Danger Zone
By Divamercury
Sorry it's been so long, but I'm back! Hope you enjoy Chapter 14 and please, please review. I haven't been getting many lately and that makes me a very unhappy little fanfic writer. And unhappy writers lead to stories that don't get updated very oftenfigure it out. ;)
Chapter 14
"Mr. Irons?" A female voice that came through the intercom on my desk disrupted my train of thought as it echoed through my office. I tore my eyes away from the roaring fire in the hearth (the depths of which I had been staring into for the past half-hour) and half expected to see Ian standing behind my desk. I turned back to my desk and punched the button on the intercom with force I wished to inflict on my rogue "employee."
"Yes?" I asked sharply.
"There's a call for you on line 1. A Jackson Miller?"
The leader of the Speakers. There must be trouble. "Put it through immediately," I snapped as I picked up the receiver. "Hello?"
"Kenneth. It's Jackson."
"As I was informed. I'm surprised that you have deigned to actually speak to me. Your organization tends to do otherwise, does it not?"
He ignored my comment and said, "Well, so far the operation isn't running as smoothly as we were hoping it would, unfortunately."
"What do you mean? I'm paying you a small fortune to get rid of Sara Pezzini. The only condition is for you to bring the bracelet she wears back to me. Do whatever you have to do to retrieve it; it's possible that you might have trouble removing it."
"I don't know, I just don't like this."
"You've disposed of many more prestigious people than her, Jackson. I'm surprised that you're having trouble tracking down a simple homicide detective."
"We thought we had done the job when we caught her in the underground building with Nottingham downtown, but they surfaced a little later. And now that the Bulls have the bargaining chip, Dante's decided that he's not cooperating."
"Why doesn't that surprise me? Send a few more of your agents over to him to help him outyou understand, a peace offering of sorts. Who is the bargaining chip, that Bowman boy?"
"Nope. They got Nottingham."
"You mean to tell me that Dante and his inept group of so-called "crusaders" captured my Ian?"
"Apparently. They're planning to use him as bait for Pezzini. I have a feeling it will work. One of my inside guys said that Dante said she was pretty torn up by this information. So, any instructions for me?"
"Just try to cooperate with Dante for now. If he becomes a problem, eliminate him."
"You're certainly going to a lot of trouble to get a bracelet from some woman."
"I would appreciate it if you would refrain from passing judgement on matters that you know nothing about, Jackson. Now, are you going to carry out my instructions and get paid for your trouble or not?"
"We'll continue as planned. I just don't see why we're killing someone for a piece of jewelry."
"It would serve you well not to question my motives, Jackson. You used to be so obedient. Just follow my directions and you'll get your money; your target's background is of no concern to you. Goodbye, Jackson."
I hung up, sitting back in my chair. Jackson Miller was actually developing a consciencewonder of wonders. The man used to be one of the most cold-hearted, cold-blooded killers alive and when his leg was irreparably damaged in a shoot-out, he decided to recruit a group to do his work for him while he set up the business. Thus the Speakers were born. Jackson preferred secrecy and demanded absolute loyalty, which is how he invented the policy of the silent assassins under his thumb. Really quite ingenious, if not unusual. The man was a true genius in the criminal artsI just hoped he wasn't losing his edge. It could prove fatal for him.
* * *
"Mr. Miller?"
"Yes?" I called through the door.
"We just received a call for you from aBruno Dante. He said it was very important. He wanted you to return the call and said that you'd know the number." My receptionist, Joyce, delivered the report. She was a tall, thin woman with black hair pulled into a severe bun and thick glasses with horn-rimmed frames. She held a clipboard and had flipped through a myriad of pages to find my message.
"Thank you, Joyce. Ill get right on it."
She nodded and left.
I leaned back in my chair and sighed. Kenneth Irons was a real bastard, but he paid well. I was curious about this Sara Pezzini business. I opened the dossier we had on her and looked at the provided photo. She was a beautiful woman. So why would Ken want her dead? I knew it had something to do with a bracelet she wore, but beyond that I was pretty clueless. Was Ken the lover scorned and somehow she stole it from him without his immediate knowledge? No. Those green eyes of hers seemed too smart. She'd be able to see through Ken in a minute. So what was the deal?
"Damn, Jack. You're actually growing a conscience. Remember Rule Number One: Don't ask questions. Ken's probably pissed at me about our little conversation. Better lay low for a while. Meanwhile, I'll see if I can find out more about this Pezzini woman. For some reason I don't want to kill her without knowing why."
* * *
"Mac!" Will called.
"I'm in here, Willie."
A few moments later Will entered the room after coming down the stairs. I was sitting in a chair waiting for him.
"What's going on? How's Sara?" I asked.
"She's fine. I took her to a room upstairs. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. She just flopped facedown on the bed and was out like a light."
"Good. She needs some rest. I was afraid she was going to wear herself out."
"She's really worried about Ian, I can tell."
"As can I. She thinks very loudly," I commented with a tiny smile. "She's in head over heels, Willie. Hell, she knows it, we know it, and even Ian probably knows it. The problem is that she refuses to admit it to herself. I don't think she wants to get hurt again. Almost everyone she loves has died in the past year: her partner and best friend, her childhood friend Maria, her lover, her captain and good friendso many people. She doesn't have that many friends left. I'm worried about her. She's decided to shut herself away from the world, always be behind the barrier just in case someone gets to closebut she's got to realize that it's okay to actually come out of her shell. Yet every time she makes an effort to open up, she gets hurt and sprints back to her cell to stay there until she dares to emerge once moreif ever she chooses to do so."
"So that's what's wrong. That's why she always seems so distant" Will trailed off. "Well, on another note, I'm headed to tell Mikki to scan for warehouses affiliated with the Speakers. Maybe something will come up."
"Good idea. Let me know if something comes up." He nodded and left. I sat back in my chair and looked at the stone in my necklace. It swirled a little bit and I got drowsy, like I always did when a vision was about to come. I closed my eyes and succumbed to it, waiting for it to begin.
