A Deadly Blessing

by Kathy Bennett

guess it's all we've got. Has Travis agreed to do it?"

  "No, I thought you could ask him."

  Darius shot me a withering look. "Swell."

  I scribbled out some questions, but the reality was Pleasure didn't have to cooperate with us. We would just have to gain her compliance with Travis's charm.

  A short while later, Travis and Darius approached, it flitted through my mind that Pleasure was right. Both men were fine specimens of the male sex.

  "Okay, here's the thing," I told my husband as I took the bag of sandwiches from his hands, "we've got her on a traffic warrant which isn't something we can bargain with. We think she might know where the governor's daughter is being held. Your job is to get her to tell Drejohn that she knows and trusts Darius. Drejohn talked to Darius on the phone and knows him as the 'Cut Man.' Do you think you can do it?" I looked into my husband's eyes and was shocked to see the first sign of confidence in those eyes I'd seen in a year. I blinked back tears at seeing my husband sure of himself again.

  "I convinced you to marry me, didn't I?" he said with an easy grin. "Pleasure should be easy…pun intended," he joked.

  "Oh, geez. Remember you'll be on video and being recorded." I patted him on the shoulder and sent him into the interview room, secretly rejoicing at his transformation now that he'd been given an important task to carry out.

  After the door had closed, Darius led the way to the video equipment room where we could see and hear everything that went on. If Travis started to crash and burn, we'd be able to interrupt.

  My husband sat down across the table from Pleasure and smiled and introduced himself. The former hooker fluffed her hair and smiled back.

  "So far, so good," I whispered to Darius. He nodded in agreement.

  Travis looked at the notepad where I'd scribbled my notes. "So Miss Treasure, I want you to understand you're not under arrest, and you're free to leave at any time."

  "Oh God," I moaned, and hung my head. That line was not in my notes.

  "But I'm hoping you won't do that," Travis continued, "because something very serious is going on and we need your help. In fact, you're the only one who can help us right now."

  Another groan escaped my lips.

  "What do you need my help with…Travis?"

  "Ah, geez," I muttered.

  "Enough already," Darius countered. "He's doin' alright. Give him a chance."

  My gaze intensified on the color monitor where I watched my husband try to gain Pleasure's trust.

  "Well, here's the deal. Do you know who the governor of California is?"

  Pleasure tilted her head and frowned as she thought about the question. "Isn't it that old actor guy? Truesman or something."

  Travis grinned at the girl and enthusiastically nodded his head. "That's right! Preston Truesdale."

  Pleasure lowered her head and smiled at my husband, actually batting her eyelashes at him.

  "We think that maybe one of the new girls Drejohn has with him is Preston Truesdale's daughter."

  It took a few seconds for his sentence to make sense to Pleasure. Then her eyes widened in surprise. "Really? Wow, the money he could get for her!"

  "Well, you see, Pleasure, that's the problem. We don't want Drejohn to whore out the governor's daughter. The governor doesn't want it, and we're pretty sure Tiffany doesn't want it either. That's where you come in."

  The excitement Pleasure had experienced at the possibility of the daughter of the governor of California becoming a whore slipped from her face and was replaced by a frown. "What do you want me to do?"

  "We'd like you to call Drejohn on the phone and tell him that you've known Detective Cutter for a while, and it's okay to send him a girl."

  "Are you out of your flippin' mind? If Drejohn finds out I set him up, he'll have someone kill me!"

  "No. We won't let that happen to you, Pleasure. I won't let that happen, because Drejohn will be locked up for a very long time," Travis said, patting Pleasure's hand.

  "Oh shit," Darius said.

  A wave of relief washed over me once Travis stopped touching Pleasure.

  "It's entirely possible you could have met Detective Cutter while he was working undercover and set him up with other girls. You'd have no way of knowing. Just keep that thought in mind while you're talking to Drejohn. Play it off like you totally trust this guy you'll call the Cut Man."

  "But I'm scared. Do you promise you'll protect me?" the busty blonde asked Travis with her eyes wide and her full lips in a semi-pout.

  "You have my word," my husband replied, picking up the blonde's hand again.

  "Okay," I said, moving to the door, "we need to get him out of there. He's getting too involved."

  "Wait!" Darius called out.

  "I'm scared, but I'll do it," Pleasure said.

  "That'a girl," Travis said, beaming at the former whore. He seemed genuinely proud of her. The pin-prick of jealousy I'd experienced while watching the interview turned into a sharp twist of my heart. When did he stop looking at me like that?

  SECTION NINE (Chapters 81 – 90)

  PILAR – 81

  Pilar sat in her secret apartment and watched the political rhetoric on TV surrounding the speculation of Preston's affair with Heather McCall. The media hadn't yet jumped on the bandwagon that the governor might be responsible for the Heather's death, but they were beginning to whine and clamor like a bunch of dissatisfied movie reviewers. Of course, they tempered their innuendo-packed reports with dramatic concern for Tiffany's search for a new bone marrow donor.

  Fascinated, she watched the previously recorded film clip to see if her face belied the jolt she'd felt when the reporter asked if it were true about Preston and Heather being lovers. The camera had first zoomed in on Preston's face, but then cut to a tight shot of her.

  She'd done well. The slightest hitch in her eyebrow indicated surprise, but displaying the professionalism of a true politician, she did not give away dismay. So far, she was behaving just like a blind-sided lover of a politician would act.

  Confident she'd taken all the precautions necessary not to get sucked into the McCall murder investigation, she sipped a Chardonnay while enjoying the various news anchors tiptoe around the possibility the governor of California had murdered his young lover.

  The landline phone rang and she knew it would be Preston. He was one of the few people who had the number. She debated a second before answering.

  "Hello?"

  "It's me. Please don't hang up. I owe you an apology."

  Damn right you do, Skippy. Only problem is, it's too late.

  "I shouldn't have said that about you not being my wife. I'm sure you felt uncomfortable."

  This was what he was sorry for? "You know, Preston, if I were you I'd be a little more concerned about the fact your apparent mistress was found murdered. Don't you think your adoring public is going to think that maybe you did it?"

  "But…but…I didn't."

  "Well, if you have one secret, what's to say you don't have a closet full of skeletons? Hmm?"

  "Is that what you think?"

  "I don't know what to think, Preston. I thought we had a relationship. You lied to me and cheated on me. I look like a fool to the whole country."

  "Pilar, I need you to stand by me. If you show faith and support in me, everyone else will too."

  "And what's in it for me? I know you don't love me. What do I get for stoically standing beside you and looking like a spineless, desperate woman?"

  "Pilar, I do care for you."

  "Preston, people care for their dogs, they care for their children, and they care for their elderly parents. They don't sleep with them."

  His silence filled her ear.

  "I'm sorry, Pilar. I hope, in time, you will realize I never meant to hurt you. I do have feelings for you. I didn't mean to fall in love with Heather McCall. It…just happened."

  "I hope she was a really good lay, Preston, because she cost you plenty. Together, we could have made it to the Whi
te House. Now I'll have to get there on my own."

  MADDIE – 82

  Watching the monitor, I didn't like the way Travis was sitting so close to Pleasure Treasure. He seemed much too invested in the busty beauty. It wasn't that he appeared captivated by her pretty face and large breasts, but the way he watched her as she talked on the phone to Drejohn. His sober expression revealed he was analyzing her responses and preparing, if need be, to scratch out a helpful reply to any of the questions her boss might ask her. Just like Darius and I, Travis was listening to the conversation via a pair of headphones.

  I hated to say it, but the girl was good. She'd told Drejohn she'd gotten his call at the office, but couldn't call him because the police were there to break up a fight between two of the porn stars. She explained she'd managed to save anyone from going to jail and the 'stupid' cops just took a report.

  Once Drejohn believed the fictitious fight incident was minor, he asked her about the 'Cut Man.' I held my breath because how she sold this story might be the difference between recovering Tiffany Truesdale dead or alive.

  Pleasure looked at the script we'd given her. "Yeah, I know him. I've set him up with some of our girls a couple of times. He's not a regular. He only calls when he's in town - and that's not often."

  I adjusted the headset on my ears.

  "Why don't I remember nobody called 'Cut Man'? How come he's never asked for a virgin before?"

  I held my breath when Pleasure strayed from our pre-arranged text. "Because you're not usually the guy who sets these things up." Her tone contained just the right amount of indignation. "The only reason I gave him your number was because he was