A Clandestine Investigation [Marko + Open!]

[Marko Iliev]

Another reason Marko didn't want to hang around the area too long was what the woman had told him - that he was being watched. He remembered, just as he left, that she was the owner of a brothel not too far away from that building, and had been funding Ruthien operations for quite some time. He'd come across her before, whilst working underground; there weren't actually many women within the resistance, and even fewer that were given grunt work or put on the front line, so it was easier to recall her than perhaps her recall him. She hadn't particularly acted like she knew who he was, anyway. But that wasn't the point - being who she was, she would have to keep her work secret. If she thought there was someone watching Marko, then it was incredibly likely there was. There was that, and the fact he'd felt a pair of eyes on him, himself.

He didn't stick around the building's vicinity to find out, however. After shutting the door behind himself, he made a sharp turn left, heading down the street in that direction as quickly as he could, in a walk... Though he expected pursuit, he had to act as natural as he could, too.

[Feliks £ukasiewicz]

Feliks caught that look toward the door, and followed her gaze. His lips quirked up; his gossip loving, meddling self, perking up as well, “Is that the man? Come on, you have to talk to him.”

Without waiting for a response, the blonde grabbed the other lady’s arm and started dragging her down the alley towards the semi-fleeing Marko. “Oi, Sir! Please wait.” Feliks called out, kinda hoping that he came across as a forward prostitute. All thoughts of his own business escaped his mind; he could always arrange another meeting. He reached down with his free hand and pulled up his skirts so he could move even quicker.

[crnagora]

Now this hadn't been in Annica's calculations. Feliks had already begun pulling her after the man and she'd taken a few quick, reflexive steps before it dawned on her what was happening. They were following the man who was obviously up to something. Perhaps they looked like two simple women of the night, perhaps not - but if it were up to her she wouldn't confront him in this way. Not with a civilian right beside her. There was no easy way to get out of this... she wasn't sure if a simple protest would be enough. And if she caused a fuss, that might draw more attention than she wanted.

"Wait..! Are you mad? What are you doing?!"

It couldn't hurt to at least try to protest, albeit quietly; and it would be strange if she didn't put up a small fight, since she'd made a point of acting reluctant to approach him before. Feliks certainly was forward, and Annica would have thought him a forward prostitute had she been in Marko's position - but the thing was, she wasn't. And someone who was up to something would definitely be rather suspicious of being approached so quickly after emerging from his meeting place.

Damn... She hadn't prepared for this sort of scenario. As Feliks pulled her closer, she ducked her head. Maybe she could gauge the man's reaction without him seeing her face clearly. Because if this was who she was beginning to suspect that it was, her cover would be blown in less than a moment if he was able to tell who she was.

[Marko Iliev]

Yes, he had expected pursuit. But the pursuit he had expected was not the pursuit he gained. Despite the nature of the voice that called out to him – which wasn’t a scathing ‘hey you!’ as he had thought he might get, Marko froze anyway. Trying to remain calm, he put on a smile, and turned to face the women that were chasing him.

“Da?” He asked, glancing back and forth between the two of them, though one had her hood up, so it was difficult for him to make out her face. “What is it?” All the while he tried to remain perfectly natural, as if he hadn’t just come out of a Ruthien building carrying money.

[Feliks £ukasiewicz]

"My friend here wanted to speak with you." Feliks quickly pulled the lady in front of him. "She finds you attractive." He added with a smirk. As far as the blond knew it was the truth, he was just helping out a couple of lovebirds...well at least the young lady. And Mr. Iliev didn't seem like the type who'd get violent with a pair of women.

Feliks smiled to himself. He'd lost count of how many times being a "woman" spared him violence in the streets. Sure there were still thugs who would accost a woman, but they'd mostly run when Feliks dropped his voice and pulled a knife. He shivered slightly thinking about those who wouldn't, but he pulled up his shawl over his exposed shoulders to play it like the chill of the night.

[crnagora]

Annica nearly stumbled as Feliks pushed her ahead of him, and the look she shot him after he added that bit about her finding Marko attractive was two parts panicked and one part venomous. But then she turned her attention back to Marko and for a moment, just for a moment, she was sure that her heart had quite literally stopped beating.

Marko Iliev. It was him. Of all the people she could have encountered, it was him. Perhaps the hood of her cloak and the cover of night had concealed her identity from him so far, but she couldn't count on it any longer, not when they were so close to each other, not when the charming blonde prostitute seemed so intent on playing matchmaker. Stupid, Annica told herself. She should have come up with some other reason for following him. How could she have known that a stranger would want to get involved, though? ...no, she should have known. Or she should have had some sort of contingency plan.

She didn't have anything like that, though. So she just raised her head and met his eyes. Maybe the hood, the night, and the passage of time would keep him from recognizing her face. And maybe if she kept her voice soft, he wouldn't recognize her when she spoke, either.

"..perhaps not quite as attractive as I was originally thinking, now that I've seen you up close," She murmured. Her pride wouldn't let her just agree with Feliks - not now that she was sure of who this man was.

Marko Iliev. Connected with the Ruthiens in some way, perhaps?

Somehow, Annica wasn't surprised.

[Marko Iliev]

He didn’t know whether to be relieved or flattered. Women finding him attractive, thankfully, happened more often to him than military officers approaching him with suspicion. That in mind, he wondered why he had even been worried at all.

“Oh? Is that so?” Marko asked with a knavish grin, his eyes panning over to the taller woman. He inwardly questioned why she was wearing a hood, if she was here to tell him that, but then he heard her comment in addition to the blonde’s. He raised his eyebrows for a moment, opening his mouth to respond to her, but stopping when something clicked in his mind…

…Her face… Even in the poor lighting, her face was familiar. He narrowed his eyes, and lowered his head to get a better view of her.

No… It couldn’t have been… Could it? His face paled, and he returned to his normal posture, asking warily, “…Annica?”

[crnagora]

She had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes at the sight of that grin and the sound of his voice. If there had been any doubt in her mind as to who this man was, those four words would have wiped it away in an instant. But there hadn't been, and the only thing that really was in question here was whether or not there was doubt in his mind as to who she was.

Annica could tell the instant when he saw her face more clearly and started wondering, and she saw his cheeks pale as he lowered his head and confirmed his suspicions. She wasn't a coward, so she wouldn't shrink away. Instead, she drew herself to her full height and pushed her hood back, meeting his eyes and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Marko. As always, seeing you is a... pleasure." By pleasure, she meant the opposite, of course.

But where to go from here? He knew who she was, and she knew who he was; she had a good idea of what he'd been up to, and if he was even as half as smart as he tried to act, he could probably come up with some inkling as to why she was wandering this part of town at this time of night.

She glanced briefly back at Feliks. He probably hadn't had any idea what he'd gotten himself into when he pulled her after Marko. She didn't think Marko was stupid enough to pull anything... but on the off-chance that he did, she'd have to make sure no harm came to Feliks. As far as she knew, "she" was a prostitute... but still a civilian. It was her job to make sure nothing happened.

Though, she mused as she returned her gaze to Marko, she'd sort of bungled that job already, now hadn't she?

[Marko Iliev]

So it really was her, after all. Marko shut his mouth, feeling his throat become rather dry... Which wasn't something that happened often. He swallowed, and coughed, before speaking again. "A, er... A pleasure to see you too, of course." He didn't sound genuine. The Cvetkovics were a military family – oh, he knew that all too well – and he had an inkling of why she was in the area. It wasn't because she was following him out of attraction at all. It was for a much different reason. And that set off panic alarms in his head.

But of all the military officers that could have been patrolling the area. Of all the people he could have encountered... Why did it have to be her?

He told himself to calm down... This wasn't a situation he still couldn't talk his way out of. He put on a fake smile, and asked, "Are you on duty?"

[crnagora]

He sounded all too insincere, which to Annica meant he sounded familiar. Now there was the Marko she knew and loathed. But she nodded a little in acknowledgement before studying his face and body language. He seemed ill-at-ease, which wasn't surprising for a man who had just been caught in the Red Light District. No one liked to have to explain what they were doing here, after all. In addition to being damaging to one's reputation, it was altogether quite pitiful to admit that you had to pay someone to sleep with you.

But Annica was pretty sure he hadn't been here for a tryst. He hadn't been inside long enough for that, and he didn't smell of sweat or sex.

That fake smile was hiding something else. She knew it, and he knew she knew it. But she met his smile with one that was equally false and shook her head. "No. My higher-ups would never dream of sending a woman to do a man's job."

It wasn't a lie. She was here of her own volition, though it technically was military business.

Then she quirked a brow. "Perhaps I needed to earn some spare florins." And perhaps the joke was in bad taste, but she hoped that he might let something slip if she tried to put him at ease.