“Okay, Missy, you think you’re so smart? I’m not admitting anything but if there was any sex involved with those women, it was consensual sex and there’s no way to prove otherwise. I don’t care what fucking testimony you can get them to give. My lawyers will …”
“See, Evan? You’re already talking about your lawyers and treating all this as though it was already happening and legal proceedings were a reality. You really want to try to defend yourself in court from criminal charges? While you may think those women can’t succeed in convincing a jury, you don’t even know what other evidence there might be against you.”
“What other evidence?” Melo did get her point about not wanting any of this to actually become public. His parents would disown him, regardless of how innocent he tried to pretend he was. They would not be pleased having to deal with all the scandal.
“I would truly enjoy seeing you go to prison for your crimes, Evan, but those women in the other room have each chosen to keep quiet about what you’ve done. They’ve not told anyone how you’ve callously taken advantage of them, forced them into having sex with you and then threatened them so they didn’t go to the authorities. No, they didn’t get examined right away by doctors, didn’t allow all the rape kit evidence to be gathered, didn’t choose to take those steps.” Missy was getting really worked up and the energy force she was putting into her words was more than enough to shut Evan up. She continued, saying, “Those indeed were steps which might have stopped you from hurting other women but only by them allowing themselves to be dragged out into the limelight as well. You counted on that, of course. You choose women who you knew would not have the courage to do that.”
Melo finally managed to interrupt her, saying, “I’m not admitting anything and you’ve just admitted there isn’t any other evidence. So, are we done here?”
“No, we’re not done and I’m just getting started. You see, while I don’t want to ask those women to give testimony, what I really don’t want is for you to continue here at West Point. I don’t want you raping other women and I don’t want you giving the academy a bad name. So, you’re going to resign, Evan. Right now. Today. And, as I told you earlier, this is strike two for you.”
“Now I know you’re crazy! What makes you think I’ll resign? And what the hell does strike two mean?”
“You got strike one when Sally confronted you about your inappropriate behavior with Emily Robinson. You can take strike two by resigning, leaving West Point and leaving the army. You can do that and no one will know about these rapes. But, if there’s ever a strike three, because you do it again, Evan? Or, because you try to do it again? You see … you’re going to be watched from now on. So, there better not be any next time. You really don’t want to mess with me, Evan.”
Melo was getting very uncomfortable but thought he’d call her bluff. “What makes you think you’re so special, McCrea? I’ve read all those phony articles about you in the magazines. You and General Blake? Maybe you’re fucking him, is that it? When I heard you’d left the academy this summer, I was glad. Is that what you were up to, fucking the general? Or, maybe you’re fucking the Superintendent here also. Is that why you came back?”
“Rather than asking me any of those ridiculous questions, Evan, you should be asking yourself why Kion Gosselin, Chris Bernhard and those five other Caesar Club assholes are all serving time in Fort Leavenworth. You should be wondering why they chose to plead guilty with no trial, no public outcry, with all now pretty much forgotten. Why do you suppose that is, anyway?”
Melo had wondered about all that, actually. And, it was one of the reasons he’d wanted to avoid Missy McCrea. He didn’t know how she was involved, exactly, or to what extent she was responsible; but … she indeed had some friends in very high places. At the end of the day, it really didn’t matter if she was fucking generals or not. Did he want to mess with her?
Missy could see him working it out. She sensed when he realized he was not going to win this one. No, he really didn’t have the resources to go against her, regardless of how innocent he thought he could make himself out to be. If she could get those women to accuse him in public, that wasn’t going to end well. She thought she’d add just a bit more for him to worry about. “If you don’t agree to resign, I’ll have my FBI buddies come in here and go through your room before you get a chance to go back there. What do you think they’ll say about your panty collection, Evan? While you’re telling everyone it was all consensual, there are three women out there who will be saying it wasn’t. And, the DNA evidence will prove three of those panties you’ve collected belong to them. Are you really willing to go in that direction, hoping there won’t be enough evidence to put you in Leavenworth along with Kion, Chris and the others?”
Melo paled as his predicament became that much more apparent. She knew about his panty collection? What else did she know? What evidence might she actually have, after all? Fuck! She had that gorilla Mitch Cooper standing by, so getting back to his room was not going to be easy. And, she probably had the fucking FBI on speed dial. She had friends and resources which went way beyond anything he could manage. He was screwed with no way out. No, he wasn’t going to take her on. It was time for him to find some way out of this. Time for damage control. “What happens if I agree to resign?”
“Well, then I’ll bring you right down to the Superintendent’s office so you can do that. Just so you don’t change your mind. And, then? You’re going to go away. Leave and not tell anyone about your crimes here. Or, talk trash about the academy either. No, you’re going to go home and behave yourself. Not molest any more women. You see, you’re not going to want to deal with the consequences of strike three, Evan.”
“You’re not going to make accusations once I’ve left?” As he thought about that, Melo realized she probably wouldn’t. No, she’d made it pretty clear she wanted all this to remain a secret, provided he behaved. So, if he resigned, that was the safe course of action. He could regroup, try to go in other directions without having to deal with all this drama. Had he been innocent, of course, he might then have had the courage to stay and fight. But, somehow, she knew he was guilty. How she knew, he didn’t know and it didn’t matter. He wasn’t dealing with a woman he could take advantage of. No, he was facing Missy McCrea and he had nothing he could use against her.
“You ready to resign, now? And, no. Once you’re gone, there won’t be any accusations. That will only happen if you ever try doing it again, later on. That would then be strike three, just as I’ve promised.” Missy knew she’d won this round. It would remain to be seen whether he’d behave or not. But, she’d be having him watched to minimize any risk to other girls.
“You really are a fucking whore bitch, you know that?” Melo was frustrated and wanted to lash out against her. “Okay. Yeah. Let’s go see the Supe. I’m sure he’ll enjoy the blowjob you’ll probably be giving him right afterwards. But, I know what I have to do. Let’s go and get this over with.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Nov 10, 2019
It was very late by the time Missy finally got back to the academy, disembarked from the bus, said her congratulatory goodbyes to the rest of her soccer teammates and went on up to her room. Traffic returning from Boston had been terrible, with an accident on the highway delaying them by more than two hours. But, they had won, beating Boston University by a score of three-two, and now Army was the Patriots League Champion and would be playing in the First Round of the NCAA Playoffs next.
As soon as Missy entered her room, Tracy jumped up and said, “Yea! Great job! We were able to watch it on TV and that last goal you made was so exciting! I bet you couldn’t help showing off, playing in front of your family and all your friends!”
Missy laughed and said, “That BU team was pretty good but yeah … being able to break that tie and then hold them off for those final minutes was special.” Her Mom and Dad had been there with her brothers John and Patrick, plus Mike, of course. Her sister Heather and
Donald Whalen, Mike’s sister Michelle and Aaron Brooks, Mark and Alice Mathews, many of her old high school friends … they’d all been there in the stands, cheering her on. “John sends you a great big kiss but I refuse to actually deliver that.” She laughed again, harder.
“Oh, good! Were you able to spend much time with the home crowd or did you have to jump on the bus right away after the game?”
“I managed maybe twenty minutes. Then, as we sat in traffic for hours, I couldn’t help but wish I’d stayed up there instead, visiting with everyone for longer.”
Tracy giggled and said, “I know … you could have done your blinky-blink-blinky-thing and still gotten back here much quicker than the bus, even had you spent several hours with them.”
“My blinky-blink-blinky-thing? Is that a highly technical term for my witchcraft-werecraft?”
“Oh, you’re way beyond mere witchcraft, Missy! There really are no words for all the blinky stuff you’re doing, so Emily and I have decided to substitute a few special words of our own. If you don’t like blinky-blink, I can get with Emily again and we can invent some other words.”
“Please don’t. And, how am I supposed to mentor that girl if you’re filling her head with crazy things like that about me?” Since Troy Dangelmeyer had insisted on sharing details with Emily’s brother Scott, explaining all about how they’d rescued Sandy D’Amato, Missy had allowed Tracy to fill Emily in as well. Of course, Troy had also told his mother about Missy’s ability to shift into spirit form so the word would surely get out, going from coven to coven. Angela had never heard of anyone with an ability like that and had been duly shocked and amazed. Witch gossip was sure to follow!
“Well, if you would spend five minutes actually mentoring her, rather than always being so damn busy, maybe I wouldn’t have to ‘splain so much!” Tracy tried to pretend she was put out but Missy wasn’t buying it.
“Very funny. I think I’ve helped her a lot, and not just with her shooting out on the range but with everything else a poor plebe has to put up with. She really seems to like it here now and works very hard, so I’m quite proud.”
Tracy smiled and her eyes glinted mischievously. “Ha, she likes it here now that she’s met Donald Quigby. The two of them remind me of how Mitch and Kelsey were all last year. You know, before they finally started having sex … remember? It’s really providing us Quigby girls with some great opportunities for teasing and harassing them, only in a good way.”
Missy laughed. “I’m glad they’re going slow and not rushing things. That’s really how most relationships should go. Then, if things really aren’t meant to be, there’s a lot less heartache when they break-up. Of course, I’m hardly one to give any advice. You either, for that matter.”
Tracy groaned. “There you go again, besmirching my relationship expertise reputation. You’ll be glad to know Sally is still seeing Troy and they also are going slow. He was here yesterday and again today.”
“Very good! Sally is the one I was thinking about, talking about heartaches from bad break-ups. How are she and Sharon liking things now that Cadet Melo has left? You’ve told them how I have him being watched, right?” Missy hadn’t had any time at all to talk to her friends, due to all her increased soccer activity combined with everything else she had going on.
“Oh, they’re both thrilled to have that serial-rapist out of here. As for how you’re having him watched so he won’t prey on anyone else, I had to share with them a bit more about your friend Alice and that Roseanne Fund and how she’s known as the crazy mob lady in spite of her blond kewpie-doll appearance.”
Missy giggled and said, “Don’t let her hear you calling her that or you too might end up on her bad guy list. And, you definitely do not want to ever be on that list.”
Alice’s list of all those whom she wanted her Roseanne girls protected from had become quite a big deal, not only for all the mob enforcers who wanted to do favors for the D’Amato organization but for local law enforcement as well, since they in turn wanted to do favors for those mob enforcers. Doing favors was the currency of choice and, with the internet and smart phones and all the high tech tablets, there weren’t many places someone on Alice’s list could go. No, once Alice identified someone as needing to be watched, that someone was kept under surveillance wherever he went.
Evan Melo’s name had been added, even before his fateful meeting with Missy. And, since Missy knew he liked to date the girls first, getting to know them before deciding to make them one of his victims, rather than merely grabbing some poor girl at random, she figured that would enable a timely intervention whenever he once again decided to force himself on anyone.
Tracy asked, “How did you know he’d agree to Plan A and resign without making you go with any of your other plans?”
“Oh, I had figured he wasn’t really here out of any deep conviction of his own. His parents wanted him here and he liked the status it gave him, which he used to get those women to date him. But, he really is a weak coward inside. Being caught and forced to leave was actually a relief for him. It gave him an excuse he could use to justify not continuing. Since I gave him a way out, letting him resign without being exposed and charged with anything, he grabbed at that quickly enough. I knew I had him at ‘we’re going to have a conversation’.”
Tracy studied her friend. She realized most at the academy now considered Missy as someone they would not want to have any adverse conversations with. All the recent magazine articles about her serving in combat with the Special Forces had only further enhanced her bad ass reputation. So, yeah … she could see why someone like Evan Melo might choose to slink back home and make excuses rather than stay and deal with her. “You really can be rather intimidating now, you know?”
“That’s what Melo said, only he used slightly different words. He said I really was a fucking whore bitch. Of course, I knew just what he meant.” Missy and Tracy both laughed and then they got ready for bed. Ten minutes later they were both sound asleep.
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Nov 12, 2019
Arvind Pancholi looked out from his favorite restaurant’s tenth floor window and once again admired the magnificent Bosphorus Strait down below, connecting the Black Sea to the north with the Sea of Marmara to the south and dividing Europe from Asia. Further south, through the Dardanelles Strait was the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean. Having been born and raised in New Delhi, where the next big war would just as likely be fought over water as anything else, he was very appreciative of having such wonderful water resources nearby.
Since he also happened to be a very powerful water witch, something he’d been careful to keep very secret all his life, the proximity to water which living in Turkey gave him was even more appreciated. Although he worked in the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, he frequently managed to get over here to Istanbul. He’d left India twenty some years ago, when in his early twenties, and had never regretted that. True, witches were not welcome anywhere in the Mid-East and he had no coven. But, having long ago chosen to be a double agent, spying on the U.S. for various groups while also employed by the CIA, having a secretive lifestyle had always been a requirement.
Since he was a foreigner, his access inside the CIA had been limited and he was only considered a lower level cleric at the embassy, handling all the mundane tasks which the big important staff members did not want to bother with. That was fine with him, as while they all came and went like the seasons, he stayed on and had managed to earn everyone’s trust, all the while making a very nice income selling secrets.
The CIA thought they were paying him to spy on the Turks while his latest efforts had mostly been for WIJO, who knew he was a valuable asset and paid him very well. They only knew about him indirectly, since he always dealt with them through his client. His bank accounts in Switzerland had grown and in just a few more years, he could retire to enjoy the nice fortune he’d managed to accumulate. He planned to live on a yacht and probably cruise the Mediterranean. Someday.
But,
for today, he needed to stay focused. He tore his gaze away from the Bosphoros and returned to stare at the man sitting across the table from him. His unique ability to sense and control water allowed him to always know when any person he was dealing with was telling the truth or lying. And, this man who called himself Felipe Benedict, which he knew was a false name, was now telling him the truth about what he could deliver. And, that was what mattered. Obtaining information which was valid and then providing that through his client to his buyers was what had earned him his reputation for always being a reliable source. In his business, that had been essential.
“These Thanksgiving Day parades … in New York, Philadelphia and Chicago … your files can provide all the latest security provisions and Homeland Security procedures? My client will not be pleased if there are any surprises concerning the crowd surveillance technologies and equipment being used. And, if they’re not pleased, if they think you’ve misled them about anything …?”
Benedict said, “That won’t happen. My data is good and contains all the latest … not only what Homeland Security has but also NSA, the FBI, each municipal police force and various other agencies as well. We were privy to all of that at Homeland Security and I have it. As I told you at our first meeting, whatever you want to know, I’m probably going to have it in my files.”
Although he hadn’t known Pancholi until advertising what he had to offer, he’d known where to post his information. Sure enough, he’d been contacted and Pancholi had arranged to meet him. Once all the bone fides had been taken care of, he’d made his first sale. That had been information he knew WIJO would be interested in and would lead to their coming back for more. He and Pancholi had met a few times since then and each time, their dealings had gone well.
Missy Makes Mayhem (Missy the Werecat Book 5) Page 19