1

 

           Lena stared out the window and sighed, it was her second week on the job with the agency and even with all her training and experience they still treated her like a child. She was the youngest female on the payroll but there was only one other person than her that was in their late 20’s. Of course he was born into the agency had seniority and he was her partner. She grumbled and laid her head on her arms. So far she’s been shot at several times, gotten reprimanded for blowing up a building. Totally not her fault it was a gas leak and the idiot that shot at her blew things up. She walked around the room, which served as her bedroom and office and stared at the crumbling plaster walls. Things were strange for her since she left the force, her current job was like a cross between secret agent and drug enforcement agent, but the agency was simply known as that The Agency. She rolled her eyes and stared at the newspaper clippings on the desk, her last case involved a sister of one of the biggest drug dealing families in the country and she Lena Caine killed the one and only daughter and sister in the family, well a sister that was of blood, there could be a few more illegitimate daughters running around. That’s why Lena was put on house arrest and her partner was even more of a jerk because he had to play babysitter. She decided to go down to the common room if there’s nothing to do she may as well slum it and hang out with the crew.

            She reached the common room and stopped short, there were more people here than she thought and her partner was there too. He looked at her and scowled then completely ignored her. Gerald Alexander Taylor, everyone called him Tripp, he was 28 and not much else was known about where he came from. She knew he was an orphan and that Biesel found him and raised him as his own. Biesel was the head of the agency and still is to this day. So Tripp grew up in the agency and since his last partner died tragically they paired Lena and Tripp up. He wasn’t thrilled with the idea and has been a pain in Lena’s a*s ever since she joined.  He was handsome though and she couldn’t deny her attraction to him, he was part Native American and that showed in his face. He had high cheekbones and a broad jaw. His hair was long and wavy, the color of darkest night, his eyes were hazel and penetrated you to the core. His skin was pale as china though and just as flawless. He had full lips, which always seem to be pouting or scowling, he was the very picture of what every teen girl liked in a guy, sexy, artistic, dangerous and full of angst, a total bad a*s. She realized she was drooling and staring at him like an adolescent girl. Lena shook her head and looked for a chair to sit on. She chewed her lip again and realized the only available seat was next to Tripp. Damn it, she flopped down and stared at the movie. She heard him take a sharp intake of breath and then growl. Her stomach convulsed and pulled tight, she looked at him out of the corner of her eye and saw he was glaring at her. Well even that scowl and growl were sexy, why did I have to be paired with a sexy bad boy, she thought.

            “Hello my kiddies I see we’re being productive today.” A musical voice yanked Lena out of her sordid thoughts and she smiled. Vivian Brecken was the momma of the agency while Biesel was the father. Vivian was in her late 60’s but still looked as if she were in her 40’s. Her black hair had streaks of gray in it and her creamy skin looked like it glowed. She raised Tripp and she was the only one he would show any sort of kindness towards. She placed a manicured hand on his shoulder and kissed his forehead. He smiled and Lena stared at him mesmerized.

            “What are you staring at Lee?” he scowled at her and went back to staring at the TV, watching the cartoon troll run through woods with a talking donkey. Well this was one of her favorite movies but he was ruining it for her. She sulked and sank down further into the squishy cushions of the couch.

            “Lena darling don’t slouch it’s bad for your posture and Gerald honey don’t be such a sourpuss. I swear you two bicker like an old married couple.” She smiled and they both stared at her in horror. She cupped their chins and kissed each of them. “Now turn off that movie kids I have a mission for you.”

            “But she is on house arrest and therefore since I have to baby sit her I’m not allowed to go out in the field either. Unless, you’re giving me a new partner, someone that isn’t completely useless.” He turned towards her and smirked with a cold glint in his eyes. Lena could feel her blood boiling and was trying not to slap him but she was losing this battle with herself.

            “YOU ARE SUCH A F*****G JERK!!!” she stood up and threw a pillow at him as hard as she could, she would have preferred something hard that could have hurt him but it was the only thing on hand to throw. She heard him start to laugh at her that infuriated her even more but she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked at Vivian. Vivian gave her shoulder a squeeze and smiled.

            “Now children if you can behave yourselves I will explain.” She pulled Lena back to the couch and sat her down next to the sulking Tripp. Then she pulled up a chair and sat in front of them.  Adjusting her silk shirt cuffs and playing with the gold bracelet on her wrist, she was nervous this must be something big. “The Van Bastians have made a move and have sent us an ultimatum, we refuse to yield to their threats but we need to make a move and try to gather some intelligence.” She paused and played with the gold chain around her neck. She was really nervous this wasn’t good.

            “Mother please just tell us what we have to do I hate seeing you fret like this, if it means turning her over to the Van Bastians I’ll gladly do it.” His eyes flashed with a passion Lena only saw when he was on the job, she could feel her blood pressure rising again and got ready to start yelling at him again but Vivian held up her hand to stall the fight that would have been another world war three.

            “Gerald we are not turning anyone in and we are not going to start arguing like preschoolers.” She glared at them both and they kept their comments silent. “Now we need Lena to go undercover as a call girl and try to seduce Bobby. He has a drug problem and shoots up heroin and takes oxycontin on a regular basis. You will be going undercover at his momma’s bar, now Bobby only goes for rich women who are less than intelligent.” She glared at Gerald because he was smirking and then he put on a straight face. “As I was saying Lena we will send you in but you will be wired to Gerald and the agency if anything should go wrong, it is a very dangerous situation because Bobby will drug his women and he has been known to stick his dirty needles into his victims. We are working on trying to find out about whether he has any diseases or not. I’m sorry Lena but you’re the only one who is young enough to pull this off.” Lena stared at Vivian with horror in her eyes and even Tripp looked paler than usual. Vivian pulled Lena close to her and hugged her. Then walked away and motioned for Tripp to follow her. Lena stood there dumbfounded and then stared at the ground. Her biggest fear could come true tonight, when she was on the force her fear was to be stabbed by a dirty hypodermic needle. That seemed to be Bobby’s fetish and he got off on it, this was going to not end well.

            “Oh and Lena dear Sumyi will be with you in a few minutes to get you outfitted and to give you some pointers.” Lena felt tears pooling in her eyes and saw pity in Vivian’s eyes. Tripp was rigid and there was something in his eyes she couldn’t place. Lena watched as they left the room, she blew her hair out of her eyes and stared at her reflection in the window.  She was not drop dead gorgeous but pretty in her own way, she was average build with dyed black hair, and pale skin, her eyes were her crowning glory though various shades of blue, blue-green around the iris fading out to a blue-gray color and then a dark blue on the edge of her eye. She had several pieces of body jewelry and several tattoos.  She wasn’t a typical police officer and she didn’t follow the rules of the police game, the good old boys were found to be as corrupt as a politician. That is how the agency found her; they found her nearly dead and at the end of her sanity. She was left in a gutter to die after being shot several times by a group of local gang members. There was no backup coming to help her and no one knew she was there except for the agency. She had taken a chance to go after the people who killed her parents and almost paid for it with her life. They shot her and then injected her with enough heroin and LSD to kill her. She lay in the gutter on that rainy April night dying and dreaming of ghosts of the past.

            “You get ready now and I talk you through steps on how to act.” A sharp voice cut through her thoughts and Lena shivered as she thought of that night. Sumyi stood in front of her with a pair of high heels and a piece of cloth. “Strip now we need to get you dressed.” She was a harsh woman and had her own sordid past. Her English was broken but she wasn’t known for her mannerisms in speaking. Lena stripped her sweats off and stood there looking at her body and the scars from the bullet wounds. “Stop that, you be ok now, put dress on and then we find place for holster.” Sumyi thrust the black piece of cloth at Lena and the girl stared at it. Sumyi tapped her crimson talons on the wall with an impatient air.

            “This is a dress? It looks like a friggin towel!” Lena put the dress over her head and tried yanking it down it was too short and her a*s kept hanging out and her breasts kept showing n****e. “Sumyi I can’t wear this I can’t even wear a bra with this!” the Korean woman tsked in her throat and yanked the dress into place. Then she grabbed a corset and laced Lena up, Lena gasped as things were pushed where they shouldn’t have been and she was squeezed and tucked like a tuna. “Sumyi is this necessary I can’t breathe.” Lena tried to take a breath and felt a pain in her side.      

            “Not mean to breathe, you look trampy now, put on fishnets and heels.” Sumyi flung some fishnet stockings at Lena and tossed a pair of stiletto heels at her feet. Lena groaned and was ready to protest again but Sumyi glared at her. “Now you put holster where guy won’t find it, he should not be touching there anyway.” She strapped a holster to the inside of Lena’s thigh and made sure there were enough ammo cartridges for her. Lena stared at her reflection and muttered.

            “Sumyi they are going to recognize me my tattoos aren’t covered and well my hair is the same.” Sumyi pushed Lena down on to the couch and grabbed her makeup kit. Oh duh I should have thought of makeup, Lena mentally slapped herself.

            “Green contacts in eyes and give you red wig we need to cover tattoos with makeup and you wear this jacket to help keep concealed.”  After 15 more minutes of being yanked, plucked and stuffed Lena was ready to go. She felt raw and irritated the gun was uncomfortable and her dress kept riding up in the back. Finally Sumyi threw some double-sided fashion tape on the dress to keep it from riding. Lena was getting the final touches put onto her disguise and the wires hidden when she heard a whistle from the doorway.  She turned and almost went spiraling in the heels she saw Tripp in the doorway in his disguise, he looked more like he was going to a party than play chauffer. He was wearing a pinstripe three-piece suit, emerald green silk shirt and a blood red tie. His hair was brushed back and slicked with pomade. He had donned a fake tan and stubble along with a goatee. She felt her jaw drop and heard Sumyi chuckle, she straightened up and lifted her chin and glared at Tripp. Yeah ok so he looks hot when he isn’t being an arrogant jackass, she thought to herself. He continued to stare as well and then shrugged, it was like he was saying, yeah-ok fine you look hot but I’m over it.

“Let’s move it Lee I’m already bored with watching you prance around like hooker Barbie.” He threw his jacket over his shoulder and started walking out the door. Lena gritted her teeth and stomped over to him and slapped him in the back of the head and then kicked him in the shin. He glared at her and rubbed his shin staring at her. “What the hell Lee? I don’t need this crap from you; I can just say screw it and let you go in there alone. You know what screw you; I hope Bobby does get what he wants from you. Then I wouldn’t have to baby sit you anymore rookie.” There was heat in his eyes and his words stung Lena as if he slapped her back. She fought back tears and he saw that he might have gone too far. He sighed and grabbed her arm, “Let’s go Lee we need to see the tech guy for our radios before we go.” He dragged her down the stairs and Lena later didn’t even remember walking down the stairs to the lab. She was numb and hurt from what Tripp said and the look in his eyes just confirmed he meant it. Lena sniffed and held her head up high, if she made it out of this tonight she was going to talk to Biesel to see if she could get another partner, or even switched to a different job position. It was obvious Gerald Alexander Taylor did not want anything to do with her, and it was even more obvious he didn’t care if she lived or died. She stared at Tripp and noticed his jaw was clenched and his eyes had changed again. They came to the technology lab and he pulled her inside, she was pressed up against him and she could feel that he had on a vest. Lena looked away and could feel heat creeping up into her cheeks and then stomped on his foot for good measure. She walked into the sterile white room and looked around for George or Ally. She heard Tripp shuffle up behind her and he grabbed her arms and pressed himself against her. She could feel the flush start to crawl over her skin again. She could smell his cologne and also the smell of oiled leather from his holsters.

            “Lee, I’m sorry for what I said, but if you pull a stunt like that again I will shoot you myself!” He spun her around so fast she almost fell in her heels; again these stupid heels were going to have her end up flat on her a*s by the end of the night. Then he kissed her roughly and then flung her away. “Consider that to be the kiss of death my dear, next time you pull a stunt like that watch your back.” He disappeared into one of the rooms and Lena stood there chewing on her lip, what the hell was that? She stood thinking to herself and wondered if Tripp forgot to take his medication today.

            “Girl that was hot, if I were 15 years younger and not married to George I would be all over him like ugly on an ape.” Ally startled the girl out of her thoughts and smiled. Ally was the go to tech girl and everyone loved her even that crusty, stuffed shirt Tripp. Ally was 5’2” and built like a linebacker. She was part Irish and part Italian which meant she could drink like a frat boy and had a temper that exploded quicker than nitroglycerin. She had slanted brown eyes, flaming red hair, and dark skin with a smattering of freckles. She married George last year after Tripp blew up headquarters. They were expecting their first child and from the looks of Ally she was very pregnant but very happy.

            “Ally you look wonderful and how is the baby? Did you find out if it is a boy or girl?” Lena bent down as far as the bustier would allow her and rubbed Ally’s belly. “As for Tripp that wasn’t hot that was gross, you just find it hot because you’re pregnant and probably hit your horny trimester.” Ally laughed and grabbed a pair of earrings and handed them to Lena.

            “We decided we don’t want to know the sex of the baby, and yes you’re right about being horny and pregnant but come on that man has some heat! Also from where I was standing it looked like he enjoyed it and you were enjoying it too. I don’t know girl I’m thinking there are some sparks between you two.” She stood back and fiddled with a remote, “Also there is a microphone and video camera in your earrings, I’ll give you the ear piece so you can hear Tripp talking to you. Mr. Steamy Dreamy make a girl all creamy.” Ally wandered off to her own little sordid world. Lena stared horrified at the other woman though.

            “Ally you’re insane the hormones are making you insane, kissing that man is like kissing a dead fish! Not sexy, no bad Ally bad! Also you’re not getting enough sleep what you saw wasn’t sparks it was me trying not to vomit.” Lena grabbed the earpiece and stuck it in her ear, she hated the earpiece but it was what saves her a*s if she should get in trouble. She looked at Ally and wrinkled her nose. “Testing, ok chief can you hear me? Earth to Ally! Stop thinking about doing nasty things to gross man.” Ally started giggling and gave Lena the thumbs up.

            “I can hear you loud and clear General Lee, now let’s see if George can hear you and see what’s going on.” Lena heard static in her ear and winced, stupid earpieces she really hated the earpieces.

            “I can hear you Lee, I can see Ally blushing like a school girl and we heard that whole conversation, Mr. Steamy Dreamy make a girl creamy better be me.” Lena groaned and rolled her eyes. The room seemed to get smaller by the minute and each minute they talk about Tripp being sexy made Lena want to lose her lunch.

            “Ok Ally I love you but I’m going this is just getting weird and creepy, and well kind of gross.” She hugged the other woman and said goodbye to the belly and staggered out into the hallway. She groaned because Lena knew she was going to have blisters on her feet and bruises on her side from the bustier. The hallway was cool and painted charcoal gray, the original brick work covered by industrial lighting and pictures of plants. Lena put her head on the brick and started banging her head, she really did not want to deal with Bobby or even think about what will happen if he found out whom she was.

            “Let’s go Lee we have a deadline and we’re not going to meet it if you keep beating up the brick.” Tripp’s voice was low in her ear and it was like silk over stones. She shuddered and sucked up her fear. Tonight was not going to be the end of her, even if she had to depend on Tripp to save her life. She stared at the man walking in front of her and started blushing again. Damn Ally and her outlandish ideas and hormones, all right Lena get yourself together. Lena gave herself a mental slap and a pep talk. She walked out into the night, which was warm, but she was chilled to the bone.

Reviews

[So sad to be forgotten]

Excellent Chapter

[Marie]

Hehe, love Tripp. Dunno why though.