Jake sat in the rental car with the motor running, it throbbed impatiently, awaiting his command. As each vehicle approached he gazed expectantly to headlights through the dimness of night, consult his watch and mutter another curse.
    “Where the hell are those useless bastards...” considering the incompetence of those that surrounded him.
    Jake had covered his tracks as usual; hiring a rental car, swapping the plates, using a false name and identification. The only thing that wasn’t fake the money, and this was only because he couldn’t locate a forger in time. The suitcase of money beside him felt like a ticking bomb, one hundred thousand in unmarked bills, a poor king’s ransom and a chunk of working capital. It was hardly a huge sum, but paradoxically still enough to put a realist's nerves on edge.
    Condensation from the car’s exhaust swirled around, and as it did Jake turned the heater up another notch, it was damned cold outside. This was his tenth drugs deal, these always made him feel slightly high, and no drugs - an adrenaline rush, the money was okay. On his last deal, he’d grossed over three hundred thousand for a similar outlay. The market it seemed was always ready and eager, and if the fools wanted to kill themselves to make him rich - so be it.
    The agreed meeting time had come and gone, if nothing happened in the next five minutes he was a ghost. Caution seemed the better part of valour in this business, especially when the alternative was the injustice system. Jake spent his time amusing his anger, "What a cheek these do gooders had, trying to squash an honest trade as his, he was just an astute businessman." At the thought astute he reach into the glove box and pulled out his partner, a black Luger. This snub, large bore revolver had been with him for years, had never let him down, and had even saved his life.
    Another light passed by, as the cold, dead weight of the gun came into his grasp, Jake came to grips with the feeling that the gun was now his closest and only friend - it had never betrayed or failed him.
    Glancing at his watch, he knew time was running out, another set of lights approached, if this wasn’t the contact - the rendezvous was over. With a hypnotic effect the twin beams of light slowed behind him, then stopped. One flash, a pause, two flashes, a pause, another single flash - the agreed signal, this was business.
    Watching in the rear view mirror, Jake witnessed a black figure shift from the black car, and slip into the blackness of the night - there was a brief twinge of a black feeling. With the Luger resting in the palm of his hand, Jake opened the door, and slid from the seat ready to make a deal. Pulling the lapels of his overcoat up, he brought the slight weight of the briefcase to him; then slowly, cautiously, moved to the sidewalk side of the car. The guy before him was big, but that didn’t deter him, at six foot five and well over two hundred pounds, he was no beach target.
    The contact was waiting, all that could be seen of their features was a flash of white teeth - teeth that could be an aiming point.
    “Let’s get this over with...” Jake spoke for the first time.
    “You got the money?”
    “You got the stuff?” Jake patted the briefcase, answering a question with a question.
    In reply the anonymous contact pulled a similar case from amongst the falls of his coat. This motion made Jake's Luger twitch. With a marked effort Jake managed to stop it from completing the transaction, here and now. As agreed, this was a one on one meeting, they exchanged cases and mutually examined the contents of each. As the contact rifled through the piles of notes, Jake tested the contents of the white bags, by the conventional test tube and colour method, then the older one of taste.
    The white powder was purer than Jake could believe, it hadn’t been spiked yet - meaning more profit for him. This was going to be a good run. With the exchange made, all it took now was a verbal confirmation and the transaction was complete.
    “That’s fine...” Jake affirmed his acceptance.
    The black shrouded man nodded, as if some sort of magic words had been spoken, then said the infamous words.  “Police - you’re under arrest!”
    For a second Jake couldn’t believe his ears, what the hell was this - then the undercover cop was motioning to someone behind him. It was a set up!  There was only one thing he could do now, so he acted accordingly. “Arrest this then!” swinging the Luger up and around, firing point blank.
   There was an explosion that rocked his senses, a flash of light outlining the surroundings, leaving an impression his retinas to memorise the scene. There were a few things that struck him then, one being that the cop had disintegrated into a mass of blood, ha - one less pig to worry about. And secondly, there was another asshole to deal with, he’d been hiding in the car. Not wishing for this second agent to harbour hurt feelings, at being left out, Jake gave him a lead pill to chew on too.
    Making the most of the situation, being as Jake considered an astute business man, he grabbed both the money and the case of cocaine, jumping back into the waiting rental car. Flinging the half million odd dollars of ill gotten goods in, Jake gave it less than the thought it deserved - his life worth at least a million times this. An explosion from behind him assaulted his senses, highlighting this predicament, and of course shattered the back window, telling him that he hadn’t managed to eliminate the second under cover pig. So it was one pig down, one to go. Twisting the ignition key savagely, Jake hoped this would make the motor spin over faster, another shot rang out as the motor debated whether it was going take a part in this crime.
    If he’d been religious, Jake might have sold his soul to the devil for an easy escape, but while he was in the act of contemplating this, the motor caught. Before a definite resolution came - he was off.     When renting the car Jake had chosen a high powered vee eight automatic, for the reason it was put into now. Such a vehicle enabled him to keep one hand free, for the all important purpose of making obscene gestures at people, and shooting at them.
    Selecting drive, Jake followed with a volley of shots at the car behind him. With his foot to the floor the car picked up speed rapidly, the narrow side street becoming a tunnel of vision. To up the stakes further, in the thick darkness of night, Jake left the headlights off - just to make things interesting. In the rear view mirror the police car’s lights blazed into life, the car swinging drunkenly, following like the intrepid bloodhound Jake knew it to be.
    "Right then pig," Jake swore, "let’s see how well they taught you to drive..." entering the first intersection at a reckless speed, and since it was deserted he took full advantage of full lock and throttle, to steer his way through. Making the corner successfully, Jake found the road he was in now was quite a bit wider, allowing for even more insane speed. Having made it here alive, Jake travelled down the middle, foot flat to the floor, one hundred and twenty mile an hour on the dash - and rising. Keeping his options open, one eye on the rev counter, one behind - he looked for the next best route for escape. He’d driven about a block before the telltale lights careered into sight behind him, probably travelling at about the same insane speed, more fool them!
    "Come on sonny, try and keep up..." Jake cheered him on, hoping they got a blow out, tyre, motor, transmission, brain - it was all the same to him.
    From the look of things the guy was no Stirling Moss, all the better, Jake could enter into a game of cat and mouse with him... he’d be the cat. Easing off the gas the distance between them lessened, without realising it he gained rapidly. The under cover pig’s car gained and gained, and at what Jake deemed as the critical distance he pulled on the handbrake, moving the selector into second. The motor screamed as the brakes bit, the gap between them narrowed to mere feet in seconds.
    The pig had him or so he thought, and fired, the loss of concentration was all Jake needed. Stomping on the brakes - his pursuer ran into the back of the car, with a satisfying loud smash. Handbrake off and accelerating under full power again, Jake watched the pig’s car grind to a halt, there were no headlights any more - and a lot of steam. Under the illumination of the street lights, Jake thought he glimpsed a body slumped over the steering wheel, silly boy hadn’t been wearing his seat belt - oh well bye, bye pig... see ya in the sty!  With a two finger salute, Jake let the selector slide into drive, the motor settling from a scream to a complaining whine, after all he was only doing ninety.
    He was home free, imagine thinking they could take Jake W Benson like a common street criminal, suck on this!  A smile was already spreading across his face at the thought of the mayhem he’d left behind, and the profit he’d inherited from their inadequacy. As the smile had just about completed its path across his broad countenance, a car came steam rolling from out of a side street. It wasn’t the action that bothered him, it was the flashing lights and siren that got up his nose. With a series of short sharp expletives, Jake called on the spirits to take another shot at him, he could take it after all.
    The car in front of him came to a halt effectively blocking the road, but hell this car wasn’t his baby - Jake spun it into a slide to come crashing up against them. With his free hand Jake shot through the closed side window of his car, the expressions of surprise more than worth the shower of glass. Winging the driver, the passenger disappeared out of sight, if he’d been hit as well, remained a mystery. Motor at full throttle again Jake left them to their surprise, before they tried to give him one. Unfortunately he’d not dealt the guys behind him a mortal blow, and as such Jake knew in return they would do their best to give him one. Jake figured this blow would be by either pursuing, or, more likely, radioing for assistance.
    It was Jake deemed, time to get the hell out of the area - pronto.
    Leaving the quiet and deserted streets at the last corner. The traffic in the next street was quite heavy, lovers and late workers making their ways to and from pitiful existences. All those stupid narrow minded fools, well he’d give them something to talk and get excited about. Picking the next intersection he ran the red light, surprising a little old lady coming up a one way street. Jake waved majestically at her as the rental glanced off her car, she was trying to say something as Jake passed, “One way street...” or the likes. But hey he was only going one way, so it must have been intended for someone else.
    Still with the headlights off, Jake debated if he should turn them on, the question resolving itself dramatically by a sensational near miss with a refuse truck. As Jake swung to the left the truck jackknifed to the right, three parked cars got squashed as the truck dramatically turned over on top of them. This would keep them busy for a while!  Smiling at his good fortune, Jake knew the street was effectively blocked till a crane cleared it.
    Relenting then and turning the lights on revealed that only one was working, Jake couldn’t imagine how the other had blown, must have been a faulty bulb - or the missing fender!  Continuing his run, he played chicken with various obstinate motorists, who must have thought since they were in the right, that Jake should give way. At the distance of a few meters one of them reconsidered - the wailing horn stopped abruptly as the car ran into a parked van, what a shame.
    There was only one problem with all this fun, it left a clear trail for the pigs to follow. Jake was going to have to settle down and make some distance - without any wrecks for them to track, otherwise this might never end. There was a definite temptation to keep this style of driving up, but it would only take one mistake to turn it into a disaster. Leaving the one way street at the next intersection, Jake settled down to a more respectable speed, trying to blend in with the traffic. The state of the car though, made the task of anonymity impossible, Jake may as well have been driving a car covered in fluorescent lights advertising - here I am!
    With this in mind Jake started shopping for a replacement car, a nice common model should do the trick - he spotted a red Ford amongst bushes in front of a house, this would be ideal. Pulling out of the main stream he stopped and watched his target for a few minutes - all seemed quiet, so Jake took his cue from this. Idling up beside, then in front of the Ford, the rental car became shielded from the road, now Jake was safe but without transport. From his bag of tricks he produced an essential item - a toolkit containing things like; screwdrivers, pliers, jumper leads, packing tape etc. This was like his companion the Luger - a constant handy travelling companion, especially in circumstances like this.
Approaching the red Ford, a flood of reflexes came over him. In his misspent youth, stealing cars had been bread and butter stuff, a means to an end, and it would seem that Jake still needed the art of conversion to keep him going. Peering into the dark interior, a light winked back at him, this car had an alarm. For a second Jake dredged the recesses of his mind - ah yes alarms. He’d had plenty of experience with these feeble things over the years, most were installed by home experts or professionals, who should never have even been let near a car, let alone touch it. So armed with a history of battles and a pair of side cutters Jake slid under the Ford, predictably a siren stared back at him. Instead of being shocked Jake smiled as if it were an old friend, snicking off the wires running to it. Having been caught out once before, he pulled on the now loose wire to see where else it ran, sure enough the track lead to another siren at the back of the car. Clever, but not clever enough.
Not trusting to luck, Jake stuck his hand up and pulled on the bonnet release cable, that on this model was sensibly exposed. The bonnet came up with a satisfying thump, opening it the rest of the way, he quickly removed the positive lead from the battery, now it was totally at his mercy. Jake did this because of another memory, of a childhood associate, he’d lost an eye to a booby trapped car - so the saying, with other peoples cars you can never be too careful...
    There was a mass of foreign wiring in the engine bay, someone had been playing at deviousness, so still armed with his side cutters, Jake chopped the accessory leads from the battery - he wasn’t going to need them anyway. So with only the battery lead for the starter feed attached, Jake felt comfortable to turn from the car for a minute, to fish in his bag of goodies for a set of skeleton keys. For five minutes following this Jake played a guessing game, not this key, not that, then with a click Jake had it - success.
    Trying the key in the ignition, it turned without trouble - Jake was in business and out of there. The dashboard instruments were dead, and Jake briefly regretted not having checked how much petrol was left before cutting the leads - it was too late now. Having just about achieved his theft, Jake again stuck his head under the bonnet, running a jumper lead from the distributor to the coil, from the coil to the battery - ignition was restored. Jake ran another clip lead from the starter solenoid on the starter to the battery.
    In a single action Jake held the choke closed and stuck the clip lead to the battery, the motor wound over, gave a cough, then chucked the starter out of engagement. Trying again, and praying his efforts so far hadn’t been in vain, this time the motor made a rattly start into life. Checking the clip leads, Jake verified they were still firmly attached, he was ready to go. With the motor running, Jake used the free clip lead to get the lights going, only the front ones went, but that was fine with him. Slamming the bonnet down Jake hastily got into the Ford, and with a rev made sure the motor was going to keep running - it seemed fine. Slowly then he eased from the shelter of the bushes.
    The car was well worn but inconspicuous, and therefore more desirable than the rental. With two suitcases and the Luger sitting beside him Jake felt better, in half an hour he’d be out of the area, on his way home and out of danger. The odometer wound on and on, at the distance of twenty miles Jake knew that he’d done it. There had been a few heart stopping moments, as cars with flashing lights pounced on a rental car the same as he had just been driving. Thankfully he went sailing by in the beat up Ford, given neither a second glance nor thought, as usual Jake one, pigs zip.
    Over confident or not, and following this close call, instead of heading straight home, Jake decided to stash the loot at a locker he leased in a local Post Office. The next ten miles were uneventful, but he didn’t let this lessen his sense of self preservation. There was no one around when Jake cruised up to the dimly lit building, but this didn’t mean it was safe. He left the car running while transferring the cases and Luger to the deposit box, the last thing he needed now was to be stopped with any of these in his possession. Although his deposit box wasn’t an advertised box there were letters here for him, this was both as unusual as it was ominous.
    One letter was an inquiry from a dealer Jake regularly supplied, he was desperate for stuff - he’d pleaded earlier in the week for it, but Jake been unable to supply, now the dealer was really, really desperate. Jake smiled and memorised the number, he was about to have his wishes fulfilled, but the price had just gone up, times three - after all Jake was in a good mood today. The second letter was a scented one, Jake gave it a good long sniff before contemplating the address on the back, there were very few crooks in the business with such class. The sender was one Madame Eliase, a name that he’d heard several times before, one that demanded respect, and fear - unless you had the ability to look after your affairs. Purportedly Eliase was now the head of the largest hooker ring in the city, her business sense and iron hand were legendary - especially amongst her victims.
    Getting back into the car, curiosity and her reputation forced him to open the pink, scented letter - it read simply...

Jake Benson
It has recently come to his attention that you are becoming a powerful, dominant force in regards drug supply. This area has always been an interest of his. I, as you know, have cornered the massage parlour and escort business, and while this is lucrative, it is more of an investment than a high turnover, high profit business. Being an astute business woman, I can see that together they could make a real killing. With your connections and money from the drug arena, I would be willing to cut you a portion of the escort business. With all competition in this area gone, we would have unlimited control on a major slice of the susceptible population in this city. I already have seven sites that drugs could be successfully dispensed from, but the supplier I have used is too slow to meet demand, and too greedy. A partnership could make us both very rich, so consider this as an invitation for open discussion and a night of free sampling. If you accept, you can have unlimited access - to make money ... Eliase.

At the bottom of the sheet an address announced a destination, for the impending sampling.

47 Beaumont Terrace, Ultimate Escorts Inc.

The letter puzzled him, how did she find him?  How did she know?  Half the police force would have given their hind legs to get a handle on him, yet she had sent him a bloody letter - simple as that. She had nerve, she had guts, but this was nothing new to her reputation - an adventurist, someone with a flair for making money... Jake read it between the lines.
    Since there was a map in the Post Office’s locker room, Jake took the letter to search out Beaumont Terrace. It took several minutes to locate the terrace, it was about ten blocks from here, probably a seedy place full of sick units. Jake briefly toyed with the idea, yes it was worth a look wasn’t it, and the promise of free anything always got his vote. Before he could act there was a new presence with him, a man dressed roughly, looking for all the world like an assassin, or drug addict. Such a person didn’t scare Jake, most ordinary citizens would have been, but Jake had already dealt with enough people like this to know how such encounters went.
    “How about a few bucks for a down and out mate, you look like you can afford it...” the drug addict come mugger smiled evilly, displaying brown teeth, and his real intent, to take what he wished.
    “Sorry, I don’t believe in the welfare state.” Jake turned to face him squarely, as a warning, Jake was a big man - as capable to defend himself as any one.
    “You rich bastards are all the same, you take the cream while we have to scrape and bow...”
    “I think you have me confused with some one who gives a shit.” Jake was getting tired of this, he had other more pleasurable pursuits to seek out - Ultimate Escorts Inc. for a start.
    “Just give me your money!” a knife appeared from no where.
    “Put it away son,” Jake advised, not at all surprised or concerned by this appearance, “before you get hurt.”
    “Fuck you!” the mugger lunged, adrenaline powered anger firing his actions.
    Such a clumsy, uncoordinated attack was easy to side step, and with a blow of his own Jake struck at the knife wielding arm. The blow was perfectly timed, it was solid, it was so effective that it broke the attackers arm!  In a heap, pain beginning to seep through what some might laughingly call a brain, the mugger swore, and swore and swore. Dismissing him for a minute, Jake retrieved the Luger from the post box, it loved a good time and hated missing out, and Jake was starting to have a good time.     Checking how many rounds were in the magazine, the distinctive noise brought the mugger out of his trance, bringing his eyes round to where Jake stood, toying with Luger.
    “I...” the mugger was beginning to feel a new emotion, apart from anger and pain - fear!
    “You’re lucky that I’m in a good mood, otherwise you’d already be dead...”
    “Who are you?” fear was building upon fear now.
    “Jake W Benson.” he wasn’t scared to make himself known.
    “I heard of you, you’re crazy - a killer...” the addict began to back away, still on the floor, like a dog that just realised it was in great danger.
    “The world would be a much better place if it had less people like you in it.” Jake considered, still toying with the Luger.
    “I, you...” implying without saying it, that Jake was a hundred times worse than he.
    “Just get out of my sight, and spread the word to leave me alone, next time I will spread the one who tries it on - all over the nearest wall!”
    The mugger struggled to his feet, knife lying where he’d dropped it, staring at Jake as if to memorise him, so he could indeed pass on the message to his fellow night hunters.
    “I ride a white horse, with a black Luger at my side - whose name is Death...” Jake misquoted the bible, waving the mugger to go, and he did.
    With a sense of the Devil may care Jake decided to indeed continue as planned - and as a secondary consideration, an alibi to his actions tonight was beginning to form. Driving down quiet streets, in the last hour of the day, he considered what had just transpired, and what was yet to come. At the halfway point, Jake drove the Ford up a secluded ally, parking it in a remote corner, behind a block of apartments. Yanking the jumpers from under the bonnet, he made the final gesture that his association with the car had come to an end. The car had served him well, and despite himself he pulled off the distributor cap and removed it from the motor. Jake left a fifty dollar note in the glove box with the distributor cap, highlighting the fact that there was now no rotor. Feeling like Father Christmas Jake shook his head in disgust - he had to be getting soft, or old...  Walking from the car, it ticked almost thankfully, like a sigh of relief to have been left in one piece.
    Pulling the lapels of his coat up, embracing the cold, Jake hoped to receive a warm reception at this Escorts Unlimited place, warm enough to dispel the cold that was eating into his very soul. On the street again Jake lengthened his stride, intent on eating up the remaining distance, it had to be at least three miles to this place. With a grin he felt the exercise would do him good, building up an appetite for both food and...
    So far it had been a good day, he’d been rich before today, now he was affluent to the point of the money being meaningless. This city had been his break from poverty, this was where it had all begun to go right, if you could call a successful career move into crime as being right. It had only been two years, that wasn’t a long time to get established as top anything - yet somehow he’d done it. As the mugger had said, the name Jake W Benson was known, and if not respected, at least it was feared.     Being ruthless, cunning, keeping at least one step ahead of the opposition, from both sides of the law and not afraid to act helped. There was only one draw back in all this, fighting for what he had achieved, had pitted him against every one, he couldn’t afford to trust anyone. Still there were compensations, he lived a life of complete luxury, where nothing was denied him, he became a bit of a bastard - well a lot of a bastard - a very rich, self indulgent, relaxed, bastard, with enough time to do and plan for whatever he wanted - yes being a bastard wasn’t all bad.
    Walking at his selected pace, wary as always, it dawned on him that there were shapes lurking amongst the dark recesses of the street, just at the limit of the light’s glare. From time to time Jake heard shoes scrapping over rough surfaces, the odd unnatural shifting of items, there was someone stalking him - his paranoia was sure of this. For about ten minutes Jake was shadowed, then abruptly the noises ceased, from this he figured it was time to ready himself for a surprise attack.
    As the next alley came into sight, instead of walking passed as Jake had done the others, he stopped at the corner and waited. He waited for minutes in the bitter silence of night, then from the depths of the darkness came a form dressed in black, Jake froze. The Luger from under the confines of his heavy coat pointed to the sound, ready to deal out its usual welcome, as he waited for this shadow to reveal themselves. Slowly, like a cat stalking it’s prey, a balaclava disguised figure came into sight. The lithe form was dressed in black, with two red stripes running down the middle of the track suite.     Immediately Jake recognised him, this was the up to now fictional embezzler, burglar, murderer - the police had a dossier the size of a mountain on this illusive anomaly. Men swore, woman cursed, and children cried at the mention of this creature. The two stripes and assorted antics had given the figure a nickname, the Red Backed Spider - despite every effort this creature had gained a cult sort of following, like Batman, The Terminator, Robin Hood, except this guy didn’t fight for justice or the American way, nor did he give to the poor, still his antics endeared him to the public.
    Intrigued by the way the form glided amongst the shadows, the realisation came, that if Jake hadn’t been alert, the surprise would have been his. The Red Backed Spider was devising another ambush, another notch in his belt, another story for the press to retell, maybe even another kill, but for some reason the prey, Jake, hadn’t shown yet. His so far flawless act was marred briefly by impatience, betrayed by the twitch of an arm, a reflex turning of his head away from where Jake stood in wait, as Jake waited for he who waited for him, an ambush set for an ambush. A noise intruded the game, coming from the depths of the alley, probably a drunk or vengeful mugger that had been following him so noisily, a careless assassin that had saved his life. As the red striped figure turned fully, to silence this intrusion, Jake knew this was his cue to come into the scene, now he would act - fast!
    In half a dozen strides Jake lessened the gap between them to an arm’s length, this shortened then to nothing, as the Luger snaked up against his red striped back. To assure the predator now prey, that this was no dream, Jake added a short phrase.
    “Move and you’re going to be the Red Splat!”
    There was a moment of inaction, then, “You a cop?” came the question.
    “No, but don’t let that give you cause to celebrate...” Jake let the situation sink in, then continued. “You’ve been a busy little scourge haven’t you.” It started as a question, but finished as a statement.
    The pending Red Splat nodded his agreement silently, waiting for the jury to come in. The scurrying from the recess of the alley diminished to nothing, they were alone, Jake sensed rather than saw him tense - readying for a counter attack. Knowing his advantage he used it, pushing the safety off and cocking the gun noisily. Jake couldn’t have done better in saying, Halt police, stop or I’ll shoot!
Jake’s prey froze, as if the cold air had suddenly penetrated his costume. This was a tricky situation, this prey was a scourge likely to hit out at Jake as at anyone else - yet it would be impossible for Jake to deal with him directly, or take him to the authorities. Then it struck him, no it wouldn’t, there were no live witnesses to his escapades...  Considering this line, another option presented itself. This guy could be as deadly an ally as enemy, he was an assassin of proven ability - Jake had the beginning of an even better idea for his friend. So far they hadn’t faced each other, curiosity nagged at him, who was this man?
    “Turn round,” Jake motioned, “Slowly!” he warned, and so he came face to face with a living nightmare.
    “You going to take me in?” Came the question, this guy was worried about his future, and / or the injustice system. Then regarded Jake’s expression, he read some familiar look, and made an intuitive leap, “You’ve got something in mind?”
    Jake couldn’t hold back a smile, frightening him - Jake was probably the only victim he’d seen smile. “Well, to be honest I’m not a great fan of the judicial system, in fact I’m probably one of its intended victims, that’s if they ever catch up with me...” Jake captured his prey’s interest. “Look I’ll do you a deal, you don’t want to become part of that red wall over there, and I don’t want to have to buy another bullet. So if I’m to let you go, we’ll have to come to an arrangement...”
    “Like what, mate?”
    This was the crux of the situation, “What would you say to becoming employed, in a part time position of course...” Jake went on to explain his idea.
    All the while the Luger remained trained on the so called Red Backed Spider, as he moved this way and that it followed, there was no escaping its retribution, and it was this that kept him as a truly captive audience. Discussion over, it came time for a decision, Jake knew this to be the most dangerous part of their association so far, he might just be waiting for him to relax his guard, once a killer always a killer.
    “I’ll accept, on a few conditions... my identity is to remain anonymous, I can only be contacted through a post office box number, you’ll pay me in cash - up front, and I ain’t cheap...” he trotted out his conditions.
    Jake nodded to each, surprising his new associate all the more with two simple words. “I accept.”
    Then arrived the moment of truth, he lowered the Luger, transferring it to his left hand, this done he stuck out his right, offering it to a killer. For a second Jake thought the killer considered his death, then a smiled showed through the balaclava, no matter how different they were, they were two of a kind, they had a deal. Jake would have talked longer, but the Red Backed Spider drifted into the alley like a ghost, becoming one with the darkness - nothing more than a legend again. Looking to his hand Jake found a card, it said “The Red Backed Spider strikes again...” on the back was a number, that’s all.
Jake listened in dead silence, trying to locate the echoes of footsteps, listening for a possible brush with death, but there was not a sound, the killer had gone, as if he’d never existed. Jake didn’t stir for five whole minutes, patience being the better part of caution and valour - yet he didn’t kid himself to having any valour or breeding, it was all animal cunning. A grin came to his face at the thought of the ally he’d made, a legend like this would be a useful addition to his arsenal, like the Luger - something cold, deadly, and on his side. Slipping the Luger back into the folds of his coat, Jake determined it time to press on, before something else unexpected came along and caught him unawares, as Spiderman had almost done. Turning and making up for lost time, Jake reminded himself that he did after all have a date, an impromptu meeting as the one he’d just had. Considering the events of the day so far, he felt it might very well turn out in a similar profitable fashion.
    The cold bit into him like a knife as the level of adrenaline receded, Jake hurried on to the accompaniment of a warm glow settling in his guts. He had the feeling this was going to be a new era, in his continued prosperity. As such he decided to watch out for other opportunities, there were all around, it only took a good eye and the correct action to profit from them. At an accelerated pace, the distance whiled away to nothing, Jake quelled his thoughts of further profit and concentrated on the task at hand, counting the street numbers till reaching 47. Despite the cold, Jake stood and stared at the white building, far from being a seedy dive, it had the aura of a mansion. From the bright lights, subtly announcing its wares - to the marble stairway leading to the double doors, it spoke of unspeakable pleasures and comfort. No doubt many a poor sod had been enticed inside, fooled by the mere grandeur of the illusion.
    The Luger dug him in the back, it was a warning, Watch your back Jake... and he took the advice with a sense of trust, the Luger had never been wrong - yet.
    One by one Jake broached the steps, and rising to the height of the doors, a new world unfolded before him. If there had been any question of the building’s opulence at the base of the stairs, now that he had a glimpse inside, any uncertainty was completely dispelled. Through the glass of the doors, soft light gave hints of a plush interior - more like a high class hotel than a brothel, or was that the impression they wanted to give?
    Dressed casually, black jeans and leather jacket, Jake doubted if they would even admit him, it seemed like a place for overdressed men and women, with pockets that shed gold instead of lint. How they kept the riff raff out, puzzled him - briefly. Grasping for the door handle, he found that there was none, and a very large and menacing dark gentleman stood at attention on the other side. The door man looked down his nose and gave the impression of sniffing, Jake motioned to the door but he didn’t bat an eyelid - and proceeded to ignore him!  One of Jake’s failing traits, and he admitted having quite a few, was that he didn’t like being snubbed or ignored. The fact is, nobody likes being treated as a second class citizen. Unfortunately Jake had the habit, of being a little more forth coming with his expressions of displeasure.
    “Hey Mack!... are you blind or something?” rattling the door for good measure, the reaction was a mild flinch. “Look are you going to let me in, I’ve got an invitation...” at the mention of this, the door man gave him his undivided attention.
    The big bloke turned to face the doorway, the interior of the reception area was blotted out by his bulk - Jake reassessed his immediate plans, tact being the best policy. Like a mechanical mannequin the door man turned the latch and opened the door, Jake moved forward to proceed inside - this was his folly. The slow movements of the door man fooled him into thinking him incapable of faster action, he proved this wrong by giving Jake a tremendous blow to the chest, sending him flying to the edge of the stairs. From a sprawled position, Jake found himself witnessing a gruesome thing, the gorilla smiled.
    “Now piss off!” he intoned like a half-wit.
    “You’re going to regret this!” Jake warned, getting up.
    “Haw, haw, haw...” the door man found amusement in this threat, to him any threat was funny.
    What was it to be?  Hand to hand with a mountain of unfeeling flesh, or a quick bullet to the brain, if Jake could find it that is!  His trigger finger and Luger itched for more mayhem, and this guy was begging for it. In the bright light of the building Jake figured this might not be the ideal place, so it was to be a physical contest after all. The gorilla stood waiting for his departure, instead he got to witness him come and get more... Approaching slowly, Jake measured the door man at close to seven foot, a monster, but the bigger they are the harder they come down on you... ah no, the bigger they are the less chance you had of crawling away... ah no, well Jake had every confidence in himself anyway. Jake watched the door man watch him, as disbelief slowly mixed with the silly grin left on his face, since the last time he’d had a thought, it was time to wipe it clean.
    “I’m going to have to hurt you now...” the monster managed to join eight words together - amazing!
    “Get stuffed!” Jake put the punctuation on the end for him.
    As they maneuvered for position, Jake knew only too well that one mistake was all it would take, to make him a hospital case, but the challenge was too much to miss....  All through this the door stood open, stating, if you can pass this test, then enter Valhalla... Jake hoped he wouldn’t have to die to prove his worthiness. In answer to this invitation Jake had thoughts like: I’ve got to get this Gorilla from the door, I’ve got to get the first telling strike, I’ve got to get my head read... unfortunately before he could come to a definite confusion he was forced to put these fighting thoughts aside, as the human steamroller lumbered in for the kill.
    The world of movement slowed as it does under such circumstances, luckily Jake’s mind was not affected by this, and he acted at his same pace, probably the margin that always gave him an advantage. A fist the size of a small truck flew towards his face, Jake ducked under it and used one of his bicycle sized ones to best effect. Hit and run was his motto, especially when they were bigger than him. Coming about, ready for another run, Jake regarded his handy work - the door man come gorilla had a red nose, annoyance showing on his face, Jake hadn’t hurt him at all!  This was too much, with a quick feint Jake made a run at him, peeling off at the last second and ran through the entrance. Jake slammed and locked the door behind him - freeze you bastard!  Composing himself, Jake strode up to the reception desk, there was a faint hammering behind him. A tall blonde bombshell had her back to him.
    “Get rid of the bum Lou?”
    “Yeah he’s outside now...” Jake nodded, as she spun to face him.
    Jake had seen many enticingly beautiful backs, and he was used to disappointment at the front half - but this was almost beyond his comprehension, of the maxim of right. She was beautiful, and features, did she have features - oh yes!  For the first time, in a long time, Jake was actually lost for words.
    “Where is Lou, what have you done with him?” she seemed upset at the man mountain’s absence.
    Finding voice, Jake managed to squeeze out, “It’s all right, I didn’t hurt him, he’s just cooling off in the nice fresh air...”
    She laughed, it was a delightful sound, “I bet he didn’t bargain on that!” her manner had suspiciously changed from cool to incinerate.
    Jake watched her left arm slide from the top of the counter, to an alarm switch type position. With as much decorum as he could manage, he slipped his hand to intercept hers.
    “That’s not strictly necessary is it...” this being more of a statement than a question.
    Briefly the python within her flared, Jake blinked; a python here, in her, now, at this hour?  This wasn’t going very well - he’d had more luck with Spiderman, he was going to have to be diplomatic to stay the spread of disaster. The sex kitten was in the process of metamorphosis, she would be a fire breathing dragon before long. Jake would have to act quickly now, to avoid the lance and armoured suit routine, again. Yes, he was going to have to act quickly.
    “There’s no need to get upset, I’m here by invitation, as I tried to tell Godzilla out there...” Jake waved at the hulk at the front door, where only the door man’s respect for the property stopped him steam rolling in. The receptionist looked from the door man to Jake, they were unhurt, Jake appeared reasonable - and handsome. Pulling her hand towards him, Jake took it in his and tried to appear sincere, some thing he was willing to try here, at least once.
    “Do I look like the kind of guy who’d give you trouble?” Jake smiled sweetly, and falsely. Maybe it worked, maybe she was a better actor than him - nevertheless she favoured him with one of those ten mega watt smiles. The demons retreated, his Luger sighed, it didn’t like being used as a lance.
    “You say you’re expected.” she grinned, as if he were in for a disappointment, “Who was it with; Missy, Devotia, Mindy...” she went on to announce half a dozen of their more popular attractions.
    “No, Eliase...” he finished her list.
    “Yeah right... how silly of me, you want a trick from the boss, wake up and smell the roses dreamer, before I let Lou back in.” for some reason the mention of Eliase had ruined his creditability, there was only one course of action now.
    “Look if you give her a ring,” Jake motioned to the phone within easy reach, “she’ll confirm everything.”
    “You’ve got a nerve, I’ll give you that, but I take my orders from the boss, and no one else!” she was as stubborn as she was stunning.
    “I may end up being your new boss, so watch your mouth...” his patience was running out.
    “Piss off!” her mood continued its deterioration, while she tried to pull away.
    There was really but one recourse, Jake had wanted to avoid this, but there seemed no other answer - the Luger would have to do his bargaining for him. The situation verged on the ridiculous, all he should have had to do, was come in and ask for Eliase, instead he had to fight a range war first. At the sight of the Luger the receptionist became very still, there was no playing around now, the expression Jake wore that of the grim reaper.
    “Are you going to make that call?” he re-asked, beautiful or not, she was starting to irk him.
    Shaking her head defiantly, she was loyal to her views to the end. With gun trained, Jake walked to the other side of the reception desk, wondering just what the limits of her loyalty were. For a fraction of a second she must have thought Jake wasn’t looking, and signaled to Lou to get his arse back in there.
    “Do you want him to die?” Jake aimed at the door carefully, prepared to fire if need be.
    Assessing his stance, she figured Jake might actually be for real. “Just who the hell do you think you are, busting in here like this, you look like scum...” she spat.
    Jake watched the spit run down his jacket, and with a building dislike for this situation used an open hand to send her sprawling. From under the counter there came a moan, so for good measure he lowered the Luger till it was level with her head - she looked up to examine the inside of the gun’s barrel. Surprisingly cool, she wasn’t perturbed by this, seemingly making the statement that everyone had to die some time. Jake had to reconsider his tact. With an inspiration of malice he knelt and slid the gun up her short dress, it came to rest where her legs joined her body. She moved away from the Luger despairingly.
    “You’ll live for days, the pain will be unbearable, then they’ll bury you in a Y shaped coffin, just like a whore should be!”
    “No.” The reality of the grizzly end seeped into her, the Luger enjoying this part of the assignment.
    “So are you going to make the call, or am I going to leave you and the Luger to have sex...” he painted a clear picture.
    At the mention of this she realised the vulnerability of her situation, as such her loyalties underwent a complete and miraculous revelation - at last. “I’ve changed my mind...”
    The heat of her thighs were enticing, as Jake’s baser side decided what it would be like to savour them, with another gun. Back in the cold world of reality Jake withdrew his friend, wiping it on her dress, then motioned her rise. His adversary was trembling, spirit shaken, but from the fire in her eyes Jake could see she wasn’t broken. Care was called for, a woman spurned and all that... she would get even, if she could.
    Dialling as if the phone were her worst enemy she did as she must, Jake heard a voice halt the ringing tone. “I have a Mr...” she motioned him to fill the gap.
    “Jake W Benson.”
    Recognising the name she shrunk back, reputation came to mean a lot in the profession of the underworld, had she heard of him perchance?
    “I have a Jake Benson here, he claims to have an appointment with you... he has!  Yes I’ll show him up... what!  Oh yes, I’ll afford him every courtesy...” she hung up. Gathering her wits she turned. “You were kidding about the boss part... weren’t you?”
    It sounded like a wish, Jake shattered it like he had her composure. “’Fraid not, you may as well get used to the Luger...” and from the look on her face Jake thought she was going to faint.
    Without a word they rounded the reception desk, Jake leaving her momentarily to open the door, letting the mountain of chilled muscle in. Consistent to his pose, the doorman saw this as a chance to get even, but Jake waved the Luger under his nose, forcing a rationale decision out of the raging bull of a man. “It’s all settled now, I’m going to talk to your boss, there’s no need to get into a fight over this...” Jake motioned to the less than composed woman behind him. The doorman looked to her for confirmation, and reluctantly she gave it.
    As they turned to go, the door man mumbled to himself, “Something damned fishy about all this...”
    Jake looked at the gun, grinned, and added for the benefit of the girl beside him. “Yeah you’re probably right there mate!”
    The receptionist grimaced at the memory of what had just transpired, but to give her credit, she didn’t say a further word on the subject - accepting what was happening as fate. Jake slipped the Luger back into its home, in the small of his back, and thanked God for the invention of the gun. In the lift they travelled in silence, somehow he’d offended her, or was it that she felt shy after their first date. If Jake hadn’t been under the mantle of the boss, he thought the girl beside him might have tried to take him apart, limb, from limb, from limb... starting with the obvious one of course.
    “You’ll get used to me...” Jake surmised.
    “I hope not!” and she meant it.
    At the end of a long hallway, on the second floor, they came to a large door ornately inscribed in gold. The patterns that adorned it were of angels entwined, Jake thought that one of them looked as if he were related to a Luger... “Sort of reminds you of a recent embrace.” Jake aired to no one in particular, the receptionist ignored him.
    With a knock on the door they waited, both trying their best to control themselves. From behind the door an, “Enter!” responded, there was no question of hesitating, it was an order to proceed directly - so enter they did. With the door behind them, Jake had an opportunity to examine the room, it was huge, taking up at least a quarter of the second floor. Giving the room a quick calculating glance, it said money, Jake would have liked to make a more detailed assessment, but hurried on to the focal point - Eliase. There had been no time for him to consider what to expect from the name, a woman in her forties or fifties didn’t upset his rationale, but the sight before him did. The escort industry is full of mediocre to stunning people, he’d already had a brush with one of the beautiful ones, now he faced another.
    “So what happened?” there was no fooling her, she being as perceptive as the stories went.
    Jake wasn’t going to comment on what had just passed, it had been a joke, a combination of actions and reactions that he wouldn’t have tolerated from an organisation under his control. With a quick glimpse to the young woman, he motioned her explain, she just grimaced and remained silent. Eliase picked this up.
    “Come on, I’m waiting...” the tone told of expected subservience.
    Despite her reluctance, the girl proceeded to retell the story. Obscuring the incident with the Luger, she related of being persuaded to make a call. All the while Jake stood in silence, this didn’t worry him, for in this stance he could soak up a lot of information, without having to worry about tricky questions and answers. Jake let the situation wash around him, one part of his mind on the scene here, another calculating how much money he’d made today. Finally with a frown he noticed the silence surrounding them.
    “You seem unperturbed by the incident...” Eliase addressed him.
    Refocusing, he turned his full attention toward her, as she sat on a plush sofa, showing more than a proper amount of well proportioned leg. Her waist was slim, hair blonde and immaculate, high of cheek bone and oval of face... this considered, he felt it time to answer. Yet as he had been watching her, she had been watching him in a similar calculating fashion.
    “It happens...” turning to the girl, she seemed uncertain what to do, Eliase merely dismissed her with a wave. As the door closed she rose, at five foot nine she reached to his shoulder, but her subtle body and posture gave her extra height. If the girl at the reception desk could be rated as sensational, Jake would have to consider adding a new level to his scales. Indeed they were as two hunting animals on the prowl, trying to determine the other’s move.
    “Drink?” she asked.
    Constantly, he considered replying, but reconsidered at the last moment. “Yes thanks, a scotch...” he tripled the number of words said.
    Swaying over to the bar she motioned him to follow, Jake was hypnotised by her grace and poise. Who would have expected to find such a person in an escort agency - let alone in charge of it!
    “Straight?” She handed him a half filled glass, judging him not the sort to water anything down - she was right of course. “What happened in the foyer?” Joining him with a glass on a sofa, slightly facing each other, she hated a mystery.
    Jake retold the story, this time with no embellishments, just the plain cold truth, to which Eliase raised an eyebrow.
    “You managed to get round the obstacles without incident...” and since there was nothing further left to say the topic was left, yet Jake knew there would be action to follow this little incident. “What was your impression of my letter... feasible, appealing, one sided?” she waited.
    “There are merits in what you say, but to my mind there are also dangers in joining two dynasties...”
    “Such as?”
    “Well, there’s that little question of trust...” he left the comment hanging. Here was the crux of the matter, money wise they could take losses, they both had done so in the past, for that is the way they had learnt to survive, but these lessons also taught caution.
    “Yes that is a crucial question, but I believe we can overcome this problem the easiest, all it will take is a little time. When we feel comfortable with each other’s business and personalities, then we can explore the limits of our profit margins...”
    Jake couldn’t argue with this, who wouldn’t like to spend time with her!  Though she was friendly, his suspicions weren’t dulled, no one had ever been nice to him without having due cause, and why should that change?  As an hour became two, the lateness of the hour became critical in their thoughts, Jake wondered where the night would lead. While considering this Eliase slipped, or thought she slipped a question past him.
    “How much money could you invest?”
    This was a curly question, one that wouldn’t have slipped by anyone, money is just that sort of topic. So why did Eliase bother?
    “What do you have in mind...” Jake couldn’t see the point to this, but was interested to hear what he was going to get in return.
    “I want to expand, get a market share of the big income earners like drugs, I can’t go much further here without joining forces.” she looked at him significantly, as if they’d been in business for years.
    “So why me?” he wasn’t going to be so easily sweet talked, at the same time realising that he probably did have a market share of what she sought.
    “Your name has cropped up repeatedly - the reports were favourable, so I thought I’d take a took at the opportunity. So far it looks good.”
    “And?” Apart from a lot of hog-wash and flattery, Jake hadn’t heard any mention about what he’d get out of this.
    “For a sizable investment, say a couple of hundred to start, up to a million at the most - you can run the business with me in a fifty / fifty manner. But you keep on with the drug dealing...” before she got carried away he interrupted.
    “Sounds like I’ve got the most to lose. I’m no good Samaritan, I’d expect extra security, there’s your whole crew against just me - or is that what you’re banking on?  All it would take was a well placed bullet and you’re out with a cool million, and the drug connections to boot!” Maybe this was her angle, get his money and connections in the system then get him out, a simple but rewarding plan.
    “Okay, I did have such thoughts, but in the end I’d be in the same situation as I am now. There’s not enough thinking people in this business, even in my organisation, especially ones I can rely...”
    “Ha, and just what makes you think you can trust me, or I you?”
    “What I’ve heard, and if we both have much to lose by a bad association, then won’t that at least make us more honest to each other... I can’t be in more than one place at a time, so I keep missing out. You can change that.”
    “I’ll buy that, but how do I sleep easy at nights. A promise isn’t going to swing it, I need something solid... it all comes back to trust, doesn’t it!”
    “I can see your point,” she nodded “I suppose you’ve heard the same about me, that I’ve heard of you?”
    “Which is?” interested to hear of his reputation.
    “Well, they say you’re an astute business man, ruthless, cold, would kill your mother as soon as ask for a name if you were crossed... but they didn’t mention you were big and handsome.”
    “Cut the crap, if we’re even going to contemplate a partnership, well we’ll have to establish a set of rules...  guidelines and communication channels, and the first maxim is - no crap!”
    Though she were one of the most stomach knotting, eye bulging, tongue twisting, brain curdling women he’d laid eyes on in a long time, the issue here was about business and money. No matter what his body and desires said, Jake valued these more than any casual lay. Apparently she saw the change in his mood, that he was taking the proposition serious, making an effort to set the wheels in motion. As such she would have to do the same, to convince him of her honest, intentions. By now it was past one o’clock, the hours of rationale and serious thrashing of topics were growing short, receding.
    “Would you care to have a look around?”
    It was a good idea, and would give him a chance to see what he might be buying into, apart from flesh. Finishing his second scotch, but not Dutch courage, he prepared to go, Eliase joining him at the door, which he opened for her. Who said chivalry was dead, or was this just honour amongst thieves?
    “How much of the building do you own?” his real-estate mind came into play. There were just two sides to his thinking now, that of profit and loss, and of course sex - which was part of profit in this case.
    Walking down the hall she spoke frankly, “I own this, and two other sites, the rest are under option - I think it’s the best way to hide money for the moment. Later I intend to sell and lease a better site, what I really need is money to enter the next phase of becoming rich...” yet from what he’d seen, she wasn’t doing too bad a job as it was.
    From his brief calculations, horse flesh trader gut evaluation, she had to be worth six million plus. For an instant Jake had a cold feeling, such money was not won easily, and he couldn’t match that sort of dough, still he was approaching similar sums fast. Leaving the vicinity of her quarters, they entered an area of working rooms, where work did not quite mean what it did to the rest of the working population. Eliase showed him inside a vacant one, it was set out just like an expensive motel room, nice decor, chandelier, extensive stereo, video, tv system, of course a huge work bench - bed, with a selection of toys to play with. In one corner there was even a video camera, scenery, accessories for home movies...
    “For the amateur exhibitionist.” she said.
    With a faint trace of a smile they retreated from the idea of the room, and continued on. There were three floors to this complex, the ground being the massage and sauna lay out. Mainly this was legitimate, they did do extras like topless or nude massages, but there was a code of no uncontrolled sexual contact. The pigs respected this attempt to curb the haphazardness aspect of the game. Eliase ran a higher class of industry than most others - this was where the money was. Despite her image at cleanliness, she did admit to owning or having shares in a few of the more seedy dives around the city, which were doing quite nicely, thank you.
    The first floor of this establishment was where the escort service operated, there were rooms there, but outcall was the preference of most of their clientele. The out call side was more expensive, since Eliase provided transport for all her girls, and a bodyguard to accompany and stand in wait for them. In every aspect of this business no corners had been cut, everything was accounted for, and looked after. As she intimated again and again, there was nothing here taking a free ride, and to have people off work was to be losing money. The only down time here was on the beds, or wherever else the customer might wish it to be.
    “How come you have a guard at the front then?” the answer was easy if you knew the tricks of the trade.
    “Control is the keyword here. I have other premises down the street, this is essentially head office and strictly by appointment or referral only. Sure we charge more here, but the girls are the best, they are one hundred percent clean and guaranteed to give satisfaction - one way or the other. The thing is that the more mature, rich, and nervous of our clientele prefer the high security angle we maintain. It’s this image that has seen the gross takings of this site rise from twenty five grand a week to fifty five...”
Jake whistled. “I didn’t think there would be that much in it...”
    “Are you kidding, this is sex we’re talking about.” she reminded him.
    “Sorry, lost my head for a minute, so do you have trouble with robberies?”
    “No, if they’re not put off by the reputation of the place, they certainly are by the sight of Lou. Cecelia swears by him.”
    “Who’s Cecelia?”
    “She’s the one on the front desk when you came in, you know the one - quite well I believe...”
    “Hmmmm...” he did believe she was correct.
    Finally they came to the last place on the list, the third floor. This was the most interesting area in the building, so the story went.
    “You’ll like this - there are sleeping quarters for our ten best girls. The highest earners over a months period get to have free accommodation for a month, it’s just one of our incentive schemes, it works quite well. The thing I’ve found is, if you rule them hard but fair, rewarding good performance with incentive, the employees put in that bit more effort. In this business that’s what gets the punters to keep on coming and coming... no pun intended!”
    Apart from the ten self contained apartments, there were interview rooms for prospective girls, a gym, and an aerobics room that were often rented to private groups. The last room she showed him, made the most impression: The Operations Room. A bank of monitors and video players lined a wall.
    “We have a few cameras round the place, mostly for security purposes - but if we have a special guest, like a politically positioned customer, a high roller, a celebrity, we run off a tape of the episode and hold it for future needs. So far we’ve used two. One stopped a motion, that threatened to shut us down, the second allowed me to set up this place - it’s got a liquor, restaurant, motel, and entertainment license. You never know when they might come in handy...”
    Jake could see how she had come by her reputation. “What’s that for?” he motioned to a phone system console.
    “Cecelia answers general calls, we’ve got lines to our others branches, and a few hot lines to various places... I got the thing at a discounted rate. The salesman was easy to convince, that we could do him a deal, if he did us one.”
    All Jake could think to say was, “I bet...”
    Inspection over, it was now half past one, “So what do you think, interested?”
    “Were you ever in the game?” he was curious as to where her roots lay, no pun intended.
    “No, I didn’t come from that direction, I sort of inherited the business from an uncle... it’s a long and smoky trial. I don’t remember what it was like before I took the business over, it’s been six years. I was twenty at the time and quite naive. I’ve learnt a lot, but in a way I’m still naive... that’s where you come in.”
    Jake wondered exactly what she meant by this, all he could think to do was guess her age, twenty six. It had been a long day, what with one thing and another, he felt as if the strength had been drained from him.
    “Well what’s next?” Standing in the doorway of the operations room Eliase asked the million dollar question.
    Looking at her angelic features and marvellous body his mind raced with sensual ideas, yet his body just laughed at such thoughts. “I really should get some sleep, I’m bushed... been a hard day.”
    “Profitable?”
    Jake had to think for a second, was nearly half a million in cocaine and a suitcase of money profitable?  “Yes, very... if not a bit hard on the nerves.”
    She thought Jake meant the escapade at the foyer, and puzzled at what he might have done. “I heard there had been a bit of trouble round the city tonight, a car chase, a couple of cops wounded, these wouldn’t have anything to do with you would they?” it was a guess, but a good one.
    “Might have...” he neither confirmed nor denied the statement, this in itself confirmation enough.
    “Need an alibi?”
    “Yeah, it might come in handy - I don’t think they know who it was though.” still he didn’t say it was him.
    “I think you should spend the night as our guest, I made the offer and meant it. If you are to come in with me, you have a right as indeed I do to sample before you buy, there is a spare room here on the third...”
    With this she showed him the clean but empty room. It was like a small apartment with its own kitchen / dinette, leading onto a lounge and master bedroom. A stereo system and colour television lurked in the corners, to provide the would be tenant a few comforts of home. These articles were complemented by shower and washing facilities, but no service area. It became apparent this unit didn’t have occupants often, this was the hospitality suite. Looking for hidden cameras Jake couldn’t see any opportunities, then again all you needed today was a pin hole for a camera lens...
    “There are no cameras or bugs in this room.” she assured him.
    “You’ve talked me into it...” eying the room appreciatively, though the idea of company just now didn’t appeal. He was tired, dead tired, and would need a clear head if he were to manage to keep on top of the coming activities, it wasn’t that he was going to decline - but knives stuck in backs easily. Before he could decline any further kindnesses, whether they be diversionary or persuasive, Eliase was making a call on the room’s phone.
    “Could I have the duty book brought up to 305.” she rung off and turned to him. “We have an arrangement with the girls, if they live in, they are available outside normal working hours. We keep a dossier with character profiles, pictures, I thought you might be interested in having a look at it. Since there is a possibility, that certain members of the constabulary might be trying to locate your where abouts, I thought, while you were becoming acquainted with my ideas, you could use this room as your own - if you need to. It’s not set up to live in, but for a couple of days it would be ideal.”
    She was right, there was no point returning to his place till he’d made a decision, one way or the other. Nothing pressing had to be done - this could be the most important, and financially significant decision he’d make for a while. It was an offer Jake couldn’t turn from, like a Mafia one - made an offer that he just couldn’t refuse.
    “Okay, that’s reasonable, but the company for tonight isn’t necessary. As I said I’m feeling tired...” but she wouldn’t take no for an answer, this made him suspicious.
    A knock came from the door, Eliase answered it and was handed a black leather folder, quite a thick one. “Well, have a look through here, if you see anything you fancy,” she made a play on the word fancy, “then give the number on the front page a ring. It’s manned twenty four hours a day... so any time, and by the way, as I said, it’s on the house.” with this she put the book down.
    For a moment she stood before him, approached, and with a fleeting kiss left. What a dirty trick, in a single motion she’d stirred his blood, little vixen knew the business all right, but he’d fix her, his resolve was stronger than pure lust. Sitting on the bed, preparing for sleep, he glanced at the book, it beckoned "Open Me!" and with a sigh he surrendered, for who was he kidding about resolve...