Strictly An Assignment [Hiatus]

4

The sun's rays shone through my thin curtains as I opened my eyes. My alarm rang a minute after, but I was too lazy to roll over to the other side of my bed to shut it off so I let it continue to ring. I didn't want to go to work today. For the first time in all my years of being a spy, I really hated my current assignment. I was usually okay with going undercover, but being Xavier's personal assistant was driving me off the rails. It was always "do this", "do that" or "you're doing it wrong, you're supposed to do it this way." Being bossed around was something I could only handle for so long. There were several times I was about to snap back at him, but I held back my vicious tongue. However, I knew it would be a matter of time before I got myself fired and this whole assignment would have been a bust.

Eventually, I dragged myself out of bed, shut off my alarm, and got ready for another miserable day at work.

I exited my apartment an hour later, just in time as a sleek black Bentley pulled over to the curb. I got into the passenger seat and muttered a "good morning" to Thomas, Xavier's personal chauffeur. The elderly man greeted me back with a polite smile while Xavier sat in the backseat, not even sparing me a glance as he flipped through documents. I didn't mind. I was used to him and his cold attitude.

I made some small talk with Thomas as he drove.  He chatted all about his four granddaughters with a twinkle in his eyes as he did.

"Lucy's turning sixteen today," he said.

"Wow, she's getting old.  She's your oldest granddaughter, right?"

"Yeah.  Time seems to fly by in a blink of an eye.  I still remember when I started working for the Ellington's right after high school.  Then the next thing I knew, I was married to the love of my life, had three sons, and they all got married, and now I got four wonderful granddaughters." Thomas let out a hearty chuckle.  "I'm getting older by the day."

"Please.  You don't look a day older than fifty," I joked and I ignored the scoff from the backseat.

"I wish.  You're probably going to get married soon and you'll see for yourself how fast time flys."

"I doubt I would ever get married," I confessed.  I had planned to work as a spy until I was too old to move.  Spies couldn't be in relationships without giving up their jobs.  There was too much of a risk for their loved loves and not only just themselves.

"You will dear.  Who wouldn't want a beautiful young lady like yourself?"  He exclaimed and I felt my face heat up.  "You just haven't found the right person."

After our conversation, I pulled out the long list of the companies that I've gathered who did business with Ellington Hotels on a regular basis. I've crossed out only a few that I deemed to not have any possible relations with the Blood Scorpions which did not help narrow down anything. I was frustrated by my lack of progress. It's been three weeks and a dozen of meetings and gatherings later with not much luck. Achille was sent back to another maximum prison after Max got all the information he could out of him. Unfortunately for us, Achille's knowledge of the Blood Scorpions was as limited as ours. So since we came to a dead end with Achille, Max was counting on me. The pressure was all on me now. Wonderful.

"Ms. Williams, what do we have scheduled today?" Xavier finally spoke to me as the car stopped in front of headquarters.

I quickly placed the list back into my bag and pulled out the daily planner. Once we were both out of the car and made our way into the building, I started running through all the events I've written down out loud.

"Lastly, there is Ellington Hotels' 65th Anniversary on Saturday evening hosted by the chairman," I finished as we got off the elevator.

He simply nodded before heading into his office and I into mine. An hour of rapid typing and organizing dates for Xavier's meetings with clients and business associates, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in!" I called and to my surprise, Xavier strolled in casually. He surveyed my office, eyeing the clutter of papers and work supplies scattered all over my large desk with distaste. "What do you-Is there anything I can help you with?" I asked politely, saving myself from coming off rude. I couldn't risk getting fired.

"I just wanted to inform you that you are one of the select few employees that has been invited to the anniversary celebration.  Even though you haven't been with the company for long, you are my personal assistant so you are expected to attend."

"I'll be there.  Who else will be going to be there?"

He nodded. "Executives, celebrities, family friends, and our business partners from all over the globe."

"Alright. Thanks for letting me know." I flashed him a smile.  This anniversary party may be exactly what I needed to finally gather some useful intel.

He simply nodded and turned to leave.

"Mr. Ellington," I called and he halted to a stop.  "You could have told me over the phone."

"Indeed, I could have," he replied with a slight smile before walking out.

He just smile at me? Xavier rarely ever showed any emotions. His face was always straight. I tried to read him, but I never really could. The man was unreadable, therefore making him unpredictable and I wasn't used to that. He was a mystery that I was determined to solve while I was here. I was going to figure him out.

-/-/-/-/-

Saturday arrived in a split second and I went out the perfect gown just a few hours before.  When I had arrived back to my apartment, I found Max once again on my couch in the living room.

"Don't you have your own place?" I asked, knowing that he had woken up the moment I opened the front door.

"Yeah, but it's just not as great as your apartment," he replied, sitting up.  "Where do you get such comfortable couches?  It's like I'm floating on clouds while I sleep."

"Ask my mom.  She furnished my entire apartment."

"Your mom has exquisite taste."

"What are doing here?" I asked, walking into my kitchen to get a glass of water.  Shopping always tired me out.

"I come bearing good news and not so great news.  The good news is that I'm going to the anniversary party."

"How?  The party is exclusive."

"I'm Summer Wishart's date and she just so happens to be invited."

"Summer Wishart as in Summer Wishart, the supermodel turned movie star?  How did you manage that?"

"She was quite smitten by me when I "bumped" into her and she fell into my arms.  She asked me out afterwards and I told her I was only free Saturday so she invited me as her date," he explained, brightly as if he was so clever.

"You sneaky bastard."  I smiled at him.

"Language, Lanny," he tsked.

"Please Max, I don't swear every time I open my mouth.  Every once and a while is okay.  So what's the not so great news?"

"There seems to be someone investigating you."

"Who?" I asked.  The Blood Scorpions couldn't have already caught onto me, could they?

"Tanner's currently interrogating him and he should be letting me know soon.  Someone apparently had a private investigator trying to find Monique Knight, but he didn't make any connections to Lana Williams."

"Good," I said.  If he was investigating Lana Williams, things would get messy.  Even though I had the perfect make belief backstory, there were flaws with it.  Like missing pictures of Lana Williams back when she was a child and from before five years ago.

"You should probably get ready now.  I need to too," Max said, heading towards the front door.

"You're taking the front door now?" I teased.

"Well, I wouldn't want to die jumping out your twenty story apartment.  I'm not that crazy." He shook his head at me like I was the crazy one out of the two of us before leaving my apartment.