Pretenses (13 page)

“I see we're going to the same floor,” he continued. “This cannot be a coincidence. Two beautiful women and me taking a similar journey together. It's the stuff dreams are made of.”

I ignored the old fool and continued my thoughts about the Assassin.
Then I noticed that he was about to pinch Kelly's ass. I couldn't believe it. So I watched him; sure enough, he pinched.

Kelly turned around. With a smile on her face, she said, “Stop that before you give yourself a heart attack.”

“It's one of the things a man my age can get away with.” He chuckled. “I remember back during World War II, I got shot to hell and sent back to England. The nurse who looked after me had the most delectable ass. She was a dog, but her ass was splendid. And from time to time, she allowed me a few excesses, too. I love being old. Women let you get away with murder.”

I shook my head. If he had done that to me, I would have slapped that derby off his head. I didn't give a damn how old he was. But that's where Kelly and I were different. I was the straight man in our duo. I liked the fact that she could take something like that in stride, though.

The doors opened, and the old man allowed us to leave first. Maybe there's a gentleman in there somewhere after all, I thought.

We entered the outer office of the Wise Choice Sports Agency and were greeted by a young black woman seated behind a circular desk. The English gentleman had come into the office, also. He stood behind us, graciously waiting for us to conclude our business.

“Hello, I'm Special Agent Phoenix Perry, and this is Agent McPherson.” We showed her our credentials. “I'm looking for Sterling Wise.”

“I'm sorry, Agent Perry, but Sterling and Tiffany are out of the office for about a week or so. Football season starts in September. They're in Denver right now, but they're going to be traveling all over the country.”

“Well, does he have an itinerary?” I asked. “It's a matter of life and death.”

“I'm sure he does, but he never tells me. He doesn't like his clients to know where he is. They're all prima donnas. You wouldn't believe how they act during contract talks. They all think they're the most important clients he has. So they pester him day and night. He does call in, though. When he does, I'll tell him you need to speak with him right away.”

“Does he have a cell phone?”

“Yes, but I can't give you the number.”

“Well, do you have an address in Denver where he can be reached?”

“No, and if I had it, I couldn't give it to you,” she said firmly. “Give me your number, and he'll call you when he can.”

“Ma'am, do you understand that this is a matter of life and death?” I asked.

She stared at me for a few seconds before saying, “I may be just a receptionist, but the job requires that I not be hearing impaired. Now, as I said, I will give him the message, and he'll call you when he can. But don't hold your breath; he's busy. Being an agent is a twenty-four-hour-a-day job. That's something you should understand, Special Agent Perry. Crime isn't committed from nine to five, is it?”

She had a point, but she had also gotten on my nerves. The attitude wasn't necessary. I looked at Kelly. She shook her head, knowing I was planning to roast-beef her. I agreed with her. We would need her later. Kelly took over. It was good cop/bad cop time.

“We can be reached at this number,” Kelly said, giving the receptionist a card.

While Kelly was talking, it occurred to me that the English gentleman had been perfectly quiet. I turned around but he was gone.

“Excuse me, but when did the gentleman behind us leave?” I interrupted.

“A couple of minutes ago.”

“Kelly! The old man was the Assassin! Let's go!”

W
E BOLTED
through the door and ran into an open elevator. The Assassin was making us look like idiots. She didn't respect us at all, waltzing into the same elevator, talking to us, feeling Kelly's ass. This was humiliating. I looked at Kelly and shook my head.

“What, Phoenix?”

“And you let her feel you up.”

Kelly laughed. “The bitch is bold. You gotta give her that much.”

“You know we gotta keep this to ourselves, right? If Michelson hears about this, he's going to have a meltdown.”

The elevator doors opened, and we sprinted to the glass doors, guns in the air, almost running into people. Once we hit the street, we looked in both directions, but the Assassin was gone. I was mad as hell. But I wasn't sure if I was angry because she had nerve or because I hadn't recognized her.

What good did it do to print out pictures of our suspect's eyes if I wasn't going to look into the eyes of the people I came in contact with? I thought about my husband and Savannah. If she could do what she did last night to twelve agents and walk right up to the special agent in charge, what chance did we have of catching her?

“Let's go back up to the office, Kelly. No more Mrs. Nice Guy.”

“Roast-Beef?” Kelly asked.

“Roast-Beef.”

We burst into the office, our faces contorted. “Now look, you fucking idiot,” I shouted, “the woman who just left here is going to kill your boss if we don't stop her! Do you understand? Now get him on the phone—right now! Or I'm hauling your ass in for obstructing a federal investigation.”

She picked up the telephone and dialed his number. Then she looked at me and said, “It's ringing.” She was scared, and I was glad. If that's what it took to save the poor bastard's life, so be it. “His voice mail is on.”

As scared as she was, I thought it best to let her leave the message. Maybe if he heard the fear in her voice, he would give us a call. Her voice quivered when she spoke. I thought, that's perfect. If that doesn't prompt him to call us, nothing will.

T
HE
E
MBASSY
S
UITES HOTEL
was an oasis as far as I was concerned. It had all the comforts of home, and I needed that right now. After being humiliated and toyed with by the Assassin, I longed for a hot bath and the quiet of my room.

I had nearly made a fool out of myself with the hotel desk clerk. I kept staring at her eyes, making sure she wasn't the Assassin. She thought I was a lesbian, the way I kept staring, and told me what time she was getting off that night. That's when I knew I was losing control. I had become obsessed with catching the Assassin. Who could blame me?

She was slippery and frustrating, but she was going to make a mistake, I told myself. She had already made one by leaving the laptop out at the Capitol Hill Hyatt Regency, and she'd make another. Playing with us today was a mistake, too. We didn't catch her, but the odds were with us.

Susan Lucci—we still called her that—in addition to being the most ruthless killing machine I've ever encountered, was a thrill seeker. Her penchant for sexual bondage was another sign of her seeking thrills that only satisfied her momentarily. I wondered if she was nearing burnout.

I felt the water in the tub. It was hot, just the way I like it. I picked up the telephone and called the safe house. Michelson had moved Keyth and Savannah to a house in Bethesda. I knew they were safe, but only because I knew the Assassin was in San Francisco. If I hadn't had the comfort of knowing she was three-thousand miles away from my family, I don't know if I would have been able to sleep, even after a hot bath.

I knew I would sleep like a baby that night. My family was safe. Kelly and I had survived another day on the job. That's what it's really about. Doing the job and going home in one piece to your family at night.

Agent James answered the phone. He was a by-the-book, twenty-year veteran. Some people didn't like that about him, but my family's life was in his hands, and I was glad he was assigned the detail. I trusted him. He would die before letting anything happen to my family.

“James, this is Phoenix Perry. I would like to speak with my husband, please.”

“Yes, ma'am. Authorization code, please.”

James knew my voice, but that's what I mean. He didn't take any chances. It reassured me that my husband and daughter were safe.

“Alpha and Omega. The beginning and the end,” I said. It was my way of acknowledging the Almighty for helping me through another day on the job.

“Just a second,” I heard him say. A few seconds later, Keyth answered. “Hello,” his deep voice bellowed. I stepped into the hot water and eased in gingerly.

“Hi, sweetheart,” I said. “How's Savannah?”

“She was a little overwhelmed with all of the security at first, but she's growing on everyone. Just like you do.”

“Ahhhh, that's sweet of you to say.”

“I miss you, baby. When do you think you'll be home?”

“I'm not sure. But you guys can relax. She's out here, just like she said she would be.” I laughed. “Maybe we've got an honest murderer on our hands, if you can believe that.”

“It is funny, isn't it? Listen, it's a madhouse now that your dad isn't around. It's going to be tough to keep the business going without him. He had all the contacts. The clients don't know me. I really think the business is going to need you and your name to stay afloat. I don't mean to put pressure on you, baby, but please consider coming into the business after this case, okay?”

“Okay, Keyth. I've been thinking about it for some time now. Daddy told
me that he wanted me to come in with him and make it a family business. He wanted it to be something we could leave to our children after us.”

“Does that mean we're going to have some more babies?”

I was quiet for a moment or two. My husband had wanted more children for years, but I just didn't see how I could do it. A working mother, especially an FBI agent, has so much pressure on her. I didn't like leaving Savannah as much as I did, but the demands of the job required it. And I'm not a desk jockey. I like to be out there on the street, hunting down brutal, unrelenting murderers like our friend Susan Lucci.

“I don't know, Keyth. Probably.”

“You mean it!” he shouted, exploding with joy.

I loved making him happy. He was my soul mate, my most intimate friend. I trusted him implicitly. We were happy and content with each other. That doesn't mean that Keyth never got on my nerves. Of course he did, leaving socks and shoes everywhere, not putting the cap back on the toothpaste, and leaving the television on when he knew he was falling asleep on the couch.

But all of that paled in comparison to how he makes me feel. He's dependable, loyal, ambitious, and intelligent, and, more importantly, he knows how to ring my bell in the bedroom consistently and often. A lot of women try to downplay the sex, but these are the same women who are always complaining about their husbands.

“Yeah, I mean it,” I said. “I'm not saying this is my last case. I'm not making that commitment at this point. What I'm saying is that I'm finally giving it serious consideration. The Assassin has pretty much closed down my school.”

“Yeah, I heard about that. I'm so sorry, baby. You got any idea why she did that?”

“No, but it means that whatever is going on, Daddy may not have been involved in anything. He may have been just another casualty in her effort to get at me.”

“Don't let it get personal, Phoenix.” Whenever he called me by my first name, I knew he was very serious about what he was saying to me.

“Too late, Keyth. It's way too late for that.” My anger was bubbling over. “Not only did she kill Daddy and my friends, but she wiped out seven years of time I put into training those students. Karen was almost there. This vicious killer put my job in jeopardy and closed the doors on my business. Thanks to her, my options are dwindling. Yeah, it's personal, Keyth.”

“I went to see your dad's lawyer like you asked me to,” he said, changing the subject. He knew my moods so well—another thing I loved about him. “Your dad left you quite a bit of money and more than half of the business. You've got some big decisions to make. I won't bore you with all the details right now. I know you've got a lot on your mind. But when this thing with the Assassin is over, we gon' have a talk, hear?”

I like it when he's firm with me. Keyth knows I can kick his ass, but he's never backed down in an argument. He takes no prisoners when he's mad at me.

“Okay, but when it's over,” I said, “not before. Is Savannah asleep yet?”

“Yes. It's almost eleven here.”

“Yeah, I know. I was just hoping she might be up,” I said. “Tell her I love her, okay?”

“Okay,” he said quietly.

“Are you mad?” He sounded like it.

“I'm more worried than anything else. I saw the news today. That woman is lethal, lopping off heads and shit like the Grim Reaper.”

“Don't worry, Keyth. She could have killed me twice already and didn't. She's a killing machine, no doubt about that, but she kills with a purpose.”

“Why did she kill all the agents? What was the purpose of that?”

“I don't know, probably to demonstrate her skill or something. I'll be sure and ask next time I see her, though.”

“Okay, smart-ass,” he said. “Talk to you later.”

“I love you, Keyth.”

“I love you, too.”

I
N A SUITE
one floor up from Phoenix Perry's room, using high-powered binoculars, Coco Nimburu had seen Phoenix through the huge picture window each Embassy Suites hotel room provides. Michelson had told her that the dynamic duo would be staying at the South San Francisco Embassy, so she had booked three rooms for the night, using Susan Lucci and two other names. Posing as a maid, she had bugged both agents' rooms and telephones while they were at the crime scene in Pacific Heights. She listened to Phoenix and Keyth's conversation, formulating a plan to kidnap him and Savannah. And now she had Phoenix's authorization code. It was so easy. Coco was having so much fun. She could hear Phoenix in the tub, splashing around like a fish on a hook. The game would continue when she finished bathing.