<em>Ruthless.</em>That was one of the words that had often been used in college to describe Vicki, especially when she was in the academic setting or engaged in some sort of social sparring between her classmates.  She was a hawk amongst pigeons back in those days and Frederick wondered if she retained that hardened edge.  He had rarely been on the receiving end of one of her tirades, as she was often relaxed, if not downright silly, in his company.  He gazed at her now, his storm-gray eyes searching her face for that lost girl she had once been.<br/><br/>He found no answers as their gazes met and he soon cast his glance aside for fear of what might pass between, unspoken and unfulfilled as it had always been.<br/><br/>Fred listened in silence as George explained the rules of the game and he took mental note on how things were to be played out.  It really was random chance but there was a bit of strategy involved that he could possibly use to an advantage.  He had a keen mind for such things and the financial field of the stock market was all about attack and counter attacks, strategy and tactics.  All of it played out like a sort of "numbers wars" with the brokers serving as soldiers and the clients as the generals who reaped all the benefits of their pawns' hard work.  He shook his head at the thought but quickly set up a bittersweet smile as he plucked a piece of sushi off one of the platters.<br/><br/>"No questions here.  Let's get started!"