<div class="floatright">(http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b52/jotunusmc/36827_421832359861_518524861_4822950_3819136_n.jpg)</div><br/><hr/><hr/><div style="text-align: right;"><span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: georgia;"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 14pt;">Taras Ivan Markovski<strong>  -  Name           </strong><br/>The Muscle<strong>  -  Title              </strong><br/> Foulweather Bluff, east of Seattle<strong>  -  Location     </strong><br/> Allison, Tip, Adriano, Natalie, Ryan<strong>  -  Tagged         </strong></span></span></div><hr/><hr/><br/><div style="text-align: justify;">     As the two continued to walk, the casual stroll was altered slightly when Allison caught his arm and seemed to walk a little closer. It was something so small, but it took him way back to their early days - the very first race he'd taken her to. She was quite skittish from her first near-disastrous experience and she had clung to him back then in the very same fashion she was now. He didn't put much thought into it other than the quick flashback - and immediately his protective instincts went on alert. His sharp grey eyes scanned the scene for what might have spooked Allison and it didn't take him long to spot 'Tip'. <br/><br/>     The man always made Taras curious. Like Taras, he was also of Slavic decent, though the rivalry between Russians and Ukrainians was no small thing. Ukrainians had a deep seeded anger and bitterness against 'mother Russia' ever since Stalin's reign. It was so extreme that the hate hadn't died down even through a few generations - the only ethnic division that rivaled it was the Israeli-Palestinian one, because they were just so damn religious about it. The Russians and Ukrainians were just as violent, but they expressed their disdain in much less destructive ways...<br/><br/>     Racing was a good way to vent it. <br/><br/>     Taras had an unspoken war going on with Tip on the race track. The two of them always seem to push past their normal limits when they happened to be neck and neck. Coming in anywhere behind the Russian was completely unacceptable as far as Taras was concerned, tonight would be no different. He offered the out-of-place Triad a passing nod. Maybe out of mutual respect between bitter rivals... or maybe due to the fact that the two were accomplices - despite their rival heritages. Tip was who the crew answered to, and usually Taras was the one that would deal with him. The tall Ukrainian preferred dealing with Adriano, but that wasn't always possible. Tip was who Adriano dealt with, getting requisition lists and the gateman at the port where they brought the cars to be smuggled out. Taras always wondered how he'd gotten tied in with the Chinese... he seemed far too independent and proud to be satisfied being Mr. Kwan's personal assistant... but then he was a powerful man, on many fronts. The benefits Tip reaped from that arrangement were probably well worth it.<br/><br/>     Taras just leaned slightly closer to Allison as he let his vision slip from Tipene, it was a subconscious action; but perhaps it would make her feel more at ease - or both of them for that matter. The younger woman began to steer him off in another direction though, and when Taras began scanning the scene again he saw where she was leading them. Adriano was waiting patiently next to his ride - always calm, always collected. Before Taras or Allison even had a chance to speak Adriano held up a bag and gave his report. Always business with that man. He could relax once in a while, but never fully. He was always thinking, always prepared.<br/><br/>    Up came one of those tattooed hands to grasp the bag and he offered a nod to the associate. For whatever reason, Taras seemed to trust Adriano more than most people did - and it had seemed to create some type of silent bond between the two. Like Adriano, Taras didn't trust anyone around here. He didn't trust the triads, the other racers, or anyone really. Only the crew members; and even <em>they</em> were always under a watchful eye. That was Taras, quiet, perceptive, but he had a caring and compassionate spirit somewhere deep inside. It was why he'd confronted Allison this evening. Of course he trusted her, in spirit; but he knew she had secrets, and though he would be understanding with her... his exterior persona would be wary. <br/><br/>     It was because of the way he'd grown up, all by himself - no one on his side. He was slowly changing, slowly learning what it meant to be a friend, to trust and to be trustworthy... but he was still a work in progress. <em>That</em> was why he seemed to relate best with Adriano, why he seemed to trust him when he probably shouldn't; because he understood the man, he understood that constant cautioned look and watchful gaze. Taras didn't even bother to open the bag and check to make sure it was all there - and he didn't need to. For whatever reason, Adriano had seemed to cling to Taras' and Cori's crew. He tried to be a man of few loyalties, but this particular group had grown on him. <br/><br/>     The bag was full of the entrance fees all of the crew members that were racing tonight had fronted. Taras thought it best to let Adriano hold them for safe keeping. Not too long from now that bag would be filled with the other racer's entrance fees - and it would go right back to Adriano until the conclusion of the race. For now, however, it was in Taras' hands; since he was the one hosting the summer opener. It wasn't as big as the other major races that took place in the summer, but it was just as profound. All the big names took part in the event. Taras was well known in the Seattle underground, he was one of the best - though he didn't race as much as he used to. He liked hosting the first race of the summer to gauge the competition ahead of time, it was something he'd started a few years ago and now it was practically tradition. <br/><br/>     He then glanced down to Allison before looking back up to Adriano, <strong>"Find any takers for my 3 to 1 odds on Allison?"</strong> In addition to holding the race winnings, Taras had also given the man another decent sum of money as a deposit for a side bet. He'd asked Adriano to see if he could find anyone willing to take bets against Allison. The deal was $100 minimum bets, which Taras had agreed to pay triple on if she lost. He had full confidence in her ability, and he thought the odds were a steal. It was no knock on any of the other racers in their particular crew - they all knew Allison was probably the best when it came to the suburban races with tight corners and lots of preparation. It was just her niche. Maybe it came from her experience racing Formula One with all of those intricacies and constantly traveling around the world racing on different tracks. Who knows; but she was brilliant at these types of showdowns.<br/><br/>     Not a split second after he'd finished speaking did Natalie come bouncing up with her usual squint and wave. She'd been with the crew for quite a while now, but she still had that aura of an outsider - but by now it had to be choice. It wasn't that she wasn't an integral part of the unit, or a close trusted member... she was. It was just her personality. She stayed on the perimeter. She was different than the rest of them. Sure she was into fast cars and everything, but she didn't crave the adrenaline rush like the rest of them - it was in her mind, not her veins. She was a whiz with all things electrical, and she wasn't bad behind the wheel (whether it was two or four)... she just didn't participate. Taras wondered if maybe stealing cars was already plenty enough mischief for a sweet innocent young girl like herself. Sometimes he wondered what motivated her to do what she did for the crew, but he never openly questioned her about it. She was too important and too skilled; and more than that, she was just a pleasant person to be around - even if it was awkward at times. <br/><br/>    Ryan wasn't far behind her and Taras offered yet another nod to the both of them. While Natalie <em>felt</em> like an outsider to Taras at times... Ryan actually was. He had been with the crew for a while now, and he'd seemed like a pleasant, talented guy. He was also brilliant behind the wheel and at evading the cops whenever they got into a bind. He'd been a go-to-guy lately on the recent boosts, but Taras was still wary of him. Even though he couldn't exactly figure out why. The Ukrainian hadn't yet - and would probably never suspect his true identity - because Ryan just didn't fit the bill for a cop in Taras' mind. He hadn't even entertained the idea. Cops seemed so plain, predictable, and boring... but Ryan was far too eccentric for him to even suspect that out of the man. Taras had welcomed him in, but he was under a close watch more than anyone else a part of the crew. <br/><br/>     Now that the majority of the crew had assembled, other racers on the outside had taken notice and the ones who would be participating tonight started heading their way so they could toss their dough in the pot. Each competitor had his own following and was probably a leader of their own crew somewhere else in the city. Some of them suspected that Taras and Cori's gang worked for the Triads, but none of them really knew for sure. Rumors were rumors, but you didn't make it far in this scene by assuming; so nobody really acted on their suspicions. They were just here to race, and nothing else. Some for the winnings, some for the fame, and others for the respect of Taras and his crew. <br/><br/>     It was no secret that they fielded the top racers in the region - with only the Triad's racers that sat on the same level - mostly because they had so much money to stuff under the hood of their rides. The Chinese really only had two talented racers that won for reasons other than pumping cash into their motors. Tip was of course one of them, and Misaki was the other. Neither one could be underestimated. It would be an exciting race. In about fifteen or twenty minutes everyone would be heading back to their rides to form up at the starting line. Some of the spectators were already taking off to get a head start to be waiting at the finish line to witness the final outcome.<br/></div>