I know I know... my lack of updating is an issue. But I have been a bit of a nomad recently and I just had to say farewell to all my high school buds, who are now far away, spread about from NY to LA. Sigh... and yes, my first year of college have arrived. With it may come stability, and with stability comes: More updates. And you know what makes we want to update? Sweet and thoughtful reviews. (Cough, cough) Lol...

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Once again, Lisa found herself standing in the crowded parking lot of the Mynt Lounge. To say that she was scared was an understatement- she was still waiting for that little red laser beam to come out of no where and blast her head away. Shuddering at the thought, she stuck her head up high as a futile attempt to appear 'normal' as she weaved through the poorly parked cars, stumbling twice on her way towards the entrance.

A man exiting had opened the door for her, and her ears took in the sound of the live jazz band playing at the small stage on the far right, adjacent to the bar. The dim lighting and streams of cigarette smoke reminded Lisa of those rare dream sequences they played in movies, ones that, although frightening, would usually end up with the person rising up from their bed to reveal it was all just a nightmare.

Too bad this is reality.

Not knowing what to do, Lisa thought it best to simply sit at the bar and order a water, even though the appeal of an alcoholic beverage was more than enticing, given the current circumstance. Stiffly placing her non-descript purse on to the counter, (She wouldn't need Chanel where she was going. ) she watched the blonde bartender in front of her chatter alluringly to a group of attractive, thirty-something year old men. The bartender caught sight of Lisa for a brief second, but quickly resorted back to trifle with the pack of excited men, who all seemed a bit too preoccupied with her rather low-cut blouse.

Looks like I won't get that water...

Exhaling deeply, Lisa turned her head to watch the performance of the well groomed jazz band, all clothed in black. Her eyes immediately appraised the pianist, whose hands were flying expertly to an assortment of keys that she would have deemed impossible. Smiling briefly, she realized that she would have enjoyed this if it had been a friend outing or even a date, not a conspiracy meeting.

Minutes passed by, minutes of agonizing solitude and remorse. If there had not been a live band to at least distract her remotely, she probably would have debated leaving. The once poppy, upbeat jazz numbers finally lulled into a few ballads that reminisced Frank Sinatra, and the lights grew even dimmer, coating the room with vivid cyan hues.

"Are you really into jazz, or are you just watching to pass time?" A low voice next to her immediately raised pinpricks on the back of her neck. Cautiously, she turned to meet a pair of hazel eyes peer at her behind a pair of rimless glasses.

"It's really the piano that caught my attention." Lisa said, sounding a bit breathless. The lump in her throat threatened to suffocate her.

He was attractive, in a rugged kind of way. Cropped brown hair, an impressive five-o'clock shadow adorning a defined jaw line, he could have walked out of an Armani ad if it weren't for his rather simple attire. A black T-shirt and jeans was not in her expectations; she always expected these people to be clad in pricey couture or tailored suits. At least that what experience had taught her, anyway.

"Excuse me." He tilted his head to the bartender, who immediately responded, abandoning the lively group of now discouraged men.

"Yes, what can I get you?" Her eyes, their darkness concealed behind layers of blue contacts, openly appraised his features.

"A sea breeze for the lady." His smile was novel and dazzling- too dazzling. It reminded her immediately of Jackson and his effortless charm at the Tex Mex bar so long ago.

Bunch of frauds...

Lisa remained silent, staring at the empty space in front of her, yet being very aware of his every minute movement. He chortled slightly at her unresponsiveness, then leaned closer to examine her with amused eyes.

"I heard you were quite a creative woman. I mean, don't get me wrong, I've seen a lot of crazy incidents in my life, but to have taken him down, I'm still stunned. Even more so, when you're here, willing to actually work alongside him..."

"Should you be careful of what you say?" She interrupted his musings, her eyes finally gaining the courage to meet his. "I mean, couldn't people be listening?"

His eyes narrowed slightly, and he peered towards the jazz band, his smile widening. "Nah, they will just be curious. I already spotted three of them, and although right now our little encounter is raising a few eyebrows, the jazz band is a bit too loud for them to hear anything. But if they can read lips well... I guess we have to think of something more creative, hm?"

Lisa stared at him, puzzled. There was an obvious innuendo in his words, but Lisa was too wary and prim to grasp. Slowly, he leaned forwards, his lips mere inches away from her ear as his cool breath grazed her neck. Lisa's first reaction was to repel herself away from him and his close proximity, causing her face to slightly turn towards the other direction, her nostrils flared.

He tsked as he made his way closer. "Act the part, Mrs. Reisert, it shouldn't take long if you do it just right. You won't convince them if you remain unresponsive," His tone was soft but curt, with a slight warning edge beneath it. "Smile. Smile and keep smiling."

The sound of glass clicking onto the counter made Lisa's eye grow wide with determination, and her trembling fingers became slightly alleviated as she grasped her freshly concocted sea breeze, its rosy allure sealing in her part of the deal. Closing her eyes, she chugged down half of the cup bruskly, humming lightly before finally meeting his gaze, a keen smile emerging from her dampened lips.

"Much better." He approved, smearing away a droplet from her bottom lip with his thumb.

The next twenty minutes passed by with an assortment of irrelevant conversations, most of it dealing with their exchange of musical preferences and shared hatred of Gold Frapp. As time lulled by, he had nestled in much closer; his fingers that once lingered on her palm were starting to stroke the lengths of her cheekbone. Feeling horribly uncomfortable and flushed, Lisa had to grit her teeth from time to time, occasionally tucking away a few hairs that shielded his eyes as an attempt to make it look as intimate as possible. His face was luckily not disapproving or reproachful by her shyness, and slowly she eased into character, finally having the guts to stroke his ankle with her high heel clad foot.

Finally, he leaned in close and tucked away a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I assume you want to go over to my place."

It wasn't really much of a question, but his eyes were still lit, looking deceivingly eager and pleased.

"Of course," She responded, her voice so sugary it pummeled her gag reflex. Ever the gentleman, he tossed a twenty towards the fuming bartender and held out his arm towards Lisa, a crooked grin in place.

"How about you let me drive?"

"No problem." Lisa chuckled, letting a bit of the hysteria leek out. She really didn't know whether to scream or laugh anymore- this faux flirtation was a bit too absurd for her.

Struggling to keep up with his long strides as they exited, Lisa found herself being led towards a dark blue Infiniti G37. She paused, looking at her humble Corolla with longing eyes, then back at his face.

"My lu..."

He immediately squeezed her hand to the point of pain, causing Lisa to grimace.

"How about we talk more about that when we get to my place." His voice was rugged despite his set smirk, and with that he pulled Lisa into the passenger seat, closing the door promptly, leaving her speechless.

Appalled, Lisa gaped with widened eyes as he started the engine, the radio blasting a hard rock song that Lisa was not familiar with.

"My stuff! I need to..." She whimpered, her hand still sore from his brutal grip.

"You have your wallet and identification?" He said, his voice now flat and authoritative.

"Yeah, but my clothes..."

"Jackson arranged for you a totally new wardrobe set- toiletries and accessories included."

Mouth wide open, Lisa felt a wave of rage pummel her. "But I had personal stuff...!"

The cold, ugly look he shot her made her unable to continue. "Too bad."

Overwhelmed and feeling slightly betrayed, Lisa retreated her gaze back towards the window, gnawing on her lower lip to keep it from trembling.

After a drive of ten minutes, they entered a large, contemporary apartment complex called The Atlantic Anchorage, its entrance gate and obvious camera installations giving rise to Lisa's immediate anxiety. He rolled down his window as he slowly drove towards the heat sensitive keypad and quickly pressed eight digits. After a few seconds of debating, the large obsidian gates finally opened warily, and without hesitation he kicked his gas pedal, flying them inwards.

Parking sharply in between two suburbans, he jeered the car off and jumped out of the seat, motioning Lisa to get out with an impatient wave of the hand. Glaring at him, she grimly got out and slammed the passenger door harshly before proceeding to follow his inhumane pace. He looked back at her a few times, cussing under his breath.

"Come on." He pressed, finally grabbing her hand as they made their way up a flight of stairs.

Their path was a maze of never-ending stairs aligned with the blank faces of identical doors and balconies; each corner they turned only revealed another complex hallway of bleached white doors and vacant windows, all seemingly uninhabited.

Probably just doing all this unnecessary walking to confuse me...

Finally, they stopped at Door 738. Monitoring his surroundings briefly, Lisa's captor knocked on the door three times, paused, then knocked once. Lisa heard a slight shuffling from the other side, and finally the door opened slightly, Jackson's silhouette appearing.

"Well, how did it go Leese?"

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Bum bum BUUUM. I decided not to name the guy who just popped up, but he just might make a come back eventually, if any of you guys actually like him. (Pssh, I sure don't, and I created him: Oh the dilemma!) Review please and make my day!