The Layered World Pt. 06

The Layered World - Part 6 - Excursion in Spain

Chapter 23 - Lisbon

An hour out of Miami, headed to Lisbon, they were squeezed together in row 42 of an ancient widebody with two abreast seating next to the window. The arm rest was up and Jennifer was about as tight with him as propriety would allow. He had a crumpled tropical straw hat on, with plenty of brown color covering his face and neck. She had a kerchief over the blond hair, and a revealing tank that demonstrated her affection for the guy she was hugging.

His fingers on one hand were hidden, and had found warm flesh under the tank.

"Jay!" She buried her giggle in his chest.

She whispered, "What do you think? Did we escape unseen?"

His whisper was equally quiet, "Langley will be all over poor Tim if we did lose them."

"If we did, you have to make me at least a junior Manco agent!"

He dropped his hand and said, "Sleep. Tomorrow is another day."

***

They awakened as the cabin lights came on. She sat up and gave him a dark look.

"Which padre is going to marry us?"

He replied in Portuguese, which astonished her. "My cousin has made arrangements. You are not to worry."

She smiled and leaned for a kiss. He whispered, "Don't fix yourself up. We need to look as bedraggled as everyone else."

They did, and the immigration agent hardly looked at them.

At the front desk of the Britania, they definitely did not blend in. Using Portuguese again, Jay apologized, saying their flight had been cancelled at the last minute, and the cattlecar was the only thing available.

"Of course, senhor, we will take you straight up for a shower, and send breakfast in half an hour."

Standing under the waterfall shower amidst acres of marble, she clung to him, laughing and crying at the same time. "Damn, why can't this be a real wedding?"

Water off, he wrapped her in a giant towel and walked to an equally giant bed. "Relax for a minute. I have something to show you."

He found a clean and pressed pair of shorts and put them on to be ready for the breakfast delivery. Then dug around in his bag for a small package.

He sat next to her and began to unwrap it. Suddenly, she was up and dancing around. "No! You mustn't!"

He reached a long arm and pulled the delightful squirmy body to his lap. Arms imprisoning her, he finished with the paper and opened the hinged box. It was a gold ring. The same ring the other PA's wore. He slipped it on her finger.

"Do I get a kiss?"

Tears running down her cheeks, she pressed her lips softly to his. "Oh Jay, I don't know what to say."

"Don't say anything. You should know that the others told Natalie to buy it while we were in New York. You have won their hearts as much as mine."

The door bell sounded and he went to answer, leaving her shaking on the bed. The steward wheeled the cart to the parlor and went to set a table.

Jay extended a tip, saying, "Please just leave it. We will take care of the dishes."

"Very well, sir. I have an envelope for you, with Mr. Branscomb's compliments."

Jay accepted the envelope, nodding and gesturing at the door.

Jennifer cartwheeled nakedly into the room. "It didn't work!"

The note was cryptic. "Arrangements completed to your satisfaction. My timely discovery of your disappearance sealed the selection!" Jennifer was hopping up and down on the divan in back of him.

"Oh, this is so funny and so good!"

"If you don't put some clothes on, you are about to be red. Dig out our computers."

The ring and the note had ignited all of Jennifer's energy. She couldn't sit for a minute, booting up her machine standing at a high table.

"Oh Jay, this is incredible!" She turned and found him staring at the same image.

The three PA's, plus Scarafina, Hugh and Emily, were frowning, with fingers pointed accusingly at the camera.

The message below the photo was brief. "Everything here on schedule except for your missed arrival!"

Jennifer screeched, "Jay, my sister will beat me over those wasted tickets!"

He pointed a finger at her, trying for the frown in the photo. "It is your fault, you know. PA's are supposed to keep me from doing foolish things."

She looked guilty until she saw the little smile. The body launched itself through the air into his arms.

After several quick kisses, she waved the ring hand around and sang out, "I am beginning to see what they go through. All that suffering for a silly ring!"

After more kisses, she said, "I am going to work so hard for you. What are we doing next? Are they still going to the Algarve? Should we go somewhere private for a chat on the secure phone?"

He sat them up and reached for food. "Eat up. We will be missing plenty of meals later. This is the original town full of spies. We will be watched. There may even be watchers watching the watchers. We will shop downstairs for elegant resort wear, and go out on the town. You will be a dutiful PA and ask the Concierge for suggestions on places of interest to your boss."

"What about sex? You only had me once in Miami." She tried to jump up, but he drew her close and applied his own kiss. "You have one more night to seduce me with your considerable charms. After that, we will have more important things to worry about than sex."

As they walked out of the hotel, Jay was white from head to toe, with a pale yellow open collared shirt. He felt a dandy, and intended to act like one. Jennifer had a flowered dress that ended just at her knees with a high bodice. Along with white heels to match his white shoes, she fit the role of female assistant just fine. He had called one of his insurance business friends, with whom they would have lunch at the suitably late hour favored in Lisbon.

"I've never been here. My parents are fond of Mallorca, and we always vacationed there."

"Portugal was rich once, but now mostly kicked around by the big guys. People like us help keep it going."

She read to him from a thin guidebook. "It says there are sights by the water, but sounds very touristy."

Deferring to her heels, they stayed in the upper town, relaxing on benches in sunny squares. Jennifer was smiling but nervous. "This business of being watched makes me antsy."

He kissed her ear. "I've never seen you not antsy."

"Jay, if I relax my imagination a teeny bit, we are a couple, seeing the sights, but worried about the dinner with my parents tonight. They don't think their precious daughter should marry an English businessman, even if he is handsome and has money. How will we survive the meal?"

He relaxed against the back of the bench and smiled. "Filha, I have asked my friends in Lisbon about your father. It turns out that his investments in cocoa futures have all gone bad. Financial disaster looms. Shall I bail him out?"

She held his hand to her cheek and kissed it. "Dearest one, they have been very cruel to me. But family ties are strong. We will be very polite during dinner. After, you will ask for a moment of his time. I will help Mother with clearing and washing. You will take my Father's vintage port into the study and explain that you understand a Portuguese family of distinguished name would hesitate to see their daughter married and living in London. However, you are deeply in love with me, and wonder if a bride gift of five million escuedos would assist in reaching a positive decision about our marriage."

Jennifer was twitching with glee. Her eyes sparkled. He frowned, "Such a poor miserable currency. That is not even twenty-five thousand British pounds. Surely, you are worth much more than that?!"

"Yes, yes. If we were in India, I would be on the scale and you would have to balance me with gold and rubies and diamonds!"

The two of them were pressing foreheads in hopeless giggles. Passersby were shaking their heads at the elegant gentleman whose wide brimmed hat was hiding his attentions to the woman.

He stood, "Come, it is time to meet my friend."

She poked him, "You are such fun. How could we be heading into so much trouble?"

"As you know very well, numbers girl, one of the rewards of success is attention from those who are jealous."

"Yes. You are right. I promise to behave. You did like my story, didn't you?"

"Tell me, would you recommend Manco Enterprises invest in cocoa futures?"

She sagged against him. "Just for that, I am going to get Sybil to buy cocoa for your birthday."

Senhor Don Luis Alfonso Oliveira, known to his friends as Ollie, was handsome and tall. A very pretty woman was on his arm, some years his junior.

"My dear friend Jay, this is my niece Arabella. She is pursuing a business degree at our university and very much needs to meet the famous Jay Manco."

Jay bowed and extended his hand. "A great pleasure to meet you, Arabella. This is my assistant, Jennifer, who is almost finished with a Master's from the London School of Economics."

The young women had an immediate connection. Jay and Ollie pursued a low key conversation about losses from airplane disasters while they chattered about school. The fresh seafood salads were excellent, and the surroundings in Ollie's club quite private and luxurious.

At the end of the meal, over espresso in tiny cups, Ollie looked at Jay and asked, "What do you think?"

"Her name is not Arabella, and she is not your niece." Jennifer looked alarmed, Arabella looked surprised, and Ollie chuckled.

"Jay, you have not lost your touch. She is Israeli. Has already been in their military, but is working here in a high tech subsidiary of an Israeli firm. Shares our dislike of radical Islam."

Jay reached for her hand, noticing the short trimmed nails. "You will be Arabella to us. There is a plan with many risks. You are able to join our effort?"

The veil of business student had disappeared, "Don Alfonso is a good friend. He says you can be trusted, so that is the way it will be."

Her dark eyes probed his. "When will I know more?"

"Our team is being assembled. Perhaps in a week, you will get an email commenting that the orange crop is unusually fine, and you must join your cousins in Tarragona. Take the high speed rail from Madrid, it is less conspicuous. How fluent is your Arabic?"

"My mother has relatives in Damascus. I spent a lot of time there growing up." She ended with a fluid sentence or two.

"You will be valuable to us. You can be gone from work off and on?"

"Everyone in Israel understands about security and security people's absences."

As they walked out, she turned to Jennifer. "Don Alfonso tells me you are Mr. Manco's memory bank and money person."

Jen nodded shyly, "A little."

"When we see each other again, we will play number games. Please call me Lisa in private. It is my family nickname."

A warm hug, and they headed up the street while the others went downhill. Jennifer punched his arm, "Why did you not warn me?"

"I wanted to see whether you penetrated her disguise."

"She is unbelievable."

"Yes. An experienced Arab would notice the Syrian accent. We will have a new employee from Damascus. One who arranges visits. You will tell me how good she is with numbers. Orange may need that talent too."

Jay realized his protege was all wound up. At the hotel, he asked the Concierge for a car to take them for a drive to the western coast on a beautiful sunny day.

She wanted to change and he helped her out of the dress. Before he could put it down, she turned and punched him as hard as she could. "Damn."

His voice was harsh. "Don't get teary. You just saw someone who lives with the threat of ISIS every day. Put on your game face, Jen. You knew this was coming."

She collected herself and found a pretty tee and shorts.

"You are right, as always." She didn't smile.

As they drove through the Sintra district toward the ocean, he asked casually, "How many sessions with Hugh did you have?"

"Three. I was sore for days."

"Did he take you on the gun range?"

"Yes. The second time, I could do bullseyes with the nine millimeter."

"You haven't told me any of this." He had her hand, bending fingers back and forth.

"You didn't ask, and he said I shouldn't tell anyone. Better if an attacker didn't know I had some training."

"They killed a whole planeload of innocent people just to send me a message. Remember that when our plan runs into difficulty, as it will for certain."

Jennifer was dozing in his lap when they got back to the hotel. He liked that. Sleep would probably be scarce when the Orange plan was activated.

He put her in the big bed for more nap while he used the secure phone in the other room. Sam assured him that the London direct flight to the Algarve was supposed to leave on time, and that the large van under his assumed name would be ready by seven am and have papers allowing it to enter Spain.

He was hanging up when she draped over his head. "I thought the PA was supposed to do chores like that?"

"The newest recruit has a few privileges. Where would you like to have dinner?"

She fixed her windblown hair and disappeared to see the Concierge.

He used his regular phone to call Tim Branscomb in London. After the usual redirects, a familiar voice answered. "Jay, I am told you are reclining in the lap of luxury. My friend is irritated that his budget does not include a room at the Britania."

"If I promise to check in from Madrid, will you arrange for your friend to be occupied in Porto?"

"Have you reached a decision about additional staff?"

"I am still working on that. More news soon. I must go now." Click.

Jennifer's spirits were back. She bounced into the room with news that they were going to a quiet restaurant that served as early as eight pm. "He said we don't have to dress up. But then he looked at me, made a face, and said ladies in shorts were not admitted!"

Before Jay could say anything, her clothes were on the floor and she was asking, "What about going like this?"

Bending down and looking through her legs at him, a trademark move, all of her charms were on display. She said, "You mentioned my charms this morning. My considerable charms, you said."

He growled and rose. This was good. She was on message, showing sexy toughness, pushing the nasty Orange plan to the back of her mind and tempting him with female wiles.

He didn't carry her to the bed immediately. First, he made her tutor him in her yoga movements, few of which his male body could complete. His fingers found a way to brush between her legs with every pose and she finally flopped down, spread wide on the deep carpet.

"Now, you horrible guy."

He began tenderly, but finished, minutes later, with a roar. She was full of energy, flexing up at him after every thrust. He slowed, drawing an oath from her, then finished with a flurry that sent them both over the top.

Panting, she moaned, "Take me to the shower quickly. No mess on this fine carpet."

Rubbing on his front under the hot water, she asked, "You are sure that is the last time?"

He sat on the bathroom floor, applying lotion. "Beautiful one, we are about to be joined by three of my PA's, plus Scarafina, all of whom have been known to have sex with me and have recently been going without. If there is any more talk about sex with you, we are both in a lot of trouble."

She dropped into his lap for a long, torrid kiss. "Yes. Lots of trouble. I am now your chaste assistant, without an ounce of longing for sex." She giggled loudly and kissed him again.

Later, when she came out of the bathroom dressed for dinner, there was no sign of a chaste assistant. The dress was tight in the right places, with a flouncy skirt. The blond hair was done up, and she had her dangly earrings on. The lipstick was bold, the eye shadow dark, and the scent expensive.

"Senhor Manco, it is a pleasure for your niece to accompany you to dinner."

His kiss was on her cheek to avoid the lipstick. "I am honored, senhorita."

The food was local specialties, and excellent. He kept the conversation light, quizzing her about wrapping up schoolwork.

"I am going to be in trouble, asking for special consideration to achieve early graduation, and now disappearing from London for weeks!"

"I will write you a letter, describing your incredible assistance with crucial business matters."

"What about the special yoga lessons I provide?"

"Yes, you have a certificate in yoga and have been assisting with keeping my aging body fit."

"What about your incredible cock that seems always very fit?"

"My dear niece, there are things we do not speak of in public."

Chapter 24 - Rendezvous in Faro

She poked him in the sunrise twilight at four-thirty, the alarm on her phone chiming on the night table. "You said we needed an early start."

Squirming under the cold wakeup shower, she said, "I called for coffee and croissant."

In the parlor, she made him stretch with her, struggling not to giggle. "Jay, you would not win a contest with those stretches."

He growled and seized her for a toss in the air. "I suppose you are going to want a turn at the wheel of the van? Do you have an international driver's license?"

"Sim, senhor. Am I not a qualified PA?"

They arrived at the rental agency at six, just as a sleepy agent was unlocking the gate. He led them inside and checked licenses and passports. "You may have any of these, senhor," the agent said, waving at a row of vans. Jay quickly selected the dustiest, most ordinary looking vehicle. The agent apologized for the lack of a recent wash, but Jay waved him off.

Taking the driver's seat, he instructed Jennifer, "I will drive and you will navigate. Find us the way to the bridge."

She kissed his hand. "Of course, sir."

Following directions, he smiled and said, "You can't keep doing that, you know. Practice your poker face and think about how obnoxious your new boss has turned out to be."

They were halfway across the beautiful suspension bridge taking them out of the city when she said, "You are not evil, and I am not pretending you are. I will practice my poker face, however. I hope you noticed I haven't makeup on. My running sneakers are on my feet. And a very sharp knife is in my purse."

This time it was Jay kissing her hand with a fierce frown on his face. "So, we are a team, are we?"

Her hand wrapped around his neck. "It is very hard not to climb into your arms, boss."

They drove in silence for a while. The freeway south was uncrowded.

"Sam said they expect to be on time at one o'clock. See if there is a likely spot for acquiring lunch for them. The tourist airlines provide nothing."

The rendezvous at the Faro airport came off exactly as planned. Hugh and Jay shook hands as the women hugged. Sybil kissed Jay on the lips and said, "This is most irregular. You are not permitted to have romantic flings with my vulnerable sister." Jennifer blushed and the others laughed.

Jay responded, "It was an experiment that had the intended result."

Natalie looked at him archly, "The what result, exactly? Is she pregnant? Where did that ring come from?"

Jennifer's blush deepened as she tried to herd them to the van. "We have lunch and there is a park nearby."

Emily came up to Jay and whispered, "I am Hugh's assistant. I sent the bodyguard away and told him no more favors unless I got to come."

Hugh blustered, "Do we have a preferred route? Have there been signs of a tail?" Emily smiled and got a kiss from Jay while Hugh frowned.

Jay nodded to Jennifer to provide directions to the lunch spot. "We will have a catchup over lunch. There is a park about an hour east of here, on the coast road."

Jay answered the other question. "For the moment, we will not disguise our movements. There is undoubtedly surveillance on us this very minute.

"Jennifer has found a parador east of Seville and made a corporate reservation for four adjoining rooms. It is a revived fortress castle. Will be good symbolism for our planning session tomorrow."