the story of that one if you want to ask him yourself," Nick replies with a shake of his head. Besides, he doesn't know the whole story. At least not yet. "I'm sure if you hang around long enough you'll find out." Max seems quite fond of the blonde he does. "You just can't help askin' questions still even when you're locked up here can you?"
Tracy doesn't suppress the urge to roll her eyes. She does, on the subject of asking questions to Max; she glances indignantly off to the side. She remains looking away for a moment before eyeing Nicholas. "Absolute freedom of the press to discuss public questions is a foundation stone of American liberty," she answers — or rather quotes a line from memory. "Except, where I am isn't public, is it. There's no … liberty. No one knows I'm here. Who else is gonna ask questions for me?" Maybe some. But in the belly of the beast, maybe she's more likely to get the answers. "Max would rather see me tortured than… chat."
"Well you did take off his arm at the elbow," Nick replies with a slight shrug of one shoulder. "I'm sure he likes his new one better though, he does have a thing for metals." There is a pause then before he just sighs and nods. "No, guess not many other people are going to ask questions about you while you are here. I will try to keep Bert out of the room though." He adds with a shake of his head and more than a little bemusement in his voice. "And no, there isn't much in the way of liberty, or public here. However…" He removes the jacket from his arm, and there in his hand is a simple bottle of water. "…we aren't all bad right?"
Tracy stiffens, again, at the mention of Max — and what she did to him. She looks away again briefly, unsettled with it all, but she doesn't explain herself. Instead, when Nicholas reveals the bottle, she looks up — slowly, with unexpected gratitude. "…You're better than most of them," she says, and though there's reservation in her voice, guardedness, she sounds sincere enough. "Except for Ivory, they've been…" But she trails off, only giving her head a shake. Suffice to say most of her guards and visitors have not been the best.
The blonde looks to the water. Her shoulders shift, her hands twitching to life a little. They're restrained, naturally. She doesn't even have the capacity to do anything on her own.
"Still not really into this whole power thing are you?" Nick replies with a chuckle as he shakes his head slightly and notices the look on the woman's face. "…and flattery will…possibly get you a drink as least." He adds as he cracks the seal on the bottle and removes the top before taking a step closer. There still is that half smile on his face as he looks towards the woman though as he adds. "Now, I'll give you the drink, even brought a straw for you. If you /do/ try anything though I'll have to stop you, and you won't like it. Not that I think you will and all since we are friends here, but…just thought I'd be clear about it." He adds as he fishes a straw out of the jacket and removes the wrapper before popping it in the bottle for her. "…and yeah, our illustrious leader. You and Bert and everyone else seems obsessed over the man. Guess he's just that charismatic."
"What could I possibly do?" Kick him, but that wouldn't do much besides cause more problems for her. "I'm chained up, and I can't freeze you in a furnace." Tracy may be obsessed with Ivory, but unlike Bert, she doesn't gush. It's not in her nature. She does, however, say with resolve: "Ivory'll get me out've here." She believes it, but even with her devotion to the Senator, there's an unspoken "some day" after her words. She drinks from the straw for a long moment before she sits back and takes a breather, sighing and closing her eyes. "…Thank you." Reluctant, but earnest. Downside of being shoved under heat lamps is he constant threat of dehydration.
"You never know," Nick replies with a laugh and a shake of his head. "Just because you can't do anything doesn't mean you won't do anything." He replies with a smirk. "Logic never works all that great with everyone. To her words he looks towards the woman before a slight shrug arcs up his shoulders. "Maybe your right, till then though you are staying here at least." Maybe she will cut a deal, maybe Ivory will get her out. Whatever happens though the woman's normal life is over, she's seen to much. "…your welcome." He replies before again a chuckle. "See. There. Wasn't so bad bein' polite was it? Before you know it I might actually coax a smile out."
"I guess I'm here because I defy logic, right. Logic says, I shouldn't be able to do… what I can do." The sound under Tracy's breath could be construed as a chuckle, but it doesn't precede the smile Nicholas is looking for. It's cynical when it comes … and a tinge sad as she looks down. She just takes another drink of the offered water in case it goes away soon.
"Something like that," Nick agrees with the woman as he holds the bottle up for her to drink. "Don't know exactly when defying logic became a crime, but there you have it." The smile is sad and cynical as is the laugh and Nick really can't blame the woman one bit. "…can't stay for much longer you know, and a I can't quite leave the bottle either so see if you can polish it off eh?" He adds.
She tries, but even if it means leaving some water in the bottle, Tracy doesn't race desperately. She has her pride, Eventually, she leans back, as finished as she will be, a modicum more relaxed. She studies Nicholas hard for a time, curious instead of her usual criticism. "That's not the way a loyal soldier talks," she points out evenly. Most people here seem to think locking people away just for having unique abilities — defying logic — is the right thing to do. Tracy doesn't explain all this, but she's wondering it: what about Drake?
That's the one of the things they haven't tried to take away so far. Her pride. Pulling the bottle back though Nick just gives her an uneven smile, more of a bit of a smirk in it. "Course its the way a loyal soldier talks. Would they have me down here talkin' with you if I wasn't a loyal soldier?" He asks with a raised eyebrow towards the woman. "Course they wouldn't, if I wasn't a loyal soldier I'd be a security risk and have a nice room of my own down here."
Coulda fooled Tracy. She certainly feels like they've tried to take away her pride, she's just hanging on to what she has. Nick, though, is not so much a part of that. His choice of phrase causes her to narrow her eyes slightly at him, considering, thinking, but she says nothing of it except, "Is that so."
"Yup," Nick replies as he throws his coat over his shoulder and takes the mostly empty bottle away. "Not because I defy logic." He adds with a chuckle towards her before he turns to the door. No. Not because he defies logic, but because all that special forces and espionage training would make keeping him in an actual prison a real interesting proposition. Especially if he didn't really want to be there. "Be seein' ya around though Tracy, and like I said I'll make sure to keep Bert out of the room."
Tracy is silent while Nicholas readies to leave. Even though she doesn't say anymore to him, she's clearly thinking as she watches him — even as lethargic as she's made to be here, she's always thinking. If she's conscious. Besides, anything she has to say about Bert would come off as a threat, and we can't have that, can we. Eventually she just looks away, preparing for more isolation in the heat.
A shake of his head before Nick turns and strolls out the door that's opened for him. That portal shuts with a finality of a prison door before he Agent looks towards the people who were waiting him on the outside. Well person really. His partner.
"I don't care how good looking the Senator's little pet secretary is, should put em all down. Her and the rest of the freaks." Riley grumbles ominously from where he glares at Nick, leaning up against the wall. "That's the best way to solve all of this ain't it?" The angry Agent grumbles a moment. "You were in there awhile. The hell were you doing anyway?"
"Eh just playin' good cop. You know how it goes, you were FBI before this." Nick's reply is easy.
"Ha! You're just a sucker for a hot blonde aren't you Nicky?"
"Well I am, but you just have to be a really good cop when Max is playin' the bad cop."
"True…"
"Oh and Riley?"
"…what?"
"Shut up and go get me a bagel."
