Threads: The Island

Katie and Kara were already waiting for him, chatting with Connor when he got there, and he'd already been briefed on the plans for the next couple of weeks and the tentative months ahead.

The Scotsman was all business as he gave them each a profile, his recommendation for who should run their detail. To Kyle's disappointment, the name on his page wasn't Connor Grant.

"How come you're not doing it?" He asked.

"My team's set up for a different role," He explained. "We only take on clients who are under a specific threat. High-risk work, but we're bloody good at it. None of you fit my criteria."

"I'd be happier if you were running my detail," Kyle said. "How about it?"

"Cheers, but no. Your schedule's a bit too bread and butter for me." The Scotsman shrugged. "I like the pressure of the imminent threat. You need a janitor."

"A what?"

"A janitor. Caretaker. Someone to keep things running smooth. That would do my nut in."

"You like the chaos?" Kara guessed.

"That and the imminent threat. I like the pressure, the competitiveness. Plus, the paparazzi and I don't exactly get along, so they try and piss me off. Sometimes it works. You need someone else," He finished. "Cheers anyway though."

Kyle glanced down, reading the profile before him. Kevin Bannon, aged fifty one, former Marine and FBI, with fourteen years experience working close protection. He'd run his own team for the last nine years. Kyle looked up. "So this is the guy?"

Connor nodded. "I worked with him a few years back in New York. Very slick, very smart, good at reading people and he manages his team well. He's a solid choice."

"And mine?" Katie asked.

"All three of them," Connor replied. "I know them all personally, and they all run good teams. They'll look after you, no problems."

Kyle frowned, a little disappointed that he wasn't able to get Connor for himself, but if this Kevin guy was as good as the Scotsman said he was, then he figured he'd be fine.

"So what happens now? Do we call them, or are you doing it?" Kyle asked.

"If you guys all approve the choices then I'll get things set up for you. Least I can do to thank you for your hospitality."

"And if they don't work out?" Kyle asked.

Connor smiled. "Then bin them. Get somebody else in. Give me a call and I'll get you a few numbers."

Katie and Kara nodded, so Kyle agreed and Connor got up to leave.

"Wait, I need a word," Kyle said, walking out the door with him.

"Is it a written word?" Connor said quietly. Kyle patted his pockets for a pen, and found his phone. He quickly tapped out a message.

E said no. Crowler thinks yes. Waiting on word.

Connor deleted the message then tapped out his own.

Keep me posted. Going to check out E myself. Suspicious.

Kyle nodded, deleted the message and headed back inside. While Patricia and Lakshmi kept trying to get the schedule down from insane to manic, striving for snowed-under, Kyle got his gym stuff on. As he was on his way out the door, Patricia warned him that Casey and Ed would be a few more hours getting in.

"How come?"

"I meant to tell you earlier. Your friend, Ed, was three hours late for the flight. Apparently his limo broke down and it took a while to fix it."

Kyle wondered if it was Caroline that was driving Ed's limo. He knew she'd been teasing Ed mercilessly for days, sending him pictures and messages, and Ed was desperate to meet up with her. If there was a three hour delay, it didn't seem likely that the limo was broken, unless it was the suspension.

He nodded and headed for the gym.

Julian's workout with him was a little easier than the one that morning, and he was done within half an hour. As he emerged from the gym, a member of the fitness staff said there had been a call for him from Mister Crowler and could he go down to the pier to meet him immediately.

Kyle nodded, frowning, and walked the short distance, seeing George Crowler sitting waiting for him in one of the Islands speedboats. He hopped on board.

"You wanted to see me, George?"

"Glad you're here, Kyle. Let's get going for our boat ride round the Island, shall we?" The lawyer replied, giving Kyle an intense look. "If you could just unfasten those ropes, please?"

Kyle nodded, wondering what the old man had to say that he wanted to go out on a boat to do it, and he unfastened the two mooring ropes from the cleats on the pier. He took a seat as George revved the engine up and then the long sleek boat pulled away from the pier, heading out to sea.

"So what's going on then, George? What did you find?"

"There's something going on here, Kyle," The old man said as he turned the boat a couple of hundred metres out from the Island. "I've been through Danny's private banking and had my people pull out any one-off payments to construction companies between when the Island was bought and the main house was built, and they found one, an Indian company that specialises in home security."

"So you think they were brought in to build a safehouse somewhere?" Kyle guessed.

"Exactly. Now by my reasoning, it must be underground, as otherwise the company who built the main house, or any of the other buildings would have it in their plans, correct?"

"Makes sense," Kyle said, bracing himself as they bounced over a wave.

"So Edwin tells you there is no secure facility on the Island, yet Danny pays a company who specialises in building them from his own personal account at the time one would be built."

"So there must be one there, so Edwin's lying then?" Kyle said. "Why?"

"There's only two reasons I can think of," The lawyer replied. "He's either hiding something in there, or he wants to keep the facility for himself. That brings me to the reason we have the boat for our discussion, Kyle."

"What? Are you gonna tell me the rooms are bugged now?" He joked.

"I believe, knowing Danny as I did, that there was no way he would lock himself into a steel box without some way of knowing what was going on outside. He always thought several steps ahead and contingency planned constantly. He always, always had an exit strategy."

"So what are you saying?"

"You understand I have little evidence to support this?" The old man said and took a deep breath. "I believe there may be hidden recording devices, either audio or video on the Island, and I believe Edwin is using this safe room to view you and your sisters in an effort to collate private information on you. My guess is he'll use it in some form of extortion or blackmail."

Kyle felt sick, like he'd just eaten a dozen burritos and been kicked in the stomach.

"And bearing in mind the questions you asked me about legal representation when we first met, am I right in saying that there are secrets you hold that you would prefer kept from the world?"

"Fuck," Kyle muttered. "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck."

"I'll take that as a yes," The lawyer replied. "Now, I don't need to know what they are, even though you're my client and I couldn't reveal anything, even if I daresay I could hazard a guess or two. The question is have you verbally or physically implicated yourself, or have your sisters"?

Kyle immediately remembered the conversation he'd had on his balcony last night with Katie and Kara, the individual conversations they'd had and the several conversations he'd had with Patricia about it too.

"Fuck."

"Have you committed any criminal offences, Kyle?"

He shook his head. "I... don't know, actually. I think... fuck it. I met Kara three years ago when she was a stripper and she gave me a lapdance. Then I met Katie at a club and we slept together. None of us knew we were related, and since then we've done nothing."

The old man's brow furrowed as he thought. "Has there been any... physical contact between you since then?"

"No." Kyle replied quickly. "I did hug Katie in her bed the first night we got here, but I was on top of the covers and dressed."

"Have you discussed your... history?"

"Individually with Katie, same with Kara, and then last night the three of us spoke about it."

"Hmm," The old man muttered.

"Oh, and I told Patricia about it. You said I could trust her," He reminded him. "She got someone to do a little digging into the friends that were with us on Spring Break. My buddies are cool. In fact they're arriving here any time, but two of Katie's friends might be problematic, so we got some info on them."

"And what happened to them?"

"One of them has a sick kid, so we're helping her out with her medical bills and expenses. The other girl has some history of drugs and stuff. Videos too I think. She's was working at a law firm but now she's working for us with a massive pay rise. Both of them have signed agreements not to say anything."

"So potentially you could be open to extortion or blackmail, bribery and investigated for incest too?" George asked bluntly.

"Fuck my life," Kyle muttered. "Maybe."

"Even if there are no criminal proceedings, simply leaking recordings of the conversations would be enough to force you to resign from any positions you may hold in the future, destroy your credibility, or instigate political hearings. It could also potentially destroy your companies."

Kyle slumped into his seat, craving a cigarette, a bottle of tequila or anything that would numb his brain.

"Is there anything else you can tell me about what's happened on the Island? Anything strange that's occurred since you arrived?"

"Fuck, everything's been strange, George. This whole place is bizarre." He shook his head, then looked up sharply as a memory appeared. "A few nights ago one of the staff sneaked into my room and had sex with me. I thought it was someone else."

"Did they drug you, anything like that?"

"No. Just.. well, they fucked me then gave me a..."

"Yes, yes, yes. I get the picture," The lawyer said, holding up a hand. "Do you happen to know who? Or why?"

"Well, I'm pretty certain it was Sarah, the masseuse. The thing is, I'd never laid eyes on her before," Kyle explained.

"And she just appeared in your suite and propositioned you?"

"No," Kyle replied, shaking his head. "No, I'd been flirting with Patricia and she went to her bed. Then when it was dark this girl joined me in bed, held her finger to my lips to be quiet and then we had sex. I thought it was Patricia, but when we finished she ran off."

"So what was her motivation?" George said. "She just randomly decided to seduce you?"

"Apparently it's possible," Kyle said, shrugging. "I don't get it though."

"Does she know you have suspicions?"

"Sarah? No."

"Then you need to find out what motivated her to come up to your room," George said. "It may be that she simply saw you and decided to seduce you, or thought she'd get on good terms with the new boss. Then again, if you're being set up for leverage, a sex tape could be a helpful thing to have, yes?"

"Mother fucker," Kyle blurted.

"On the plus side, you mentioned that it was Connor Grant who put you onto the Island having a safe room, yes?"

"Yeah. And I let Connor know this morning that Edwin had said no, that you were looking into it, and he asked to be kept posted. Oh, he also said that he was going to see what he could find out himself."

George frowned as he steered the boat out a little further from the shore. "I would suggest the following. One. You figure out a way to discuss the matter with Sarah, somewhere off the Island such as on a boat like this or perhaps in a helicopter, if you can arrange it. Two. You need to get Connor on side with you, and given his personal skillset and employment record I imagine he'll be happy to help out if he can."

"He already is."

"That man is a nuisance, but when he's working he's like a different person entirely," George said. "Use him as much as possible, but above all you must be discrete."

"We have been so far."

"No, Kyle. I mean you can't act differently, you can't discuss this openly with Kara or Katie, don't discuss the situation with these two girls with Patricia either. I'll speak with her directly about that myself. If what you're saying is true, I'm best placed to deal with these two ladies myself anyway."

"Okay, don't talk about it, act normal, don't do anything differently," Kyle repeated, wondering how the hell he was going to pull that off.

The pier came in sight as they completed their circuit of the Island and Kyle frowned, thinking about everything the old lawyer had briefed him on. It seemed certain that Edwin was setting him up for something. Either that or he was getting paranoid. Maybe the man who'd run Danny Tripps private Island had some unknown valuables stashed away, and didn't want to let the new kids know about them.

Either way, he knew something was going on, and he felt a little comforted that George Crowler was helping him. He knew he had to get to Connor at some point today though, and somehow get him up to speed.

As the old man maneuvred the boat back to it's mooring, Kyle moved to stand up and tie it off, but he wobbled and nearly fell over.

"Kyle?"

"Sorry, my legs have tightened up," Kyle explained. "I came here straight from my work out, so my muscles are really stiff." He rubbed at his thighs and slowly began to stretch his mucles until he was able to move and tie up the boat.

"Speak to you later?" Kyle asked, climbing painfully up onto the pier.

"Anytime," George replied.

Kyle walked back along the pier, grimacing with each step until he began to loosen enough to walk relatively normally, following the path up from the beach and around to the main house.

"Where have you been?" Patricia asked as he re-entered his suite. "Julian said you left ages ago."

"I was chatting to George Crowler," Kyle said, trying to remember to act normally. "He took me for a lap of the Island on one of the speedboats. Very cool."

"Well, you're late for lunch."

Kyle nodded and headed back to the bathroom, sighing as he saw the last of his bath water draining away.

"It got cold, so I emptied it," Patricia explained from behind him. He felt her hand on his hip and her lips pressed softly against the back of his neck. With Lakshmi still in the office area of the suite, he knew she wouldn't be joining him, but he smiled at the secret display of affection. "You'll have to settle for a shower."

Kyle glanced around the room, wondering if there were cameras in here, and then his eyes widened as he realised he could have been filmed or watched doing all sorts of stuff with Patricia. He gulped.

"Hey, you okay? You seem a bit out of sorts," Patricia murmured, slipping around to face him.

He forced a smile on his face. "Just tired. That was a hard workout, and my muscles are all tight and sore. Feeling pretty exhausted." Seeing her worried expression he added, "I'm fine though. I'll be okay."

"You sure?" She asked, then lowered her voice and smiled. "I hope I didn't wear you out last night. And this morning."

"Not at all. Just workout fatigue, I think." He moved forward to give her a hug, but she squirmed away.

"After your shower. You're a sweaty mess and you'll ruin my suit."

Kyle headed for the shower, and the hot water felt good on his skin. Not as relaxing as a bath, or one with Patricia's assistance, but it helped a little. His mind whirled though, trying to remember every conversation he'd had since he got here that could potentially be used against him.

What he couldn't get his head around was why? If Edwin was planning to blackmail him or extort money, why was he doing it? What was motivating him when by all accounts he lived in paradise, of his own free will, everything was paid for him and he got a salary that he didn't really have to spend. So why blackmail someone when you have everything you want?

He shook his head, turned off the water and dried himself off, then headed for the dressing room. Someone had laid out a pair of sneakers, jeans and a sleeveless black top, a neat pile of accessories at their side. Kyle got dressed quickly, then joined Patricia and Lakshmi as they headed down for lunch.

Much of the conversation around the table was about an offer that Katie and Kara had received to appear on the Howard Stern show, asking them to be interviewed together and to ride his infamous sybian side by side. Katie found it disgusting, Kara found it hilarious and Margarita had them in stitches doing her impersonation of Katie trying not to orgasm. All too soon though it was time to go back to work for Kyle.

The dreaded scheduling meeting continued, and for the following hour Kyle listened to Patricia and Lakshmi debate if he should tour this office on that day, or do this press event, or take the time to rest up. Kyle had difficulty concentrating on it though, his own thoughts consumed with the situation with Edwin, how he was going to get a hold of Sarah without tipping his hand and the need to let Connor know what was happening.

"How long have I got until Ed and Casey arrive?" He asked.

"About twenty minutes," Patricia replied, not looking up from the piles of paper on the desk.

"I'm going to go see Connor, and then I'll head down to the pier for them coming in," Kyle announced, gathering his phone and cigarettes.

"What for?"

"I haven't given up on hiring him."

"You can see him later. There's still work to do, Kyle."

"I know. Plus, I just need ten minutes on my own," He explained, then tapped the side of his head. "Lots going on, and it's giving me a headache."

"You okay?"

He nodded, trying to appear relaxed, but he wasn't convinced of his success. Patricia cocked an eyebrow at him, but he winked back at her when Lakshmi's eyes drifted back to her work.

"See you guys back here," He said, stepping outside.

As he walked, he thought about which problem to try and tackle first. He knew he'd be seeing Connor later this afternoon, so that could be set aside for the moment. The Edwin thing was too complicated right now, so he turned his thoughts to Sarah, trying to figure out a way to get her into a boat or helicopter alone.

"What reason could I have to want some alone time with her?" He mused aloud, then grinned at the obvious answer. Everything suddenly clicked into place.

He knocked on Edwin's office door a few minutes later.

"Edwin?"

"Ah, Master Kyle. Do come in," The Englishman said.

Kyle entered, keeping his face as neutral as possible, wondering what this guy was up to, but trying not to let it interfere with his little charade.

"What can I do for you today?"

Kyle took a deep breath, then launched into the lie he'd developed in his head on the way there. "Well, Edwin. I wonder if you could help me with something.... discrete?"

"If I can, Sir." Edwin's eyes narrowed as he spoke. "Can I ask what, exactly?"

"Well, yesterday I got a massage from this girl, Sarah," Kyle began, trying to appear hesitant, embarassed.

"Ah, yes. Sarah's a wonderful masseuse, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is," He nodded. "She's also very.. hot."

Edwin smiled, a brief tight-lipped grin.

"Now, a couple of nights ago, I had a late night visitor who was very..."

"I'm familiar with Sarah's reputed apetities, Master Kyle," Edwin replied. "I take it you two..."

"Oh yes," Kyle said, feigning enthusiasm. "And if you don't mind me saying, I thought she was fucking amazing. If it was her, of course."

"And what makes you think it was her, Master Kyle?"

"Oh, just the way she moved, her perfume when she was giving me the massage yesterday," Kyle shrugged. "I'm pretty sure it was her, and since then I haven't been able to get her out my head, if you know what I mean." He gave Edwin a pointed look.

"Aha, I do, Master Kyle," Edwin replied, nodding quickly.

"Which brings me to why I'm here," Kyle said, moving on, feeling a little more comfortable in his acted role. He bit his lip, as if hesistant to say something, then launched into it quickly. "Do you think you could arrange for Sarah to be waiting for me in the helicopter after my workout, Edwin? I'm thinking we could go for a little fly around, I could ask her if it was her and... express my admiration for her skills, see if I can convince her to try it again?"