Immaculate Spirit c1-242

by Newbiel

  Hans tried everything he could to keep his face neutral but he was taken completely by surprise and so failed miserably. His body lockdown in a fight or flight state, adrenaline coursing through his veins.

  "I believe you are mistaken, the culprit was a BMW executive who even pleaded guilty." Hans said weakly, his eyes darting everywhere around him to fight an escape route.

  "And curiously none of the money was found anywhere in his home or account. Don't try to escape Hans, I'm not a cop, I just want to talk with you." Nathaniel said calmly.

  "You know my name but I don't know yours."

  "My name is Nathaniel Lyndon." He gave a little smile.

  It's in that moment that Hans' brain finally gets why the person in front of him was so familiar.

  "I know you! I saw your movie, you are an american actor!" Hans almost shouted in realisation.

  "I was sure you were going to recognize me eventually, I saw your downloading history. You still could have gone to the theater to see it." Nathaniel said, displeased.

  "Bullshit! My system is secure!"

  "Well, you are an amazing engineer but I have someone with me who is way better than you in terms of coding. If you need more proof, I also know that you have a soft spot for red head with an ample bosom."

  Feeling his face heat up significantly, Hans chose wisely to change the subject.

  "What an american actor is doing in a sordid internet cafe in Germany? Why are you here to talk with me?" He asked.

  "Well that's an easy question to answer. You and me are quite the same deep down, we have a part of our life who is hidden and secret. The only reason why we are talking right now is because you did not keep even a cent from the five millions that you stole and god know that could have made your life easier."

  "Bah, who wants an easy life?" He said, definitely.

  "A man after my own heart." Nathaniel smiles warmly. "I want you to come working for me Hans."

  "In what capacity? I don't understand."

  "I'm just offering you the chance to keep doing what you are already doing but better and at a much bigger scale but I'm warning you. This is going to take everything you got. This will not be easy for you. You will start behind compared to the others." Nathaniel warns with gravity.

  "I'm not afraid of working hard. I'll accept." He said excitedly.

  "You should think about it before you do. The work will be in New York, you will need to move from Munich and this is going to be dangerous. You could end up hurt or even dead, you have friends and family." Nathaniel said seriously, his eyes stern.

  "I understand." Hand nodded, chastised.

  "Just take that letter and follow the instructions and you will find me. Think about it long and hard, it's not the kind of activity you should launch yourself without consideration." Nathaniel said, getting up.

  "I will." He nodded, deep in thought.

  "Goodbye Hans, I hope we will see each other next year." Nathaniel smiles, leaving the internet cafe behind him without even looking back.

  *****

  "Sweetie, you are working too hard." Karine said the next day while they were busy embarking in the jet.

  "I don't have a choice mom, we are pressed for time." Nathaniel answered.

  He had passed more than forty hours inside of a plane in four days. That was maybe why his mothers had insisted on coming with him on his european trip. Or they just wanted some time off from New York.

  "We always have a choice and now I'm going to decide for you. No work today, we are going to go visit your aunt in France. You were going to go there to pick the last member of your team, right?"

  "Yes.�� He sighed.

  "This is done then. Let's depart from here, I want to surprise my sister with a visit. I'm dying to see her face when she's going to see us on her doorstep." She said with a playful smile.

  That's when he heard someone shouting and running on the tarmac in their direction.

  Chapter 169: :

  Wiping the smile from his face, Nathaniel schools his face to look stern as Hans makes his way to them, running in the escalator.

  "Hey!" He said, smiling happily not bothered by the fact he was sweating heavily.

  "I told you to think long and hard about this decision Hans! Not to show in front of my plane eleven hours later!" Nathaniel rebuked.

  "I speak to my family to let them know I got the opportunity of a lifetime and I could not waste it away! They were understanding and told me to go for it, even if it is on the other side of the atlantic and on a different continent."

  Nathaniel was going to say something when his mother cleared her throat.

  "Sweetie." She said simply with a meaningful glance.

  "Alright, come in." Nathaniel said, sighing.

  "Yes! Where are we going? The US?" He asked excitedly, entering the jet with his suitcase.

  "No, we are going to France, Bordeaux I believe if my memory is correct?" Nathaniel said, raising a questioning eyebrow in direction of his mother.

  "Yes, close enough." She nodded, sitting back on the sofa near Mary.

  "You will not follow us as it is a family thing but I have more fun in store for you. Scott the moment we touch the ground, take Hans and make him run, push him the harder you can until he passes out."

  "Hey!" Hand shout.

  "Don't 'Hey' me Hans. You barely run for four hundred yard and you are already beat. You are not anywhere fit enough for any form of training. When was the last time you did anyform of physical training?" Nathaniel asked.

  "I believe it was High School and I had my suitcase while I was running, it's why I'm exhausted!"

  "Your suitcase has wheels, you were not carrying it. There is a shower in the room behind you, you should use it." Nathaniel advised.

  "And you should stretch too, you are going to need it." Scott jumps in the conversation with a sadistic smile.

  Taking clothes from his suitcase, Hans walks into the shower. He was starting to regret his choice. He never catches the smile that travels between Scott, Karine, Mary and Nathaniel, seeing him sulk.

  ******

  Saudi Arabia, Riyadh.

  Al-Istikhbārāt Al A'amah was the name of Saudi Arabia intelligence agency created in 1955. Since then it has become known for its implication in the Syrian conflict where they helped fragilize Bachar El Assad reign with the help of the CIA and the MI6. That agency had always kept a low profile in the international scene and it was by design. That lack of renown made them almost impossible to learn anything about them as they were answering to the royal family and only them.

  "You called me, you better have something new to give me." The Head of the organisation asked his agent.

  They were meeting in a secure location outside of the city, away from prying eyes and ears.

  "I do. I finally found out who was the person that Khalid Rahal kidnapped. Robert Amus Lyndon. A billionaire american, CEO of the Lyndon label." The agent said, sliding a file to his superior.

  "Well, they really have outdone themselves this time." He said, looking at the files in question.

  Khalid Rahal was well known for his service for a number of years. They were tools that they used often to give financial backing without being traced to them in various locations in the Middle East. It was also torn on his side but he could never do anything about them because the bastard was giving a lot of protection money to the royal family and they were beholden to the royal family.

  "What else do you get?"

  "Something interesting, while the man was captive, his personal jet landed in Riyadh the day prior and took off exactly five second before the two bombs exploded."

  "That's a very curious timeline indeed. Do we know who was in that plane?"

  "That's where it gets complicated, sir. We simply don't, the logs were tempered with, every camera in the airport was disconnected. This was done skillfully with not much time to plan. We also found the dead bodies of four security agents who were working at that time and had di
sappeared that same day."

  "Professional I see, that kind of skill is few and far between. The CIA?"

  "I checked with some of my informants and they assured me it was not them and I kind of believe them this time. They need our support right now more than ever, the State Department has still an interdiction to launch any kind of operation on our soil."

  "That makes sense. So who then? What country has that kind of trained and skilled people?"

  "Half a dozen at least and a majority of them don't like us very much, I'm afraid. But I may have a lead. The jet is the personal possession of the Lyndon family and with the head of the family away, it leaves us with those four that could have used it to come." The agent explains, sliding others files on the table.

  Looking through them attentively, he sighed.

  "So we have an old retired lady, a female executive of the company, a female prosecutor and a teenage popstar? None of them could have done it but I see where you are going with this. They must know something about the one who did."

  "Yes, sir." The agent bow with deference before taking a few steps back.

  "I will send one of our best agents to investigate them, I have the perfect person in mind." He nodded before leaving the place.

  Chapter 170: :

  "Karine? Mary!?"

  "Hi, little sister." Karine smiles, hugging her sister excitedly.

  "But how? Why?" She asked dumbfounded after being hugged by Mary.

  "What? You are not happy to see us?" Karine pouted jokingly.

  "Of course I am! I'm just surprised, that's all! You could have called to warn me!" She reproached.

  "What fun would be in that?" Karine smiles playfully.

  "So, there are only the two of you? Where is my nephew!?" She asked expectantly, looking behind them.

  "He was on the phone. Ah, he seems to be done, he's coming." Mary said, looking to the side.

  "Sorry, it was Maggie." Nathaniel excuses himself.

  "Is Maggie your girlfriend?" His aunt asked with a mischievous expression.

  Laughing, Nathaniel focused his attention on his aunt. She was almost a copy version of his mother with the same exact blond hair and blue eyes. The difference being that she had much longer hair than Karine. She was also a little shorter than Karine. Born from french father and american mother, both of them were fluent in english and french and both have dual French/American citizenship. But when Karine chose to stay in the US after being born, Muriel decided to make her life in France.

  "Oh no. She's my agent and I believe also the fruit of the union between a female dragon and a male boogieman." He said with humor, triggering a few knowing giggles from his mothers.

  "I never heard a more apt description of Maggie." Mary adds between fit of laughter.

  "Oh come on, she can't be that bad." Muriel laughed.

  "Yes she is and I'm really lucky to have her in my life. But still, I need to be back in New York by tomorrow night. I have an interview scheduled."

  "Are you really going to stand there and not even hug your old aunt?" She lifted a questioning eyebrow.

  "Sorry!" Nathaniel hurried to take his aunt in his arms.

  "You got so handsome! You must have girls throwing at you everywhere. I'm glad that you feel better, I did visit when I was in the US for the wedding, you were so skinny it was heartbreaking." She recalls with a sad smile.

  "I'm okay now, better than okay even." He smiled brightly at her.

  "Wow. Okay I get what you were saying when he smile sister. If I was not happily married and his aunt, I would probably hit on him after receiving a smile like that."

  "Auntie!" Nathaniel shouted horrified, his mother happily laughing at his discomfort.

  It was at this moment that his uncle chose to appear to save him. Seeing the husband of Muriel arriving, everybody starts to speak french. Even if Mary french was not that great, the english of his uncle was really atrocious.

  "I knew it was you Karine. There is only with you that Muriel becomes a little girl again." He smiled.

  "Cedric, I'm happy that you are here!" Karine said joyfully hugging him.

  After the round of hugging was finally over, Nathaniel took a moment to look at his uncle that he had never seen before. 5"11" with short brown hair and piercing black eyes, he was globally charming with an authoritative air around him and stern expression that was slightly undercut by the fact that he was smiling right now. He was also wearing a uniform and had a holster on his hips.

  "Uncle, I did not know that you were a cop!" Nathaniel said, surprised.

  "Come inside, do not start a talk outside." His aunt said, ushering them inside.

  Entering the house, He realized it was not opulent by any means and neatly organized. The interior was beautifully furnished and Nathaniel found himself liking it quite a bit. Passing the hallway, Nathaniel could see pictures of them framed, some old and other fairly recent. A picture shows the couple with a young boy around thirteen years old with brown hair and blue pale eyes. It must be his cousin that he had yet to meet.

  "I'm not a cop in fact but a Gendarmes." His uncle pointed out after they were seated with a drink in front of them. Nathaniel had not strayed from his original orange juice.

  "Gendarmes? What is it?" Nathaniel asked curiously.

  "Do you know anything about law enforcement in France?"

  "Absolutely nothing." Nathaniel answers honestly.

  "Fair enough." He laughed. "In France we have two law enforcement agencies. We have the Police who is a civilian institution and they are in charge of keeping the law in the cities as they are better suited for this. The Gendarmes on the other hand is a military organisation created in 1791 who are responsible to keep the law in the countryside and in the department outside of metropolitan France."

  "That is interesting. What is your rank?" Nathaniel asked curiously.

  "Usually when you become a Gendarmes, you are classified as a non-commissioned officer. me, I'm a captain." He said with a hint of pride in his voice.

  "That's impressive uncle." Nathaniel complimented nicely.

  "It's nothing. I got lucky and caught a huge ring of drug dealers in the south west and seized five hundred kilos of heroin. I earned a nice medal and a few commendations that got me on the short list for officer."

  "I can say it was a big catch but I learned that the more talented you are, the more lucky you get." Nathaniel added.

  "I never heard that one before." He said, an absent smile on his face, thinking about it.

  "I'm sorry that you missed Theo. He's on vacation with his grandparents in the Pyrenees. Do you want to stay and eat with us tonight?"

  "I don't think we will have the time." Nathaniel said hesitantly.

  "Sweetie." Karine called.

  "Yes, mom?"

  "When French people invite you to eat, you never say no. Ever." Mary answers, Muriel and Cedric a big smile on their face, watching the exchange.

  "Alright, we will stay for dinner. I will make it work." He sighed.

  Chapter 171: :

  It was a lot later than he intended in the first place when they left the house of his aunt and uncle but it was well worth it. He was glad that he listened to his mother's advice and stayed to eat. The food has been amazingly good and he never felt this full in his entire life. Somewhere inside of him, he wished he could just stay here and learn how to cook but he knew it was too late by now. He was committed to his life and his past decisions. Moreover, he was really an atrocious cook as it were. It was simply not one of his skills. Nobody could be good in everything.

  "I'm a little disappointed that you are leaving so fast." His uncle said sadly.

  "Sorry but I have a meeting that I have already delayed with someone I'm looking to hire for my company." He answers.

  "I didn't even know that you had your own company already. Who are you trying to hire in the south west of France?"

  "Lucie Lafite." He answers simply as he had no reason to hide it.

 
Hearing that name his uncle was so surprised that he stopped walking, prompting Nathaniel to do the same so that they could stay close to each other.

  "Lucie Lafite? Are you talking about the Lucie Lafite that I think?"

  "I believe so, yes." Nathaniel nodded.

  "You realize that her family owns more than half the production of wine in this entire region, right? She already is a millionaire at the age of twenty four and her family is worth billions of euros. Moreover, they are all extremely proud people. How are you going to convince her to come work for you, especially in the US?"

  "I guess I'm going to have to be really charming." Nathaniel smiles playfully.

  "How french of you." He answers, more than a little amused by his response.

  "Mom taught me everything I know so that's understandable. More seriously, I think I understand what is driving her and what her ambitions are. This will give me an edge in convincing her."

  "I agree. Do you know how you will reach her? They are notoriously difficult to meet."

  "I know, that's why I already have a meeting with her in an hour. I will have to leave fast if I hope to be there on time."

  "Yes, you should go. I was glad to finally talk with you, nephew."

  "Likewise, uncle." Nathaniel answers with a genuine smile on his face.

  Walking again, his uncle escorts him to their cars, the women's already there talking between themselves. Seeing the four security escorts, Cedric frowns perceptively, examining them with attention.

  "What's going on? Why so much security? I recall that your mothers are quite adverse to it." He asked in concern.

  "I can't tell you everything but there have been some threats made against us and the company so we had to tighten our security. I just hope that the threat will be on us and will not move onto you as well. I will hate to put you guys at risk, uncle." He said apologetically, dropping his eyes to the floor. He was not expecting at all to hear the laughter of his uncle as an answer.

  "You worry too much. We are living in a Gendarmerie controlled neighborhood. Everyone of these houses are the home of a Gendarmes and we are all looking up for each other. Nobody would be crazy enough to attack us here. And even if they were, they would be shot down immediately. I'm more worried about you three. Four people to defend you three does not sound like much."