Authors: C D Ledbetter
Emily pulled her cell phone out of her purse and hurried into the workroom. Glen normally didn’t call her work number; something must have happened. She punched in his number. “Glen, it’s Emily,” she breathed into the mouthpiece. “You called?”
“Yeah. I can’t make it tonight. I just got word that I’m supposed to fly to Reno this afternoon with a couple of other folks from security. There’s some big meeting we have to attend. Nothing like last minute notice. We’re coming back tonight, but I don’t know how late we’re going to be.”
“That’s okay.”
“Thanks. Want to meet tomorrow night instead?”
“Yeah, sure,” she replied. “Tomorrow’s fine.” She stared at the plastic bag hanging on the hook and sighed softly. So much for her new sexy black dress.
“I was looking forward to tonight, too,” Glen commiserated. He cleared his throat. “Look, I have to go. Somebody’s at the door. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Yeah, see you.”
The connection went dead, and she tucked the phone back in her purse. Damn. She’d been looking forward to their dinner date, and now it was postponed. To make matters worse, she’d blown a small fortune on a low-cut black dress and a set of matched spider-web lace undies guaranteed to stop any man dead in his tracks. Hell, she’d even gotten a birth control shot from the doctor’s office. All for nothing. Just my luck, she thought. Here I am, all ready to run the horizontal mambo, and the damn starting gate gets stuck in the closed position. I might as well give up. The way things are going, I’m never going to have sex again.
As Kate reached the security of her room, the maid hung the last of her dresses in the closet. She waited for the woman to leave, then perched on the edge of the bed. The crippling pain in her back was now a dull ache, but it still hurt. Mike’s blow, although painful, hadn’t been forceful enough to break any ribs. He hadn’t broken any bones because he still needed her to entertain his guest. Kate realized that once his visitor left, Mike would probably issue the order to have her killed. She had to make her escape before that happened.
She moved to the mirror and lifted her shirt. A large red mark covered the area where Mike’s boot made contact. Sighing softly, she grabbed a tube of body makeup from her suitcase and gingerly applied it until the red tinge disappeared. In the background, a clock chimed once, reminding her that she didn’t have time to dawdle.
The tiny bathroom filled with steam as she pulled a fluffy towel off the counter and hung it on the back of the door. That was when she saw it—the tiny camera lens hidden in a small circle cut in the door panel. Fitted snugly into a crevice, it blended perfectly with the wood grain. The only reason she noticed it was because she’d accidentally placed her little finger over the lens and felt the indentation in the wood.
Warning bells went off inside her head. Crap! Even the bathrooms were bugged! Mike was even more paranoid that she’d imagined. She lifted her hand off the lens and tried to maintain an air of unconcern as she undressed. One thing was obvious. She’d have to check the bedroom for additional cameras before she removed the microphone from its hiding place.
Ten minutes later, she slipped a skintight Chinese silk dress over her head and walked over to the dressing table. She reached into her suitcase for a pair of lace panties, then paused. The silk dress fit every curve of her body; wearing underwear would only mar its beautiful lines. Sighing softly, she dropped the panties back into the suitcase and reached instead for her blow dryer. Ignoring the feeling of dread that threatened to overwhelm her, she dried her hair, then twisted the long blonde strands into a French Twist. When she was done, she stepped back to view her reflection in the mirror. It was...incomplete. She realized that she needed something to put the finishing touch on the aura she wanted to project. Against her better judgment, she removed two wooden sticks from a zippered pocket on the interior of her suitcase and stuck them into the upper portion of the French twist.
It was time to go downstairs. Her stomach lurched, and she inhaled deeply to try and steady her nerves. Her hands shook as she descended the opulent staircase, and she clamped them around the banister to stop the trembling.
Stu waited at the foot of the stairs. His eyes widened when she joined him, but he said nothing. Mike arrived a few minutes later, dressed in a khaki shirt and matching pants. He had a phone stuck to his ear and snapped it shut when he saw her.
Kate’s throat constricted while she waited for him to pass judgment. One minute ticked by, then two. Unable to stand the suspense, she closed her eyes and swallowed hard, waiting for him to either strike her down where she stood or voice his approval.
He did neither. Instead, he told Stu to get moving because the plane was landing a few minutes early and stormed out the front door. Kate followed a few steps behind, wondering how she was going to survive the next forty-eight hours.
The chauffeur whistled to two of Mike’s guards, then slid behind the wheel of the first limo. The guards eased their sedans to the edge of the garage, and moments later, the trio of decoys disappeared down the drive.
“Fucking cops,” Mike swore as he climbed into the rear of the second limousine. “When are they going to learn they can’t outsmart me?” He waited a few minutes, then gave Stu the signal to proceed.
Kate was surprised when they traveled some twenty miles past the exit for the main airport and turned off onto a dirt road. A few minutes later, a small plane approached from the west, circled the area twice, then bumped to a halt. Two men climbed out, armed with automatic weapons.
Mike rapped on the door, and Kate nervously exited the vehicle. The two men searched them for weapons, then signaled to the plane. The passenger hatch opened and a third man surveyed the area, then carefully climbed out of the plane.
Kate studied him from beneath her lashes. He certainly wasn’t what she’d expected. If this man was one of Mike’s drug runner buddies, he certainly didn’t look like any she’d ever seen. This guy was tall, perfectly groomed, and handsome. With his picture-perfect tan, gleaming white teeth, and Armani suit, he looked more like a corporate raider than a drug czar.
Mike stepped aside as one bodyguard searched the interior. The other returned to the plane and returned with a hand-held scanning device and a full-grown German shepherd. The dog circled the car, then climbed inside. A few minutes later, he climbed out, wagged his tail, and crouched down at the man’s feet.
Mike’s visitor nodded, and the dog and equipment went back to the plane. “Let’s go,” he ordered as the plane took off and disappeared into the horizon. “I don’t like standing out in the open. Too easy a target.”
“I’ve scheduled a private dinner party for tonight with a few of my business associates,” Mike announced as they sped toward the villa.
“I have no desire to meet your associates,” the man retorted in a cold, deadly voice. “My business is with you. I leave at noon tomorrow.” He held up a hand before Mike could interrupt. “If we complete our agreement, I’ll return to take possession of the merchandise.”
“We’ll talk after dinner. I’m sure we can work out something mutually beneficial.”
The stranger turned his attention to Kate. “My name’s Hector, Hector Peruvador,” he began. He lifted a manicured hand and traced a finger down the inside of her arm. “So, Kate,” he began. “Tell me about yourself…”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Kate breathed a sigh of relief when the limo pulled into the driveway of Mike’s villa. She glanced at Mike out of the corner of her eye, noted the square set to his jaw and the squint to his eyes, and her heart skipped a beat. He was pissed, no doubt about it. A shiver slid down her spine as she envisioned the path Mike’s anger would take and wondered what she could do to divert it.
Once the guards scanned the group, Mike motioned for them to go inside. Kate hurried to her room and closed the door. Hector’s change in plans made a large hole in the scenario she’d worked out with Dozer. She grabbed a flesh-colored cocktail dress and laid it on the bed while she tried to figure out a way to maneuver Hector into Mike’s office before dinner. At least he was attracted to her. That made things a lot easier. She fingered the sheer material one last time, then stepped into the clingy chemise. Nothing like a little see-through number to get a man’s attention.
Hector joined her at the foot of the stairs and laced her arm through the crook of his elbow. “You’re too beautiful to share,” he whispered, nuzzling the side of her neck. “Let’s go somewhere private; I don’t want any other man looking at you.”
“We don’t have to stay long,” she replied. “I know someplace where we can go that’s very, very private.”
“Hector,” Mike called from the other side of the French doors, “I have some people I’d like you to meet.”
Kate allowed her lips to curve into a tiny smile. “He won’t give up, you know. You’re better off spending a few minutes with the guests, then meeting me back here.” She kissed the edge of her index and middle finger and placed them against his lips. “Meet me in fifteen minutes.”
It didn’t take long for Hector to return. He breezed through the doors and crushed her to him. “God, you taste good,” he murmured as he stuck his tongue down her throat and squeezed her breasts. “I can’t wait. I have to have you. Now.” He slid her dress up and unbuckled his pants.
“Not here,” Kate whispered. “It’s too open. We might get interrupted. I know somewhere where we can be by ourselves. It’s not far.”
He grunted, and she smoothed her dress over her hips. “This way,” she said, taking his hand and moving toward Mike’s office.
Hector instructed his bodyguards to wait outside. Kate flipped off the lights, then slipped over to the window and closed the shade. “Nobody will bother us now,” she whispered as she kissed his hairy chest and backed him toward the conference table. “Relax,” she ordered as she pushed him onto his back. “I’ll do all the work. You just lay back and enjoy.” She climbed onto the table and pulled the straps of her see-thru chemise off her shoulders. The dress fell to her ankles in a whisper, leaving her naked except for her high heels.
Hector started to rise, but she quickly dropped to her knees and covered his torso with kisses and gentle bites, sucking on his nipples while she removed his pants. Ever so slowly, she moved her mouth toward his thighs, licking his skin and teasing him with gentle nibbles.
When he couldn’t stand it any longer, she climbed on top and straddled his torso. Moaning in time to his thrusts, she grabbed the back of her hair, loosened the pins, and removed the sticks. Keeping the bugging device clenched in her left hand, she faked an orgasm and flung her arm toward the arrangement.
Hector thrust harder and grabbed her legs to anchor her more closely. Moaning loudly, Kate leaned to her left and slid the microphone under the bottom of the arrangement. Time after time Hector arched underneath her, then finally cried out in Spanish and lay still.
Kate rolled to his left and stretched out on the table. Cradling her head in one hand, she traced circles on his ribcage with the other. “Feel better?” she asked as he slid to his feet.
“Yes,” he replied. “You’re very good.” When he finished dressing, he picked up her chemise and dangled it between his fingers. “Coming?”
She watched him stride from the room. After she slipped her dress over her head, she scooped up the microphone from under the arrangement, plus the second stick she’d worn in her hair and bent down, as if to smell the flowers. Cupping the underside of one of the overhanging stalks, she slid the device into position and deftly pulled out the wooden stick holding the flowers in place. Aware of the camera filming her every move, she ran her fingers through her hair, pulled it into a French twist, and anchored the two sticks into the back.
Her stomach twisted into a tight knot as she left the office, praying that her actions looked natural. Instead of going to the patio, she hurried to her room. The surveillance camera winked at her in the mirror, so she smiled at her reflection, applied a light touch of lipstick, and went downstairs.
Mike motioned Hector to a nearby chair and took up a position across the conference table.
“Do you have the merchandise?” Hector demanded.
“The shipment left Moscow two weeks ago and arrives in Reno on Wednesday. Two canisters of nerve gas are coming in; one’s Sarin, the other’s VX. I’m having them delivered to a casino where I’m a silent partner.”
Hector leaned back in his chair. “I don’t like using specifics when we discuss business.”
Mike snickered. “I’ve spent a fortune on the most technologically advanced surveillance equipment that’s been developed. The Feds thought their guys could break into here, but they were wrong. Dead wrong, if you get my drift. You can speak freely; this room’s clean.”