Chapter 1
Great, just what I didn't really need, Sam thought as she walked to the elevator. She had gotten very little information on the case at hand, and now she had gotten more news that she didn't find herself warming up to.
Apparently Victor had gotten antsy about how little information they had in the way of suspects and about the missing girl even. This girl was a total mystery. But, Victor and his impatient nature demanded results and he thought that this guy was going to bring them.
Hmph! That's all we need is a Victor Fitzgerald brown-nose to tattle on us. I'll bet he's really just sending this guy in to rattle Jack's cage. Sam hated the prospect of even a visitor in her team. But, Victor said this guy was some kind of expert and he obviously thinks highly of him, so she would give him her most welcoming attitude. Even if she thought he was just there to show them up.
As Sam approached the elevator, a man about her age, maybe slightly older, entered the elevator ahead of her. She called to him to hold the elevator and jogged towards him. As she entered the elevator she noticed that the man actually looked younger than herself. And not a bad-looking younger, at that.
The standard black and white suit topped off with incredibly dark sunglasses made him look more Men in Black than FBI agent. His closely cut and spiked blond hair made her think that she wouldn't mind running her hands through it. He seemed to have a pretty good-looking physique, from what she could tell, but he wasn't incredibly tall, maybe 6 ft. He stood straight, face forward, hands clasped in front of his body, and said not a word.
She was starting to feel a little uneasy in there with him. Why wasn't he trying to make small talk? Ok, maybe he's just a quiet or shy person, quit being paranoid or skeptical. Then the thought occurred to her that she hadn't spoken to him either, not even to say thank you for holding the elevator! Duh!
Even though she really wanted to get out of the elevator and away from the stranger, she tried to seem friendly.
"Umm, I haven't seen you around. Are you a visitor, or are you a new agent or something?"
She could see his eyes shift under his dark glasses, but his face did nothing to give him away. His face kept its stony expression and his eyes looked over at her as if he hadn't actually noticed her until then, and then they shifted back, staring dead ahead. Then he spoke.
"No worries. You won't see me again after today." He spoke very well and not too slow or too fast, just succinct. His voice was dead calm and very serious. It may have been a nice voice for all she knew, but she was too wrapped up in her panic.
Oh, God, she thought. A feeling of dread washed over her and she automatically wanted the elevator to go faster and let her out and away from this strange and incredibly creepy man standing within 5 ft of her.
She wished that she had Martin or Jack, or even Danny here with her. They would be on his ass in no time, just for their suspicions. But, she wasn't like that, at least not when she was alone with some seriously creepy and well-dressed character from a Stephen King novel. So she stood there, trying to act calm when all her nerves were on edge and she thought she might scream at any moment.
That's when it happened. All her fears came together in a matter of seconds and she was powerless against the arsenal that was the formidable stranger next to her.