Goddess of Song Pt. 03

Author's Note: This is part 3 of "Goddess of Song". The story chronologically comes after the events of "Lost & Found", though you do not need to read that story to follow this one.

I hope you guys are enjoying the story!

****************

CHAPTER 5

****************

They arrived in Vancouver without incident. Jeanne was proud of herself when she saw no fans lining up outside arrival. It was a personal trip, so no fans meant Jeanne did a good job protecting Loretta's private schedules from leaking.

Loretta's entourage consisted of only Jeanne and her makeup artist, Maria. For the security team, Bryan only brought himself, David, and Damien along. Too much security, Bryan determined, and it could draw unnecessary suspicion from both the public and Atwan.

Lufti Atwan was in Vancouver for an entrepreneurship event. All of them were staying at the Four Seasons hotel. Lufti had the Royal Suite, a two-story hotel space with floor-to-ceiling windows that offered unobstructed views of the North Shore Mountains. Jeanne shared a room with Maria, while the three-men security team shared another.

Up until the trip, Jeanne had offered little detail on the exact relationship between Atwan and Loretta. Given Loretta's popularity, Bryan was surprised that the tabloids had not exposed the couple yet. It soon became clear, however, why that was the case.

The first sign came from the fact that Loretta was not staying in Atwan's suite. Instead, Jeanne booked her a one-bedroom suite two floors down. Jeanne offered no explanation, and the men knew not to ask.

The second sign was the privacy of all the scheduled events. Loretta was to have dinner with Atwan for three out of the five nights they were staying, each time in a private room in an upscale restaurant. In all cases, Atwan and Loretta would be arriving and leaving separately. During the day, when Atwan was to attend the conference, Loretta had planned personal shopping trips.

If the two were indeed dating, they were keeping it extremely secretive.

For the air travel, Loretta wore a hoodie and sweat pants, tied her hair into a ponytail, then completed her disguise with glasses and a baseball hat. With only light makeup on, she looked eerily like her high school self from a decade ago. Damien found it difficult to even look at her.

Luckily, Bryan arranged things that he did not have to interact with her much. He and David were sent ahead of the crew to check in at the hotel, setup their own room, then wait for the ladies and Bryan to arrive to sweep Loretta's suite.

David was his jovial self upon arriving at Loretta's suite. Seeing that Jeanne was shaking her head and saying the same thing she always did - "You guys are overdoing this" - he started cracking jokes at her. His imitation of a serious bug-sweeping specialist pretending to be working for the CIA made Jeanne and Maria double over with laughter.

Bryan helped David complete a visual inspection of the room, checking for obvious recording devices and out-of-place wires. When that was done, David asked them to turn off all electronic devices and began scanning for radiofrequencies.

Damien stood at the suite doorway, observing David's humorous scanning procedure. Jeanne, Maria and Loretta sat on the living room couch and laughed at David's jokes heartedly while Maria braided Loretta's hair into a pretty French bun.

Loretta and Damien had not said a word to each other since that evening. Damien's mind wandered off to thinking what he should do once Bryan transferred their duties to a new security team. He thought he probably would need to leave LA for a while. Maybe he should go back home to see his parents.

The radiofrequency sweep was done for the living room and yielded nothing. Jeanne once again shouted "You paranoid bunch!" and laughed.

David wagged his finger, "Ahh, but we haven't done the bedroom yet! All the good stuff happens there..."

Jeanne and Maria laughed loudly while Loretta smiled and shook her head. The three women stayed on the couch and chatted while David headed into the bedroom to continue his work.

"We need to keep this guy around just for entertainment!" Jeanne looked at Bryan and joked.

Bryan was about to say something funny back, when a beep came from the bedroom.

Bryan's smile faded. He got up and went into the bedroom. Damien followed him.

The two men found David lying on his side next to the bed. He had the flashlight on his cellphone and was looking under the bed. He extended his arms and pulled out a stick recorder.

"Really?" David scoffed, "Just a plain $150 recorder taped to the bottom of the bed?"

Bryan wasn't smiling, "I don't think they were expecting a different security team this time."

Jeanne walked in and saw what was in David's hand. Her face lost all color, "Are you kidding me?!"

Loretta walked in. All eyes were on her. She took one look at the device, then said, "Is that everything?"

David was uneasy, "Well, I haven't finished yet..."

"Finish the bedroom." Loretta turned towards Jeanne, "No room service while we're here."

"I got it." Jeanne said.

Loretta went into the bathroom and closed the door.

Bryan looked at Jeanne, "We need to talk." He motioned for Damien to follow.

The three of them went back to the men's room, which had already been swept.

"I think you need to tell us more, Jeanne." Bryan said.

"I can't." Jeanne answered plainly, "The truth is, I don't know everything. That's why I thought this was a little overblown!"

Bryan sighed, "OK, tell me what you do know. Is Loretta dating Atwan?"

"I...don't know."

"You don't know?!" Bryan stared at her, "Don't girls share like...everything?!"

"You'd be surprised at how much Loretta does not tell me, OK?" Jeanne was offended, "She won't even tell me why she's mad at this guy - " Jeanne pointed at Damien, "You think she'd tell me what's going on with Atwan if it's a life and death kind of secret?!"

"Jesus." Bryan rubbed his eyes, "OK, OK, let's start over. How and when did they meet?"

"Last year at the Grammy Award's after party, right after she won Best Album of the Year. He just came up to her and started talking, but that wasn't really surprising, given everyone wanted a piece of her."

"And then?"

Jeanne tilted her head to the side to recall her memories, "Nothing happened for a while, since he was usually in Dubai or traveling around the world. I think the next time they met was two months later, when he invited her to join his yacht party in the Caribbean for a week."

"Were you at the yacht party?"

"Of course I was, but I didn't sit right next to them the entire time eavesdropping, OK?" Jeanne sneered, "The few times I heard their conversations, they were chatting about his business and some international trade shit."

Bryan frowned, "Are they...romantic? Like, have you ever seen them kiss?" He looked at Jeanne and the unspoken question was: Are they fucking each other?

"I mean, they've stayed together in the same room." Jeanne shot a quick glance at Damien, "But I wasn't in there so don't ask me!"

"But this time, they're not even in the same hotel room."

"Yeah, Loretta asked me to do that. Again, it's not like I'm going to ask her 'Hey why aren't you sharing the room with Mr Atwan, don't you fuck him at night?'"

Bryan let out an even bigger sigh, "What you're saying is, we have to work in the dark."

Jeanne nodded sympathetically, "Yup. Sorry I can't help you more."

"Does Loretta ever looked scared when she mentions Atwan? Did it look like this trip was bothering her?"

Jeanne once again shook her head, "I don't know. Loretta is...good at hiding her emotions, even from me. If she is scared, I can't tell."

"Thanks Jeanne. You can go back to Loretta now. We'll come up later when it's time to head out." Bryan looked at his watch, "Guess we will see for ourselves what Lufti Atwan is like in a few hours."

As soon as Jeanne left, Bryan asked Damien, "Do you know more?"

"She hates me, Bryan. You think she'd tell me more than she tells Jeanne?"

"You know, strangely, I think she would if you ask her properly."

Damien was silent for a while, "Let's see what happens tonight."

David came back to the room a while later and informed them that the USB recording stick was the only bug he found. He let them know that, after discussing with Loretta and Jeanne, they decided the best recourse was to wipe the data clean and put it back where it was found. Bryan agreed.

Evening came. The crew headed out in two sedans. Damien and Bryan was in the first car, while Jeanne, and Loretta sat in the second; David and Maria had the night off. The restaurant staff had anticipated their arrival and they were led through the staff back door into the private dining room.

They were dining at a lavish Moroccan restaurant. Gold embroidered red curtains draped the ceiling while a crystal chandelier glittered in the center; a single mahogany long table occupied the room, lined with long benches covered with silk pillows encrusted with jewels. Scented candles provided the only source of lighting in the room. On the table, there were arranged exotic flowers and silver basins for hand washing.

Loretta and Jeanne seated themselves, while Damien and Bryan stood near the entrance. A few minutes later, Lufti Atwan arrived. He was a middle eastern man in his early 40s, with a short full beard, cropped hair, wearing a western-style casual shirt and dress pants. He was accompanied by a solo bodyguard. Physically, the bodyguard was a beast. He was 6'5" and packing at least 250lb of muscle. He also had a death stare that completed his menacing look.

Atwan quickly scanned the occupants in the room. His gaze went from Bryan to Damien, then lingered on the latter, but only for a moment. He smiled at Loretta, "You have new faces."

Loretta went up to him and they hugged. "I didn't like the ones I had."

Atwan sat down with Loretta. Then, both of them looked at their respective entourage. The signal was clear. Jeanne got up, "Let's go."

The restaurant staff greeted them outside and led them to their tables, then brought them their dinner: honey chicken tagine served with couscous. Atwan's bodyguard sat a few tables away and ate silently. There were enough tables between them with loud talking patrons that Jeanne felt comfortable enough to whisper to them, "The guy's name is Asad. I think he's been Atwan's bodyguard for a long time. They're almost like friends. I hear them chat in Arabic all the time, and the tone they used sounded very informal."

An hour later, the staff came to inform Asad that his employer was ready to leave. As soon as Damien saw Asad leave his table and head towards the private dining room, he got up and quickly passed through the staff area and went out the backdoor. Arriving at the parking lot, he asked the valet where Atwan's car was. Once he knew the location, he positioned himself two cars down, kneeling behind the vehicle, obscuring himself from anyone coming out of the restaurant.

A minute later, the staff elevator creaked open. Footsteps and chatter could be heard. Atwan talked loudly to Asad in the garage. They took their time to get into the car before driving away.

Damien got up and felt it had been worth the risk of getting caught to eavesdrop on Atwan. Jeanne was right: Asad was like Atwan's friend and the businessman had summarized the meeting for Asad in a matter of minutes. Damien's Arabic wasn't great - the point of learning them in MARSOC wasn't to become a professional translator, after all - but he understood enough to report his findings to the other two men once he was back in the secured hotel room after dinner.

"I think Loretta is trying to do some kind of business deal with Atwan." Damien told Bryan and David, "Atwan is not happy with Loretta prodding him with questions."

"What kind of business?" David asked.

"I don't know, but I don't think her end is shady; it's his end that is."

"Business partners, huh?" David, in his usual dark humor, grinned and said, "So I guess this means they're not fucking?"

Bryan was surprised that Damien answered the question, "No."

David raise an eyebrow, "Did Atwan say that too?"

"In some roundabout way, he did." Damien gave the look that he was not going to explore this particular topic further.

"So what's our course of action?" David asked the other two men.

"It's not our job to figure out what their business deal is." Bryan said, "Our job is to ensure her safety. If Atwan is bugging her room, I think he's not going to harm her for the time being. He wants information from her instead."

David nodded in agreement.

"I think we can keep doing what we are doing and we'll be fine." Bryan said, "Would be nice to get a few more details from the next two dinners, though. Dave, would you be able to attend that conference Atwan is going to?"

"Sure thing. You want me to engage with him? He doesn't recognize me, anyway."

"No, just hang around and see what it's about."

"Got it, boss." David opened up his browser to register for the conference.

They settled in for the night. While David was in the shower, Bryan spoke to Damien, "Looks like we may not get out of this after Vancouver."

"Yeah, I agree."

"I know it's hard for you, but after we go back, try to talk to her. It would be really useful if she can tell us what's going on. For her sake, and for our sake."

"I know. I will try."

The next day went by without incident. Loretta and the ladies went shopping while Bryan tagged along. David went to the conference. Damien was the driver and stayed mostly with the car.

David reported his findings back from the conference: "Atwan is well-connected, not surprisingly. He seems to be actively participating in a new fund called OneEmirate."

"Is that a sovereign wealth fund?" Bryan asked.

David grinned, "That's the fun part: it's not! It's just named to sound like one. And from what I hear from others, they all think OneEmirate is a UAE sovereign fund and are trying to get a piece of it."

"Hmm, so maybe Loretta is also fooled into thinking she can get OneEmirate to invest in her business idea? What does Atwan get out of dealing with her?"

"Hollywood connections?" David smirked, "Or maybe just mesmerized by her beauty?"

Bryan ignored his humor. His face was serious. "Should we consider the possibility that Loretta is a spy?"

"I don't think that makes a lot of sense." David responded, "Why would she hire us, then? We are way nosier than regular folks. She could have stuck with her previous security detail that sucked ass."

Damien, who had been quiet since the start of the conversation, now spoke, "What about informant?"

The men were silent. David thought out loud, "That...is...a possibility? Informants usually don't get protection, but since she's a high-profile celebrity, having better security would not raise suspicion."

Bryan asked Damien, "Can you try to get more information at tomorrow's dinner?"

"I'll try." Damien answered, "I don't want Asad to suspect anything."

The next day, Loretta once again went on a shopping trip with the same entourage. Damien was once again the driver and stayed mostly out of sight.

Evening came, and this time the dinner was at a high-end dim sum place. Vancouver is famous for its Cantonese culture and cuisine. The same dining format followed, only Atwan and Asad arrived first this time at their private dining room. This time, Asad was seated right next to them in the public dining area. It was clear that he had no desire to strike up a conversation; Jeanne was not even sure if he spoke English. Dinner went by in silence.

An hour later, the staff came to inform Jeanne's table that Loretta was ready to leave. Damien went out with the group, but excused himself for needing to use the bathroom just before they reached the door. He went into the bathroom and locked himself in a stall, then looked at his watch and waited. A few minute later, he heard Atwan and Asad come into the bathroom, once again conversing in their native tongue. They finished their business then left. Damien waited five more minutes before heading out through the front door, where Bryan had moved the car to.

Loretta was quiet on the way back. Jeanne made small talk with her, but did not get any details on how the dinner went.

"I want to go to the spa tomorrow." Loretta told Jeanne, "Can you call and see if I can get an appointment at the Chi spa tomorrow?"

"Of course! You sound tired, I think you do need some rest." Jeanne got on the phone immediately. From her conversation, it was clear that the staff at Chi was at first annoyed that Jeanne dared to ask for a next-day appointment, but as soon as Jeanne dropped Loretta's name, the annoyance melted away. They would accommodate Loretta the next morning.

David was waiting for Bryan and Damien in the hotel room. "Any new findings today?"

Damien answered, "Atwan asked about retrieving the bug from Loretta's room. Asad knows a maid who works here. She was supposed to get the recorder, but since Loretta didn't want room service, they couldn't get to it. Atwan told Asad to tell the maid to get the recorder tomorrow after Loretta leaves the hotel."

"Well, that confirms he planted the bug." David said, "The last dinner is the day after tomorrow, so that would be a good indicator of whether he suspects her after hearing the recordings. I guess we can't tell Loretta that the bug is being retrieved, because if we did, she'd know we are snooping behind her back."

"No, and I hope she hasn't moved it as well."

David chuckled, "Ah, the pleasures of hiring security that goes above and beyond..."

While David was in the shower, Bryan once again asked for Damien's personal opinion, "Do you think Loretta is scared?"

"She is." Was Damien's terse answer.

"You can tell?"

Damien looked down at his bed, "I just know."

For better or worse, Damien felt like he simply knew Loretta better than Jeanne and the rest of the men. It wasn't for lack of observational skills, since Bryan was also an astute observer. He could only attribute it to having known her at a time when she was still green at hiding her emotions - back when all her emotions were laid out in broad daylight: excitement, happiness, sadness, fear...

If only he could easily untangle the anger she had towards him.

The next morning, Loretta, Jeanne, and Maria went to the spa with Bryan as the driver. David went to the conference. Damien went up to the 26^th floor and waited in the hallway by the elevator that was on the opposite end of where Loretta's suite was. Half an hour later, a hotel maid showed up pushing a cleaning cart; it wasn't even 11AM yet. He heard the fake knock on the suite door and the subsequent entry. He went downstairs to sit in the lobby again. 10 minutes later, Asad emerged from the elevator alone. He noticed Damien sitting there. The two men exchanged a quick nod and Asad left.

Damien interpreted this as Asad having retrieved the recorder from the maid and was heading out to join Atwan at the conference. He relaxed a bit and ordered some food to eat while he observed the crowd in the lobby.

Just as he was finishing up his meal, something unexpected happened: Asad came back through the front door with a beautiful brunette next to him.

There was not enough time to hide. Asad immediately saw him and his face twitched. He led the woman up the elevator.

Damien thought about what he should do. He decided to stay where he was.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, the woman came down alone. She looked slightly annoyed as she left the hotel.