Finn comes in armed with a huge but tasteful bouquet of pale lilac and pink flowers that he sets on a chair.
"Oh, Sir. It's so good to see you," he exclaims, hurrying to the hospital bed to hug William Regal gingerly around the shoulders. He sits on the edge of the bed and holds his mentor's cheek in his right hand. "When I heard the news, I flew over immediately. What did the doctors say?"
William leans his cheek into Finn's touch and then turns his head to kiss the heart of the younger man's palm. "I'm fine, dear boy. Not the first time I've been attacked by someone I trusted. The doctors tell me I'll recover in a few weeks. with proper rest."
"I'm glad." Finn studies the older man's face, a slight crease in his brow, as if to read William's mind. "Who was it?"
"It's alright, my dear. I've someone to deal with them already." William smiles, immensely comforted by Finn's presence.
It's a shame that his new protege prefers instant gratification over long-term development, but that' how it was with some people. Not everyone can be a Finn Balor.
He caresses Finn's jaw with his good hand, even though he's not fond of the beard, and then lies back against his pillows to ease the strain in his back, which is still badly bruised. Both of his legs are broken and, at his age, it will be difficult to recover fully. Thankfully, the perpetrator did not complete the job running him over a second time, not that the first hit did not already almost kill him.
To distract Finn from thoughts of vengeance, he asks, "Who came along with you? Seth? Tyler?"
"No, I asked Joe." Finn stands and goes to the door of the private ward.
Joe comes in shortly and makes a face at the flowers being left on a chair. "The least you can do is to put them in a jug."
"I wasn't thinking about the flowers," Finn retorts, though he obediently picks up the bouquet and heads for the bathroom to look for a water container.
Joe stands at the foot of the bed to look at William. His expression is inscrutable. "I'm glad you're doing better."
So much like his father. William glances at the empty chair on the right. "Thank you, Joe. Come, sit next to the bed. Easier to chat that way."
Finn returns and sets the bouquet - all stuck in a jug - on the nightstand. "Is there anything you'd like, Sir?" he asks, falling back on old patterns. It's clear he's upset by the sight of William injured and confined to a hospital bed.
"I'd like some lemon and blueberry scones, darling. There's some good ones in a shop down the street. And pop by Boots for some shea butter hand cream."
Finn smiles and kisses William on the forehead. "I'll be back in a jiffy."
The deliberate attempt to sound like an Englishman amuses William. "Go raibh maith agat, dear boy."
*
Joe watches the exchange and waits for the door to shut before he speaks. "Was it the new boy?"
"Like I said, I have people dealing with them." Regal turns his head stiffly to look at Joe. There's a softness and a warmth about his features that didn't use to be there a decade ago. "I'm glad to see you and Finn still together, Joe."
"For a given value."
"For a given value." The older man pauses, and then says, "Do you know why I sent Finn out on a simple errand?"
"You have something to tell me."
"This little incident reminds me that I still owe too much to too many people. And one of the people I owe is you."
Joe studies Regal. He has never liked the man, though he respects him for what he's achieved and admires - grudgingly - his methods in managing the vast network of informants and killers on the Grapevine. After a while, he asks, "What do you owe me?"
"An apology." Regal exhales deeply and his lined face creases with pain. "I knew your father. He was good at his job. Not on the same level as you, but Tagata Siva was still a force to fear."
"I've not heard you speak of him," Joe says, though his heart clenches briefly at his father's nickname. Dancer. Because he loved Joe's mother, who was a dancer when they met.
Regal closes his eyes and presses his lips together. "I... did not dare. Because it was partly my fault he was killed."
Joe does not comment.
"I knew there was a hit on him. I could have warned him. But... Business was business." Regal sighs and opens his eyes, which are clear. "I thought they would take him out when he was on a job, not when he was with his children."
For a brief moment Joe thinks about smothering Regal, but the latter is merely an old man now. An old man who's just been run over by a car, and someone who means a great deal to Finn.
"Business is business, after all," Joe replies.
With a small curl on his lips, Regal says, "I won't blame you if you do kill me."
"What would be the point now?" Joe chuckles quietly. "If I count the number of parents I've killed... Besides, if he didn't die, I wouldn't have become who I am now. Nor would I have the people I have now."
The older man smiles at Joe. "That's very magnanimous. Thank you."
"Nah, you're still an evil motherfucker." Joe grins. "If not for you, that Irish bastard would be a lot less of an ass."
"I thought you like that ass."
Joe snorts. "Only what I get to do to it."
The door to the ward opens and Finn walks in with a paper bag. He frowns at them quizzically when both Joe and Regal start laughing at the same time. "Do I wanna know?"
Finn calls two minutes after he gets William Regal's okay, and he begins with: "I thought you'd retired, Sir."
Regal grins and shucks off the jacket. "What can I say, dear boy? I see a promising young thing and I just want to make sure he's trained by the best."
"Like I was."
"That's not jealousy I'm hearing, am I?" Regal teases. He removes his cuff links and sets them in a deep green ceramic tray. "You've long since grown past the need for me."
"Never, Sir," Finn replies loyally, though both Regal and Finn know that it's not true. It's still a comforting lie to hear, nevertheless. "Do you want me to run a check on his background? I know you have your sources, but some of mine have access to younger parties."
William Regal hums to himself. His sources are old school, that much is true, and since his retirement he hasn't been as diligent in keeping up with the gossip on the Grapevine. "That would be wonderful, my dear. Now, do see yourself on a trip my way soon. I'd love for you to meet Yuta. Such a ray of sunshine, he is."
Finn laughs. "I bet he warms you right up, Sir."
"Just basking in his warmth." Regal glances over at his study, where his newest acquisition is kneeling shirtless, hands behind him, waiting for correction on his performance tonight. Licking his lips, Regal murmurs, "I'd love for you and your pet to visit. He'll learn a lot from you two."
"I'll make the travel arrangements after I get more information." Finn's voice turns suggestive. "If you could send a photo or two, I'm sure I can persuade Seth to take an extended weekend break to visit you."
Regal smiles. "As you wish, dear boy. As you wish."
Finn is discharged after three weeks, though his injuries have not fully recovered, and he has no idea where he's supposed to go next.
The man who saved him from an ugly death in an alley is signing off on paperwork. Finn is a little uneasy; the man who introduced himself as Mr Regal has been visiting him almost daily since Finn woke up from surgery and paid for an upgraded private room.
Once they're outside the hospital, Finn hobbles away from the older man while a black car pulls up to the curb. "Hey, I mean, thanks for everything, but what do you want from me?"
"Why do you think I want anything from you?" Regal asks, with a lazy smile.
"Because no one's this nice." Finn suppresses a snarl of disdain. He's got some manners left, anyhow. "Not to me, in my experience."
Regal purses his lips momentarily. "Perhaps not until now. I don't want anything from you, but I want to make you an offer. Shall we talk over some food?"
Finn narrows his eyes. His left arm is still in a sling, his right foot is in a cast, and his ribs have not fully recovered, and he's starving. If Regal wants anything from him, Finn supposes he's earned a fuck at the very least.
"I want steak, the good sort, not the chewy rubbery shit," he says aloud, trying to see if that will piss off the seemingly proper Englishman who is not like anyone he's ever seen here in Dublin.
