For this operation, the FBI was paying my rent and the hotel bills for Lois’ visits. The Bureau might have billions of dollars in annual budget, but every expenditure had to be signed off, and no one liked doing that. You needed two signatures just to get a new stapler.
“Do you like it in Chicago?” Mom asked. “I’ve never been, but I hear it’s dangerous.”
“It’s fine, Mom. And it’s not dangerous. Well, not that dangerous. It’s not like New York is a crime-free zone.”
I’d never once felt unsafe walking around the streets of Chicago, but perhaps that was because the real danger lie in Denton’s dad finding out I was an undercover FBI agent. Muggers and thieves would be child’s play compared to what he would do to me if he found out.
“Well you just make sure you never walk around alone at night.”
“You do realize I’ve had self-defense training now? I’m capable of looking after myself.”
“I still want you to be safe. Speaking of which, any chance you have a man around to look after you?”
Not unless you include the violent, but gentle, gangster I’m currently working for.
“No, Mom. No man yet. I’ve only been here a few weeks.”
“Alright, well keep me up-to-date.”
“You’ll be the first to know.”
For the second time this morning, I used the excuse of needing to go to work to end a conversation early. By this point, I was looking forward to getting to the office.
At the office, I could chat to Denton. He didn’t have an agenda. He spoke to me like a normal person, and for the most part, I could be myself around. Except for when I had to get information to use against him.
How long would I be able to keep this up? At some point, Denton was going to find out. This wasn’t a secret I would be able to keep forever. If the operation went to plan, then he’d find out when he was arrested. If something went wrong, then he would find out when his dad caught up with me and had me killed.
Neither alternative held much appeal. As I walked to the office, I tried to imagine a set of circumstances where Denton didn’t end up hating me. I couldn’t think of one. Even if I walked away from all this now, he’d never forgive me.
There had never been any real chance of a relationship developing between us--not a real one--but I could still keep Denton out of prison. That had to be my priority now.
His Dad could rot in there for all I cared, but Denton didn’t deserve that. Somehow, I was going to help him, even if he never thanked me for it.
My plan lasted about five minutes.
Chloe and I had gotten too close over the weekend. Or at least, I had gotten too close to Chloe. There was a chance she didn’t feel the same way. I could usually tell when women were interested in me; for the most part it was women who had a heartbeat.
But Chloe was hard to read. By all appearances, I never would have thought she’d be the type to volunteer in a hunt for a killer. Appearances could be deceptive.
I had to detach myself from her before I got too close, but I didn’t exactly have a lot of practice in that area. I’d never been in love before or even close to it. A lot of women had been in love with me, and they seemed to deal with it in one of two different ways.
Most of them constantly harassed me, thinking that the harder they worked at it, the more likely I was to give in and be in a relationship with them. I was more than happy to let them fuck my brains out while they attempted to impress me, but eventually I’d get bored and move on.
The other way was to try and ignore me. That had worked for a few women, although most fell off the wagon at some point and ended up chasing me. Not all of them though. Some women had met other men and they seemed vaguely happy now. Not as sexually satisfied, but happy at least.
So that’s what I resolved to do. I couldn’t ignore Chloe, but I could be stern with her. I could treat her like a temp, as if she were any other employee. I’d be polite, but firm. No laughing or smiling. No cheeky comments. No staring at her perfect little ass, or imagining sucking on her firm tits.
Most of all, I couldn’t let her help me track down Roddy. That entire subject brought up too many emotions. If she worked with me on that, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself falling for her. That is, if I hadn’t already.
It was a good plan, all things considered. Or so I thought.
I heard Chloe come in about nine o’clock. She stopped and greeted every single employee she walked past, and went out of her way to see some of those she didn’t. She’d only been here two weeks, but she was already more popular than me, and I was the one who paid them.
Chloe sat down at her desk, but I resisted the urge to walk out and say hello, or give her a silly assignment just so I had an excuse to talk to her.
I didn’t need to. She came to me soon enough.
What the hell was that thing around her neck?
“Morning,” Chloe said with less enthusiasm than she had to everyone else in the office. I guess she’d used up all her energy before getting to me.
“Morning,” I replied tersely. She had on a large and slightly gaudy necklace that didn’t suit her at all. I wasn’t exactly an expert on women’s fashion--other than underwear--but even I could tell she didn’t look comfortable in it.
“You’re staring at my chest,” Chloe remarked. I looked up and saw her smiling. “On this occasion, I think I’d actually prefer it if you were eying up my boobs, but I assume it’s the necklace?”
“Uh, yeah, the necklace. It’s nice,” I said, trying to sound convincing. “Very… big.”
“And bigger is always better, right?”
“So I’m always told.” Sexual innuendo was not part of the plan.
“You don’t have to pretend you like it,” Chloe said. “I hate it.”
“Why are you wearing it?”
Chloe sighed and shook her head. “Mom insisted. She thinks it brings good fortune.”
“It looks like it’ll bring back problems. What’s so lucky about it?”
“It was my grandmother’s. Apparently it brought good luck. She died from cancer a few years ago, so I’m not sure how lucky it really is, but I can’t be bothered to argue with Mom.”
“I’m sorry. About your grandmother. Isn’t your Mom back in New York though? She’s not going to notice if you don’t wear it.”
“Yes, but she asks me about it. I’m a hopeless liar; she can see right through me.”
“That’s comforting,” I replied sarcastically. “I hope you never get questioned by the police about me.”
“Oh, that’ll be okay. I won’t lie. I’ll just tell them the truth. You know it’s illegal to lie to the police, right?”
I rolled my eyes, and did my best to suppress a smile. I failed. So much for playing the tough guy this morning.
Chloe ran through my schedule for the day and I asked her to cancel a few meetings and conference calls. Everything non-urgent got pushed to the side. I had more important work to do today.
One of my sources gave me a lead on a company that Roddy supposedly owned. It wasn’t a lot to go on, but it might lead me back to him. I’d been going at this too casually. I couldn’t just sit around hoping that someone else would find him.
I wanted Roddy dead. It was up to me to find him. Find him and kill him.
-*-
I needed Chloe’s help.
There was a reason I always had a PA; office work was not exactly my forte. Dad had brought me up as a glorified street thug--it had only been later on in life that he’d decided I needed to help run legitimate businesses to keep things above board.
I could make decisions. I was good at that. I had to make tough calls every day, but the pressure rarely got to me. It was hard to feel pressure over little things like which supplier to use or which design to go with when you were used to making life and death decisions in the middle of a street fight.
Administrative work was just one of those things I couldn’t handle. It didn’t agree with me,
kind of like an allergy. Maybe I was allergic to admin?
I had the name of the company Roddy supposedly owned, and I was sure there were online databases that had addresses and information for companies, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. The company name was too generic for a Google search, and if I knew Roddy Barton, he’d want to keep it offline as much as possible.
Chloe couldn’t get involved in my hunt for Roddy, but if she just helped me with a bit of research on his company that should be fine. I wouldn’t even tell her what it was about, so she’d never know she was helping.
I called Chloe into my office and she arrived as promptly as ever. Was it too much to hope that she was just sat out there waiting for me to call her in?
“Do you need me to get you out of another meeting?” she asked wearily. “I’m still getting grief from the other directors about that last one.”
“Sorry. Just tell them to discuss it with me. I can handle them. I need your help with some research.”
“Okay, what is it?” she asked, pen and paper at the ready. At least I’d finally found a flaw of hers--she insisted on writing everything down.
“Do you know how to get a company’s mailing address and a list of directors? I’m sure it’s online, but I’ll be damned if I can find it anywhere.”
“What state is it incorporated in?” Chloe asked. I looked back at her blankly. “Okay, let’s start with Delaware. That’s the most common option.”
Chloe came round to my side of the desk and bent over to use the computer. I gave her the same and she went to the Delaware Secretary of State website to get the information she needed.
Her necklace hung down and clattered against my desk as she leaned over. Considering it was an old family heirloom, she didn’t treat it with much care. Come to think of it, the necklace didn’t look that old. Either that, or it was well looked-after.
“It’s not there,” she said. “I’ll try some other states.”
Chloe twisted slightly to use the mouse, and a tiny gap appeared in her blouse. Peeking through her top was not at all gentlemanly, but few women had ever described me as a gentleman before anyway.
I could see enough to tell that her pert breasts weren’t the result of padding or a push up bra. They were just as juicy as I’d imagined.
“Got ya,” Chloe remarked.
“I haven’t done anything,” I replied quickly, looking away from her breasts.
“What? No, I mean I’ve found the company. What do you need the address for?”
“They owe us money. Why?”
“They use a registered agent for legal stuff, so if you were planning to sue then you’d need to send it there.”
“No, I’m not doing that. I just want a correspondence address for now.”
“I’ll print it out for you along with information about the directors.”
Chloe came back a few minutes later with the information printed out. Roddy wasn’t listed as one of the directors, but then I didn’t expect him to be. A quick online search showed that the address was an office block in a run down part of town.
If he owned the company, then there would be shareholder records and that would have his address on it. I knew Roddy well enough to know that he was careful. He was like my dad in that respect. He was like my dad in a lot of ways, come to think of it.
The company would be run according to the law. He’d even pay tax on the profits. The point of the company was to give him a legitimate source of income so if the IRS ever came knocking he could explain why he had ten cars and a big house.
At least, I assumed he had lots of cars and a big house. The truth was, I didn’t really know much about him. Unlike Dad, he’d done a good job at running his empire from the shadows, rarely showing his face in public. He would be hard to catch.
“Thanks, Chloe.”
“Not a problem. You need any more help?”
“No, I’m good.”
Now I just had to wait. I’d stay in the office until after dark and then go to this address and break in. If Roddy’s company was anything like mine, most of the information would be on computer, but there would be paper files as well. Minute books, shareholder certificates, that kind of thing.
Not long now Roddy. I’m coming for you.
Denton was about as subtle as Lady Gaga at an award ceremony.
That company he had me track down must be related to Roddy Barton. Denton would never get involved in basic debt collection--not of company debts, at least. He had a team of credit control guys to handle that.
I made sure to print off two copies of the address, and then did some research of my own. The office block looked old and run down, but it was likely only a cover to funnel money anyway. A bit like this one, really.
Denton mentioned that he would be working late tonight, so I knew he planned to make a move on the office this evening. God knows what he was hoping to find there given that everything would be on computers and password protected, but he was a desperate man and would do anything to get at Roddy.
I considered offering to go with him, but there was no way he would have let me after the big fuss he made about it the other weekend. I’d have to follow him inside and not give him any say in the matter.
After work, I stayed in downtown and hung out in a coffee shop for a few hours until it got dark. After two cups, and a dinner consisting of muffins and lemon slices, I finally saw Denton leave the office.
I quickly jumped in a taxi and had it take me near to Roddy’s company. Knowing the way Denton drove, I knew he would be there before me, but just to be certain I had the taxi driver drop me off a block away.
I rounded the corner just as Denton was checking over his shoulder while forcing the door open. I ducked back behind the wall, but he hadn’t seen me. It was too dark, and only about half the street lights were working.
The weight of the necklace hung heavy around my neck, and not just from the physical weight of the damn thing. I’d turned it on after leaving the coffee shop, as Lois had insisted, but now the burden of what I was about to do really hit home.
When I caught up to Denton in that office, I’d be recording every word of our conversation and then providing it to the FBI. I’d been spying on him from the moment I met him, but I’d always had the choice about what conversations I passed on.
Denton had told me about Kara last weekend, and that hadn’t been easy for him. I hadn’t told Lois about that and didn’t intend to, but if he revealed anything else to me now, I wouldn’t have any choice.
I was betraying the trust and confidence he’d placed in me, and what’s more, he didn’t deserve it.
My only consolation was that his determination to find Kara’s killer would not likely lead to him giving away information about his father’s illegal operations. On the other hand, if Denton did kill Roddy, the FBI wouldn’t have to look too far for evidence.
I had to stop him.
Once Denton was inside, I looked around to make sure the coast was clear and then walked through the door.
The ground floor was dimly lit from a few monitors that had been left on. The entire floor consisted of cubicles, and I doubted much in the way of confidential information would have been kept down here.
Denton must have thought the same thing, because he’d headed straight upstairs. I heard a click as he turned on the lights.
I followed him up the stairs and found him rummaging through some filing cabinets on the second floor.
“You won’t find it in there,” I said, and then laughed as Denton jumped back from shock.
“Chloe? Jesus Christ, you nearly gave me a heart attack. What the hell are you doing here?”
“I told you I wanted to help, so I’m here to help. Like I said, you won’t find what you’re looking for in there.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because they’re out in the open and not locked. You want the files with employee and shareholder information. That’s probably going to be on the top floor and
in a locked room. Follow me.”
“You need to leave, Chloe. I appreciate you wanting to help, but you can’t be here.”
“I do what I want. It’s not your job to protect me. Right now, I want to be here helping you. You clearly can’t do this by yourself.”
“I’ll manage.”
“Really? And it never occurred to you to bring a flashlight? You’ve turned on all the lights on the second floor. If anyone walks past, it’ll be obvious someone’s in here.”
Denton snarled, but I could tell he’d given up trying to keep me out. “You’re quite stubborn, aren’t you?”
“Yep. That’s what you love about me.” I cringed. “Uh, poor choice of words. You know what I mean.”
Denton took the words as a light hearted comment, but that wasn’t what concerned me. Lois would hear this conversation soon. Did I sound too casual with Denton? I’d been told to get close to him, but the assumption was always that I would be like an employee, not a friend he joked around with.
“I’ll have you know,” Denton said confidently, “I did bring a flashlight.” He pulled out his cellphone and used the flash as a light. “See. I can improvise.”
I laughed and turned off the light as we headed up to the top floor. Human resources had their own section of the floor and, as I’d predicted, you needed to go through a locked door to get inside, just like you did at Denton’s company.
“I’ll have to break it down,” Denton said, as he eyed up the door.
“Then they’ll know someone was here.”
“I’m not sure we have much choice.”
“Give me the light a second.”
Denton handed me his phone and I walked around the office. This floor had all the important people with large offices that got bigger as I walked down the hall. I looked inside each one until I found what I was after.
A man had left his suit jacket on his chair, and sure enough, he’d left his door pass in there as well. The sign on his door identified him as the CEO, so he was bound to have access to HR.
I went back to Denton and held the pass up to the door. A green light appeared and I heard the door click open.
Bad Boy's Honor: An MMA Bad Boy Romance Page 47