by Slaton Smith
“Is he CIA? Special Forces?” Ahmed asked.
“Neither and it’s actually a funny story. He’s an unemployed advertising executive.”
“Is this some sort of joke?” Ahmed said, raising his voice.
“Was it a joke when I had a knife to your neck? Hmmm? Garrison and I are brothers of sorts. We have an unusual skill set. We kill people. I do it neat. He does it messy, but of course, you know that, as I assume cleaning up after his visit was a monumental task.”
“And you know where to find them?” the Prince asked, becoming excited. Faisal remembered the bloody scene on the boat - in fact, would never forget it. If the man on the screen, sitting across from Ahmed was anything like the bloody assassin that had visited the boat, they should run as far and as fast as possible.
“Patience. Last file please.”
Robert Waters' image filled the screen.
“I know this man. He is CIA,” Ahmed said.
“Very good. This is Robert Waters. He was running an unsanctioned assassination program and he is the individual that sent Garrison and the girl here.”
“Where are they?” Ahmed demanded.
“Let’s talk about compensation,” Oscar suggested, but it was more of a thinly-veiled command.
“No. You will tell us what we brought you here for!” Ahmed shouted at him.
“$5 million for all three. I will also kill your incompetent bodyguards for free as a bonus, if you wish. Oh, I know you know this Ahmed, but you are not in a position to shout or give me orders. I give the orders now.” Oscar’s eyes narrowed and his tone changed as he spoke, glaring at Ahmed from across the table.
Ahmed seemed to shrink. Thankfully, the Prince interjected, his only concern was revenge. He could care less if Ahmed’s life was in jeopardy.
“No. It will be an Arab that ends their lives!”
“That is a bad idea. They will easily foil your attempts on their lives,” Oscar said shaking his head.
The Prince contemplated the situation.
“Fine. You will help us, but we will kill them.”
“My consulting fee is $2 million.”
“Done. Ahmed, wire the money,” the Prince commanded.
Ahmed worked the keys and turned when he completed the transfer. Oscar then punched a couple of keys on his phone and smiled.
“Thank you,” he said, looking at the screen.
“Where are they?” Ahmed demanded.
“I have no idea,” Oscar blurted out and began to laugh.
“WHAT!” the Prince screamed.
“It’s true, but I know where they will go. The girl and Garrison will move on Waters as they want him dead. I know exactly where to look. We watch Waters and we will get all three.”
“Very good. Very good,” the Prince responded and then paused. “I think I do want you to kill those guards for me.”
“As you wish.” Oscar stood and took one of the Berettas off the table. He checked the weapon and walked out to find the guards standing in the hall, most with their hands in their pockets. Oscar opened fire on them before they could react. The gun sounded like cannon fire in the enclosed hallway. The slaughter finished, he turned and walked back into the conference room smiling.
“You have anybody to clean that up?” Oscar asked, motioning towards the hall.
The Prince was impressed. Faisal was terrified and he believed was looking at the devil himself.
“Oh, one other thing, if you bring the woman to me alive, it is worth another $2 million,” the Prince requested.
“As you wish,” Oscar replied. He was already thinking about his growing bank account and was not worried in the least about fulfilling the request. His handler was a simple takedown and he expected Ana Molotov to be much easier.
The screen went dark.
“Let’s get to work,” Oscar said to Ahmed.
II
Southern Fried
Nashville, Tennessee
Sunday – Early Evening
Sean and Sandy made it to Nashville in the early evening hours and were able to get a room in a Holiday Inn on West End Avenue near Vanderbilt University. Sandy had discarded the Andrea Smithson I.D. and the associated passport and credit cards as that alias was blown.
“Sean, I am now Faith McCormick,” she said, holding up her new I.D.
“What? How many of those things do you have?”
“Enough. Since you have a problem remembering your name, we will use the Mason I.D. I gave you, but you go by Sean.” There was just a bit of condescension in her voice.
“I assume we met the same way?”
“Yes, let’s stick with that.”
Sean pulled into the Holiday Inn parking lot and found a space out front. Across the street was a McDonald’s and behind that there was a cinder block building that looked like some sort of BBQ joint. He could also see Nashville’s replica of the Parthenon, which was set about a quarter of a mile off of the road in the middle of a park.
“Hey, let’s run across the street and grab some BBQ,” Sean suggested, looking at Sandy, who was gathering the bags from the back seat of the truck. She was in no mood for additional adventures, even if it was a quest for obscure BBQ.
“Really?” Let’s get into the room.”
“Fine.”
Sean and Sandy had no trouble checking in with the Faith I.D. and credit card and were given a room on the 5th floor that overlooked West End with a good view of the Parthenon. Upon entering, Sean tossed the bags on the bed and sat down in a chair near the window. Sandy looked out the window at the traffic moving up and down West End.
“I am going downstairs to get some things.”
“What things?” Sandy asked, turning towards him.
“Things like a toothbrush, razor. Those types of things,” Sean answered, with his hand already on the doorknob.
“Hold on, I am coming too.”
“Jesus! You don’t need to keep watching me. Just tell me what you need and I will get it,” Sean responded, slightly pissed off.
“You’re right. Just get me a toothbrush. I have everything else.” It was hard to break away from what had been her life for nearly eighteen months. Sean was never far from her.
“Thank you!” He opened the door and left the room.
Sandy rummaged through the backpack and picked up one of the disposable phones and dialed a California number. Her father’s number.
In Russian, she said, “We are here.”
“Good. Meet me on the steps of the Greek building near the university. Noon,” her father responded.
“We will be there,” she answered.
“Will your friend cooperate?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Will you be able to carry out the plan?”
“Yes. Why do you ask?”
“I know you have feelings for him,” her father countered.
“Not true,” she replied, defensively.
“Ana, you’re my daughter. I can tell by your voice.”
“I will see you at noon,” she said and hung up. He was right. The next part of her plan would be the toughest. She sat down on the edge of the bed, took the battery out of the phone and tossed it in the trash. It was getting dark and the lights from the street were casting shadows across the walls of the room. She went into the bathroom and started the shower. Part of her wanted to run downstairs and see what Sean was doing, but she realized she was going to have to stop. She stripped off her clothes and climbed into the shower.
Sean came right back to the room and heard the shower. The door to the bathroom was cracked, so he saw it as an invitation to head right in.
“Hey! Got your stuff,” he announced, sticking his head into the steam filled room.
“Thank you. Now get out!” Sandy yelled, stopping to see if he really listened.
Sean was now in the bathroom outside the shower.
“I can hear you! Get out!” she yelled again.
Sean smiled. “Are you sure I can’t sc
rub your back or something?”
“No! Get out!”
“OK. OK. Have it your way.” Sean closed the door behind him.
Sean picked up the remote on the nightstand and flipped to ESPN. He took a quick sniff of his shirt and took it off. It stank. He pulled off his boots and lay down on the bed to watch a random Crossfit games telecast. Before he knew it, he was asleep.
Sandy got out of the shower and dried off. She wrapped a towel around her and peeked out into the room. Sean was out cold. She looked at him for a moment and then dropped the towel. She went over to the bed and straddled him. She startled him and he tried to get up, but Sandy pushed him down gently. Before he could speak, she kissed him. He pulled her close and kissed her deeply. With her left hand, Sandy reached down and undid his pants. Sean arched his back and pushed his pants and boxers off and kicked them onto the floor. Sandy continued straddling him.
“Thank you god!” Sean said to himself as he rolled her over onto her back. Both Sandy and Sean were sweating when they stopped. They lay, not speaking for a moment. Sean rolled over on his left side and looked at Sandy.
“You’re gorgeous,” he said in Italian.
“Oooo. I love Italian!” she exclaimed, smiling.
Sean ran the fingers of his left hand across her stomach. Her stomach flat and tight, he could feel the muscles just under her smooth, tan skin.
“Body by Sean,” she said, with a nervous laugh.
“What?”
“Keeping up with you is not easy. I was banged into shape chasing you across the globe.”
Sean stopped when he felt the scar on her stomach. He traced it all the way up across her mid section to just below her breasts. She put her hand on his. He pulled away and rolled onto his back. Sandy turned towards him and got back on top of him and looked at him.
“I remember,” he said
“Remember what?”
“You. We were together in Berlin. I met you at a club. I was there watching a band. But your hair was different. I remember your kiss. The way you smell. I remember feeling the scar on your stomach. You spoke a different language,” his voice trailing off as he spoke.
III
I didn’t get your name
Berlin - Mid-July - 6 weeks earlier
Sean was now an expert at managing foreign airports and cities where he didn’t know the language. Berlin was no different and he left the terminal with little effort, grabbing a cab and arriving at his hotel.
“Man, I am sick of sitting around hotels,” he thought to himself looking out the window at the early evening lights of Berlin. He powered up his iPad and Googled concerts and clubs and thankfully for him, much of it was in English. It seemed like there were thousands of clubs in Berlin and he didn’t have the patience for any real research, so he searched again, this time looking for classic rock. The search turned up three-dozen options. Much more manageable. He scrolled through the list of shows and landed on an AC/DC cover band, whose show started at 10 P.M. He looked at his watch. It was nearly 7:30. The club was twenty minutes away. “Not too bad,” he thought to himself.
On the same floor, Sandy was monitoring his internet activity.
“Shit. I don’t feel like chasing him through a club,” she said aloud. She went to her luggage and pulled out a black skirt and a V-neck t-shirt. She tossed them on the bed. She wished he was a wallflower that just read books and watched TV. It would make her life so much easier.
“That should work,” she said to herself, looking at the clothes. She hated it when Sean went running off to see soccer games and concerts, where there were always metal detectors that required her to go without a weapon. It made her nervous. There was no way she could take Sean down without the element of surprise and a gun. She always feared that Waters would turn Sean on her and it was something she prepared herself for.
She knew Sean’s assignment was tonight, which would definitely complicate things. She called Waters.
“Yeah,” he answered.
“He’s on the move,” she reported.
“What? Not tonight. He goes active in six hours!” Waters said, losing his patience.
“There’s not much I can do to stop him,” Sandy explained.
“Stay close to him. I will have the support team nearby. We will not get a second chance at this,” he ordered and hung up.
Sandy tossed the phone on the bed, flipping her hands in disgust. Waters made her stomach turn. “Not much longer,” she told herself. She had a plan but was not sure when it was going to be put into play.
She pulled her blonde hair up in a tight bun on top of her head. No red hair tonight. She thought she looked weird, but what the hell, she was going to what probably was a strange German nightclub. She put on a little too much eye make-up and finished it up with some dark lipstick.
Sean took a quick shower and dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. He went downstairs to the lobby and had dinner. The doorman at the hotel got him a cab and told the driver where to go. Sean looked out the cab’s window as it wound its way through the streets of Berlin. Sandy and her team followed close behind.
The cab arrived outside of the club. It looked like any other club you would see in a large city. Industrial area. Brick building with blacked out windows with black double doors leading into the club. A large bouncer stood outside. Bouncers seemed to be the same the world over. Big, bald and lacking a sense of humor. Sean got out of the cab and stood in a line about twenty deep waiting to get into the club. Sandy fell in about six people behind Sean. She was right. Everyone looked weird. Sean stood out with his jeans and t-shirt. She thought he needed a little more leather to really fit in. Sean passed through a metal detector at the door and then was patted down by the bouncer. Sandy watched him hold up his phone for the bouncer, pay and walked into the club. Sandy could already hear the bass pounding the walls. She could feel it in her chest. She had doubts she would be able to hear her back-up team or Waters though her earpiece. She walked through the metal detector and the bouncer motioned for her to move over to him. He started to pat her down. He was a pig.
The club smelled of smoke, sweat and spilled beer. It was dark, loud and crowded. The band had just started its first set. The strobe lights made it hard to find Sean. However, she knew him pretty well by now. He would be up at the bar. She pushed her way through the crowd and stood five or six feet behind him while he ordered a drink. There was no way he would be able to pick her out. The place was jammed with people.
Sean paid for his beer and pushed his way through the crowd towards the stage. The music was loud. Very loud. Sandy couldn’t hear herself think. The place was filled with smoke. She rapidly came to the conclusion that she hated this place.
Sean however was having a great time. The cover band was pretty good. Sandy watched him take out his phone and call up Facebook with one hand, the other hand holding his beer. He checked in.
“Dirty deeds. Indeed! Loving this AC/DC cover band!” he typed and posted the comments.
Sandy’s phone vibrated and she saw his post as he typed it. She saw him put the phone in his back pocket.
Sean finished his beer and turned to go back to the bar for another round. Sandy stood where she was. She was pinned in by the crowd and Sean passed right in front of her. He made eye contact with her, winked and kept walking.
Sandy felt herself blush. She felt a little panic. “Did he make me?” “Does he know?” She shook her head. “No way,” she told herself. He does that with everyone. She turned and pushed her way back towards the bar. He was ordering a beer and now was talking to two girls. They were laughing at something he said. She doubted they knew what he was saying. To them he was a big, good-looking American.
She watched all three of them shove their way back towards the stage. People were jumping up and down. Sean stood watching the band and drinking his beer. One of the girls from the bar was clearly into him and was hanging on him. Sandy watched from ten feet away and was getting a little pissed and concerned - sh
e could not let him hook up with this random German tart.
The band played on. Sean showed no sign of leaving. Sandy could vaguely hear screaming in her ear. She knew who it was, but could not hear Waters clearly. She kept Sean in her sights and pulled back towards the bar. She put her finger in her left ear and cupped her hand over her right ear. She could still not hear, so she pulled out her phone and sent a text
S: What?
W: GET HIM TO ANSWER HIS PHONE!!!!