Beautiful No More

by MJ Nightingale

  He looked down at Cat to see what her reaction was, and she smiled up at him showing her support. But he saw the worry lines in the corner of her eyes. After they ducked inside, and waited in the receiving line to meet the General and other dignitaries, she confided her fears. “Do you think that was wise, Andreas? You may have inadvertently triggered him to act.”

  “This psychopath, my love, is a serial killer. He does not need me as an excuse to kill.”

  She nodded, but did not seem completely satisfied with his answer.

  “I hate to think that I started all of this.” Her teeth worried her bottom lip as they stood in the line to greet General Melendez.

  “Honey, you were just the first person to show him kindness, and were in the wrong place at the wrong time. That is not your fault.” He saw her looking inward. He hated to see her feel guilt over this. “Cat, really. It’s not your fault. You saw an abused young man, treated horrifically by his own father. You spoke to him kindly. There is no crime in that. You were both victims initially.” She nodded, but still looked upset. He continued. “But the difference is he made the choice to kill. You made the choice to help others.” Her eyes pierced him in that moment. “You are a remarkable woman,” he added.

  “Thank you for saying that. It means a lot to me that you see the good in what I have done, and in the choices I have made.”

  “I do.” He kissed the side of her face briefly. Gio in front of him was greeting the General and they were up next. “I think in those few years you had with your great grandmother, she must have ingrained in you the value of helping others, I mean she herself had been victimized, but she made the most of it as did you.” He saw the tear in her eye, and quickly used his thumb to wipe it away. “As I said, Cat, you are remarkable.”

  “And, I agree,” came the booming voice of the General Melendez. Cat gave Andreas a brilliant smile before turning to meet the General.

  “Thank you, General Melendez. It is so nice to see you again.”

  “It is nice to see you as well, my darling. And I guess this young man, here, has stolen you from me permanently.” Cat had told Andreas before that the General had been one of her clients, a respectful man who had wanted a pretty woman to accompany him on some of his social obligations. He lost his wife who had succumbed to her battle with cancer four years earlier.

  “Well, we are seeing each other now General,” Cat admitted. Andreas had just told the world. She figured it was okay to confess that to the General.

  “Very good then.” The General boomed now shaking Andreas’ hand. “It’s nice to see two young people find one another. Now I admit, I hope that does not mean I can’t use him in my auctions. He helps bring in some very much needed funds for our soldiers.”

  Cat beamed. “Not at all, General. In fact, I plan on bidding on him myself tonight.”

  “Oh, well, then this could get interesting. Ms. Stevens, who bid on him last year is here. Rumor has it she plans on bidding on him again.” He winked and rubbed his thumb against his index finger and middle finger.

  “Oh,” Cat raised one perfectly manicured eyebrow, “can I be so bold as to ask how high the bidding went last year? I brought my check book, but I may need to transfer some funds,” she teased.

  The General laughed but told her. “It was ten thousand I believe. And a check is fine.”

  “General,” Andreas reached for the man’s hand one more time before they made their way into the festively decorated ball room.

  “Enjoy yourselves tonight,” the General called after them.

  * * *

  Dinner was served almost immediately and everyone was happy when the music started. General Melendez had hired a band that played thirty minute sets of classic rock and pop songs to keep the party lively, interspersed with a DJ who played more contemporary music to entertain the younger set. The girls were really enjoying themselves. Andreas was too. He especially was surprised that Cat led the charge on the dancing, leading the girls out for the first song of the night while the men held back. But Nikko joined them half way through the first song not wanting to miss the fun, and seeing the opportunity to tease his older brothers while he danced with all their women.

  After a few songs, Blaze joined them worrying that it was too much for Bella, but instead of getting off of the dance floor she pulled him on to dance with her. Gio, sipping on his tonic just enjoyed the music and watching, but soon he too, elbowed Andreas and pulled him out onto the floor, when Lisa crooked her finger his way. It wasn’t that he disliked dancing that held him back, it was that he was looking for Tony Alvarez who was working this party’s security detail. The man must be busy, or just that good because he hadn’t spotted him yet.

  Not wanting to leave Cat the sole one alone, he joined the other couples on the floor, and just as he reached her, a relatively new song started, one that would allow him to take Cat into his arms. It was Love Me Like You Do by Ellie Goulding. It was perfect. It was how he felt with her. She had brought him back to life. The moment he had her in his arms, and they began to move to the ballad, he knew he needed to let her know how he was feeling. As soon as her head relaxed on his shoulder, he kissed the top of her head. “Cat,” he started. “When this is all over, I know we talked about continuing to see each other. But I think I am going to want more.” It was the hardest thing he had ever said in his life.

  Her answer was simple. She squeezed him, and whispered in a tremulous voice. “I want more too.”

  All of the couples decided to call it quits for a bit and have some refreshments. The boys headed to the bar to fetch them, while the girls returned to the table.

  As soon as they returned, Andreas who was still scoping out the hall for Tony, finally saw him. Tony must have spotted him too, as he was approaching their table.

  “Tony, how the hell have you been?” Andreas was out of his seat to greet the massive Special Forces commander.

  “Good, Andy. Great in fact. Gio, Nikko, Blaze,” Tony responded heartily before greeting the woman. Pulling the small mic out of his ear he pulled out a chair and joined them at the table. “I’m on a break and have Jobe running the show right now. But I thought I would fill you all in on what we have found so far.”

  “Glad to hear it. I was looking for you earlier; I couldn’t spot you.”

  Tony laughed. “Well, when I don’t want to be seen, you know,” he shrugged nonchalantly. Andreas knew the man was good, but he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of him. The two times he worked with him in the past, he had been the epitome of professionalism.

  “Can I run and get you drink?” Nikko asked.

  “No. No thank you,” he smiled. The man was dressed impeccably in a suit, as were the other members of the security team Andreas noticed, but their black dress shirts underneath helped them to fade into the background in the darkened hall. “So, I have two of my team members back home working on this thing. Lily and BJ. They are my best technical analysts and programmers. I gave them all the information you gave me. They started out broad, and did a search on all recent hires in the area in the locations you mentioned and in the fields you think might likely be his career choice. That turned up over four thousand names.” Andreas saw Cat’s eyes go round. He knew what she was thinking. A needle in a haystack. But Tony’s next words provided a bit more hope. “We then narrowed it down to age parameters. Your guy is in his mid-thirties, Caucasian, and so we pulled from that list, only identifying those between the ages of 25 to 50. That cut it down to half.”

  “Why such a large age span?” Cat asked leaning forward in her chair.

  “Make-up, a disguise, wrinkles, scars, disfigurements, and people can change their appearances to appear younger or older. Older is easier.” He was polite addressing her, taking and treating her question seriously and earnestly. She nodded her understanding.

  “But two thousand is still a lot of people.”

  Tony smiled. “Oh, but we were not finished yet. We then looked at those names, and Lily, our com
puter programmer created a program to pull up those people by their SSNs. We are assuming the guy has one, or stole someone’s identity. So we ran a search on their living situation according to the DMV. We wanted to see who was switching jobs, and who had recently moved to the area within the past two years. We did great there. It narrowed our search down to 214 names.”

  “That’s great.” Andreas was impressed. His tech people were the best. He had used them before when his local guys hadn’t been able to access all that Tony’s people seemed to be able to. “Thank her for me, please.”

  “Oh, I am still not finished.” His caramel colored eyes sparkled. He pulled out a thumb drive and handed it to Andreas whose eyebrows quirked up questioningly. “DMV photos and addresses. Lily said if you can get her some good quality photos of Sal and Spiro, she has some awesome new face detection software she is itching to try out.”

  Andreas was elated. This could be it. Tony’s team had given them a place to look. “This is incredible. Yes, I have pictures of Sal. I put in a call to a friend in Washington, and he is trying to get me some pictures of Spiro. I had already thought of that. I will get those pics of Sal to Lily tomorrow. And if I get anything from Connor McGee, I’ll send those too.”

  Tony pushed back and stood. “Well, you and Cat take a look at those DMV photos when you get a chance. See if anything strikes a chord with either one of you. I need to get back.” His head gestured towards the party scene behind them.

  “We will,” Andreas nodded and reached out to shake Tony’s hands as he got up.

  “Okay, I need to get back to my team. It was great to see you all again, and I’ll keep you posted once we get those photos.”

  * * *

  The auction of the Bachelors was approaching. Several times Andreas saw Ms. Simone Stephens try to catch his eye. She was still a remarkably beautiful woman at forty-five. She was athletic, tall, sinewy, and fit. He’d enjoyed their date that had turned into more. But this year was different. He had a big case to solve and Cat to think about.

  He was leaning up against the wall by the bar when Cat came off the dance floor to join him. “Phew, I have not danced like that in quite some time,” she said, fanning herself.

  “You dance very well, Cat,” he remarked, distracted by Simone waving at him from across the room.

  Cat noticed she did not have his complete attention, and eyes narrowing she turned to see where he was looking. She saw the blonde. Had seen her before, too. Several times she had tried to catch Andreas’ eye.

  He heard Cat clear her throat and he looked down. “You okay?” he asked, seeing her brow was furrowed.

  “Fine,” she muttered. He pulled her to him and kissed the top of her head. It seemed her mood had changed. She’d been having so much fun earlier. He enjoyed just watching her while she danced with his sisters-in-law. Several men approached her during the evening to dance, and she politely declined. The more persistent ones got the picture when he or his brothers came up behind her. He had never been the possessive kind before, but with Cat each time he watched as she politely declined he felt a spark of possessiveness, but suppressed it. The last time a man approached, he was pleased when she pointed in his direction. Andreas met the man’s eyes, and that had been enough. He backed off, possibly due to the glare Andreas had given him, and then the tilt of his head that was meant to say back the fuck off.

  In his peripheral vision, he saw Simone circling in. She was getting closer, and he wanted to warn Cat. He hoped Simone didn’t make a scene.

  “Oh, Cat,” he murmured softly and pulled apart from her. “See that blonde circling behind me?”

  “Yes, the one who has had her eye on you all night?” she remarked. He saw her nostrils flare.

  “She bid on me last year. Her name is Simone Stevens. Are you going to save me from her clutches this year? I’m afraid she might want a repeat of last year,” he laughed, pulling up her chin to look in her stormy eyes which focused in on the blond.

  “Repeat of last year?” she questioned, trying to hide the jealousy she felt.

  Shit! He alluded to the fact that he had not just taken the blonde to dinner, and Cat was jealous. Damn!

  “Is my girl jealous?” he teased and tried to lighten the mood.

  Her head tilted to the side like she was thinking about it. “I don’t know. I have never been jealous before. But I . . . don’t like it. So that’s what this feeling must be.”

  Her words just made him laugh harder which only earned him a disapproving look from her. “Should we put our money together so you don’t have to feel jealous again? I can fork over half the cost of my services,” he leaned into whisper in her ear still chuckling.

  Her response was to pull back and now her eyes were flashing fire. “I am my own woman, Andreas. I can pay my own way . . . for . . . your . . . services!”

  Andreas was shocked at her words spoken with such anger and without giving him a chance to explain or ask what that explosion was all about, she turned on her heel and left. He was completely baffled. She was angry with him and he had no idea why. He was about to go after her, when a hand on his shoulder stopped him. It was one of the General’s aides.

  Andreas shook his hand off before he realized who it was. “Sir, I apologize. But the bachelors are being asked to gather up on the stage.”

  Andreas nodded, his eyes still searching the crowd for Cat. She had now disappeared from view. He told the Sergeant he would go to the stage in just one minute.

  He scanned the crowd again, but the only person he saw was Ronnie. She was standing at the bar. So he approached her instead. “Have you seen Cat?” he asked nervously.

  She turned and laughed. “Yes, and don’t get your boxers in a bunch, Andy.” She let out an exasperated breath. “Lisa and Bella are with her. When she ran off from you, they figured she needed a woman’s ear.”

  Andreas looked down at his spit-fire of a sister-in-law. She was sipping a long Island Iced Tea, and she had the gall to roll her eyes at him. “What’s the matter? All I said was . . .”

  Ronnie interrupted, shaking her head. “You don’t get women, Andy. You just don’t. She was jealous of the blonde, and then you apparently called her jealous and laughed at her feelings. You have a lot to learn, big brother. But, you will get there,” she laughed, passing him by and patting his arm on the way.

  “But,” he called after her in a sudden panic. “How do I fix it? I don’t want her to be mad.”

  “Apologize.” Her eyebrows shot up. “It’s the easiest way. Then listen!”

  The Sergeant was back at his side and he looked impatient. Andreas indicated for him to go and he would follow. But all the while, as he made his way on to the stage, his eyes searched the crowd for Cat.

  * * *

  The auction was going well. The first five men fetched the General five thousand a piece. When the new heart surgeon who had just been acquired by Tampa General came forward, the bidding began to get interesting. He was a young man from Texas, and his longish blonde hair and green eyes had all the ladies swooning. The bidding rose to 8000 and he was claimed. The next two men on the stage were also able to garner 7 thousand a piece. The ninth bachelor, an attorney and former Tampa Bay Buccaneer, tied with Andreas last year, when they each brought in ten thousand a piece. The bidding went fast and he actually managed to bring in twelve thousand for the cause. With what the General charged per guest for the plates, and the auction, he was sure to reach his goal of 100,000 dollars for Fight for the Fallen.

  Now it was Andreas’ turn. He smiled at the crowd while the General listed his profession and attributes. The women in the audience clapped and then the bidding began. The general started the bidding at five thousand and it was none other than Simone who bid first.

  “Five, five,” a voice called out. Andreas scanned the crowd. He saw the raised paddle but it was not where his table was. He smiled in the direction of the bidder, a busty woman with red hair.

  He looked across the sea of faces
seated at the tables and he finally spotted Cat. She was sulking. Her head down, arms crossed across her chest, and she purposefully avoided looking at him. He began to sweat. She said she would bid. He looked to Lisa, who shrugged her shoulders. He saw Nikko laugh when he heard another voice call out, “Six thousand.”

  “Six, five.” It was Simone. He would recognize her raspy southern drawl anywhere.

  “Seven, five.” The red head.

  “Eight.” An unknown source, but not Cat.

  “Ten.” Again, Simone. She apparently wanted to end the bidding by standing up, and raising the bidding by an increment of two thousand instead.

  “Wow, fabulous.” The General called out. “We have met our goal.” There was applause. Friends of Simone clapped and began congratulating her.

  “Going, once.” The General tapped his gavel softly on the podium.

  Andreas looked to Cat. Gio was holding his hand over his mouth trying not to laugh. Cat was still not meeting his eyes. He smiled, but didn’t feel it inside.

  “Going twice.” Silence. Sweat.

  The general lifted his gavel.

  “Twenty-thousand dollars.” The crowd gasped and then there was silence as all eyes turned to the stunning brunette who had placed her first bid and recognition of who she was hit them.

  “That . . . is . . . fantastic.” The applause was deafening. The General hushed the crowd. “We have a bid of twenty thousand dollars.” He scanned the crowd. “Going once.” Cat stood. Simone looked at her. “Going twice.” The General looked at Simone. She shook her head, and applauded in Cat’s direction. Laughing, the General hit his hammer softly. “Closed for twenty thousand dollars. Thank you Miss Stone for your overwhelming generosity.” The crowd stood as Cat came forward to claim her prize. Instead of laughing and taking his hand, as the other contestants had done. She took his tie and led him back to the table while the crowd continued to clap and cheer. Andreas felt like a complete ass. But Cat had made her point. When she said she was her own woman, she meant it. And he would not laugh at her feelings again.