Fic: A Little Evil Comes A Long Way (Kahlan/Cara) 27/33
Title: A Little Evil Comes A Long Way
Author: raug_moss
Pairings: Kahlan/Cara
Rating: NC-17
A/N: modern AU
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16, Chapter 17, Chapter 18, Chapter 19, Chapter 20, Chapter 21, Chapter 22, Chapter 23, Chapter 24, Chapter 25, Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Two days after the dinner with Cara, Kahlan is still trying to make sense of her own feelings. She knows that she is attracted to the blond detective and as much as she would like to deny it, she still wants Cara in her life. But somehow there is this huge wall between them, separating them and leaving both on each side of the legal system.
Plus there is still the issue of Cara being in a relationship with a man, no less. And she highly doubts that they could work around this significant little detail, so Kahlan resigns herself to wanting something she knows she can’t have.
“Same old, same old…”
The only thing that pushes the downright negative thoughts out of her head that day is a call from Rahl around noon.
He says that Dewitt wants to meet with her and that he expects her to be ready in an hour so they could have lunch together. It’s clear that she can hardly decline such an invitation, so she begrudgingly gets dressed and waits for Rahl to pick her up.
Of course there are worse things than being chauffeured around in a sleek dark-blue Porsche and ever since she’s figured out that Rahl really isn’t that awful a person she can almost accept the situation without a scowl.
“What does he want this time? I’m over this shit entirely, there were way too many bullets fired my way and it’s just not worth it. I’ll work with Dahlia in that club of hers and help her pay off the debt like that. I’m going to tell Mr Dewitt the same thing, understood?”
Rahl’ eyes widen as he looks at her sideways.
“Woah, easy there. I can see why you’re a bit angered…”
“I’m pissed off. Over and done.”
“Fine. I’ll put in a word for you.”
“Good.”
They spend the rest of the ride in silence until Rahl stops in front of a high-class restaurant. There’s even a guy who takes the car keys to drive it to a parking space in the back.
Kahlan raises an eyebrow and looks at Rahl with quiet annoyance.
“The food is pretty good, so let’s just take it easy okay?”
He smiles tentatively and Kahlan nods. There is no need in making this harder for the both of them.
Somehow Kahlan also starts to feel like they’re in this together. Dewitt is the true evil in this scenario and Rahl might’ve justed walked down the wrong path without knowing what he’d gotten himself into. One day, sooner or later, they needed to have a talk to clear the air.
Dewitt is already waiting for them in a very secluded area of the restaurant. He politely nods and offers them a seat.
The entire menu is in French and Kahlan has no idea what to order. She leaves it to Rahl and instead keeps a close eye on everything around them.
“First of all Miss Amnell, I’m terribly sorry that you got into a dangerous situation. I still haven’t figured out where exactly the leak might be, but someone must’ve tipped them off. But since you and Mr Rahl took very good care of everything afterward I have no further problems with what has happened.”
“Of course you don’t,” Kahlan answers coldly.
“Now here is where I see the problem, I have never agreed to anything that might involve guns or bullets flying past my head, so I will no longer run any errands for you. With all due respect, but whatever deal we might’ve had is off.”
Dewitt raises his eyebrows and leans back.
“I think I can officially say that her cousin’s debt has been paid off as well,” Rahl adds and Kahlan looks at him from the corner of her eyes. She hides her surprise well, but silently promises to thank Rahl later.
“Well then I hope you’ll handle our past interactions with discretion. It was a pleasure working with you and should you ever decide that you want another task, just let Mr Rahl know.”
Dewitt smiles and looks down at his watch as if remembering that he still possesses one.
“How time flies. I’m sorry but I have to leave already. Please do enjoy the lunch.”
He gets up and walks off without acknowledging them any further.
“That went surprisingly smooth,” Kahlan comments, still doubtful that she has actually seen Dewitt for the last time.
“I agree.”
A waitress serves them their food and Kahlan stares at the unidentifiable meat on her plate. She looks up, silently asking Rahl what he has ordered for her.
“Just try it,” he gestures with the fork toward her side of the table and begins eating.
“So, thank you…” Kahlan says slowly after taking her first bite.
“I knew you’d like it.”
“Not for the food, for telling Dewitt that the debt is paid off.”
“Oh that, yeah, you’re welcome.”
There is a moment of silence.
“I have a last favor to ask though,” Rahl admits.
“I knew it!”
“No guns involved and no bullets flying past your head, I promise!”
Kahlan takes a deep breath and silently eats some more of her meat. Rahl looks anxiously at her. He seems to know that pushing her would be the wrong thing to do so he waits until she is ready to continue the conversation.
After several moments have gone by, Kahlan looks at him.
“Okay. What is it this time?”
Rahl smiles.
“I want you to go to a wedding with me,” he says and Kahlan almost spits her drink back out.
She holds a hand in front of her mouth and coughs quietly.
“Excuse me?”
“A wedding. I want you to accompany me. It’s…uhm…it’s private. My littler sister is getting married and there is no one else I could ask. I don’t want any…negative influences anywhere near the only family I have still left.”
Kahlan puts her glass down and raises her eyebrows in surprise.
“And you think I would be a positive influence? I mean you would have to have a certain amount of trust in me to let me near your family. Does Dewitt know?”
Rahl shakes his head, a warning clear in his dark eyes.
“No he doesn’t. And I don’t want him to. But here’s the thing, for some odd reason I do trust you and that is why I’m asking.”
Kahlan cocks her head to the side and smiles.
“Well I’m glad. And yes I will go to that wedding with you.”
…
Even though that is not the case, people could almost think they are a couple judging by the amount of dresses Rahl is buying Kahlan.
The dress however still looks very good on her. It has a grayish color and makes her appear a few years older than she really is. When she looks in the mirror she would almost believe herself to be some sort of business woman about to sign a million dollar contract.
“My sister thinks I’m a banker or something like that. So we’re gonna stick with that story and tell her that you work with me in my company. If she asks that is,” Rahl comments and gets comfortable behind the steering wheel of his Rover.
Kahlan nods and sits back.
“So tell me a bit about your sister.”
“Her name’s Jennsen and she is truly a good person with a big heart for every creature. She has no idea what darkness looms in every shadowed corner of this city and I most certainly don’t want her to ever find out.”
Rahl looks at Kahlan and she nods.
“Understood.”
They keep on chatting during ride and Kahlan’s stares at Rahl with shock when he tells her that Jennsen has another half-brother who is in fact a cop. Rahl hadn’t known that he had a sister until a few years ago and when he’d first contacted her they’d agreed upon keeping the fact that they were siblings from the other brother, until it was the right time. But that time seemingly hadn’t come yet.
They reach the location of the wedding and it’s a beautiful sunny day when Kahlan gets out of the car.
The sun shines brightly onto a house that is surrounded by a moderately sized garden. Cars are parked all the way down the street and a few guests are already heading toward the house.
It’s a normal suburban setting, unlike anything Kahlan has seen so far of the city. But the good people need a place to live as well and this definitely looks like the right one.
Kahlan knows that she and Rahl look a little out of place and soon they get sideway glances from other wedding guests.
“And we’re not even in the house yet,” she sighs as she walks down the street next to Rahl.
Due to a shortage of parking space they now have to endure being on display for the walk to the house.
Once there, Rahl leads her inside and through the house toward the back where most of the wedding guests have already assembled in a nicely decorated garden. No one seems to really know who Rahl is and when an elderly balding man actually musters up the courage to ask him, he says that he is only a friend of the family.
Rahl eventually leaves Kahlan to her own devices to look for his sister and talk to her before the wedding. She smiles at his retreating form, wondering how he’d managed to become Dewitt’s right hand while at the same time remaining a good person on the inside.
As soon as Rahl is out of sigh,t two guys sidle up to her, introducing themselves as cousins of the bride. They become really annoying in a very short amount of time and Kahlan escapes toward the bar at first chance.
She orders some sort of tropical cocktail and as she waits for it, she spies a man across the yard who looks vaguely familiar. He has brown shaggy hair, wears a tux and laughs when someone next to him says something funny. Just then an elderly woman steps aside and reveals no other than Cara standing next to the guy.
Kahlan turns away when the bartender puts the drink down next to her. Her heart is racing and her thoughts are spinning. What the hell is Cara doing here?
Why is she here?
Kahlan takes a deep breath, grabs her drink, straightens her shoulders and turns around to face the music. With a smile plastered on her face she moves through the crowd and comes to stand beside Cara just as the brown-haired man walks off. The detective hasn’t noticed her yet and she leans down to whisper into the blonde’s ear.
“Cara.”
The detective flinches violently and spins around, almost knocking the drink out of Kahlan’s hand.
The liquid sloshes over the rim and spills across Cara’s chest, drenching her dark blouse.
“Kahlan?” she asks, eyes wide, ignoring the wet spot on her chest.
“What… what are you doing here?”
“I could ask you the same thing,” Kahlan whispers back.
She puts her glass down on a nearby table and grabs a few napkins witch which she then begins dabbing the spot on Cara’s chest.
Kahlan isn’t really focusing on what she is doing because she is trying to think of an explanation for why she is attending this wedding. Only when the detective gasps quietly does she look down. She hadn’t realized that her touches had ventured lower than is decent in public.
They stare at one another silently for several awkward moments.
“Sorry,” Kahlan mumbles, finally taking her hand away.
“It’s okay,” Cara replies quietly.
“You’re not following me are you?” she then adds, a tiny smirk on her lips.
“Depends on whether you are following me,” the brunette replies, smiling.
And just like that the awkwardness dissipates again and they are back in the situation at hand. The wedding. And neither of them knows why the other is there.
Chapter 28
Author: raug_moss
Pairings: Kahlan/Cara
Rating: NC-17
A/N: modern AU
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16, Chapter 17, Chapter 18, Chapter 19, Chapter 20, Chapter 21, Chapter 22, Chapter 23, Chapter 24, Chapter 25, Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Two days after the dinner with Cara, Kahlan is still trying to make sense of her own feelings. She knows that she is attracted to the blond detective and as much as she would like to deny it, she still wants Cara in her life. But somehow there is this huge wall between them, separating them and leaving both on each side of the legal system.
Plus there is still the issue of Cara being in a relationship with a man, no less. And she highly doubts that they could work around this significant little detail, so Kahlan resigns herself to wanting something she knows she can’t have.
“Same old, same old…”
The only thing that pushes the downright negative thoughts out of her head that day is a call from Rahl around noon.
He says that Dewitt wants to meet with her and that he expects her to be ready in an hour so they could have lunch together. It’s clear that she can hardly decline such an invitation, so she begrudgingly gets dressed and waits for Rahl to pick her up.
Of course there are worse things than being chauffeured around in a sleek dark-blue Porsche and ever since she’s figured out that Rahl really isn’t that awful a person she can almost accept the situation without a scowl.
“What does he want this time? I’m over this shit entirely, there were way too many bullets fired my way and it’s just not worth it. I’ll work with Dahlia in that club of hers and help her pay off the debt like that. I’m going to tell Mr Dewitt the same thing, understood?”
Rahl’ eyes widen as he looks at her sideways.
“Woah, easy there. I can see why you’re a bit angered…”
“I’m pissed off. Over and done.”
“Fine. I’ll put in a word for you.”
“Good.”
They spend the rest of the ride in silence until Rahl stops in front of a high-class restaurant. There’s even a guy who takes the car keys to drive it to a parking space in the back.
Kahlan raises an eyebrow and looks at Rahl with quiet annoyance.
“The food is pretty good, so let’s just take it easy okay?”
He smiles tentatively and Kahlan nods. There is no need in making this harder for the both of them.
Somehow Kahlan also starts to feel like they’re in this together. Dewitt is the true evil in this scenario and Rahl might’ve justed walked down the wrong path without knowing what he’d gotten himself into. One day, sooner or later, they needed to have a talk to clear the air.
Dewitt is already waiting for them in a very secluded area of the restaurant. He politely nods and offers them a seat.
The entire menu is in French and Kahlan has no idea what to order. She leaves it to Rahl and instead keeps a close eye on everything around them.
“First of all Miss Amnell, I’m terribly sorry that you got into a dangerous situation. I still haven’t figured out where exactly the leak might be, but someone must’ve tipped them off. But since you and Mr Rahl took very good care of everything afterward I have no further problems with what has happened.”
“Of course you don’t,” Kahlan answers coldly.
“Now here is where I see the problem, I have never agreed to anything that might involve guns or bullets flying past my head, so I will no longer run any errands for you. With all due respect, but whatever deal we might’ve had is off.”
Dewitt raises his eyebrows and leans back.
“I think I can officially say that her cousin’s debt has been paid off as well,” Rahl adds and Kahlan looks at him from the corner of her eyes. She hides her surprise well, but silently promises to thank Rahl later.
“Well then I hope you’ll handle our past interactions with discretion. It was a pleasure working with you and should you ever decide that you want another task, just let Mr Rahl know.”
Dewitt smiles and looks down at his watch as if remembering that he still possesses one.
“How time flies. I’m sorry but I have to leave already. Please do enjoy the lunch.”
He gets up and walks off without acknowledging them any further.
“That went surprisingly smooth,” Kahlan comments, still doubtful that she has actually seen Dewitt for the last time.
“I agree.”
A waitress serves them their food and Kahlan stares at the unidentifiable meat on her plate. She looks up, silently asking Rahl what he has ordered for her.
“Just try it,” he gestures with the fork toward her side of the table and begins eating.
“So, thank you…” Kahlan says slowly after taking her first bite.
“I knew you’d like it.”
“Not for the food, for telling Dewitt that the debt is paid off.”
“Oh that, yeah, you’re welcome.”
There is a moment of silence.
“I have a last favor to ask though,” Rahl admits.
“I knew it!”
“No guns involved and no bullets flying past your head, I promise!”
Kahlan takes a deep breath and silently eats some more of her meat. Rahl looks anxiously at her. He seems to know that pushing her would be the wrong thing to do so he waits until she is ready to continue the conversation.
After several moments have gone by, Kahlan looks at him.
“Okay. What is it this time?”
Rahl smiles.
“I want you to go to a wedding with me,” he says and Kahlan almost spits her drink back out.
She holds a hand in front of her mouth and coughs quietly.
“Excuse me?”
“A wedding. I want you to accompany me. It’s…uhm…it’s private. My littler sister is getting married and there is no one else I could ask. I don’t want any…negative influences anywhere near the only family I have still left.”
Kahlan puts her glass down and raises her eyebrows in surprise.
“And you think I would be a positive influence? I mean you would have to have a certain amount of trust in me to let me near your family. Does Dewitt know?”
Rahl shakes his head, a warning clear in his dark eyes.
“No he doesn’t. And I don’t want him to. But here’s the thing, for some odd reason I do trust you and that is why I’m asking.”
Kahlan cocks her head to the side and smiles.
“Well I’m glad. And yes I will go to that wedding with you.”
…
Even though that is not the case, people could almost think they are a couple judging by the amount of dresses Rahl is buying Kahlan.
The dress however still looks very good on her. It has a grayish color and makes her appear a few years older than she really is. When she looks in the mirror she would almost believe herself to be some sort of business woman about to sign a million dollar contract.
“My sister thinks I’m a banker or something like that. So we’re gonna stick with that story and tell her that you work with me in my company. If she asks that is,” Rahl comments and gets comfortable behind the steering wheel of his Rover.
Kahlan nods and sits back.
“So tell me a bit about your sister.”
“Her name’s Jennsen and she is truly a good person with a big heart for every creature. She has no idea what darkness looms in every shadowed corner of this city and I most certainly don’t want her to ever find out.”
Rahl looks at Kahlan and she nods.
“Understood.”
They keep on chatting during ride and Kahlan’s stares at Rahl with shock when he tells her that Jennsen has another half-brother who is in fact a cop. Rahl hadn’t known that he had a sister until a few years ago and when he’d first contacted her they’d agreed upon keeping the fact that they were siblings from the other brother, until it was the right time. But that time seemingly hadn’t come yet.
They reach the location of the wedding and it’s a beautiful sunny day when Kahlan gets out of the car.
The sun shines brightly onto a house that is surrounded by a moderately sized garden. Cars are parked all the way down the street and a few guests are already heading toward the house.
It’s a normal suburban setting, unlike anything Kahlan has seen so far of the city. But the good people need a place to live as well and this definitely looks like the right one.
Kahlan knows that she and Rahl look a little out of place and soon they get sideway glances from other wedding guests.
“And we’re not even in the house yet,” she sighs as she walks down the street next to Rahl.
Due to a shortage of parking space they now have to endure being on display for the walk to the house.
Once there, Rahl leads her inside and through the house toward the back where most of the wedding guests have already assembled in a nicely decorated garden. No one seems to really know who Rahl is and when an elderly balding man actually musters up the courage to ask him, he says that he is only a friend of the family.
Rahl eventually leaves Kahlan to her own devices to look for his sister and talk to her before the wedding. She smiles at his retreating form, wondering how he’d managed to become Dewitt’s right hand while at the same time remaining a good person on the inside.
As soon as Rahl is out of sigh,t two guys sidle up to her, introducing themselves as cousins of the bride. They become really annoying in a very short amount of time and Kahlan escapes toward the bar at first chance.
She orders some sort of tropical cocktail and as she waits for it, she spies a man across the yard who looks vaguely familiar. He has brown shaggy hair, wears a tux and laughs when someone next to him says something funny. Just then an elderly woman steps aside and reveals no other than Cara standing next to the guy.
Kahlan turns away when the bartender puts the drink down next to her. Her heart is racing and her thoughts are spinning. What the hell is Cara doing here?
Why is she here?
Kahlan takes a deep breath, grabs her drink, straightens her shoulders and turns around to face the music. With a smile plastered on her face she moves through the crowd and comes to stand beside Cara just as the brown-haired man walks off. The detective hasn’t noticed her yet and she leans down to whisper into the blonde’s ear.
“Cara.”
The detective flinches violently and spins around, almost knocking the drink out of Kahlan’s hand.
The liquid sloshes over the rim and spills across Cara’s chest, drenching her dark blouse.
“Kahlan?” she asks, eyes wide, ignoring the wet spot on her chest.
“What… what are you doing here?”
“I could ask you the same thing,” Kahlan whispers back.
She puts her glass down on a nearby table and grabs a few napkins witch which she then begins dabbing the spot on Cara’s chest.
Kahlan isn’t really focusing on what she is doing because she is trying to think of an explanation for why she is attending this wedding. Only when the detective gasps quietly does she look down. She hadn’t realized that her touches had ventured lower than is decent in public.
They stare at one another silently for several awkward moments.
“Sorry,” Kahlan mumbles, finally taking her hand away.
“It’s okay,” Cara replies quietly.
“You’re not following me are you?” she then adds, a tiny smirk on her lips.
“Depends on whether you are following me,” the brunette replies, smiling.
And just like that the awkwardness dissipates again and they are back in the situation at hand. The wedding. And neither of them knows why the other is there.
Chapter 28