I'm so sorry, I'm late posting. A very hectic week. I'm doing this from work, so I couldn't edit to the best of my abilities. Please forgive and notify me of any mistakes. Thank you. Have a great weekend!
Tj12398: I take this as an immense compliment. Thank you so much! I hope it continues to please people and you, of course.
RRL24: Yes, they almost did! Wait till Chapter 7. I think you will like that second encounter.
Harry101: Of course redheads! Couldn't be anyone else!
Anatolie: I really appreciate you reading this fic. Description has always been a challenge for me. It continues to challenge me with every fic I write.
Playlist:
Aqualung: Breaking My Heart
Jason Mraz: Lucky
Pitbull: Don't Stop the Party
Ryan Stewart: Autumn
Chapter 6
Jessie ran upstairs after she and Claire arrived home. Immediately, she entered Jonny's room and headed to the nightstand where she picked up the picture of the three of them at the Junior Prom.
"It can't be," she shook her head as she walked in the room. "It's impossible." She looked at the picture again and again. The man that she saw in front of the club couldn't have been Jonny, or could it have been? Jessie studied the picture even more, "He looked so much like him…I have to be seeing things, it's impossible." She walked over to Jonny's bed and sat down staring carefully at the picture frame she gripped with her hand.
Suddenly, she gasped when she heard a knock on the door, "Jessie?" Looking up, she watched Hadji walk in slowly, concern evident in his face, "Are you alright?"
Jessie nodded and smiled uneasily, "I'm fine Hadj."
"Claire is a bit worried," he said as he walked closer to her. "She said something happened when you took her to see where we were going tonight?"
"I…." she sighed and rolled her eyes trying to poke fun at herself, "You know, I think coming back home permanently is a bit more stressful than I thought. I must be seeing things," she smiled as he took a seat next to her. "I could have sworn I saw him today."
Hadji looked at the picture frame she held and sighed. He rarely spoke of his brother, the pain too great for him. He and Jonny were so close and he missed him dearly. "Would it make you feel better if I told you that this happens to me every once in a while when I'm home?"
"Really?" Jessie looked at him as tears threatened to run down her cheeks.
"Well, not to the point that I would make my best friend so worried that she called me immediately to talk to you, no, but…"
"Oh, stop it!" she punched him playfully. She paused and looked at the picture, "He looked so much like Jonny Hadji. This guy that I saw was much more built than I remember Jonny being, but his face…he could have been his twin."
"It is said that we all have one in the world," Hadji responded with a sigh. "Jessie, I know how much you want him back, but you can not go on thinking that you are going to find him just about everywhere you go. You will run yourself crazy."
"I know," she reasoned, "I guess, my imagination got the better of me." Kissing his cheek, Jessie smiled, "Don't worry, I won't go crazy on you." Turning, she put the picture back on the nightstand.
"I hope so," Hadji joked wrapping his arm around her shoulder, "I have enough with Claire."
This time Jessie laughed, "Oh, I'm so going to tell her that!"
"And here I thought I was your friend," he said laughing.
As they both shared a hug, she asked, "Where could he possibly be Hadj? Doesn't he know how much we miss him? How much he's making us suffer?"
"Maybe he cannot help it Jessie," Hadji responded gently, letting her go. "He would not do this on purpose. At least, that is how I want to see it. You know Jonny…he would not do that to us if he could help it." They sat there silent for a moment just looking around the room. Finally, Hadji stood up, "I better get back to studying. If I break away from my schedule, I will ruin the lead I have on that dissertation."
He began walking out when Jessie called out, "Thanks Hadji."
"No thank you needed, my sister," he answered. "Shall we go?"
Jessie stood up and began walking out of the room, but abruptly stopped herself, "Wait." She went back to the night stand and removed he picture from the frame. Then, put the frame inside the drawer. Holding the picture in her hand, she told Hadji, "I've always liked this picture."
"Good times," he said with a sad smile.
"Very good times," she responded as they both walked out of the room.
XXXXXXXXXX
The doctor sat in his office calmly looking at his computer screen. He was never a man to second guess himself but when he suspected something, like he did at the moment, he knew better than to let the suspicion go. "You're a loose cannon you little prick," he said referring to DR128, the thorn of his entire operation for the last five years. He knew that from the moment he laid eyes on the kid years ago. Unfortunately, the Master didn't think so and as long as he had an emotional attachment to DR128, he would be yet another person compromising the operation.
He continued staring at the computer screen. As expected, DR128 was working out of protocol. Somehow, he had hacked into the system and used a company credit card to rent a cabin thirty miles from his current operation. For whatever reason, the doctor didn't know. On top of that, he hid his trace well. If the doctor hadn't suspected him and decided to track his moves on a deeper level, he would have missed his actions. "What are you doing, DR128?"
Something was going on. He could tell Master, but the doctor knew, he'd just find a way to correct the situation without hurting strand on his favorite assassin's blonde head. He would have to take action himself and if it meant going behind Master's back, then so be it. Opening another window on his computer, he typed in a code and within minutes a face appeared on the computer screen, "KG765."
"I'm listening."
"You have an assignment. I need you on the next flight to Maine."
XXXXXXXXXX
"Dad, don't wait up for us," Jessie yelled out as she, Hadji and Claire walked to the entrance lobby of the mansion, "We might be back next week for all we know."
"Don't get cute with me, Bannon," Race walked out of the office. "Just because you're all college grads doesn't mean you can come back home from partying weeks from now."
"We would never do that Race," Hadji told him unable to stifle a short yawn. "Besides, I do not think I could." Working on that dissertation was killing him and more than anyone knew. What he longed for was sleep.
"Speak for yourself!" Claire laughed.
"Really Dad, we won't be in too late," Jessie reassured her father, "Just…don't wait up," she smiled as she walked to him and planted a kiss on his cheek.
Sighing and shaking his head, Race responded, "Fine. Just drive safely and don't get too cocky with the drinking, alright?"
"We won't Mr. Bannon," Claire replied. "We'll behave. Girl Scout's honor," she finished giving him a signature Girl Scout sign with her fingers.
After some last goodbyes the trio finally left and Race closed the door behind them. Moments later, Benton walked out the office, "Are the kids gone?"
Race nodded, "Yeah." Looking at his watched he added, "It shouldn't be long before Phil gets here." Benton sighed heavily before retreating back to the office. Race knew the waiting would kill him and even though an hour wasn't much, in a situation like this, it would feel like waiting for years. Walking back to the office, Race suggested, "Why don't we have dinner before Phil gets here? It might take our minds off the waiting."
The doctor immediately shook his head, "Race, I'm really not hungry." He sat down on a chair by his desk and started sorting out the mail. His attention made its way to a black envelope with a gold seal, "I had forgotten about this."
"What's that?" Race asked curiously.
"It's the invitation for United Nation's annual gala," he replied flatly. "Last year I was a keynote speaker. This year I am a guest."
"Rubbing elbows with the elite is hard work," Race joked.
"They always invite keynote speakers," Benton shrugged. "It's actually a good opportunity to rub elbows with some pretty influential officials. If I need to do research in a specific country, having a good friend at the UN is a great incentive," he said. "Believe it or not, most countries do not like to be researched."
"When is it?" Race asked.
"On Saturday night. Maybe I should order a tux," he answered absentmindedly. It felt ridiculous to even talk about such a trivial thing, but somehow Benton felt more at ease to talk about the event while waiting for Phil and Zach. Anything was better than looking at the clock, "And a date for this thing."
Sensing his friend's stress, Race followed suit, "You could call Vanessa, I'm sure she'd like to attend."
Benton shrugged and looked at the clock, "Maybe."
Seeing that it wasn't helping much, Race walked over to the bar and poured two glasses of scotch. Taking one to Benton who read the invitation for the umpteenth time, he offered a glass, "You don't want dinner, but hopefully, this will calm us down."
Grateful, Benton took the glass and drank, "Thanks."
"You're welcome," Race nodded before taking a seat across from him. "Why don't we review all the latest research we gathered from the case, maybe we can connect some things to what Phil will tell us."
Liking the idea, the doctor stood up and walked over to the cabinet, retrieving a disc. He inserted the disc on the computer and the information popped on the small smart board that hung by one of the walls, "This is the last information that we retrieved from Peru…"
Listening to Benton, Race felt his friend calm down. He knew that reviewing the information wouldn't offer anything new, but at least it calmed Benton down and that's what was needed at that point to pass the time until Phil Corvin made a very eager appearance to the Quest household.
XXXXXXXXXX
After giving the instructions to KG765, the doctor sat silently, looking at the monitor and pondering the next part of his plan. Once KG765 finished off DR128 and properly disposed of the body, he'd tell Master that the assassin had gone rouge. Now, how could he explain that such a highly skilled assassin had gone rouge and killed his counterpart?
"This is going to require a bit of thought," he muttered. Standing up, he went over to the cabinet and pulled out a vial filled with a dark blue liquid inside, "Maybe it's time to put you to use…."
Going back to his computer, he began opening the files of different assassins under his care, adding in on their medical history, an extra entry under medicinal administration. Opening, KG765's file, he did the same. Feeling a bit better that he had covered his tracks for the moment; the doctor turned off his computer and gathered his things. Needing a small break from the very active week that he had had, the doctor decided to take a couple of hours off, "Time to go home," he said to himself as he walked out the door.
Taking a deep breath, he actually felt lighter. Soon DR128 would cease to exist and not only him, but Master himself could continue on with what truly mattered, the brave new world they were about to create.
XXXXXXXXXX
The large dining room at Bresca provided and intimate setting where guests relaxed under the tunes of Jason Mraz's "Lucky". Jessie smiled to herself as she took in the atmosphere. This was definitely Hadji's element. She wondered how he would enjoy Oasis once they left this calm atmosphere.
Claire seemed to enjoy it as well. But to Jessie, it looked like she was enjoying Hadji a lot more. Jessie couldn't help noticing how the Texan blonde looked at her friend. Looking at Hadji, Jessie noticed how handsome he had grown. His olive skin contrasted beautifully with his dark wavy hair that he now wore medium length covering his ears a bit. Tonight his hair was parted on one side and brushed toward the other. His waves changed directions naturally giving him a wild look that noticeably impressed Claire. Funny, Jessie never thought of Hadji as wild. Wearing black trousers and a light green dress shirt, even Jessie had to admit her friend looked rather stunning.
"So, what do you two lovely ladies feel like having tonight?" he asked with a casual natural smile.
"Chicken," Claire sighed. "Unfortunately, I'm allergic to shellfish. Go figure, I now live in the one state where seafood is a staple and I can't have any."
"That's irony for you," Jessie laughed. "Fortunately, for me, I am not in such an unfortunate predicament. So, I will start off with a very nice helping of crab cakes as my appetizer."
"You're evil!" Claire shook her head.
"I'm lucky," the red head countered as she hummed the song that was playing around her.
"I see that this evening is going to be a lot of fun," Hadji replied mockingly rolling his eyes. Then, looking at the blonde, he offered her a gentle smile, "You know, chicken sounds delicious. How about you and I take a look at that section in the menu, perhaps we will find something that we can both enjoy."
Blushing a little, Claire smiled. "Thanks Hadji," she said before turning to Jessie and sticking out her tongue.
Laughing, Jessie looked back at her menu, "Yep, it is going to be a very fun night."
XXXXXXXXXX
As Zach drove his brand new dark grey Mercedes down the highway his eyes cautiously travelled to the man sitting on the passenger seat who sat looking straight ahead, lost in thought. "Going over the script for tonight?" he asked trying to lighten the mood.
"How do you tell someone that his son may be alive after five fruitless years of searching? And what the hell is Benton going to feel when his sees this particular video?"
"Phil, we don't have anything concrete. What we have is a forty second video that explains nothing," Zach continued. "We need to investigate this further."
Phil laughed, "The kid is shown groping some possible Russian hooker on the other side of the world while his father has used almost every possible resource to find him for the past five years! That's what Benton is going to see."
Quiet for a moment, Zach sighed, "What Benton is going to see is his son alive, if in fact it is Jonny. Whatever else…I'm sure there's a good explanation for it."
As soon as Zach finished his sentence, Corvin's cell phone rang. Taking out of his pocket, he pressed one of the buttons and answered, "This is Corvin," he listened to a moment before snapping up from his seat, "What?"
Zach turned to look at him.
"When did this happen?" Phil continued listening. "Who's leading the investigation?" He paused for a moment more, "Email me his contact details and I'll call him later tonight." He finished before pressing the disconnect button.
"What happened?" Zach asked as he took the next exit.
"We had another assassination of a UN Ambassador almost during the same time range as Daud's assassination," Phil sighed in frustration, "In Moscow."
The realization hit Zach, "Damn."
XXXXXXXXXX
Wearing a dark midnight blue suit and a light grey dress shirt, DR128 gave himself on last look in the dresser mirror before putting on the Rolex watch Master gave him. Two years prior, he visited him in an apartment in Austria where he was stationed for a couple of months recovering from an assignment where he had been injured. During his stay, the Master nursed him back to health and before leaving, gave him the watch for no apparent reason.
He never questioned the why. He thanked Master and wore it every chance he had. Spraying on a little Aramis, he took a look at the drawer in the dresser. He thought about taking the gun, but he was sure that the bouncer at the club would find it. He left it behind. He would only take what he needed for the night.
Grabbing his keys, he walked out of his hotel room. Going to his car, he turned on the ignition and pulled out of the parking lot toward the street. He'd be walking in to Oasis an hour earlier waiting for his target.
XXXXXXXXXXX
They had finished dinner and ordered one dessert to share since none of them had space for one of their own.
"That was one very good lobster dinner," Jessie gloated to her friends as they both looked at her with annoyance, "Come on, I was just kidding!"
"Well, my chicken was delicious," Claire responded with sarcasm. "Right Hadji?"
"Best chicken I have ever had," he smiled. "Besides, the important thing is that dessert can be shared by all of us. And that is more important than any other part of dinner."
"Hear hear!" Claire raised her glass. "Let's toast!" The other two raised their glasses as Claire said, "To tonight and having a lot of fun!"
"To tonight," Jessie smiled.
Dessert soon arrived. The fresh Key Lime cheesecake with a massive amount of whip cream was huge and Jessie was glad they would share. Otherwise, she would find herself pulling extra hours at the gym to burn it off.
"Wow," Claire shook her head as she stared at the round plate. "This is unreal!"
"Well, dig in," Hadji was already putting his spoon in. "If we do not start working on this monster, then it will take us longer to get to this club that Claire is crazy about going."
"I second that!" Claire answered immediately, dipping her spoon in. "There's no way I'm going to lose time on the dance floor tonight."
As Jessie laughed, she looked at Hadji who was suddenly nervous. The prospect of dancing worried him. Dancing was not his strong suit and Jessie couldn't wait to see him move later tonight.
XXXXXXXXXX
The doorbell rang and Benton immediately stood up to answer it, but Race stopped, him, "I'll get it. Have a seat. I'll bring them to the office."
The white haired man walked out of the office and to the front door. Checking in to see who it was through the peep hole, he confirmed Phil and the other gentleman standing by the door as Zachary Scott. Opening it, he looked into the eyes of his old crew before answering, "This better be good Phil. I don't think Benton can stand another disappointment."
"I assure you Race," Zachary stepped in, "We wouldn't be here unless we had something good to show you."
"Hey Zach," Race nodded before he let the men walk in. Leading them toward the office, they found Benton by his desk. As soon as he saw them he stood up. Race could have sworn his friend had aged from the time he left him a few seconds back until now.
"Phil, Zach," he said, "Please, come in."
Both men walked in and took seats by the sofa close to the chimney. Phil was the first to speak, "Before we begin, I want you to know that Zach received this information late last night and we have been working diligently to find answers, but we don't know anything at this point."
"What is it that you want to show us?" Race asked already feeling the frustration.
Zach took out a USB drive from the side pocket and handed it to him, "This. Pop it in."
Race took the USB from Zach's hand and walked over to the computer where he plugged it in. The disk had only one file, an MP4. He opened it. Pressing play, the video appeared on the SMART screen. The men watched the video, seeing the young pair in a lover's embrace.
Watching the video, Benton's eyes widened.
XXXXXXXXXX
Walking into the club, he surveyed the inside of the circular structure. Two floors. The first had a massive dance floor already full of people swaying to the rhythm of the music being played. His surroundings were dark, except for the strobe lights flickering colors of dark blues, pinks and purples. A full bar filled with people stood by one side, four bartenders took care of their patrons.
Pitbull's "Don't Stop the Party" blasted through the speakers as he walked toward the stairs and up to the second floor of the club. On the second floor, tables and lounge sofas decorated the circular structure. There were smaller bars at four points, twelve, three, six and nine. He walked up to one of the bars and ordered a drink from the bartender, "Amaretto Sour," he said as he put down twenty dollar bill, "Keep the change." After getting his drink, he walked up to one of the empty stools by the balcony and began gazing down below, watching the people dance and unaware of his presence.
"Hi," he heard the female voice of a woman filter through his ears despite the loud music around him. Turning around, he watched as a Sandy blonde diva sat across from him at the table. He noticed her hazel eyes, her pleasant smile and the tight little black strapless dress she wore, "I'm Jamie."
Being rude or cold would leave her with a memory of him. He'd have to find a way to get rid of her without as much as having her think twice of him in the near future, "John," he answered. A common name always worked better. People more often than not confused common names.
"Well Tom," she hadn't heard him correctly with all the music. "Ever been here before?"
"Yes, on occasion," he smiled, happy that she had confused the name he had given her with another.
"See something you like?" Jamie was straight forward, no sense in painting a picture for him.
Smiling, through his baby blues, he answered looking at the bartender who had served him a few minutes earlier. He was a well-built man, mid to late twenties with light brown hair. At that moment, he was serving a couple a few tables away from them, "As a matter of fact, I do."
Turning, Jaime followed his gaze and rolled her eyes, "Oh."
Looking at her, he smiled back.
"I guess I'm wasting my time," she stood up and walked away without so much as a goodbye. He knew that after that rejection, it was less likely that women around him would not walk up to him for fear of the same thing. Picking up his drink, he began watching the entrance doors. That is when he watched his target walk in almost an hour early with his two body guards.
XXXXXXXXX
The doctor walked in to his apartment trying to stifle yet another yawn. He couldn't. It had been a short day, but despite it, he knew he would have a good night's sleep later that day. For the first time in years, he felt good about the project. Soon there would be no loopholes, no one to put things in jeopardy.
The phone in his study rang, He walked into the room and picked up the phone, "My day is over."
"No, it isn't," Master's voice replied with venom in his tone.
The good doctor froze. Had the Master found out what he was planning? How? He had carefully hidden his steps. Why was he angry? "Is there a problem?" he asked casually without giving away the fact that he felt his nerves go wild.
"The problem is that I just looked over my son's test results and I don't like what I'm seeing." Master responded with even more anger in his tone, "You gave him the serum didn't you?"
Sighing with relief, the doctor now felt a bit better. This, he could handle. "I only gave him the part of the full first dosage. It's not going to do him any harm. It will just allow the brain to…dismiss anything that might cause a memory of the past to come back. Besides, without the second dosage, the first one won't do a thing in the long run. I don't understand why you are so damn paranoid!"
"Because you told me that all you gave him were memory tests and a booster! And if nothing sparked out, then there was no reason to give him the damn dosage," Master's voice boomed.
"I was afraid that the booster would not work. Half a dosage worked better," he concluded. "He will be fine. It's not going to affect his behavior in any way. Besides, it would take both dosages for complete transformation."
"You are wearing me thin. I better not find any more tampering that concerns my son. I better not!" he continued, "You are dealing with the wrong man, remember that Oliver!" he said before he hung up.
Shuddering a bit, the doctor hung up the phone. Perhaps he had not analyzed his plan enough. He'd have to think of a contingency plan in case Master saw right through this one. He had all day to do it. So much for a good night's rest.
XXXXXXXXXX
"This is impossible," Benton whispered to himself, "Are you sure it is him?"
"Our computer recognition programs made positive identifications at nearly ninety-seven percent," Zach answered, "So…all evidence points to this young man being Jonathan Benton Quest."
Doctor Quest played back the video one more time, "Where was this taken?"
"Moscow," Phil responded, "Roughly one week ago."
Race was beside himself looking at the image on the screen. The young man in the picture looked identical to Jonny. A little taller, much more built, but it was him. The behavior, however, was drastically different. If Jonny was alright, why hadn't he made contact with them in over five years? Why purposely disappear? Jonny would have never left his father, unless… "We need to go," he suddenly turned around and looked at his friend, "Something is wrong with him. Benton."
Immediately the doctor nodded, "I know Race. Jonny would never leave us on purpose. And yes, we are taking the first flight to Moscow."
"There's more," Phil cut in. Both men looked at the I-1 director with interest, "One week ago a UN Ambassador was killed while exiting the gate at the airport. I witnessed the entire event. The person of interest in this murder is a young man, mid-twenties. He was about five eight, with dark brown hair. Roughly one week ago another UN Ambassador was killed in Moscow, no suspects at this time."
"What are you saying?" Benton raised his voice, "That my son has something to do with—"
"I don't know Benton!" Phil voiced back. "All we have is coincidence and, at most, circumstantial evidence. I don't think….Jonny would never do anything purposely. And…maybe it is a coincidence, but…"
"He may be forced by someone to do this," Race chimed in. "We need to help him. If not, well, who is to say he's not in some danger as well."
"Gentlemen," Zach stood up to appease the situation. "This kid was taken from his family five years ago. We knew from the beginning it was a kidnapping of some sort. Whether or not he has anything to do with the UN murders is beside the point, we need to find him first."
Nodding in agreement, Race went to the computer, "I'll start booking flights."
"It will be for the three of you," Phil sighed. "I'm leading the investigation of the Maine assassination and I can't leave right now. The president is on me at the moment, but I can connect you to the I-1 director in Europe headquarters. I'm sure he'll be able to help."
"Fine," Benton replied. "Let's coordinate. I want to be out of here as soon as possible."