The inside of the building was a reception area. But unlike those from ordinary office buildings, the one Aiden had just walked into was like that of a hospitals. It smelled of cleaning products, the color white enveloped the whole space and if it weren't for the two sets of elevator doors on each side of the reception station, which was in the middle of the room, there would be absolutely nothing inside.
There where no colors, the windows seen from outside where fake as they were none on the inside, no frames hung on the walls and the air was similar to the one inside a hospital too. Cold. Emotionless. Scary. And filled with a frightening sense of death roaming around.
"Good afternoon Boss." The woman behind the counter greeted Aiden as he made his way towards the elevator doors on the right. Surprisingly, he nodded to her as a way of reciprocating her greeting. He didn't look at her, but even so she bowed in his direction until the elevator granted him access and the doors shut behind him after stepping inside.
The panel inside the elevator was even more intricate than the one on the outside. After scanning both his eyes, one of is hands and going through voice recognition, Aiden selected a floor symbol, there where no numbers like on other elevators, and made his way down. A couple of minutes later the doors opened on a floor that looked like a training room.
There where dozens of people sparing with each other. But just like the men who greeted Aiden at the entrance, there was nothing normal about them. Their eyes were glazed over with a predatory glint as they swung knives and other weapons in the direction of their opponents. Every move they made against each other was fierce. If they were actually holding back, it didn't show.
Aiden's leather shoes clicked on the floor tiles making everybody stop and bow in his direction. He scanned the room until his eyes found Lucas who was standing over a man heavily panting on the floor. It was evident that he had proven himself to be the better fighter between them.
"Continue." Lucas commanded as he made his way towards Aiden once he saw him. "Hey Bro. Aren't you supposed to be at work?" He asked as he got closer to him.
"Finished early today so I came by to see the new recruits." He answered as he placed his hands in his pant pockets.
"You? Early?" Lucas chuckled so loudly, his voice competed with the grunting and heavy movement sounds coming from the people fighting in front of them. "That Cheeto has seriously made an impression huh? I seriously can't wait to meet her."
Aiden simply rolled his eyes and decided to ignore him. Giving into his taunts was like fanning fire. It would only make it worse. "I have something being delivered soon. Knowing you, you're gonna want to keep it so I'm warning you now, hands off."
"Damn Bro. Hearing you say that makes me want it without even knowing what it is." He smirked as he mentally took note of the ones who had potential among the people continuously sparing.
A smile spread across Aiden's face as he imagined what a certain person's reaction to it would be. "It's a present."
Seeing as he was genuinely smiling, Lucas decided not to mess with him. He was glad his brother was looking happier. Growing up together gave him a front row seat to Aiden's difficult life. Although he had his fair share of painful experiences, he knew that the man standing next to him was burdened with the excruciating weight of expectations and responsibilities since the moment he took his first breath. Something only he had to suffer through.
"At least take me with you today when you go see her."
"What makes you think I'm going to see her?" Aiden asked as he looked at him. His tone was somewhat irritated.
"I don't know. Maybe it's the fact that you haven't finished work early in the past decade. You seriously forget who you're talking to Bro. I'm betting you couldn't manage to think of anything else other than whatever plans you have with her today while you were working. Not that I blame you though, office jobs are a kill joy." Giving Aiden a knowing look, Lucas continued to explain his inkling. "And since it still isn't time for you to meet her, you decided to waste a couple hours here."
As he finished saying, a large smirk made it's way onto his lips. The irritated expression on Aiden's face confirmed his suspicion to be true. His eyebrows were knitted together as his eyes sent Lucas warning signals letting him know not to go on with his accurate explanation. He felt seriously irked by how right he was in his assumption. Being read so easily by him wasn't something he enjoyed. At least not at that moment.
"Don't you have people to train?" Aiden muttered as he gave his back to him and started to leave. The sound of Lucas's laughter was so loud it drown every other noise inside the room.
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At the City's Center.
The hours trickled by and the said time for Aiden to meet up with Claire finally came. Just as Lucas had so precisely pointed out, Aiden wasted time at the base. He checked the status on his latest orders, made sure the new present he had prepared was satisfactory, among other things. But as soon as Claire sent him the location where they would see each other he set out.
He was currently waiting with his driver inside the car for Claire to call. Since her invitation was for him to visit one of her bases, he was somewhat confused as to why she had asked him to wait in an alleyway between a few local shops.
A couple of minutes after they parked the car, Aiden saw Anna approach them making him immediately step out without waiting for his driver to open the door for him.
"Good afternoon Mr. Villan." Anna greeted as she lowered her head a bit towards him.
"Please." Aiden said as he looked down at her. "No need to bow your head to me Ms. Clemson." He didn't like the feeling of having the people important to his little lady treat him so distantly. Aiden wasn't the kind to care about other people's opinions about him, but he knew that the people around Claire were there to stay. He preferred it if his relationship with them wouldn't be so strained and professional.
Anna focused on his eyes and noticed he was sincere. Knowing how cunning of a man he was, she wouldn't put it past him to want to try and impress her to gain more of Claire's favor. She knew he was aware of her small circle, so gaining access to it would without a doubt help him get closer to Claire. But seeing as he didn't seem to be trying that kind of approach with her, Anna added a few points to his name in her mental tally.
"Ms. Claire is currently finishing up so she sent me to get you." Anna said as she offered him a small smile.
"Lead the way." Aiden replied. As he followed her he signaled something to his driver who had stepped out of the car when he did. Understanding his boss's silent command, he nodded in response.
"You mentioned Claire was finishing something. Is she busy today?" He asked as he walked next to her.
"Well ... something like that." Anna said as they left the alleyway and started walking through backstreets. "You see, today is one of Claire's favorite days so she's currently trying to enjoy the little time it has left. She doesn't get to do it often"
"One of her favorite days?" Aiden's eyebrow lifted in curiosity. To his knowledge, it wasn't a holiday or any other known celebratory day. Besides that, the information Jacob had compiled mentioned that her birthday was still months away. "What's today?" He asked her.
Anna looked up at him with a mischievous look in her eyes. "It's pup training day."