Code Name: Crescent: A Matt Preston Novel

by Paul Shadinger

  I leaned back again on the sofa. It was time to get down to the main reason I stopped by. “Okay, now, there’s still one small problem…” I tried to get a grip on how I wanted to approach the subject.

  “Come on, out with it. How can you tell me in one breath you want to fuck me and then you get all tongue tied?”

  I was starting to sweat. “Okay! I need a favor, a really big favor.”

  “How long are you going to drag this out?” she asked with amusement in her voice. “Can you get to the point sometime today?”

  Quickly I told her, “Well, I need a place to hide somebody, and I was wondering—”

  Her voice rose in volume as she interrupted me, “Hide somebody? What the hell do you mean hide somebody? Are they dead or alive?”

  I was shocked. “Sharon! Alive of course!”

  “Then why do you need to hide somebody?” She lifted one eyebrow as she looked at me. “Is it a female?”

  “Yes! It’s a female. A young woman.” I could not believe how difficult it was telling her what I wanted.

  “How young?” She looked at me with an amused expression on her face. I could see she was having fun at my expense.

  “Maybe twenty. Maybe younger, I’m not really sure.”

  “Robbing the cradle?”.

  I heard her snicker when she asked me the question and I knew she was giving me a hard time. “Bill Tate, one of the guys at our poker games asked me to find his daughter. I found her and she’s at my apartment now, but she needs a place to stay until I can find the dude who she claims tried to rape her… well, that isn’t quite true either. She told one person she was actually raped.”

  I heard Sharon draw in a sharp breath. “Raped? Oh Matt, is she okay?”

  “Yeah she was raped. I really don’t know how well she’s actually dealing with everything. She was dating this kid and at first she said he tried to rape her, but now she says he really did rape her. Later she found out he’s tried to rape several women and perhaps even succeeded a few times. The problem is he’s a big-time athlete over at the U and a lot of people are trying to just sweep this under the rug. She wants to make an issue out of this and he’s threatened her. I found her and have her stashed for the moment but the problem is I don’t feel comfortable having her at my apartment. Can I bring her here?”

  “Why here?”

  “Couple of reasons. Other than just a few of the guys at the poker game, and you, nobody knows about this place. She’d be safe here, and…” I paused for a moment.

  “And what?” she asked with a hint of suspicion.

  “I was hoping you could talk to her, you know, like woman to woman.” I leaned forward and implored, “Shit, Sharon, you have training on helping women who were raped. See if you can find out if it’s true. Was she raped, or did he just try and she got away? I can believe her either way since I’ve talked to one other woman who said this guy tried to rape her.”

  “Who is this dude anyway?”

  “Claude Cox… Bud Cox.”

  Sharon leaned forward as she asked, “Matt, are you serious?” I nodded. She leaned back in her chair and took a deep breath. “We had a girl in the ER a few weeks ago, badly beaten and raped. She wouldn’t tell us who did it. Even the police came and questioned her and she refused to talk. I spoke with her a few days later in her room and she seemed to open up to me a little. I asked her who had beaten her up and she told me she wouldn’t tell. I asked her why she was protecting this bastard and she told me there was no point in telling, I wouldn’t believe it if she told me. I asked her several times why she thought I wouldn’t believe her and she finally told me he was a big deal jock at the U. I asked her again who it was and she got really frightened. She looked totally terrified and said she had told me too much already. If it ever got out she had said something, she could get beaten up again or even worse.” Sharon’s eyes were big and I could see some fear on her face. “I wonder if it was Cox who raped her.”

  “Do you know where to find her?” I asked.

  “I guess I could look up her address from the admitting records, but with the laws the way they are today, it isn’t something I should be doing. I could get in a lot of trouble.”

  “I was wondering if you could contact her and ask her if it was Cox.”

  “Let me think about it. When did you want to bring this girl by to stay with me?”

  “In just a little bit, if it’s okay with you?”

  “Okay, I’ll fix up the other room for her.” I waited for a moment and then she continued, “And also, perhaps we will call one another before we show up at the other person’s doorstep?” I knew she was serious, but there was a twinkle in her eye.

  I had to laugh. “Sorry about that, it never occurred to me you might have a guest over. I was worried about the talk we needed to have, and if you would consent to having a guest for a while.” I asked, “Does this mean I can date other women?”

  Sharon smiled. “Who do you have in mind?”

  Telling her a little white lie I said, “Nobody yet, but if I were to meet a woman I might like to take to dinner, are you going to get all wigged out?”

  “After how you discovered me today?” We laughed and she told me, “But I’m glad you did come over, this is perfect. I’ve wanted to have this talk for so long and I feel much better now. I wanted to tease her that now she wouldn’t have to feel guilty but I was pleased as well with the way things were turning out.

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  I returned to the apartment and found Kim curled up in my favorite chair. The room was dark and she was watching the boats in the lake and the canal beyond. I told her she was sitting in my favorite chair doing one of my favorite things. We agreed how peaceful it was and the calming effect it had. I told her I had spoken to Sharon and she was ready for Kim to come over.

  I decided to take Kim to the houseboat in my old Caddy convertible. The windows are darkened and I thought it was the best car for sneaking her over. I don’t drive it very often and I didn’t think any of Cox’s buddies would have any idea what to look for.

  On the way I gave her a brief rundown on how I had ended up with it, and why I thought it was such a good place for her to hide. I asked her if she minded if I told her parents where she was and she asked me to wait until tomorrow. I wasn’t too wild about the idea but I agreed.

  When we got to the marina parking lot I looked around to see if any cars seemed out of place. Nothing jumped out at me. I had a large parka on Kim and I had her pull up the hood. Beanie came with and the three of us walked down the dock. Sharon must have heard us coming because by the time we were standing in front of the door, she had it open. Kim stepped in quickly, but Beanie was faster. Once Sharon’s dog Max saw Beanie, they took off running through the house.

  Sharon was still dressed in sweats, but her hair was fixed and she looked very, well, nursey. And if that ain’t a word, it should be. Once the door was closed, Sharon smiled warmly as she extended her arms towards Kim. As if the two of them were old dear friends, Kim stepped into Sharon’s embrace and Sharon hugged her. Since Sharon was quite a bit taller than Kim, she seemed to engulf the smaller woman in her arms. Kim’s shoulders started to shake and a sob escaped. Sharon had once again worked her magic. I don’t know how she does it, but people just feel good about Sharon. She can meet total strangers and they’ll fall all over themselves telling her things about their lives I just can’t believe. Kim had fallen under her spell.

  I waited until Kim was settled and I explained that I needed to get going. Sharon asked me if I was coming back and I told her I just didn’t know how things were going to play out. I didn’t want to tell Sharon in front of Kim I was going to look for Bud Cox, and I especially didn’t want her to know about the two strange men who were following me.

  CHAPTER 10

  AN EVENING WITH GLADYS

  I had spent the whole da
y working on my cars and as I was headed back to my apartment, I realized it was still rather early in the evening. I hadn’t heard from Kim or Sharon all day, but I still wanted to touch base with Bill Tate. I made a quick call and explained to him I had Kim and she was safe. He asked me where she was, and I explained my promise to Kim about not divulging her location as one of the caveats I’d agreed to in order for her to allow me to hide her. I assured him Kim would want to see him in the next day or two, but most important, the place she was at, she was getting some counseling. I ended the call by asking him if he would mind calling his ex and letting her know Kim was safe. Bill ended with, “Okay, you know I trust you, Matt. That’s why I asked you to help me. Thanks!”

  There wasn’t anything left for me to do until tomorrow, and now that I had official permission to date whom I desired, I wanted to stop by and see Gladys. I know some of you may think ill of me, considering I had just come to an understanding with Sharon the night before and all, but I felt now I was free, so to speak, I had every right to stop off and see Gladys. Remember, Sharon hadn’t exactly been living a righteous life, had she?

  When I pulled into Gladys’ parking lot, I was pleased to see her car nestled in her parking stall. I parked my truck in a guest parking slot, went up and knocked at her door and waited. When the door opened, I was greeted by her enticing perfume and a sensual vision in clingy velvet. Her full-length bodysuit was tailored to fit and left little to the imagination. She looked really sexy, definitely erotic and most enticing.

  Gladys stepped forward, wrapped her arms around me and hugged me hard. She looked up at me, kissed my cheek and said, “Matt, what a sweet surprise. Come in, come in, please.” She took me by the hand and pulled me in. Once I was inside, she stopped and then looked behind me. “Where’s Bean?” I told her she was out in the truck and after a tongue lashing, Gladys made me go back and fetch her. When I returned and sat Bean down, the dog ran through the house checking things over. Gladys laughed at her antics and pointed to the couch. “Sit. What can I get you to drink? Scotch?”

  “Yes please.”

  “Same as last time?”

  “Please.”

  When she returned with our drinks she sat on the couch next to me and Bean came up and sat on the other side. “To what do I owe this visit?”

  “Plain and simple, I wanted to see you again. I was very taken with you last time we were together and you’ve been on my mind.”

  Gladys asked with a mischievous grin, “And how are things with your friend?”

  I explained, “Well, I stopped by her place and caught her with somebody. We had a really long talk and basically we’ve come to an understanding. We’ll live our lives as we want, but still continue to be friends.”

  “Friends with benefits?” she asked.

  I was not going to lie. “Yeah. Being honest, I’m sure we’ll still sleep together sometime in the future. Is that a problem?”

  We both took a sip of our drinks and she replied, “No. If it becomes a problem, we’ll have a talk. Okay?” I agreed and she leaned over and patted my hand. “But are you here just to get even with her? Is this something you’re doing on the rebound?”

  Her question caught me off guard. In a way it surprised me. I knew I wanted to get to know this lovely woman, but how much of this visit was some sort of a get even with Sharon on my part? “I won’t lie to you. I don’t think that’s my motive. I’ll admit I was hurt when I found them together.”

  “So, you still care for her?” Gladys interjected.

  “Well, yeah. There are still some feelings. After our talk, it seems for now, we mainly want to be friends.”

  “And if you and I were to get involved, and she wanted you back, how would that play out?”

  I was getting very uncomfortable now. What I had thought would be a fun evening was turning a bit dark for my taste. “I haven’t lied to you yet and I am not going to start now. I can’t tell you what the future will bring. All I can do is be honest about how things are. I told you the last time what was happening. And the reason I’m here is the chat I had with my friend.” I took a sip of my drink and added, “Do you want me to leave?”

  She placed her hand on mine. “No. And I’m sorry if you felt uncomfortable with my questions. I’m just trying to take care of me. I wanted to see where I stood.” She patted my hand and I lifted her hand to my lips and kissed the back of it. She grinned at me and asked, “How did you know I was here?”

  “I took a chance. You told me when you worked, you preferred working days, and I hoped you might be home.”

  Her smile was warm and her voice got husky, “Your timing is perfect. I just finished with my shower and I was wondering what I was going to have for dinner.”

  I asked, “Are you interested in going out for dinner?”

  “Not really. I’m comfortable with what I have on,” and she motioned with her hand at her outfit, “and I don’t want to have to go and change. I can make us something here if you don’t mind?”

  “Well, I’d hate for you to change out of that outfit, I love it!” Gladys gave me her sexy smile. “If staying here keeps you dressed like that, it sounds great. Will you let me help with dinner?”

  Gladys reached over and patted my hand. “In a little bit. Let’s just sit and have our drinks.” I settled deeper into the very comfortable couch. As we drank, we discussed various topics and I was once again astounded at the depth of this woman’s knowledge of so many different subjects. To be honest, I’d never really known an exotic dancer all that well, and as much as I hate to admit it, most of my ideas were not based on fact. Just sitting next to her and listening to her talk, I was amazed.

  Gladys noticed my glass was empty and without asking, took it from my hand. She stood and as she walked from the room, I was delighted watching the sexy sway of her nice round bottom. I know, I know, I’m such a sleaze. But in my defense, remember she does have a magnificent bottom!

  She returned with two fresh drinks and handed me mine. This time when she sat on the couch, she was sitting much closer than before. Her warm leg was resting against mine and our shoulders were touching. She looked at me and smiled. “This is very nice. I can’t thank you enough for coming over. I was really hoping I’d see you again.”

  “Why me?” I asked. I was sure, considering what she did for a living that she met a lot more interesting men than me.

  I watched as she considered her response. “Let me explain a few things here if I may.” I nodded. “Mostly, I like what I do. All in all, I like it a lot. Not to brag, but I make a vulgar amount of money. I have all the time off I want and for that reason I couldn’t ask for a better job. I meet a lot of interesting men at work and I enjoy getting to know them—at work!” Gladys stressed the last two words. “You wouldn’t believe the stock and real estate tips I’ve gotten from some of my clients. When the social security checks come, we get a lot of older gentlemen visiting us as well. The wise girls let them talk because they have years of business experience. To be honest, sometimes I feel like the girls and I should be paying some of the gentlemen who come to the club for all of the tips on business and investments they share with us.”

  Gladys took a sip of her drink and then continued, “But out of all the men I meet, there are very few I would wish to see outside of the club for a multitude of reasons. Now, because of the way we,” she moved her finger between the two of us, “met, I don’t see you as a client from the club. And because you’re special, and I don’t feel any conflict, I can let myself have feelings for you, which I am very careful not to let myself do with any guys from the club.”

  Gladys frowned as she continued, “A lot of guys think since I dance, I must be a hooker, that I’ll fuck them for money. It is true I let guys feel me up, and that I rub against them, but I provide a service, if you will, I make lonely men happy. I will admit getting pawed is the part of the job I don’t like th
at much but, you take the good with the bad with any job.”

  She took a deep breath and let it out, “Anyway, you were the perfect gentleman in the grocery store. From the way you helped pick up my stuff off the floor, to you not saying anything about seeing me in the club. Then in the parking lot you complimented me on my dancing, which really made me happy because I do try very hard to do it well. I know many of the girls just take off their clothing and flash the men and call it good. I try and put on a little show, and you noticed that. I appreciated that a lot. Then when we were here, I showed interest in you, but you were up front with me. You didn’t try and have sex. You were honest about your… ah, friend?” I smiled. “You just seem to keep doing the right things and I was really hoping you’d come back and see me. It’s a real pleasure to have you come back.”

  Gladys reached over and put her hand on my thigh and squeezed. “Thanks.” With that, she leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Sweetie, it’s time! I need to eat something. Breakfast was a long time ago and these drinks have done their job.”

  I watched her walk into the kitchen, having really sexy thoughts that her sweet swinging bottom brought to mind. When I tried to stand, I could tell I had consumed a couple of very stiff drinks. I needed something to eat, too. I walked carefully into the kitchen and asked her what I could do to help. She replied, “Stand there and talk to me. Oh wait, do you know how to start a gas grill?” I answered in the affirmative. “Great, it’s out on the balcony. Fire it up.”

  I did as I was told and once I had all the burners going I came back in the kitchen. There were several chicken strips soaking in some sort of a marinade and she was making risotto in a pan. “Is it going?” she asked when I returned. I agreed that it was. I was so totally enthralled with watching this lovely young woman, speech was difficult. It was either that or the couple of strong drinks she had given me. “Give it a couple of minutes and then put the strips on the grill. Make sure you turn it down just a titch.”