So End Our Foes;; Shae&Artemis
If he had been any less of a man, he would have happily lost his patience right in the eye of the public. He would have yelled and objected, would have denied her truth and demanded a new one. A better one. “And how, may I ask, did he discover something under verbal agreement, mhm?” Artemis kept himself looking unmoved and calm. However, given the context of the situation, Shae must have known that he was silently fuming. The choice of words and the subtlest touch of rage were all the hints she needed. “How could the best allow such a sloppy mistake to happen?”
Artemis’ eyes flickered over to hers, his fingers curling into a tight fist. “I’m upset, Shae, I really am, but, for once, it’s not at you.” Purgatory’s owner was it? Splendid. “This game we had was something I thoroughly enjoyed. I wanted it to last as long as it could, but being usurped by some idiot wasn’t exactly how I saw the ending. How about you, my dear? Surely you must have been thinking the same thing because we certainly sounded as if we were on the same page just a few weeks ago, you remember?” This challenger had to go. Immediately. “And now I get the news that you’ve already been dethroned. It’s unexpected, and I’m not too much a fan of that. I can’t possibly imagine how Rhea is dealing with this. I was looking forward to our meeting. She would have made a nice addition to the group… And now I’m just sitting here, and why? For this? No… I demand more. Give me more.”
Shae fought to keep control on the volume of her voice. “I have nothing else to give you. Don’t you understand?” She sensed his jibe and her hackles rose. The best? Was that meant to be an underhanded compliment or a grievous insult. “I made a mistake. You’re…right.” The words were painful to say. “I was sloppy. I never in a million years thought he would actually check.”
She shook her head and instead brought up her omnitool, opening an image file of Enrik’s unreadable face. He was severe, even by turian standards, cold and ruthless to friends and enemies alike. Shae had done some private investigating into his background and noted that he was both a respected and feared commander on the battlefield. Why he deigned to purchase a night club on the Citadel after his retirement was beyond her. However, it had been a lucrative move. Purgatory had been just about the only business making any profit in this time of war. That was, until Shae started sharing their revenue.
“His name is Cadaxan Enrik,” she began, directing Artemis’s attention away from her and onto the orange-hued image. “He’s ex-turian military. 54 years old. Complete asshole with a near-spotless profile.” She emphasized ‘near’ by dragging up an article she found concerning their subject. “He went on trial for war crimes during the First Contact War but was acquitted lacking substantial evidence. Other than that, he’s spotless. Not even a parking violation.”