Page 28 of Dangerous Vengeance

The car pulls up near the side of the building. There are no spots out front for a convenient getaway if something happens. There isn’t anything we can do about that short of having Rome circle the building. If he does that and we need a fast break but he’s around the block we’re screwed, so he stays put fifty paces from the door.

“You ready?” I ask her and she bites her lip and nods. I slide out first, holding the door open for her. I glance around; her source may be watching now. It’s been so long without contact; she may be a target. That’s why I have my single-shot, 3D printed gun on me. I can’t take a real weapon through security, so it’s my only option.

I hold my elbow out and Natalie grips it as she walks beside me. We approach the door casually. I can tell she’s nervous. She’s stiff. I, however, am completely relaxed. This is far from the most dangerous or risky thing I’ve ever done. I’m not on anyone’s watch list; there are no warrants out for my arrest, and if they search me, they’ll never find the weapon wedged into my boot.

The door slides open, and we step in. Natalie is like a breath of fresh air. Her bright, warm smile seems to change the room. The security guard looks up in surprise and stands to greet her as we approach the turnstiles and metal detectors. Natalie searches her bag and produces the badge and I square my shoulders, bracing for any confrontation that may happen.

“Hey, Mike, how’s it going?” She hands him the badge and waits for him to scan it. “I have a friend today. He’s an important source for a story I’m writing. I need to interview him in our secure room.” Her toe taps nervously. I see it’s her tell, but I don’t know how well this Mike guy knows her.

“Hmm… Ms. Yates, you haven’t been in for a while.” He eyes her cautiously. You heard about Sheffield?” Mike—a six-foot-three Black man with stern features and graying hair, hands the badge back to her.

“I did…” Her voice grows somber. “It’s just awful. I was in St. Petersburg and heard about it. His poor wife and kids.” Her voice cracks. It’s real emotion. She really cared for the man, and Mike must have also. I see his eyes glistening. I feel nothing. Sheffield was a cog in a much larger machine that needed to be removed before the entire thing broke down. If it was his first offense, I’d have let him off the hook. But he had it coming.

“Guess the bigwigs are getting a new guy in. For now, Lucy is in charge.” He pulls out a clipboard and a pen and thrusts it out toward her. “Sign him in.”

Natalie glances at me and looks nervous for a second. Her brow furrows and she bites her lower lip. If Mike sees her squeamish, she will blow our cover. “I’m not sure how to spell your name. Do you mind?” she asks, pushing the clipboard at me.

“Of course,” I say with my best Russian accent. I’ve heard it so many times it comes naturally, though I was raised here with a strong American accent. I don’t know much Russian either, just enough to get by.

I scrawl a fake Russian name on the paper and sign my name and hand it back to Natalie who fills in a few other parts of the sheet and scrawls her name. She hands the clipboard back to Mike and he gestures. One by one we go through the turnstiles and then the metal detector. The detector chimes when she walks through, and she lightly touches her barrette.

“Sorry, Mike… I forgot. I picked this up in Russia.” She grimaces.

“It’s alright. Go on.” Mike gestures and she moves through.

So far our plan is going off without a hitch. When we catch a ride in the elevator, Natalie squirms, tugging at the hem of the suit coat. She shoves her badge back into the bag and rolls her head around a few times.

I stare at the number panel until the “three” button is illuminated. It makes sense why our guys never found the laptop. It wasn’t the second floor at all. She leads me out into some chaos and shouting. The sound of printers swishing sheets of paper through the ink jets greets us. People look up and offer surprised expressions as I follow her across the room.

Natalie leads me straight to a small cubicle near the far wall. Her desk overlooks a boring view of buildings and flag poles. A thin layer of dust coats everything, including her laptop which is shut but plugged in. She busies herself stuffing it and the cable into her bag while I watch the reaction of her coworkers. A few talks in hushed whispers but one approaches. A blonde woman with a pointy nose and just as pointy heels.

“Yates, where the hell have you been?” Her voice is shrill, and I get the feeling that she’s a superior.

Natalie bristles and scowls, not yet having turned to see the woman. She glares at me and her nostrils flare as she turns around to face the coworker. “I’ve been in St. Petersburg out of contact. My phone got lost in transport.”

The blonde woman is out for blood. She looks like the type of woman who has a stick up her ass about everything. Her suit is so tight the buttons bulge along the front, and I swear her eyes are black as sin. “You’re supposed to check in. We give you this position and you don’t even follow rules.”

“How was I supposed to check in, Lucy? I was overseas with no phone. I’m here now. I’m just getting my laptop and I’m going to interview my source.” Natalie hangs her bag on her shoulder again and holds her ground. “Besides, you didn’t give me this position. Sheffield did, rest his soul.”

The blonde takes a huge breath and glares at me, looking me over from head to toe. “What story are you working on? You haven’t even officially been assigned anything.”

“I’m writing an exposé. Sheffield approved it verbally. He was killed the night I left. I can’t say any more until I have interviewed my source.” As she finishes, she nods at me and I nod at the blonde and smile.

To her credit, she covers very well. I thought she had no poker face at all, but this little vixen knows her stuff. Maybe it’s me she has no ability to hide from. Maybe I just see through her charade and tempt her into the open so well she doesn’t want to hide, but this bitch–Lucy? —seems to get her juices flowing in a very negative way. I like this side of Natalie. It reminds me of the way she fights me when we fuck. And that makes my dick twitch.

“Fine. You have seventy-two hours to produce something worth printing. If not, you’re fired. I already have approval from the top.” Blondie crosses her arms over her chest and smirks. “Good luck.”

I’d like to smack the smirk right off her face, but it’s not my place. Natalie huffs, tightens her grip on the bag and walks away. I nod at Lucy and offer a firm smile, then follow Natalie, tapping my cane as I go. I hear the click of her shoes and follow that, pretending to be blind. If anyone is really watching, they may detect that I’m not, so I make an obvious mistake, turning when she hasn’t.

“Fuck’s sake,” she whines, and I hear her approaching. “This way,” she says, hooking her arm around mine.

She leads me to the elevator again and I notice her body is even more tense. She’s doing such an amazing job; I may just fuck her in the car on the way home. I never thought she’d play the part so well. And we’re almost finished.

“Want me to carry it?” I ask, but she shakes her head. I stand just ahead of her in the elevator watching the numbers again. She sighs and covers her face. I barely see it out of the corner of my eye, but I notice. She’s feeling the stress of it. I pat the front of her thigh. “It’s almost over, Natalie.”

When the bell dings, she hooks her hand around my arm again and we walk out of the carriage and across the foyer toward security. All we have to do is get to the car and send the laptop to Lenny and this nightmare is over. Natalie and I will have conversations about her so-called friends and the backup plan, which I am convinced more than ever is just a lie. But my gut won’t suffice. Dominic will want proof, and between Lenny’s tech skills and Natalie fessing up to the lie—which I will make her—I’ll get that proof.

“All done, Mike,” Natalie calls. She walks through the metal detector and the turn style quickly, stutter stepping as she waves at the older man. I follow, but the strangest thing happens as I step through the detector. It chimes, just like it did for her on the way up.

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