by LP Lovell
The next morning, I set about the task of tracking down Jane Sampson.
I dial the security office.
“Hey.” Miles is unprofessional and refuses to adhere to the job role in pretty much anyway, but I don’t give a shit because he is amazing at what he does.
“Hi. I have a job for you.” I tell him.
“Oh, is it good?” He asks.
“It’s more exciting that security software.”
“Well that’s not difficult.” He grumbles. I laugh. Miles is ex-military and is used to working in military security. I hired him for an astronomical amount of money, to ensure that all our computer systems are impenetrable. This is just one aspect of what he does though. Miles can hack computer systems, including hijacking cameras and high level government files. Essentially, if you need to find someone, he can turn over every rock and find them. There is nowhere he cannot reach. He should be able to find her easily.
“I need you to track down Jane Sampson again.”
He huffs. “Okay, I should have the location within half an hour.”
“It might not be so easy this time. I think she’s gone to ground, possibly changed her name. I’m going to email you the number of a bank account that I know she has access to. Other than that, I have nothing.” I say.
“Okay, I’ll call you when I find something.” He says easily.
“Thanks Miles.”
“Oh, and Theo…do you need a guy this time?” Miles doesn’t just organise security. He can organise anything, no matter how questionable.
“Not just yet. I need to talk to her. If she can’t be reasoned with, then we may need someone.”
“Okay. Speak to you later.” He hangs up the phone as though he hasn’t just been discussing killing someone off. It’s not a step I want to take. Regardless of the fact that she’s a monumental bitch, she is still Lilly’s mother. I’m pretty sure Lilly would pull the trigger herself if she could, but that’s not something that you can take back.
If I can’t get her to back down, then I will resort to threats and violence. Would I have her killed? I don’t know, but I do know that there are few things I will not do for Lilly.
The next morning, I find myself staring numbly at my computer screen. I can’t fucking focus on these bullshit sales projections. I decide to leave the house. I’m not even really sure where I’m going, but I end up at Hugo’s apartment.
If you need your mind taken off something then Hugo is the guy. I check my watch. It’s gone ten on a Friday morning. Hugo always starts his weekend early. There’s no way he’ll have made it out of the house yet.
I have a key to his flat. He gave it to me years ago, back when he used to quite like a cheeky line, as he used to call it. He used to party and get so fucking messed up, I was pretty sure his brain was going to fall out his nose. He gave me a key for when, not if, he OD’d. He actually never did. Fucking shocker.
I open the door to his flat. Walking into Hugo’s flat post party is like something out of the hang over. You never know quite what shit you’re going to find…literally. I found a turd floating in the hot tub one morning.
The hallway looks relatively clear. There’s a g-string hanging on the chandelier, and an empty bottle of Jack is sitting on the side table. I step into the front room, where the real carnage is. There are one, two, three…six girls passed out in various states of undress. There are three on the sofa, one on the coffee table and two on the floor…and a dog. An enormous, drooling English Bull dog to be exact. That’s new. I feel like I should be checking for pulses, but I don’t really want to touch any of them, they don’t look to be the most hygienic. I know the dog is still alive, because it’s snoring like a fucking chain saw.
I keep going, passing unconscious bodies, empty bottles and clothing as I go. I push open Hugo’s bedroom door. He’s on the bed, passed out, face down… in pussy. Literally. Fucking Hugo.
There are two women and a guy all butt naked and sprawled out on the bed. The dude’s hand is on Hugo’s arse. I know he likes to tag team, but he would not be happy about that shit. I laugh as I move next to the bed. I shove his shoulder. Nothing.
“Hugo.” I shove him again. “Hugo!” He startles awake with a shriek and lifts his head from his pillow of choice. “Wow, so manly.” His eyes squint into focus before he looks down at the pussy two inches from his face. A grin stretches across his face.
“Morning beautiful.” Yep, he’s talking to a pussy. “Now that was a fucking party.” He says glancing around the room. He notices the guys hand on his arse, and leaps up like he’s on fire. “Dude, not cool!” He points at the unconscious man as he stands next to the bed bollock fucking naked. I’m laughing so hard my sides hurt. See, when you need your mind taking off something, you come and see Hugo.
“Not funny. This is your fault.” He scowls at me.
“How the fuck is it my fault you got wasted and blatantly had some weird sex party with a dude?” I snort.
“Because you went and got all fucking hung up on that ginger gash. Now I have no tag team buddy, and I get groped by weirdo’s.” He huffs as he stands there with his hands on his hips, proudly showcasing his morning glory.
“Dude, put some fucking clothes on. I do not need to see your fucking wang.”
He gestures to his dick. “Rambo is a wild animal. He cannot be tamed. He needs relieving.” He points to the pussy he was just having an in depth conversation with. I glance further up the body to see a set of very fake tits. She’s laid on her back and those fuckers are not moving.
“Don’t let me stop you. I’ll just go and find a spot on the sofa next to the pile of pussy while I wait.” I’m actually serious. We’ve done this so many times.
“Or, we could tag team the two of them.” He wiggles his eyebrows and points to the other Barbie wannabe.
“I’m back with Lilly.” I say in a flat voice.
“That fucking woman ruins all my fun. Fine. Give me five minutes.”
I cock an eyebrow. “Really, five minutes?”
“I’m gonna bash one out in her. I’m not making fucking love to her, you pussy whipped bitch.” He rolls his eyes and turns back to the bed. He grabs Ms Silicone and pulls her legs apart. She barely even wakes up. He grabs both her tits and wobbles them. “Time to wake up.” He grins like a fucking sixteen year old as her tits bounce slightly. Okay, I’m leaving. “Stay Theo. See what you’re missing out on with your pussy whipped ways.” He laughs.
“Bag it up.” I say on my way out.
“He can’t be tamed or contained!” He yells. How his dick hasn’t dropped off yet I’ll never know.
Two hours later and the naked bodies have dispersed. Hugo is sat next to me in his boxers, because and I quote; he refuses to wear clothes if he doesn’t have to, and his house is a naked zone. I kid you not; I have actually heard him use that line when he has a party - leave your clothes at the door. The dog is still here, parked on the sofa next to Hugo. Apparently he’s called Gary, and Hugo has adopted him. Gary used to belong to a friend of Hugo’s, but he decided to take a crap in the designer shoe of the guys girlfriend. Oh, and he spunks on everything. Literally. The dog has the biggest fucking balls I’ve ever seen.
“Seriously, how does he not kick himself in the nuts?” I ask.
Hugo shrugs. “He’s mastered the big bollock waddle. You know when you get sweaty balls, and one sticks to your leg…that walk.”
“Dog has issues. Seriously, you need to find him a girl. He’s like, leaking.”
“He’s a fucking stud aren’t you Gaz. Only time he fucking moves is when he smells some flange on the go. Good lad.” He says, patting the dog on the head. Gary, just continues to pant, and dribble…from both ends.
We play Call of Duty, and drink a couple of beers. I can’t actually remember the last time we did this.
“Ah, come on, you can do better than that.” He mocks, as he shoots me in the head. Fucker.
“Hugo, you spend approximately half your life pl
aying this game. You’d have to seriously suck not to beat me.” He takes a swig of his beer, because yes, hair of the dog works, and Thursday through Sunday are alcoholic days.
“Hey, it helps with my manliness. If there was ever a war, or a zombie apocalypse, I’d be your guy. I have amazing aim.” He doesn’t move his eyes from the monster flat screen currently covered in blood and dead bodies.
“Sure, because your Call of Duty skills would clearly directly transfer to real life.” I smirk.
“Well, when the Zombie apocalypse happens, I’ll be leaving your arse behind. You can’t hit shit.”
“So, who was that chick you were face planting this morning?” I ask, changing the subject.
He shrugs. “How the fuck should I know? I think they were sisters though.”
“And the dude?” I try not to laugh, but it’s hard.
“Fuck you.”
“You looked like you might be walking funny.” I laugh.
“If I were to ever go that way, I would be a giver, not a taker.” He says very calmly.
“Wait, like you’d be happy to stick it to a guy?”
“Pft, no. I’m just saying, if like all the women on the planet disappeared, I’d be a giver.” He shrugs.
“You worry me.” I take another hit, and my half of the screen splatters in blood.
He laughs. “You’ve been saying that for years. You’re still fucking here.”
“Yeah well, it turns out crazy people tend to make you feel better about your life, and dude, you are fucking insane.”
Hugo glances sideways at me with a huge grin on his face. “So I’m told…on a nightly basis. Ladies love my insane skills.”
I laugh. “One day, some chick is going to pop out of nowhere and knock you on your arse. I seriously hope I’m there to see it happen.”
He snorts. “Never! It will never happen. Seriously? One chick. That would just be so…limiting.” His face is twisted in horror.
“Okay, but what if that one chick was like the Holy Grail of women?” I poke.
He pauses the game and turns to face me. “No one pussy can possibly be that good, and if you say Lilly’s is I will fucking hurt you.” He points at me in warning. “Mind you, she does look like she’d be a fucking epic lay.” He adds.
I roll my eyes. “Yeah, that’s why I’m with her.”
“Please, enlighten me. I cannot for the fucking life of me think of another reason.”
“I can’t explain it to you. Your mind can’t comprehend anything beyond sex. You’re like a caveman.” I tell him.
He smiles wide. “That’s because I’m all primal male. Women love that shit.” He wiggles his eyebrows. “I can’t even believe you got back with her. Still, at least you’re getting some.” He grumbles. “You’ve been a miserable fucking bastard the last couple of months. Why you couldn’t just find another gash to stick it to I don’t know.”
“It’s okay, I know you don’t understand.” I say to him as if I’m talking to a child.
“Hey, I understand. You think you love her, that’s cool. I love pussy. Hell, I fucking adore pussy. That shit is forever.” He swigs his beer. “Can you say that about your ‘love’?” I give up.
“You still tapping Molly?” I ask. He will not admit it, but he’s into that girl. I feel the need to poke him about it a bit.
He looks away and resumes the game. I don’t even pick up the controller, I’m losing anyway. “Yeah, girl fucks like a hooker.”
My eyebrows shoot up and I smile. “Uh-huh, and drags you around by the balls.”
He sighs. “Some girls like to be dominated, and some like to dominate. That girl likes both, but she likes to think she’s in charge. Now she really does have a pussy of gold, so if I have to fucking act like a pussy to get access to that pussy then I will.”
“You do realise she’s not one of your hussy’s?” I ask.
He pauses the game again and rolls his eyes. He throws himself back on the sofa, looking up at the ceiling. “Molly is not Lilly okay? She gets it. This cock cannot be tamed.”
I laugh. “You have no idea how much Lilly did not want to tame my cock.”
“Look, Molly will wise up soon. I don’t hide my shit from her. She knows what I am. I know she’s too good for this shit. She’s a nice girl. She’s the sort of girl who marries a nice guy and has cute kids.” He glances at me. “You know the type.” He says it like she has aids or something. Truth be told, that would probably bother him less. “We’re just having fun.” He drains the last of his beer and gets up. “You want a beer?” He asks.
I shrug. “Sure. Why not?” I decide not to harass him any more about Molly, it’s clearly a sore point, even if he won’t admit it.
I spend the rest of the day hanging out with Hugo. It’s weird, we never do this any more, but we used to do this all the time. I guess Hugo just makes me feel normal. He has no problems except where his next lay is coming from, and whether his house is stocked with adequate booze.
Hugo is still in that place where money can buy him happiness, and I’m almost jealous. I do love Lilly, but relying on someone else to make you happy sucks balls. Their sadness is yours. Their weaknesses hurt you. It’s a blissful state that comes at a price.
In the midst of all the shit surrounding me at the moment, being with Hugo is easy, straight-forward, care-free. I wish I could go back to this in so many ways.
My phone rings. I check the screen. It’s Miles.
“Hey.” I answer curtly.
“Hey, so it wasn’t easy, but I think I’ve pin pointed her location. I don’t have an address though.” He tells me.
“Okay, what have you got?”
“Well, I used the account you gave me. The money was transferred to an off shore account within twenty-four hours. I’ve managed to track it. It was then separated into three different accounts, and a large chunk of cash was withdrawn. There have been no transactions since, until yesterday, when someone used a debit card to withdraw cash from one of the accounts.”
“Where?” I ask quickly.
“Monaco.”
“Monaco? What the hell? Why the fuck is she in Monaco?” I ask, mainly to myself.
“You gave her one point five mil. Why wouldn’t she be in Monaco?” He replies.
“Okay, so you can’t pin-point her address?”
“No, the cash was withdrawn from a cash machine. It was a small amount, taken from a machine in The Fairmont Monte Carlo. She may be staying there. What do you need from me?” He asks eagerly.
“I’m going to make some arrangements, but I may need you to come with me. Can you fly out tomorrow night?” I ask quickly. My mind is flying through logistics.
“Sure.”
“Okay, keep looking. See if you can pin point her location.”
“I’m scanning all the cameras in that area for facial recognition.” He says. “If she pops up, I will find her.”
“Thanks, Miles.” I hang up the phone.
I don’t have the time to fly to Monaco on the chance I might find her. That said, I don’t like loose ends, and I don’t like not knowing the outcome of a situation. I like to control people, by whatever means they choose. Some will be controlled for money, others for favours or my connections/ Whatever it is, I can usually sway people to my whim. Jane Sampson is an anomaly that I thought I had under control. I don’t like being fucked over, and she has royally fucked with things. There won’t be a second chance for her. I’m Theodore Ellis, and if she thought I was some wealthy push over businessman, then she is very much mistaken. I promised I would destroy her if she did anything to hurt Lilly, she clearly didn’t take that threat very seriously, or maybe she did, after all, she is running. For her sake, she had best keep on running, because if I catch her, I’m not sure what I will do. I need her to retract her statement, and seeing as money is clearly not a strong enough incentive, it looks like I’ll be resorting to threats.
Hugo enters the room with a beer in hand. I tilt my head and nar
row my eyes at him. “Do you still have that apartment in Monaco?” I ask.
He shrugs. “Sure. Why? You fancying a bachelor weekend?” He grins.
“No, but I may need your help. Fancy a trip to Monaco?”
He shrugs. “Yeah, why not.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
LILLY
“Oh my god, you’re out.” Molly shrieks, the second Harry walks through the door. She throws herself into his arms, almost knocking him over. She’s sobbing as Harry tries desperately to console her.
George pulls me into his side. “You okay Lill’s?”
I nod and smile. “Yeah, for now.” I know I should just be happy that Harry is out on bail, but the idea of a case hangs heavily over my head. I can’t quite find it in me to be happy about the temporary reprieve.
“For now will do. I hear that you and Mr. hotter than hell got back together.” He wiggles his eyebrows.
“Yeah¸ he helped get Harry out. He’s been so great about all this.”
“Well, the guy is obsessed with you. You need to take advantage of that shit…and take advantage of him of course…the things I would do to that boy.” He shakes his head and bites his lip.
I smack his arm. “My boyfriend.” I point out.
“Pft, yeah yeah. Lucky bitch.” He grumbles.
Harry manages to extricate himself from Molly long enough to give George one of those man, back slap hugs that they do. “I hear the food in prison is shit.” George says with a grin on his face.
“Eh, I’ve had worse.” Harry laughs.
“I ordered Pizza, and I have beer.”
“Oh, thank fuck.” Harry laughs. “Honestly, it’s like school dinners in there.”
I smile with him, but all I can think is that if I can’t fix this, then poor Harry is going to have bigger problems than shitty food.
We hang out, we eat pizza, we drink, we talk, and it’s almost as if nothing happened. Harry is his typical self, putting a brave face on and ensuring that I’m alright. It’s so programmed into him to protect me that he does it even when he can’t protect himself.