Entrapment

By the time I made it down town, the stores were already closing. I hurried into the closest boutique I could find and, avoiding the frustrated glance of the shopkeeper, quickly picked out what I needed. I really didn't have the time to browse. I just grabbed what I saw and brought it to the counter.

"How was your day?" the woman behind the counter muttered through gritted teeth, visibly eager to close the store and finish her shift.

"Fine," I forged a sweet smiled and swiped my card.

Much to our frustration, the card was declined. $150 a week really didn't go far…

"I'm sorry, I can't sell you these if you don't have the money, perhaps you should call your bank and come back in the morning," the woman said with a hint of indifference.

Heaving a sigh, I searched my purse for spare change but came up empty handed. In the end, I handed her Giovanni's company card. I wasn't going to be caught dead walking around the boss and his personnel in my tiny business skirt and no panties – even if it meant paying him back with interest. Satisfied with that, the woman wrapped up my purchase, handed me the receipt and bid me a good evening.

Once that ordeal was over and another impending crisis had been averted I started out on my trek back to the hotel. It wasn't raining yet and much to my surprise, the evening was almost pleasant, so I decided to go for a walk along the beach.

The ocean was a swell of grey rather than the beautiful blue/green it was better known for. The clouds that sat on the horizon were dark and like someone had gone and ran a finger across a wet painting, looked streaked as a rainstorm savaged the ocean. The clouds were quickly heading my direction, and it wasn't long before I found myself caught up in the downpour.

Covering my head with my shopping bag, I made a run for shelter under the nearest pier and waited out the rainstorm. Wringing out my hair, I frowned as my white shirt had somehow managed to get wet - even in spite of my coat - and gone see through.

A chilly breeze blew through the rafters above my head and I shivered, shifting on the partially wet sand beneath my feet. I had to curse myself for not having just hailed a taxi to get back to the hotel.

A figure that stepped onto the pier above my head snapped me from my thoughts. Through the crack in the rafters, I could make out a well built man wearing a trench coat, sunglasses and a hat. His collar was up high around his neck and one of his gloved hands gripped a cell phone. I couldn't help but wonder why someone would be making a phone call in the rain?

His tone was low and secretive, leading me to initially assume that he was perhaps talking to a mystery lover. But then I heard Team Rocket mentioned in the mix. My ears immediate perked up at that. He was talking about a fossil shipment - a sample of a Mew to be precise. I let my mind file back through my previous Pokémon studies, trying to recall what a Mew was. Then it hit. Mew was a Legendary! Had Giovanni really found one? It was no wonder he was so keen on not losing that package. He wanted to clone it.

"Yes, the sample is still in the hands of the customs office but they'll be releasing it to Giovanni soon. My people are searching his licences for anything we can bring him up on but he has every I dotted and every T crossed. It's not that easy. Once customs clears it, it's as good as Team Rocket's." There was a pause as the man listened to the response. "You're asking me to forge faulty paperwork and make the switch?"

Pause…

"No I of course don't have a problem with that. Don't forget, dealing with ethically questionable issues is the reason you hired me. I'm still on Giovanni's research team. I'll make the switch."

Click! The phone hung up.

I barely had the chance to take in the influx of information before I heard his low toned growl. "I know you're there, Delia."

I jumped, my gaze shooting upwards at the figure who watched me through the cracks in the pier. His sunglasses were gone now and he grinned down at me.

Frozen in place I couldn't breathe… I couldn't move. "Logan," I barely managed to wheeze through a shaky breath.

In a single leap, he hopped down from the pier and landed neatly in front of me, his huge, Machoke build towering over me. I staggered backwards on my feet, my eyes tracing the lines of a scar on his lip and a broken nose that had since healed crooked.

"When it comes to Giovanni… why can I always count on you to be snivelling around?" he leered.

"Wh…wh…. How?" I was utterly mortified.

Pulling open his jacket, Logan undid several buttons of his shirt only to reveal a scar in his chest compliments of a gunshot, "Missed my heart by centimetres."

I felt the need to turn and run… the only problem was that his gaze alone held me in my place. "You're the traitor?" I finally found my voice. "You work for the Government?"

He nodded "And once again you're Pokémon-less. Didn't you learn anything from our previous encounter?"

Run! Run! Run! My mind and legs screamed at me in unison. I don't know where it came from but suddenly I had the strength to turn and bolt in the opposite direction. But sand is hard to run in and Logan was fast. I barely made it out from under the pier before I felt his colossal body on my back and he tackled me to the ground.

I forced a scream, struggling under his heavy grip as he turned me over to face him and pinned me to the ground. His heavy body was on top of me, one gloved hand gripped my wrists above my head and the other roughly grabbed my face in attempt to hamper my shouts.

"If you know what's good for you, you're going to keep your mouth shut!" he bellowed. "If you're dead, that's not going to stop your boss from going after your family to pay off your debts. Do you understand me?"

I nodded, vainly attempting to swallow down the pit of fear that now rested in the back of my throat.

"Good," Logan continued. "Because I need you to do something for me. You're going to meet me at the pier tonight at midnight. Come alone."

He took his hand from my mouth and I spat at the vile taste of leather on my tongue.

"You're going to make me switch the customs documents." I somehow found the guts to say. "That's illegal! How can you claim to work for the so-called good guys and yet force me to break the law? This is blackmail!"

Logan merely smiled, keeping his cool. "No," he stated bluntly. "It's Entrapment. By holding up the process, it forces your boss to play his hand and take the fossil by force. We'll catch him with his hand in the till. Biting the head off the snake, we'll cause the entire Team Rocket syndicate to crumble."

"You really have no idea of the repercussions this will create, Logan." I fought. "Team Rocket is everywhere."

"And you're getting on my nerves, Delia."

I shut up, my tone lowering to something less accusing. "What stops me from running off and telling Giovanni?"

Logan didn't seem to think this was a problem "Delia, do you know my agent ranking?"

I shook my head.

"No on knows. I don't have one. I don't exist. I am assigned to do the dirty work that no one else is willing to get done, which includes taking the law into my own hands if I feel the need." While still sitting on me he straightened and pulled a gun from his jacket, taking the time to screw a silencer on its tip. "I know where each member of your family lives Delia. And I assure you, unlike your boss, I don't miss my mark."

I sat silently perched on a chair in the corner of my hotel room, hugging my legs and resting my chin on my knees. My mind was a sickening mess of confusion. Still unable to properly fathom the events of only a matter of hours ago, I was terrified beyond all belief. What was I going to do? If I didn't turn up, Logan would certainly hunt me down. And what of my family? Would he really act upon his threats? Was he really as untouchable as he said he was? I wasn't willing to gamble with the lives of those I loved to find that out. And what of Giovanni? If he found out what I was about to do… I was as good as dead. If I told him, would Logan know? I recalled his phone conversation, and him stating the fact that he had people working under him. What stopped him from sending someone to spy on me?

"Just breathe, Delia," I had to stop myself from dwelling on these things. "You're only going to pick up some documents from Logan."

The actual switch wouldn't be made until the morning. That was plenty of time for me to work out what I was going to do. Contrary to Logan's thoughts, Giovanni was smarter than to walk into his trap. Not when he was more than capable of sending people to do his dirty work for him and anonymously at that.

I spotted the clock on my bedside table that blinked something past eleven. It was time for me to move. Outside, the rain had formed into a constant downpour and the darkness of the night seemed to engulf everything in it. Forcing myself from my seat, I pulled on my coat and slowly made my way down stairs.

The foyer was empty at this time of the evening but still showed enough of a presence that it indicated someone very important was staying here. Trying to remain inconspicuous, I reached for an umbrella on a coat stand and exited swiftly through the revolving door.

Giovanni swirled a glass of wine in his hand as he watched the fireplace crackle and roll before him. He sat with one leg crossed over the other on a couch fit for a king and gently rested a hand on his Persian's head.

"Giovanni," one of his assistants approached him from behind.

"What is it?"

The assistant swallowed. "Sir, you were right, we have movement. It's Delia… she's just left the hotel."

"This is… disappointing." A frown formed on his face as he spied the clock on the mantle, "Tail her. But don't let her know you're there."