[hider=TL;DR] Jaden calls Whisper, calls her by her alias(Basalisk Russ). Whisper puts the phone on speaker before questioning Jaden about the shooting. She found out that Damian Ryder, one of Jaden's many employees, was taking claim to the shooting. Jaden leaves her with a threat to get the key after she drops his full name, for which he uses her full alias. Nobody is allowed to interrupt the conversation though, so take it Whisper's request for quiet was fulfilled. [hider=OOC] This post only requires a TL;DR because I spent all night editing it with more and more until I got tired of it. It's long as all get out so I do apologize. However, a few details that aren't going to be said but [i]may[/i] end up being important to the story are in the paragraphs. [/hider] [/hider] [h3]Jaden Cassia[/h3] Jaden returned to the present, still thinking about the flashback. It had shaken him, to say the least, but he wasn't quite disturbed by it. He looked up as somebody approached him, an employee of his that had also been at the party. "[color=fff200]Somebody saved the key-holder. Possibly the woman you have been looking for. She just got employed by the key-holder,[/color]" The employee, nameless to Jaden, told him. Jaden nodded. "[color=9e0b0f]What were her main features?[/color]" "[color=fff200]Black face mask. Wearing full black. Light skin. Dark hair. Medically trained. Most likely combat trained as well. Probably American, Army veteran. Heavily armed.[/color]" Jaden nodded and shooed the employee away. With the image of the investor's daughter in his head, he took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts. He still had her number, which he had forgotten to delete after he had broken up with her, though the breakup was a story for another time. She was still saved in her phone as "🖤Basalisk Russ🖤" as a reminder of what he was going up against. Russ would use his old emotions at any chance she got, and she would not fail; she never failed with him. Of course, he had failed her; that's what she had manipulated him into thinking. He still thought that, even after a year of telling himself it was the other way around and even torturing her to the brink of death and leaving her with a scar that she refused to accept. In Jaden's mind, Basalisk Russ was a manipulator and a liar. She was also a Blackheart, a fact that petrified him. He relished in thoughts of finally killing her for a while before sighing and shaking his head. He hesitated then hit call. [h3]Whisper Bea[/h3] Whisper's phone rang. She frowned, perplexed as to who could be calling her. She had no calls scheduled. She removed the phone from her pocket, studying the screen. An unknown called ID, unknown number, and a potential spam alert. Near the center of her screen was a "report number?" button in bright red. Her X(hang up/reject) and A(answer/accept) buttons remained in their usual place at the lower corners of the screen. Many claimed her phone was set up strangely, but she liked the setup. She knew it was a blocked number due to the "unknown number" but was not completely sure how the call still got through. Most likely a contact that she had forgotten to delete. [i]Huh. I guess I have to answer it,[/i] She thought, holding up a hand for a moment of quiet as she answered. "[color=f6989d]Hello?[/color]" "[color=9e0b0f]Hello, Russ.[/color]" A cold voice, most likely nearby. Possibly even the shooter himself. "[color=f6989d]Who is this?[/color]" Confusion; not many people knew her alias in Nightlight City(far fewer knew her name at all) unless they'd known her in her first life. That narrowed down who it was. "[color=9e0b0f]I'm surprised the amazing Basalisk Russ does not recognize my voice. You know who I am.[/color]" And she did. It was the one and only Jaden Cassia, her old nemisis and ex-boyfriend(a story for another time); she hated him with a burning passion that now sparked in her eyes. "[color=f6989d]Cassia?[/color]" Annoyance. She distinctly disliked whoever "Cassia" was. "[color=9e0b0f]Right on point. Come outside. Let us speak in the presence of each other, just us, on our lonesome. Like old times.[/color]" Right. Old times had been so long ago Whisper hardly remembered them. That had been before she'd been essentially drafted into the CIA's undercover operations, where she had chosen to stay after that. "[color=f6989d]No, thanks, I'd rather not.[/color]" Surprisingly polite. "[color=9e0b0f]You scared of me?[/color]" Taunting her. "[color=f6989d]No. Just fine where I am is all.[/color]" There was a note of fear in her voice. Almost indetectable, but there. "[color=9e0b0f]You're scared.[/color]" He clearly wanted her to get mad at him. She didn't give him that satisfaction. "[color=f6989d]Why would I be?[/color]" A challenge, though she sounded unmoved for the most part. "[color=9e0b0f]Bee was shot tonight. You saved her life.[/color]" "[color=f6989d]Yeah, is there a problem with this fact?[/color]" Passive aggression. A last resort for her. "[color=9e0b0f]Yes, actually. I wanted that key.[/color]" At which point Whisper put the phone on speaker. "[color=f6989d]So you're the one who shot her?[/color]" Investigative. "[color=9e0b0f]Me? No, no. I would never. But I have friends who would.[/color]" A scoff. Sarcasm, almost. "[color=f6989d]Like who? Your little pet Damian Ryder?[/color]" An obvious dig to get whoever was on the other end of the phone to say who'd shot Bee, and a point where Whisper glanced at Zi. "[color=9e0b0f]Spot on, actually. I'm impressed, Russ. You've gotten better.[/color]" Clearly fake. Damian Ryder hadn’t even been there, Whisper knew that; he was her contact too. "[color=f6989d]And you've gotten lazier. What's the point of calling me, Cassia?[/color]" Weary of the conversation. "[color=9e0b0f]Oh, I just wanted to congradulate you for getting the job as Bee's bodyguard. And to tell you to never interfere in my projects again.[/color]" So he was nearby. That narrowed down his location options, at least for Whisper. "[color=f6989d]No promises, Jaden Cassia.[/color]" The choice to use his full name hadn't appeared difficult, but it had been. This would tell him that she had put the phone on speaker. The caller spoke with a laugh now, as if taunting Whisper. "[color=9e0b0f]Be vigilant, Basalisk Russ. I will get that key somehow.[/color]" The caller hung up. Whisper pocketed the phone and started pacing as she muttered obcenities under her breath. This was worse than she had thought. Bee and Zi would have questions, and she would answer them to a point. She had to protect the key, no matter the cost. Her hands checked over her weaponry by default: her daggers at her hips, pistol near her back pocket, dagger up her left sleeve. The only place she left untouched was her ankles and lower legs. She had weapons there too, but didn't exactly want Zi knowing all her hiding places. She also skipped over the pistols she kept looped in her bra straps, those a new feature her hands were not yet used to checking. She had started keeping them there after she'd been captured. After this, she pocketed her hands, still pacing. The check had taken all of thirty seconds, perhaps even fewer.