Facing the music [Cypher]

[Jack "Trigger" Briggs]

After his assault and confrontation with a crazed stranger in an alley, Jack sobered up a bit and walked Danya and Alex home before stumbling back to his own flat. The downstairs was mostly empty this hour, save the man on watch. He took one look at Jack's swollen, busted lip and the blood crusted on his chin, then rushed to get him some ice. Jack took the ice, which had been wrapped in a cloth, from him with a swift, "Cheers," before wandering up the back stairs.

It took him a moment to unlock all of the locks on the red door at the top, and then he shut and locked it quietly behind him. The flat was spacious and neat, two rooms that shared a common area as well as an office. Cypher was rarely there except to sleep, so Briggs knew he would be there now.

Before going to rouse his friend, he removed his fingerless gloves, bent over the kitchen sink and cupped some water into his palms. He splashed the water over his chin, cleaning away the blood first, then rubbed some on his face and the back of his neck.

When he was finished, he placed one hand on either side of the sink and leaned over the basin. He just stood there a moment, dripping water and blood. His thoughts as he had stumbled home had been clear: he had to pack up and find Sian before that maniac did. However, now that he was faced with the task and had sobered up quite a bit, he realized how impossible it seemed. He rubbed his hand over the back of his neck again, then sighed and wiped his face dry with a towel.

After putting his gloves back on, he pressed the ice to his lip and made his way over to Cypher's door. He knocked, then loosened his tie as he waited for an answer.

[Cypher]

When Cypher had seen Jack earlier, he had known his friend would get drunk that night. Trigger was easy to read for a man who'd known him as well as Cypher had, and that letter from Sian had really done Jack in. As much as Jack was perceived as a charming ladies' man and a flirt, reality was far different. When Jack fell for someone, he fell hard. Cypher had only seen it happen a couple of times, and both times to the wrong woman. This time seemed no different.

It wasn't that Cypher didn't like Sian. Quite the opposite. She was beautiful, sweet, polite, and fit into the orderly way Cypher liked his world quite a bit better than most of the people he worked with. However, she had brought trouble with her from the moment Jack had started falling for her, and if Cypher was being honest with himself, he didn't see the trouble ever stopping.

Something in her past was making her the object of a lot of aggression, and though Cypher had tried to get some information on her [unbeknownst to Jack, of course], he had hit some pretty solid walls. On top of this mystery, the woman was a Companion. An honorable enough occupation, but one that never really made room for a true love life. Jack was a criminal; was she honestly interested in him, or was he just another man she would use to get what she wanted? That was not the sort of thing Cypher would usually think about a woman, but it was her occupation.

After leaving the pub, Cypher had run into a couple of their people. Danya and Alex. He'd asked them to shadow Jack as he got drunk, then left his friend in their capable hands. He had work to do, after all.

A long night of paperwork, balancing books, and a workout had left Cypher exhausted. He was just nodding off when the knock sounded at his door. At first he selfishly did not want to answer, sure Trigger was just drunk and wanted to complain about losing the woman of his dreams. However, Jack was his best friend. Even though it was late and he was tired, Cypher had to answer the door.

He unlocked and opened it, wearing only a pair of sleep pants. The busted lip on Jack didn't concern him as much as it probably should have; Jack was wont to flirt and boast and carry on, and bar fights were not uncommon in Jack's favorite haunts. Trigger also wasn't the most popular of businessmen. Cypher reached out and gripped Briggs' chin, turning it to the light. "What happened?"

[Jack "Trigger" Briggs]

When Cypher opened the door, Jack closed one eye and scrutinized him. He completely ignored his friend's bare torso, though it served as a reminder that Cypher could easily kick his pee-goo if he ever wanted to, and pointed at his bare head instead. "Something's missin'. Where's yo' hat? You don't sleep in it?" He flinched when Cypher grabbed his chin and shoved his hand away. "I'm fine. Jus' got in a bittuva fight wit' some concrete...You shoulda seen the other guy."

His brow wrinkled and he sighed, stepping back to one side and sweeping his arm towards the living area. "I, uh...need ta talk to ya. Mind steppin' into me office?"