The Little Death 2

»Come on, I am sure you can do at least two more!«

Mike, lying on his back and doing pushups with the long dumbbell, arched his head and saw the man standing behind him upside down. Even if he hadn`t recognized him, the fact that the man was wearing a suit in a gym would have made him a remarkable appearance. Gritting his teeth, he lifted the dumbbell three more times before he rose and dried his hands with his towel before he shook hands with the man in the suit.

»Mr. Bishop!«

Mike didn`t ask the man how he had found him, though he knew it was hardly a coincidence that one of his former superiors visited a small gym in Sheffield. After his breakup with Isabelle, Mike had returned to his old hometown, visiting his parents and a few old friends. He had even attended the annual class meeting of his high school, but more and more, he had withdrawn, spending his days at his old gym and the evenings in pubs where nobody knew him. He knew that he was rather defending than coping, but so far, it was easier to handle the loss of Isabelle that way.

Now, however, his tedious routine seemed to have been interrupted.

»So, have you also left the old treadmill and decided to start some workout?«, Mike asked in a way that indicated he knew perfectly well that Bishop hadn`t come to meet a former colleague. The elder man politely smiled and replied:

»Why should I quit since I have finally been promoted?«

»So, it`s Arch Bishop then?«, Mike joked whilst he tried to figure out why Bishop was here. When he had been at the Secret Service, Bishop had been second in command to his department. Their boss had been Slater, a veritable office guy that had made the work of a secret agent look like that of an office clerk for most of the time. Actually, it had been Bishop that had been responsible for the rare occasions on which Mike had done field service.

»So to say. And to stay in the metaphor, I could need an additional choir boy.«

Bishop told him that he would wait at the adjacent café whilst Mike showered and changed clothes. He was curious why Bishop had come to him. Mike had only been in the Service for four years and he had quit two years ago. In addition, he hadn`t distinguished himself as being a top agent or something like that. He would have considered his work as maybe slightly above average. Sure, there was a lack of skilled people everywhere and maybe even in the Secret Service, but were they really so desperate to recruit him once again?

In the movies, there were usually three reasons why a former agent was called back: money, to pay back an old guilt or because something had happened to an old friend. Well, Mike had enough money and he was sure that the Service knew about that. He had no debts to pay and as far as he knew, the two persons still working for the Service that he still held contact with were both well and alive.

At the café, Bishop had chosen a small table outside and was sipping from an Espresso.

»I would have ordered one for you, but I wasn`t sure whether you`d prefer a protein shake after your workout!«

Scoffing, Mike went inside and chose a double Espresso. When he returned to Bishop`s table, he remarked:

»Having me pay my drink by myself isn`t the best start for whatever offer you have, Mr. Bishop.«

Bishop smiled.

»After all I`ve heard, you can afford an overpriced coffee here and there. Anyway, have you considered going back to France?«

So, his former superior knew that he had done quite a big job in France a few months ago. He took a sip from his coffee to cause Bishop to continue.

»Nice, to be precisely. I hope you like the Mediterranean.«

Mike didn`t tell Bishop that the last time he had been at the Mediterranean, he had been kicked by the girl he loved. Instead, he asked:

»Three questions – what?, why me? and what if I refuse?«

Stealthily, Bishop looked over his shoulder before he proposed that they should both enjoy a little walk since his hotel wasn`t too far away. Of course, it was just to allow them to talk openly. As an additional precaution, Bishop changed into French.

»Allow me to answer your questions in the reverse order. If you refuse – well, I would be slightly disappointed, but if you can live with that, that will be the only dire consequence. After all, you are no longer at the Service. Which is the reason why I picked you. You have the necessary skills, but if you get caught, we would be able to deny any connections to us or to the Crown.«

Mike nodded slowly, thinking about the subtext of Bishop`s words: so, there was a veritable danger of getting caught – and maybe tortured. Besides, it was something of national interest.

»What ›necessary skills‹ are you referring to, Mr. Bishop?«

Bishop turned his face towards Mike`s, lowering his voice to almost a whisper:

»After all I have heard, you have the ability of persuading women to follow you wherever you want – even against their will!«

***

Obviously, the narcotic had either been weakly dosed or their trip was rather long, for when Sophia regained her consciousness, she found herself still sitting in the car seat, still tied, gagged and blindfolded. At least, they hadn`t used chloroform, but something else that didn`t cause nausea. Having to chew on her worn panties was just enough of an ordeal, in addition to being kidnapped.

»Ah, you are awake, Dr. Chabrol! Just in time for our arrival!«

Sophia moaned, but fought down her urge to squirm. She did not want the man to use the narcotic on her again. Also, she remembered how he had groped her breast and definitely didn`t want him to do that again.

So, she sat in enforced silence as the car slowed down, rolling over some slightly uneven ground before it came to a halt. The Asian helped her to get out and took the jacket that had covered her tied hands. A rustle told her that he put it into a plastic bag whilst the other man stepped close to her, too. Quite unceremoniously, he hung her arms over his neck and then pushed his arm under her knees, cradling her in his muscular arms. Sophia flailed with her lower legs, but stopped when she felt her skirt slide up her thighs. The Asian plucked her shoes from her feet and put them into the bag, too.

»Your job will be indoors.«

This simple announcement made Sophia shiver. It wasn`t the loss of her shoes, but the fact that they – whoever »they« were – would decide where she would go. They walked a few minutes and Sophia, carried by the silent man, tried to listen for any hints where she was. However, there was just the sound of shoes on an uneven terrain, accompanied by the chirping of some sparrows. Then, there was the specific sound of a closing steed door. The chirping was abruptly cut off and now, the men`s steps echoed in what seemed to be a narrow corridor. After some corners and a flight of stairs, they finally stopped.

»Ah, you are back! Did anyone see you?«, a female voice said and Sophia heard approaching steps.

»I don`t think so«, the Asian replied. Now, Sophia sensed the fragrance of some perfume and then, fingers brushed gently over her cheek.

»Mhhmph!«, she protested and tried to turn her head away.

»Don`t be like that, Sophia! We haven`t seen each other for quite some time!«

Sophia stiffened in her captor`s arms. She had heard that voice before! Also, she remembered the slight accent in the woman`s French.

Again, her cheek was caressed and then, Sophia felt that the woman obviously lifted her skirt.

»I see you followed my instructions to the point!«

»Nnnnggg! Mmhhmmmph!«

Sophia flailed with her legs and squirmed. She was more angry than frightened now, fuming from the way they just looked underneath her skirt! The response was a chuckle and again, she knew that she had heard it before.

»You are still a bit shy, my dear Sophia. Well, believe it or not, but for what you are intended to do, that`s not the worst thing. However, I think before I explain to you what your duties will be, I should introduce you to an old friend!«

***

Lioba`s report had been a bit vague, for she still had refused to give them details about what exactly the project at Harvard had been about. All she had told them was that it had to do with a specific sort of psychotropic drugs.

»I know that I sound like I am either trying to sound mysterious or as if I would try to blur evidence. But maybe, your colleague was right about Sophia just having received an important call and as long we cannot be sure that there has been a crime, I will stay loyal to Professor Leduc – and to my own interests, for what that means.«

 At least, the names of those involved in the project weren`t top secret.

»For a project financed by one of America`s best Universities, there were only few Americans involved. The leaders were Professor Leduc and Professor Marcus Moody. The latter`s a psychologist.«

»A psychologist called ›Moody‹? That`s funny!«, Sistine giggled and Lioba smiled.

»The name also fit, for he and Leduc didn`t get on well together. Well, there was Sophia and me. Leduc was her supervisor and I had taken the chance to get to Harvard after finishing school. I had just graduated and Pete had brought me into the project.«

»Pete?«

»Dr. Peter McNeish, one of Harvard`s most promising young pharmacologists at that time. The last American was Luana Wu. She was from Taiwan, but had been naturalized a few years before. And last, but not least, there was Ingrid Müller from Germany.«

Lioba told them that their studies had brought little progress and they had come to a dead point, though she didn`t go into details. Anyway, after a year or so, the University had cut off the supplies and the project had stopped.

»Leduc had gotten a call from the University here and though Marseille isn`t Paris, he took the chance of getting a chair position. He wanted to continue his studies and so, he arranged that both Sophia and I could also get jobs at the University.«

»So, your clandestine project is still at work?«

Isabelle could not oppress some mockery and Lioba looked a bit apologetically before she explained:

»On the back burner, so to say. Leduc has his lectures and other projects, we only have very little money and in addition, the lab is occupied by others most of the time. That`s the reason why Sophia and I wanted to go there yesterday.«

»But then, Dr. Chabrol disappeared – and, according to your own words, so did Luana Wu and Ingrid Müller. So, if you were suspecting a connection between these disappearances, why haven`t you come earlier?«

Lioba responded to Isabelle`s look and said:

»Well, there hadn`t been incidents of a crime. First of all, we hadn`t kept close contact after the Harvard project had been cancelled. Ingrid and I occasionally exchanged mails or Facebook messages. She just congratulated me on my 30th last month.«

Isabelle frowned and Lioba explained:

»It was only after Sophia had been missing that I noticed that Ingrid hadn`t published anything for months. I did some research, but there was nothing from her during the last half year, except a few messages that all were rather vague – and everyone can send a message, pretending to be someone else.«

Sistine nodded, but Isabelle had another suspicion: that Lioba was following a wrong lead with all consequence.

»So, how about Miss Wu?«

»Dr. Wu. Well, she had stayed at Harvard and according to the number of publications in American pharmaceutical journals, she had earned quite a reputation. However, a few weeks ago, she took a sabbatical out of nowhere and since then, I haven`t heard from her either.«

»Maybe, she was just overworked. Have you contacted the other two men?«

»Not yet. Moody has left Harvard for Yale and his last article dates from the day before yesterday. And Pete has been hired by some private institute that pays him three times his former salary. He sent me a message on Christmas, telling he is now on Hawaii and within three months has only been to the beach twice.«

»So, he has also disappeared, more or less«, Sistine concluded and Isabelle glanced at her for stoking Lioba`s conspiracy theory. Then, with a sigh, she got up.

»Dr. Karnstein, I am not saying that I believe you, but we should make sure. Sistine?«

»Yes, Lieutenant!«

The girl jumped from her seat and stood straight, all but saluting to her. With a sigh, Isabelle asked her:

»Did you come by car?«

»No, Lieutenant, sorry, Lieutenant!«

Isabelle fought the urge to tell her to do 50 pushups on her knuckles and asked Lioba:

»I know this is rather unorthodox, but could you take us to the campus then?«

When Lioba had left to fetch her car, Isabelle turned towards Sistine.

»Listen-«

»Yes, Lieutenant?«

»Sistine, if you call me ›Lieutenant‹ once again, I will drown you in the sink!«

»S-sorry, Lieu- Madame!«

Isabelle put her hands on the girl`s shoulders and forced a smile on her face.

»Just call me Isabelle. I know that this is your first day and you are excited, but please, try to be a bit less – enthusiastic.«

»Yes – Isabelle! Thank you!«

Her smile came back and suddenly, Isabelle was overwhelmed by the yearning to take Sistine into her arms. She had felt similar about Samantha sometimes, though her younger sister had in fact needed little protection and during their adventures at Malta, she had also proven to be quite tough and able to defend herself.

»Let`s go!«, she said, patting the girl`s shoulder. Sistine followed her, almost levitating through the corridor. This was her first day and she was already on her way to her first real investigation!

***

Some 48 hours prior to Isabelle and Sistine accompanying Lioba to the campus (and 18 hours before Lioba had even noticed that her colleague had gone missing), Sophia was lowered to the ground by the tall man who kept her upper arm in a firm, but not too vice grip. Then, a long fingernail raked over her temple and she mewed with protest.

»I just want to remove the tape from your eyes. You will, however, remain gagged for the moment. We will make you more comfortable later, but first of all, I am sure you would like some answers.«

Sophia forced herself to hold still when the finger started to nibble the tape from her right eye. She blinked and without her glasses, she could only see the hand of her captor that now was freeing her other eye. It was a slender hand with long fingers and Sophia could also see that the woman it belonged to was tall and blonde. Her suspicion about her abductor`s identity hardened.

»Ah, thank you, Bao!«

The tall woman now took Sophia`s glasses from the Asian and placed them upon her nose. Now, she could see the face of Ingrid Müller – Ingrid, the pharmacologist from Germany that had, like her, been a part of the team at Harvard.

»How long has it been, Sophia – three years?«

»Mph!«

The blue eyes in front of Sophia`s face sparkled and Ingrid chuckled before she said:

»Oh, I forgot – you are currently a bit – spellbound!«

Ignoring Sophia`s hatred look, Ingrid let her eyes wander over her captive in a way that made her feel uncomfortable, though she was fully and quite modestly dressed. Unable to protest, she also looked at Ingrid and noticed that she hadn`t changed much over the last years.

Standing 5`11`` with long blonde hair and dark blue eyes, Ingrid was the embodiment of a Germanic Valkyrie. She had cultivated that image by keeping a slight accent despite her excellent English and French and her preference for mini-skirts, tight tops and high heels had drawn many looks from the men and some of the women. Like all who had been involved in the project, Ingrid was very intelligent and had an excellent exam, but there had also been an aura of ruthlessness on her. Sophia had thought that this was just a result of Ingrid playing with the image of the Teutonic Amazon, but though Ingrid had never actually done anything inappropriate, Sophia had been sure that Ingrid considered borders as for the weak, even those built by ethical standards.

Now, the blonde German had at least crossed one border and ordered her to be kidnapped. Ingrid now turned around and the man holding her arm forced Sophia to follow her. She looked around and saw that they were in some kind of pharmaceutical laboratory, quite similar to the one at the University. She now also noticed that Ingrid was wearing an open lab coat over her usual outfit of a black mini-skirt and a dark red tank top.

»The lab may not look very big, but since we can concentrate on what we need for the project, it will be more than sufficient!«

She turned around and looked at Sophia who stared back at her.

»Oh, of course, that`s one of the reasons why you are here! The continuation of ›Project Little Death‹!«

Sophia moaned. »Project Little Death« had been their internal nickname for the object of their researches and experiments. Ingrid continued:

»I think I found a solution to the problems we had been facing back then – and therefore, I did not have to recruit the whole team. But you may be pleased not only to meet me, but also another old friend!«

She was talking in a conversational tone, but Sophia noticed something she had seen on Ingrid on earlier occasions: most people`s faces brightened when they smiled, but the German could do quite the opposite. She could make her smile leave her eyes and then, it looked almost frightening. As if there was a cruel, cold-blooded monster under the beautiful, shapely surface.

»You may have heard already that Luana had changed the subject of her researches, but I could persuade her not only to join the project again, but also to try my – well, rather unorthodox approach to the problems we had been facing. But see for yourself!«

Led by the man, Sophia who was equally frightened and fascinated followed Ingrid who now went to a side door with a window in it. The man let Sophia go and, as if pulled by a magnet, she approached the door and even went on the tips of her toes to look through the window.

»Mhhrrmmm!«

She could not help but scream when she fully realized what was in the other room. Ingrid giggled:

»She can`t hear you – and even if she could, she could not answer!«

Sophia kept staring at the figure in front of her. Had Ingrid not mentioned that this was her former colleague, the ambitious Luana Wu, she wouldn`t have noticed it for the woman in front of her was wearing something that looked like a biker helmet with a blackened visor. Except for that, she wasn`t wearing much.

Luana, who was fixed to the wall by shackles around her wrists ankles and neck so she had to stand with her arms and legs spread, was sporting nothing but a pair of black panties that looked strange. As Sophia looked closer, she saw that they were bulging, like a man`s pants – or as if something had been placed inside them. The memory of what »Project Little Death« had been about came to her mind and she shuddered, unable to take her eyes from Luana`s firm breasts, the sheath of perspiration on her skin and her heavy panting. She could almost feel the heat and must inside the small room.

»Don`t be too jealous, Sophia – both you and Luana have been chosen for your expertise and intellect, but you will also be given much time for practical experiments!«

***

The goal of »Sheffield Grey to Green« is to turn abandoned areas of the city into parks and gardens and so, Mike and Bishop had no problem in finding a cozy bench where they could continue their conversation in private. Mike had not yet agreed upon accepting the job, but he felt intrigued. Besides, Bishop had told him that it was for the greater good of his country and he had once sworn an oath to fight for Britain when he had attended the Royal Marines.

»Do you remember Mr. Slater`s secretary? The one that replaced Geena, I mean?«

A smile appeared on Mike`s lips.

»You are talking about the Forbidden Fruit? Well, I had already signed my resignation when she came, but her arrival almost made me reconsider my decision.«

»Forbidden Fruit« had only been one of many nicknames Cassandra Parker had been given by the male Service employees. She came from what was closest to the Garden of Eden, the British Virgin Islands, and she seemed to embody all male phantasies about Caribbean women. However, though she masterfully dressed and acted just decent enough to make most men still drool, she had quite coldly repulsed anyone who had wanted to date her. Since Mike had left a few weeks after Cassandra`s arrival, he had been spared the humiliation of defeat, but he had heard a rumor that shortly after, she had become more than just Slater`s secretary.

»Well, there has been some flirting between the two, but as far as I know, there has never been more than an invitation for dinner – and I should know, for it was me who had an affair with her!«

Bishop was about 50, twice Cassandra`s age, and of course, he had known that the young, stunning girl had not fallen for him because of his still quite good looks.

»It seemed like an agreement: once I followed Slater on his post, she agreed to my – proposal. In exchange for her – favor, she got a raise of salary, plus a new car and a nice little apartment in London.«

»Everything comes at a cost!«

Bishop scoffed.

»I thought that I had calculated the costs! After all, I am not married and one of the advantages of my position is that people only laugh behind my back. But then, things changed!«

»You – fell in love?«

Bishop laughed bitterly.

»No! Cassandra was bright enough not to pretend that she could be more than my mistress. However, little by little, she also became my friend and so, I became – careless.«

He told Mike what he had already assumed: he had blabbed out some secrets and as his secretary, Cassandra had had access to more confidential information.

»And three weeks ago, she has left! I had not been a complete fool and after I got suspicious, I did some background checks – albeit too late! Anyway, it seems that she had been on someone else`s payroll right from the start. It seems the old saying of ›Lions led by Donkeys‹ still is true!«

Mike knew that Bishop expected no solace and in addition, he had to admit that the man had acted dumb. However, he was more interested in the consequences.

»So, what`s the worst that could happen?«

»Heads could roll. Not only in the metaphorical sense, but for real. After all, I organized some of our operations in the Middle East and with the information Cassandra has, some dozen agents could be leaked.«

Mike nodded grimly. That was indeed worse than just Bishop losing his post.

»So, whom is she working for? Al Qaida, ISIS, the Russians?«

»CIA.«

Mike raised an eyebrow.

»What happened since I left? I thought that we and the Americans are more or less allies and that we are both supporting each other in the Middle East!«

Bishop showed him his bitter smile again.

»We are allies and the CIA also has no interest in our agents getting leaked and killed. However, they would sacrifice these men for the greater good. Mike, what do you know about the British Virgin Islands?«

»Well, they are in the Caribbean, they are one of our last colonies and – they are adjacent to the American Virgin Islands!«

»Exactly! So far, the British Virgin Islands never had real ambitions of getting independent. There is some tourism, but most of the money comes from the British state and with their 30.000 inhabitants, they could hardly stand on their own feet.«

»But if they change one benefactor for the other-«

»All the Americans had to do is make some of the local authorities an offer they can`t refuse: declare your independence, we will take care of you and we will also pay if we may park some of our ships and other equipment on your lovely islands.«

Bishop sighed before he continued:

»And with the sword on the necks of our men in the Middle East, the Government would be forced to give in to such an independence movement. We are not fighting colonial wars anymore and so, we would de facto lose the islands to the Americans!«

Mike understood that Bishop wasn`t just mourning after the old Empire. In the Caribbean, there were more islands still ruled by the British and others that were members of the Commonwealth. If the Virgin Islands became the first domino stone and more would turn their favor towards the USA, Britain would lose the little influence it still had in the world. Since the Second World War, they had become the junior partner in the alliance between GB and the USA, but if they lost their position in the Caribbean, they would become more of an American satellite state.

»So, why is Cassandra in Nice and neither in the USA nor in an unnamed grave?«

Bishop, who noticed that Mike didn`t directly refuse to help, lowered his voice.

»As I told you, I had become suspicious a few weeks ago. At the same time, Cassandra and I had planned to go on a holiday and so, the flight and the hotel already were booked. She left just hours before it would have become impossible for her to even enter the airport!«

»Okay, but what makes you think she`s still there? That would be more than foolish!«

»She is there, though not for very much longer! I could not get too much information, but her connection to the CIA is a certain Major Charles Bane and she will only hand the information to him in person. Well, Bane is still in the Iraq and Cassandra can`t get to him yet, but his service will end in seven days – and something tells me that he will spend his holiday in Nice.«

Mike stretched his limbs.

»And something tells me that Cassandra will have a few bodyguards already. So, I am outnumbered, have no official support from our Government and also a strict time limit?«

»In other words, a real adventure!«

Mike chuckled. This was exactly one of those missions Isabelle had wanted him to quit. But Isabelle had also quit their relationship and hadn`t contacted him for weeks.

He made a decision: if Isabelle would send him a message until Sunday at 12:00 pm, he would not go on the mission. If not, he would consider himself a free man with no obligations and become a kidnapper for the sake of the British Empire.

»If Bane won`t be able to get to Nice before next Friday, we still have some time left. Let me sleep this over, I will tell you my decision on Monday morning. As long as you don`t expect me to become a killer, you can count me in!«

***