Sexpionage

by Lesley E. Hal

  Snake shook his head while thinking Easter would fuck over Lucifer at the prospect of making an extra dollar for himself. “I’ve always said that cunt and booze would be his downfall.” He laughed. “And yours too.” Dirty little motherfucker.

  Easter went over to the bar to get his abandoned drink. “I’ll drink to that.”

  Chapter 21

  After Snake’s chat with Easter, we left the building, got back inside of the car and drove to Champs-Élysées where there were plenty of restaurants and nightlife activity. I was ready to party, but I couldn’t seem to get The Collector’s name out of my head. I wondered if Snake knew about Jordan’s vendetta, but thought it best not to say anything. I’d bet all of my newly acquired riches that Jordan was lining all of his enemies up to take each other out. He was playing a dangerous game that had me wondering if I was a sitting duck.

  According to Snake and Jordan, Easter would have us followed just to be sure that he wasn’t being double-crossed. Suffice it to say that he was right. I spotted a white male appearing to be in his mid-to-late thirties with long, blond hair with another man who had a very bad toupee when we’d left Easter’s. Not surprisingly, they were now sitting a few tables over from where we were dining.

  Snake laughed while he sipped his after-dinner coffee that he was having with a decadent chocolate piece of cake for dessert. “I see we have company.”

  I savored the warm Crème Brûlée I’d just spooned into my mouth. “Umm . . . yes, I’ve noticed that too.” Then I did a double-take and shielded my face without being too obvious. “Oh shit, it’s Vicente and Antonio!” They suddenly had appeared.

  Snake used the butter knife and caught what he could of their reflection. When they approached the table, and spoke with him without recognizing me, I inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Look at this punta. How’s it going, Worm?” Vicente said.

  Snake laughed. “Is that the best you can do?”

  “Trying to double-cross us again? I guess the last lesson taught you wasn’t effective enough.”

  Snake wasn’t in a bantering mood. “Can’t you see that I’m trying to entertain this beautiful lady?”

  Both men looked at me and for a moment, I thought my cover was blown. “You need to be thanking her,” Antonio spat.

  Snake’s hand disappeared under the table. “And why is that?”

  Antonio saw Snake’s movement and smirked. “Because she just saved your pathetic life.” With that, they left us with only Easter’s two goons watching us.

  “What was that about?”

  “Nothing for you to worry about. They’re just upset about the Bangkok job.”

  “Oh,” I said, but was thinking that Snake was hiding something.

  • • •

  After dinner, we went to a few nightclubs on Champs-Élysées and needless to say, so did our uninvited guests. The entire street was festive with tourists and Parisians having a ball. To get my mind off the goons following us, the things discussed about Jordan’s playboy lifestyle and The Collector, and Antonio’s and Vicente’s reemergence, I immersed myself into the atmosphere while staying true to my character of being an airheaded bimbo gone wild.

  We danced and drank the night away. I learned that Snake had some nice moves on him to be a white man in his fifties. What annoyed the hell out of me about him was that damn tongue that would dart out just for the hell of it. If anyone was paying attention to us, they would have thought he was a nasty, long-tongued, pussy-eating freak, but if only they knew. Just when I got over his disgusting habit, his lips were damn near inside of my ear canal as he gave me some instructions letting me know that it was time to switch it up and get back to the safe house. First, he had a couple of ladies to distract our unwanted guests and then gave me a slip of paper.

  Then, per his orders, I went into the restroom, read the note, balled it up and made a beeline for the third stall. Before going in, I made sure no one was else was there. Once inside the stall, I flushed the letter down the toilet. Next, I took off my heels, stood on top of the toilet and removed the air vent. I felt around until my hand made contact with what I was looking for. I then busied myself by discarding the wig, prosthetic face coverings, contacts and the to-die-for electric blue dress. I stuffed them all inside the oversized snakeskin hobo that I retrieved from inside of the vent. It held my new ensemble—a super-short red dress, fishnets and thigh-high boots. After quickly changing, I gave my hair a shake and toss to achieve a seductive but untamed look.

  After making sure the coast was clear, I stepped out of the stall and checked my face to make sure nothing was amiss. The door swung open startling me, as three drunken white girls staggered in on wobbly legs trying to hold each other up while laughing like they didn’t have a care in the world. I breathed a sigh of relief, and left them to their throwing up or whatever they were going to be doing. When I passed Snake, he was still at it with a dead ringer of me from the looks to the dress that I’d just taken off. He saw me and slyly pointed his finger at our guests who were still rooted at the bar watching “us” intently. Snake then gave me a thumbs-up before lifting my double into the air and twirling her around.

  A welcoming cool breeze smacked me in the face when I exited the club. I wandered down Champs-Élysées to the Grand Palais where a white Range Rover was parked with its hazard lights on. I took the keys out of the hobo and let my hand run over the Beretta 950 Jetfire, a just-in-case precaution that was lying peacefully in the side pocket of the purse. There was no one that looked to be a threat lurking about since our guests thought they still had us in their sights. However, that did little to quell my paranoia. Doors locked, I quickly programmed the GPS and left for the safe house. Thank God it was in English!

  Chapter 22

  When I walked inside, Jordan was at the computer sitting awfully close to Seven. Sledge was nowhere to be found. I wanted to go off after what I’d heard and now this, but Jordan beat me to the punch.

  He turned his chair around to where he was facing me. “Before you get upset, nothing that Snake said was true. Well, except for the part about the pillow talk, but I knew who she was working for. I set the whole thing up so Easter would take the bait,” Jordan explained.

  I looked over at Seven who sat quietly, still watching the activity on a bank of computer monitors. Bitch wasn’t so vocal now. “What about her and Snake?”

  “Inseparable. When it comes to a job, we do what we have to do to get it done.” Just then, Sledge let himself in.

  Jordan turned his attention to him. “Well?”

  “The layout is the same as this flat which we gathered from the video. The floors are marble, but underneath them is some serious inches of concrete and steel. With the vault, that’s another five or so inches, give or take a few. We’re roughly looking at about thirteen inches of concrete and steel to get through and that’s just me guessing. C-Four is definitely out of the question. This has to fly under the radar. Which brings me to plan B.” Sledge clasped his hands together. “I have access to a Stealth 5800 laser beam circular saw. The motor is quiet. The cut is clean, but it’ll take some time. Either that or we can use a compression detonator. It’s not as noisy as C4, but it can still be heard nonetheless,” Sledge explained without stopping to take a breath.

  “The front door seems the more logical choice,” I said to get Jordan’s attention back on me since I’d been dismissed without a word. “He’s a temperamental dweeb; how hard can it be to get past him?”

  Jordan threw his hands up in frustration. “Looks are deceiving and you wonder why I —” He raised his fist in the air, then brought it crashing down on the table like he wished it were me instead. “Bianca, when I want your opinion, I’ll give it to you. Understood?”

  This was a job. I had to remind myself. Fuck that! “To hell with you, Jordan!” I stormed off into the room and slammed the door. Why in the hell was I even here? I wondered.

  • • •

  The next morning, I wo
ke up to voices and unfamiliar sounds. Jordan’s side of the bed hadn’t been slept in and I was still fully dressed. My head was pounding and all I wanted to do was go home. I sat up and tried to decipher what was being said, but it was a lost cause with all of the other racket that was going on. There was nothing left for me to do but get a hot shower, some food in my stomach, and try my best to get through the day without stepping on any toes.

  After showering, I dressed comfortably in a black velour track suit with a pink T-shirt that had black cursive lettering that read Pleasure Diva. I pulled my hair up into a playful ponytail and took one last look in the mirror.

  As soon as I stepped out of the room, I looked around until I found Jordan on a ladder with Sledge and Snake passing him some type of devices. In the second bedroom, there was a circle of black things stuck to the ceiling that Jordan was placing within a precise space of each other with the help of some electronic laser.

  “Good morning, all,” I said in general, receiving dry responses back. I left them to whatever they were doing and went to get a cup of the coffee I smelled brewing. The moment I walked into the kitchen, who did I see but that Bitch making her a cup.

  “Top of the morning.” She smiled sweetly at me.

  “Hmph,” I grunted and went about making me a cup.

  She leaned against the granite counter, sizing me up. “You know I’m not the enemy, right?”

  I was about to pour in some vanilla creamer and stopped. “Excuse me?”

  She faced me and placed her coffee on the counter. “I said we don’t have to be enemies. I understand your angst, but face it, honey, we had a hell of a night our first encounter.” She laughed. “We were closer than close, and from the way you took to me that night . . . well, I thought we were past you letting your claws come out whenever I just so happen to be around.”

  This bitch had lost her damned mind. For one, I didn’t know what the hell she was talking about let alone arriving at a point of being friendly with her. “Let me get a few things straight, darling. I don’t like you.” I held up one finger. “I don’t trust you around my man.” Another finger. “And whatever happened that night couldn’t have been all that great because I don’t remember any of it.” The last gesture I gave her was the fuck you finger.

  Roaring laughter escaped her. “You may not remember it, but you damn sure enjoyed my sweet sap that coated your tongue. Hmm, you couldn’t seem to get enough.” She chuckled. “You have a problem with me and that’s fine, but let me get something straight with you, darling.” She pointed her finger in my face, but quickly snatched it back when I reached out to break it off of her hand. “I was here before you, and guess what?” She paused for a dramatic effect. “I’ll be here when you’re long gone. Just like the rest, darling, you’re nothing special so get over yourself, and things will go a lot smoother for you in the process.” She picked up her coffee in an attempt to let her words be last, but somehow a handful of her hair found its way into my hands.

  I lunged and initiated the attack causing the hot java that she was holding to burn us both. The biggest mistake I made was reacting to the scorching liquid and giving her time to get the best of me when she pulled a move I didn’t see coming. With little effort, she flipped me over her back and onto the floor. She straddled me with her fist hovering inches just above my face when Snake grabbed her.

  “What in the hell is going on in here?” Jordan shouted as he pushed through and stared down at me menacingly.

  I didn’t feel the need to explain myself so instead of responding, I got up to leave when Snake finally got that bitch up off of me. No sooner than I was up, that I was nearly knocked back down onto the floor by Jordan.

  “What the fuck, Jordan?” I said as I pulled from his firm grasp.

  Snake was comforting Seven like her ass was the one pinned to the floor about to be pummeled to death. Before I could utter a word, Jordan roughly grabbed me again and shook me a like a rag doll. “I told you I don’t have time for all that emotional shit, Bianca!”

  “Let go of me!” I screamed as I struggled to break free of his hold, but he was too strong.

  “Move out of my way!” he hollered at Snake and Seven as he dragged me through the apartment by the hood of my jacket and shirt while kicking and screaming, creating damage to anything in our path. I saw Sledge wearing a smirk on his face as if he were enjoying the show. We didn’t stop until we were behind the closed doors of our bedroom.

  “What the fuck is your problem?” Jordan demanded to know.

  My ponytail had come undone and hair was in my face, making it hard for me to see anything. The pain from the carpet burns on my back was unbearable. “I don’t have a problem,” I snapped while trying to get the hair out of my face so I could assess the damage done to my aching back.

  Jordan’s hands gripped their way around my neck tightly as he lifted me back onto my feet before swinging me onto the bed. His weight pressing down on me made it hard to breathe. “After we leave here, I don’t ever want to see your deranged ass again. You got that?” His grip tightened when I didn’t answer fast enough. “I will—”

  “Yes,” I was able to get out some kind of way. After receiving his answer, he released his clutches from around my neck. I gasped and coughed for air while trying to catch my breath, all the while finger-combing the hair out of my face. I couldn’t believe what had just happened. There was nothing left for me in Paris. After catching my breath, I lay there scared to move as I watched Jordan watching me.

  • • •

  When the stare-down match ended, I wouldn’t know. I rolled over wiping drool and hair from the side of my face. I looked around the room to see if Jordan was still there, but I found myself in bed alone. After recalling what had taken place between Jordan and me, I felt around my neck and winced at the stiffness and pain that resided in it. With my sore back being of major concern, I slowly got up and pulled my luggage from the wardrobe. I packed the few things I’d traveled with along with the electric-blue dress and heels that I had worn the night before.

  The next thing on my agenda was to pull myself together and comb my hair so that I would look at least halfway presentable when I left for the airport. I took care to examine my back in the bathroom and see if there was anything that I could find to soothe it.

  When I came out of the bathroom, I found Jordan sitting in a chair with his head resting in his hands. Our eyes locked in on each other, but I was in no mood for another stare down. I went to my suitcase so that I could leave without incident.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” His voice was raspy and deeper than normal.

  I didn’t have anything to say to Jordan. Instead, I focused on adjusting the handle on my luggage, but damn it, it was stuck and not cooperating. He came over to where I was struggling with the handle and placed the luggage to the side. When I tried to walk away, he caught me around my waist and pulled me into his embrace.

  He rested his forehead against mine. “I’m so sorry, baby.” Visible tears that he didn’t try to hide ran down his face and dripped onto mine. The good cry that he needed was finally getting its due.

  In an attempt to comfort him, I reluctantly wrapped my arms around him. “I forgive you.” No words were needed after that. Even with tears streaming down his face, he was still aroused by the closeness of our bodies.

  His hand found its way to my face where he stroked it lightly. They then traveled down to my sore neck. He tilted my head to the side to get a better view. When he saw the angry red prints from his hands and the carpet burns on my back, he couldn’t deny what had happened. The bruises he’d left behind served as a painful reminder of what he had done to me. His head dropped in shame.

  “Bianca.” My name was barely audible when it came out of his mouth as he fell to his knees in a heap of misery. “I don’t know what came over me. I . . . I’ve never done anything like this before. I’m so sorry,” he cried.

  I cradled his head against my abdomen and let h
im get it all out. My thoughts were conflicted; I knew why these jobs were so important to him. They were a means to an end. Jordan was trying to get his family’s dignity, money and respect back from the one who had taken it. But did that mean I had to endure what I’d been getting from him? Abso-fucking-lutely not!

  • • •

  An hour later, we were all seated at the dining room table inside the safe house listening to Snake’s evaluation of Easter’s apartment.

  “The flat is the same floor plan as ours and since we’re directly below him, going through our ceiling into the room where the safe is would be the best in. He definitely has a Beaverton 1000 burn safe. From what we know about burn safes, we need to first pump in liquid CO2 with a two-way solenoid injection valve to offset it, but it has to be precise. Otherwise, everything in the safe will burn hence the name.

  “And if done right?” I interrupted from where I was perched next to Jordan. I figured if I was going to be in, then I needed to know as much as I could absorb.

  Snake had a don’t-disturb-me-again expression on his face like he was still upset with me for fighting his precious Seven. He took in a deep breath and continued. “If done right, everything in the safe will freeze if we snap the cold chip, but this is if we have to break into it. Hopefully, the fingerprint and code detectors on the blueprints gave us accurate information, but we’re always prepared with plan B,” he explained.

  Jordan stood and took over. “There are a total of four men guarding his place as we speak. Two at the door and I’m assuming the other two are inside.” He pointed. “Seven, you’re going to run interference from your post here in the room by being our eyes with the building’s surveillance system and elevators to offset any surprises. Sledge, you’re taking over the tail. I already have Snake’s crew, the Kids, on him as we speak in order to avoid suspicion. You’re in charge of them, but you are to report directly back to me for direction if anything comes up.”