Chapter fourteen,
Michael drove over to his mother's house early in the morning hoping to avoid both the rush hour traffic and his mother. He stood outside the garage that Jesse Porter called home. He double checked that the lights were still off in his mother's kitchen then knocked on the door. Jesse opened his door and stood aside as Michael pushed inside.
"What happened to you?" He asked, staring at all the bruises and cuts. He also noted how Michael held his arm, he guessed his left arm was severely injured as well.
"Don't worry about it." Michael sat down heavily on one of Jesse's dining chairs. " I need you to do me a favour."
Jesse narrowed his eyes, Michael would only come to him if Fiona and Sam had refused to help. "What are you up to Westen?" he asked.
" I want you to find someone for me. I have a description and an address where he works. I want to know where he lives, has he got a family, his private cell number. You were counter intel, you get the idea."
"This the same guy that did that to you?" He pointed out Michael's injuries. " What's his name? Ottoman. Is that right?"
"Yeah" Michael replied, his eyes had taken on a cold hard look. He smiled but it was more like a baring of the teeth.
"Er, didn't you make a promise not to-"
" I'm not. You are." He interrupted. "You will keep this quiet, don't get caught. While I play nice." He paused to let Jesse think about what he was asking him to do.
Jesse knew that he was still on shaky ground with Michael. It just went to show how desperate he was to get the information on Ottoman.
" I do this, you don't do anything without running it by all of us?"
" Sure." There it was, that you can trust me completely smile. Jesse hated that smile it reminded him of all the times he had been lied to or kept in the dark. It reminded him of all the reasons he had not to trust the man sat in front of him.
Jesse sighed. He knew Michael was only telling him what he wanted to hear. " I'll do it, but I mean it you don't do anything without telling us."
Michael dug into his jacket pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "This is a description of Ottoman and the address of the offices where I think he works I'll let you know when I have more to go on."
Jesse looked at the piece of paper and relaxed, if this was all he had to go on the investigation would take forever.
Michael got to his feet, he had got what he wanted and now he wanted to get away before he ran into his mother. " I'll keep in touch." He said heading for the door. He stepped outside and looked straight into the eyes of his mother who was at her kitchen sink.
"Michael. How nice to see you. Are you coming in for breakfast?" She called out through the window.
Jesse heard Madeline's voice and watched with some amusement as Michael's back stiffened, then his head dropped forward, finally he walked out shutting door behind him. Jesse still smiling, sat down and picked up the paper Michael had left, opening his laptop he set out to see what he could find out about Ottoman and the building where he worked. Later he would go down there and have a look around. See if he could find a good spot to watch from.
.
" So what happened this time?" Madeline asked as she looked Michael up and down.
" Just a little accident Ma nothing to worry about." He replied.
Madeline wasn't fooled at all. In fact she was becoming increasingly worried. He looked terrible and even though he was very good at hiding injuries and ignoring pain. He wasn't hiding it very well now. He was also losing weight and it wasn't like the was a lot to him in the first place.
" Really, well go sit down I'll cook you some breakfast." She started to pull eggs and bacon out of the fridge.
" I'll just have a coffee." He told her.
" I'm cooking you a meal Michael accept it." Her tone hardened a little bit.
He sat at the table eating the cooked breakfast. She watched him for a moment noting how he only used his right hand. The left being kept close to his side the hand resting on his lap. She was going to call Fiona later and find out what was going on.
" So you and Jesse getting on a bit better now?" She asked. She used the slightly whiny tone that she knew got on his nerves.
"Yeah we're good." He mumbled as he ate.
" What are you doing over here so early?" She tried to get him to open up a little.
He finished his breakfast and took a sip of his coffee. " I wanted to miss the traffic, my arm is a little sore." He said. Then gave her a grin. "And I thought I'd like to have breakfast with you."
She gave him a smile, it would have been nice thought if it were true. "So are you staying for a while?"
He was saved from answering by his cell phone ringing. "Just a minute Ma." He turned away from her and answered the call.
"The is a car waiting for you outside. Go and get in it." The call ended. Michael slowly put the phone back into his pocket. Turning back to his mother he got up and tried for a reassuring smile.
"I've got to go, the is a car waiting for me. I'll be back soon." He dropped the keys to the charger on to the table. "Ask Jesse to put the car up on the drive." He didn't wait for her reply, before leaving.
.
A black SUV sat at the curb waiting for him. When he reached it a man got out and held the door open for him. Once inside he sat between two men in plain black suits and dark sun glasses. The was no conversation. When the car came to a stop in an underground car park they took his cell phones. Once he was out of the car he stood while they searched him for weapons, then he was escorted up to the seventh floor. When the lift doors opened he was escorted out and along a corridor to a set of imposing oak doors. One of the guards knocked on the door. Then sent Michael inside, shutting the door behind him.
Michael stepped into a large wood panelled room, Reid Ottoman sat behind an impressive desk piled up with thick folders. "Take a seat." Ottoman Spoke without looking up.
Sitting down in a very comfortable chair Michael scanned the room looking for any clue to his new handler's private life. The were no photo's, no art on the walls, no ornaments not a single thing to tell Michael who this man really was. He turned his attention back to the man, again the nothing that he could see that was personal. When he finished his scrutiny of the room and the man, he sat back and waited for him to finish what he was doing.
Finally Ottoman put the papers he was studying down and gave Michael his full attention. Before he could speak Michael wanted to clear something up.
"I've spoken to Sam, it's what I told you, he knows her socially has done for years. He was at Langley last year trying to find out what had happened to me. That was all."
"Mr Axe's predicament is non of your business. What is your business is Mrs Sherrington has changed her plans she now arrives tomorrow. She will only be staying three days. Probably because Miami is no longer quite so safe for her side." Ottoman did what he always did and ignored Michael's concerns.
"I am not doing anything until I get a guarantee that Sam is safe." Michael remarked his voice firm.
"Really. Let me explain your position Mr Westen. You are an asset, who at the moment is more trouble than he is worth. If I was you I would be more worried about my own future."
Michael recognized a threat when he heard one. He also remembered his promise to his friends, try and earn a little trust. Get a little more freedom. Stop getting badly beaten.
"So why am I here?" He backtracked, letting Ottoman think he had won.
" Mrs Sherrington's itinerary," He was handed a thin folder. "Also the details of her hotel suite. The is a copy of her usual security detail but she may change it because of your presence. Also we have a facility where you will interview her. The are cameras and sound equipment already in place."
"Why aren't your own people grabbing her if you don't trust me to get you what you want?"
"You are our people Mr Westen, now do your job and allow me to move on to more important matters."
Michael tried once more to get some sort of guarantee for Sam. "If I do this will you leave Sam alone?"
"If this assignment goes well, it will go some way to proving your friend's innocence in the matter. But the are no guarantees Mr Westen the matter is still under investigation."
He had to be happy with that. Michael got to his feet the folder in his hand, Ottoman had already started examining another document. As he reached the door, "Oh Mr Westen, if you fail on this assignment it won't just be you and Mr Axe who will be in trouble." Michael froze in place just for a second then opened the door and stepped out into the corridor.
They dropped him back at his mothers house, and handed him back his cell phones. He walked up the driveway noticing Sam's car parked up behind the charger.
He let himself in through the front door, Sam was sat on the sofa leaning forward over the coffee table an old radio lay in pieces before him.
"That thing was old when I left home the first time Sam." Michael commented.
"Yeah well thanks to your early morning disappearing act I've had to deal with a pissed off Fiona. A word of advice Mike, next time you go out without waking her up, leave a note."
"Where is she?" Michael asked looking around.
"Out shopping with your ma. Maddy is trying to distract her. So what did they want with you this time?"
Michael sat down next to Sam and picked up a piece of the radio pretending to study it. "Chloe arrives tomorrow, I've got all the details here. They have a facility they want us to take her to, already kitted out with cameras and sound." He dropped the folder onto the sofa between them.
"They doing the interview, cos I'm not happy with the idea of handing a woman over to them." Sam picked up the folder to look through the details.
"No that's my job, but they don't trust me. I guess they want to control the situation. I tried to get them to drop the case against you as well but no deal."
"It's ok Mike, it's not your fault."
"The is another thing, I don't think I can get close enough to grab her, not in my present condition anyway."
Sam paused his repair job on the radio. "You want me to do it? Damn it Mike."
"I wouldn't ask-"
"I know, unless you had to." he turned to face Michael. "You have got to promise me you won't hurt her."
"I can promise you I won't, but if Ottoman gets involved-" Michael left the sentence hanging.
"I do this. I want to make some changes to the plan. I trust you Mike, but Ottoman." He shook his head " I'm not going to let you hand her over to him whatever happens."