(Untitled)
There wasn't much about that man on the bench that would attract anyone's attention. He sat with his elbows on his knees, an unlit cigarette in his left hand, and he was looking down as if the cigarette would light itself if he stared at it long enough. What light the evening sun could afford him made strands of dark hair a dozen shades lighter.
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"You look thoughtful," he adds as he stretches out his legs.
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He held on to the lighter for a little while after lighting his cigarette.
"And too old to remember what I might have been thinking about now that you've interrupted that train of thought. Tell me what you've been up to."
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Jordan crossed his arms and leaned back against the bench, silent for a moment. Michael had known him a long time, before he'd built up the sardonic, condescending persona that kept most people at bay most of the time. He probably recognized the signs of trouble. "Nothing," Jordan said. "Everything's been going smooth as glass over at the Hearts." He was bored; the challenge of reorganizing and retraining the guards was long past, and now there was a slick system in place.
And Hearts didn't have enough disciplinary problems for him to do anything that way, either. It was probably why he'd been so quick to dip his toes back into Spade politics the minute he'd had an excuse.
"The brace is finally off my knee, though." From the car accident, of course. The one he'd gotten into after being dumped by letter, by one of Michael's fellow Tens of Spades.
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"At least tell me you'll be a little less reckless on the road."
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He just sighed, though.
"I haven't even been behind the wheel since," he said. "But I promise next time I'll drive like a reasonable adult."
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"Preferably one that doesn't involve any more motor accidents. We worry about you."
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King of Spades wasn't for him, either. But it might be for his cousin.
"I've gotten that distinct impression lately," he said, dryly. "From the parade of people bearing food coming into my office." He was silent for a moment, the sighed a little. "I'll find something, or it'll find me. And you've probably got enough on you plate, right? How are things going, with David...disappeared?"
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"Busy," was all he could say. There were lines by his eyes when he smiled all too briefly. Despite how important David had been to them all these years, the Spades would no doubt manage without him.
"And not the kind of busy you would fancy."
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Not in the least.
"Just the kind of busy that has everyone buried in more work," he says lightly. "I'm familiar. That's what it was like until Judith finally named Ceiro's successor." Soon enough it'd be the other kind of busy, though, and Jordan was quiet for a moment.
"The family's been suggesting," he says, slowly, "that with David gone, Hadyn and I should return to the Spades."
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"Is that what you and Hadyn want, or what the family wants for you two?" Because if it was the latter... Michael shouldn't advise against it if that were the case, but he probably would anyway. Jordan would outlive the wishes of his family, and his legacy was his own to write.
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Which, ultimately, was what the Spades still were for Jordan, even if he didn't have as many friends there as he once had. The problem was how he'd be viewed - had he spent too much time in the Hearts.
"I'm not sure, for myself, that there's anything in particular holding me to the Hearts. They haven't always been as welcoming and open as they're purported to be."
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"It might be easier with the... David gone." Easier to come back to the Spades, at least. Michael could say a few things to a few people to make sure Jordan would have an easy entry, and Jordan wouldn't even have to know about it. Leaving the Hearts, however, especially considering he was a Ten - there wasn't much Michael could do except perhaps buy Tunde a drink.
"But you might have to ask yourself if you'd rather stay with Hadyn, or come home."
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He did have a few friends, notably Blythe, but it was a largely isolated sort of life. Not a pleasant one.
"I worry about him." About Hadyn, of course. "He's lost a lot this year." They both had, but...Hadyn wasn't fragile, but he'd had episodes for years now, periods where nothing was good. "But he wouldn't want me to make my decision based on him."
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"If you have your heart set on leaving, though, perhaps you need to settle that first." Michael didn't imagine it would be all that difficult leaving the Hearts, but he wouldn't know for sure. Would they be much more reluctant because of the rank?
"And do bear in mind, young man, that it's not a door you can easily re-open once you decide to walk through it."
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Still, he sighed. "A lot will depend on Katya's decision, I suppose. For King." If it was Clive...well, he'd be a lot more likely to return. If it was another person who adhered to David's ridiculous rule that no member of any other Suit was more valuable than a Four of Spades?
Well. No.
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"Have you spoken with her? If she is open to the idea, it may not matter so much who the King is."
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