Money makes the world go round [Closed: Jaime and Bronn][22nd May] 

bronn-s:

Bronn almost laughed when the other man slid the manila envelope across the table, his face completely serious. It was weirdly uncreased, despite having been crumpled up inside Jaime’s jacket for so long, as if the man had hardly bent on his way over. He took the envelope, weighing it in his hands as he listened to the other man explain his task. Considering the recent news, his new job didn’t come to much of a surprise; there really wasn’t much else the Prime Minister could have wanted him for at this time. The warning about violence was a bit disappointing, however; all talk and no play was never all that fun. But intimidation was better than nothing, even if he was better at pairing a fist with it. 

“And if my fist accidentally happens to hit the target’s eye at some point?” Bronn asked, already knowing the answer. “How would your boss feel about that?” 

He grinned at the other man, before chugging the rest of his beer and holding up the envelope in a question, as if to ask if he could open it here in the bar, before opening the slit and pulling out a nondescript blue file and a small check. He whistled lowly at the sum written out on the small sheet of paper, any thoughts of harming his target immediately fleeing his mind. If this was only the first lot… 

“When do you want it done by?” he said, looking up at Jaime and nodding in confirmation. He was sold. 

A low chuckle escaped Jaime at the freelancer’s question, shaking his head slightly. “You might find something a lot more dangerous than a fist coming into contact with your head.” He replied smoothly, as if they were discussing something as simple as the weather.

He simply nodded in reply at the unspoken question in the way Bronn held the file up. It was strange, how something that appeared so nondescript and harmless could cause problems for so many people. The way the man whistled impressed at the ammount written on the check made Jaime smirk. He had him, hook, line and sinker.

“Today or tomorrow, no later.” He knew it wasn’t much time - hell, it sounded impossible - to plan something so quickly but it was all the time they had. Robert needed those men to be on his side by the time the vote was brought up again and it was easier to kindle fear than love. “I know it’s soon but like I said, that cheque’s just a taste of what you’ll get.”

Money makes the world go round [Closed: Jaime and Bronn][22nd May] 

bronn-s:

“That depends on what you would consider an unfortunate accident,” Bronn said, leaning back in his seat. “But yes, that I can do. And you already knew that, or you wouldn’t be sitting across from me now. Now what is it I can do for our esteemed Prime Minister? The vote got him spooked?” 

Jaime kept his expression blank when Bronn replied in the same manner as he had. Obviously, it was not a good thing that the man recognised him so easily. If it were one of the other guards like Arys, they probably could’ve gotten away with contacting the freelancer without being noticed. If Jaime didn’t know Robert better, he might have thought he had been sent on a whim, but no, this was purposeful. It was a reminder, to Jaime, Cersei, to their whole family, that if Robert went down he could take them with him. He wanted to make sure that the Lannister’s were implicated if news of this ever got to the press.

A small smile quirked at the corner of his lips at Bronn’s curt reply to his question. He got straight to business, no messing around. A bit arrogant, perhaps, but Jaime wasn’t exactly one to be judging. He just hoped that the man wasn’t all talk. Confidence he could work with but bravado was nothing but a problem.

“Well, I guess there’s no point beating about the bush.” He muttered, fingering the manila envelope that was stuffed securely in the folds of his suit jacket. He felt ridiculous, carrying around an archiac file like he was in some spy movie - the next Bond, Sandor had called him so many days ago - but computers were so easy to hack these days. Face-to-face meetings were dangerous, but at least this way the only person who would know about the deal would be Bronn.

He pulled the envelope from his jacket, placing it on the table and slid it across to Bronn. “To answer your question, yes, this is concerning the vote.” He sighed slightly and rubbed at his eyes. He’d lost sleep over the vote of no confidence, trying to find the weakest links within Parliament that could be easily manipulated in the space of a night. They only had three days. It wasn’t enough time, he knew, everyone knew, but they tried anyway. “We need some people to have a change of heart and this is one of them.”

He fixed Bronn with a hard stare, glancing at the white plaster covering the scar next to his eye. “No injuries, no violence.” He kept his voice low, eyes wandering around the rest of the bar for a moment before landing back on the man facing him. “You can threaten, but that’s as far as it’s allowed. Destruction of property is allowed but try and keep it minimal.” He explained, before tapping a finger against the envelope sitting in the middle of the table. “This is information on the… target.” God, he hated using that word. “Along with a deposit, if you will. You’ll get the rest if you get results that my boss is happy with.”

Money makes the world go round [Closed: Jaime and Bronn][22nd May] 

The drive towards the Star and Garter was tense for Jaime, and as he sat outside the bar, waiting in his car and checking the perimeter to make sure he wasn’t followed, he considers backing out of this. Robert was an idiot if he thought that hiring thugs would save him, especially if any of his people were caught talking with them. Jaime was already worried someone may have managed to dig up his e-mails.

He glanced at his watch and saw it was one o’clock exactly. Deciding that he couldn’t delay it any longer, he stepped out of his car - his personal instead of one of the work cars. It was somewhat less inconspicious than the all black sedans all of Robert’s guards drove. One quick glance around the surrounding area told him that no one was watching him before he headed to the entrance of the bar.

It was fairly quiet and Jaime was instantly glad he had chosen to meet in the afternoon. The only people there were alcoholics and drunkards who had nowhere else to go. And Bronn, of course, who he sincerely hoped was not included in either group.

He scans quickly over the bar’s din, quickly spotting a man hunched over a beer in one of the booths furthest from the entrance. Carefully, he approached the table, confirming that it was the man he’s looking for by the plastered scar at the side of his face. He allowed himself to relax slightly as he slid into the booth across from the Bronn, sizing him up for a moment.

This is a terrible idea.

“Bronn Swanson.” It was more of a statement than a question. He didn’t shake Bronn’s hand or offer him even a nod. For once, he didn’t need to kiss up to an asset in order to get what he needed. He understood men like Bronn, they didn’t care what you asked of them or how much you looked down on them, so as long as they were paid well.

“Of course you know who I am.” He continued, a little of his usual smarm seeping into his voice. “And since you know who I am, you know who I work for and can probably tell why I’m here.” The vote of no confidence had been the highlight of the week for every news outlet there was and they all knew Robert would do anything to make sure Euron Greyjoy didn’t have his way. “Before I tell you anything, I need to make sure you can be discreet and that you can ensure someone’s silence, without any unfortunate… accidents.” He kept his voice lowered, just in case there was anyone trying to eavesdrop on them. “Can you do that?”