Obsession Too: Loving An Alpha Male Read online

  Malcolm, who was an inch or two taller and wider than Josh, turned his heated gaze on the other large agent to our right, waiting for him to make a move. The scene unfolding in front of me was going to be epic. I was looking forward to it and I was ready and willing to jump in when Shane, Mr. Non-confrontational party pooper, raised his hand up to stop Josh from pounding the unwise agent into dust.

  “The Special Agent in Charge Harry Dickenson, correct?” Shane asked smoothly and I could tell he was smiling.

  I knew that infamous smile of Shane’s was never as pleasant as it was supposed to be. Actually, it was downright scary, and from the way SAC Harry Dickenson, or who I was now affectionately calling Agent Dickless in my head, had stepped back a little. He was unquestionably feeling the effects of Mr. Shane Marcello Cooper.

  “Yes, that is correct,” SAC Dickenson grumbled despite the tremble evident in his body language. “And if you know what’s best for you, Cooper, you will move out of the way. Now, I’m going to get to the bottom of what happened here tonight. If you or anyone else impedes in my attempt to question this derelict, so help me, I’ll arrest her right damn now and bring her ass up on charges.”

  I had to give it to Dickless; he was showing some serious balls. I could see why his team believed he was tough shit. The problem was that Shane, Josh, and Malcolm ate dudes like him for breakfast. And from the way Shane seemed to tense up, I could tell it was feeding time.

  “First,” Shane began, his voice steady and surprisingly, calm. “Let’s get something straight before we continue. You and I aren’t friends or buddies. You will give me the respect that I deserve.” Shane paused a beat then continued. “Secondly, while I sympathize with your frustration and your need for answers, understand that Agent King isn’t going anywhere with you now or in the future. You want answers? That’s fine. I don’t have a problem with that.What I do have a problem with is your disrespect. Your accusations without just cause is not only unprofessional, but counterproductive.”

  “Oh, is that so?” Agent Dickwad’s eyebrow raised, his eyes full of indignation and reproach.

  “Yes, that’s so,” Shane answered him, continuing to stay in control. “Now, before you came over here bolstering power that you don’t have, I was about to ask Agent King to bring me up to speed. If you’re done posturing, you are more than welcome to listen in. You can even take notes and/or record her statement right here and now. But…” Shane moved closer to Special Agent Harry, and I swear I felt the temperature around us drop like fifty degrees. “…If you or any one of your agents come at Agent King the way you just did again or if anyone calls her anything but her given name, the response will be far worse than you could ever imagine. Make no mistake, Special Agent, I don’t give a fuck who you are and I don’t give a fuck who you know. I will not stand for the mistreatment of anyone under my command. Am I clear on that? Agent King is a highly-decorated war vet, and a highly-trained government agent that could run circles around your best. She deserves your respect and not your contempt.”

  Shane looked at each of the now shock-faced agents in their eyes before he continued. “My team and I have no problem with cooperating with this investigation. We’ve been doing that since the beginning. After tonight, if you want to meet with Agent King about this case, you will need to speak to my office first. We will then set up a convenient time to meet. You will not contact her directly. Once we are done here, I’ll send you her clothes and her knife in evidence bags before she leaves, as a courtesy. Make no mistake, this will be the last time courtesies will be offered.”

  As Shane spoke, his voice remained level, it never raised. However, it got deeper and harder and…wow…

  A staring match ensued for at least a full minute with Shane and SAC Dickwad keeping their eyes on each other. The smaller FBI Agent managed to gather some strength from somewhere and found his balls. He started squinting those beady eyes of his and blew up his chest like a puffer fish.

  “I’m not sure who you’re used to speaking to Major, but your idle threats don’t scare me,” he spat, his voice laced with venom. “I will be filing a complaint against you and your command.”

  “You do that, but my idle threat, as you called it, was far from idle. It will be in your best interest never to forget that,” replied Shane, still not moving from the agent’s face.

  Special Agent Dickenson stayed where he was for a minute longer, just enough to save face in front of his men or in my opinion, to find his balls again.

  Finally, the man backed up slowly from Shane and smiled bitterly. “Fine, Major,” the agent forced out, saying Shane’s earned rank as if the word itself tasted awful in his mouth. “This is your shit show. Let’s get on with this. Foster, record her statement.”

  The pale-faced agent to the left of the SAC, who I assumed was Foster, fiddled with his pocket and pulled out a tape recorder.

  It was only then that Shane turned a very hard face toward me. “You’re up, King. Kindly explain why you left your assigned post and entered the building without any backup.”

  With that initial inquiry, all eyes zoomed in on me. I didn’t mind the expectant and judging eyes on me. I’d had to deal with that among other things from the moment I arrived on the scene tonight. Well, to be quite honest, it happened more frequently than it should have. Right now, my problem was something else entirely.

  I was very familiar with Shane’s angry eyes. It wasn’t because he’d used them on me countless times. Okay, maybe it was, but there was more to it this time. You see, the times he did give me this angry look happened to be after I truly deserved it. Tonight, I didn’t believe I deserved his reproach. Not this time.

  I pulled my eyes away from Shane and looked at Josh and then Malcolm. Josh and Malcolm weren’t giving me shit. There was no encouragement or a head nod, ensuring me that they had my back. They all had stoic faces with a hint of contempt all directed at me.

  I took in a deep breath, looked at Special Agent Dickwad, and began my spiel.

  “My orders, as you know, were to watch the back of the building. I was positioned in the shadows, using a dumpster for coverage.” I looked at Shane, anticipating his next question. “There wasn’t a place for me to get elevated. I used what I could, besides I could see the building and anyone coming or going. My blindside was protected, so I was good there too.”

  Shane didn’t react, but I knew he was satisfied with my answer.

  I shifted my attention back to the agent and continued my brief. “I heard over the communication unit in my ear that the raid was a go, and we were hitting the front and the side of the building. Based on the lengthy briefing, the flawless plan that was developed…” I exaggerated that last part because it was far from flawless. “…and based on the layout of the building, it was believed that I wouldn’t see any action my way. Fortunately for me, action decided to come my way.”

  “Did you call it in?” One of the agents asked then he paused. His eyes grew wide and he looked at Shane as if apologizing for overstepping his boundaries.

  Well, what do you know? Again…wow!

  I, of course, followed suit and I looked to Shane for guidance, which by the way was bullshit. We didn’t work this way. Besides, who was I to go against, my commander?

  Shane nodded. “You can speak freely.”

  I dipped my head once like the obedient agent and ex-soldier that I was before I continued. “Yes, sir, I called it in. I got a reply back that instructed me to hold my position and wait for further instructions. So, I held on. I kept my sights on the two men I saw milling around the back of the building. The problem I had was that my communications unit stayed silent. No one returned with updated orders to engage or stand down. And at this point, the alleyway was starting to get crowded. More men were coming out of the building with no immediate sense of urgency, which I found strange. With all the noise from the raid, I thought they would’ve been quick to leave, but they weren’t. It was then that I moved deeper into the shadows. I hit m
y mouthpiece again to call the command center. I even sent two subsequent and rapid squelches, which was the signal for the cavalry to come with guns blazing.”

  SAC Dickenson folded his arms and frowned. “And you didn’t get a reply when you reached out to the command center?”

  “No, sir, I didn’t. So, I remained where I was and tried to learn everything I could from the scene. I listened to the chatter between everyone. I memorized their faces. I was just observing them, but things quickly changed. A large man came out of the back door pulling three young girls by a rope that was wrapped around their necks and wrists. Their ages ranged anywhere from five to seven. Their clothes were ripped, and they had bruises on their faces and arms. At the same time the man emerged with the kids, a white panel van appeared in the alleyway and pulled up to the back door.”

  I was starting to get worked up all over again as I relived the events of tonight. The murderous rage was still fresh and open that I instinctively clinched my knife tighter in my hand. The agents in front of me reacted to my sudden visual emotional surge by backing up slightly, reflexively placing a tentative hand close to the sidearm strapped in their hip holsters. They didn’t make a play to pull their guns, though. They just wanted to be prepared for anything. It made complete sense to me. They were just reacting to my sudden change in temperament, which caused them to become guarded.

  Malcolm began whispering something in my ear, but I couldn’t hear what he saying to me. Because I was lost to the memory, the scene playing back in my head prevented me from concentrating on anything else but the frightened looks of those little girls.

  “The big man started hauling the girls toward the now open back door of the van,” I continued, my voice distant and hollow. “I tried the comms again, and when all I got back was static, I made the decision to act. There was no way I was going to just let them take those little girls. So, I changed the game and took them out. I shot the big man first and called for the girls to take cover. As they did what I asked, I did what I needed to do until all of the hostiles were down. Once satisfied that I had hit them all, I moved cautiously forward, keeping my eye on the van and the back door. I waited for more hostiles, but no one emerged.”

  I took a deep breath and continued.

  “I did a cursory examination of the little girls as I worked to get them free of their bonds. When they were free, I checked them more thoroughly for any noticeable and life threatening wounds. At that time, I didn’t see anything. They were messed up, though, trembling with fear and apprehension. They had just witnessed what I’d done, and I couldn’t imagine what they had gone through in that building. I did my best to gain their trust and calm them down.

  “I tried the comms again, but I still couldn’t reach anyone. I believed in that moment that time was running out. I needed to make a decision about the kids. I decided after weighing my options to guide them to safety. The scene around us was chaotic at that point. I didn’t want anyone to shoot them unintentionally. I told the oldest little girl what was happening and that I needed them to stay close to me. That’s when she dropped the bomb that there were other kids still in the building. At least twenty or so, she claimed. I wasn’t worried at first. I knew the others would get to them. I told this to the little girl, making sure to emphasize that help for the others was on their way. However, when she told me about a secret room that happened to have been omitted from the plan that had been devised, I knew I needed to take action.”

  I heard one of the agents grunt.

  “And you remembered every granular detail of the plan for the building to know that these kids were telling you the truth?” asked Special Agent Dickenson.

  I nodded my head. “Yes, sir, I did.”

  Shane chimed in and said matter-of-factly, “She has a very perceptive and exemplary memory, Special Agent Dickenson. She only has to look at a map or building’s floor plan once before she’s able to commit every aspect to memory.”

  Dickwad grunted, but he didn’t say anything to that point. He still maintained his indignation as he spoke. He had to let me know he wasn’t impressed. “Of course, you couldn’t confirm this with any of the gunmen because you so conveniently shot and killed them. Am I correct?”

  My eyes narrowed on the little man as my grip tightened on my knife. “Yes, that’s right. Since I didn’t have any back up and the damn comms were out, I didn’t really have a choice. As a marine, we aren’t trained to injure our enemies on the battlefield, we’re trained to see another day. I had those children to think about. I had to make sure they were safe. I found a place for them to hide, told them I was going to get the rest of the kids, and to stay quiet.”

  I proceeded to explain what I saw as I entered the building. It wasn’t pretty, so I gave them the short version. There was no need to relive the horrors that would give me nightmares for weeks to come. Grown-ass-fucking men hurting little girls and boys… No, there was no need to go into details. I gave them only the need to know, which was how many bodies I had dropped.

  “What happened when you ran into Simon?” asked Agent Dickwad.

  I inwardly smiled and recited in my head, I beat the shit out of him. I didn’t say that out loud, of course, but I wanted to.

  Dennis Simon was on the FBI’s Most Wanted List for kidnapping, child pornography, child trafficking, and prostitution. And all of that was just the tip of the iceberg. We were the agency that had actually found him, or rather Junior and Nickels had found him while they were cleaning up all of the loose ends from the takedown of Sweets’ ex, Noah.

  According to what the FBI had on Simon, he had a huge slave trade consisting of children of all ages going on for years in the Midwest in some place like South Dakota or somewhere. Once the FBI got wind of what he was doing, they went after him.

  Unfortunately for the FBI, the creep slipped through their fingers. The feds threw every resource they had into finding Simon, however, they came up empty. The man seemed to simply disappear, and the feds thought that was the end of Dennis Simon. That wasn’t the case. He never stopped doing what he was doing, selling babies to the highest bidder. He just hadn’t been caught.

  It was pure luck that Junior and Nickels stumbled on his operation when they did. It was even better when they learned that Simon had a trafficking operation going down right here in the DC-Baltimore area. It took some time, but we found the location of the operation in some building along I-95 and decided to make preparations to hit the building ourselves. However, when we reported what we had found to the powers that be within the DIA, they instructed us to share the info with the FBI instead. After all, this type of crime was their turf, and Simon was their boy.

  The problem for me was how the feds had let this guy go the first time. Who’s to say they wouldn’t mess up again?

  Simon was fucking scum of the earth. He was evil, demented, and shouldn’t have been allowed to breathe the same air as us normal people. Unfortunately, we were the only ones that understood he wasn’t worth shit. The feds claimed that Simon had information crucial to something big they were working on, and they wanted to take him alive to see if he would fold and give up his contacts. I thought the man would never tell us anything. Simon was just one of those idiots that was loyal to his cause. He didn’t believe it was wrong to take kids out of their loving homes and sell them off to someone to do God only knew what. He needed to be stopped, and I was so thrilled to offer up my services. They can thank me later.

  Anywho, I remembered that Dickless had asked me a question before I started remembering all the reasons why Simon needed to be dead. I looked into the expectant eyes of the men before me, I sighed loudly, and stilled my patience for this prick in front of me.

  I explained tersely, “I followed the directions the little girl gave me and found more children locked in cages that would fit two large dogs. I surveyed the room first, made sure it was empty, slung my rifle over my back, and worked to free the children. There were six cages in all, and they were all crammed with
kids of various ages up to the age of seven. It took a while to get them untangled and freed, but I did it.

  “I was actually on the last cage when Simon came up behind me, his gun in his hand. He disarmed me and pretty much had me dead to rights. I thought he was just going to shoot me, but he didn’t. He just started rambling on about who he was and how he couldn’t be touched. He looked wired and on something. His eyes were large, maniacal, and shifty. I tried to talk him down, to get him to drop his gun and turn himself in, but he wasn’t listening. He kept going off into manic tantrums, sounding crazy and very erratic.

  Through his tirade, I was able to get the kids out of his way by using the many miscues he gave me as he rambled. As I was pushing some of the kids behind me to safety, I took my eyes off Simon for a brief moment, and that’s when he charged. He no longer had the gun in his hand, he carried a knife, and it was aimed right for my throat. I managed to dodge his initial attack and was able to pull my own knife. And that’s.” I shrugged, trying to keep my face as bland as I could and added. “We tussled.”

  SAC Dickwad’s face scowled. “You two tussled?”

  I tried not to let the scrutiny that he gave as he spoke me piss me off.

  “Yes, that’s right. We tussled. He did his best to stab the shit out of me, and I did my best not to die.”

  “I’m sorry,” the man said and then laughed, grudgingly, and looked at his fellow agents as well as Shane before his eyes came back to me. “It’s just a little too hard to believe that you two tussled as you say and you’re the one that managed to remain alive and he didn’t. I mean, the man was what two times your size in weight and about six or seven inches taller than you. And you mean to tell me that you two just tussled?”