Assassin Affairs (31 page)

“Take
the shot!”

“Maybe
it's not him.”

“Maybe
it is.”

“What
if it's the wife and what if she's the one paying us?”

“Let
me see,” Karlee said, looking through her binoculars. “It's
definitely a man, I think.”

Kris
nonchalantly fired off two more rounds at the approaching threats.
Two more figures fell down. “It's your contract; tell me what
to do.”

“We
need to be sure. Stay here. You've obviously got things under
control. I'm going in. By the way, nice job, Kris.” As she
disappeared into the night, she looked back over her shoulder and
said, “I'm impressed.” Kris could be heard firing off
another round.

With most
of the security team taken out, Karlee easily made her way into the
house. Some sporadic gunfire could still be heard outside as she made
her way to the upstairs window. As before at the Lieutenant
Governor's, her head was covered with a hood because of security
cameras. Still wearing her night vision goggles, she entered the
darkened room. A startled man turned around.

“Don't
shoot! I'm not armed.”

Karlee
confirmed it was her target and took the kill-shot. A second figure
appeared in the dimly lit area. She turned and took aim.

“Please
don't shoot me,” said the feminine voice.

Karlee
hesitated, then remembered what her sister had said about it maybe
being the wife who was paying for their contract. She determined
there was no point in killing the spouse this time, turned and ran
out of the room and exited the home, sprinting across the large lawn.
A few more shots could be heard as well as some approaching sirens.
She promptly rejoined her sister at the perimeter.

“I
think I got 'em all, sis,” Kris bragged. “I hated killing
the dogs, but it was them or us.”

“You're
a good girl, honey. Now let's get the frig out of here!”

It was
early morning when they arrived back at Kristie's house, once again
dressed in their everyday clothes. Randolph was waiting. He wasn't
the type to ask questions, but did have news.

“Your
agent called. You both got parts as extras in that movie!”

It was a
week later when the sisters left for Lake Geneva, a plush resort area
just across the state line in Wisconsin and home to many rich
celebrities, both famous and infamous. There were rumors that in
addition to some Fortune 500 CEO's summer homes there, certain
Chicago crime families could also be found.

There was
an air of excitement as everyone gathered for what was to be a
three-day shoot, with some of the big-name stars attending. One of
the locals had provided his own mansion for the filming. The
Executive Producer was about to address the group.

“Hello,
everyone. I'm the movie's Producer and my name is Peter. We ask that
you extras not bother the stars during the three-day shoot. There
will be lots of downtime between shots, so hopefully you each brought
a good book to read. As you know, this film takes place during
Chicago's bootleg era and is about an assembly of gangsters and their
girlfriends as the men meet to make plans for their future endeavors.
You will be provided with costumes from that time period. Please show
consideration for your fellow performers. We'll attempt to provide
you with breaks and food on a timely basis. This is the staff off to
my left. Familiarize yourselves with them, as they will be the ones
to help you with your questions, get outfitted and organized. That is
all.”

Peter had
been given the 'heads-up' by his associates in New York to keep an
eye on Karlee, as her audition had captured special attention.

Over the
next few days, everyone did prove to be most cordial. The sisters and
all the other extras had a memorable, fun time as they donned the
outfits, partook in the scenes, and made new friends. Some of the big
stars approached the more attractive young ladies who were most
awestruck by their presence, with some pairing-off together and
disappearing into trailers. During one of the breaks, Karlee chatted
with one of the young men.

“Hi,
my name's Bob. This is my first time as an extra.”

“I'm
Karlee. I'm kind of new to it, too. What do you do when you're not
busy being an extra, Bob?”

“I'm
a lawyer.”

“Too
bad. I guess no one's perfect. I don't have much use for attorneys; I
usually just kick their ass.”

“I
bet that makes you very popular in the legal community,” he
kidded.

“Ditto
bankers,” she added with an attitude.

“I've
sued bankers,” he said, trying to impress her.

“Really?
So have I. I used to be an attorney, too. I don't know how good a
lawyer you are, Bob, but I have noticed that you do have a great
butt.”

As Bob
struggled for an appropriate response, Karlee noticed a man approach
her sister. They were close enough that she could eavesdrop.

“Hi,
honey. I'm Sonny Sinclair. This is my home,” he informed her
with his Italian accent.

“Wow,
you have quite an amazing place here, Mr. Sinclair.”

Karlee
nearly gagged as she listened to his over-used pick-up lines. Bob
soon departed and she continued to listen to Sonny's banter for
another fifteen minutes while pretending to read her book. Meanwhile,
Peter was observing the whole thing.

Soon Sonny
stood up and said, “Kristie, let me give you a tour. There's a
lot of history here that you will find of interest.” He led her
out of the room, Karlee followed unnoticed. Peter followed Karlee,
also unnoticed.

The tour
ended upstairs. Karlee, concerned about her still somewhat naive
sister, peeked around a hallway corner as the couple entered a
bedroom and closed the door. She sensed it was like watching the moth
get enticed closer to the flame. A heavyset bodyguard stood outside
its door. Peter continued his own surveillance unseen.

Inside the
room, Sonny ogled the young woman. “It looks like you’re
gonna get what you wanted, sweet thing.”

“What's
that, Mr. Sinclair?” she asked in a childlike way.

When he
pushed her hand into his crotch, she suddenly realized how foolish
she had been. Stunned, she pulled her hand away. “Mr. Sinclair,
how dare you! I'm not that kind of girl, sir!”

He tore off
her skirt and tossed her onto the bed. She screamed out. Karlee made
her move to the guarded doorway.

“You'll
have to wait your turn, honey!” exclaimed the threatening
fellow.

She gave
him a swift and unexpected thrust of her knee. As he bent over in
pain, she put him in a choke hold, and then entered the room as he
fell unconscious. Kristie was on the bed nude from the waist down,
with her blouse and bra pushed up around her neck. The wicked
Sinclair was on the verge of penetration, with his trousers wrapped
around his ankles.

“Karlee,
help!” she cried out.

Karlee was
all over the man in an instant. As they struggled, she happened upon
a pistol hidden under one of the pillows. She and Kris ran for the
door. He tried to pursue, but fell down, tripping over his own pants.
Karlee returned and pushed the firearm firmly up against his neck.

“This
ends here, Mr. Sinclair, unless you look forward to castration! We
don't want you coming after us. If you do, this escalates to the next
level. Trust me, you don't want that. Do you agree?”

He nodded
yes and the sisters left the room, stepping over the bodyguard on
their way down the hallway.

“Why
didn't you cut off his balls
this
time?” asked Kristie.
“I liked that idea. And why aren't we calling the authorities?”

“We
don't want to end up in a situation like mom and dad had, do we?”

“Oh
yeah, I guess you're right,” Kris admitted, as they continued
down the hallway.

Peter
walked into the room and shook his head in disbelief. Having sensed
the potential for various problems, he had brought along his own
security team. They maintained control of the facilities as the
film-shoot wrapped that afternoon and everyone headed home, most
unaware of what had happened.

The next
day, Karlee's phone rang. It was Peter the producer.

“Karlee,
I was awestruck by your performance yesterday,” he declared.

“But
I didn't even have any lines in the movie, sir.”

“No,
not that performance, hon. New York told me earlier that they had
been most impressed by your audition and asked me to keep close tabs
on you, preferably without your knowledge. I did just that and saw
everything that happened upstairs when you discovered the assault, as
well as the way you handled yourself throughout the three day
session. We're preparing to start a new major movie about a young
woman, rogue government agent and her adventures saving the free
world. She'll have to be very fit physically and most adept at
handling herself under adverse circumstances. That's you. You're the
one we want to have star as the lead character. Are you interested?”

“My
sister and I are a package deal, sir. That's not negotiable.”

“Done!”
he promptly exclaimed. “We're still lining up financing for the
project, but expect to start production in the near future.”

Meanwhile,
Alexei was lining up other work for her, too. She went on several
missions that weren't of much consequence until one day when he
called with a special undertaking.

“Karlee,
one of the senior American diplomats has been kidnapped for ransom by
a small group of Middle Easterners. They are holding him, his wife
and kids as hostages on a fishing yacht in the Caribbean. We have
been engaged to deliver the payoff and secure their release.”

“Okay,
Alexei. What's the plan?”

“I've
worked with one of our agency contacts to get both you and your
sister included with a group of girls that have been hired to provide
an escort service for some of their comrades. You'll each have the
usual comm device concealed in your ear. Janine and I will come
aboard with the payoff after you two have ensured that the family is
alive and well. We'll be using a go-fast, or cigarette boat, in case
things go awry and we need to pursue them. Randolph will provide
additional cover from another yacht nearby. Several others will be
providing assistance.”

It was a
few days later when the half-dozen escorts boarded a boat at a pier
in Key West to take them to the yacht. Kristie looked over at an
adjacent boat to see Randolph watching inconspicuously. He winked at
her. The pick-up boat promptly delivered the young ladies at the
awaiting luxury craft. As the foreigners welcomed them aboard, their
demeanor made her skin crawl.

“You
ladies will make certain that these men are kept happy! Be sure that
their fishing lines are always baited and that their drinks are
always full. There is a changing room down below with your bikinis.”
He then turned around and resumed his conversation with the other men
in Arabic.

Karlee,
seized the opportunity to search the lower deck and determined where
the prisoners were probably located. Once all the girls were back on
deck, they were joined by the diplomat and his wife, with an armed
man accompanying the anxious looking couple. Both were middle-aged
and rather frumpy in appearance. The girls determined that the kids
were being kept secured in the lower deck area to keep the parents in
line.

Inspired by
the stories of the 911 terrorists drinking alcohol at the Florida
strip clubs, these men also ignored their religion's dictates.
“Girls, bring us some drinks!” ordered one of them with
his middle eastern accent.

As the
morning wore on, the sisters kept an eye out for other boats, hoping
to see Randolph's as well as one with Janine and Alexei.

“I
just love the turquoise color of this water,” marveled one of
the other girls as the warm, salty, sea-breeze blew gently against
her face.

“Oh,
look, there are some dolphins!” shouted out another.

As the
liquor flowed, the men became more obstinate, continuing to speak
mostly in their native tongue.

“Girls,
now that we are out past the three-mile limit, the rule is no bathing
suit tops allowed.”

The other
four girls were used to such things, and casually complied. Kris and
Karlee were less eager.

“You
two, go topless or go overboard!” shouted one of the villainous
characters.

Wanting to
blend in with the other girls, they too removed their tops.

“Now
bring us more drinks, bitches!” he said arrogantly.

By the time
morning slipped into afternoon, the sisters had been able to confirm
the children were safe below deck, although bound and gagged. The men
slipped into a state of increased drunkenness. Several other party
boats joined them in the area as a school of fish had been detected
by everyone's sonar. Many of the other partiers were topless as well,
with some being totally nude.

“Look
there,” pointed out one of the liquored-up men, “those
girls on that boat are naked. Oh, I love some things about this
country!” As Kristie brought him some fresh bait for his
fishing line, he reached over and tore off her thong.

“Hey,
you can't do that!” she shouted at him.

He slapped
her and Karlee started shouting, too. Having enjoyed seeing his
comrade tear off Kristie's bottom, another one of the men boldly tore
off Karlee's thong as well. As both sisters struggled with the men,
the leader shook his finger disparagingly at them.

“You
two must learn the meaning of obedience. After all, we are going to
take you back to our homeland with us.”

“You
can't do that, asshole!” shouted Kristie.

“I
can do anything I want to with you. Not only are we out in
international waters, but I also have Diplomatic Immunity!” he
claimed with a boisterous laugh. “You both are now my
property!” He then gave Kris a swift swat on her bare butt.