Think tactical. Come on, think. I can't rely on any of the other teams to help, from what I can guess, they have no idea that they have been planted into a global game of chess. How do we win this game? The door to the office opens, and Stacey walks in.
Wham, the thought flashes to me in that very instance. To get to the King, you have to get rid of the queen. Michelle… or undercover woman Cherry, she may just be the key to it all, or at least our position of strength could be vastly enhanced.
"What are you smiling at?" Stacey asks.
"You just do those little things that make things seem so clear," I say.
Stacey has confusion written on her face. "I have just walked through the door," she says.
"Believe me, that is more than enough."
"Are you going to tell me about it? Or just keep grinning to yourself?" she asks.
"Michelle. She is the key," I say smiling.
"Why is that?" Stacey asks.
"Well, you know, I will move mountains to protect you, and Ty and Beau feel the same way about Shona and Cally," I explain. "If The Kingmaker cares for Michelle as much as I guess that he does, he will do anything to protect her," I explain.
Stacey grins. "See, everything revolves around us women." She giggles.
"Are you working tonight?" I ask Stacey.
"No, it is a night off for once."
"I am going to meet Owen. Do you want to come? We can have a meal out?" I ask.
Stacey puts the back of her hand on her forehead and wiggles her body.
"Oh my God, he is asking me out on a date," she laughs.
I look at her. “I have never taken you on a date?"
"You never have done, not once, not at all, nad..."
"Okay, okay, I get the picture," I reply laughing.
"It has all been about the mind-blowing sex, just use me and abuse me," she says laughing.
“I did buy you ice cream and strawberries, that must go some way toward it," I say.
"That was payment for a massage and a good fuck," she replies.
"You’re so hurtful sometimes," I say pretending to cry.
"I suppose you want me to mother you later huh?" she asks.
I grin cheekily at her, "That would be nice," I say. “Less mother and more other!”
"Let’s just see what sort of dinner you can conjure up," she replies.
We leave the office and walk toward the change room. As we approach the door, Stacey puts her hand out to stop me walking. She steps back against the wall. She ushers me back to the storage room.
"What is it?" I ask.
"I saw the reflection of Michelle, she was looking in my bag," she replies.
"Hmm, that could be very beneficial to us if we know she is snooping," I say.
"Yeah, we can plant false information in my bag, and she will relay it to The Kingmaker," Stacey whispers.
"I wonder what sort of information we could plant?"
"A message from one of the other teams, make them appear to be suspicious of The Kingmaker's activity," Stacey says.
"A good idea, he will then react, and we can see how he handles it."
We leave club quickly and head off to meet Owen, he had suggested and old grill that was a few miles out of town. Stacey was driving and was as excited as ever. Her hands now firmly gripped on the steering wheel as she flicks up and down through the gears.
"I have been watching racing driver techniques on the internet… heel, and toe," she says smiling.
"You get more useful every day," I reply.
We cross the bridge and begin to head off through the suburbs. The main road clears of traffic, and we are faced with empty asphalt in front of us.
"Ha, Ha, Ha," Stacey bellows in a deep tone.
She turns the dial to “S” and stamps her foot onto the gas pedal. The car responds immediately and transforms from a family cruiser to a full-on racing machine.
“I just love this car," she says.
"I somehow thought you might."
I look at the dash, I can see the revs nearly redlining. Stacey is touching one sixty. I glance at the road markings, they have blended into one. The grin on her face says it all.
She is just like this car, soft on the outside, but a fierce, force to be reckoned with on the inside.
The town approaches us in a matter of minutes, street lights appear at the sides of the road. Stacey slows as we start hitting the outer limits of the town. She reaches forward and turns the dial back to a more sedate mode of travel.
"You ever get turned on with those vibrations between your legs?" she asks.
I turn my head and smile. "I have never been that fast," I reply.
“If you have it, why not flaunt it," she says plainly. “It is like you having a big cock, and fucking like a choirboy," she says laughing.
"You shouldn't really speak of church members that way. What have they ever done to hurt you?"
"You want me to tell you?" she asks plainly.
"No, it’s okay! Not right before dinner."
We keep our eyes open for the grill and open the car windows. We smell the grilling of meat before we set eyes on the restaurant. We walk across the parking lot toward the grill. The bright, red, neon glow fills the dark side of the building; through the windows we can see a lot of customers around the many red and white checkered covered tables.
The door opens. The smell of charred beef and chicken fills the air, and the sound of some old country and western movie provides a distraction to the ears.
"I feel like I am in a western movie," Stacey says.
"Yeehaw Pardner," I reply.
I see Owen over by the window. We make our way through the crowd and slide onto the red bench seat opposite him.
“I hope you are both hungry?" he asks.
"Extremely," Stacey replies.
"Good. It is my treat," Owen states, looking less disheveled.
“I should hope so, you had some of the best meat in the city the other night, and now we can have some of the best meat out of the city," Stacey says.
The waitress comes, and we order the family sized mixed grilled plate. A meat lover’s paradise, and a dieter’s worst nightmare. Topped off with some ice-cold beers.
"How did you find out about this place?" I ask.
“It is a family secret," Owen says.
"What is the secret?" Stacey asks.
"I practically own it. It has been handed down, and my parents are at that age where they have seen better days, so guess what? It will be all mine, soon."
"So, we know where to go if there is a problem?" Stacey asks.
Owen laughs heartedly. "We don't have problems here with the food," he says boastfully.
"The food arrives, and we fill our plates. Owen was not far wrong, and everything is grilled to perfection. The flavors are so appetizing. And it is easy to see why they never have complaints.
"So, what' are the updates?" Owen asks.
"Ty is off to see the gang and get an update on The Kingmaker's movements. Beau is going to start putting things into place to liquidate all the assets when he gets the “okay.” And the other two pieces of information relate to Michelle," I explain.
"How quickly can Beau dump everything?" he asks.
"He says forty-eight hours, give or take," I explain.
"That is something awesome, and I would like to watch it happen," Owen says. "So, what is the information about Michelle?"
"The first bit is not really information, it is just that she is the key to getting to The Kingmaker when we need to," I explain. "And secondly, Stacey caught her snooping in her bag."
"Very interesting, if they are snooping, it means they may feel a threat. But, it can also mean that they are just being cautious," Owen comments.
"Do you know any of the information regarding the other teams?" I ask.
"Not names or anything, just a couple of locations. Why do you ask?"
"I was going to plant some information in Stacey's bag, we can t
hen see how Michelle deals with it and how she relays it back to The Kingmaker," I explain.
Owen bites into his steak and nods his head. "Just don't make it obvious," he says.
Stacey and I begin laughing. "There is nothing obvious about any of this," I say.
“Fucken awesome ribs,” says Stacey.
We all tuck into the food.
“You can do this! Think positive.”
Stacey
“It’s all in the detail.”
Joseph and Owen continue to chat, details are given regarding a couple of the teams that are located around the United States. Owen also has the location of one overseas, a small country in Eastern Europe. Apparently, they agreed to send dummy messages to that office and see if any radio chatter is picked up over the airwaves.
Owen shakes his head. "How do we locate radio chatter regarding something in Eastern Europe? If it doesn't make news, we won't hear it," he says.
"Yeah, maybe the reaction to false info in Stacey's bag might do it, but not just dummy messages being sent to that station," says Joseph.
I finish licking the ice cream from my spoon and raise my hand.
"Cally mentioned to me in confidence, somebody who may be able to help," I say.
"Who?" Joseph asks.
"Bob," I reply.
Joseph shrugs his shoulders and looks at me blankly.
"A man of your intellect doesn't know… Bob?" I say mocking him.
"Enlighten me, please," he begs playfully.
"He is Ty's guy, a radio, internet guru and all that secret stuff, Wet Wednesday boy."
"Stacey, you are a god-send," Joseph says kissing me on the forehead.
I rub my head on my sleeve. "Not in public," I say giggling.
Joseph explains to Owen about the guy who works for Ty, he and his partner monitor the airwaves for anything and everything. Their sole job is for a big business who thought they had security breaches. Ty had said they had been used to locate info on certain people.
"That is very interesting to know, I could do with that sort of service for some personal things," Owen says.
I raise my hand again. "How long has the club been open?"
Joseph looks at me. "A couple of months I suppose, why?" he asks.
"This Michelle who keeps cropping up came from Tina's club, right? So why don't we take advantage of Bob and his mate’s skills, and get them to check everyone from there onward," I explain.
Owen looks at Joseph. "That is a very fucking good idea, we don't know what we might find," he says.
"Point taken, I will put it on my list," Joseph says looking at me from out of the corner of his eye.
"So, to sum everything up. We have The Kingmaker under surveillance with Ty. Beau is working on his plan to liquidate a chunk of The Kingmaker's assets. We have Michelle in our scope, and we have a couple of dummy tests for The Kingmaker to see how he responds," Owen says plainly. "It all sounds simple when you say it like that." His face now grinning broadly.
"There has to be some small thing we have missed, it can't be that simple," Joseph says.
"What about Operation Rotation?" I ask.
"Shit, how does that fit into it?" Joseph asks.
Owen looks towards us vacantly. "Don't ask me for any answers. I have heard of it, but how it happens I have no idea," he replies.
"If that happens, we are fucked never mind screwed," Joseph says.
“Yeah we are!” I say.
I glance around the restaurant. I notice a guy who seems out of place. He is in a restaurant full of diners chomping away on gigantic steaks, and he is only drinking coffee. I grab the paper from Joseph and scribble on the reverse.
“Strange looking due by the window drinking coffee.”
I slide the note into Joseph’s view.
Joseph looks at the paper and slides it across the table to Owen. Picking up his bottle of beer and taking a sip, he pushes the paper back to Joseph.
"You think we have been followed?" Joseph mumbles to Owen.
"Impossible, but maybe," Owen says.
I laugh at his comment. "There is no one on earth who could have followed us here this evening," I reply.
Joseph nods to Owen. "One hundred and sixty," he says.
"That car does a hundred and sixty?" Owen asks.
"It sure does baby," I reply.
"That has got to be kilometers per hour?" he questions.
"Pure miles per hour, read ‘em and weep motherfuckers," I say excitedly.
"Holy fuck, it looks like one of those cars you see pensioners in," he laughs.
"What we going to do about this guy?" Owen asks in a whisper.
"Is there a back door here?" I ask.
"Yeah, if you go to that column, there is a single door that leads to the parking lot," Owen explains.
"Where are you parked?" I ask Owen.
"Around the back, why?"
"It is time to give the guy the slip the Stacey way," I say grinning.
"Explain," Owen says.
"Go to the bathroom and get your waitress to top his coffee up with scolding hot coffee," I say.
"Carry on, then?"
"I will give it the drunken gal routine," I say.
"Fuck it, Owen, it will work, I have seen her in action. Just get the coffee and vanish," Joseph says laughing.
"And you Mr., have about thirty seconds to get my car to the side exit," I reply.
"I will speak to you soon," Owen says.
"Bye for now," I say.
Owen walks toward the waitress and explains she has to give the hottest coffee she has ever made to the guy at the window. She nods and boils the water. I watch as she fills the jug. She makes her way through the tables toward the guy. The waitress catches her foot, her arms outstretched as she falls forward. The coffee jug hits the table and explodes into a shower of scalding incident. I shake my head in amazement as the guy is covered in steaming water.
"Quick, quick," I whisper.
I see the guy trying to wipe himself down, his coat steaming from the hot bath he has just been presented with. We climb into the car and quickly leave the parking lot, our car blending into the shadows. I see the guy looking left and right as he realizes we have all vanished into thin air.
We leave the outskirts of town, and Joseph flicks on the headlights. The highway before us is free from any traffic, there is no sign of life in any direction.
"Well then, marks out of ten?" Joseph asks.
"For what?" I reply.
"Our first date of course," he says smiling.
I nod. "Company excellent, the food was fantastic, and the entertainment was unexpected. Which gives a grand total of eight. It was a great first date," I say pulling on his arm.
Joseph wiggles his body being proud of himself. "I knew you would like it, not a ten?" he says.
"There was no sex, so an eight.”
Well, no one can say our relationship isn't spicy enough," Joseph says. “Sex in the restaurant could have been fun!”
"I wouldn't have it any other way," I say grinning.
"What time is it?" Joseph asks.
"Nearly eleven."
"Crap. I was hoping to go and see Ty about Bob on the way home. It will just have to wait until the morning," he says.
"I thought he was going up to see the bike gang tomorrow?"
"Damn, I forgot about that," he says.
"Don't panic, I will call Cally, she knows Bob. She has been in his pants you know, recently." I say.
Joseph snaps his head quickly toward me. "She has done what?" he asks.
I laugh. "It is not what you think, she had to borrow his jeans," I reply.
"I figured she had a bit of fun with Ty's worker," Joseph says.
"As if she would ever cheat on him. She loves him as much as I love you," I mumble.
"What did you just say?" Joseph asks.
"I said. Cally loves Ty nearly as much as I lo..." I start to say flicking the dial to “S” mode.
My m
outh utters the words, “love you” to Joseph, but the noise of the turbos drowns out the sound. I flick the switch back.
"You will have to repeat it," he says.
I shake my head from side to side. "Nope, I should only have to say it once," I say calmly.
"Ah well, and there was me thinking you were saying you love me," Joseph says grinning.
I slap his arm. "You pig, you heard me the first time," I say.
"Well, I am not sure about you, but we may just as well head back to the hotel."
"I agree with you, I think we have seen most of the excitement for tonight," I reply.
"I thought you were going to call Cally?" he asks.
"Sorry, not tonight Josephine!” I slur playfully. I think that’s a famous line from somewhere. He laughs.
I dial Cally's number, she answers the phone. "Hey Stacey, where are you?" she asks.
"We have been out of town on a date," I emphasize.
"Just quickly, are you at home tomorrow?"
"Yes, I am at home ‘till about three," she replies.
"Joseph needs to speak to Bob, and we know Ty is up in the hills," I say.
"Sure, just come at any time," Cally replies.
I hang up the phone and turn my head toward Joseph, "There you go, are you satisfied, Sir?" I ask.
He grins. "I am satisfied… for now!"
“It’s all in the detail.”
Joseph
“Apparently, it’s exhilarating!”
The roller shutter door opens for the garage, I slowly pull the car inside, and the dark, shadow-ridden corners of the garage are burned into brightness by the powerful headlights on the car.
We unbuckle our seatbelts and climb into the dark, murky atmosphere of the garage. The entrance sign flickers over the door to the stairs. As we walk through the garage, I hear the sound of the motor cooling then the shrinking and creaking of performance machinery from under the car’s hood.
I open the door, and we take the stairs to the apartment, the private staircase securing us from the outside world. Stacey punches in the code, the door opens, and we make our way into the living room.
Wet Wednesday (The Billionaires Temptations Book 3) Page 15
