Seduction and Lies

by Donna Hill

  The startling declaration from her grandmother had rocked Danielle to her core. She knew that she was different, that her mother and father were different from each other. It had never occurred to her that those differences had affected how the family viewed them, her grandmother in particular.

  But those words stuck with Danielle and she began to see things that she hadn’t seen before, or at least hadn’t paid attention to. There was a time when she was out with her father in the supermarket. Her father had taken her hand and a woman strode right up to him and asked what he was doing with that little girl. He explained that she was his daughter. The woman looked from one to the other in blatant disbelief.

  When she was out with her father they always got strange looks, but until that conversation with her grandmother, Danielle had never really noticed.

  Then there were those rare occasions when they went to Atlanta to visit her father’s family. Her cousins would always tease her, pull her long hair and insist that she thought she was better than them. Invariably she wound up playing by herself. When her mother would ask her about it, she’d simply say that was what she wanted to do.

  When her father would ask her to accompany him somewhere she began making excuses not to go.

  As she moved into her teens and her natural beauty intensified, the distance between her and her father widened. She would look at him and feel ashamed.

  Memories from her childhood haunted her, and there were many nights she lay awake next to Nick and wondered if what she felt for him was real or just easy.

  Danielle heard Nick move from the workroom to the kitchen just as the CD was coming to an end.

  She popped out the CD and closed the cover of her laptop just as Nick walked back into the room. The success of TLC hinged on its secrecy. It was a rule that was not to be broken.

  “I thought you were resting.” He tugged his T-shirt over his head and walked toward her.

  “I was just making some notes for tomorrow.” She forced a smile and palmed the CD, pushing the thoughts of her past into the background.

  “What’s that?”

  “What?”

  He jutted his chin in the direction of the CD. “That. In your hand.”

  “Oh, just a CD.” She shrugged, hopped off the bed and dropped it in her purse.

  She turned toward him. “Finished with the photos?”

  “Yeah,” he said absentmindedly. He slowly shook his head, then looked directly at her. “Are you seeing someone else?”

  Chapter 7

  “He actually asked you if you were seeing someone?” Savannah asked in disbelief. She lifted the cup of iced herb tea to her lips and took a sip.

  “Yes. Would I make up something like that?” She took a long swallow of her mango and pineapple smoothie.

  She’d called Savannah first thing in the morning after Nick had gone off to set up the shoot and had asked to meet at The Shop.

  “What did you tell him?” She buttered her wheat toast.

  “The truth! He kept insisting that I’ve been acting strange lately, and he’s getting the feeling that he doesn’t know who I am anymore. If it’s like this now, what’s going to happen once I get involved in the assignment—whatever the hell it is.”

  “Take it easy. Everything is going to be fine.”

  “I don’t want to ruin my relationship over this. I haven’t even started yet and it’s already putting a strain on us.”

  “You won’t have to. Nick is a great guy. He’s not going to leave you.” She paused for a moment. “Do you want to back out…because if you do, I’m sure Jean can find someone else.”

  “No.” She reminded herself of all the reasons why she needed to do this. “When have you ever known me to back out of anything?”

  “Are you sure?”

  She hesitated for a moment. “Yes,” she said on a long breath.

  Savannah reached across the table and covered Danielle’s hand. She looked into her friend’s troubled eyes. “The only thing I can suggest, girlfriend, is to make it up to that man every chance you get.”

  Danielle half smiled at the innuendo.

  “I have some stunning news myself.”

  “What?”

  “My mother is getting married.”

  Danielle’s dark brows shot upward. “Get. Outta. Here,” she said, defining each word. “To Bernard?”

  Savannah nodded slowly and took a bite of her toast. “I was so stunned I’m not sure I even congratulated her. She’s only known him a couple of months. It’s crazy.”

  “Wow” was all Danielle could manage. She had yet to tell Savannah about Bernard and Nick attending the spa right across the street from the Cartel. That was a sticky little problem she would work out on her own. “Hey, your mom has plenty of sense. I’m sure she’s in love with him,” she offered.

  “I guess,” Savannah said, sounding unconvinced. “If the tables were turned, she’d have me on Oprah for some kind of counseling.”

  They laughed. Yes, that was something Claudia Martin would certainly do. When it came to her daughter, she was the definition of a lioness protecting her cub.

  “Be happy for her, sweetie. Your dad has been dead a long time, and your mother has been alone.”

  “I know. I’m sure that’s one of the reasons why she got involved with the Cartel in the first place—to fill those days and hours. It’s just…I don’t want her to be hurt. I mean, how much do we know about him anyway, other than the fact that he looks and sounds like Billy Dee Williams?”

  Danielle twisted her lips. “That’s true. But again, Claudia is a savvy woman. She’ll be fine.” She checked her watch. “Ouch, I gotta go before I have more explaining to do.”

  Savannah finished her tea. “Me, too.”

  They left the money on the table for their minibreakfast and stood.

  “When do you start your training?” Savannah asked as they walked outside.

  “I got the CD and went over it again this morning while Nick was in the shower. I start this evening.”

  “Great. You need a cover story for Nick?”

  “We’re not actually speaking at the moment. So I don’t think I’ll need one. He said he was going to stay at his apartment tonight.”

  Savannah could see the cloud of sadness around Danielle’s eyes. “I didn’t know he still had his place.”

  “Yeah. Even though he has most of his stuff at my place and we’re together every night, he never gave up his spot in the Village.” She laughed without humor. “Guess it was a good move on his part, huh?”

  “It may seem awful at the moment, but let it work in your favor. Know what I mean.”

  “True. Well, let me get going.” She kissed Savannah’s cheek. “Oh, I forgot to tell you. I got the Michael Preston account. I’ll be photographing his entire fall line.”

  Savannah’s mouth opened to a perfect O. “Girl! Why didn’t you tell me? Now that is major news.” She grabbed Danielle in a quick hug. “Congratulations.”

  Danielle smiled a real smile for the first time that morning. “I’m excited.”

  “You should be. We must celebrate. As soon as Mia gets back.”

  “Definitely.”

  “Okay, gotta run. Love ya, girl, and don’t worry.”

  Danielle finger-waved as Savannah got in her car. She turned in the opposite direction and walked the half block to reach hers.

  She would find a way to make this all work, she decided as she got into her vehicle. She would do her job, manage the Preston account, do her Cartel thing, win back her man and fry up some bacon while she was at it.

  Danielle smiled to herself as she put the SUV in gear. After all, I am woman, she thought, before dramatically slipping on her designer shades and pulling out into traffic. Hear me roar.

  All things considered, the day on location went by relatively smoothly. Nick was polite and professional, if a little indifferent.

  Danielle caught him looking at her several times when he thought she wasn’t wa
tching, and she caught the look of longing and maybe a bit of sadness around his indigo eyes.

  As much as she wanted to go over to him, wrap him in her arms and tell him how sorry she was, she knew it would be a bad move on her part. They would make up, he’d come back to her place and it would ruin her night of training.

  So, as much as it hurt her, she played the indifferent role as well.

  “Good day today,” Nick said as they packed up their gear.

  “Yes, very.” She kept her eyes focused on her camera as she placed it in the case.

  “So, uh, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Today’s a wrap, remember?”

  “Oh…right.”

  She watched his throat bob up and down as if the words were stuck there.

  She hoisted her carryall on her right shoulder. “Guess I’ll see you…next week.”

  “Yeah…I guess,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

  She turned to leave, her eyes burning and her heart pounding. A part of her wanted him to come after her, tell her he was coming home. The other part of her dreaded it, knowing what it would mean. She lifted her head a notch higher and walked to her vehicle.

  Danielle arrived at the brownstone without incident and spent the next two hours with Margaret learning the intricacies of the surveillance equipment. Cameras were not an issue, so they were able to bypass that lesson.

  Margaret had her set up the magnetic listening devices in several of the rooms. Then Margaret went to see how well they’d been placed and how good the transmission was.

  “You catch on very quickly,” Margaret said as she placed the dime-size receiver back in the box.

  “Thanks.”

  “You may or may not need to use these, but it’s always an excellent skill to have.” Margaret opened another compartment in the makeup case and took out what looked like a manicure set. In actuality, it was burglary tools.

  For the next half hour, Margaret showed her how to open different types of locks without detection on a set of doors that were installed for that purpose down in the basement of the brownstone.

  “It’s all about touch,” Margaret said as Danielle worked the razor-thin tools in the lock. “Concentrate and remember to press your fingertips around the lock. You can feel the tumblers move. Very similar to breaking into a safe,” she said matter-of-factly.

  Danielle stole a glance over her shoulder and looked at Margaret’s serene expression, waiting for her to say she was only kidding. But she could tell by the even set of her lips that she wasn’t. She turned back to the task at hand, and several moments later the door clicked open.

  Danielle stood, turned to Margaret and beamed in delight.

  “Excellent. A few more tries and you can get it under a minute. That’s the goal,” she added with a wag of her finger. “One last thing before we end the lesson for today.” She led Danielle back upstairs to the computer center on the top floor of the four-story building.

  Danielle was blown away when Margaret opened the door to a room filled with the latest in computer technology. There was a digital map of the world on the wall with pulsating green lights highlighting different locations. Several women wearing headsets with microphones attached sat in front of large computer screens. The hum of electronics buzzed in the air. It looked like a room right out of a Mission: Impossible movie.

  “This is the nerve center of the Cartel,” Margaret explained as she gave her a short tour. “We can track any of our members, contact them at any time and keep a pinpoint on all of the ongoing cases anywhere around the world right from this room. In addition, any tracking device put on a vehicle or an individual is monitored from this room. It’s soundproof and all of the computers are programmed to self-destruct the information contained on the hard drives should that become necessary.”

  Danielle was impressed.

  “Our spyware is developed here as well.” She pointed to a woman who looked to be no more than twenty-five. “Jasmine is one of the techies who designed the ‘hello dolly’ virus that shut down Regency Airlines three years ago. Disastrous for the airline, but it was quite brilliant. She spent about a year in jail, but the government felt she would be much more effective working for us than for them.” She walked over to Jasmine and introduced her to Danielle.

  “She is our newest recruit but is on a fast-track training regime. I need you to show her how to install one of the keystroke viruses on the computer and how to connect her audio and video recorders to come up on her PDA and her personal computer.”

  “Sure thing. Have a seat.”

  “I’ll see you in about an hour,” Margaret said and left.

  Jasmine was not only brilliant but also funny, and she had Danielle cracking up about some of the antics she’d pulled on the computer.

  “Where did you learn all this stuff?” Danielle asked as she plugged in her PDA to the computer with a USB cable.

  “I think I was born with a love for gadgets,” she said, pushing her thin, wire-framed glasses farther up the bridge of her narrow nose. “I’ve been taking things apart for as long as I can remember. Electronics fascinate me.”

  Danielle looked at the screen on her PDA and was thrilled to find a live video of the inside of the very room they were in.

  Jasmine grinned. “I think you’ve got it.”

  Danielle bobbed her head in delighted agreement.

  On the drive home she went over all the things she’d learned in one evening. She was sure there was much more to it, but at least she had the basics. She’d do more reading at home and watch the second CD that she’d gotten from Margaret on her way out.

  At least she could stay busy and keep her mind occupied and off Nick.

  The mere mention of his name in her thoughts made the muscles in her stomach clench. She missed him already, and it could only get worse before it got better.

  When she walked into her apartment, the familiar sound of Nick’s off-key singing and the scent of some thing scrumptious in the air were missing.

  A wave of sadness washed over her. Since she’d allowed herself to believe that she actually deserved a happy relationship, she’d let Nick into her heart, her spirit. That was something she’d avoided for much too long of a time, and for reasons that she didn’t want to even think about.

  She had relationship issues, she knew that. How could she truly love anyone else when she didn’t love herself? Sure, she went through the motions with the men she’d met. Most, if not all, were always attracted to how she looked. She’d become so jaded by it that she treated men the same way. Good looks and great sex—that was all she needed or wanted. But Nick’s love and patience were slowly beginning to climb over the walls she’d erected around her emotions. And that scared her. It had been so long since the wall went up that she had no idea what was on the other side any more, or if there was anything worth finding. And that was why this assignment was so important to her, even at the risk of damaging her relationship with Nick. She had something to prove to herself, that she was so much more than an image. And Nick’s words of ado ration and support were not enough. She must discover it for herself if she was to ever be the woman that he deserved.

  Slowly she walked through the empty apartment. She could almost feel his presence, smell his scent. She went into the bedroom, tossed her things on the bed and followed right behind them.

  What if he didn’t come back? she thought, the rush of misery running over her like an unwanted icy shower. There had to be a quick way out of this mess she’d gotten herself into. The truth of the matter was, she wanted her cake and she wanted to eat it, too.

  The phone rang, jerking her up from the bed. She scrambled across the mattress. If it was Nick, she was going to tell him to come home—no matter what. Maybe she’d even say the L word if that was what it took.

  She snatched up the receiver and calmed herself because she didn’t want to sound too eager. “Hello?” Her heart pounded.

  “Danielle, please.”


  Her spirits shrank to a level right below the bottom of the soles of her shoes.

  “Speaking.”

  “This is Jean Armstrong.”

  Danielle sat up straight on the bed. “Yes, Ms. Armstrong.” She cleared her throat.

  “I just concluded my meeting with Margaret and Jasmine. I understand that you did extremely well.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Better than any new recruit we’ve seen in quite some time.”

  Her brows rose. “Really?”

  “As a result I’d like you to stop by tomorrow and pick up your kit. You will be given the instructions about your assignment at that time. Come whenever it’s convenient for you.”

  “Are you saying that I don’t have to do any more training?”

  “At some point you will, but for the purposes of this assignment you have a very good handle on what you will need to get it done. You see, dear, what we rely on more than technology from our Cartel members are determination and ingenuity. You have both.”

  “Thank you. That means a great deal.”

  “Tomorrow, then. Welcome to the Cartel.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Oh, and by the way, Danielle, it was a brave thing you did to allow Nick to go back to his apartment. Not many women would be willing to risk that. Actually, it was the deciding factor in allowing you to join us.”

  “W-what,” she sputtered. “How could you know that?”

  “Believe me, my dear, I know everything. And always remember that Cartel members don’t have a label on their foreheads. They look just like me and you. That’s the whole point, isn’t it? Rest well. And not to worry, he’ll be back.”

  The next thing Danielle knew the dial tone was humming in her ear. Dreamlike, she hung up the phone.