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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 18:33:16 GMT -5
One day.
He'd only been working with her one day, and it felt like years. And not in a good way. Granted, they had started getting along better as they focused on the case, but he still found her attitude of superiority to be frustrating and tedious.
But she was the least of his worries. Although he'd finally managed to track down all of his family members, save for Cyrus, to ensure their safety, he was still worried about the note he'd received. It was honestly the first thing on his mind at all times. He felt edgy and tense, like something was coming and he was powerless to stop it.
So tonight he chose to drink away his fears in a little, out of the way bar, where hardly anyone ever came, thanks to the terrible attempts at singing by the regular clientele. But he also knew the drinks here were stronger than anywhere. The pretty blonde waitress who had just started a few weeks back, in particular, made some fantastic drinks.
He ordered something strong and sat down in a corner, trying to decide what his next move should be. Even though Angelique told him to stay out of it, there was no way he was going to do that if his family was in danger.
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 18:44:30 GMT -5
Judah had looked almost everywhere looking for Roland. He hadn't talked to him in a bit, and he figured that he would try to get caught up with how things were going with him. Mathieu had told him that Roland wasn't really telling everything that was going on. Like Mathieu when he was younger, Roland was the same. Stubborness ran in the family but it seemed that it hit Roland and Mathieu harder.
He thought that at this time a day, Roland would possibly be at a bar somewhere. Judah checked the Hog's Head, but no sign of him. Stu's was the other option.
Entering Stu's he went to the bar and got a drink. Suri wouldn't mind if he just had one. Judah looked around and spotted Roland in the corner. Avoiding the other people, he made his way to his table. "Been hoping I'd find you Roland," Judah said with a grin.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 19:54:15 GMT -5
Roland was still lost inside his own head and didn't notice when his uncle first approached. The incident back in Wales was becoming a virtual obsession for him, and when he wasn't worrying about his family, he was running over the incident in his mind, trying to figure out what he could have done to prevent all of this from happening. He didn't make many mistakes, but when he did make one, he had a hard time letting it go. How else, he reasoned, was he to make sure it never happened again.
One of the faces of the attackers, in particular, haunted him. It was so familiar, like he had seen the man before... but he couldn't place him. He was trying to remember when he heard his uncle's voice above him.
He looked up, shaking these thoughts from his head. "Uncle Judah," he said in greeting. "It's good to see you."
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 20:09:58 GMT -5
Roland looked distracted. Judah heard about his mission and knew that it was going to stick with Roland. He didn't personally know what was running through his head, but Judah just hoped that Roland would focus on other things, like what was happening at home.
He took a seat across from him. Roland looked a little more worn than the last time he had seen him, but other than that he didn't look like he hadn't changed too much. "Good to see you too. Things been going alright with you?"
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 20:19:56 GMT -5
Roland managed a tired smile. "Nothing I can't handle," he said simply.
Yes, there were a lot of things that were going on in his life, and not all of them were good. Hell, most of them weren't good. But he was not about to burden his uncle with his problems. He would handle them, as he always did.
"How is Aunt Suri doing? I haven't seen her in a while."
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 20:27:40 GMT -5
Judah could tell Roland was holding in things and being strong, just like his father was. "Well, that's good. Just don't pile to much on yourself," he said taking a drink from his glass.
He thought about asking him about his new mission with Riley, but Roland brought something else up. "She's still the same woman she always has been," Judah said smiling. "Suri's doing pretty good. Maybe you should stop by the house or something sometime soon. She'd love to see you. How has Cyrus been? I haven't heard anything about him as of late."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 22:16:24 GMT -5
"I'll be fine," Roland said almost carelessly, taking a sip from his drink.
He smiled slightly as his uncle talked about his aunt. The only person from that side of the family that he saw on a regular basis these days was Hayden. But he had sort of allowed himself to fall out of contact with his aunt and uncle, as well as the younger cousins. "I'll try to do that," he said. "Plus, I assume I'll be seeing all of you at Christmas. Mum's planning one of her big family gatherings."
He still hadn't asked Riley about coming over for Christmas; the timing hadn't felt right. She was so focused on work... and when they weren't talking about the case, they were arguing.
At the mention of Cyrus, his expression grew serious. "He's still on the outs with the family. And with Lina. The whole situation is getting out of hand."
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 22:29:25 GMT -5
"Yeah, we'll be there for Christmas. I'm looking forward to it," Judah said with another smile.
His smile faded as Roland's look turned serious. Judah gave a shake of his head. "That boy needs to get his head on straight. I imagine your mother is still the same about Lina as she always had been?" He didn't understand why Cara was against Lina, but that really wasn't any of his business.
"Anyway, I didn't come to talk about that, I just came to see how you were doing. How's your new mission coming?"
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 22:35:55 GMT -5
"I don't understand it, either. I like Lina... I talked with her just the other day, actually. I think that they're caught in a cycle... Cyrus won't marry her without their approval, but my mother thinks that the fact that he hasn't marry her means he has doubts..." He shrugged. "I'm trying to do what I can to help, because that baby needs both of her parents. And her grandparents."
As the topic switched to his mission with Riley, Roland's expression soured. "It's going OK, I guess," he said, though his tone was bitter. "We have a few good leads, I think. But Riley... She acts like she knows everything... it's annoying."
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 22:53:13 GMT -5
Judah listened as Roland's tone changed. "Give the girl a chance Roland," he said. "From what I've heard, she's stubborn too. Play nice, even if you think it will kill you. I know that you're used to working alone, but working with a partner is not that bad. Trust me, just keep an open mind about it. It might not be as bad as you possibly think."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 1, 2009 23:06:27 GMT -5
Roland let out a sigh, then took a swig from his drink. "I know, I know..." He ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up at odd angles. Everyone was telling him to give her a chance, and even he knew he should lighten up on her... but somehow, being face-to-face with her... he just started acting like a jerk.
"I'll try. I'm not good at making nice... but I'll try. Mum even wants me to invite her over for Christmas..." He shook his head.
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 9:30:59 GMT -5
"I know, playing nice can be hard especially if you're not to crazy about the other person, but you're a good kid. Trying is the important thing." Judah didn't know too much about Riley because he hadn't really talked to her, he was just going by what he heard. From that, he came to the conclusion that she and Roland were a lot alike, at least were being stubborn was concerned.
"Really now," he asked with interest. "I think that would be quite nice of you, although I do take it that you haven't asked her yet?"
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 11:21:30 GMT -5
Roland's lip quirked up in the corner. A good boy... his family really didn't know him. It wasn't that he was bad, but he wasn't always a nice guy, either. He was the first to admit it.
"No, I didn't ask her yet. The timing didn't seem right. We were either arguing or working, and it didn't seem like the time to get into personal matters." He sighed. "I don't know what it is about her, but she sets me off, and I just find myself acting like a jerk with her."
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 12:36:04 GMT -5
Judah chuckled at knowing Riley set Roland off. "I think that you two must be quite alike if she sets you off." An idea crossed his mind. "You know, if she wants to do something her way, do it without an argument. Maybe it'll help you both even out a little bit, not to mention it could shock her if you did it without a fuss." He knew that Roland probably wouldn't do it.
"Just don't be too much of a jerk to her. Sometimes its best just to bite your tongue and deal with it. I've been at that point before and things have gone a little smoother when I kept my mouth closed."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 13:29:09 GMT -5
Roland scowled a little more deeply and took a long swig from his drink. "Somehow, I don't see myself doing that," he said. "But I'll try." He was getting tired of talking about Riley, especially since everyone seemed to have advice for him on how to handle her. And most of it pretty much required him to not act like himself. Even Angelique was trying to tell him how he should do his job, and it was all starting to get a bit annoying.
"I saw Hayden the other night," he said, deliberately changing the subject. "He seemed to be doing pretty well.
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 13:42:18 GMT -5
Raising an eyebrow at Roland's scowl, he raised his own glass to his mouth to take a drink. He wasn't going to speak on Riley anymore. "Yes," Judah said. "He is doing quite well. The mission at the hospital is going pretty well for him at the moment. Hayden hadn't said how well Cyrus was doing with it, but I suppose he's doing pretty well too." He sighed. "Hayden has gotten to where he doesn't really tell us much of anything about work. It's always the 'it's going alright' or something like that. He keeps more to himself now than he used to."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 16:20:30 GMT -5
And that was the reason Roland liked Hayden so much. They were a lot alike, the two of them. They both kept a lot inside and weren't crazy about letting people--even those they cared about--interfere too much into their lives. The two of them were kindred spirits and they understood each other.
"I just hope Cyrus is more serious about his work than he's been in his personal life," Roland said. "Maybe Hayden can talk some sense into him, because Merlin knows I haven't had any luck."
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 16:26:28 GMT -5
"I think he will take it seriously, after all he'll be looked after. Luckily he's not going off on one of his own missions yet. I think that going under cover at the hospital is probably one of risker missions, but I think that he'll do just fine." It didn't really bother Judah that Hayden kept a lot to himself, he just wished that he would open up sometimes.
"Plus, it's a good thing that he's with Hayden I think. They're both close to the same age, and maybe Cyrus will listen to him. I don't think Hayden would be scared to set him straight if he had too."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 18:20:56 GMT -5
Roland nodded. "I agree. I think it will be good for him. Probably better than if I'd been assigned to be his partner. Who knows what bad habits he'd pick up from me?" He gave a slight smirk.
He finished his drink and looked around for the blonde barmaid, in hopes of getting a refill. He didn't see her, so for the moment, he sat back in his seat and looked at his uncle appraisingly. After a moment, he spoke again. "My dad wanted you to talk to me, didn't he?"
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Post by Judah Ferrera on Jan 2, 2009 18:41:49 GMT -5
Judah looked at Roland questionably. "What? I can't try to find you and talk to you after I haven't seen you in awhile without you thinking that your father sent me?" He had an amused look on his face. "I wanted to talk to you, but I will be honest, your father did want me to possibly talk to you. I saw him yesterday. He's just worried about you, that's all. If it makes you feel better, I wanted to talk to you before your father said anything to me about it. I was planning this beforehand."
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