Delilah's Tears

Chapter Sixteen

James

"Where's the fire this time, Neil?" I pour a cup of muddy black coffee from the pot. Neil must never sleep, because he sucks down this bitter jet-fueled caffeine sludge all day and all night. I'm not altogether certain he has any blood running though his veins anymore, just this crap. One sip tells me he hasn't changed his brewing methods since our military days. Stuff's hard to swallow. I need the kick after last night, though, so I grin and bear it. Neil studies me as he slouches in his rolling chair, tapping a pen on his denim covered thigh.

"You look like shit. Late night?"

"Only because I couldn't sleep."

"Couldn't or didn't? Big diff. Sounds like you finally pulled your dick outta your ass and got yourself a shiny new toy to play with."

I glare at him. So much wrong with his assumption. "Not at all." My vague response leaves him intrigued. "Not talking about it, so don't ask. What are we dealing with?"

The door slams open. Demetri and Jaxon stalk into the room. Neither looks pleased with the crack of dawn roll-call either. "Just in time, gentlemen. You've met James?" Demetri rolls his eyes. Jax crosses his arms across an impressively toned chest. None of us are in the mood for Neil's games.

"All right, all right. You three are on a plane in..." he checks his smart watch, tapping the face. Neil knows exactly what time it is. He's a closet drama queen. "Two hours." He spots our go-bags on the floor next to the door. "I see you're all packed for a weekend in paradise. Hope y'all brought plenty of raincoats."

"Neil..." I warn. Condoms are the last thing I was thinking of as I tossed stuff in the bag at four-thirty.

"Well, some of you might want to take advantage of the clientele. I hear the babes are a thing to behold and plentiful."

"Seriously, Neil. Either give us the assignment or we're outta here." Demetri nods a head toward his brother.

"Fine." He moves to his computer bank and clicks a few keys, bringing the image of a stunning beach resort into view. A large pool area overlooks the crystal blue water of a beautiful beach. "Seduction. If you haven't heard of it, it's an all-inclusive play palace for the rich and famous in the Caribbean. You three are enjoying the last days of freedom for our handsome groom-to-be here." He points to me. I groan.

"Why?"

"Because it seems Andrea Abretti's fingers have dipped into the private party arena, and his daddy ain't so proud of parts of his business plan. Lorenzo's fine with the pay-to-play prostitution scheme for high rollers at his resort that Andrea runs. But number one son crossed a line and won't back down, much to his father's displeasure."

"And we're going there to...?"

"Extract Sen. Waters' daughter."

"How'd she end up there? Is Andrea trafficking?" Jaxon asks the million-dollar question. "And why does Lorenzo even care?"

Neil nods. "He's had Waters in his pocket for years. Andrea met the girl, Sasha, at some event and decided to stake his claim. They dated for a bit until she figured out who he was. Not hard to do when the guy puts a bullet through the skull of his body guard for the dubious infraction of 'looking at' his date, in front of said date."

"Jesus. Is the guy short on brains?" I hate dealing with mob guys.

"One would think. So, Sasha refuses to see him. Naturally, his response is to 'invite' her indefinitely to Seduction. Rumor has it Andrea has her stashed away in the bowels the pay-to-play area of the resort until she comes to her senses. Daddy Waters and therefore Daddy Abretti are not pleased."