Ian, the Monroe's right hand man, met the group when they landed. Dee was pleased to find the man pleasant and friendly. Benny and Trigger obviously got along with the young Englishman, as the trio joked around. There was much rejoicing from Nigma's group at being away from Stromel's. The Monroes, themselves, had just returned late that morning from a visit to their vineyards. An early dinner was served, and Eddie and his group retired soon after, the stress of the two days at Stromel's having exhausted them.

The next afternoon was spent lying in the sun on the lawn of the Monroe Estate in southern England. After the cold and hollow halls of the castle, the English manor seemed like paradise to the group. The Monroes were warm and friendly, having the most informal meals and meetings. With the afternoon being as warm as it was, the Monroes had decided to have the afternoon off and enjoy the sun.

"This is nice, isn't it?" Dee said as she lay on the lawn next to Eddie.

He gave a grunt in response as he stared into the blue sky.

"Is something wrong, Tiger?" she asked, turning onto her stomach and putting a hand on his chest. "You seem distracted."

"Something doesn't feel right here. Tom and Gilliana have always had the same guards during meetings. The three men who were there today are new and there's something about them I don't like."

"You mean other than their horrible body odor?"

"I was more thinking about the looks they were giving you. They're watching us, even now," he said, nodding discreetly at the balcony overlooking the spot where they lay. The cigarette smoke from the three men could be seen trailing in the soft breeze that blew. "Something definitely isn't right. I've asked Benny to guard the room for you while I go have a chat with Tom. He's too old of a friend not to tell me what's going on with these new guys."

~ ~ ~

"The new men? What about them?" Tom asked nervously.

"Why are they here, Tom? What happened to Sean and Peter? They're around. I've seen them. Why don't you have them in the meeting?"

Tom pulled at his collar as he refilled the scotch glasses, handing one to Edward. Accepting the scotch, Eddie stared levelly at Tom until the man finally sighed, slumping into a chair in front of the fireplace. Taking the opposite chair, Eddie casually crossed his legs and waited for his friend to speak.

"You know we were on our way back from our vineyard in Italy when you arrived. A few hours before we left these three men came with some information about Gilliana and I. They told us that their employer would give this information out if we didn't take them as our guards for our meeting with you."

"Did they tell you who they're employed by?"

"Yes. Which is why we agreed. The information could ruin us, Edward, and have far reaching effects. We can't afford to let this information get out. The deal is we let them come here and pretend to be our guards. The information stays secret as long as they have a chance at grabbing the girl you brought with you."

"Stromel," growled Edward.

Tom nodded. "Now you understand why we agreed. The man is ruthless."

"So Stromel thinks he can take Query. I know the man thinks he can have what he wants, but I won't stand for this. He's bullied too many people. Don't worry, Tom. Leave this to us and we'll handle it. I'll just need a little bit of help from you."

~ ~ ~

Back in the room, Dee sat wrapped in a robe, playing with Tangram. In the anteroom, Benny sat, flipping through a magazine.

"Benny? What do you think is going on?" she asked, breaking the silence.

"No idea."

Ah! It's great to have such a wonderful conversationalist around. "You and Trigger don't like me very much, do you?"

Benny looked up from his magazine. He wished Trigger were there. Trigger had warned him she would start asking girlie questions.

"Admit it. You and Trigger don't like me. Why? Because I came in and Eddie's happy?" She shook her head. "Benny, I don't want your jobs. I don't want your money. I just want to belong and be part of the group, got it?"

"I didn't say anything," he replied.

"You don't have to. Ok, let me just put this down for you." Dee felt like she was talking to a child, having to assure the child that she wasn't taking the place of his real mother. "I love Eddie. Plain and simple. I could care less about his money or status. And really, if I didn't see a penny of whatever was made from this trip, I could care less about that as well. He supplies me with the basics. That's good enough for me."

The man raised an eyebrow, but said nothing, trying to concentrate on his magazine.

"Ok, fine. Just know this, Benny. I'm not going anywhere for a long time, so you and Trigger are stuck with seeing me."

With that she crawled into bed, turning off the light on the nightstand. She had just dozed off when Edward joined her in bed. He shook her awake, whispering to her the details of the meeting he had returned from, and the plan he had come up with.
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