Black, Brady Black

Chapter One: A New Mission

He pushed open the glass doors and entered the expansive lobby of the Basic Black building. He looked around the bright, sunny lobby in wonder. It never ceased to amaze him how big Basic Black had become. {Not bad for a business that was only supposed to be a front for Dad's real job.}

He headed toward the elevators and along the way he passed many people who greeted him with a cheery, "Good morning, Mr. Black." He smiled his greetings in return. He waved aside the elevator that was being held for him and made for the service elevator in the rear of the lobby. He stepped inside and the polished doors closed behind him.

From his inside coat pocket he pulled out a key and a badge. He unlocked a small hidden compartment and pressed the button inside. A keypad appeared from out of a wall and a computerized feminine voice said, "Please enter your security code." With a muted sigh Brady keyed the code and swiped his badge through the scanner.

Brady's stomach lurched as the elevator began its descent but he knew he wasn't yet through the security measures. There was a retinal scan and a thumbprint scan, followed by voiceprint identification.

Finally the elevator reached its destination and the doors slid open to reveal a large military complex buried beneath the Basic Black building. Brady headed down a wide gleaming white hallway. His quick footsteps rang clearly on the polished floor and soon another set of footsteps joined his.

Brady looked at the young man beside him and smiled. "Shawn, what's up?" he greeted.

"Same old, same old," Shawn Brady replied.

"Saving the world before breakfast."

"And that's on a light day."

The two dashing young agents walked through a set of double doors and entered another series of security checkpoints. They were first scanned from head to toe.

"I swear, if I become sterile from these scans, I'm suing," Brady cracked.

Next came dental x-rays, followed by a simple DNA test. Brady rolled his eyes and plucked a short blond hair from his head. He placed the hair on the tray beside Shawn's. "The security here is so tight it's almost perverted."

Finally they were cleared and passing through another set of doors, they came to a large, scary looking man with an even larger scary looking gun.

"ID please."

Brady smiled. "Morning, Bob."

"ID please."

"We do this every morning, Bob. I walk through that door having just completed a series of insane security tests and everyday you ask for my ID. It's me, Brady Black. I was at your wedding. You served shrimp and the wedding singer did Led Zeppelin's greatest hits."

But the unblinking guard continued to stare at the agent. "ID please."

Brady fished in his pocket and showed him his badge. "You named your son after me," he grumbled.

Guard Bob studied the badge and after a long moment, handed it back to him. "Thank you sir. You may go in now."

The guard checked Shawn's ID and soon both men were through the last double doors. Shawn chuckled. "Why do you do that? You know he's not going to let you in until he sees your badge so you might as well flash it at the beginning and save yourself the trouble."

Brady grinned. "It's just.all this paranoid security crap gets on my nerves. You know I've never been big on authority."

"Or following the rules. I understand you had an interesting evening the other night."

"It had its moments."

"I'm sure," Shawn replied drolly. "Listen, Belle's birthday is coming up and I want to get her something that won't make her mad at me."

Brady laughed. "It's that bad, huh."

Shawn nodded. "I just keep reminding myself that there's only a few more weeks left. So, any ideas?"

"Is she still sensitive about her weight?"

"Yeah, I keep telling her that she's beautiful, that she's carrying our child and is supposed to gain weight. But all she does is eat sardines and cry."

"So clothes are out of the question, and you have all the baby stuff you need. What about a day at the spa?"

Shawn brightened at the suggestion. "Hey, good idea - she always used to love the spa. Thanks, Brady. Hey, I better go. I'm toppling the Spam Empire today."

"Spam? As in canned ham?"

"Hey, don't let its salty goodness fool you. It's pure evil in a can."

Brady chuckled as Shawn walked off. His own pace quickened as he focused his mind toward work. As he walked down the long hallway he passed many people, many of them beautiful women all saying, "Good morning, Mr. Black." But Brady just smiled his devilishly handsome smile and continued on his way. Soon a cute young woman with dirty blond hair approached him. His eyes raked over her appreciatively.

"Well, if it isn't Miss Mimi Moneynickel. You're looking especially ravishing this morning."

But Mimi was unfazed by his flattery. "You could charm snakes with that tongue."

"That may be true but there are so many things I'd rather do with my tongue, and most of them involve you."

Mimi shook her head in disbelief. "Where were you when I was alone and single?"

"Probably tied to a bomb somewhere."

"Speaking of which, I understand you had quite the explosive evening."

"Word travels fast."

"Well, when you single-handedly destroy one of Europe's great landmarks - and let the bad guy get away, it will get around. Speaking of which, "He" wants to see you."

Brady swallowed. "He does?" He looked at the closed office door in front of him. It was a heavy oak door adorned with the gold letters JB. He turned back to Mimi. "Do me a favor, Meems? If I don't make it back."

"I'll notify your next of kin."

Brady straightened his tie and stepped to the door. "He is my next of kin," he mumbled and entered the office. He stopped in front of a large desk and waited for the man behind it to finish his phone conversation.

"I'm looking at the marketing reports now, Kate. Are these the latest figures? I see. Good. Next, let's run some test markets of the new Gigantor Cosmetics line. Great, thank you. Oh, and schedule a meeting for me with Miss Adamson. That's all. Thanks, Kate." John Black hung up the phone and turned to his son.

"Good morning, Mr. Black. Have a seat."

Brady sat. "Hi Dad."

John stared at Brady with a half-amused, half-serious expression on his face. He cocked an eyebrow at his first-born. "So what happened?"

Brady shrugged. "Bomb."

"Bomb?"

"Bomb."

John sighed and shook his head. "Remind me to RE-train you on dismantling explosives. It isn't that hard." He took a deep breath. "But none of that matters now. I have a new assignment for you." He stared gravely at Brady. "The phoenix has risen."

Brady's heart fairly stopped. "What? Are you sure? It's been so long."

"We don't have any proof yet. All we know is that there have been a rash of art thefts in Europe recently."

Brady rubbed his chin. "Ahh, reviving an old hobby?" he ventured.

"Perhaps. We don't yet have any information, but something seems off. I can't prove it, but I know it's him. I can feel it. He's up to something, and it's big."

"Don't worry, Dad. I'll find out what it is and stop him."

John looked at his son. "Be careful," he warned. "He's smarter than any foe you've ever encountered. He's elusive, dangerous. I've tracked him down so many times - even had him in my possession once - and he's always managed to slip through my fingers. I almost wish I were the one going after him. But I have a family now to think about. I want you to hunt him down, finish what I started."

"I won't let you down."

John smiled. "I know. According to Shane, he was last spotted in Munich, so you'll begin your search there. On your way out, stop by the equipment specialist to get the tools you'll need." Brady stood up to leave. "One more thing," John called. "Good luck."