by Joe Conlan
“Where are you?”
“I’m on the road.”
“Daniel, I know you’re spending the morning in Ft. Lauderdale. I called your office. Karen told me. You’re not gonna reject my invitation for a third time, are you? You’re gonna give me a complex.” Since the initial congratulatory call to Daniel, Annie had sent him an email offering lunch again. In his typical sweet manner, at least when it involved her, he responded he would love to, but his schedule was prohibitive. Annie wasn’t about to let him get away with it this time. She continued, “How long is your meeting this morning?”
Daniel considered telling a little fib. Truthfully, the meeting should be over before noon and he had plans to stop for lunch in Ft. Lauderdale anyway. His desire for her was screaming for him to say yes to the invitation. His head was telling him to lie through his teeth. Before he had a chance to respond, Annie added, “You’re hesitating. You’re considering it. Come on, Daniel. It’s just a meal...completely innocent. We’ll take separate cars. I’ll meet you at J. Alexanders. It’s not every day you get promoted to Special Agent in Charge. There’s no reason why we can’t be friends, is there?” Annie knew just where to hit the man she almost married. Making him feel guilty rarely failed.
“I don’t know,” said Daniel fidgeting in the driver’s seat of his Crown Victoria, his fingers furiously tapping on the steering wheel. “When you put it that way, it’s hard to say no.”
“Then don’t say it. What time do you get out of your meeting?”
“What about Deborah?”
“What about her?”
“You know what I mean. You know how she feels.”
“Daniel, you’re one of the smartest men I’ve ever met, but when it comes to relationships, you can be dumb as shit. Sometimes, things are just best left unsaid. If it’s gonna cause conflict, don’t tell her. It’s not like you’re doing anything wrong.”
“You don’t consider going to lunch with your ex behind your wife’s back doing something wrong?”
“Not when it’s innocent and not when you’re wife is being unreasonable controlling what you do. A relationship is supposed to be built on trust. Anyone comfortable in their marriage wouldn’t have a problem with this.”
“Aright, ok, I’ll go. My meeting should be over by 11:30 or so. I’ll meet you there at noon.”
Annie met Daniel at a fraternity party when they were sophomores at George Washington University. For both of them, it was love at first sight. What followed was an intense and torrid love affair that lasted over five and a half years. In May of 1997, they both received their Bachelor’s Degrees in criminal justice. At the time, it was Annie’s plan to apply for Harvard Law School then pursue a political career later in life. Since Daniel was also interested in getting a law degree, she convinced him to apply to Harvard. When they were both admitted and Daniel made his final decision to accept, they rented a small, one bedroom apartment in Cambridge. For all intents and purposes, they lived as a married couple during the three years required to obtain their law degrees and loved every second of it.
After graduation from Harvard, Daniel, being the traditional, old-school type, was ready to settle down, get married, and start a family. Annie had a very different notion about the first few years in the real world that didn’t include wedding bells or snot-nosed brats. Being the career-oriented poster girl, she wanted them to become established in their professions before even allowing the idea of nuptials to enter her thought processes. She accepted what she considered the perfect career opportunity with King Cruise Line. The job offered worldwide travel and the ability to forge relationships with V.I.P’s in the U.S. and internationally. It wasn’t something she was willing to give up. Another major conflict arose in that the position required her to move to Ft. Lauderdale. Meanwhile, Daniel was following his dream to be an FBI agent and was to start training at Quantico in Virginia.
Daniel was crushed when Annie rejected his marriage proposal. Although they tried to maintain a long-distance relationship, they soon began to grow apart. The miles that separated them proved to be much too difficult. Within seven months of graduation, they decided to call it quits. Annie spent many nights crying herself to sleep when the final decision was made. There were times she even considered quitting her job and flying up to D.C. to be with Daniel. Each instance of doubt was eventually smothered by her unrelenting drive and ambition to strive for a successful career. The fact that she seemed to almost have a phobia to committing to marriage didn’t help either.
Annie plunged into her work head-first, trying not to look back. A workaholic, her job and career truly became her life. Several years later, Daniel was transferred to the North Miami field office. The profound feeling she experienced when they reconnected struck her like a freight train head on. The realization she had made a terrible mistake and it was now too late was a crushing blow. If she had explored deeper into her psyche, she might have to admit there was something attractive about a man who wasn’t available. At the time, Daniel was married and already had a child. The misery and sadness of those weeks after their separation came flooding back like a river breaking through a faulty dam. What she was telling herself on the surface was that her career was always a priority. It prevented her from ever truly considering a realistic compromise. The idea of marriage and a family spooked her and she fled. Maybe, her judgment wasn’t the best. In the end, it didn’t matter. She ultimately decided she’d rather have Daniel in her life than not at all and settled on a friendship. Thereafter, she dated men and finally conceded to a longer arrangement with Michael, but her heart was never in that relationship.
A burst of chilly air rushed through Annie’s bedroom causing goose bumps to rise on her arms and down her back. The air conditioning wasn’t running, leading her to believe, just maybe, a cool front finally swept through South Florida during the night. She rose from the bed and hurried to the bathroom to grab her terrycloth robe. Before she had a chance to put it on, she heard the creaking noise made by the front door when opened or closed. Michael and her mother were the only people besides the building’s administration who had a key to the condo. She knew it couldn’t be her mother since she just ended the telephone conversation with her ten minutes ago. And Michael would never use the key if he knew she was home. Nevertheless, she called out his name. The lack of an answer and a second creaking of the door sent a bolt of panic up her spine.
Being ultra-security conscious and a woman who lived alone, Annie was the owner of a semi-automatic Baretta 92F. She retrieved the pistol from the drawer of her nightstand and made her way to the front of the apartment. Holding the gun with both hands out in front, she listened carefully as she approached the door. The field of vision covered by the peephole gave her a view of the entire hallway to the elevators on the opposite wall. She looked through the lens and saw no one. She continued her search around the entire condominium, checking every room and closet, keeping the gun poised and ready as she opened each door. Convinced there was no one in the apartment, she released a huge sigh of relief and lowered the gun. On her way back to the bathroom to begin her morning ritual, she couldn’t expel the eerie sensation that an unwelcome intruder had been in her home.
Shem Chassar pulled into one of the many parking spaces on Birch Street that gave him a view of the front entrance to Annie’s building. That day, he was driving his 1996 Ford Mustang. He’d arrived early in order to catch a glimpse of Annie preparing for work. He was hoping to get lucky. Once in a while, Annie would open the curtains of her bedroom, allowing him to see her in various stages of undress. There would be no cheap thrills that morning, however. She was usually up by 6:00am and driving out of the covered garage by no later than 7:30. At 7:15, an hour and 15 minutes after he arrived, there was not a single Annie sighting. It was time for a mini-panic. He immediately considered what for him would be the worst case scenario. She made up with Munez and spent the night at his house. It was always most difficult to control his rage when she slept with him. If she didn’
t break off the relationship sometime soon, he was going to take matters into his own hands and end it for her. For the moment, he had to know what was up.
Throwing discretion out the window, Shem decided he must enter Annie’s apartment. He had done it before though his purpose on that occasion was much different. Disguised as one of the construction workers re-carpeting the hallways, he broke into Annie’s apartment while she was at work. Running his hands through her sexy, laced unmentionables gave him unprecedented erotic pleasure. He lay naked in her bed, masturbating to climax multiple times. The orgasm he achieved fantasizing bathing in Annie’s blood could have been the most intense and gratifying of his life.
It was rather easy getting past security the first time. The guard on duty waved him through without even looking up from the sitcom he was watching on his portable TV. This entry was going to be a bit more complicated. The construction workers usually didn’t show up on the job before 8:00am. Shem sprinted to his Mustang and gathered his construction clothing, lunch box, and tool belt from the trunk. He changed quickly inside the car then jogged to the front entrance of Annie’s building, entering through the revolving doors. An older, portly security officer was manning the desk. When he saw the construction worker approaching he said, “Hold on, buddy. Isn’t it a little early for you guys to get started?”
“Yes, sir, you’re right. But, the work isn’t progressing as fast as the boss would like, so I thought I’d get a head start this morning.”
“You can say that again. This project was supposed to be done four months ago. I don’t see you guys finishing before February. But, you know the rules. The residents don’t like any construction noise before 8:00am on the weekdays.”
“I know. I promise I won’t make a peep. What I’ll be doing doesn’t require any banging, hammering or noisy machines. I give you my word.”
The security guard studied Shem’s face for a moment, hesitated then responded, “Alright, young man, I happen to admire early birds. I’m gonna trust you. It’s my ass if you piss off any of the residents, so keep it down until 8.”
“Yes, sir.”
The guard allowed him to pass. Shem walked beyond the security desk to the elevator bank and pushed the call button. In order to throw the old man off, in case he was watching the floor indicator, he hit the button for the fifth floor. He knew they were re-carpeting there, but wasn’t sure if they had reached the penthouse level yet. When the elevator arrived at the fifth floor, he exited, waited a few minutes, re-entered, and took it up to Annie’s floor.
As soon as the doors opened, he peered out from the front corner of the elevator toward the apartments to check to be sure neither Annie nor the other tenant on the floor was in the hallway. Seeing no one, he quickly walked the thirty yards straight ahead to Annie’s door. He placed his ear up against it and listened for signs of activity. There was dead silence coming from within and there was no light streaming from the crack underneath the door. Feeling secure the apartment was vacant, he opened his lunchbox and pulled out the fourteen- piece lock picking kit he’d purchased online. It took him less than two minutes to disengage the deadbolt and knob lock. No sooner had he stepped inside when the telephone began to ring. He stopped in his tracks. Two rings later, he heard Annie’s voice from one of the back rooms of the condo. From his position just fifteen feet from the front door, he heard every word she was saying.
After learning Annie had taken the day off, Shem’s first thought was that he had been mindlessly rash taking such a risk. That notion was forgotten the instant he realized Annie was talking to some man he didn’t know. He heard her make plans to have lunch with him, intensely irritated by the way she was flirtatiously coaxing him to accept her invitation. There was a definite tone of seduction in the way she was speaking. It was obvious to him she admired this one. A rage began to sprout its roots in the pit of his gut that he quickly had to squelch. The conversation was coming to an end.
He purposefully left the door open in the event a quick getaway became necessary. Before he had a chance to make his exit, a breeze from the corridor blew the door closed to a position too narrow to pass. His feet moved over the marble floor in complete silence as he hastily glided toward the threshold. He barely heard the creaking of the hinges as he opened and closed the door on his way out. Hoping Annie didn’t notice, he ran to the elevator and pressed the call button. It was a stroke of luck that no one had used it since he arrived on the floor. The doors opened instantly. He wasted no time stepping inside and pushing the button for the lobby. Two seconds after the door closed, Annie looked through her peephole.
His exit from the lobby was much less eventful. The guard who granted him access to the building was involved in conversation with one of the residents. Shem strolled toward the revolving doors at a normal pace and left the condominium without being noticed by the officer or the man with whom he was speaking. Outside the building, he accelerated his step on his way to his parked car. He unlocked the door, threw himself into the driver’s seat, and proceeded to bang his fists against the steering wheel for a full minute. Before he was through, its steel casing was completely destroyed.
He had been angry many times in his life, but couldn’t recall a time when he’d reacted in such a manner. The fury he felt when he thought Annie spent the night with Michael and the fit of rage over this new man was not acceptable. It caused him to take unnecessary risks and lose his ability to accurately assess a situation. His intuitive abilities were rendered useless under such circumstances. If he had just checked the covered garage, he probably would have discovered Annie’s car was still where she parked it the previous night. He made a solemn pledge to himself. From this point on, he would always act with a clear and reasonable head. He did have to acknowledge that he came away from this experience with one useful piece of information. He would follow Annie to her lunch and find out what this man was all about.
Chapter 6
Interstate 95 was jam-packed as Daniel drove north to Ft. Lauderdale for his 8:00am appointment. Since the previous Wednesday when he received the promotion, his schedule had been as congested as the freeway. The transition process required fourteen hour days. While he was training his replacement for the Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the criminal division, he was going through orientation with Rick Suarez for his new position. That was not to mention the process of doling out responsibility for the files he was handling personally. He barely had time for his family. For the moment, they weren’t giving him too hard of a time about his absence and he was grateful for it.
This morning he was meeting with the Chief of Police of the Ft. Lauderdale Police Department. A task force was created several months back to handle the resurfacing of gang-related crimes in Broward County. It included members of Daniel’s squad, officers from the Ft. Lauderdale Police Department, troopers from the Florida Highway Patrol, and deputies from the Broward County Sheriff’s Office. Daniel was a member of the task force despite his supervisory position at the Bureau. The severity of the problem called for his expertise as a director and educator for the Florida Gang Investigator’s Association. To date, the task force had arrested more than two- hundred gang members and confiscated narcotics and stolen goods with a street value of over $750,000.00. Two of the most dangerous gang leaders were still at large, but they were hot on their trail. Since Daniel would no longer be available for the task force, he wanted to personally meet with the Captain to provide him with some important updates and answer any questions he may have.
That was his official business for being in Ft. Lauderdale, yet his date to follow was what was niggling on his mind. He was looking forward to seeing Annie, maybe a little bit too much. Convincing himself it wouldn’t serve any good purpose, he followed Annie’s advice and didn’t mention his plans for lunch to Deborah. Now, a few hours from his rendezvous with his ex, he was beginning to feel guilty. Secrets weren’t normally his style and he was sure Deborah wouldn’t appreciate his lack of confidence in her
. His true reasons for keeping Deborah out of the loop were probably much more carnal in nature than he was willing to admit. He had actually gone through a mental exercise convincing himself he loved his wife dearly, cherished his boys, and would never do anything to harm his family. The excuse wasn’t exactly working. He was relatively certain Deborah would be more upset over his omission than the actual lunch, though neither would make her happy.
His meeting with the Captain took his mind off his guilt over the several hours it lasted. As he left the Ft. Lauderdale Police Department, those feelings came flooding back. He seriously considered phoning Annie to make some excuse and call it off. Just when he thought he had made a firm decision to do the right thing, his cell phone began to squeal. Annie’s ears must have been ringing. She was calling to express her excitement about seeing him.
“I’ve been looking forward to this all morning,” she said. “It’s been a while since we were able to catch up. It’ll be nice to have you all to myself.”
Whether it was because he chickened out or he was feeling the same way, Daniel changed his mind as quickly as he entertained the thought of cancelling.
“Me too, Annie. I always enjoy spending time with you. I’m on my way to the restaurant now.”
Annie’s heart leapt as she felt a warm sensation in the pit of her stomach. She was thinking she was a big, hot mess, but said, “That’s so sweet. You know I feel the same way. I’ll see you there.”
“Sure thing,” said Daniel, who snapped his cell phone shut. After all the second- guessing, those words seemed to flow a little bit too easily from his lips. This couldn’t be healthy for his marriage.
During Annie’s morning telephone conversation with Daniel, Shem overheard they would be having lunch at J. Alexanders. An hour before their scheduled meeting, Shem pulled into the parking lot of the Krispy Kreme doughnut shop located just south of the restaurant, and waited. Daniel arrived first in his Crown Victoria. It was obvious to Shem it was some type of unmarked police vehicle. He already knew Daniel worked for the FBI, being familiar with the term Special Agent in Charge. It had the potential to make things interesting. Browsing through the FBI’s Miami field office website, he also came across a picture of the agent with a caption indicating his former position. It was always helpful to have a last name. It allowed access to so much more information.