by J. C. Phelps
“Yeah, I could probably do that. What kind of job is this?” he asked.
“I can’t tell you any details, but I can tell you it’s extremely important,” I said.
“I don’t mind helping you, but the guys you’re working for is a different matter,” he added.
“Well, this is mostly for me. It’s a job I’m on, but I have personal ties to it. Does that help?” I asked.
“A little. You’re going to have to tell me all about it later though. Do we have a deal?” he said.
“Sure,” I said. “Thank you. I really appreciate this, Colin.”
Before I hung up Mr. Black came up to me and told me he needed to pick up Colin and bring him to the office to be instructed on how to do this right. He also wanted to set him up with a wire of some kind so it wouldn’t be obvious that he was communicating with anyone outside the building. I told Colin to expect Mr. Black some time soon. He wasn’t too happy with being chauffeured around but finally agreed on it.
Mr. White had been in the other room talking with Mr. Red. A few minutes after I finished speaking with Colin he hung up the phone and motioned me back into his office. Mr. Black had gone to retrieve Colin so it was just Mr. White and myself after I shut the door, closing off Gabriella. Being in a room alone with Mr. White had gotten a bit easier since I had spent a few days with him at the cabin, but it was still stressing for me.
I took a seat in front of his desk and he told me what information I needed to get from, Abdullah Salah, the informant and probable relative of The Lion. It was pretty simple if he was on our side. I should have no problem getting him to come in to talk to all of us. Mr. White or Mr. Red would handle him then, but if he wouldn’t cooperate I was going to have to ask the questions. I was going to have to determine for myself which side I thought he was on. Mr. White told me several things to watch for to establish whether or not I thought he was lying to me. The instruction on subtle interrogation lasted until Mr. Black returned with Colin.
They both walked into the office with sour looks on their faces. Colin came up to me and we hugged. He said, “This guy has no sense of humor. He doesn’t say much either.”
“He’s more of an action, not words type of person,” I said with a smile to Mr. Black. His expression didn’t change though.
“Petty Officer DeLange,” Mr. White acknowledged Colin with a nod.
“Malone,” Colin said back with a bit of contempt, deliberately leaving out any title before the name. I hadn’t told him Mr. White’s real name, so I’m guessing Colin either finally remembered or had known all along. There must have been something that happened between these two I didn’t know about. I’d have to try and weasel it out of Colin later.
The rest of the afternoon was spent schooling Colin on what he was to do inside the Skylight and getting him fitted for both audio and video devices. Then it was my turn. I wouldn’t let them tape it to my chest like they had with Colin though. I watched carefully on how they put it all together and went to the bathroom to do it for myself. We did a check on both Colin’s audio and mine and we were both hooked up correctly. Mr. White had pulled out a jacket for Colin to wear that had a camera in one of the buttons.
Mr. Red had set up the meeting for early evening so the bar wouldn’t be too busy and the band wouldn’t be playing yet. Time was closing in when Mr. White said, “Mr. Black, you will drive Petty Officer DeLange to the club. I want you in position before I send in Ms. Grey.” Mr. Black nodded understanding, his cooler-than-cool look had returned. I hadn’t seen that look for a while, but it was reassuring.
“How am I supposed to know who the guy is?” I butted in.
“He says he knows you and he will approach you,” Mr. White said to me. “Colin, I want you to make a check into both bathrooms before you go to the main part of the bar,” he continued.
“The women’s too?” Colin asked.
“Yes, I want to make sure there aren’t any surprises. This is for Alex’s safety,” Mr. White said.
“Alright,” Colin said, but I could tell he was uncomfortable with the thought of having to go into the women’s restroom.
Mr. Black and Colin left and Mr. White went over my role again. I just needed to go in and grab a seat at the bar and wait. After a few minutes of reviewing the plan Mr. White and I left the office to the car garage below. A dark van was parked and waiting for us. Mr. Blue was in the drivers’ seat. I hadn’t seen him since the day he picked me up to go train at the cabin the first time.
“Mr. Blue,” I greeted him.
“Ms. Grey. How are things?” He was professional but there was a quality of familiarity to his greeting.
“Not bad,” I said and got in. Mr. White sat in the back with what looked like a small television station. I saw the inside of Mr. Black’s SUV on one of the screens and assumed it was Colin’s video feed.
The van sped off toward the Skylight and I kept my head turned to watch the show unfolding on the screen. Mr. White had turned up the volume and Colin was talking a mile a minute. Every once in a while he’d pause to see if Mr. Black would say something but he never did. Mr. White then said into a microphone, “Mr. Black would you please tell him to quiet down?”
I heard Mr. Black’s voice say, “With pleasure. Petty Officer, I have been instructed to ask you to quiet down.”
“Are they listening already?” Colin asked.
“To every word,” Mr. Black replied.
We pulled into the parking lot of the Skylight. There were a few cars parked outside, but it was just a fraction of what would be there in a few hours. Mr. Blue found us a spot with no trouble and I was about to get out when Mr. White stopped me.
“Wait. I’m not satisfied yet.” He had been watching Colin’s movie unfold. He kept his eyes on the screen and said, “Looks like everyone’s in place.” Then into the microphone he said, “Mr. Black, grab a seat by DeLange so we can speak.”
Before a minute had passed I heard Mr. Black’s voice, “In position.”
“Have Colin start pointing out the regulars along with the new people,” Mr. White said.
Mr. Black instructed Colin and the camera started to pan the room. He stopped at every face including the employees. Colin knew the names of most of the people in the building. If he didn’t know the names, he knew the faces. He came to Mr. Brown and I heard Mr. Black tell him to pass him up. There were two other men he stopped the camera on in different places throughout the building, but was told to by pass them as well. I assumed it was the two other partners, Mr. Red and Mr. Green. One of the men was a scrawny looking type and the other was quite handsome. I wondered which was which.
“All right, Mr. Black,” Mr. White said when Colin finished scanning the room. “Have Colin watch the door and report any new customers. I will send in Ms. Grey in a few minutes.” He switched off the microphone and looked to me. “Are you ready?” he asked me.
“Yep,” I said straightening my shirt.
“I have something for you,” he said and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a beautiful necklace with a golden angel for a charm. I was surprised. Why would he be giving me a necklace?
“Move your hair,” he said and reached over to fasten the necklace around my neck. “Now, make sure you keep this outside your shirt so I can see what’s going on,” he added.
I felt stupid. I’m glad I didn’t open my mouth. He switched on another screen and my video signal was coming through fine, I could see the back of his head in the monitor.
“Okay, it’s working. Now head in and sit at the bar. We just have to wait now. If Salah doesn’t show in an hour I’ll have Mr. Black escort you back to the van.”
I stepped out of the van and walked inside. I was nervous but I couldn’t let it show. I got to the bar and took a seat. Anthony was working, yuck. He came up to me and said, “What can I get for ya, babe?”
“Just a Coke please,” I said, maybe a little too nicely.
He walked away and came right back with my drink. �
��I haven’t seen you around for a while.”
“I got a new job that takes me out of town,” I explained, making sure I wasn’t too friendly this time. I didn’t have any feelings for this guy. Not any good feelings. I didn’t hate him, but I really didn’t want to involve him in my life in any way.
“So, you must miss me. You haven’t sat at the bar for a long time.” He got a sickening grin on his face.
“Nope. Just felt like sitting at the bar tonight,” I said.
“Yeah, right. That’s why you haven’t even gone over to see Colin yet. I know you and you want me.”
How disgusting this guy was. I couldn’t understand what I had ever seen in him. “Don’t start with me Anthony. I’m not interested in you at all,” I said through clenched teeth. I reached down to adjust the camera. I most definitely didn’t want it falling into my shirt.
“Look, you’re fidgeting,” he said. “You used to do that when I would make you nervous.”
“Anthony,” I said, trying to contain my voice. “Leave me alone and wait on your other customers.”
“Do you want to check out the booth over there?” he asked trying to look sexy. “It’s early enough I could get away for a bit.”
“Yeah,” I said with fake enthusiasm. “It would only take a second too.” Then I gave him a vapid smile.
He expanded his grin to try to lure me away from the bar then it finally registered that I had just insulted him. The smile dropped from his face. It was priceless.
“You’re a bitch,” he said.
Mr. Black was right behind me and had put his hand on my shoulder. “Alex,” he said in an ominous voice, “is this guy going to be a problem?” Then he shot an evil look to Anthony.
I smiled and said, “Well, Anthony? Are you going to be a problem?”
“No,” Anthony was quick to answer. “I’m sorry, Lexi. I didn’t know you were here with anyone.” Then he was gone to harass some other poor girl at the opposite side of the bar. Some men never learn.
“I could have handled him,” I said to Mr. Black “But that was fun,” I added.
“Don’t mention it,” he said and walked off to stand where he could see the entire room.
The good-looking man I had seen in Colin’s camera was also at the bar situated not far from me. He had been watching me since I sat at the bar. He was quite handsome and held himself above the rest of the crowd. This must be Mr. Red, I thought as I gave him a nod of acknowledgement.
He nodded back politely and gave me a smile that would have melted any woman in the room. He didn’t quite have the allure of Mr. White, but he was definitely not an eyesore. I located Colin and looked for the other man that had been caught in the camera when I was in the van. I couldn’t find him though.
The bar stool I had chosen gave me a good view of the door and soon I saw a man walk in that didn’t look like he belonged. There was an air of familiarity to him though. He came straight to the bar and sat next to me. My stomach did a flip. Was this Abdullah Salah?
“Lexi Stanton?” he said.
“Yes,” I said.
“You don’t recognize me do you?” he asked.
“No, I’m sorry but I don’t,” I replied.
“Your father and I have been friends for a long time. I’ve been to your house a few times but not for years.”
“Mr. Jones?” I asked surprised to remember his name. I barely remembered him, but I knew Dad had helped him out years ago with something.
“Yes,” he said with a smile of relief. “Your father has always been a good friend to me and I want to help.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I’m Abdullah Salah. You were too young back then to know what was going on, but your Father helped me to get myself settled here in the United States,” he explained.
He had a foreign look but no accent of any kind. He spoke like he had been born and raised in my neighborhood.
“Are you connected to The Lion?” I asked.
“He’s my cousin,” he said with a hint of revulsion in his voice. “I am glad to find you here. I was afraid my cousin had found out I had been relaying information to your father.”
“Would you be willing to come into our offices and speak with my partners?” I asked.
“Will you be there?” he asked, looking around.
“If you want me there, I’ll be there,” I replied.
“I’m not sure I can trust anyone though and I don’t know if you should either,” he said.
“I know what you mean, but I’m sure these men I’m with right now are on my side, which puts them on your side too.” I tried to convince him everything would be all right.
“I’m taking a big risk already, just coming here to talk to you. I think there have been people following me. I’m not sure, but it’s not the first time I have been spied on by my family and their friends,” he said, starting to get more and more agitated.
“It’s alright,” I said, trying to calm him down. “The men helping me will make sure everything will be okay.”
“Can you take me to them right now?” he asked. “I would feel better if we just got this over with.”
“Of course. Let’s go,” I said as I stood up from the barstool. We walked together down the hallway and I knew Mr. Black was directly behind us. Abdullah glanced over his shoulder and I said, “It’s alright. That’s Mr. Black.”
The three of us stepped out the door and were walking toward the van in the lot when a white Celebrity station wagon sped up toward us. I pushed the informant at Mr. Black and then I fell to the ground. I didn’t know why, but my leg wouldn’t work. Mr. White jumped from the van and picked me up. He carried me back to the van where Mr. Black had already stashed Abdullah. The other two partners that had been inside with us were standing with weapons drawn, firing at the vehicle speeding away. Then they ran for their vehicle, I assumed to give chase.
“Go!” Mr. White yelled to Mr. Blue as he shut the van’s sliding door. Mr. Blue took off out of the parking lot.
Abdullah Salah was in one corner of the van crying. Everything was happening so fast and blending together. I saw Mr. White and Mr. Black talking to each other and looking at me. Finally, the excitement of the moment had started to die down and I was able to focus much better. I had a terrible pain in my leg. I looked down at it and there was a small puddle of blood pooling on the floor of the van.
Mr. White came to my side and said, “Wait. Mr. Blue will look at it.” He had Mr. Blue pull over and Mr. Black took control of the driving. Mr. White hadn’t left my side and it was getting crowded in the back of the van. He instructed Salah to move to the front seat. He had to physically pick him up and put him into the passenger’s seat. Then he returned to my side. By the time he had gotten the informant placed out of the way, Mr. Blue had already cut open my pants leg.
“So?” Mr. White said with concern in his voice.
“She’ll be fine,” Mr. Blue answered him shaking his head. “The bullet is still in her leg but it should be no problem to get it out. It didn’t even come close to her artery.”
Bullet? I had been shot? Wow, I thought that being shot would have been more exciting. Mr. Blue started to feel around the small hole on my calf.
“Ouch!” I said when he got closer to the wound. I felt a bit embarrassed and added, “Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry,” Mr. Blue said. “It’s supposed to hurt. You’ve just been shot.”
“It doesn’t feel anything like I expected it would,” I said.
“Where to?” Mr. Black said looking back with concern.
“To the office,” Mr. Blue said. “This will be a simple removal, it’s right under the skin.”
Abdullah was still crying in the front of the van and it was beginning to get on my nerves. Not to mention Colin’s new girlfriend’s chest was larger than life on one of the screens and I could hear Colin flirting with her.
“Mr. Jones!” I yelled. “Please stop that! And turn that thing off!�
�� I said to Mr. White.
Abdullah’s sobbing ceased immediately and Mr. White jumped to shut off the equipment. We all rode in silence back to the office.
When we reached a parking spot in the garage Mr. Blue opened the sliding door and gave me a hand out of the vehicle. He started to put my arm over his shoulder but I pulled it away. I had been kicking myself all the way to the office. How could I have gotten shot? I at least could have waited until we had Dad back. But no, I have to get shot before we even know where he’s being held. I was determined to walk on my own. I didn’t deserve any help.
“Let me at least try,” I said.
The four of us walked to the elevator inside. I hobbled and they walked. It was pretty painful, but nothing I can’t handle, I told myself. I was grateful for the rest when we reached the elevator. If I didn’t put any pressure on my leg it was numb, otherwise it hurt like hell. I think the endorphins had started to filter out of my system.
We reached the seventh floor and the elevator doors opened. Each man in the elevator looked to me to start the trek to the office. It had never seemed so far away before. I limped to the door and Mr. White jumped to open it for me. I could feel the hot blood running down my leg and soaking my sock.
When I got inside I noticed Gabriella must have gone home for the evening. I looked to Mr. Blue for direction. He nodded that I should go to the big office.
“Can you make it to the couch?” Mr. White asked me, the worry lines I had seen at the cabin had returned.
“Yes,” I said. I was still extremely mad at myself for getting shot and wasn’t going to let the pain get to me.
I made it to the couch and sat down with relief. I had worked up a sweat and Mr. Black went to the bathroom that was on the opposite side of the room and brought back a wet washcloth for my face. When he handed it to me he gripped my hand tight and gave me a nod of approval.
Mr. Blue had gone straight to one of the closets and gotten what looked like the typical doctor’s bag. I hoped he knew what he was doing. I presumed he did since neither Mr. White nor Mr. Black had any objections to him taking over. Nonetheless, I was still a bit skeptical.