Authors: Taylor Lee
Tags: #Short Story Prequel to “Big Girls Don’t Cry”
Dalila Minyawi didn’t bother to hide her knowing smile. “How could I refuse the opportunity to ‘hook up’ with you, Jake? I’d heard that you were leaving active duty and setting up a private consulting firm. Even before I knew you would be working in a related field, I planned to contact you. Imagine my delight to hear from you first and to know that you intend to live in San Francisco. A small and wonderful world indeed.”
Jake nodded and included Paul Prentiss in his response.
“Thanks, Dalila. It is a small world and a welcoming one. Colonel Schaefer and I have been gratified at the response to our initial overtures to former colleagues. If I’d known the reception we would receive we might have started this operation months earlier. But as it is, it’s a pleasure to see you again and I hope we can be of service.”
Dalila’s lip quirked, and she gave him a surreptitious wink.
“I am confident that you can be, Jake.”
At Jake’s slight frown, she pulled back and assumed a more professional tone. Jake didn’t bother to glance over at Brady. His friend’s amusement was palpable from across the table. As was the questioning frown on Paul Prentiss’s face. Feeling the need to clarify his position with both Dalila and her associate, Jake reminded them who he was.
“You mentioned on the telephone that you are dealing with a hell of a mess on the border. Want to tell me how you think that Brady and I can be useful? As I indicated, we both are lawyers, in addition to heading up more than a hundred successful CID investigations. And I assume you are aware, that Colonel Schaefer was the second in command of my Delta team.”
Jake rarely pulled rank with current or former associates but he could see that Dalila needed to be reminded of who he was, and why she and her young colleague should be damned glad he and Brady were meeting with them. Whether she picked up on his intention was unclear. But Paul confirmed he got the message.
“It is an honor to meet you, Sir. I never served overseas. I spent my four years on active duty stationed in D. C. as a JAG associate to General Rodney Peters. But even in the tame reaches of that political swamp, we heard of the mighty Jake Gardner.”
Jake nodded. “Thanks, Paul. And the name is Jake. I only require Brady to call me Sir.”
Following the laughter that greeted his remark, Jake acknowledged the serious young man. “I know General Peters both personally and from reputation. More than once I was on the receiving end of an irate telephone call asking who the hell I thought I was putting the entire future of the United States of America in jeopardy. I can’t remember exactly what I had done wrong that particular time to warrant the General’s ire, but it apparently caught the eye and ear of that irascible man. You may not have been overseas, Paul. But being an adjunct to a guy who has a more colorful vocabulary than mine, you deserve the medals I presume you received.”
Paul grinned. “Yes, Sir. I mean yes, Jake. The General was and is a piece of work. I still have the scars to prove it.”
Grateful for the presence of the young man, Jake looked to him for more information.
“Dalila mentioned some of the difficulties you and your team are having. Fill me in. What makes you think that Brady and I can help?”
Paul handed them each a folder. Jake saw at quick glance it held a thick stack of spreadsheets documenting the rising number of incidents along the U.S./Mexican border.
Paul added narrative to the damning numbers.
“People think the only issue we deal with in Department of Immigration Enforcement is the number of undocumented persons coming across the border. If that was the only kind of person entering this country illegally, we would be delighted. Most of the ‘illegals’ end up being contributing members of U.S. society. No, that is not what worries us the most. You are aware of the activities of the cartels. Again, that is but one aspect of the rising violence we are tracking. The latest bad actors have chosen both the U.S./Mexican border and the U.S./ Canadian border as their pathway to bring in young girls and women for the sex trade. I presume you know that San Francisco is one of the most notorious locus points for the international sex trafficking organizations. They are now so brazen, the exploited women land daily at our airports. They barely try to make their documents appear legal. We are so understaffed, our efforts are minimal at best. What we are missing is information. The kind of information that U.S. officials can’t get.”
Brady smiled and spoke for the first time. “But individuals who can’t be tied to the government can?”
Paul gave him a grateful nod. Jake smiled to himself. The guy was young enough and uptight enough to be embarrassed that he was condoning working with covert agents. Jake exchanged a knowing glance with his partner. Neither one of them—rule breakers that they were—would have lasted a month in the Department that was hiring them. But they likely would be of more service to their country than twenty “legitimate” employees could be. He felt a surge of satisfaction. He and Brady were on the right track. Their company was going to be successful and useful. They would be worth every penny of the exorbitant fees he planned to charge.
~~~
Lexie smiled at Lt. Mark Peterson, and kicked Ming under the table. She hated to fib outright, but how else were they going to get the information she needed?
“No, Mark, I’m sure Dan won’t mind if you update us. He knows that we were coming here this morning—if he remembered that is. But I hoped we wouldn’t have to bother him and that you could help us. I am grateful that we now have a name to put up on our wall of shame. As I told you yesterday, I cannot bear posting a photograph of a young woman without the dignity of listing her name. No one deserves to be an anonymous Jane Doe.”
At Mark’s grim nod, Lexie knew he agreed and was as troubled as she was at the young girl’s death. But his agreement didn’t lessen her exasperation with the police. Even people like Dan and Mark seemed unable to make a dent in the hideous exploitation of helpless women. But Lexie intended to do just that. She intended to hit the exploiting organizations where it would hurt the most. At the top.
“I think Dan indicated in his message that you know the name of the massage parlor where Sun-ja worked, correct?”
Lexie ignored Mark’s surprise and hoped he didn’t see Ming’s eyes widen at her blatant lie. Instead she took out a pad of paper and a pen and looked expectantly at Mark.
He frowned but said, “Uh… of course. I remember that you asked yesterday for us to let you know if we learned the location of her workplace. Sun-ja worked at the Rising Sun massage parlor on Geary.”
Lexie quickly rose and held out her hand, blanketing Mark with one of her trademark smiles. “Thanks Mark. You are a good man. I’m glad there are men like you working this issue. I just wish there were more. Please let Dan know that Ming and I are sorry we missed him. I must have misunderstood his message. I did think that he would be available. But I’m delighted we were able to talk with you.”
Ignoring Ming’s gasp, she sauntered to the door and gave her colleague a little shove, pushing her through the doorway ahead of her. When Ming started to speak, Lexie shook her head and smiled at the police officer who held open the door for them. Walking to the elevator she hummed a little tune waiting for the automatic doors to open. When they were safely inside and the doors had closed, she turned to Ming and shrugged.
“Don’t even say it, Ming. How else are we going to get the information we need? Do you honestly think that Dan Rourke would tell me both Sun-ja’s name
and
where she worked?” She gave an indignant sniff. “Obviously, he and Jake are in cahoots. Can you believe that Dan had the audacity to call Jake yesterday and tattle on me? As if Jake is my father or my keeper.” She squared her shoulders as the doors to the elevator opened and muttered, “Men! It’s their own fault that we have to use surreptitious means to get the information we need. If they were more above board like we are, it wouldn’t be necessary.”
Ming looked at her as if she’d just arrived from another planet.
“That was us being above board, Jai Li? Good grief. Remind me not to ask what we are going to do when we are being devious. Poor Mark. I can just hear Dan yelling at him now.”
Lexie laughed one of her glorious melodic peals that made heads turn to see where the wonderful sound originated. At least all of the men who turned did a double-take acknowledging the stunning young woman who was even more gorgeous than her laughter.
~~~
Glaring at the pudgy woman’s face, Lexie managed to stuff down her anger. She couldn’t help it if the woman clearly hadn’t had sex for the last millennium. And yes she supposed she should feel badly, given the five rocketing orgasms the sexiest man who walked the earth had given her last night. Remembering Jake’s husky drawl and whispered promises of the naughty things he planned to do to her tonight was almost enough to lessen her annoyance at the haughty bureaucrat’s refusal to answer her simple question.
She dug out her sweetest smile and pretended ignorance.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Jensen. I didn’t realize that it isn’t public record whether an establishment is licensed by the city. I assumed that was public information.”
Her smile and pleasant request might have worked if
Ms.
Jensen were
Mr.
Jensen and the self-appointed gate-keeper didn’t automatically despise beautiful young women who obviously knew their way around the public policy apparatus.
Instead of acknowledging a legitimate request, Ms. Jensen yanked open a drawer and leafed through a series of files. Pulling out a sheet of paper, she smacked it on the counter in front of Lexie.
“This is a request for information. Please fill it out and drop it in that wooden box by the door. Someone will notify you when they have time to answer your question.”
Lexie ignored Ming’s cautionary tug on her arm. Taking a deep breath, she smiled at the woman. In a cloyingly sweet and patently insincere voice, she said, “Thank you, Ms. Jensen. I appreciate your help. I misunderstood. I assumed that if information is in the
public
domain, it is available to the public.”
Ms. Jensen reddened then fastened a hostile glare on Lexie not attempting to keep the anger out of her voice.
“It is available. But even you have to go through the proper channels. And by the way, my name is
Mrs
. Jensen.”
Lexie knew she shouldn’t, but it had been a long morning. She smiled. Ceremoniously folding the piece of paper in quarters, she dropped it in the wastepaper basket by the offensive woman’s desk. “I see. My condolences to Mr. Jensen.”
Ignoring the gasps from the cadre of other women sitting at institutionally anonymous desks in the large anteroom she winked at the one closest to her. Linking arms with Ming they strolled out the door and then ran down the hallway laughing wildly.
Chapter 7
“Whooeee! Nothing like adding a little spice to our lives, Jake, my man.”
Brady’s eyes danced with laughter while he and Jake waited for Dalila and Peter to join them at the elevator.
Pretending not to understand, Jake pinned him with a glare.
“What is that supposed to mean, Brady?”
Then reconsidering, he tossed his friend a rueful grin. “Never mind. I’m not stupid. I guess I forgot how ‘overt’ Dalila is.”
Brady roared. “Ah, yeah, man. If you call coming on to a guy with headlights blaring,
‘overt,’
guess that’s one way to describe it. Now if it was up to me to provide the description, I might call it the ‘How can we get rid of these two yahoos so that you can screw my ass to the top of this desk’ look.”
Jake groaned. “C’mon, Brady, it wasn’t that bad.”
Seeing his friend’s disbelief, Jake ran his hands though his already tousled hair. “Well, at some point she’ll meet Lexie and understand that I’m no longer that horny-assed buck sniffing at every doe within miles. She’ll see that I’m a claimed man. “
Brady shrugged. “Not to be disagreeable, but I dunno, Jake. Dalila seems like the kind of woman who goes after what she wants. And little man, that little princess wants you!”
Jake didn’t hide his annoyance. “Just remember, Brady. Wanting something and getting it are two different things. But forget about me. How do you feel about dark-haired, green-eyed Egyptian seductresses?”
“Hey, she’s a woman, isn’t she? And a gorgeous one. So yeah, I’m all for it. As long as ‘said babe’ isn’t lusting after my best friend and buddy, I’d be all over it. Besides, given where she comes from, I like the idea of being the one doing the fucking considering how many times you and I have been fucked over in that part of the world.”
Jake groaned at Brady’s coarse joke, but on one level he agreed. You didn’t have to spend much time in the Middle East to wonder why the hell we were even trying to right some long-standing wrongs. It was clear the natives sure as hell didn’t appreciate our efforts. Thinking back over the meeting, Jake agreed that Brady was right about Dalila. Taking out his phone, he punched up Lexie’s number.
“Hi Darlin’. Brady and I just finished our meeting. We’re gonna grab some lunch with our colleagues. Oh and by the way, it looks like we’re a shoe-in to get this gig. Just have to meet with the head of the agency to confirm the financial end of it. I know you said you were going to be downtown. Any chance you’re near the Federal building? It’d be great if you can join us.”
“Lexie, you couldn’t look bad if you tried. And it doesn’t matter if you are casual. We’re going to a little Indonesian restaurant, The Bali. Grab a cab, baby, and join us. The driver will know where it is. It’s been far too long since I saw you.”
“No, just come when you can. I’ll order something I know you’ll like.”
Jake laughed at her pert response, before continuing.
“But, it’s true, isn’t it? Have you ever been disappointed by what I suggest?”
He put his phone back in his pocket feeling a wave of relief at the sound of Lexie’s voice. Until he looked up to see Brady frowning.
“Now, what’s wrong?”
Brady blew out a deep breath. “Sure that’s what you want to do, big guy? Hell, I’m all for entertainment when I eat and I guess a cat fight qualifies.”