NOIR

Associations

By Steve Edward

Chapter Four

The chime of the elevator as it arrived on the first floor announced its presence. Angelina hurried down the hall expecting to see Mrs. Francis instead saw three people leaving the elevator, the young blond haired woman who was introduced to Angelina as Mireille sitting in the wheel chair being pushed by Mr. Baldwin; and the dark haired woman walking behind her employer who Randy introduced as Kirika.

Randy had briefed both Mireille and Kirika on the history of his two employees' as they headed for the elevator, Mireille noting that Randy too had a soft spot when it came to people in trouble.

Roberto quickly removed two chairs from the table to make room for the wheel chair. The table made by Roberto's own hands as a gift to his employer was built from the heart of pine, its wood its surface reflecting the soft glow of the light fixture in the ceiling the table had required six strong men to carry, but Roberto had ingeniously concealed retractable wheels within the legs so that with a simple press of ones foot on a small metal lever at each leg; the table could be easily moved about the room or to the front porch.

Roberto had a lot to be grateful for and it showed. He had learned how to read and write both English and Spanish with the help of Mr. Baldwin. With a loan from his employer he had purchased a nearby home, where he and his family lived. The car he was driving was used, but was in excellent mechanical condition. Mr. Baldwin himself had gone with Roberto to purchase the car. Excusing himself Roberto returned to the car to bring the remaining groceries and to help his wife prepare dinner for Randy's house guests.

Kirika taking a seat next to Mireille watched the activities of Angelina as she prepared a carafe of coffee and laid several coffee cups on the table, Kirika turned to Randy "Will we be able to go to our motel to get our clothing?" To which Randy nodded yes, "After we eat, I'll drive you down. I also want to take your rental vehicle back. No sense having it here anymore. I have several to choose from."

Mireille speaking French, "Randy can they be trusted with what they may overhear?" Randy replied, "Oui, absolutely."

Angelina set the salads on the table and Mireille eyed the fresh greens then dug in. Kirika soon joined in. Randy smiling partook as well. Angelina cooking the country ham with the green beans from the garden simmering next to the skillet stirred the steaming vegetables. The smell of corn bread baking in the oven rounded out the smells of home cooking coming from the kitchen.

Pushing the empty salad plate aside, Randy turned to Roberto who was bringing in the last of the packages, "Roberto, will you please hitch up the cargo trailer to my truck and back it up to the barn, I will be loading a small vehicle onboard so ensure the ramps are in the trailer." Roberto acknowledging the request departed immediately.

Mireille sampled the remainder of the fare, prepared by Angelina. The final treat for desert was lemon pie that had been baked the day before and chilled, finishing she pushed to plates aside and studied Randy more closely. His hair had grayed a little more but the eyes had remained the same but they were reflecting troubled thoughts. Four years earlier those very same eyes had shown defiance, there had been no fear of death when she aimed at his forehead. The brief partnership between Randy and Noir had been to their mutual benefits. Mireille had never expected to meet the man again, but as the saying goes it is indeed a very small world.

Glancing at the time, Randy nodded to Kirika who stood along with Randy, "Mireille, I and Kirika will head out to retrieve your belongings from the motel. If you need anything please feel free to ask Angelina. Kirika before we go, you need more appropriate clothing for around here," as Randy headed down the hallway towards the stairs he motioned for her to follow.

Several minutes later, Randy and Kirika reappeared. Randy sporting a light wind breaker that concealed the Colt Commander. Behind him Kirika now sported a pair of blue jeans with a denim long sleeve shirt, the bottom tied in such away that Mireille gave a little chuckle at the Kirika's appearance.

Kirika looked down but did not take in the significance of the way she was dressed, "Is there something wrong Mireille?" as Randy turned to look as well, Mireille replied "No, nothing. Just your belly button is showing."

Randy put a sheet of paper in front of Mireille, "Write your clothing sizes down. I'll stop by Wal-Mart on the way back. You need some suitable clothing as well." Mireille seeing the sly grin on Randy's face blushed but did as he asked.

Getting ready to pickup the paper, Randy wagged his finger at her "Mireille stop fudging." Mireille pulled the paper back and corrected the sizes. Finally satisfied, Randy picked it up and placed it in his pocket.

Walking out the barn, Randy stopped at the pickup truck and pressed the remote. The hydraulically operated doors hummed open, inside the Ford Escape sat parked. Randy and Kirika "sanitized" the vehicle and with Kirika driving and Randy giving directions it was loaded into the cargo trailer and chained down.

Mireille found it easy going wheeling about the house. Helped to the study by Roberto who excused himself; Mireille rolled about studying the books then the pictures. The photograph of a man in a Sheriffs uniform caught her attention. Reading the description, she continued onward, passing several which had photographs of the Sheriff and Randy together.

The larger photograph she came to was of all three men. Randy Baldwin, Sheriff Phil Nagel and Father George Skinner, taken in happier times and several years earlier in the mid-1990s; then the oil painting of Randy's grandparents when they were younger. The sounds of foot steps interrupted her and she wheeled the chair about, framed in the doorway of the study stood Sheriff Phil Nagel.

Doffing his hat, Phil Nagel introduced himself and asked Mireille if she would like to go to the sitting room. Nodding yes to the question, Sheriff Nagel stepped behind the chair and gently pushed.

Taking a chair across from Mireille, Phil handed her a manila envelope and had her open it, "I spoke with Randy before he headed south with Kirika and he told me to give this to you. It contains everything we know about Santiago Jesus Martinez at least to his legal enterprises. The illegal activities are a bit sketchy but Randy told me of his suspicions about where the data disk is. If it is in the Father Skinner's Bible we will get it tomorrow. Randy said we need to plan some things, and I am in agreement."

Mireille musing a moment asked Phil about Randy's past, "Well you know he was with the Agency. His grandfather, Maynard raised him since he was nine after his parents were killed in an accident. Phyllis his grandmother treated him like her own son. Maynard had hoped that Randy would have gone into banking like he did but after being recruited Randy told Maynard of his intentions and joined the Agency after his grandfathers blessing. Phyllis did not know about it. She only assumed he was working with some government financial agency.

I joined the Navy Seals, and did my thing there. I never expected to run into Randy but I did in the middle of a jungle. My team had been assigned a search and destroy mission, in South America. We were about to go in, when Randy put in an appearance. He was not alone and was engaged in a running gun battle with some rag tag militia types."

Phil leaned back in the chair, "Randy ran full tilt into my team. Scared the hell out the point man that nearly shot him, Randy turned about and led the charge back. We killed everyone who got close and carried out the assignment. Afterward, Randy went his own way and we went ours. A year later I returned home and began my law enforcement career."

Merging onto I-85 South, Randy steered the Chevy 2500HD and the cargo trailer with care. The flow of traffic was steady but he was in no hurry. The BMW flashing its headlights at the aggravation of having to change lanes caught Randy's attention.

Behind it a stretch Mercedes Benz limousine then another BMW identical to the first passed. Tapping Kirika on her knee, he had her write the tag numbers down.

Santiago Martinez, ensconced in the supple leather seats of the limousine paid little attention to the traffic they were passing. Santiago outwardly was calm, but inwardly he was seething. The search teams had found the remaining missing men, all dead. One had his neck cleanly broken. Who had these assassins been? None of his contacts could tell him. He could not report the attack to law enforcement because it would cause them to start digging and digging deep.

Santiago decided to work backwards from the time of the attack and see what kind of event might have triggered the retribution. No matter how insignificant it was, he sent out the order for all far flung operations to report any activities in the past year that they may have conducted. Martinez genuinely worried now, feared for his life.

Pulling into the Comfort Inn at Satellite Boulevard and unloading the Ford Escape, Randy dropped off the keys to the front desk and asked that they call Hertz to pickup the vehicle and dropped a C-note for the clerk's trouble.

Joining Kirika at the room, Randy also "sanitized" the room before leaving. Loading the suite cases on the trailer then placing a brief call to his home which was answered by Phil Nagel. Giving the tag numbers and the description of the cars that Randy had seen to Phil, who confirmed that indeed had been Martinez; Randy and Kirika headed back north to Hall County.

Stopping briefly in Gainesville, the pair arrived back at the Baldwin farm just before 5 PM. Randy backed the trailer into its parking spot and unloaded it. Making two trips because of the extra purchases, Randy finally was able to relax by 6 PM and had joined Phil and Mireille in the study with Kirika following behind.

Phil having listened to the account of the encounter with Martinez on I-85, "Sounds like he's running scared, though I am surprised that he is still in the area," as Mireille took up the conversation, "He likely feels he is safe for the time being since in all likelihood he has increased his security somewhat. If he chooses to run to another location he will still have to increase the security and it could garner unwanted attention."

Kirika sitting across from Mireille spoke, "When we had observed him, he had only one escort vehicle, and now with two there would be little chance of success,"as Phil looked up and spoke, "So just how long have you two been watching Mr. Martinez?" Randy rolled his eyes and flopped backward onto the couch at the question, "Really Phil, we do not need to go there."

Randy leaned forward and retrieved the manila envelope from the table, "Taking out Martinez will be fine by me, but there is the matter of his illicit activities. Father Skinner discovered the damning information and died trying to save a lot of innocents from further harm."

Randy glanced at Phil, "Mireille and Kirika you have both guessed by now that this has become personal. Though he would disprove of what we will be doing from here on out, George will understand. Killing Martinez will not be enough. I learned long ago if you want something stopped you have to go after the organization from all angles.

Money is the biggest, without it legal or illegal you can not do anything. People want cold hard cash on the barrel head. It is sort of like a fire triangle. Heat, Fuel, and Air; take away any of those three and the flames goes out. I am going to take away his fuel, which is cold hard cash, then the air which is his suppliers and finally the heat which is his life with your help." Phil listening watched Randy's features change as did Kirika and Mireille. The eyes made Phil shudder; they were filled hatred and death.

Dismissing the Lopez's for the day, he ensured that they remembered that Sunday was the BBQ cookout. It had been planned for a period of time and Randy was not going to let the current situation get in his way. Phil Nagel called it a night but would back in the morning; retrieving the disk if it was indeed in Father Skinner's Bible was going to take them both back down an already sad memory lane.

Randy excusing himself from Mireille and Kirika to answer the private line in his study walked in and picked up the phone, "Baldwin speaking." The voice from the past spoke, "Mr. Baldwin, this is Tabitha."

Nearly dropping the handset then sitting down, Randy composed himself "If this is some kind of joke?" Tabitha Alexander the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and its first female director replied, "No Randy this is no joke. I am 10 minutes from your home. I know Noir is there. Do not say another word; we will talk more when I arrive."

Setting the handset back down, Randy returned to the sitting room. Kirika and Mireille looking through the Baldwin family scrap book looked up as Randy entered, "Mireille, Kirika. We have unexpected company arriving, regrettably my former boss with the Agency. Tabitha Alexander." Mireille only smiled, "Well then Randy when she arrives please do welcome her."

Walking to the front entry to wait, Randy waited. Precisely as stated the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency arrived. The two body guards exited the Lincoln Town Car first and scanned the area, one of them nodded directly at Randy who returned the gesture.

Satisfied, the second guard opened the door and Tabitha Alexander dressed in a blue pant suite stepped out and took in the surroundings. Nicked named Tabby because she at times favored stripped pant suites, she was to him out of character.

Seeing Randy, she walked towards him, with one of the guards retrieving a suite case and brief case following behind her. Stopping and turning, "That will be all Henry. Pickup time is 6 PM Sunday." Nodding in silence, Henry deposited the suite case and brief case at the bottom of the steps and returned to his partner at the Town Car.

Randy watched as both body guards entered the car and they drove off without looking back. Randy looking at the suite case, "So you want a room for the weekend?" Tabitha smiled in return, "It would be nice. I would hate to go to the highway and thumb a ride back to Atlanta."

Resigned to the fact he had an unwanted guest, Randy picked up the suite case and the brief case and escorted Tabby into the house, with a grim headline flashing in his head "CIA Director assassinated in North Georgia!" Randy's world had already been badly tossed about in the past 24 hours. What else is going to screw up his life?

Setting the suite case at the foot of the stairs, Tabitha took the brief case from Randy asked to be taken to Mireille and Kirika. Musing as he walked down the hallway, Randy frowned. "So she knows who they are."

Entering the sitting room, Tabitha Alexander took in Mireille Bouquet and Kirika Yumura. Mireille was sitting in a wheel chair with a warm smile, and Kirika with no expression; just the darkness within her eyes betraying no emotion.

Randy taking in the exchange, pondered if Tabby had made a mistake by coming here so boldly.

Mireille broke the iciness, "Tabitha it is so kind that you have come. It has been a rather long time since our last meeting." Tabby replied, "Yes it has Mireille. Kirika it is nice to see you again as well." Tabitha turned to Randy, "Mr. Baldwin? Is it a surprise to you?"

Randy not amused, "So it was an act? You damn well knew all along? Did you know they were going to be in that compound when I entered it? Tabby I can understand when I might run into the occasional Special Forces unit in the field, but not Noir!"

Tabitha with a more serious tone, "Sit down Randy." As she sat opposite of him and opened her brief case, "There were an unfortunate set of miscues on everyone's part. You and Noir should have never met, but in reflection it was fortuitous that you in deed did.

The results were still the same; the mission was considered a brilliant success. As for Noir's target his termination was successfully completed. Your brilliant idea of blowing the villa to smithereens made it appear that an air strike had taken place."

Handing him a large manila envelop and directing him to open it, "Randy, it is no accident Noir was here for a specific reason and that was the termination of Santiago Jesus Martinez. Certain things have come to pass after the failed attempt. You of course are now involved along with the local Sheriff, Phil Nagel. Then there is the elderly country doctor Harold Francis and his wife Darla who treated Mireille and Kirika. Let's not forget the Lopez's. Do I need to go on?"

Leaning back in her chair, Tabitha continued "The initial assumption made by the local authorities in Columbia was that Father George Skinner had been the victim of an ambush gone badly, was of course a story that certain individuals knew would not hold water for long. Of course Mireille admitted to you why they were here, sort of a repayment of a favor that you once did for her. Then you started asking her questions and you figured things out."

Randy who was perusing the papers, stopped and looked up, "Nice paper trail but no direct links or solid evidence. Does the FBI know about this?" as the door bell chimed, Randy took note of the time it was 8 PM.

Tabby raised an eyebrow, "Expecting someone?" as Randy stood up, "Yes Doctor Francis. He is coming to examine his patients."

Both Doctor Francis and his wife Darla were at the door when Randy opened it. Greeting them both, they all returned to the sitting room, where Doctor Harold Francis took in the new guest, "Randy if she is another patient, I am going to charge for this visit." Tabitha gave a soft chuckle, "Not by any means Doctor Francis, it is however my pleasure to met you. I am Tabitha Alexander."

Doctor Harold Francis cocking a rather white eyebrow skyward, "Wonderful, now the Director of the CIA is here. Who's going to be next? Perhaps the FBI, ATF, Secret Service, Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, the Coast Guard; of course let's not leave out the President too."

Harold turned to both Randy and Tabitha, "Well I do have patients to examine. They would like some privacy. Do you both mind taking it somewhere else for a few minutes?" Getting the hint, Randy and Tabitha gathered their respective articles together and headed to the study.

The slamming of the sitting room door, punctuated the Doctor's request as Randy entered the study followed by Tabitha, "Randy is he always that cranky?" Sighing as he sat at his desk, "Only when he wants to push his weight around. But everyone puts up with it, even Darla."

Tabitha sat in a chair at the front of the desk, "How bad really was it?" Randy looked up and not smiling, "An inch or so to the right and a quarter inch up and Mireille would have bought the proverbial farm, that's of course if she had not drowned first. When she went into the river it was face first."

Randy straightened out the papers, "Tabitha besides Noir, why are you really here?" Tabitha smiled, "I am here for consultations with you. You do still that or had that side job fallen by the wayside?" Randy picking up a pen; "I still do it, but it is not going to come cheap." Tabitha chuckled, "I suppose not. But back to your earlier question, is the FBI involved? No they are not, though there could be a really big stink raised for an Agency operation within the borders of the Unites States."

Congress by law had prohibited any operations by the Central Intelligence Agency within the borders of the Unites States. It was simple fact. Randy had already broken so many laws that he had lost count and that did not include local ones.

Randy doodling on the pad looked up at Tabitha, "Ok who called you or what tipped you off to our activities?" Tabitha with a sly smile, "Kirika called from the hotel room while you were dumping the SUV; I had my Agency jet prepared and I was on the ground here in Georgia, an hour and half later at Dobbins. She passed on the message from Mireille about her concerns with your vendetta which it now has become."

Tabitha stood and walked to the picture frame which held the photograph of Randy, Phil and George, "Fate is cruel Mr. Baldwin. As you know already about Mireille and Kirika's background and how they became Noir; yourself, Phil and George each were fated to become childhood friends. The respective paths you each took did eventually meet again over time. We had no indication that Father Skinner was actively involved in an attempt to stop the actions of a drug cartel, not until communication through other sources and that they had ordered the termination of Martinez after Father Skinner's assassination. It was by then too late to cancel the order. Noir was already in the United States."

The door to the sitting room opened and Darla Francis walked down the hall to the study and knocked, "Randy, we are finished." Getting up and walking back to the sitting room, Randy caught the last part of the warning from Doctor Francis; "Ms. Bouquet, you will need at least another day before walking. So please rest for the time being, as for you Ms. Yumura the skin cream I have given you will help clear up the scratches from the briars that you got otherwise you are fit as a fiddle."

Mireille shaking hands with Doctor Francis thanked him for his services and saw Randy Baldwin leaning against the door frame, "Mr. Baldwin perhaps there is some other questions that are bothering you?" Randy tilted his head downward, "Yes Mireille there are. Doctor Francis, Darla thank you for your time. That will be all. Kirika if you would join Ms. Alexander in my study please."

Kirika glancing at Mireille received a nod that it was ok and departed for the study. Randy satisfied that they were both alone, turned to the door and slammed it has hard as he could. Tabitha sitting in the study wincing at the sound of the door slamming mused, "I wonder if Mireille has her gun."

Mireille with her hands on her lap offered a smile, "Perhaps I should have killed you then?" Randy walked towards her and while doing so reached up and removed the Colt from its holster, "Mireille if you ever go behind my back again, I will kill you. Do you understand that? There was no reason to involve Alexander or anyone else."

Mireille with the muzzle of the Colt Commander at aimed at her forehead replied, "Vengeance can eat at ones soul Randy. When one seeks it, they become blind to every thing else." Mireille reached up and gentle brushed the Colt aside and then took it from Randy's hand.

Mireille setting the weapon on the table then took Randy's hand pulled him to the chair next to her wheel chair, "When my own family was killed because they refused to hand me over to the Soldots, I had made a promise to find the one responsible and to kill them with my own hands. I too was focused on seeking vengeance so much so that I ignored the needs of others; that was until Kirika came into my life."

Turning and picking up the Colt, "Kirika was seeking her own answers to questions about her own past and we came together. Eventually we both found those answers to her questions and my own as well. You see Kirika was the one who killed my family, on the orders of a woman named Athena, whose own twisted logic pitted me and Kirika against each other on the field of battle. I did get my vengeance but not against Kirika, but against Athena who's hands had been bloodied by my family's blood."

Handing the Colt back to Randy, "You were becoming blind to vengeance. It was regretful that Father Skinner died in the way he did and deserved a better fate. When the decision was made to terminate Martinez, I and Kirika came to carry out the assignment. We were not blinded by vengeance. We had but a clear goal which we tried to accomplish. Had we known of the additional measures that Martinez's security force had in place we would have planned differently. It was regrettable that you and I met again on the field of battle."

Randy accepting the Colt back and placing it into the holster, "So no one made the connection between Father George Skinner and me?" Mireille nodded, "That was an oversight on the part of many people. Then of course your intentions became evident and I had Kirika place a phone call. Hence the arrival of Tabitha Alexander, who was till now officially one of only two who know of Noir's true identities with in this country, unofficially there was you. She told me of your debriefing in her office and your refusal to answer some of her questions. It was purely a test on her part."

The quiet knock on the door interrupted the conversation and Tabitha followed by Kirika entered the sitting room, "So is your anger abetted Randy? Are you ready to refocus your efforts?" as Tabitha walked towards him. Randy stood, "Yes Tabitha what do you have in mind?"

Tabitha set the briefcase down on a table, "I seemed to recall a younger man who enjoyed lectures and took in those having to do with financial discussions. You remembered a discussion involving the analogy of a fire. Heat, Fuel and Air, and utilized it to a great extent during one of your prolonged assignments. The results in the end were fulfilling as the organization you were after ended up having its legs chopped out from under them and numerous cells were neutralized and destroyed along with their leaders being killed."

Tabitha sat and removed another manila folder, "What you had in mind there would have been difficulty pulling it off, but with this there is incentive to accept help. These papers outline all of Martinez's activities but one key ingredient is missing and that is his banking. Father Skinner may have had that information, the data disk contained it. How he obtained it we will likely never know but that was what he was going to turn over to interested parties. Read through it, some of the things are disgusting to say the least."

Taking the manila folder, Randy began reading the material enclosed. Santiago Jesus Martinez whose public face was beyond apparent reproach had a dark side. Human trafficking of woman to be used in prostitution, women who were young as 14 were enslaved in his operations. Slave labor to produce the drugs was high on the list, from cocaine and marijuana to meth. All of the operations untraceable to each other and to Martinez operated with under one common goal. The operations would send their profits through an unknown account where the monies were redistributed, then the monies would be transferred yet again, washed and rewashed till there was no way to track the original account.

Mireille observed Randy as he perused the documents, jotting notes on the margins of the papers as he went. Deeply absorbed in his reading, Randy had ignored Crabby and Kirby as they scampered into the sitting room. Crabby decided that Kirika was a suitable resting spot and settled himself down with Kirby jumping onto the sofa and then laying down next to Tabitha who began to scratch his ears.

Setting the papers down and rubbing his eyes, Randy leaned back in his chair "Ok Tabitha what do you want in return?" Tabitha looking at Kirby, running her hand down his fur coat "Retrieve the disk and share all the information fully. There is belief that Martinez is funding other organizations with monies, weapons and explosives. There are interested parties that want that stopped."

Randy leaned back, "Ok Tabitha you have a deal. There is however one condition and that is I will be left out of receiving any credit. Let the agencies that will be involved take it."

Tabitha smiled, "Very well Randy, I will abide by your wishes."

To be Continued...