Perez did not come alone. When he past by various areas of the club, a person would appear and trail behind him. Just before he arrived at the door another appeared and went in front of him. Bodyguards, Mike thought to himself.
The small glimmer of hope faded. Plan B had yet to be conceived and even his plan A laced a solid design. Perez, it seems was out so this brewing battle was going to have to be a one on one war.
Mike knew that he had a serious disadvantage. The war with Garcia had been placed on Garcia’s field, with Garcia’s rules and on Garcia’s terms. The scales of life tilted away from Mike. He leaned over the table gripping his forehead inside of his hand with a distraught mind and closed eyes.
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
At just past 2:00 am Mike pulled into the driveway of his home. As the garage door lifted he noticed something right away. Kelly’s car was missing. She taped a note to the door that led from the garage into the house.
Hey Mike! I wanted to stay but realized that I left a few things that I needed for the trip at my apartment. I am going to try to make it back tonight but if it gets too late I will just come back early in the morning.
XOXO Kelly
Mike breathed a sigh of relief. This actually turned out to be good news. Mike needed to sort through some lingering issues attached to the night before. Time alone to think was what he really needed.
He also felt torn by the promises he made. Got to rethink this San Antonio trip. More and more the strong possibility of canceling loomed in the sensible options. The trip gave Mike a bad feeling every time he thought about it.
He walked through his living room in a slow thoughtful pace. The message light blinked on his home phone but that was normal. Messages always waited on his phone but most were from telephone solicitors. He picked up the receiver and to listened anyway.
The automated female computer voice spoke, “You have 3 messages.”
The first message, as expected, came from a solicitor. He pressed delete to skip over it. The next message put a smile on Mike’s face. His son Danny shouted an excited message with his two friends screaming in the background. A combination of loud simultaneous chattering from all three of the boys made the call a virtual incoherent mesh of words.
They’re really excited about the trip.
The last message came from Kelly. Like the boys, Kelly’s voice raced with excitement. The message went on and on about the things she needed to bring, meeting Danny, and wishing she didn’t have to leave. Since the message went on too long, it ended up being cut off before she finished. When her words cut of, Kelly was in mid sentence describing a bikini that she purchased at the mall. Bad timing, he thought.
He wanted to rest; the next day would be a long one so before he got comfortable he went over his checklist for the last time. He placed the bags for the trip in his car, and then he shaved and showered. Once he finished, he stretched across his bed and flipped through the channels with no real interest to watch TV.
The doorbell made Mike bolt up in his bead. He last thing he remembered was watching a CSI rerun. He squinted at the clock to see the time. 6:14 am? He slept all night but felt as if he had gotten zero amount of rest. He stumbled to the door wearing only his t-shirt and briefs.
He peered through the peephole to see Kelly dancing in place. As soon as he opened the door Kelly rushed inside. She hurried past him talking even faster then she moved.
“Hey Mike! You not dressed yet? Ooh nice briefs! Anyway gotta pee!” By the time Kelly got the last word out he was already around the corner and down the hall.
Mike laughed.
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
At the American Airlines terminal C, a black Lincoln Town Car pulled up to park next to the curb. The young skycap assisted the driver with the designer luggage till Anna stepped out of the back of the car. Upon seeing her, the skycap dropped his jaw and then the bag.
From the back seat, Garcia saw this but found it more humorous then upsetting. The skycap could not stop staring as drool literally fell from the corner of his mouth. Garcia stepped out of the opposite side of the car just before Tyler emerged from the passenger side.
Anna’s almond shaped eyes glowed with happiness as Garcia approached her. As they entered the airport she took his hand. Tyler tipped the mesmerized skycap then trailed behind them.
They passed the mirrored reflection of the interior glass wall and Garcia could see Tyler walking behind them. Tyler’s eyes darted about catching and sizing up everyone who came within two feet of the trio. In the process he pulled out his cell phone.
“Hey X, you guys there yet?” he said.
Garcia listened as his number one bodyguard orchestrated the upcoming events. The phone call to X, whose actual name was Javier assured Garcia that Tyler had everything in order.
Tyler spoke to the three hundred and twenty five pound hit man at least once a day. X worked faithfully as additional muscle for Garcia and the third in line in Garcia’s short chain of command. Garcia took tremendous pride in his dark inner circle.
Before Tyler finished the conversation with X he pulled the phone away to address Garcia. “X said that they’re about twenty minutes away.”
“Good, right on schedule. Tell him that we will meet them at the hotel,” Garcia said.
“Ok, we will see you guy there,” Tyler said into the phone then clicked off.
Garcia and Anna drew a lot of attention. With his tall statue and tailored suite along with Anna on his arm, he guessed that they might have appeared like a movie star couple.
“Too much attention,” Tyler grumbled behind them.
Garcia laughed. “Don’t worry, they’re looking at our beautiful companion here, not us.”
Tyler didn’t appear relieved by the statement. He moved a little closer to them watching with edgy eyes. He kept one hand under his jacket that Garcia knew rested comfortably on the handle of his loaded gun.
Tyler’s eyes shifted wildly. This even made Garcia feel slightly anxious because Tyler’s daily prayer was to get a chance to fire his weapon. The kid had an addictive desire to kill and was going through withdrawals. Soon, Garcia would give him the opportunity for a solid fix for his addiction.
CHAPTER SIXTY
Tyler kept his gun two ways, off of safety and fully loaded. Even at the airport it remained that way until Garcia was on the opposite side of the security point. Then, as he always did before they boarded each flight, he dispose of the gun in a trash can before passing through the security point.
An insider who worked as a custodian at the airport also worked for Garcia. Once Tyler disposed of the gun, the custodian retrieved it out of the designated garbage can. As soon as his shift ended he shipped the gun to a predetermined destination.
Tyler gave their insider a short head nod as he watched from the other side of the airport. Once he dropped the weapon in the garbage he moved on past the row of airport shops and eateries to catch up with Garcia on the other side of the security check.
He walked past a woman sitting at a small table with a magazine opened in her hands. She sat outside of the Texas Stadium Skybox bar located in terminal C. Tyler ignored her at first till he caught her peek from behind the magazine.
He paused till he glanced at his watch. Less then 30 minutes remained before their flight was scheduled to take off. He stared at her and she ducked back behind her magazine.
“Yeah, good idea,” Tyler mumbled.
* * *
She could not believe her eyes. Sheer luck placed her at the exact right time and place to cross paths with the man she had given up on ever seeing again. She just happened to look up at the precise moment that Garcia walked through the airport. When she first spotted him, she dropped the fork into her salad.
She lowered her dark shades truly not believing who walked right past her. At the time one hand rested on the Vogue magazine that she had just purchased from the newsstand. The sight of Garcia c
aused her hand to tense gripping the magazine so hard that her nails dug into the pages. She lost track of how long it had been since she last saw Garcia.
Right after the young boy that was with Garcia passed by her she pushed the sunglasses back on her face. She slammed the magazine into a nearby garbage can. Then returned to the table to slam two twenty-dollar bills on it to cover the thirty-dollar tab.
Her actions from that point became as spontaneous as they were uncharacteristic. She watched Garcia walked through to his gate then the kid with him just five minutes later. She moved closer while making sure that he didn’t spot her. After seeing the gate number and checking the airport screen she figured it out. He’s headed to San Antonio.
She walked to the ticket counter and made a flight change. Upon seeing her work ID a round trip ticket to San Antonio was given to her with no questions asked. This perk came along with her current job. Flight to anywhere at anytime could be change, taken, or cancelled with no questions asked or hassle given to her.
She continued to watch from a safe distance. A few days before she got word of Garcia playing in the Moscow poker tournament so dropped everything to find him. She missed him by only a few hours. This time she got lucky and was not going to lose him.
The first class section boarded the plane. Garcia walked to the gate with a young woman and the young man trailing him. The young man appeared just a little too concerned with his surroundings. His eyes darted all around sizing up everyone but Garcia. She knew that he was not just a part of Garcia’s entourage, but a bodyguard.
With her newly acquired ticket on the same flight she had only one obstacle. She had to board the plane without being noticed. Her job credentials allowed her to bypass security but the difficulty would be to pass through first class and thus right pass Garcia without him noticing her.
She blended in with the final boarding passengers as they inched into the plane. Garcia sat on the third row isle seat. Dammit. She turned her head to the opposite side as she moved along the isle.
The traveler in front of her large body filled the entire space. She took advantage of his size by using him as a shield. Her heart raced when the line to board the plane slowed just as they passed through the first class section.
She tiptoed to see what held them up. A man ahead of them stopped the entire line to place a bag in the overhead compartment. With more people behind her, she was stuck right next to Garcia. Her body edged on passing out.
She stood so close to Garcia that she could hear his conversation and even smell his favorite cologne. Her jaw tightened as she gritted her teeth. The mere sound of his voice grated at her nerves and fear. The room began to spin and grow dim as the temperature grew warmer.
“I’m going to the rest room now before we take off,” Garcia said to his date.
This time she began to hyperventilate and found it hard to breath. Every effort surfaced even harder to stop from passing out. Her back turned all the way around away from Garcia.
An empty first class window seat became her only option. She quickly slid across a seated first class passenger then took the vacant seat. As soon as she sat she turned her head to the window just as Garcia stood and moved in line with the boarding passengers.
She waited till he passed then jumped up and moved as fast as she could to the rear of the plane to find her seat.
In the last row of the first class section she bumped right into another passenger. He turned and they were face to face. His empty eyes were dark and cold. This, she realized, was the young man that was with Garcia. Much to her relief no recognition appeared in those cold dark eyes.
“Excuse me,” she said cutting her eyes away.
He didn’t bother to acknowledge her as she moved around him and continued to her assigned seat. When she finally made it to the back of the plane she tried to calm her frayed nerves.
I don’t think that I can handle too much of this.
CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE
Just minutes before the plane was scheduled to take off, a youthful man in his mid to late twenties made his way down the isle to his seat. He wore a plastic covered name badge with S. GLOW written across it in wide black letters. He moved with a confident strut as he chatting into his iphone.
“Damn right I nailed it! That sale put me over the top. Number one again for three months straight baby.”
He tossed his bag into the overhead compartment before releasing an exaggerated laugh. “Yeah you go right ahead, not me padre’ I’m taking a little R&R before coming back and kicking some more ass.” His eyes cut over to the woman seated. He glanced at his ticket again then smiled. “Check it Kev, I’m about to bounce now but I’m gonna chat with ya latter.”
He pressed the disconnect button with a flare then slipped it into his jacket pocket. His eyes locked on the woman but she continued to ignore him. Out of the corner of her eye she saw him mouth the word COU-GAR.
He slid into his seat then released a blissful sigh. “What a day, what a day,” he said aloud.
She didn’t respond to his obvious attempt to strike up a conversation. His eyes traced along her legs then hovered when they arrived at her chest. He nodded as if he approved then pulled out his briefcase.
The burgundy leather brief case was placed in his lap. A small gold plate displayed across the front had the words Steven “Let it” Glow. When he opened it, she noticed an arsenal of female attracting weaponry.
He picked up a hand held mirror and small comb to pass it through his thick professionally cut hair. A small amount of Sean John’s cologne Unforgivable was then pulled out of its compartment. A few spray mists were shot toward his extended neck. He turned his head toward her and smiled but she continued to thumb through a magazine.
Anticipating another attempt to talk to her, she shifted her body away him. He closed the briefcase and spoke out loud again. “Got to love that Diddy. He has the Midas touch, I love his cologne,” he said.
She never looked up or even acknowledged that he was speaking. Let it go lover boy.
As much as she tried to remain positive, she was sure that he was not going to catch the hint. When his briefcase or cologne failed to break the ice he moved on to plan B. She had met his type before there was always a plan B. He reeked the scent of a salesman in every sense of the word and was just getting started.
They all, the good ones anyway, were the classic optimist. Anything could be sold to anyone. Whether it was security systems, cheap tupperware, perfume, it didn’t matter. At the end of the day they were selling the exact same thing, themselves.
He continued to size up his target touching his thick light brown hair. He flashed his blue eyes thinking of his next move. She felt his eyes on her but she was not interested in the least.
His timing could not have been worse. She had no desire to go on any dates in years. Her mind gripped on the same person for as long as she could remember. Martin Garcia dominated her thoughts, mind, and world. At fist thoughts of him made her glow now it made her glower.
* * *
When she turned her head away from him to stare out of the small window, Seven Glow was not the least bit discouraged. Even seated he could tell that she was tall, about 5’11 he guessed. Her business dress still appeared sexy. She would be well worth the effort.
He studied her for a moment but she wasn’t easy to figure out. Wealthy, middle class, he couldn’t be sure. The black Movado watch contrasted to her off the rack dress.
The remaining assessment went quick. Since she faced the window he guessed that she was either missing the ex-boyfriend or just depressed. The high dollar watch? She more then likely received it as a gift from the deep pocket boyfriend. Steven saw her as a prime target, vulnerable.
Since she was tall he figured that she was more then likely confident, most tall women are. The conservative hair style along with her designer dark shades reminded him of a b movie star he dated sometime back. She seemed a little on the shy
side and he liked that. The shades, he guessed, remained on to hide the swollen eyes from the tears. This is going to be easy, he thought.
He thought of a place he could take her to after the plane landed.
Perhaps he would take her to a place that was frequented by his co-workers. Although he remained the top gun at his job, his coworkers still failed to show him the respect that he thought he was entitled. He noticed how they rolled their eyes when he closed a sale and chanted, “Ice to an Eskimo baby, ice to an Eskimo!” With this one hanging on his arm, they would take notice for sure.
Steven tossed his best seductive glance over at her. He was about to speak but decided to wait till the plane was airborne. Yeah wait till the plane is flying a smooth as my words.
Once the plane leveled off, he would get this going and make sure she was melting in his hands before the final decent. The short flight from Dallas to San Antonio lfet very little time to work but he would need much time.
The announcement over the speakers informed everyone to be seated and fasten their seatbelts. She faced forward and he was able to get an even better look at her. A stunner. She had the European look that he loved.
Her strong facial features were evenly spaced. Below her dress, a tight body with strong calves and toned arms showed through. While seated, her hips flared out slightly showing zero percent fat. The stretched fabric of her dress pulled over a set of natural and perfectly sized breast that were inviting and erect.
The plan lifted into the air and minutes later leveled off. Steven stretched out his entwined fingers. He loved this moment; it was time to sell his favorite product, himself.
The approach rarely altered. Step one analyze the target, check. Step two; gather some information about the target by looking at it closely, check. Step three; offer the target the best production of the product. That would be yours truly so, double check.
With everything in place he delivered the ice breaker. In no time he would close the sale.