Protecting Lulu (Global Protection Agency)

by Jeffries, J. M.

  Lulu was his life. He’d spent years protecting her only to find that what he’d done wasn’t enough. He couldn’t lose Lulu. He’d only loved a handful of people in his life, his parents, his grandparents, his aunt Julia who’d raised them after the murders, and his baby sister, Lulu.

  When Dave Larkins came to him and recommended Global Protection Agency he’d done his research. He used all his government contacts to find out about the people he was entrusting his sister’s safety to. Two ex-special forces officers, a lawyer with Army Intelligence, a thief, a former French commando, a titled British spy, and a CIA operative who were fairly new to the business, but they had a reputation of getting the job done.

  They’d handled several jobs the government couldn’t be connected to including bringing in an al Qaida mastermind, a Mexican drug lord, and a Russian mob boss. Noah Callahan seemed the perfect person to protect Lulu. Not an easy job for the best of men. In his gut Wilder knew Callahan would die to keep Lulu safe.

  The door to his office opened and his secretary Sylvia came in carrying a steaming cup of coffee and a large envelope. Sylvia was quickly approaching sixty, but didn’t seem in any hurry to retire. She’d started in the typing pool under his father and worked her way up to become his personal assistant.

  Frankly Wilder would have loved the woman to be on his executive staff, but she had grandchildren and wanted to spend time with them. She’d turned him down several times. To be honest, if he did elevate her to a board position, he didn’t think he’d ever find anyone to replace her. She kept his office running like a well oiled machine and didn’t give a shit that everyone called her Attila the Midget behind her back.

  “Morning, boss,” she said.

  “Good morning, Sylvia. What’s on my schedule?”

  “You have a ten o’clock with the Union reps, a lunch with Senator Townsend about the FCC report, the summer television schedule mock up to approve, and it’s Ms. McBride’s birthday. You are having dinner with her at Mist tonight.”

  Wilder forced himself not to roll his eyes. He’d rather be having dinner with Bono and his sister, talking about their charity work. “What am I getting her?”

  Sylvia raised a grey eyebrow. “Apparently not an engagement ring.”

  Sylvia was one of handful of people who were allowed to talk to him this way and he let it slide. The English actress was a fun time in bed, but not the kind of woman a man, who liked his peace and quiet, married. They’d been seeing each other for several months and kept things very loose. The relationship suited him, but he suspected Candace wanted more. He would be an excellent back-up plan if her Broadway career took a nose dive.

  “Would you call Tiffany’s and have them send a few things over? You pick something, you know what she likes.” With the exception of his aunt, sister, and grandmother, Sylvia did all his shopping for him. She had exquisite taste and loved to spend his money. He thought he was getting off easy.

  “I live to serve,” Sylvia said with a saucy grin.

  “With grace and style.”

  “This also came for you.” She put the envelope down on his pile.

  Wilder took a sip of his coffee. Now he could start his work day.

  He picked up a silver letter opener with a cobra shaped handle. The gift had come from Lulu. He slid the blade under the flap as Sylvia busied herself setting up his desk. The flap gave way easily enough and then he reached inside and pulled out the papers. He recognized the header was one Bennington’s magazine Corporate used. Who would be sending him his own magazine?

  Pulling out the magazine he saw Lulu on the cover. A red bulls-eye was drawn around her face with the words “FAT WHORE WILL PAY” written on the cover. He dropped the magazine on his desk.

  “Oh my God,” Sylvia squeaked and nearly knocked over his cup of coffee.

  Wilder’s hand shook as he picked up the magazine again. “Get Callahan and his people in my office right now.”

  Chapter Four

  Lulu sat behind her desk looking cool and composed. Noah wasn’t certain he wanted to know about her past relationships.

  “I had this horrible crush on Antoine. I was seven and he was twenty-six. I learned everything I could about grapes and I intended to marry him when I was ten and I wanted to be a good master of wine’s wife.” She sighed.

  “Seriously?”

  She shrugged her elegant shoulders. “You wanted to know about my love life, so I’m starting at the beginning.”

  “Are you going to tell me about every man who ever got your motor running?”

  “My love life got really interesting when I turned thirteen.” Her lips curving in a salacious smile.

  Noah’s heart pounded erratically in his chest. That smile told him he didn’t want to know about the other men who’d been on the receiving end of that smile. He didn’t want to know who she’d kissed, touched or gone to bed with, because those were all the things he wanted to do to her and with her.

  The phone rang. Lulu picked it up. “What’s wrong, Sylvia?” Lulu listened for a moment, a look of panic suddenly appearing on her face. “We’ll be right there.”

  “What?” Noah asked. By the time he jumped to his feet, Lulu was halfway to the door.

  “I can’t get a word out of her. She says to just come up immediately.” Lulu jammed her hand over the elevator up button. “It must be bad, Sylvia never panics.”

  The doors opened. Lulu raced inside, swiping her key card and reaching for the penthouse button. When the doors finally slid open, she ran across the foyer and through the open doors to find Sylvia waiting for her.

  “Oh my God, Lulu.” Sylvia hugged Lulu tightly.

  “What happened?”

  “Mr. Bennington received another threatening letter.”

  Noah ran into Wilder’s office. Lulu started to follow him but he turned with one finger pointed at her.

  “Stay.” He turned toward the open doors to Bennington’s office.

  Bennington paced back and forth, limping. He paused briefly to rub one knee. He looked up at Noah’s entrance.

  “What’s going on?” Noah demanded.

  He picked up a magazine from his desk and held it up. Noah could see Lulu on the cover with the target on her face. “This is what is going on.” Bennington thrust the magazine at Noah.

  Noah took the magazine carefully into his hands. It fell open to an article on Lulu and he saw a note tucked tightly inside the pages. With two fingers he carefully drew the note out. A gun had been cut from another magazine aiming at her. Across the top of the photo the words “BAng, BanG, You’Re dEad” were spelled out in bright red letters cut from some other magazine.

  Noah pulled his phone from his pocket and speed-dialed Harrison Bain. “I need you, now.” Noah said into the phone. “I’m in Mr. Bennington’s office.” He hung up.

  Lulu walked in and peered at the note over Noah’s shoulder. “Really,” she said, “they had to pick this photograph?”

  “Dammit Lulu,” her brother half yelled. Panic showed on his face. “I’m sick and t-t-tired of –y-y-you t-t-taking— ” He ground his teeth together, his hands clenched, frustration showing in his eyes.

  Noah didn’t know whether to be worried or dismayed at Bennington’s stuttering.

  “Mr. Callahan,” Lulu said calmly. “Would you give us a minute?” She took Noah by the arm and led him to the door. As he stepped out, she closed it behind him. He didn’t like being dismissed and it irritated him. But as a man, he knew Bennington didn’t want to be seen showing such a flaw. No threat existed in the office and he could let Lulu have her way, even though his job was to keep her safe.

  Sylvia sat at her desk looking shocked.

  “Where did the envelope come from?” he asked the woman.

  “It was on my desk when I came back from my meeting.” She gestured at the cleared space in front of her. “It was marked Urgent, so I took it directly into Mr. Bennington.”

  The elevator opened and Harrison stepped out. “W
hat’s going on?” Harrison had taken on the job of viewing security tapes and he looked tired.

  “We need the Geek,” Noah said.

  “On it.” Harrison reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone and spoke briefly. “The Geek will be here in about fifteen minutes. What’s going on?”

  “Bennington received another threat on Lulu. The envelope was just sitting on Sylvia’s desk which tells me someone had access to this floor. We’re going to need all the security tapes for the last half hour, and have the Geek pull the files on the keycard pad in the elevator.”

  Sylvia picked up her phone. “I’ll get security to pull those files for you. Nobody messes with my domain.”

  Harrison took the phone from her and hung it back up. “Someone was in your office that didn’t belong which means someone possibly, including security, is compromised.”

  “Everyone who works here loves the Benningtons.”

  Noah shook his head. “Someone doesn’t.”

  She pointed a finger at him, her mouth tight with anger. “You find that someone and you make them pay.”

  He would. “Sylvia, how long have you worked here?”

  “Forty years next summer,” she replied.

  “You know where all the bodies are buried,” Harrison said with a coaxing smile.

  She blushed. “I’ve buried a few myself.”

  “What kind of enemies does Mr. Bennington have?” Noah asked.

  “I thought the threat was against Lulu,” Sylvia said, confusion in her eyes.

  “I’m thinking we may be going about this the wrong way.” Noah let the facts slide around in his head trying to find a pattern.

  “What do you mean?” Sylvia tapped the top of her desk with a nervous finger.

  “It’s not unusual for people to target someone when what they really doing is throwing off investigators while they get to the person they’re really after.”

  Sylvia frowned. “Do you mean that the real target could be Mr. Bennington?”

  Harrison nodded. “Anything is possible.”

  Sylvia ran her tongue across her lips.

  Noah wanted to reassure her. He knew she was worried and upset, but hiding it well. “Let’s start at the beginning. Tell me about their parent’s murder.”

  Sylvia caught her bottom lip in her teeth while she stared at them deciding what to say. “That was the most shocking thing. Mr. and Mrs. Bennington were the nicest people. They had decided to go to France to Mrs. Bennington’s parents’ wine estate in Burgundy. Of course they stayed at their house on the property. Mr. Bennington was thinking about running for the Senate and he wanted to speak to his father-in-law regarding his decision before he declared his intentions.”

  Noah leaned against her desk as Harrison jotted down notes into a notebook, his pen flying across the paper.

  “Go on,” Noah coaxed.

  Sylvia covered her face. “It was such a tragedy. To this day, no one has been arrested. Mr. Bennington was shot and Lulu towed him across the lake to their grandparent’s house. Besides his wound, he was shot in the knee, they both got hypothermia. He never got over having to leave his mother. For years he used to tell me he could have saved her. Do you think there’s a connection? This happened over twenty years ago.”

  “Never discount anything.”

  Tears overflowed and Sylvia dabbed at her eyes with a bunched up tissue she pulled from the top drawer of her desk.

  “What were Bennington’s chances?”

  “He would have been a shoe-in. That man could charm anybody. Lulu is her father’s daughter. He could have been president if that was what he wanted.”

  “Are there any old enemies still around that weren’t happy about the senior Bennington’s decision?”

  “I’m sure there’s still a few. Senator Townsend was elected instead and he heads the committee for the FCC. Wilder meets with him a few times a year. I remember him as being overly attentive to Mrs. B., but she didn’t want anything to do with him. She never looked at another man. She loved her husband so much. No matter how Senator Townsend pestered her, she was polite and very firm. He did finally give up.”

  Noah had heard rumors about Senator Townsend being something of a hound dog. “Tell me about Gabrielle Bennington. What was she like? How did they meet?” Noah urged.

  “Classy, kind, smart. She was a great wife and mother. It was so romantic,” Sylvia said with a sigh. “Mr. B. had the job of keeping his sister Julia out of trouble in Paris.”

  “Why?” Harrison asked, his pen flying across the page.

  “Miss Julia was a wild one. She made those Hilton sisters look like Sunday school teachers. They went to Chanel for fashion week and he saw Miss Gabrielle being fitted for a gown and that was it. Love at first sight. As soon as they could get a proper wedding together, they were married. Ten months after that, Wilder was born. Five years after that, came Lulu. They loved those two children so much.”

  The elevator door opened and the Geek stepped out, blinking in the glare of the lighting. Sylvia dabbed at her eyes and when she caught sight of the Geek her mouth dropped open.

  Every time Noah saw Mark Desha, he wanted to search him. Mark was six feet three inches of tattoos, long black hair and black leather. He was all Iroquois. His grandfathers had built the Empire State building and half of the other high rises in New York City.

  “Boss man,” Mark said. His voice was deep and smooth like aged bourbon. “Who do I have to hack?”

  Sylvia closed her mouth.

  “I need you to hack Bennington security.”

  “What?” Sylvia gasped. “You can’t hack into our files! What about confidential information? Stockholder information? Wilder’s buying a satellite.” She clapped her hands over her mouth. “I wasn’t supposed to say that.”

  “Wow!” Mark said. “Wilder Bennington is going to buy his own satellite.”

  “Doesn’t everybody,” Harrison said, a cynical tone to his voice.

  “Dudes.” Mark pointed to the ceiling. “My fee just went up.”

  Harrison held up three fingers. “Three words, Desha. Statute. Of. Limitations.”

  Noah held a hand up. “Everybody, neutral corners. Mark, I need you to get a list of people who’ve swiped their key cards in the elevator to get up to this floor.” He smiled at Sylvia. “Sylvia, any confidential information we uncover will be kept confidential. We work for you. Right now, what information we find is for the greater good.”

  “I need a coffee break.” Sylvia stood. She swayed slightly, but caught herself before straightening her back and marching across the foyer to a door behind her.

  “Thanks, dude,” Mark sat at her desk and opened his laptop. “She needed to be talked down.” He started typing and in seconds was engrossed in what he was doing, leaving Noah staring at the closed door to Bennington’s office and wondering what was going on inside.

  Aiden stood outside the private dressing room waiting for E.J. The stalls were pristine white so they didn’t challenge the beauty of the clothing inhabiting the displays on the store’s floor. Every time he walked into Bergdorf’s he thought he was in fantasy land.

  Now he was here, in the Mecca of his youth, surrounded by round displays filled with women’s clothes. The American Express felt like a hot rocket in his pocket. He couldn’t resist a sigh. Shopping at Bergdorf’s was as good as it got and helped keep the panic at bay. The fact that he hadn’t panicked too much yet impressed him, but he could feel it hovering at the back of his mind because Lulu was so important to him. He loved her, and wouldn’t know what to do without her.

  E.J. opened the stall door and stepped out for his approval. The cognac colored strapless leather dress was absolutely stunning. It caressed her body as though made for it. Gucci looked perfect on E.J.’s small frame. She twirled around for him, the skirt flaring, her arms toned to perfection and her breasts completely unsupported.

  “You need those Valentino black stiletto’s we looked at earlier, but the shoulder
holster has to go,” Aiden said with an admiring glance at her slender legs. She might be short, but she had the longest legs he’d seen on a woman her height.

  “I don’t do anything without my gun.” One hand caressed the butt of the gun.

  He fingered the AmEx in his pocket. “Lulu ordered me to dress you as my assistant, that includes accessories and that’s not the right˗˗”

  “I don’t need Lulu’s money,” E.J. interrupted. “I have my own and I can afford this dress.”

  He glanced up at her wondering how much money being a thief generated. “More money for Aiden.” He thought about all the clothes he could manage to guilt out of Lulu.

  “Do you mean if you drop $20,000, Lulu won’t mind?” The look on her face was priceless.

  “Girlfriend, number one, Lulu can afford it. Anything I buy isn’t going to make the tiniest little dent in her trust fund. You have to look the part. Did you see the fashion show going on in the office? And really it takes my mind off of all the conflama going around here.”

  “Conflama?”

  “Conflict, confusion and drama. It’s a queen word.”

  “Okay, I’ll add that to the lexicon.”

  He grinned. “Ginger, you may look like one of those tight-ass, born again Christian girls, but you’re all right.”

  A look crossed her face and he immediately knew there was a story inside this woman. He had to sniff it out. After they shopped.

  “This dress is for the plus pile,” he said with a gesture at the strapless leather dress. “Tonight you wear this for Bono. You’ll look edgy and rock and roll, but you won’t upstage Lulu.”

  “Is upstaging Lulu bad?”

  “Not in Lulu’s head, but it is in mine. She lets me pick out a lot of her clothes, but she never lets me style her. You don’t know what a big treat shopping for you is for me. I get to show off my fashionista skills.” When E.J. showed up at the dinner, half the women in the room would have a stroke.

  “With a gray suit and a pink bow tie, I think you already do.”