Black Pawn (Michael Cailen Book 1) (12 page)

“You look like you're having a rough time,” Justin said.

She gave him a mock smile.  She wanted to numb her feelings
with alcohol.  She almost finished her second drink.  Justin regretted getting
it for her.  He didn't know what to say to her and she wasn't being very
talkative.

Michael saw her get the second drink.  He had been keeping
an eye on her and watched her condition deteriorating.  He had to get her out
of there.

“I have to talk to my sister.  I'll be right back,” Michael
said to Brook as he broke off dancing.

She frowned.  “I'll go freshen up.”  She headed off towards
the bathroom.

Jessica had finished her second drink by the time Michael
got to the table and had started drinking his beer.

“I'm going to have Josh take you home,” he said to her.

“Who the hell is Josh?” she asked, the alcohol already affecting
her.

“Justin's real name is Josh,” he explained.  “We worked
black ops together, his cover name was Justin.”

“So that's why he played along,” she slurred, realizing that
when Michael called him Justin he was letting him know not to blow his cover.

“You'll be safe with him.  He's going to take you to his
place.  I'll pick you up later.”

“You're sanding me off wish some stranger?” she slurred,
obviously not used to drinking that much that quickly.  She was toasted.

“He's not a stranger.  He's like a brother to me.  I trust
him with my life.  You'll be safe.”  He turned to Josh. “Get her out of here.”

“You got it.”

Michael committed Josh's phone number and address to
memory.  Josh grabbed Jessica's arm and tried to help her up.

“I don't want to go with him,” she said loudly.

Michael could see the situation spinning out of control.  He
grabbed Jessica and started walking her to the door with her while Josh
followed behind.  When he was halfway to the door, he passed her off to Josh
who continued with her outside.  She eventually realized it was Josh with her
and not Michael and tried to go back inside.  He held her firmly, forcing her
towards his car.  She began crying saying she wanted Michael.  He quickly put
her in his car and buckled her in.  He took off before she could figure out how
to unbuckle herself and get out.

Michael watched Josh escort Jessica out of the club.  He
breathed a heavy sigh and rubbed the back of his neck.  He was quickly joined
by Brook who had returned from the ladies room.  He didn't want to be there. 
He wanted to be with Jessica.  He was worried about her.  But he had a job to
do.  He smiled and asked if she wanted to dance.

Jessica wept inconsolably as Josh drove her to his
apartment.  He was desperately trying to think of something to say to calm her
down.

“He cares about you,” he finally said.

“Then why are you here and not him.”

“Michael always made the tough decisions.  He did what had
to be done no matter how much he didn't want to do it.  I know Michael very
well.  I could tell he didn't want to leave you.  He must believe this is the
only way,” he assured her.

She stopped crying and just watched out the window as they
drove.  Her head was spinning and she closed her eyes.  When she opened them
again, the car was parked, her door was open and Josh was trying to get her
out.  She leaned out of the car and Josh picked her up.  He helped her out to
the sidewalk and shut the door.  She could barely stand.  He helped her up a
few stairs to the front door of his apartment complex.  Luckily, his apartment
was on the first floor and his door was just a few steps from the entrance.

The front door of Josh's apartment brought you into the
living room.  There was a large flatscreen TV against the wall to the left.  A
black leather couch sat in the center of the room facing the TV.  A matching
loveseat was placed perpendicular to the couch facing the front door.   A few
steps to the left of the TV was an archway leading to the kitchen and dining
area.  The kitchen was small compared to the spacious living room.  A few feet
behind the couch was a hallway that lead to the bathroom and two bedrooms.  It
was decorated in contemporary style and it was apparent Josh liked blue because
whatever wasn't black was blue.  He sat Jessica down on the couch just as his
cell phone rang.

“Hello ...  Yeah, we're here ...  She's fine.  A little
inebriated ...  Don't worry, I'll take care of her ...  Okay, see you later
then.”  He hung up.  “That was Michael.  He says he'll be by in a couple of hours
to get you.”  He looked at Jessica.  She was slumped over on the couch and he
couldn't tell if she was even still awake.  “Jessica?”  He walked over to her. 
“Do you want to lie down?”

She moaned, but that was about it.  He slid his arms under
her and carried her to the guest room.  He laid her on the bed and covered her
with a blanket.  She moaned again, but was pretty out of it.

He stopped at a closet in the hallway on the way back to the
living room and pulled out a handgun and magazine.  He loaded the gun and
cocked it.  He didn't think he would need it, but he didn't want to get caught
without it if he did.

He sat on the couch, placing the gun on the coffee table and
turned on the TV.  It wasn't how he had planned on spending his night, but for
Michael he would do anything.  Michael had saved his life more than once.  On
top of him being a good friend, he felt indebted to him.

BACK AT
the club Michael had about all he could take of Brook.  It didn't help that he
was worried about Jessica.  His patience was wearing thin and he figured he'd
better end the date before he lost it.  She was bossy and demanding.  She
flirted with other guys right in front of him, yet demanded his full
attention.  He tried to steer the conversation towards family using Melanie as
an opening.  She was vague and didn't seem to want to talk about her family. 
He asked if she was close with her brother and she just replied “Not really,”
and changed the subject.  Feeling like he was wasting his time with her, he
entertained the thought of skipping ahead and just drugging her to see what she
knew. 
No, not yet
, he decided.

“I hate to do this, but I have to bring my sister home.”  He
tried to look disappointed.

“Oh,” she pouted.  She moved in close and pressed her body
against his, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I was kinda hoping you would
come to my place after.”

“Mmmm.”  He kissed her.  “Maybe next time we'll leave my
sister home.”

“Why can't your friend take her home?”  She pressed her hips
into him in a not-so-subtle way.

I'd rather die
, Michael thought to himself. “I'd
never hear the end of it if I did that.”   He smiled and kissed her again. 
“Next time.”  He could tell Brook was unhappy, but there was no way he was
going to go home with her, at least not that night.  He couldn't stop thinking
about Jessica and all he wanted to do was to get back to her.

JOSH GOT
up a few times to check on Jessica, who was
sound asleep in the guest room.  He had just sat back down on the couch when he
heard a knock at the door.  Grabbing his gun, he looked out the peep hole.  It
was Michael.  He opened the door and invited him in.  Michael saw the gun in
his hand and was relieved that Josh was taking the situation seriously.

“How is she?” Michael asked.

“Sleeping.  She threw up once.”

Michael sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Why don't you hang for a while,” Josh offered. “You want a
beer?”

“Yeah, okay.”   He sat on the couch while Josh retrieved a
couple of beers from the fridge.

Josh handed him one and then sat on the loveseat with the
other one.  “I tried to find you a couple years ago, but you were off grid.  I
figured you were on a mission.  How long you been running?”

“Almost four years.”

“So, what happened?”

Michael gave Josh a rundown of all the events that lead up
to the club.  China, the assassination attempts, everything up to running into
him outside Celsius.  He left out some of the details about Jessica.  He didn't
tell Josh about the near drowning.  He just alluded to some romantic
interactions but didn't go into specifics.  He didn't have to.  Josh could tell
from Jessica's reactions that there was something between them.

“She's uhhh ... pretty emotional,” Josh remarked.

“Tell me about it,” he chuckled.  “You haven't even seen the
worst of it.”

“What's her story?”

Michael got somber.  “She's been through hell and back.”  He
looked down.

“You always were a sucker for a damsel in distress.”

Michael shook his head.  “It's more than that.”

“You've only known her a week, Michael.  What else could it
be?”

Michael grew defensive at Josh's insinuation. “I've learned
more about her in the past week than I've learned about most of my ex's,” he
said defiantly.  “She's smart, funny, well-liked and a good friend.  She's a
survivor.  She's innocent and shy ...  loving ... emotional...”

Josh just sat grinning at him.  Michael realized then that
Josh was trying to spark a reaction from him with his question and he had
fallen for it hook, line and sinker.  He sighed and looked up at the ceiling. 
“You baited me, didn't you?”

“Yeah, it was pretty easy,” Josh laughed.  “You're in
trouble, bro.  You're not going to be thinking straight when it comes to her.”

Michael didn't say anything.  He knew Josh was right.  He
should have gone home with Brook and used the opportunity to snoop around her
place.  That's what he would have done if Jessica wasn't in the picture.

“Why don't you stay here tonight,” Josh suggested. “You can
stay with Jessica in the guest room.  It's late, and you've been drinking.”

Michael nodded.

Rick held a folder in his hands and anxiously paced the hall
in front of Morgan's office.  His face lit up when Morgan appeared at the end
of the hall.

“I think I've found something!” he exclaimed.

“Wait until we get in my office,” Morgan replied as he dug
the key to his door out of his pocket.

Rick practically bounced up and down behind Morgan as he
unlocked the door.   Morgan plopped his briefcase on the floor by his desk and
sat down.  “What do you have?”

Rick pulled some photos from the folder and laid them out in
front of Morgan.

“Okay, what am I looking at?” Morgan asked.

“Those are satellite photos.”

Morgan gave Rick a look of sheer disgust.  “I know they're
satellite photos; I'm not retarded.”

“Sorry, these are satellite photos of the cafe and Jessica
Nickoli's apartment block.  I pulled footage from the time of the shooting at
the cafe, the time our agents were arrested and during the time Evan said
someone slipped into her apartment.”  Rick grinned from ear to ear.  “You
notice anything?”

“This vehicle.”  Morgan remarked as he scanned the photos. 
“Could just be coincidence.”

Rick pulled a final satellite image from the folder and
stuck it down in front of Morgan.

A smile crept across Morgan's face.  “I want a team on it
now.”

“I'm already on it, sir.”  Beaming with pride, Rick looked
like it was his wedding day or something.

“You did good, Rick.”  Morgan smiled.  “This time, make it
happen.”

“I won't let you down sir.”

Rick left with a bounce in his step and a huge grin on his
face.  Morgan leaned back in his chair and sneered at the photo on his desk. 
“I got you, now,” he muttered.

Jessica woke to an intense throbbing pain in her head.  It
took a few minutes before she remembered where she was.  She had only vague
recollections of the night before.  She rolled over and saw Michael sleeping
next to her.  At least he looked like he was sleeping.  She wondered if he was
pretending.  The aroma of fresh coffee stirred her to get out of bed.  She
stumbled to the door and wandered toward the smell.

Josh was sitting at the kitchen table sipping a coffee and
reading the paper.  He looked up at Jessica in the doorway and smiled.  “How
are you feeling?  You want some coffee?”

“I feel like crap and I'd love a coffee.”  She dragged
herself to a chair and sat down.  “Just cream, no sugar.”

Josh slid out of his seat and got a mug from the cabinet. 
She smiled as Josh handed her the cup of coffee.  She took a sip and closed her
eyes.  Her head still throbbing; she wondered how long it would last.  She
never drank that much in such a short amount of time before and this was her
first hangover.

Josh was watching her.  “You need some pain killers?  Your
head must be killing you.”

“Yes, please.”

He retrieved a bottle of aspirin from a cabinet and gave her
two.  She swallowed them and they sat there in silence nursing their coffees.

“How long have you known Michael?” Jessica broke the
silence.

“Uhhh ...  hmm ...  Well we served together as Navy Seals
for three years and then we got recruited to black ops together.  I only lasted
four years in black ops.”

“What happened?”

“It got to me.  It's not easy work.  You see terrible
things.”

“So what do you do now?”

“Private security,”  he said taking another sip.  “Basically
I'm a bodyguard for hire.”

“You guarding anyone now?”

“Besides you, no.”  He smiled.  “I'm in between jobs.”

Michael appeared in the archway.  “You guys started without
me.”  He shuffled into the kitchen and sat next to Jessica.

Josh got Michael a cup of coffee. “I was just telling
Jessica we worked together.”

“You weren't telling her stories were you?”  He sipped his
coffee.

“I want to hear stories.”  Jessica perked up.

“No stories,” Michael said.

Josh grew a wicked grin as Michael glowered at him.

“I got a story.” Josh leaned back in his chair, grinning
from ear to ear.

“Tell me.” Jessica sat up and leaned forward.

“No stories,” Michael said again, louder this time.

“We were trailing this guy in Mexico,” Josh started.

“Josh, don't do it.” Michael had a nervous smile on his
face.  Jessica was even more intrigued.

“We knew this guy was going to be making contact with a
terrorist we were hunting, but we didn't know when.  So we had to keep a tail
on him.”

Michael shook his head.  He was smiling but he looked
embarrassed. “Josh, I'm warning you.  Stop now.”

Josh just grinned and kept going. “So this guy we were
tailing, he loved to go to this nude beach.”  Michael put his head down.  Josh
kept going, “We had to keep an eye on him so when he went, we went.  It was
clothing optional, so we opted for clothing.  Not many others did.   You might
think going to a nude beach would be like going to the Playboy mansion, but
it's not.  Most of the time, you're wishing they had clothes on.  Remember that
fat, hairy guy?” he looked at Michael.

Michael just sat looking down and shaking his head.  Jessica
was eager to hear the rest of the story.

“Anyway,” he continued. “One day we were there at the nude
beach watching the guy work on his tan.  These six gorgeous women decide to set
up right in front of us.”  Michael buried his face in his hands.  He thought
about killing Josh to prevent him from telling the rest of the story.  “They
were wearing string bikinis and they were hot!  You should have seen the look
on Michael's face,” he laughed. “But it was nothing compared to the look on his
face when they took them off.”

“Why are you telling it like I was the only one looking at
them?” Michael butted in, thoroughly embarrassed.

“You know why,” Josh laughed.

Michael put his arms on the table and buried his face. 
Jessica was wide awake now with a huge grin on her face.

“It was then that the guy we were trailing decided he had
enough sun.  I stood up, but Michael kept sitting.  I told him we had to go,
the guy was leaving.  He just sat there holding his towel and told me he
couldn't leave.  The guy was walking away and I said to Michael we have to go. 
He kept refusing to get up.  It finally dawned on me why.”

Jessica was utterly amused.  “Someone a little excited?” 
She turned to Michael, trying not to laugh.

Michael sat up and took a deep breath looking mortified.  He
looked at Josh. “Are you happy now?”

Jessica giggled mercilessly.  “So what did you do?” she
asked.

“I had to tail the guy alone.  Michael wouldn't leave,” Josh
laughed.

“It didn't take two of us to follow him anyway,” Michael
tried to defend himself.  They kept laughing.  Michael just shook his head and
rolled his eyes.  “Thanks, Josh.”

“Anytime, bro.”

After the laughter died down Michael asked Jessica to go in
the other room so he could talk to Josh privately.  She wasn't pleased that he
didn't want to talk in front of her, but she did as requested.

“You can watch TV if you want,” Josh called out to her. 
“What's up?” he asked quietly.

“I want to thank you for helping me out last night.”

“Don't worry about it Michael.  Anything you need, just
ask.”

“I need a place to crash for a few days.  Jessica isn't safe
at the motel and I think I need to clear out of my hideout.  I've been there
too long.”

“Sure thing.  I'd love to have you guys stay with me.”

“I don't really want to get you involved in all this.  I
feel bad enough that we're here.”

“To be honest Michael, my life is kind of boring.  I could
use a little excitement,” he grinned.

Michael shot back a grin.  “Just like old times?”

Josh nodded.

“Just like old times.”