by Annette Mori
Toni’s fingers flew over the keyboard as she hummed the tune, “We’re In the Money.”
“Done,” she exclaimed.
The screen flashed Transaction Complete.
“What a beautiful sight. Nine hundred and fifty-seven million dollars.” Toni whistled. “Holy shit, just think of the good we’ll do with all that money.”
“Can we send a hefty check to Sandy, please? I feel really bad about her house. I know we were just trying to protect her, but she was an innocent in all this. I’d like to make sure she can actually just buy a brand-new house rather than trying to get that smell out.” Char crinkled her nose in disgust.
“I also have a request. There’s a young gentleman I’d like to do something for as well,” Toni added.
“Ladies, you all deserve a nice long vacation. I propose we take a hiatus from the asset management business for the next three months,” Maggie chimed in.
“Ice cream celebration?” Dani asked.
“Absolutely.” Everyone answered at once.
†
The sweeper team descended on Viktor’s mansion and they dropped off the trash.
It appeared deserted as the bodies—one dead, the rest alive—were unceremoniously left in Viktor’s beloved parlor.
Out of the corner of her eye, Val noticed movement. She quickly pulled her gun and pointed it at the small shadow in the corner.
“Don’t move a fucking muscle,” Val called out.
The shadow moved and Val heard a whimper. Val took another step forward and spied a young Asian girl trembling in the corner.
“Shit, it’s only a girl.” Val put her gun away and slowly approached the frightened girl. “Sorry, we’re not here to hurt you.” Val used her softest, calmest voice.
The girl took a timid step forward and looked at Viktor’s lifeless body. When the girl spit on his body, Val laughed.
“Kimiko.” The girl pointed to her chest.
“Val.” Val pointed to herself. “Do you speak English?”
Kimiko shook her head.
Val offered her hand.
Kimiko blinked twice and put her tiny hand in Val’s.
“Come on, little one. I’m gonna take you somewhere safe where no one can hurt you again. I sure hope Char has some time for English lessons.” Val smiled at the young girl and they walked out of Viktor’s chamber of horrors. Val ordered the team to sweep the entire mansion for any other young girls.
Val knew that intelligence on Viktor’s operation revealed that his greed overrode his desire and at any one time, there was only one young girl at the mansion, but she had hopes they would find others. However, as expected, they didn’t. Val swore she would do everything in her power to track down as many of the other girls Viktor already managed to sell into slavery. It was a disappointment not to find anyone else, but at least Kimiko was safe now.
Just before she ushered Kimiko outside, Val turned to one of the sweepers. “Make sure you secure all his computers and files. We need to find where he stashes the girls and where the ones he sold went.”
Chapter 25
Four months later…
Taking a three-month sabbatical was a surprisingly common occurrence in corporate law, affording Char the opportunity to spend quality time with Toni and deepen their relationship.
Dani remained at the hub for a few weeks, monitoring surveillance activity that might reveal if their last mission resulted in a blown cover for Char—it had not.
Maggie believed that Heather Stiles could continue to play a key role with future missions due to her hard-won connections with the corrupt Washington politicians.
Relieved that her persona was still intact, Char decided to distance herself from those politicians and take on more responsibility with the foundation. Fortunately, the subtle shift in her work had not yet raised any alarm bells with anyone the organization had in their crosshairs.
Char leaned back on her desk. Her stomach grumbled and a buzzer from reception alerted her to something needing her attention.
“Tall, dark, and sexy is here with your lunch,” Sandy said over the intercom.
“Perfect timing,” Char responded.
“Oh, and sorry to tell you this because I know it will interrupt your titillating lunch, but a Antonio Santori insists that he needs to speak with you right away,” Sandy added.
“Interesting,” Char said to herself.
She pushed the intercom button. “Can you ask Mr. Santori to wait a few minutes while I shovel down lunch and enjoy a few minutes with tall, dark, and sexy.”
“Sure thing,” Sandy said, then chuckled.
Toni strolled into the office and plopped down a paper bag. The aroma of Char’s favorite Italian meatball sandwich wafted to her nostrils.
“Oh, God, you are an angel. I’m starving.”
“I’m not really an angel, but I’ll take a kiss in return for my delivery.” Toni leaned in and pulled Char into a passionate embrace.
“Oh, forget the meatball sandwich. I think I’ll spend my precious minutes devouring your lips.”
“I think that’s the highest praise I’ve ever heard. What do you think Mr. Santori wants? I saw him in the reception area before I came in,” Toni inquired.
“I don’t know. It’s odd though. I’ve actually not had any dealings with him and to be honest, as gangsters go, he’s actually one of the better ones. We’ve made an informed decision to let him be. Hmm, come to think of it, Maggie made a point of steering us clear of Antonio and I never questioned her about it.”
“He was never on our radar too much. I think Byron managed his accounts. When we liberated those funds on the night of the fund-raiser, I’m sure he was affected. Do you want me to hang around while you meet with him?” Toni asked.
“Oh, honey, that’s really sweet of you. You are brilliant, but your assets don’t exactly include master protector.” Char laughed.
“Fine, but I think I’ll call Ronda just in case you need some support.” Toni waved her hand. “Later.”
A few seconds after Toni left, Char heard a knock on her door.
“Come in.”
Sandy poked her head inside. “Is it okay to send Mr. Santori in now?”
Char looked longingly at her lunch and sighed. “Sure, go ahead.”
Antonio was dressed in an impeccable Armani suit and his handsome face bore a smile for Char. “Ms. Stiles, it is a pleasure to finally meet you.”
“Please sit. Can I get you anything to drink?”
“No, thank you. Let me get right to the point. It has come to my attention that you were the last person Viktor Borsky visited before his demise. You and your colleagues have done me a great service.”
Char raised her eyebrow. “Excuse me? I have no idea what your point is. Mr. Borsky was my client. Other than that, I know nothing of his murder.”
“I know better.” Santori winked at Char. “You and your cohorts managed to eliminate a rather distasteful human being. In my business, men like Viktor give us all a bad name. I assure you, I am not your enemy. While I was less than pleased that my funds were affected along with Byron’s, I don’t hold you or your colleagues responsible. I’d like us to come to an agreement that I believe will be in the best interest of both our organizations. Will you listen to my proposal before deciding?”
Char shook her head. “You are drawing false conclusions, Mr. Santori, but I must say, I’m intrigued by your little scenario. Please go on.”
“I do not and have never supported the sex slave trade. I do admit to dabbling in the drug business. Nasty business. I recently had an epiphany when my oldest son got involved with drugs. Perhaps your organization can see fit to leave my business alone if I agree to remain uninvolved in the drug or sex slave businesses. I may even lend a hand now and again with those who tinker in those repulsive ventures.”
Char remained silent.
“Have I surprised you?”
“By your outlandish claims? Yes. I’m not sure where you are
going with your suppositions.”
“If it matters at all to you, I applaud your redistribution of the wealth. Some of my people have benefited. Think about my offer. I would prefer not to have you and your colleagues as an enemy. Perhaps we will not be friends, but rather polite acquaintances. You may be astonished to learn that our history, training, and values are more alike than they are different. Perhaps I have taken a different path, but I am not entirely your enemy.”
Char raised an eyebrow. She’d used those words herself but could not allow him to know how close to the truth he was. “Mr. Santori, I am a corporate lawyer and my clients look to me for advice about their finances. Whatever your suppositions are, I can assure you they are wrong. If you need a lawyer for your finances I will consider taking you on as a client but other than that I cannot help you.”
“Very well. I would like to be your client.”
“Okay. Ask Sandy to set you up with an appointment and we can discuss your finances.”
Antonio Santori stood and held out his hand. “Thank you for taking the time to see me when I didn’t have an appointment. I will make that appointment now and see you hopefully later this week.”
Char took his hand and shook it. “I will look forward to our next meeting.”
“Have a nice day, Ms. Stiles, and give my regards to Maggie—she is a remarkable woman.”
She watched as the man went out the door and let out the breath she’d been holding. “That was interesting. I think Maggie has a bit of explaining to do about Mr. Santori.”
Char retrieved her cell phone and accessed her contact for Maggie’s private line.
“Hello, Char, is something wrong?”
“I don’t know. You tell me. Antonio Santori just sent you his regards.” Char let the statement hang in the air like smoke from a cigarette. She could hear Maggie sigh.
“I see. I was afraid this might come up. Secrets sometimes have a way of rearing their ugly head at the most inopportune times. Although this is not the kind of conversation we should be having on the phone, I will tell you that Antonio and I have history. Unfortunately, the road I traveled is not the same road he ultimately chose to take. I had hoped that one day Antonio would find his way back. Perhaps this is a precursor for him to decide to revisit his former choice. Char, you must understand that no one is all good or all evil. We all have the capacity to either do great things or cause terrible destruction. It is the balance or percentage of good versus evil that is important to keep in perspective.”
Maggie paused.
Char wondered if that was all the information she would get, but then Maggie continued.
“Char, hate and revenge are very powerful emotions that sometimes tend to alter the balance and create a higher percentage of malevolence within a person.”
“I’m not sure I buy that, Maggie. Everyone has choices and you can let the events in your life control you or you can choose to react in a righteous manner. I’d like to think I didn’t let hate or revenge tip the scales.”
“Love and forgiveness are also powerful emotions that influence who we are and who we become. Your love for Dani helped mold you so that your percentage of virtue tipped those scales and the outcome was a much higher percentage of decency within. I believe Antonio still has an acceptable balance with his nobility still in the lead. I promise to reveal everything to you and the team. Let me have a day to think about this new development and then we can set a meeting for tomorrow. You deserve to hear the whole truth. Don’t worry—if Antonio wanted to destroy us, we would already be finished. He and I made a pact a long time ago to leave one another alone unless either of us crossed the line. So far, he has not crossed my line and I feel confident we have not crossed his. Please arrange for the rest of the team to meet at the Maryland hub tomorrow at one o’clock sharp.”
“All right. You’ve never steered me wrong before and I still trust you and the work we are doing. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Char touched the end button and turned to see Ronda bursting through her office door.
“Your girl just called me to check up on you. Is everything copacetic here?” Ronda asked.
“Yeah, I just had a very interesting conversation with Maggie about Antonio Santori. She’s scheduled a meeting for tomorrow at one o’clock at the Maryland compound.”
“Santori? Interesting. So…details?”
“Maggie was kind of cryptic with me, but promised to fill us all in tomorrow. You know Maggie, she gave me some philosophical mumbo jumbo about good and evil and acceptable balances,” Char responded.
“And? What does that have to do with Santori?”
“They have history.”
“History? That’s sounds fascinating. Did she share anything else?” Ronda asked.
“Nope. You’re just going to have to hear about it along with the rest of us tomorrow. By the way, I don’t need you to come rescue me. Toni is such a worrywart.”
“That’s cause she luuves you.” Ronda chuckled. “Well, if everything is okay I better get going. I got places to be, people to see, and explosives to set.”
Char chuckled. “Gotta love a woman who can create interesting fireworks.”
“Yep, that’s me—your year around Fourth of July expert.” Ronda waved at Char as she walked out of the office.
†
Char plopped down in the booth and set her head on Toni’s shoulder as she looked at the newspaper Toni seemed engrossed in.
Parking attendant hits the foundation lottery.
Brian Moore, a medical student at John Hopkin’s University is the latest recipient of the secret philanthropic foundation that has been funding deserving young students.
All across the country, the mysterious foundation hands out checks in a seemingly random fashion. Recipients feel as if they’ve just won the lottery without ever having to buy a ticket.
Critics point to the startling parallels with the famous Eva Peron Foundation and wonder about the origin of the funds as well as how those funds are distributed. There is very little information on the inner workings of the Foundation. However, for those who benefit from the funds there is nothing but praise.
Brian tells all about his good fortune. “Wow, it’s hard for people like me to afford school, especially since I won’t be getting any kind of loan forgiveness offers like the practicing physicians. I’ve always known I wanted to do regenerative research. They don’t exactly hand out money to research physicians after you’re done with school. You have to prove yourself. I thought I would be in debt until I died and then this lawyer, Ms. Stiles, gave me a check that more than covers the costs of my schooling. She was smokin’ hot too.”
“Oh, hey, babe.” Toni kissed Char on the cheek. “Did you see you made the paper, my smokin’ hot lover girl.”
“Ha, ha, very funny. How come this kid was so important to you?” Char asked.
“He just made an impression. When I gave him a measly five at the fund-raiser, he was genuinely grateful. His response touched me, that’s all. Besides, he’s wants to do regenerative research. Did Dani tell you about our recent breakthrough?”
“Oh, honey, you are a genuinely nice person. I’m glad Maggie assigned you to me. Hopefully your niceness is rubbing off.” Char brushed a lock of hair away from Toni’s face. “So what’s this about a breakthrough? Are you talking about the recent nanobot injection that you and Dani have been working on? I swear the stuff you two think up is right out of a sci-fi movie. Speaking of which, I think there was an episode about nanobots on the new Outer Limits.” Char shuddered. “I sure hope Dani doesn’t have the same side effects. The guy literally developed another set of eyes in the back of his head.”
“Nope. To my knowledge, there aren’t any unintended results from the injections. I never took you for a sci-fi fan. I love the new Outer Limits. In fact, that’s where I get a lot of my ideas. I figure whatever some Hollywood writer can think up, I can invent—minus the dire consequences of science gone amok.”
“Just
be careful. I know Dani is anxious to run again and insists on playing guinea pig, but I worry sometimes,” Char warned.
“You’ve gotta trust me. I would never put Dani in harm’s way,” Toni insisted.
“I know. I do trust you.”
Toni looked up and Char followed her gaze.
Dani limped into the café. Her forearm crutches were noticeably absent. A big grin was on her face.
“A quarter of a mile.” Dani’s smile was as wide as the Grand Canyon.
“That’s awesome, Dani. Are you feeling any side effects at all?” Toni asked.
“Nope. I think this is it. I can almost feel the nerves repairing. I still feel a bit of pain, especially after a long session, but it keeps getting less and less. I might have overdone it just a tad today, which is why I was kinda limping a little. I’m anxious to continue the treatment and see how far I can go without pain.”
“Just don’t push yourself too much. Pain is the way our body tells us it’s time to slow down,” Toni warned.
Dani slid into the booth directly facing Char and Toni. “Anything interesting in the paper?”
“Yeah, your sister is smokin’ hot and Brian finally got his check.”
“Oh, let me see.” Dani grabbed the paper.
“I can’t believe how far you’ve come with the research. God, it’s only been three months and already Dani is walking without her crutches. You are so gonna get lucky tonight,” Char whispered in Toni’s ear.
Char’s breath sent shivers down her spine. After four months, they were still going strong and Toni couldn’t remember a time in her life when she’d been so happy.
“Hey, I almost forgot to ask you about your meeting with the infamous Mr. Santori. I have to admit to being concerned when I saw him in your waiting room.”
“It was quite interesting.”
“Really? In what way.”
“Well, apparently Maggie and Santori have history.”