Adventures of Hollywood Jim Ch. 60

Somewhere I found the energy to fuck her again, harder this time. Her moans turned to cries of passion.

"Uh-huh...oh god...yeah...oh yeah...OH YEAH!!!" she cried passionately

I was using all the energy I had left

"Gonna cum baby...gonna cum..." I said through gritted teeth

She threw her head back, then forward quickly

"Do it, Jim...do it baby...do it baby!" she said quickly to me with a determined look

I had nothing left and felt my explosion inside her

"Oh god I feel it!" she cried "I feel it!"

My legs were about to give out and we were both breathing heavy, I had to let go of her and tried to lay back down as carefully as I could on the bed while still "bonded" with her.

Our breaths were still heavy as she lay atop me on the bed.

"Wow...that was...awesome!" she said breathlessly "are you OK?"

I looked at her smiling face and could only nod I response, making her giggle and kiss me on the cheek before she rolled off me.

"Scoot up a little bit, we can sleep awhile." She said softly

"Read my mind." I replied

Julianne pulled back the covers and we were soon curled up in one another.

"I forgot how good that felt, it's been awhile, you know."

"I guess since we haven't seen each other much, it's special."

"Awwww...you're such a charmer." She said with that classic smile the world always saw.

We were soon asleep.

Thanks to Julianne's ace driving skills (she probably learned from that racer she teamed with on "DWTS"), I made my flight back to LA just minutes before they closed the cabin door. I knew the all-seeing eyes of Uncle Sam had probably been on me when I went through security in Nashville and probably when I left LA too. I didn't mind too much, I had time to think.

Arriving back in LA, I didn't see any prying eyes follow me to the valet parking area where the Porsche was waiting for me in the late afternoon sun. With the top down, the 911 sped back onto the freeway to meet Joey and begin the second half of "Operation Now You See Me, Now You Don't".

The night time breeze felt good on my face as I drove home. I had a camera full of good shots, and a special encounter with two lovely ladies.

My late partner Chris had never been too particular about what station his radio was on, in some ways he reminded me of my dad, who just simply turned the radio on and whatever was there he listened to. I used to think he'd find static appealing.

Anyway, the radio in the Porsche had been left on the top 40 station in LA and at this time in the evening, who has a radio show, but Mario Lopez. I couldn't get away from "Mister Buffed" if I tried. And who's on there with him this night, Maria Menounos. Like I said, I couldn't get away from them if I tried. I listened idly as I moved along the highway until my ears suddenly perked up;

"Now, here's a big story that just broke today, is there a Jersey Shore sex tape out there?" Mario said with (probably fake) surprise

"Oh brother..." Maria replied with a groan

"Right, the producers of the show haven't commented on this, wonder what my girl Snooki will say?" he said before going to a commercial.

I think I know what she'd say! But I also remembered what someone had said about me being "a keeper of secrets"; this was as good an example as any.

As I pulled up to the Sunoco station, Joey was right there, just as we planned.

"Hey, Jimmy boy...how was Nashville?"

"Very musical, as always." I said as I grabbed my duffel "All set on the transport?"

"Yeah, but I saw something kinda weird." He said as he started to work the controls and hook up the Porsche to his truck

"Weird?"

"Yeah, you said those Federal boys were watching you and all?"

"Right"

"Well, for the hell of it I drove down your street and there was nobody there at all, no cars, nothing."

"That's strange." I said "OK, let's do this, load up the car and we'll drive down there. If the coast is clear you can drop me off. If not, drive up the street and I'll make my way back on my own."

"You got it, amigo."

Joey and I quickly finished loading the car on his truck and headed for my place.

Just as he said, the street was largely empty. The Feds Crown Vic was nowhere to be seen.

"Maybe they're hiding in the bushes?" Joey said as he looked around

"There's not much bush for them to hide in." I said looking closely out the window "OK, I'll get out here, thanks again, pal." I said

"Anytime, man." He replied as he drove off and I carefully made my way across the street and into my condo.

Smokie the cat was glad to see me as I went inside. Everything was in its place, no sign of any unauthorized visitors. But the way Smokie sat on the kitchen counter reminded me of something. I forgot to buy cat food before I left for Nashville.

"OK, kitty, OK" I said wearily "I'll make a food run for you."

I gave Smokie a kiss on the head and headed back out.

Cat food purchased, I started to drive home when my phone buzzed, it was Michael calling.

"Jim, have seen any news yet?"

"No, I'm on the way home from buying cat food, why?"

"OK, get over to my office quick, there's been a new development in your case."

"Is it bad?" I asked with quivering trepidation

"No, just get over here."

The U-turn I made in the middle of the boulevard would've made Jim Rockford proud as I sped to Michael's office.

It was different being in the same high-rise office building at night. There was an eerie silence as I pulled into the garage. Not far away, I could see the same Crown Vic the Feds had been following me with, only now there were two of them. Once I got inside, the silence was overwhelming as I rode the elevator to the suite of offices Michael's firm had. Its hallways were dimly lit and offices dark when I arrived. Only Michael's outer office was fully lit, a large man with a severe crew cut and a dark suit stopped me. Before I could say anything, his secretary Veronica was quick to explain;

"It's OK! He's the guy meeting Michael."

The stern man nodded and spoke into what seemed like a receiver in his palm, secret service style.

"Jim, come on in." Michael said very business-like as I entered. As he made his way to his desk, I saw he was still dependent on the silver tipped cane he bought after his spinal surgery, a final memento of the O'Brien incident. I had a similar one at home that had a silver dagger hidden inside. It looked like Michael had the same one.

"I believe you've met Mary Delaney." He said in a somewhat muted tone.

Seated on the large leather sofa, clad in a simple black dress was Mary Delaney, the woman I'd met during my meeting in Senator Geary's limo. Her red hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail and she gently grasped my hand. Standing next to her, expressionless and ramrod straight, was another dark suited agent.

"Hello, Jim." She said with a slight smile, not only did she look like the redhead on "Mad Men", she sounded like her too.

"Have a seat, Jim." Michael said as she gathered his papers together "I hope you don't mind, this is Agent Abbott, he's with the Secret Service, he's been detailed to protect Mary for the time being."

"And the guy out in the hallway...?" I began

"That's Agent Costello, my partner." Abbot said "We have the detail for this evening."

"OK, now that we have the introductions out of the way, I'll get down to business." Michael said "Agent Abbott? Attorney-client privilege?" he said with raised eyebrows

Agent Abbott left the office.

"Geez, those guys make me nervous." Michael said as he took out a bottle of scotch and poured himself a glass. "There's been a big development in your case, that's why Mary is here."

"Do you mind if I smoke?" Mary asked, holding a cigarette as if expecting a light to be offered to her.

"Yes, I do." Michael said quickly without looking at her as he downed his drink in one gulp. Mary showed a look of annoyance before calmly putting her cigarettes back in her purse.

"I wanted you to be the first to know, as it'll be all over the news media very soon" Michael began "Senator Geary will be announcing his resignation in the morning."

"Wha-what happened?" I asked, stunned at the sudden turn of events

"A lot of things, a domino effect as it were." He continued "The Justice department's investigation found that Mary here was indeed on the government payroll, but not necessarily as his assistant."

"Excuse me!" Mary said with annoyance "I ran a very efficient office, Mr. Baldwin! I was not some cheap floozy!"

"No one said you were." Michel replied, trying to defuse the situation before continuing "Mary did indeed run his office" he said while looking at her for approval "but she was also involved in, shall we say, extra curricular activities with the Senator. His wife learned of this and threatened to divorce him. This isn't the first staffer he's become involved with, but to her it was the last, especially when she found out he had her on his payroll too."

"So rather than divorce, he's resigning?"

"Correct" he continued "and to avoid a protracted investigation, too. For you this means you won't be looking over your shoulder anymore."

"That's good, I guess" I said, relieved "what about the rest of the case?"

"It's being quietly handled behind closed doors. Sealed case files, affidavits, depositions the works. But from what I've gathered, this stuff with Mary might be the tip of the iceberg. Those guys are gonna have a lot of questions."

"What happens to her?"

"In exchange for giving the federal boys all the info they need, I was able to cut a deal with them and she leaves for Washington tonight. As you can imagine, this is all very hush-hush so your silence on this will be most appreciated."

"Oh, yes, of course."

A knock on the door and Agent Costello stuck his head inside

"We need to leave now, Ms. Delaney." He said

We all quickly stood up, Michael assured Mary he'd call her in the morning and she left with the agents.

As we sat in the now empty office (Veronica had also left) Michael poured me a drink.

After taking a sip of the strong concoction, I finally had the nerve to speak.

"I probably should've asked beforehand if you could answer any questions about this."

"Nah, go ahead, I figured you'd have plenty."

"I take it you'll be going to DC with her?"

"Yes, at the end of the week, just as a formality."

"Was that photo I sent any help?"

"You bet." He replied as he poured himself a refill "Turns out that was Mary, or Big Mary as the caption said."

"Great name, huh?"

"A classic" he replied before continuing "The girl in the photo named Sophie had been one of his previous assistants, she's the one that got Mary on his staff. Mary confirmed that."

"What happened to her?"

"That's what the Feds hope Mary knows, she disappeared not long after she left Washington."

"So how does Laura figure into all this?"

"Near as I can guess, Geary got sloppy." He said "He started running his mouth off and the wrong people heard him, looks like you were one of them, Jim. He probably figured he'd been in DC so long he could get away with anything."

"Why was he interested in Laura?"

"Ego, machismo...it's like uh, a drug with these guys. Why does any politician go after someone like her? I think ostensibly he wanted her to replace Mary on the staff, but he really wanted her for his private hideaway, wherever that was. Mary didn't want any competition so she blew the whistle on him."

"Was this before or after she blew him?"

"Touché'" Michael chuckled

"Could Laura still be subpoenaed?"

"Unless she had any dealings with him directly, I doubt it." He said before adding "the same applies to you. I doubt they'd issue a subpoena based on one meeting in the back of a limo."

That still made me nervous. I knew I had no real dealings with Geary but Laura had said she knew a lot about Geary, her friend Vicky knew even more.

"Even if she was, she could always plead the fifth." He said as he sipped his drink.

"Did your West Virginia connection help?"

"Yes, but not the one you're thinking of, it was the local party boss there that connected the dots. He's quite a character himself. He claims that his daddy helped elect Kennedy. But then everybody down there claims that."

"What about Artists Unlimited?"

"Oh, I know Chuck will be overjoyed. I'm sure he'll be calling me once this news gets out."

"Does Laura know?"

"That I don't know. She's not exactly an easy person to get a hold of. Maybe you can be of help there?"

"Me? I wouldn't know how to contact her either. I don't think she has my number anyway."

"Well, one way or the other she'll find out." He said before glancing at his watch "Whoa, it's getting past my bedtime."

As I walked back to the garage with a sense of relief, I still wondered how something like this, which seemed like the next Watergate, could have disappeared so quickly. Granted, I didn't know much about politics (I wasn't even sure if I should be a registered voter here or back in Connecticut) but the detective side of me started to come out. Were my actions responsible for bringing down a DC political boss? One piece of video started this scandal; did my discovery of one photo end it? I could see now why this town produced its share of heart attacks, ulcers, you name it.

When I got to my car, I found a small envelope placed under the windshield wiper. Inside was an off-white card with "Thank You" in elegant raised script. I opened it and written in red felt tip pen was a message;

"Thank you for your assistance, please feel free to dial the number at anytime."

A business card was also attached inside. It had only a picture of a red 1970's-era Corvette; on the back of it was a phone number, also handwritten. I took out my cell phone and before I could dial the number, I saw there was a new voicemail message. Odd, I thought, usually the phone vibrates when a new call or message is received. It didn't vibrate when I was in Michael's office.

I hit the button for voicemail and after the standard recording telling me when the message was received, came an effortlessly sexy voice;

"Hello, Hollywood...this is Laura. I just wanted to thank you for all you've done...it was so noble of you...I can't wait to see you again, so I can thank you...personally." She said adding a sexy giggle "I'll be seeing you soon, darling...bye..." she added a kissing sound for good measure.

The morning news was dominated by coverage of Senator Geary's resignation speech. The Senator appeared to fight back tears as he explained that he "had come to the conclusion that it was time to end my service to the people of Nevada," and "for the good of his family" he would be resigning from the Senate and "entering a private facility in Nevada for treatment of alcohol abuse ." His wife stood nearby but she didn't show any signs of regrets at her husband's decision.

Only those who didn't know the full story showed regret. And then there was me, someone who did know the full story.

And remember that TV correspondent named Laura D'Atri, the one who originally broke the story? She suddenly became a hot commodity in the TV news business and was the subject of a bidding war that ended when she was snapped up by one of the cable networks and rewarded with a nightly political show and occasional anchor duties on their newscasts.

In the weeks that followed, Villa Del Sol mysteriously closed down, something about unpaid property taxes or disputes between its owners, it was never clear which was correct. Only the memories of the place remained. I made sure my memories were buried in an obscure computer file and on a flash drive buried in a safe deposit box I purchased on the advice of my attorney. Strangely ironic was I bought it soon after the bank opened a new branch, and it was box number 5.

Looks like I wound up "taking the fifth" after all.