She's an Easy Target, page 4
part #2 of Quinton Target Series
“She could say the same about you.”
“That’s what worries me. I have reasons for wanting to remain guarded about my identity and it makes me wonder why she’s not totally forthcoming about herself.”
“I share your concern. Dr. Bit seems like a nice guy, but she’s in a different league than he is. It makes me wonder what she’s up to.”
“I’m glad to hear you say that. I was beginning to think it was me, being my paranoid self.”
“I trust your paranoia. I can’t quite place her, but I know I’ve seen her before.”
“Do you think she’s a spook, a con artist, or something else?”
“I honestly don’t know. I guess we could both be overreacting. Maybe she has a fetish for skinny, intellectual types like Dr. Bit.”
“If I take a photo of her when she comes back, will you do a search against your databases, tomorrow? Normally, I’d ask Dr. Bit but he’s not thinking clearly right now.”
“Yeah, women have a way of clouding a man’s judgement. I’ll be glad to do it. My curiosity is piqued now, too.”
QT and Lieutenant Mad were so focused on each other they were unaware it had quieted inside Miller’s. When Chloe returned to the table and saw them, she said, “We leave for five minutes and the two of you cuddle and whisper sweet nothings to each other.”
Startled by her voice, they separated. “We couldn’t hear each other over the music,” the lieutenant said.
“The band went on break a few minutes ago,” Chloe replied with a smile.
“You caught us,” QT said lightheartedly. “We couldn’t keep our hands off each other. We’ve been looking for an opportunity to be alone all evening.”
“I suspected as much by the way you two look at each other.”
Dr. Bit walked back to the table when he saw Chloe had returned.
“Is everything OK with L. Ron,” the lieutenant asked, trying to change the subject.
“Yes, you know him. He had an IT problem and had to track me down immediately to get my opinion. I’ll fill you in later.”
“Where is he?”
“He already left.”
“I was telling QT that L. Ron was probably here to tell you about an alien visitation in Charlottesville,” the lieutenant said.
“Aliens?” Chloe said. “Did I miss something?”
Dr. Bit looked at Lieutenant Mad and they both laughed “Our friend, L. Ron Chen, is a genius but he has some unusual beliefs, especially about visitors from other worlds,” he said.
“You have an interesting group of friends, honey. Are there others I should meet?”
“There’s Rasputin.”
“The Russian?”
“Let’s not talk about our friend, Rasputin,” the lieutenant said. “He likes his privacy.”
QT looked at the clock on the wall. It was eleven-forty. “I didn’t realize it was so late,” he said. “I’d like to stay longer, but I have to go.”
“Me, too,” Lieutenant Mad said, stretching into what appeared to QT to be a fake yawn. “It’s past my bedtime.”
“Do you live close by, QT?” Chloe asked.
“Yes, I’m a few minutes away. I can walk, which is fortunate because I’m sure I’m over the legal limit for alcohol consumption.”
“That’s convenient you live so close,” she said and smiled at the two of them as if she thought they were about to sneak out and go back to QT’s place to spend the night together.
“Dr. Bit and I are going to stay here for a while longer, aren’t we, honey?” she said and kissed him.
“We’re doing whatever you want to do tonight,” Dr. Bit said.
“It was nice to finally meet you, Chloe” the lieutenant said. “You take care of my friend, Dr. Bit. I’m very protective of him. He’s like a brother.”
“He’s safe in my hands,” Chloe said.
The lieutenant stood up and started to leave but Quinton stopped her. “You know what? We should take a group selfie before we go.”
“That’s a great idea,” Dr. Bit said. “But I don’t think Lieutenant Mad likes her picture taken.”
“I’ll make an exception tonight.” She handed her smartphone to him and said, “You’ve got the longest arms. Why don’t you take the pictures?” She squeezed between Chloe and Dr. Bit, while QT moved to the other side of Chloe and put his arm around her.
“Smile,” Dr. Bit said as he stretched out his long arm to snap the selfies. He checked the photos to make sure they were acceptable before returning the phone. With his back to Chloe, he whispered to the lieutenant, “Check with L. Ron as soon as possible.”
“Message a copy of the photos to all of us,” Chloe said.
“I don’t have your phone number, but I’ll send them to Dr. Bit. He can forward them to you.”
“Dr. Bit can give you my number. Now that we’ve met, we should stay in contact. I think we have a lot in common.”
“OK,” she said uneasily. “We have Dr. Bit in common. I’m not sure what else.”
When she exited Miller’s and walked outside into the fresh, evening air, Lieutenant Mad exhaled and said, “I’m glad that’s over. I thought I’d vomit if I heard her call him honey one more time.”
“It did seem a little over the top, but Dr. Bit seemed to enjoy her fawning. As for me, the music was loud and I hate jazz, but I enjoyed the company.” He looked at her in a way that implied that it was her company that he enjoyed the most.
He put his arm around her and rested his hand on her bare shoulder while they walked. She didn’t resist.
“How are things going between you and Blaire?”
“Fine,” he said.
“Just fine, not great or fantastic?”
“You know how relationships are, they have their ups and downs. We’re on a down cycle, but we’re working at it. How about you? Have you been seeing anyone special?”
“No ... not that I haven’t had offers.”
“I’m sure you have.”
“Things have been better for me. I’m in a much better state of mind than when we used to have coffee together.”
“I’ve missed our morning coffees. You have an open invitation to join me. You do know that, don’t you?”
“I know,” she said. “Maybe I’ll show up one morning when you least expect it.”
When they reached the parking lot in front of his townhouse, he said, “This is my stop ... unless you want me to walk you home.”
She thought about it for a few seconds before she replied, “Better not tonight. We’ve had too much to drink. Perhaps another time.” She hugged him hard and their bodies touched together in places they shouldn’t for a hug from a friend.
They started to release their grips and separate but before they were apart, QT pulled her back and kissed her passionately on the lips.
He stopped kissing her long enough to say, “Are you sure you don’t want me to walk you home?”
“Better not. Another time?” she said.
“Yeah, another time,” he said, and they slowly separated and walked away in opposite directions.
Chapter 7
The Jazz band had stopped playing for the night and the patrons were dwindling in number. The laggards were driven by a variety of motives. There were the serious drinkers, who’d be there until closing. They’d already imbibed more than they should have but couldn’t or wouldn’t stop until no more alcohol was served. There were a few men still on the prowl. Those were the guys who had struck out so far but hadn’t given up. They were desperately trying to find a woman who was lonely enough or drunk enough to go home with them for a one-night stand. The later it got, the lower the prowlers’ standards became. In contrast, there remained a few naïve women who were holding onto hope that Mr. Right was going to show up. He’d be sober, responsible, and looking for a relationship rather than a single night of meaningless sex.
And then, there was the odd couple, Dr. Bit and Chloe, sitting at the table by themselves, having one last drink before calling it an evening.
“So, what’d you think of Lieutenant Mad? Isn’t she amazing?” Dr. Bit said.
“She’s as beautiful and quirky as you said she’d be. I can tell she cares about you but ...”
“But what?”
Don’t take this the wrong way, but she seemed guarded to me. It was like she was afraid to open up.”
“You noticed that, huh. She has good reasons for being the way she is, but she doesn’t like to talk about it, not even with me.”
“What’s up with her name? Don’t you think it’s weird that she uses a military title, even with her close friends like you?”
“I guess I’m used to it. It’s become more like a nickname than a rank. As she told you, she was in the army. I believe she’s earned the right to go by lieutenant, even if she’s no longer on active duty.”
“I know. It just comes across as standoffish. Do you know what I mean?”
“I suppose.”
“You like her a lot, don’t you?”
“She’s my best friend.”
“I’d like to make an observation about your relationship with her, but I don’t want to offend you.”
“Go ahead. You can speak your mind.”
“I’m worried that she’s trying to control you.”
Her comment hit a nerve. He was well aware that the lieutenant was the de facto leader of their band of cohorts and he willingly took orders from her when they were working on covert projects. But, for some reason, he felt that Chloe’s observation was an afront to his manhood.
“I’m my own man. I don’t take orders from her or anybody else,” he said.
“I hope that’s true. I’ve seen you work with computers. You have a gift and the potential to achieve great things. I’d hate to have her or anyone else dictate what you can and can’t do with your talents.”
“I thought the evening went well and you hit it off with the lieutenant,” he said, noticeably disappointed. “I guess I was wrong.”
“Aw, I’ve hurt your feelings. That’s the last thing I wanted to do. I like your friend. She seems very nice. But, she’s not perfect. Nobody is. I was trying to be honest with you. I thought that’s what you wanted me to do.” She kissed him on the cheek. “I’m sorry, honey. Don’t be angry.”
He softened with her kiss and said, “What’d you think about FBI Agent Quinton Target? You appeared to like him better than the lieutenant.”
Chloe smiled. “Do I sense a little jealousy from my baby? I haven’t seen this side of you.”
“I’m not jealous,” he said, but the way he said it didn’t convince her or himself.
“There’s no doubt about it, QT’s a hunk. The masculine type of guy most women swoon over. But, I’m not like most women. I’m more into the brainy type like you.”
“He seemed quite sure he knows you from somewhere. Are you certain you’ve never seen him before tonight?”
“Do you mean professionally or personally?”
“Either.”
“I’ve never seen him at the Social Security Office. And, we’ve never had a one-night stand, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“He seemed overly interested in you.”
“He was trying to get a reaction from me.”
“Or flirt with you.”
“Maybe. He seems to enjoy flirting with the ladies. But he was more into the lieutenant than he was into me. They were all over each other. What’s up with that?”
“They’ve slept together a few times. I think the lieutenant is still hung up on him, but he has a girlfriend.”
“Oh, really. Where was she tonight?”
“I don’t know. I think he said she had to work late. Her name is Blaire something. She works for the NSA.”
“Interesting. FBI, NSA, Army. All your friends have more exciting government jobs than me. I slave away in the Social Security Administration dealing with senile, old people all day.”
“It wouldn’t matter where you worked. You’d be the most exciting and charismatic person in the place.”
“That’s kind of you to say. But I don’t think your friend, the lieutenant, shares your opinion of me.”
“What makes you say that?”
“I could tell by the way she was questioning me that she thinks I’m guilty of something.”
“Don’t take it personally. It’s the way she is. Before she ever met you, she was having paranoid thoughts that you are with the CIA or some other intelligence agency, trying to recruit me.”
“She has an overactive imagination,” Chloe said.
“Hopefully, now that she’s actually talked with you, she’ll accept that you’re not in cahoots with the spooks.”
“I hope so. I want your friends to be my friends. Really, I do.”
Dr. Bit looked around and saw that the crowd had thinned out. “Do you want to get out of here?”
“Yes, I’ve had enough of Miller’s for the evening. Let’s go back to my place.”
“I thought you’d never ask,” he said.
Dr. Bit paid the check and they started to leave. As they passed by the bar, a muscular guy, wearing a UVA T-shirt got up from a bar stool and walked toward them. He was a couple of inches shorter than Dr. Bit, but twice as wide. His biceps were bigger in circumference than Dr. Bit’s thighs. All his focus was on Chloe. He acted as though Dr. Bit was invisible.
“Where’re you going, sexy lady,” he said. “The night is young. Why don’t you come join me for a drink and we can get to know each other?”
“I’m with someone,” she said.
“That’s alright, I’m sure he can find his way home by himself or he can call his mommy to pick him up.”
“She’s with me,” Dr. Bit said, reinforcing what Chloe had said.
The bully ignored him. He took Chloe’s hand and said, “Let’s have that drink, sweetheart.”
Dr. Bit grabbed the man’s forearm with both of his hands and tried to apply enough pressure to force him to release his grip from Chloe. The bully jabbed Dr. Bit in the left eye with his free hand and then wrapped his huge hand over Dr. Bit’s entire face and pushed him so hard that the skinny man lost his balance and fell to the floor.
“Go away you little pest. She needs a real man not a wimp like you.”
Dr. Bit stood up, made a fist, and moved toward him. While continuing to hold Chloe’s hand in one of his hands, the man delivered a powerful punch to Dr. Bit’s right eye and the side of his nose. Dr. Bit fell to the floor again. Blood spurted from his nose onto his shirt and the floor.
The bully looked at Chloe, whose expression had remained calm and unchanged throughout the ordeal. He took her complacency to be a sign that she approved of his caveman behavior and was ready to accept his offer. That was a mistake in judgement on his part.
While the man was relaxed, Chloe twisted his arm until his palm was face up behind him and his elbow was locked. Two blows from her elbow to a precise area near his elbow caused a bone to break and protrude. Before he could react, she moved beneath his armpit and slammed her elbow three times into his ribcage. The sound of crunching, broken ribs followed. While he was doubled over in pain, she landed a side kick to his leg, which buckled it and dropped him to his knees. From there, she grabbed him by the hair and slammed his head onto the floor, knocking him unconsciousness.
Dr. Bit, recovering from the punch to his face, watched in amazement. Chloe helped him to his feet and said, “Are you OK?”
“Not really,” he said.
Two large men, who looked like bouncers, came toward them. One of the men said, “I saw the whole thing from over there. I think you two better leave. We’ll call this troublemaker an ambulance. We’ve had problems with him before. He drinks too much. With his ego, I doubt he’ll file a report with the police that says that a woman beat him up.”
Chloe and Dr. Bit moved as fast as they could out the exit and toward the street where Chloe had parked her car. Dr. Bit held his head up with his arm pressed against his nose to stop the bleeding.
“It’d be easier if you took off your shirt and used it to soak up the blood,” she said.
“No, I don’t want to have a trail of women following us to catch a glimpse of my half-naked body.”
Chloe laughed and said, “I’m glad you haven’t lost your sense of humor.”
“Do you want to tell me what happened back there?”
“Don’t you remember?”
“Yeah, I remember the event, but I don’t understand. You were like that women’s Mixed Martial Arts champion, Ronda Rousey. You didn’t learn that shit at the Social Security Office.”
“I told you my father was in a foreign service job when I was a child and we lived abroad. He insisted I take martial arts classes when I was young. It’s come in handy a couple of times.”
“I feel inadequate, not being able to discourage that guy. Having you save me instead of the other way around is a blow to my ego.”
“You were very brave. Instead of running away, you stayed to defend my honor. It wasn’t your fault you weren’t able to stop him. That guy was huge. The only thing I had going for me was the element of surprise. He looked at me and saw a weak, vulnerable woman. He underestimated me.”
“When he looked at me, he saw a weak, vulnerable IT geek and he was right.”
Chloe smiled and said, “Don’t be so hard on yourself. Think of it this way, you distracted him while I took him down. It was teamwork.”
When they reached Chloe’s car and got inside, Dr. Bit said, “I’ll try not to bleed on your leather seats.”
“Let’s get you back to my place and clean you up.”
“If you don’t mind, I’d rather go home, tend to my wounds, and go to bed.”
“Are you sure you’re all right. I think you may have been knocked out for a few seconds. You might have a concussion.”
“I don’t have double vision, a headache, or a loss of memory, so I don’t think I have a concussion.”
When they reached Dr. Bit’s house, they could see lights turned on inside.
“Are you sure you don’t want to spend the night at my place? I could make you forget all about the pain and rebuild your confidence.”
