Jamie and the others were put in handcuffs. The guards led them by the gigantic laboratories. They were mostly in the process of creating beauty products, yet one was for warfare only. They were making explosives, ammunition, and firearms. The poison was also born in that lab.
The guards pushed them into Hekate's cluttered office. She spun in chair dramatically. "I knew you'd be joining us soon, Jamie Bond. I find it amusing you'd use my own helicopter to check out my facilities. Did you think I wouldn't notice? My pilot called me only a few minutes before you broke in. He told me you whacked him over the head, and then he told me about the massacre. You've cost me many employees."
"A cut in overhead is always a good thing," Jamie replied.
"Cute. You are cute. Who do you have with you? I heard the young lady is named Della. An old man was mentioned to me, but no one mentioned the elderly lady. Who might they be?"
"I'm—"
Jamie instantly stopped James. "He's Felix. Felix Jones. That's his wife. Gwendolyn Jones."
"Why are they with you?" Hekate challenged.
"They're with me. We're CIA. All undercover. They've been assigned to play the part of my grandparents," Della said.
At first, James and Octopussy were confused about why Jamie and Della were lying. Then, they remembered how Octopussy and Hekate had an unfriendly exchange all those years ago. Also, they'd be ignored if Hekate thought they were harmless elderly individuals. That'd give them more wiggle room than Jamie and Della would have.
"Well, we don't need Felix and Gwendolyn here. Guards, put them in one of our guest rooms. The ones for special visitors," Hekate said.
Octopussy and James were led out of the room. Hekate sighed happily. "Jamie, Jamie, Jamie…at last. I've heard so much about you in the smuggling business. You've made quite a name for yourself. You've broken free of that rude mother of yours. And what you did in India and Cape Town? Bravo, my dear. I'm impressed by your capabilities and stubbornness. It's too bad you're not warped. You'd be wonderful in my organization."
"Sorry to disappoint you."
"That's all right. I'm still a huge fan. I want you here with me. Alone."
The guards moved in to take Della. Della purposely dropped the purse she carried for Jamie. Jamie understood the exchange. Jamie held the purse to her chest. Ferociously, she fought as hard as she could to hold onto Della. Their fingers nearly touched before they carried Della out.
Two guards remained. They forced Jamie into a chair. They tied her hands behind her back with rope. Her legs were tied to the chair. After frisking her, they found knives and her gun. They checked the purse next. The pieces to the makeup gun were there among other items one would find in a purse. The guard took the pieces of the makeup gun in her hand.
"Makeup. It's not Bien Beautiful," the guard said.
"That's too bad. You would look wonderful in my lipstick, Jamie," Hekate said.
The guard dropped the makeup pieces back in the purse. She put the purse on the other side of the room.
"Clear out, you two. It's just me and her."
For the first time, Hekate and Jamie were alone and eye to eye. Hekate brought her rolling chair as close to Jamie as she could get. She brushed Jamie's cheek with her knuckles. "Such soft skin. You wouldn't need too much product. Lucky girl. Me? Well…"
Hekate plucked a makeup remover wipe from her pocket. She cleaned all the makeup from her face. Dozens of thick scars dug into her skin. It was hard to see a person beneath them.
"See how good my products are? They're designed to hide the ugliest of people. That's what those labs do. It's what they create."
"Even your death lab?" Jamie challenged.
"Oh, that. My guns and bombs and bullets and poison. My scientists were confused at first. I had them working on moisturizing foundation when I asked them to make poison instead. I lost a few men that way. Dr. Dexa, one of my workers, lost his nerve. He wanted to tell everyone. He almost ruined it for us. He shared our route with some people. How we ship our rice and death. That's how my shipment found your dock in India. An emergency move, though a successful one."
"Hardly. That emergency move of yours brought me right to you. I'm the end of your operation."
"I doubt that, Jamie Bond. You don't even know what you've walked into."
"I think I do."
Hekate had a crazed laugh. "Go on and guess. Go ahead. Give it your best shot."
"We know you're planning on attacking the most influential countries by systematically assassinating the people essential to its infrastructure. The question is simple: Why? What are your motives? I've heard several theories. One is that you're doing it for money. Another is that you're seeking world domination. There's even one that says you just want to cause chaos. I don't agree with any of them."
"What do you, lovely Jamie, believe?"
"You'd only do something that takes so much time and is so delicate because you want to revel in it. You want to cherish the death and the suffering. You want the world to be in agony. Not chaos. Maybe that's because you want to hurt. You do, don't you? You want to throw the world away with you in. That ugliness you try to hide wants to be seen. Am I right?"
With wide eyes, Hekate nodded her head. "You see many things."
"I do. This plan of yours won't work. Do you honestly think the world will believe there's a spider bite epidemic when you don't have any spiders out there?"
"We'll have a needle with two points to mimic fangs, and spiders are elusive creatures. How many times have you seen a spider on your shower curtain, yet it vanishes and you can't find it moments later? We won't give them time to worry about finding spiders anyway. I have people all over the world in position. When our last ships make their delivery, it'll begin."
"Why do you want to suffer when you have so much, Kathryn?"
"My name is Hekate," Hekate turned away. "My mother was a Vietnamese woman, and my father was an American soldier who didn't stay long enough to tell my mother his name. The Vietcong burned our village down when I was four years old. My mother had to marry an abusive man when I was six just so we could survive. We were abused every day until I was eleven. That's when he shot my mother between the eyes. So I cut his head off. I've scratched and clawed to live since. I finally made something of myself. I hate it. This is wrong. What is life without misery? It's all I know. And I want it back."
"You don't have to kill half the world. I will gladly give you what you want."
"No, I think I like the whole killing half the world thing. Right now, I want to give you a gift. The gift of pain. A formidable opponent like you will look wonderful on the wall of flesh."
Jamie noticed frame after frame of dried flaps. "You certainly know how to get under someone's skin."
"Yes. Judas and Wikus are the newest additions. I have one from a man we killed in Cape Town. He was snooping around at Wikus' place, so they left his corpse on the beach. His skin was a bit sandy, sadly. I still like to have them on display. It helps me when the lab calls and wants to ask what color our product should be. I'll say, Oh, I think Wikus skin is perfect, or Judas skin is the way to go. You know how I got the idea?"
"All right. Flesh out the details."
"This locket here," Hekate showed Jamie. "See it? That's not a picture. It's skin. And that's a tooth. I tried to carry his head with me. The abusive bastard I killed. But it was too heavy. I kept a dried flap of skin and a tooth instead. More practical. I guess it became a hobby. I especially enjoy it if the skin is from someone special. You are special, Jamie Bond."
"I'm flattered, but I don't think I'm that special."
Hekate laughed as she collected her tools. "But you are. I thought maybe I'd do the same to Della."
"Don't touch her."
"Aw, so sweet. Maybe I won't. Maybe I will. I'll have to see what mood I'm in. But, let's focus on you. You have wonderful legs. Let's start there."
Jamie remained calm. She was wearing her watch.
