Dark as Daylight Ch. 08

I will be in front of your home at a quarter to 7. Please be ready; the nuptials begin at 7:30 p.m."

"You haven't asked me where I live?"

"One call to personnel took care of that problem."

"Doesn't it the bother you to have that much power?"

"I never did that before. I guess they thought it was important, because they gave it to me without asking me why I needed it."

"I guess that makes me special."

"You became special to me the instant I saw you. Now go home and get ready for tonight. I will be wearing a tuxedo, so you cannot be overdressed."

"Your family must be loaded."

"No, not my family, I am. Everything I own is in a blind trust, and my managers keep hitting it big. They hit the oil companies in the Dakota's, then got out of oil before the price tanked. They have been doing very well for me the last ten years.

I am paying for this wedding, because I love my sister. She is the only one in my family that has always been good to me. When I asked her what she wanted as a wedding gift. She became very shy about it. I said to her, 'Beth, the sky is the limit. There is nothing you could ask me, that I cannot afford."

She asked me for the wedding of her dreams. I told her to buy it. Tonight is costing me just under $1 million.

One night she called me, and asked me to come over to look at the bills. She was frightened to death. Her fiancé refused to be there, because he knew I was going to kill her. I looked at the bills, added them up, and asked, "Are you sure this is everything?"

She almost fell on the floor. "No, we cut things out, because it was becoming too expensive."

I said, "Sis, I promised you wedding of your dreams, not part of your dreams. You can't do that by cutting out things you wanted."

I wrote her a check for $1,000,000.00, and told her if she needed more just to call me, and I would give her another check."

She jumped all over me, because she couldn't believe I was being so generous.

"Since your family doesn't have money, and you do; could that be the cause of friction with your brothers?"

"Miss Wells, we haven't been on our first date yet; aren't we getting a little personal?"

"Your caught me, I always try to get to the bottom of things immediately, because I work in the FBI building. When am I going to meet with this new gentleman?"

"I can guarantee you Miss Wells; I am totally honorable. My job depends on it."

"That's a very interesting statement Mister Comey, I thought it would. One blurb, in a scandal sheet, could do irreparable harm to your character. What happens if I am that type of girl?"

"I am placing my life in your hands, because I believe you're not."

"That's pretty high praise for the girl that changed the lock in your office."

"There are many things I want to do to the girl who changed the lock on my office door. However, I want to take time doing them. I have a feeling about us, and I've never had this feeling before."

"James, please don't rush me. I don't know if I'm ready to go that far again. I know my children want me to, but I just don't know about me."

"I guess our trip to Bermuda is out for this weekend."

"Yes, I haven't arranged a babysitter for my children. However, someday I'd like to see that island."

"I'll take you in my private jet."

"I better leave, you are a lot to take in one day."

"Go straight home, take your shower, the truck will be outside waiting for you at 4:00. If you chicken out to me, I'll send the FBI after you."

"That's not very funny James."

"That's funny, I thought it was hysterical. Go home."

He opened the door for her to leave and she stopped at Janine's desk.

"What did you get me into?"

"Hopefully into bed, with a celibate man."

"I sleep fine, alone at night Janine."

"You'll sleep much better with a warm, hard man beside you."

"I'll get you for this. I'll wire your chair to the electric outlets, and when you sit down, your hair is going to stand on its ends."

"Nancy, go home."

"Do you see what I mean, he's getting bossy already."

"You could use a little bossy on that body of yours."

"Janine, I'll get you, trust me, I'll get you."

"NANCY, HOME NOW!"

"Do you see what I mean Janine? We haven't gone out yet, and he's issuing orders. This is not going to work."

"If he hurts you I'll kill him. If he lays a hand on you...Let me change that."

"If you say one more word, I'm going to shove this broken locking mechanism up an area where it will hurt for a very long time."

"I'm calling security to remove you from this building."

"I'm leaving dammit, keep your shorts on."

Janine said, "Drop your shorts, and show her what she's missing."

James reached for his belt.

Nancy screamed, and ran out of the director's office.

Janine laughed. "That accomplished your request, Mister Director. She hasn't seen one of those since her husband passed away. There is a good possibility, she would have fainted, if she saw yours."

"You certainly know how to make a man feel good about himself. I have a few phone calls to make."

"You are actually going to do some work today?"

"I do that sometimes."

"I thought I did all your work, and all you did was sign it."

"No you do the rough copies. Then I put them into legal form, send them over to the AG, signed, sealed, and perfect."

"You are so full of shit it's coming out of your ears."

"I tried. Go to work. I'll be back here in 10 minutes. You better be finished with everything else. Don't forget to call Burkart."

*****************

As she crossed into Alexandria, she reached into her work pants, took out a throwaway phone, and hit speed dial.

"Good afternoon sir, I'm in. It was much easier than either of us expected. I'm going out with him tonight to his sister's wedding. He sending a truck to my home with gowns and everything so I fit in with the people that will be there. Apparently he has family problems that are bothering him a great deal. The way he was talking, I believe he smitten with me. His secretary, Janine, believes so too. She is the one that set this up, and she was talking about me getting laid tonight. That is not going to happen. I am going to keep him on a string for a long time, which will be easy because of my past. I will introduce him to my children, so he knows they are real, and continue to work on it from there. Anything of importance I hear or see, I will be in touch with you immediately."

"That's excellent news Nancy. How did you get to meet him so quickly?"

"The door handle on the electronic locking mechanism to his office broke. My supervisor gave the work order to me. Who was I to refuse?"

"Very good Nancy, removed the Sim card, destroy it, and put a new one in. Make this a habit every 5 contacts."

"Very good Mister Zabo; thank you very much."

"Nancy be very careful with the extra money you're getting. Don't go on a spending spree. You can put it into a savings account for your children, or a college fund for them, with you as in authorized signatory."

"Thank you Mrs. Zabo, that's exactly what I'll do."

*******************

"Where is she now Janine?"

"They took off out of Philadelphia 20 minutes ago, with an ETA of Kennedy of 6:05 p.m."

"Somehow I don't think she's going to make her 6:30 appointment with me. Why hasn't she called?"

"They've been sitting on the taxiway waiting to take off, and you know the rules as well as everyone else. Once they close up an airplane, all electronic devices get turned off. She's probably hysterical right now, because she has her phone turned off. I've sent her half a dozen texts asking where she was, getting angrier every time. When she gets on the ground, I am going to let her have it good. Then, I am going to go to church, to confess what I have done to this girl, and what I have to continue to do because of my boss's orders. Where do you want me to send her now?"

"Send her to Pittsburgh, Buffalo and then back to Mobile Alabama."

"She will go ballistic."

"When she gets to Alabama, tell her she can go home."

"That will be Saturday night."

"Actually, it will be Sunday, and I'm hoping to be with Nancy on Sunday."

"Don't you dare hurt that girl."

"I already told her we will go at her speed and no faster. I've never felt like this before Janine. You know me, I am a confirmed bachelor, at least I was until a few hours ago. What is it about that woman that turned my head and heart around?"

"I don't know James, but I believe you could not have picked a better person to have fallen for as your first one. If it doesn't work fine, at least you'll have that experience to fall back on, and know what you are looking for. If it does, I'll be your best man."

"If I didn't know you were kidding I would say okay."

"Please don't pick one of those idiot brothers of yours. They don't deserve anything from you. They will go out of their way to make your day miserable. If you have someone outside the office, or inside the office that's fine; anyone but either of them."

"I couldn't agree with you more Janine. They are not standing next to me on the day I get married."

"Sir, you are going out tonight, aren't you?"

"You know I am."

"Am I cutting your hair?"

"Oh shit I forgot. Call Frederick; tell him it's an emergency. Nails too, if possible."

"Where is your tuxedo?"

"Sometimes I don't like you."

"I will have them deliver it to Fredericks."

"I'll see you Monday, have a nice weekend."

***********************

"Billy, he's on his way down. Bring the car around front, he's going to Fredericks for a haircut. They will be delivering his tuxedo there, too. Then he will go to his apartment to get cleaned up for this evening."

"Thank you gorgeous, I am moving out."

********************

"Agent Burkart, I do not make up the director's schedule. Apparently something happened, and now he wants you to meet him in Pittsburgh.

"Pittsburg, I won't do it. I'm going home."

"Do you enjoy getting paid? If you do, take United Airlines flight 2949 to Cleveland, and then backtrack by train, bus, or car the 142 miles to Pittsburgh. Do you have all that agent Burkart?"

"I'm sorry, I know it's not your fault. It's just chasing the director around when there's a case to be solved seems like a waste of the taxpayer's money and my energy."

"I will tell you this Miss Burkart, when the Attorney General called him in reference to you, I didn't have to be on the phone to hear him. The AG was livid, and the director went to bat for you. It would've been easier for him to let you go and let things calm down over here. This case has everyone working round the clock, and personally this distraction wasn't needed. Throwing you to the wolves would have been much easier for him, and a lot of us that work with him. Call me when you get to Cleveland, and I'll let you know if anything new has turned up."

"Thank you very much, I'm on my way to United."

*********************

"I'm going to kill you James Comey. A priest will not be able to absolve me of these sins, after what I just told her. I will have to upgrade to a Bishop or Cardinal get these sins washed away. Be gone Satan, be gone."

******************

"Your home early mom; do you have a hot date tonight?"

"You have been bugging me to go out. A nice young gentleman has asked me out for tonight, and I have accepted. I would appreciate it if you didn't look like a bum when he gets here. Shaving would be nice, and I can smell you from 30 feet away. Get cleaned up, or I will take your phone, and all your toys away."

"You will never find my phone."

"I will call the company Michael, and turn off your service."

"I was the one that told you to go out on a date. Why are you taking it out on me?"

"You will know why by 7 o'clock this evening. I don't wish to be embarrassed by you."

"Mom, I'm really not that bad."

"Do you want the entire list of why you are bad enough to get thrown into Juvie, or just this past month?"

"How long a list is it?"

"Don't be flippant with me Michael. I'll take you outside so your friends can see me beat the shit out of you. I learned an awful lot about self-defense since I was raped twice. I got you the first time, and your brother the second. Your sister was the only one I got out of love. Don't tempt me to break you in half, because I will."

"You skipped school 4 times this month to be with some girl. I'm supposed to be proud of you for missing school, so you could get laid? You've got a great brain, and you fail to use it. You are so good at math the world would open up for you if you gave yourself a chance.

Instead you are going to wind up in jail, because you are too damn lazy to put in the effort you need to get into a good college. I never had the chances you will have, and I'm going to watch you waste your life.

Get out of my sight, I'm really angry with you now. Go to one of your friends' houses, and stink it up. I don't want you here, when James picks me up."

"Who is James?"

"Get out of my house, I can't stand looking at you."

"Mom I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

"Well you did. I should call James and cancel for tonight. I won't be good company because of you."

"I'll make you a deal. I will look like an angel when he gets here, if you go out and have a good time tonight."

"That's not good enough. One night of happiness for me, and you go back to your old ways. No, there is no way I will accept that. Either you turn your life around, and start studying, or this is the last time I go out with anyone, ever."

"Shit mom..."

SMACK!!

"Watch your language when you're talking to me Michael."

"I can't remember the last time you hit me."

"Maybe I should have hit you more often."

"Okay, I won't skip school anymore, and I will study. If you stop going out all bets are off."

"If I don't see A's on your report card, all bets are off."

"Give me a break mom; A's are impossible for me."

"A's are easy for you, if you put your mind to it."

"I should go to the Potomac and drown myself."

"Would you like me to drive you there?"

"Don't you have something else to do for your date tonight?"

"Don't you have something to do to look like an angel? The last time I saw you look like that was at your confirmation, and that was 4 years ago. Do you remember the fight we had to get you to take a bath, before you got into your suit?"

"I went swimming the night before, why did I need to take a bath?"

"You smelled like chlorine, Michael. I have to get ready. Tonight you start to change or this is the end for us. 18 years old, you are out of my house."

"When did you turn into a bitch?"

"I believe it was when I had to speak to the principal the fourth time this month. I had to talk him out of putting you into juvenile detention, to try to keep you in school. If I wasn't employed by the FBI, I don't believe he would have let you off the hook."

Jeffrey ran into the house yelling, "Mommy, there's a big truck in front of our house."

"Oh God, I'm late. Do we have a deal or not?"

"We have a deal mom."

"Then go take a bath, now."

"Okay."

Jeffrey shouted, "Michael's going to take a bath?"

"Yes squirt, I'm going to take a bath."

"I'm actually going to see what your hair looks like?"

"Don't start with me, or I'll shave you yours off."

"Can Dina and I watch you wash yourself in the bathtub? We can take some pictures for our album."

"Get lost Jeff, before I hang you from the wall."

*******************

Nancy ran out of her bedroom soaking wet, in her robe, and slippers. She said, "Why are you still here. Get in the bathtub and clean up."

"You took your shower already?"

"I showered and washed my hair. Move it young man."

With that said, she charged out the front door, ran across the lawn, and up the front steps of the 'Fashion Design' truck. As she stepped inside, she stepped into a new world.

"Hello Nancy, my name is Margo. I will be your fashion assistant today. I want to remind you I am only your assistant. You have the final say in everything. First we are going to soak your feet in paraffin to give them a soft lustrous look and feel. While your feet are soaking, we will be doing your nails, and cutting your hair. We will show you several styles that will maximize the beauty of your face. We have been working on that for several hours thanks to the pictures Janine sent us."

"I'm going to kill that woman. She's going to try to marry me off in a week."

"Worse thing can happen to a beautiful young woman, as long as she feels she's in love with the young man."

"Please sit down, and put your feet into the paraffin basin."

"This is warm."

"Naturally, paraffin is a wax that has to be heated to work its magic. Now let's look at the hairstyles so you can pick one that suits you."

By 6 p.m., Nancy was prodded, cut, steamed, massaged, oiled, polished, and put into undergarments that she could barely feel. Now came the shoes, which were a problem, because she had yet to choose the dress. There were 20 of them, ranging from Dolce and Gabana, Valentino, Alexander McQueen, Chanel, Prada, and every other major design house in Europe. Nancy just stood there and looked at these magnificent gowns and couldn't move.

Margo said, "Nancy, Nancy are you in there?"

"No, I've died and gone to heaven."

"That's what most women think, unless their stinking rich. Close your eyes and think of what color you'd like to wear tonight. Don't think red, because you don't want to stand out. A lustrous purple would look magnificent on you. So would an emerald green. I would not recommend blue, because we don't have one that would suit you. You can't wear white because of the bride. I would like you to try on the 'Emerald Green' by Versace, with the slit nearly to the hip, and then the 'Plum' by Dior. Remember you have the final say. If you don't like either of them, we search for others.

"How can I not like them? They are all gorgeous."

"They're gorgeous on the hangers. Will they be gorgeous on you is the question?"

Even though the emerald green had a slit up to her hip, it made her look matronly. It was discarded immediately. The Plum by Dior was nice on her, but only nice. The hunt was on. It was 6:30 p.m. and they still had not found a dress. Finally, the seamstress found one that was outstanding. It was an off the shoulder Steel Gray Satin Sheath, but it was 4 inches too long. Then they remembered she was barefoot, and not wearing stockings. Out came the gray, thigh high silk stocking, and the size 8 suede gray platform shoes. The dress skimmed the floor perfectly, and the woman in it looked like royalty.

They put a pearl choker around her neck, pearl earrings, and a diamond ring on her right hand. She was finished. They placed her in front of a 3- piece mirror so she could see herself in all angles. Nancy could not believe she was looking at herself. She could barely breathe.

While she was mesmerized looking into the mirrors, pictures were being taken; both still, and video.

There was a beep noise from the back of the truck that broke her out of her reverie. The platform was lowered, and the 2 huge doors opened. Margo escorted Nancy onto the platform as the driver began to lower it to the ground.

From the sidewalk someone yelled, "MOM!"

Nancy turned her head. "Yes Jeffrey, it's me."

Dina said, "Mommy looks like a princess."

Michael was dressed in a freshly ironed pair of slacks, and a smart looking shirt.

He picked up Dina and stood by Jeffrey. "Mommy is our Princess every day."