by Michael Todd
Holly took a huge mouthful of fried rice and closed her eyes with a delighted groan. “This is like heaven. It’s what I imagine food must be like for someone lost on an island and rescued after ten years of talking to a volleyball.”
Amanda giggled. “You are too weird. It’s only Chinese. You didn’t think they would build an entire town for people to live in and not have Chinese food? Even the French aren’t that cruel.”
She laughed and glanced at the armorer as she took another mouthful. “So, you aren’t fully away from Heavy Metal, after all.”
The other woman smirked and sipped her beer. “You caught me. No, I’m still on the payroll for Heavy Metal to do some side work for them. I have to tell you, though, it’s not known by anyone except them, so keep it to yourself. They don’t usually put outsiders on the payroll like that.”
Holly shrugged. “Yeah, but you aren’t an outsider. You used to be one of them. Still, you have so much work at your own shop, I don’t understand why you need the extra contracts.”
Amanda laughed. “Girl, let me tell you something. I am an armor whore. I like to have my hands on every hard piece of protection I can get.”
“So, what you’re saying is if I get you to fix my armor, it might come back wet?” She snickered with a mouth full of food, chewed, and swallowed.
“You know what, if I can rub it down real nice and get it to pop out like that, you might get the juices flowing.”
Holly put her hand out. “Right, so you need it as hard as steel, tough as nails, and ready to be worked hard.”
They both laughed and the armorer wrinkled her nose as she shook her head. “All that sounds great, except it makes it sound like I’m into the dick—which I am not unless it is firmly strapped onto one of my ladies. Then we can negotiate, but those are made of rubber, not steel.”
Holly sipped her beer. “It sounds like a lot of work for a dick.”
Amanda snarled and shook her head. “Damn heteros, they always have it easier. Simply rub it up and get down. No buttons, vibrations, or plastic containers to take them out of.”
“Seriously, though, Amanda. I think you would be perfect to work with us. I trust you and that’s really important if you work on my armor. And we already know that Billie—or Jean—trusts you because you’ve worked on her top-secret armor for a long time.”
The other woman put her fork down and leaned back as she took a long sip of her beer. She studied Holly for a moment before she looked around at the cheap Chinese décor. They were the only ones there as everyone mostly took to-go to their place or the bar. The two women wanted somewhere away from the normal environment to discuss things. They wanted to know they were the only ones in the conversation, even if that hadn’t been openly stated.
Amanda tilted her beer back and finished it, looked at the man at the counter, and nodded. As he went to get her another beer, she leaned forward and lowered her voice. “Here’s the deal. I’m down. I can handle your new team’s armor. And if Salinger is in on it, I feel even that much more secure about the venture. It’s not that I don’t trust you, but I know that if your company eats it, Salinger will foot the bill.”
Holly shook her head. “I don’t know about all that.”
Her companion took the beer and smiled her thanks at the man. “I do. That’s how he is. He’s good people, and there are precious few good people left around here. If Salinger puts his stamp on it, even if it is black ops and even if the general public doesn’t know about it, he won’t let it go down in a negative way. He not only won’t want his own reputation dented, but he knows how it is to not be taken care of when you put hard work and dedication in. He believes in this, even if he is a little apprehensive. So, yeah, I’m in. Let’s do this thing.”
Holly put her fork down and stood halfway up to lean across the table and grab Amanda. She pulled her in and hugged her tightly. The other woman chuckled and patted her back. “That’s the kind of thanks I like.”
She giggled as she sat down and wiped the rice off the front of her shirt. “Sorry. But it’s nice to know I won’t roll in on my own and hope for the best.”
Amanda took another sip of her beer and looked up as a woman walked in with a couple of friends and sat at the bar. She straightened and swallowed as she leaned toward Holly. “I’m going to go say hi to the beauty with the red heels, Anastasia. Stay here at the table, okay, and act nonchalant and most importantly, hot. Look hot.”
Holly raised her eyebrows. “What? Why?”
The other woman stood and pulled at her shirt, leaned forward, and whispered, “Because I need her to think I have a backup option, so help a sister out.”
The armorer grinned and patted her on the shoulder before she turned and walked toward the bar. Holly chuckled and took a swig of her beer. She wasn’t sure how she felt about being the third wheel in an operation to help a friend get a leg up on a potential date. But fuck it, what was she supposed to do at that point? The woman was already on the hunt.
Holly watched her out of the corner of the eye as she nodded at the girl and said something inaudible. Then, she turned and walked back to the table and her face fell. She plopped into her seat and gulped her beer.
“Okay, you are keeping me in total suspense.” Holly looked from one woman to the other for a moment. “What the heck is going on? Did you get another date? Is she all jealous and shit?”
Amanda shook her head and barely glanced at the girl, who laughed and shook her head. She pouted and turned back to Holly. “No, none of the fucking above. She already knew enough about you to know you liked the pole. We lesbians keep track of that shit out here.”
Holly tried to hold back a laugh and her companion glared at her for a moment before they erupted into giggles. The armorer threw her fork at Holly and laughed loudly. “You laugh at my failures. Not cool.”
She put her hands out. “You’re laughing at your own failures, which I think is the key to success.”
They finished their dessert and she took the check and paid in cash. As they collected their things to leave, the woman from the bar sashayed over and handed Amanda a slip of paper, winked, and walked out the door. They waited until she had gone before the armorer opened it frantically.
I’ll be back next Tuesday. Keep the night open?
Holly punched her friend in the arm and laughed at how shocked she looked. Amanda folded the piece of paper and put her jacket on. “Damn. I didn’t realize she was that forward. And here I thought I was too pushy. Whoop.”
Chapter Seven
Hickok moved around the room, removed a ninja sword from the wall, and tilted her head to the side as she studied it. “People still fight with ninja swords?”
As she put it back, she remembered Holly’s team and the swords that Aki used. She shrugged and walked to the gun case to read the small info sheets beside each of them. The room was stocked with weapons, but she had seen all of them before. She had also passed on almost every one in the past. The sound of footsteps descending a small staircase to her right gave her pause. The old man coughed and his expression was one of concern.
She smiled and continued to browse but glanced up from time to time as the old man stood in the corner near the swords and stared fixedly at her. It was obvious that he wasn’t fully comfortable that he couldn’t recognize her but there was nothing she could do about that. Finally, she sighed and tapped her finger on the case. “This isn’t the good stuff.”
Billie waved her arm around the room. “This is all the same old stuff I’ve seen before. Where is your good stuff? I know you have it hidden away.”
The old man stepped forward with his arms folded. “The new stuff is only for those whom I know. I have not seen you here before. Who are you?”
She scoffed. “It’s obvious that you’ve met me before, even if you don’t remember. How else would I know the secret password and the secondary failsafe phrase?”
He looked sternly at her. “You could have tortured someone and discovered
the information. This place is not for villains. Only for those with the power and strength to handle the responsibility.”
Hickok groaned. “Then how did I know where the fake wall was? Huh?”
The man’s expression eased into curiosity. She pointed her finger at him. “Aha! Got you.”
She tapped her foot for a moment and finally sighed with exasperation. “Look, this will sound trite, but if I reveal who I am, you will be killed for the knowledge.”
His face turned angry but she put her hand up to forestall his protest. “Not by me, and probably not soon. But eventually, it will happen, and they will come knocking on your door.”
He put his hand to his chin and rubbed his beard. After several intense moments of thought, he nodded his head. “Then I shall call you Cinderella. For, at midnight, you will turn back into a poor, wretched girl.”
Hickok narrowed her eyes and studied him for several moments. She eased her face into a neutral expression and shrugged. “You might have a point there. I won’t argue with you. Now, show me the new stuff. Let’s get this party started.”
The old man sighed and walked over to the wall to press a hidden button. All the cases on the wall and the shelves inside the floor displays flipped over. He gestured at the new array, from high tech ops equipment to specialized weaponry. Of course, he still had the ninja swords hung proudly on the wall. Apparently, they stood the test of time when it came to protection and fighting.
She rubbed her hands together excitedly. “Now that’s what I’m talking about. You had this hidden this whole time and tried to sell me some World War II rifles and shit. Tsk, tsk. That is not a good business move.”
Billie walked around, definitely more excited, and examined all the different weapons he had on offer. Everything looked awesome, but she knew she had to be selective. The old man remained in the corner, his expression still watchful. She knew, though, that he still tried to figure out why he couldn’t remember her. It was obvious she had been there before and that she knew all about the inventory he held.
In all honesty, she felt a little bad, but she knew there would be no way that he could recognize her. Every single time she had been in there in the past, she was in disguise. She’d made sure to be made up to look like a man, which was damned hard for her to do at times. Tough as nails or not, she had a very feminine face, huge tits, and hips that screamed femininity. It was difficult to hide all that in some men’s clothes and a mask, even with secret black ops aids.
After a good walk-through, Billie glanced at the old man and nodded. “I’m ready to order, my friend.”
He crossed the room slowly and stood beside her to peer into one of the cases. Hickok didn’t have the access to the company’s weapons any longer so she knew she would need virtually everything. She went through the displays one by one and selected a number of guns, a couple of guided projectile launchers and their missiles, daggers, and for good measure, a few ninja swords. She continued to order as much as she knew they would need to make it through at least a year’s worth of trips into the jungle.
Finally, she nodded that she’d completed her selection of the essentials and the old man finalized the order. “Will you pick this up or should I ship it?”
Billie smirked. “I can’t pick it up. The pumpkin doesn’t have enough room. I need you to send it to a shipping area on the North African Coast. Before I leave, I’ll give you the full information so that it’s done correctly.”
The old man looked at her, confused. “You are not done?”
She chuckled and put her arm around his shoulders. “Oh, no. I’m only getting started here.”
The man raised an eyebrow. “You take down Russia?”
Hickok chuckled. “No, this is much scarier.”
She retraced her journey around the space with her hand to her lips and now focused on all the fun extras he had on offer. He followed her and made a note on a blank sheet of paper every time she pointed something out. This order was for her personal stash because she liked to have her own tools to work with if there was a need for something out of the ordinary.
Her order at last complete, the old man crossed to his books. Billie approached him and put a stack of cash next to his pen. “I want to keep this order fully off the books. Like it never happened. You can keep your little piece of paper for inventory purposes so you can reorder but the rest is ghost.”
He looked at her for a moment and picked the cash up, thumbed through it, and shoved it into his deep pocket. “As you wish. Should I send this to the same place?”
Billie nodded, took the pen, and wrote the information on his piece of paper. “Of course, that is ghost as well. I need it super-black. No one can know what is in the shipment. I’ll arrange the pickup myself.”
The old man nodded and put the paper in his pocket as well. She retrieved a card from her purse and handed it to him. He swiped it to use every last dime in the account to pay for the merchandise. Once the transaction was complete, she opened her tablet and put the scrambler in, then closed the account to remove any further trace of it. She’d had the perfect budget for their equipment and was ready to rock and roll with everything.
Their business concluded, Hickok pushed on the fake door. It gave, then popped inward and slowly slid open enough for her to squeeze through. She smiled at the old man, knowing he was still completely befuddled as to where he had seen her before. That was okay, though, because that would save his life in the long run. She had been the cause of too many deaths in her day, and she would make sure that, unless they deserved it, everyone she came in contact with would be safe. Old Chinese men included.
Before she exited the room, she nodded at him. “It was good doing business with you, Fairy Godfather. I’m sure I will see you again. Next time, you will remember me, though.”
He curled the edge of his lip in a stiff smile and nodded. “Cinderella.”
Billie winked at him and scooted through the opening. She turned the corner and walked down the hall. The large guard at the door stood and used a camera mounted outside to make sure the alley was clear. When he was satisfied, he opened the door and watched her walk out. He cleared his throat, leaned forward, and whispered, “You look better as a woman.”
She smirked and put her finger to her lips as he closed the door back and locked it.
Holly walked toward her apartment and smiled. Everything had begun to come together for her future, and she felt comfortable knowing she would never have to go back to freelancing like she had done before. Sure, coming to the Zoo had not turned out as she’d thought it would at all, but that was life. Sometimes, it led you in directions you could never have seen coming, and this one was actually positive. A new step for her.
Amanda had already trailed off toward her own apartment. Holly had promised to lock up the shop when she arrived. She wanted to finish all the research, turn it in, get paid, and be the fuck done with them. There was nothing else she needed from that company and she knew they were full of bullshit and lies. That was exactly what she didn’t want in her life anymore. Honestly, she’d had enough of it in her lifetime already.
She turned the corner and headed inside and checked that the door to the garage was locked. It took less than a minute to hang the closed sign on the main door and lock it as well. With a quick check to be sure she hadn’t missed anything, she headed upstairs, full of dread at the knowledge that the possibilities of the weight-loss plant awaited her. She fumbled around in her pack until she found her keys. Her mind elsewhere, she fiddled with the door lock for a moment until it opened and she was able to walk inside. She tossed her keys on the side table and walked to the desk, drew the gun from the back of her pants, and slid it into the drawer.
Holly hadn’t actually meant to take it with her to the Chinese place, but she had been so excited about frigging eggrolls that she’d run out with it still in there. It didn’t really matter, though. Most people carried a gun in the Zoo towns. Few of them even tried to hide it and simp
ly wore it in a holster or tucked it in the front of their pants. She didn’t want to freak anyone out so she usually left it right there in the drawer. Besides, she wasn’t the biggest fan of guns—unless, of course, she stood in the Zoo and faced some crazy two-headed beast with scales. Then she was all about guns.
She sighed and walked over to the counter to retrieve her goggles. As she was about to put them on, her phone buzzed and she hurried over, opened it, and saw a text from JB. Can you come to FUBAR for a few minutes? I need you to do me a favor.
Holly frowned, a little surprised, and texted back. Sure. I’ll be there in five.
It took only a second to drop the goggles, put the phone in her back pocket, and snatch her keys up. Before she left, she found a hair-tie in case the favor was tending bar or something. She went through the process of locking all the doors behind her and moved fast, almost skipping but not quite. When she threw the door to FUBAR open, a wall of shouts and excitement stopped her in her tracks. Slowly, she walked forward and stared at a crowd of people who shouted and cheered as they surrounded a small round bar table.
Seated on opposite sides were a very large but obviously very drunk man and a strong-looking but sober woman. They had their elbows on the table and grasped each other’s hands in preparation for a serious arm-wrestling match.
Holly began to walk toward the bar but watched the antics as one of the other patrons counted. “…three…and go!!!”
As she approached the counter, the cheers grew louder and she glanced at Paula, who stared at her with a slight expression of worry on her face. She pointed behind her at the office and Holly nodded in understanding. She turned first, though, to see the progress of the match. The woman—who had started out calm and cool— now squatted in her chair and hauled on her opponent’s hand with both of hers.
Her eyes spat fire, and it was obvious that she was not even close to accepting that, from the beginning, she’d had no chance to win that match. “Are you fucking kidding me? He can’t hold a shot glass without falling over but he can fucking beat me? This is total bullshit. He’s a goddamned pussy.”