I hesitated for a moment before telling her I’m looking for Nakamura.
Receptionist : I’m sorry… there is no such person here….
Jeff : I see…. It’s ok then…
I started to walk back to my car.
Before I could get in, I saw a man appear in my path to block my way.
I recognised him. He is one of the men that was in the room with us before Nakamura released them.
I spoke directly to him.
Jeff : I’m looking for Nakamura…
He eyed me with suspicion and I could see a few more men approaching from less than 20m away.
Within seconds, I have 4 men on all my sides.
I shook my head, I can’t believe I need to do this a day before my so call holiday.
Danzo : What do you want ?
That familiar voice made me turn and I saw Danzo standing barely 5 metres away. He waved to his men and they left us alone in the carpark.
Jeff : I’m looking for Nakamura…
Danzo : who do you think you are ??
His aggressive posture and body language is a dead giveaway that I’m not welcome.
I was about to turn and leave but since I’m there, I decided to get some answers.
Jeff : Did my boss get in touch….. ever since the day we last meet… ?
Danzo looked like he was about to curse at me in his native tongue but the longer our eyes remained locked at each other, the more Danzo hesitated.
Jeff : I don’t want any trouble…. I just want answers…
It took another 30 seconds before Danzo made up his decision to answer my question.
Danzo : no.
I asked another.
Jeff : Did you find the men you are looking for ?
Danzo : No….
I could feel a sinking feeling in my stomach. Danzo did not look like he was lying to me. He’s curious. Curious why I would come barging into their turf and asking questions like that.
It’s a bad feeling. I can’t really describe it.
Jeff : How…. How many are missing…. From Japan…
Danzo’s phone rang and he immediately picked it up. From the courteous manner he is answering the call , it is probably his boss. He covered his mouth and spoke quickly in Japanese.
When he hung up 30 seconds later, he tells me Nakamura is not available today.
Jeff : It’s ok then…. I’m travelling for work tomorrow… will pay him a visit when I get back…
Danzo : Japan ?
Jeff : No.. Korea…
I got into my car and started the engine.
Danzo’s men looked like they wanted to stop me from leaving but he waved them away and let me pass.
16 July 2013
Tuesday
5.30am
It’s a morning flight and Billy set up a chat group on whatsapp that includes Xuehua.
I reminded my colleagues not to accidentally reveal any project details in the group chat.
I arrived at the airport early. I’ve always enjoyed the calm at the terminals before the morning peak.
There is something surreal about stepping into the mega structure.
I leaned against the railings and looked up at the massive green wall in front of me. A couple of hot looking air crew walked by on my right with their branded carry on in tow.
A few cleaners milling about. A toddler ran amok on the carpeted floor while his parents gave chase.
The regulated temperature, the unique smell of the airport. This is truly a one of a kind destination. The travel experience for many of us starts right when we step into the terminal.
I could smell the coffee from the café a short walk away. It’s like stepping into a different world. If you have travelled enough, you would surely appreciate the calm of our own airports compared to the others around the world.
I’m travelling for work but it feels like a vacation of sort.
I saw from the reflection of an advertisement the figure of a women stepping into the terminal with a suitcase in tow.
She looked around for a bit before making her way towards me.
As she came closer, I could see her slowing down deliberately.
She tried to keep the noise down but I could hear the wheels of the trolley getting louder as she drags them closer.
Seconds later, I felt a warm pair of sweet smelling hands cover my eyes from behind as my nostrils was filled with the smell of Xuehua.
Xuehua : enjoying the view of hot stewardess ?….
Jeff : hahaha …
I touched her hands and pulled it down to my mouth, kissing them as I turned around.
I must have done something good in my past life as I looked at her in her eyes.
Her hands went around my neck as she said good morning with a peck on my lips.
Her hair smells amazing, freshly shampooed. Xuehua wore a grey singlet underneath her beige long sleeve shirt. Her sleeves are fashionably rolled up to her elbows, the buttons were undone. It’s like that outer blouse is floating on a cushion of air.
A pair of ¾ capris in baby blue contrasted the fairness of her exposed calves.
Her feet disappeared into a pair of white sneakers with laces that are rainbow in colour.
Very casual dressing but she still look amazing.
Jeff : You look amazing…
Xuehua : I know… haha… many had said so… hahaha..
We kissed again before heading to a café for breakfast.
Billy and Belinda joined us shortly after, arriving within 5 minutes of the other.
We were enjoying out breakfast banter when I caught sight of a man when I lifted up my coffee cup for a sip.
The same man from yesterday at the carpark.
Our eyes met and he turned away, speaking into his phone.
I looked around casually as I pretended to stretch. I went to get a refill of my coffee and I saw 2 more of Danzo’s men walking towards the area we were sitting at.
I’m not worried. It’s the airport. A simple shout would bring help faster than you know it.
I went back to my seat with my new coffee and I caught sight of Danzo. He’s standing near the entrance of a bathroom.
Jeff : Alright…. I better go to the toilet before the flight…
Xuehua : Airplane got toilet one ok…
Jeff : I know… but I don’t want to shit in the plane…
Xuehua : hahah.. disgusting la !!… shoo shoo…
I stepped into the bathroom that early Tuesday morning. Danzo’s men were close behind and I knew they will be at the entrance.
I looked at Danzo who was staring at me in the bathroom.
Jeff : What ?
Danzo : My boss sent me… he has questions…. For you…
Jeff : why can’t he ask them himself ?
Danzo : He is not in the country….
I hesitated for a brief moment before replying Danzo.
Jeff : You answered 2 of mine…. I’ll answer 2 of yours….
Danzo nodded as if concluding that is a fair deal.
Danzo : Did Owen send you ?
Jeff : No.
Danzo : Does Owen know you are asking these questions ?
Jeff : No.
Danzo nodded and I could see him reading me. My expression, my body language.
Danzo : 52
Jeff : what 52 ?
Danzo : The question you asked yesterday…..52 men are missing from Japan….but we don’t know how many are in Singapore… At least 40 by our estimates…
I hesitated for close to a minute as i digested what I just heard. I can hear Danzo’s men turning others away from the bathroom, claiming that it’s spoilt.
Danzo waited patiently for me to ask my next question.
It’s as if he knows I have one.
Jeff : Hiro Hattori….
Danzo exhaled, his hands reaching into his pocket.
Danzo : We know Hiro … He is the one bringing the men into Singapore…. And we know he works for Owen… He is also the one hiding them…. If Owen did send you to find out how much we know…go ahead and tell him….we knew all along…
Jeff : Owen did not send me…
Danzo was quiet for a while before saying that Hiro and family are in hiding. The men stopped arriving a couple of weeks back.
Danzo : All movements have stopped…
Jeff : I see…
Danzo : Someone is playing a dangerous game Jeff…
Jeff : These are dangerous times…
Danzo nodded before saying they only want Hiro.
Danzo : We want Hiro….. I can guarantee safe passage home for Aiko and her daughter….
My heart worked doubly hard to pump blood and oxygen into my body as I dealt with the realisation of what is happening.
Danzo checked his watch and he started to make his way out of the bathroom.
As he passed me, Danzo paused for a second.
Danzo : Sometimes…. The hardest part of our job….. is to figure out who is your friend…. And who is your foe……
He gave me a pat on my shoulder before leaving the washroom.
I washed my hands and my face before drying up with the paper towels provided.
Danzo used present tense when talking about Hiro. He does not know he’s dead.
If what he says is true, Owen is building a small army.
All foreigners, with no links back to him and the company.
Hiro is dead, Owen wants Aiko.
Which meant Aiko is the only person what knows what is going on.
Owen’s planning something.
Let’s assuming I take Danzo’s word at face value. The Japs don’t have her, they are not the one protecting her and her child.
Common sense took over and the pieces started to fit.
Aiko is too scared to go to the authorities. No one will believe her if she walk into a police station and say her dead husband’s employer is building an army with men smuggled in from another country.
Owen could easily play on that and have her declared mentally ill and have everything swept under the carpet. A pregnant woman is no threat to the company, unless….
Unless she has proof of what Owen is up to.
Proof compelling enough for whoever that is sheltering Aiko to help her.
I closed my eyes for a brief moment, trying to recall every single conversation I had with Owen for the past 6 months.
My eyelids fluttered and my breathing slowed down as I cycled through the memories I kept filed away in my head. I felt the hair on my body stand on its end as the images in my head started flashing faster and faster with a few terms that seem to repeat itself several times.
Budget cuts, consolidation, accountability, Budget cuts, training interns. Budget cuts.
I opened my eyes as recalled Owen storming off after speaking with the Prime Minister a few days ago.
I know Owen. He loves his country. He is running the company because he is convinced that it’s for the good of the country.
We are the reasons our enemies are afraid of the dark.
The company is everything to him.
He will do anything to protect it, this includes protecting it from the very people that rules the country.
The foreboding feeling of something disastrous is going to happen made my legs go weak for brief moment as I supported myself on the counter top.
I looked at my own reflection in the mirror and I spoke to myself without realising it.
Jeff : Owen…. What have you done……
……………………………………………………………………………..
I went back out of the washroom after a while and re-joined the team at the cafe.
Xuehua : You ok ? .
Jeff : Yeah…I’m fine..
We boarded the flight and we landed at Incheon after 6.5 hours of binge-watching in-flight entertainment.
Belinda has arranged for airport pickup and we bundled into the waiting van for our ride to the hotel.
Xuehua had her hands full of brochures and maps.
Xuehua : ok… ok…. Your conference is tomorrow…. You all need to prepare.. so don’t worry about me…..i already mapped out where I want to go…. I know each of us has 20kg of baggage allowance…. But I see that all of you are only bringing carryon luggage…. Which means I don’t need to worry about how much stuff I’m bringing back… hahahahahaha
We all laughed as Xuehua turned her fingers into a claw mimicking some monster as she laughed out loud while raising her them into the air in the vehicle.
The ride is about an hour and I visually took in the neighbourhood as we pulled into the driveway of the small hotel set by the edge of the Han river. The hotel has a good unblocked view of the Dongho bridge.
The heat is offset by the slight breeze coming from the riverside.
We stepped into the hotel reception and waiting for us by the check in counter is a man in his mid-twenties.
He looked engrossed in his mobile phone, tapping away on the screen.
Billy : Hi…. We’re checking in…. we have 2 rooms…
The man looked up from his phone and his eyes immediately skipped Billy and Belinda, focusing on Xuehua within a split second.
Qiang : Hi there…. I’m Qiang…I can tell you are Singaporeans…hahaha.
Billy : Haha… I can tell you are one too..
Qiang : Yeah…. Something about the way we talk right….dead giveaway… haha… can I have your passports please… let me see…..ermm… a twin room and a ….double….non smoking… right…
Billy asked for our documents and handed them over to Qiang.
Xuehua grabbed me and starting taking selfies of the simply furnished lobby.
Xuehua : I promised to send Eddy some photos everyday…
Jeff : Perhaps you should exclude me in them..
Xuehua : Haiyah….please… he’s a nice guy ok… you don’t see him all fierce and what not on the surface,….. he’s actually very nice…
Jeff : He wanted to chop me…
Xuehua laughed as she passed me her phone before heading over to a large beanbag by a wall of hand written postcards and greetings left by other tourists.
She crossed her legs and struck a Instagram worthy post as I took a photo for her.
Xuehua : I’ll protect you… don’t worry….hahah No one will dare to lay a finger on you…
Jeff : Thank you…
Billy : guys… we got the rooms… let’s go…
Qiang : do you need help with the bags ?
Billy : No need… we’re fine.. thank you…
Qiang : See you….
We walked towards the lift and I could see from the reflection of the black mirror finishes of the wall that Qiang is picking up his phone. He dialled while looking at Xuehua from behind. There was no hiding where his eyes were roaming.
They started at the back where her bra straps were, sliding down to the narrow back of he waist, before rolling onto the perkiness of her bottom. There is this healthy juggle in Xuehua’s buttocks that gives me an erection whenever I let my eyes linger for too long.
We got into the lift and I recalled Billy’s note to me before the trip.
There should be no mention of what we are there for right from the moment after stepping into the hotel. We should assumed that all video feeds within the hotel includes audio. They are always listening and watching.
Billy’s guess is correct.
We were assigned the room that neighbours a suspicious looking wall.
Xuehua : ok.. it’s almost going to be dinner time…. How about we meet at the lobby in 10 minutes time ? …. A quick unpack then we go grab some food…. After that I will be ok with my own…. Hohohohohahah….
Belinda : haha… ok…see you all in 10…
I let Xuehua open the room door and we entered the large room with a king size bed in the center of it.
I don’t want to be seen checking out the room as if I’m suspecting something so I reached for Xuehua the moment the door is closed.
I cupped my hands around her waist from behind and pulled her towards me.
Xuehua : aaahhhh…!!! Nooo!…hahaha
I smelled her hair and kissed her on her cheek.
She tapped my arms, begging me to let her go.
Xuehua : no time la…. oei !!… 10 minutes…. Hahah
She laughed as she struggled to walk forward and go about doing her stuff while I remained glued behind her like a Siamese twin.
My eyes went around the room, identifying several spot where I would put a camera if I wanted to.
The room is done up nicely, workmanship is good.
I suspect the feature wall with timber strips on the left of the bed hides a door but there’s no way to tell unless I inspect it up close. That would give us away immediately if they see us on the camera.
Xuehua : I’m going to change out into something more comfortable… let go !!… haha
I was suddenly hit with that sinking feeling in my stomach.
Although I would love to see Xuehua change, I realised that whatever she is doing would also be captured and fed into the camera.
Jeff : Go change in the toilet !
I blurted out so suddenly that Xuehua turned and gave me a raised eyebrow.
She removed her outer blouse and let it drop onto the bed.
Xuehua : Someone trying to pretend to be decent …. Hahah…. Nice…. Brownie points for you… haha
It suddenly dawned on me how stupid that comment was. If they wired up the room, they would surely wire up the bathroom as well.
Xuehua pulled off her singlet and I saw that teasing strap of that cage bra.
3 horizontal thin strips in a seductively shade of pastel pink held onto the bra cups that supported Xuehua’’s breast.
There was no way to tell she is wearing something like that from the outside.
Xuehua : watch where your eyes are roaming Jeff….
I looked away as she turned around and remove her pants.
My cock sprung into attention as I saw a matching pair of panty, the 3 stripe bands of the panty on each side of her waist moved sensually along her skin as she bent forward on purpose to pick out her clothes from her luggage.
If the circumstances were different, I would have pounced on her already but I was feeling a lot more hesitant in that room. I don’t care if someone sees my cock or my butt. I felt a tinge of jealousy knowing that they are going to see Xuehua as well.
Xuehua changed into a casual pair of shorts and t-shirt.
She turned and looked at me as she pulled down her top to cover her breast.
Xuehua : Like what you see so far ? hahah
Jeff : They say…. If a woman is wearing matching lingerie….. that’s because she expects to show them off…. Is that true… ?
Xuehua : hahah…. Wrong…
She put her arms around my neck and we kissed again, my erection reminded once more about that tongue stud inside her mouth.
She whispered softly in my face.
Xuehua : We wear matching lingerie…. Because we expect…. To take them off… ahha
I laughed and we kissed again before she broke away, saying we better hurry.
Xuehua went to the bathroom and washed her face to freshen up.
I opened up my carry on and hung up a couple of tops.
I checked the plastic hanger I used for my shirt. At first glance, it looks like any other of those cheap plastic hanger you get at the dollar store. Sometimes you get them for free when you buy a new top.
The hanger I used is custom made using a hardier version made of denser material. It looks and functions exactly like a hanger. There isn’t anything hidden in it.
However, during the moulding, I requested for additional grooves to be etched into the hanger. Just like when you buy a plastic model toy, you push out certain parts as per the shape you want before fixing it all together into a boat or a car.
The grooves I specified for is in the shape of a small stake.
All I need is a hard surface for support and I can break the hanger into the shape and size I wanted.
It will not be as sharp without some grinding, but I can use it as a stabbing tool easily, all I need was to add a grip, that can be easily done with bits of cloths.
Once I’m done, I can burn it all, plastic, grip and all.
Xuehua : ok I’m done… you ready to go ??
Jeff : Yeah… I need the bathroom too….
Xuehua started to unpack some of her clothes into the wardrobe and I pulled out a few pieces of pencil lead I brought along hidden in my toiletries bag.
I watched as Xuehua used a generic card instead of the hotel keycard for the power slot.
Xuehua : Like that when we come back…the room will be nice and cool. Hahha.
Jeff : You really very Auntie leh…
She opened the door and I could hear Belinda and Billy waiting for us outside the corridor.
I bent down to tie my shoelaces after slipping it on and I discreetly placed the pencil lead by the entrance. I dropped another 2 at different spots by the door.
It’s not a 100% but it’s a easy way to check if anyone has been inside the room while we’re out.
I pretended to apply a layer of lip balm on my lips with my index finger while keeping a layer of the oily balm on my middle finger. When I reached to pull the handle close, I slid it all along the handle, coating it with my lip balm.
We went down to the lobby and I could see Qiang smiling at us from the reception desk.
Qiang : where are you all going ? Need me to help call for a cab ??
Belinda : We’re heading out for dinner … it’s ok we’re fine…
Qiang : There are a few good restaurants across the road if you don’t want to travel far…
Billy : Thank you…
We stepped out of the hotel and saw a car pulling up into the only park lot in front of the hotel entrance.
Xuehua spotted a restaurant selling Jjimdak ( Korean braised chicken ) and suggested we head over.
As the group of us walked to the junction a stone throw away, I saw Belinda attempting to turn back and check out the person coming out of the car.
Jeff : crossing the road… watch out for cars…
Belinda immediately caught onto what I was trying to say.
We went across the road and while the group checked out the menu of the restaurant, I whipped out my phone and asked the lot of them to turn and look at me.
Jeff : Smile !!…
I took a shot before casually turning to face the hotel.
I took a long paranoma shot as I slowly slide the phone horizontally, capturing the hotel owner coming out of the car. Ricky.
Taking a photo in the open is less suspicious than you trying to take one discreetly.
I even orientated myself for a selfie with the hotel as the background, but instead of a shot, I kept it in video mode.
I could see Qiang coming out of the hotel to meet Ricky. They were talking and looking towards our direction.
I kept my phone and went into the restaurant.
Our food was served and while we were all slurping the chewy noodles that came with the spicy braised chicken, Xuehua kept the conversation going.
Belinda’s nervousness is starting to show.
It might sound easy to take a life but not everyone is cut out for work like this.
The very idea will mess with your head. Every second leading up to that very moment is a torture.
Owen once shared with me about 80% of trainees could not make the 1st kill. Most of them ended up as his personal guards or posted to overseas embassies.
Xuehua : so what trade show are you are heading to tomorrow ?
Belinda : It’s a packaging trade show…
Xuehua : Oh… but I thought you guys are in waste disposal…
Billy coughed and took a sip of his water.
Jeff : yes we are… and the type of packaging our clients use for their products…. Affects the method of disposal…everyone is trying to go green …
Xuehua : True… true…. Sounds like a pretty boring job though… haha
Jeff : Hmm.. it’s ok… just to pass days…
Xuehua took the chance to tease me by asking about my character from my so call colleages.
Xuehua : So…. Has Jeff ever lost his temper at work ?? would be good to know if he has anger management issue.
Billy : huh ? …
Belinda : errrr…
Xuehua put down her chopsticks and proudly declared that she will shield both of them from me if they say something incriminating, as long as it’s the truth.
Xuehua : come come… tell all.. haha…. No need to be scare…hahaha…
She gave me a naughty look, as if hoping I would get nervous.
Xuehua : Billy… you first… how… anything ?
Billy : Errr…..no….nothing…
Xuehua : Come on….what about you Belinda ?? ….
Belinda : Errrr….
She looked at me from the corner of her eye and Xuehua immediately caught onto her wrist.
Xuehua : I know that look !!!.. I know… you want to say something but you are worried about saying it !!… hahaha.. it’s ok.. just say it…
Belinda : errmmm.. ok… I …err… I once vomited….when I saw Jeff lose his temper…
Billy coughed and choked on his food as he patted his chest.
Xuehua : really !!… wow !!!… why ??
All eyes were on Belinda and she hesitated, choosing her words carefully.
Belinda : I ermm… I don’t know how to say this…
Xuehua : I know !!! he fired SOMEONE !!! terminated them on the spot… !!
Belinda : Errrrr….. I guess you can say that….
Xuehua : I knew it…I think getting fired abruptly is stressful…. I think I might cry if someone does that to me….
Belinda : ermm… yeah…
Jeff : let’s finish dinner and get to work shall we ??
Xuehua : Yes yes… yes boss….
After we are done with dinner, Xuehua said that she will not get in our way of talking shop, she’s going to grab a taxi to the shopping street at MyeongDong.
Xuehua : I’m going to be there till late… will make my own way back….
Jeff : You sure you will be ok ?
Xuehua : yes yes… don’t worry…
I sent Xuehua off in a taxi and I went back to the restaurant.
Jeff : Belinda you ok ?
Belinda : yeah… just a little nervous…
Billy : Yeah.. I can tell.. you hardly ate…
Jeff : Sitting here won’t help… go out with Billy, pretend you are a couple…. Scout around the perimeter of the hotel…. Check out the shops, cafes, everything.
Billy : ok…
Belinda : what about the body…. We don’t have a clean up crew here…. What if we get discovered…. What’s going to happen !
Jeff : Belinda… calm down… we’ll take it one step at a time… go… go walk it off…
I settled the bill and watched the both of them walk down the street.
I bought a few bottles of soju and water from a convenient stall. Heading to a back street, I found a corner and emptied the alcohol into the drain. Out of the 5 bottles of Soju I bought, I kept only 1 with it’s original content. 3 empty and 1 more bottle with about half left.
I found a nice scenic spot by the river and sat down.
I enjoyed the evening view of the river as the sun sets. There’s a lot on my mind.
Owen’s little coup weighs heavily in my head.
His budget for running the company is being cut. Something he has repeated frequently the past 6 months or so.
He has other sources of income but the biggest parcel no doubt still comes from the taxpayers. Unless there are good reasons to justify the running cost of the company, there is no way more funds will be allocated to us.
Many of us in this country has not seen or experienced war in our lifetime.
All we know are the orderliness and safety the current system has given us.
Those that lived through the Japanese occupation are well into their seventies. There are the only ones that has lived through the atrocities of war. There’s no doubt about it. Owen wants to remind everyone the importance of having people like us around.
Xuehua sent me a few messages to let me know she’s reached her destination and will try to get back by midnight.
Belinda and Billy joined my by at the bench after they are done with their walk and I wanted to know how Belinda plans to do it.
Jeff : Tell me…. How..
Belinda : I err….will suffocate him… with a pillow…
Jeff : He’s going to struggle.. he’s 86 Kg, you are 47 kg …How do you intend to address that ?
Belinda : I… while you all help to hold him down…
Jeff : We are not going to help hold him down… you are the one doing it… not us…
Belinda : Then I will stab him first…
Jeff : You can’t. Blood is messy to clean up…. We’re not back home… come on… I’m sure you’ve thought this through…
Belinda : I….i filled my contact lens case with a sedative…
Jeff : go on…
Belinda : Once he’s calmed down… and asleep… I will do it…
I asked her how she plans to get from where we are, to the point of her administering the sedative.
Jeff : And this has to be before he lays his hands on Xuehua …
Belinda : He’s already shown himself… there’s only 2 of them in the hotel…. If we wanted…
Jeff : Again… this is not about ‘we’…. Assuming we are not here… how are you going to do it…. ?
Belinda hesitated and I could see she was without an answer.
Jeff : If we have to help serve him up to you in a platter, I might as well do it on my own… no ?
Belinda : I ermm..
Jeff : Plans don’t usually go the way you want it to…. But still, you can’t approach this without a plan…
Belinda ; I have a plan…. So far it’s going the way we want it to…. We successfully lured Ricky out…. It’s obvious Qiang and Him are planning something….
Jeff : And ?
Belinda : once they make an attempt to… ermm… to grab Xuehua… we will… I mean… I will…
I exhaled and looked away.
Belinda ; Sorry… I’m… I’m a little nervous…
Billy : Come on Jeff… it’s her first time….don’t be so hard on her…
Jeff : What is the penalty for murder in South Korea ? …
Billy kept quiet after that.
Jeff : I don’t think you are ready for this…
Belinda : I am… I really am… I just need to get over the initial jitters…
I skipped over taking care of Ricky part and I asked Belinda what her plan is to get the girl we are supposed to find over to the embassy.
Belinda : Embassy has transport on standby, once we identified the girl…they will be here to pick her and us up together…. Intel suggest the girl is kept in the basement… once we take care of him… we can easily extract the girl.
Jeff : Then what ? we leave the body here at the hotel ? … how do we leave the country ? …. Our flight back is in 3 days… do we stay here ?
Belinda: We’ll switch hotels, I made reservations at another location… current spot is near our trade show…. After we’re done, there’s no reason why we should not stay closer to the tourist attractions….
I nodded.
Billy : How would you have done it Jeff ? just curious…
Jeff : I won’t do it here…
Belinda : why not ?
Jeff : Why do it here ? when you can have an embassy car bring all the Singaporeans to the embassy ? They know operators are in town… they know why we are here for… I’ll do it inside the embassy….
Belinda : What … !
I checked the time and stood up.
Jeff : Easier to clean up a mess inside your own turf then in the middle of a fucking residential neighbourhood.
Billy : Won’t the staff at the embassy be upset about….
Jeff : What’s there to be upset about ?…. we’re cleaning up a mess left by our own people in our own backyard…. Piece of cake for them to bring the bodies back home.. they do it all the time…
Billy : wow….
Belinda : oh… so…. Can we do it your way then ?? haha
I ignored them and walked towards the hotel.
I want to get back to Singapore fast, and I want to get Belinda off my back as well.
I don’t think she’s ready for this.
Belinda caught up with me with Billy in tow.
Belinda : So how ? what do we do ?
Jeff : take a walk… come back around 10.30pm and ask Qiang to help get a cab to Hongdae for you…say you want to go club…. Alight a few streets down and wait for my call….
I doused my chin and cheeks with the half bottle of soju before taking a large swig of it and held it in my mouth.
Right before I cross the road back to the hotel, I spit it all out into the ground.
Walking into the reception, I saw Qiang looking up from his phone and smiling at me.
Qiang : hi there… back so fast ?
Jeff : Yeah….yeah….
I acted a little tipsy and high as I finished up the last mouthful of drinks in front of him.
Jeff : Come… come… drink with me… hahaha
Qiang : Sure…sure… I’ll bring some snacks…
We sat down at a small lounge by the side and I opened up the brand new bottle of soju. Qiang had brought along 2 glasses.
Qiang ; Where are your friends…. ?
Jeff : erhhooh… shopping I think… walking around… I don’t know…
Qiang : I see.. haha..ermm.. what about… err. Your girlfriend ? … I don’t see her with you…
Jeff : Haiya…. Don’t talk about her… we had a little quarrel… she went off to shop on her own…
I downed a glass of soju and refilled Qiang’s glass.
Jeff : Women ah…. Don’t get it… when we men say …… we need to work… this is a work trip …… bring her along….still expect this and that…
Qiang smiled as he looked at me, nodding in agreement.
I heard the chime of a lift and Ricky walked out of it.
Qiang gestured to Ricky and introduced him to me.
Qiang ; Come I introduce my boss to you…. Ricky…
Jeff : Hey.. hellow.. hi…. Come come… join us…
I shook his hand while Qiang went to get another glass for him.
Ricky : are you ok bro… you look like you’re almost gone… hahaha…
Jeff : hello…I’m still sober ok… haha… only a few bottles…
Ricky looked at the plastic bag and I could see him smiling.
We spent the next 30 minutes talking and bantering about life back in Singapore. I slurred my words on purpose, and reacted slowly to what they say.
10.30pm
Billy and Belinda came back into the hotel and saw me drinking with Qiang and Ricky.
They did as they were told and asked Qiang to help get them a taxi.
Qiang : Jeff.. you not joining them ??
Jeff : arrr…ermmm…later..later… wait for my girlfriend come back first….
10.45pm
Belinda and Billy got into the cab
The lone bottle of soju I brought to the drinking session is long gone, replaced instead by 2 more bottles Ricky brought out.
They did most of the drinking, all i needed to do was to keep up the act of being tipsy and on the edge of passing out.
Qiang : Boss… Jeff.. quarrelled with his girlfriend earlier… let’s do something to help leh…arrange a bottle of wine or something….
Ricky : Can… no problem.. hahaha…
Jeff : No need… no need… is ok…
Ricky : I insist… Qiang…. Go get a bottle of wine and bouquet of flowers , slice of cake maybe… do swee swee la… help a brother out… haha
Jeff : No la.. is ok.. don’t need….
Ricky waved Qiang off and I could see him heading off with a grin on his face. He must be thinking that he will get his turn with Xuehua this evening after his boss is done with her.
11.15 pm.
Xuehua text me to let me know she is on her way back to the hotel.
Jeff : oh… she….she coming back,,, she coming back…. I go up… I go up…
Qiang : here here here…. Take these…
I held onto the basket of wine and flowers and thanked the 2 men before heading up to the room.
I had to keep up my act as I knew the cameras are watching.
I stopped at the room door and pulled out the key card, I peered closely at the handle and acted as if I could not find the spot to tap my card. I held the handle and the oily streak I left is gone.
I unlocked the door and opened it, dropping to my knees as I crawled my way into the room.
A couple of the pencil leads are broken.
They’ve been inside the room.
I shut the door and remained on the floor, trying to fumble my away around like a drunkard.
I saw Xuehua’s luggage in a different position than I remembered. They must have ransacked through her luggage, probably wanked off to her lingerie.
I reckon they’re going to make their move soon. Seeing the boyfriend intoxicated, they would surely not see me as a threat.
11.40pm
Xuehua entered the room to see me sitting dazed on the couch.
She dropped her bags of shopping and came over to me.
Xuehua : Oh my god… what happened to you….ewww… how much have you been drinking….you could have called me to come back earlier dear… tsk !… haizz…
She went to wet a towel for me, when Xuehua came out of the bathroom, she saw the flowers, the wine and the box of cake waiting for her on the bed.
Xuehua : oh….hahaha… somebody has been busy… ahhaha….
Jeff : well…. A little…
Xuehua smiled and went over to the bottle.
She looked at the label before opening it. She poured it into the 2 wine glasses provided and handed me one.
Xuehua : So….. are you going to fall asleep soon ? you look drunk already…
Jeff : I don’t think so…. It’s going to be a long night for me…
………………………………………
Xuehua : hahaha…. Really ? … how so ??
I proposed a toast and Xuehua drained the glass in a heartbeat.
She straddled me on the couch and her hands reached for my face. We kissed and I could taste the wine on her lips.
Xuehua : are you going to undress me ? hahaha
My hands hesitated. I want to undress her but I know Ricky and Qiang are watching.
Xuehua : too shy ? hahah…
Xuehua pulled my top off me before removing hers on her own.
She kissed me again as I ran my hands up her body starting from her waist.
Every inch of her body felt so taut and firm. There’s hardly any fats in her. I pulled Xuehua closer as my tongue felt the tease of her tongue stud.
Xuehua stopped kissing me and slid down from the couch.
My heart started beating faster as I watch her reach for my pants while giving me that sly naughty look.
Before I knew it, I was naked and my erected cock standing at attention in front of Xuehua.
She pulled and threw my pants to the side of the room and spread my legs apart, parking her body in the middle.
Jeff : ernhh… aghhh.. !!
I felt that tight grip of her hand on my cock and I shivered. Xuehua brought her face closer to my dick. She looked at it but did nothing.
I could feel her breathing on my manhood and she just looked at me with a smile.
Xuehua : I expect you reciprocate ok ? hahaha…
She bit her lips for a second and I watch her take a large gulp of wine direct from the bottle.
Jeff : ernhhhgarghg….
Without warning, she went down on me, spilling wine down the sides of my groin as my cock swam in her mouth full of wine.
I could feel her lips, the wetness of her mouth filled with wine but I was keeping my senses awake for something else.
Something I’ve never felt before.
I want to know how that feels.
Suddenly there was a strong slurp and I groaned at the top of my voice.
Jeff : ernghhh !!
My eyes widened as I felt it. I finally felt it.
I moaned out loud in disbelief as I felt that cold metal stud push down onto my pee hole.
I was shaking helplessly as I reached for Xuehua’s head. She held my left wrist and pushed me back into the chair gently.
I watch as her lips sink into her mouth, and all I could manage was another helpless groan.
I can’t believe what I was feeling.
It was such a forceful suck that I could feel all the air in my lungs being extracted out the same time.
I panted as I tried to brace myself for another.
My eyes widened again as I groaned. Xuehua’s lips peeled back my uncircumcised foreskin, somehow as my skin rolled back, it rolled over the stud she had on her tongue.
Jeff : arghhh !!! agngnn !!!
Every little tug and jerk made me moan in orgasmic pleasure. The stud came out from under the skin after a couple of seconds and Xuehua started rimming my exposed and sensitive dick with her tongue.
Jeff : Oh my god…arghhh h h!!!
I felt another forceful suck combed with a cold metal push onto the tip of my cock. I was pretty sure I leaked precum from that. My fingers dug into the soft fabric of the couch as I looked at Xuehua in disbelief.
Jeff : how did you do that… ernghhh.. argnhh !!! arngh !!!
She stopped. I watch her massage her mouth for a bit as she laughed. She reach for the bottle of wine and took another sip.
Xuehua : gosh I feel so thirsty…. Haha… hmmmm…
I felt a tingling sensation in my mouth as I groaned again. I’ve never experienced a blowjob like this before. That tapping and heavy push of the stud into my cock felt like she was tongue raping my pee hole.
The tingling sensation in my spine made my whole body go soft.
Xuehua’s head started to move up and down and I could feel her stroking the base of my cock as she sucked me.
Jeff : argnhhh.. arnghhh ..!!.. arnghh!!
I was really enjoying myself when Xuehua paused.
She took my cock out and patted her own chest for a bit.
Jeff : Are you ok ?
She nodded and patted herself again. She swallowed her saliva a couple of times, much like when you are about to puke and you’re trying to hold it all back.
Jeff : Xuehua .. are you ok ? …
Suddenly she scrambled on her fours as she tried to make it to the bathroom. Before she could get to the toilet bowl, she vomited all over.
Jeff : are you ok ?? Xuehua …
She retched into the toilet bowl like a drunk trying to purge the alcohol out of her system.
I patted her on her back as she vomited. That retching sound made me feel like throwing up as well.
Xuehua : oh god… must be something I ate…
I saw the colour of her puke tinted red by the wine and it immediately connected.
I exhaled and tried to control my breathing.
Fuck this.
I’m going to march right out and end this by breaking Ricky’s neck right there and then.
Before I do that, I will beat the shit out of him.
I got up and I was about to head out when I came face to face with Ricky and Qiang right there in our room.
It happened so fast that the next thing I realised I was on the floor. My muscles tightened and I was going into spasm as I lose control of my body.
I gritted my teeth as my eyes lost focus.
I tried to turn and look but my muscles are not reacting the way I want it to. They used a stun gun on me. Fucking bastards. Qiang held the gun directly pressing it into my torso for almost 5 seconds.
Drool streak down the side of my cheeks as I managed to see Qiang and Ricky drag Xuehua out of the bathroom.
Xuehua is barely conscious.
I watched helplessly as Qiang and Ricky put her onto the bed.
My fingers are curled up, I could not clench them.
My breathing is erratic. One moment I could suck in the oxygen my lungs craved, then for reasons I could not fathom, I could not exhale. I blinked none stop. I was wriggling like a worm.
It was a while before I could make out what Ricky and Qiang were saying.
Ricky : she’s so fucking hot…. I’m having an erection just looking at her… hahaha
Qiang : Boss… I also want leh.. hahah
Ricky : fuck la.. you take the one in the basement… this one is mine…
Qiang : That one so dirty already….she’s barely alive…
Ricky : Bath for her then you fuck her la…like that also need me to teach me is it ? hahahah… fuck man… look at her tits… so soft and supple….argnnnhh… so nice to hold… ahh fuck… hahaha… god I can squeeze her breast whole night… arghh.. arghhh….
Qiang : She smells so good too.. hahaha… I think all pretty girls have their own unique smell…
Ricky : hahaha… where you smell ? …haha… I haven smell who say you can smell hahaha… go and smell that slut in the basement la… hahaha
Ricky laughed as I watch him spread Xuehua’s legs and pressed his nose onto her shorts, taking deep sniffs of her crotch area. He kept rubbing his face around Xuehua’s privates , letting out loud murmurs of approvals.
Ricky started to undress Xuehua. I saw him remove her shorts and immediately pressed his nose onto her panty.
Ricky : arghh… sniffs….. arngghhh… slurpzzz…. Fuck…sniff….. arghhhh !!
I could see the vigorous rubbing motion Ricky was doing with his hands on Xuehua’s vagina. He quickly brought his finger to his mouth, sucking and tasting her cunt juice when he decided he had collected enough of it in his hand.
Qiang : Boss… then now how… take her to the basement or what…?
Ricky : No need… I’ll just fuck her here… hahaha…hahah…
Qiang : what about him…. ?
Ricky : Hit him again with the gun… he’s too fucking drunk… we’ll just dump him by the side of the park later… he won’t remember a thing… He’ll come back and realised his girlfriend is sound asleep in the bed anyway… hahaha… he’ll sleep it off…
Qiang : hahaha.. sound asleep with your cum inside her you mean.. hahaha
Ricky : hhaha… fuck man.. this is gold… she is really the gold standard….
I gritted my teeth and I could feel the veins in my neck bulging to the point of almost bursting. My eyes started to focus and I could breathe better.
My fingers clenched and I formed my first fist in my left hand.
Qiang : Boss sure ar ? hit him again ah… ? will he die or not…. This one you buy from the black market is quite strong one leh…. The amperage is quite high…wait his heart stop how…
Ricky : fuck you la… you want to fuck his girl or not… you want just do it…
Qiang : ok ok….
I heard the click of the stun gun and I could feel myself growling like an animal as I regained control of my body.
Qiang tried to hit me again but I held onto his wrist.
Jeff : argghh !!!!!!!
Qiang : aHHHH!!!
I directed his hand back towards Ricky’s thighs, jamming the spark into the back of his leg. Ricky grunted and he went into a spasm as he collapsed onto Xuehua.
Qiang tried to fight me off but I head butted him in his nose, twisted his arm and jabbed the same gun back into his neck.
I panted for air as I struggled to lift Ricky off Xuehua.
The pain coursing through my body is slowly dissipating but it still fucking hurts like hell.
Xuehua is totally out.
Ricky is no longer moving but Qiang is still kicking about.
I dragged him over to where Ricky is. Grabbing a towel, I position the stun gun back into Qiang’s hand, and I delivered another shock directly into Ricky’s torso.
Ricky’s body jumped a couple of times before he stopped moving.
Jeff : fucking bitch.
I gave Qiang a couple of minutes to sober up before I grabbed him by his neck.
Qiang : arngh h!!! arGHH!!!!agnh !!!
Jeff : Where’s the girl… WHERE !!!
Qiang : basement ….basement !!
Jeff : Show me …
Qiang was slow to react and I slammed his head against the wall, causing a dent immediately on the timber strips.
Qiang reached for a remote in his pocket and activated the concealed sliding door, revealing a staircase.
I half dragged him by his hair as we descended down to a brightly lit basement stacked high with washed bedsheets and towels.
Qiang led me to a corner of the room where I saw a thin and frail girl chained to the bed.
Jeff : remove the chains….
Qiang removed the chains on the girl with trembling hands and I directed for him to put them on.
Jeff : put it on…
Qiang ; No please… I’m just an employee…
I swung a punch so sudden at him that it knocked him off his feet.
Qiang started sobbing and begging me to stop as I checked the naked girl.
She’s still alive but barely.
I called Billy and Belinda, asking them to come back to my room.
I slammed Qiang’s head against the wall before letting him take the place of the girl on the thin mattress.
I carried the unconscious girl back up to my room and put her beside Xuehua.
There was a knock on my door and I looked through the peephole.
It’s Billy.
I opened the door and gestured for them to come inside.
Billy : What the fuck….
Belinda : What happened ?
I lifted up my short to show them the burn mark I had on my chest.
Jeff : They tried to stun gun me twice…
Billy : Is Xuehua ok ?
Jeff : She’s fine… just knocked out…
Belinda checked on Ricky before declaring to the rest of us that he’s dead.
Jeff : Call the embassy… get it over and done with….
Billy : Where’s Qiang ? …..
Jeff : Downstairs…. Follow me…
I led both of them down to the basement after Belinda put in the call to the team at the embassy.
Belinda : They will be here in 45 minutes.
Qiang saw us coming down and he immediately started begging .
Qiang : Please… please… I’m just an employee… please…. Sobzz..sobzz.. please.. I’m sorry… I’m sorry…
I dragged a chair from the side and sat down.
Jeff : 45 minutes right…. Ok… go ahead and do it…
Belinda : what ?
Jeff : you need to do it with your own hands no ? … there he is… I even chained him up for you…. What are you waiting for ?
Belinda : but…but…
Jeff : He saw our faces…. He know who we are… he will talk…
Qiang : NO!!! NO!! NO I won’t…. I won’t…. I won’t fucking say a word… I won’t say anything… please.. please… NO!!..
I could see Belinda hesitating.
Jeff : don’t waste time… go… quick…
Qiang struggled against the bed but it was bolted to the floor. The chains rattled as he tugged at the solid links. The echo of his shout in the basement sounded louder because of the amplification.
He was washing his face with his tears and snot as he begged us to let him go.
Belinda could not bear to look at Qiang. I pulled out a metal pipe from a cabinet in the corner of the basement and handed it to Belinda.
Jeff : take it…. TAKE IT!!
Belinda shivered as she held onto the pipe.
Jeff : Look at him…. Look at him in his eye…
Qiang : NO!!! NO!! FUCK! NO!!!! please… please NO!!!1 fuck please !!!!NO!!!!
Belinda took a step closer to QIang but his voice got louder. His pleas sounded more desperate.
He started telling us about his mother back home. That he’s the sole bread winner. He has a old grandmother to take care off. His only brother is going to the university.
Qiang : FOR FUCK SAKE PLEASE !!! PLEASE!!! NO!!!
Jeff : Very nice story no ? … huh ??
I nudged Belinda forward but her body resisted my push.
Jeff : did he think of the girls’ life when Ricky and him did what they did ? …. Did they… ?
I nudged Belinda again and I could feel her body pushing back harder.
Jeff : Go on…. Do it…
Belinda : I…i…
Jeff : Why ? …. You expect your targets to be all old men…. Half dead…. With a pacer in their heart?? … do you… ?
Belinda : I….i just…
I walked in front of Belinda and I forced her to look at me.
Belinda : I…I…
Jeff ; Look at me…. Look at me when I’m talking to you….
When she raised her head, I could see she was on the verge of tears.
Jeff : Of all the things you can do in the world…. Why the fuck would you want to do something that only sick people like me do….??
Belinda backed away from me and she dropped the metal pole.
I went over to Qiang who started kicking and trashing.
Qiang ; NO!! NO!! please NO!!! NO!!!
He tried to kick me but his reach was limited by the length of the chain.
I pointed to Billy who remained awfully quiet.
Jeff : Billy you do it…. Owen wanted you to try…
Billy ; What the fuck…. Fuck off… no way….
I turned back to Belinda
Jeff : So how Belinda ? …. You going to do it or not….
She was literally shaking where she stood.
I went around Qiang and I put my arms around his head, securing it in a vise like grip in my arms and I slowly exerted my strength. Qiang started crying, he pissed in his pants.
Jeff : Look at him…Belinda… I want you to look at him…. LOOK AT HIM!!!
Tears streak down her cheeks as she forced herself to look at Qiang.
Jeff : Look at him fight for his life…if you can keep your eyes on him until it’s over I’ll tell Owen you did it…. I’ll tell him it’s you… he’ll clear you for the next stage…. So LOOK AT HIM!!!
Qiang : arGHH!!! argUUU!!! UGHH!!!
The choking sound that Qiang was emitting was too much for Billy to stomach.
Billy : I… I can’t look at this…. I’ll go check on the girls…
Qiang’s shoes fell from his feet as I kept up my hold around his neck. His feet pushed and dislodged the bedsheets from the thin mattress.
I could feel the fight in him slowly draining away.
Belinda forced herself to look at us but the tears never stopped flowing from her eyes.
Suddenly her hand went to her mouth and the dinner we had a few hours ago came gushing out in between her fingers.
The acidic smell of her stomach’s content filled the poorly ventilated basement.
I eased up on Qiang and let him go. He gagged as he choked on his own attempt to suck in air, going into a coughing fit immediately.
I walked slowly over to Belinda and asked her to clean up the mess together with the embassy’s team.
I helped Belinda off the floor.
Belinda : I’m… I’m sorry… i.. I can’t…
Jeff : It’s ok…. It’s what make us human…. It’s normal…. Not all of us are cut out for this…
I tapped her twice on her shoulder and went back up to the room.
Billy : I’m going to wipe the hardisk and security footages…
Jeff : ok…
The team at the embassy arrived just before 1am in the morning.
A doctor checked on the frail girl we rescued from the basement and told us she’s fine. Will probably need a few nights stay in the hospital before she can fly back home.
Doctor : she’s pregnant by the way…. Poor girl….
I asked him to take a look at Xuehua and he told me she will sleep it off. Just make sure she hydrates herself when she wakes up.
By 3am. The team wrapped up their work at the hotel. Ricky’s body and Qiang were loaded up and sent away. Billy wiped everything in the security footages.
Belinda’s contact at the embassy told us that they will send someone over in the morning to take over the hotel.
17th July 2013
Wednesday
4.45am
I sat with Billy and Belinda at the lounge with a few cans of beer from the convenient stall down the road.
Everyone was quiet as we waited for the sun to rise.
Belinda : I erm… I’m sorry Jeff….
Jeff : it’s ok… I’m glad you didn’t do it…
Belinda : guess I’m…. I’m better off being an operator…
Jeff : hahaha…
7.30am
A lady from the embassy arrived and she will be taking over the hotel.
Xuehua is still out cold.
We packed up and a car sent us to another hotel closer to town.
10am
By the time Xuehua woke up at 10am, she has a splitting headache and in a really bad mood.
Xuehua : what the fuck happened man…arghhhh… I have a fucking headache…
Jeff : You …ermm.. you were out cold…
Xuehua : don’t give me that bullshit… I almost became a doctor…. The symptoms I’m experiencing… it’s drug induced…. Did you fucking try to date rape me ??
Jeff : What ? … why would I do that ??
Xuehua massaged her head as she buried her face in her hand.
Xuehua : How would I know…? Maybe it’s a fetish of yours or something.. !
I went over and hugged Xuehua and told her it’s not what happened.
Xuehua : then what exactly happened….
I told her a condensed version of what happened, that I realised the wine was spiked and I confronted the hotel owners. It was a gift from them.
Jeff : We discovered cameras in the room… they wanted to take a video of us having sex and sell it on the internet …
Xuehua :what the fuck !…
Jeff : Don’t worry… it’s all taken care off… we called the police.. and everything’s taken care off…
Xuehua : are you sure ?? !!
Jeff : yeah.. yeah… 100%….
Xuehua : Oh god… I can’t imagine a video of me sucking your dick on the internet…
Jeff : hahahah …
It took a bit of coaxing but eventually Xuehua came around. I even told her I’m skipping the trade show just for her. Billy and Belinda will be able to handle what needs to be done.
The next few days were one of the best days of my life.
I dropped everything in my mind and just enjoyed myself with Xuehua.
I have never felt this level of carefreeness in along time.
Not since I was a child and running about in the camp free from the responsibilities of being an adult.
Xuehua and I fucked of course. We fucked like rabbits in heat. We exhausted a box of condoms and on the last day, we went at it raw.
Even right before we left for the airport, we were fucking in front of the mirror with her moaning at the top of her voice.
Xuehua looked visibly embarrassed when Billy commented en route to the airport that the sound proofing in hotel these days are not as good as they used to be.
20th July 2013
Saturday
10pm
We landed in Singapore and instead of heading home, I went direct to Xuehua’s place.
We needed to fuck again.
22nd July 2013
Monday
9.30am
I gave Owen the project report and I told him I wanted to meet.
That I needed to talk to him urgently, but he told me he’s busy.
He said he will get back to me the moment he settles the issues at hand.
I tried to reach Owen everyday.
Everyday.
Every single fucking day for the next 2 weeks. He responded to all my calls, to all my messages but he is too busy to meet me.
He asked if we can do this over the phone and I said I prefer to do it face to face.
I don’t want to jump to conclusions, maybe it’s just me missing something, I want to settle this with Owen personally. I will know if he is lying.
I even got Billy and Belinda to try and reach Owen with a variety of reasons, but he’s not free to meet them either.
There are really no new projects for us so I spent my time with Xuehua instead, working out a routine.
I stay over at her place every Wednesday & Friday, Weekends it depends if she’s available.
Sometimes she wants to meet her classmates for drawings and paintings.
Xuehua started to show up less at the chicken rice stall too.
In fact I think I saw her only about twice a week at Eddy’s stall. It’s ok with me.
I don’t mind not seeing her at the stall. I get to see her at her place.
One of the most arousing thing I did was to help Xuehua get panty liners. I did it with a hardon throughout.
Xuehua : you keep shooting inside…. Keep leaking out the whole day !!
9 August 2013
Friday
4pm
I was about to head to the gym before I go meet Xuehua for dinner that Friday when I received the call.
Owen’s call.
Owen : Gear up… location over to you in 5mins.
I felt my heartrate go up several notch.
After a few weeks of doing nothing and just pure fucking with Xuehua, I was not ready for this.
I waited for the location and it arrived on my phone 5 minutes later.
I checked the map for the location and was surprised to see that It’s a construction site opposite a school.
A school in a new estate in the north of the island.
It’s a new estate and surrounded by construction sites.
The school is completed but not occupied yet. Owen wants me to be that at 11pm .
There goes my date with Xuehua.
I dropped her a text to let her know I’m going to be heading to Malaysia for some urgent work meeting and that I would see her tomorrow.
10pm
I geared up and took a slow drive to the meeting spot.
It’s not too late to talk to Owen.
I arrived at the carpark and I was the only one there.
I opened my boot and exhaled.
Slipping on my body armour, I checked my sharpened knife and secured it to the back of my waist.
I took out both pistols I got from the armoury. Looking around the empty carpark, I cocked the weapons and put it to safe mode.
I put the Sig behind me , within reach of my right hand.
I adjusted the position, making sure it was comfortable for me to grab it.
The other on went to a holster under my left arm. I threw on a jacket and checked my balaclava in the car mirror.
I heard footsteps behind me and within a split second, my Sig was out and pointed at that direction. The man had his palms up. He’s one of Owen’s men.
He did not say anything. He passed a earpiece and a small device the size of a lighter to me and told me to tune in to channel 6.
Jeff : Where’s Owen ?
He shrugged his shoulders and backed away after putting the stuff down on the boot of my car.
I put the earpiece on and turned in to Channel 6.
Jeff : Comms check.
Owen’s voice came on almost immediately.
Owen : Hibiki is online…. Procees to south staircase of the school across the road…
Jeff : Boss we need to…
Owen : Not now Hibiki… not now…
I cursed under my breath and I made sure the roads are clear before dashing across the road.
Owen told whoever is listening that his men have blocked off the roads.
Owen : We are 1 man short…. The moment he’s here, we can finish this… Hold position.
My senses are on high alert as I got to the staircase I was assigned to.
I could see staircases on all 4 corners of the building. There’s one more leading up to a hall in the centre.
Suddenly I heard Butcher’s voice in my earpiece.
Butcher : who is late boss ? …. There’s mosquitoes here…
Iron : You have plenty for them to suck on…
Butcher : oh yeah… you can suck on mine if you like….
Iron : hahah… oh boy… I hope you don’t get in my way….
Owen : Shut the fuck up ….. Raptor is online…
Iron : Oh… the fastest one is late …. Maybe he’s getting slow… hahah…
Owen : shut the fuck up Iron or I’m going cut your share…
Iron : oppsie… hahaha
The banter in my ear is just background noises to me.
My eyes scanned the immediate area around me. Owen sounded worried.
Owen : Comms check…Raptor… ?
Raptor : I’m in position… central courtyard…
I could see Raptor walking casually towards the staircase like a boss. He held a large knife in his hand and he rested one foot 2 steps up.
Owen : Iron ?
Iron :Yeah yeah …
Owen : Butcher ?
Butcher : I’m here… I don’t do pregnant woman and kids boss…. But if gourmet gets his hands on them first… I figure it would be an act of mercy if I do…
Owen : Shut up… !
Butcher : hahahha
Owen : Gourmet ?? …
Gourmet : In position…. North stairwell…
The nervousness in Owen’s voice is unsettling.
Owen : Hibiki ?
Jeff : I’m here…
Owen : ok listen up…. Intel suggests that Aiko is hold up on the top floor… she is alone… her daughter is not here….take care of her…make it quick…… don’t listen to anything she might have to say….. we do not negotiate with terrorists….
Another voice joined the channel we were in and instinctively my right hand went behind my back and touched the grip of my knife.
Instead of waiting at the ground floor, I thread slowly upwards to the 2nd floor and peered out into the empty corridor.
It was a low eerie laugh.
Everyone went quiet immediately.
No one spoke.
The laughter continued.
I could not make out whether the laugh belonged to a male or female. The person spoke through something that distorted their true voice.
Voice : haha… lies…. What a bunch of lies…. Your boss…. Is lying…hahhaa…. Are you sure you are following the right man ?…
I backtracked down to the ground floor and did a visual check of the surroundings.
The technology we are using is supposed to be secured. There’s no way you can just hack your way in.
There are no amateurs on site. My colleagues knew better than to communicate with the mysterious voice.
Owen spoke 2 seconds later.
Owen : Switch channel… Bravo 21… out…
I applied the algorithm we committed to heart during training and switched the channel to 35 after applying Owen’s given figure.
Owen : Comms check.
All 5 of us replied one after another. There were no more teasing.
No more bantering.
Owen : Stay focus… Aiko is not alone… there might be other terrorists on site….
The voice appeared again in the same channel we just switched to.
My heart started beating faster.
This is impossible.
Voice : lies….lies…. and more lies…. Haha.. the only terrorist….is you…..Fernando….
Owen : Comms are not secured, I repeat…. Comms are not secured…. Proceed with caution….
The peace of the night was shattered by the piercing sound of the public announcement system.
It echoed through the school compound.
Voice : All of you …… have been lied to…deceived… and manipulated…. Walk away….. … you’ve been warned…. or I will….. kill you
The silence in my earpiece was suddenly punctuated by Butcher’s laughter.
Butcher : This guy has a sense of humour… hahhaa…
Iron : I agree with you for once hahaha… who the fuck does he think he is… hahaha…
Gourmet : Let’s get this over and done with…. Proceed with sweep from ground up…. We meet at the top….
I was about to put a step forward when I heard the voice declared publicly over the PA system.
I felt a tingle of excitement in my veins.
I felt alive.
I felt aroused. I could almost feel an erection building up in my pants and I am sure my colleagues felt the same way.
This is an opportunity of a lifetime. I exhaled as my right hand left the grip of my knife and went for that of the Sig.
I could feel the rush of endorphins as my senses peaked in the quiet of the night.
Voice : My name is Jane…… and I look forward…… to meeting all of you….
There was a 5 second break of silence before Butcher’s low growling laughter filled my ears.
Butcher : hahahahahahahahahahahaha……. She’s mine……hahahahahaha … she’s fucking mine…. Hahahahah
My weapon is up as I took 2 steps up the stairs at a time to reach level 2.
I started my sweep of the 1st classroom.
Clear.
There’s no way to know for sure if the person is bluffing his or her way through.
I was about to head back out to the corridor when the tranquillity of the new estate was shattered once again. The unmistakable sound of a high-powered assault rifle opened up on the 3rd floor.
Glass shattered and I could see the stray tracer rounds lighting up the skies. Chunks of concrete chipped off freshly painted walls. The muzzle flashes of the rifle illuminated the dark classrooms momentarily.
Butcher : hahaha.. hahaha… come on baby …come on !!! Hahahaha…
The repetitive screams of the bullets piercing through the air kept coming until Butcher emptied his magazine.
Butcher : hahaha… I have her….. I have her… hahahahahaha !!!
I gripped my gun tighter as I swept my field of vision.
I could hear the metallic grind of Butcher’s cleaver against the metal railings as sparks flew along the path he was running.
Butcher : stop running !! hahaha…hahaha come and meet my cleaver…..hahaha..hahaha…
I skipped my level 2 and ran straight up to level 3 but there were no signs of any actions on that floor. I forced myself to calm down and I moved along the darkened classrooms.
I heard a groan, followed but the choking voice of someone over my comms.
That was a gagging sound. Like someone was choking on something.
“ ergnhh!!! aRGHHK! GREKKK!! KKKEEEEE!!! KERGGGG!!!! aRKGHHHHH!!!!!eRGHH!!!! “
I continued my sweep across the corridor and stopped at the north stairwell.
It was clear.
WHAM !!!!!!!!!
The loud slam felt like someone had thrown a piano off a high-rise building.
I ran to the balcony and I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand on it’s neck.
I blinked a few times.
I could not believe what I was seeing.
That body mass, that muscled torso.
I could see the twitching body of Butcher on the ground.
I can’t see his face. Not because he’s still wearing his mask, but because his head is gone.
Iron : what ………the ………fuck….
The school went quiet.
There were absolutely no movements at all.
Not a single sound.
Then I heard it.
I heard the only sound my ears could pick up.
And I’m fucking sure my colleagues are hearing the same thing.
The metallic grind of butcher’s cleaver over our earpiece.
……………………………………………………………
I pushed myself back from the railing and pointed my weapon back down the dark corridor.
My heart has never beat this fast before. Not when I’m on a project.
I’m feeling something different.
It’s not just the excitement running through my veins.
The anticipation of meeting Jane went up several notch. There is something new I’m feeling as well.
Fear.
It’s weird.
I know I’m afraid but I’m looking forward to it.
Owen : What is going on ?? What is the status ?
Iron : Butcher is dead…
Owen : What the..
Sounds of gunshots rang out from Owen’s side of the intercom. I could hear the muted shots of small calibre weapons being fired from outside the school compound.
3 seconds later Owen told us to bail out.
Owen ; Abort… get yourself out of there…. Get out… !! Our location has been compromise….
Owen wanted everyone to leave and wait for further instructions but none of us moved.
No way.
Our ego is too big to walk away from this.
Not when one of us has been killed.
Not when we have that one chance to proof once and for all who is the best among all of us.
Owen : get out !!… I want all of you to get out !!
Iron : hahaha…alright… see you in a while Owen…
The sound of gunfire got more intense outside the school compound. Jane is not working alone. There’s no way she can be at 2 places at once.
I turned a corner and came face to face with Gourmet. My left hand deflected a stab from his dagger the same time he pushed my gun away from his face.
We gave each other a scare and there is no hiding that.
We could both see it in our eyes.
Gourmet : where is she ?
Jeff : I don’t know…
A series of loud clashes came from 2 floors above us.
Gourmet and I immediately started running up the steps.
I could hear Raptor over the comms.
Raptor : argHHH!! …erghh!!! Fuck !..
This was followed by a loud crash before the labored breath of Raptor came on again.
Gourmet and I arrived at the 5th floor to see Raptor on his fours trying to work his way out from a tangled mess of tables.
Gourmet did not stop, he kept running towards the only direction Jane could have gone.
There is only 1 more staircase at the end of the corridor.
Raptor pulled up part of his balaclava, exposing his bloodied mouth.
He coughed and spit out blood and a chipped piece of his tooth.
I heard him cursed slightly under his breath.
Raptor : Fuck…. She’s fast…
Jeff : Are you ok ?
He nodded as he replaced his mask and climbed onto his feet.
I went after Gourmet , stopping shy of the 90 degree turn into the staircase.
My mind was filled with what I just heard Raptor say.
She’s fast .
The supposedly fastest guy in the company saying that Jane is fast.
I could feel myself on the verge of an orgasm.
If Jane is as good as they say she is, I’m looking forward to meeting her.
I turned and did a sweep of the staircase. There was no one in sight.
I kept my body against the wall and walked sideways down.
There’s no sign of my other colleagues either.
Jane is not stupid. She’s dividing us up and taking us out one by one. It’s the rationale thing to do.
Let’s not forget the selfishness inside each one of us.
All of us want the kill for ourselves. Imagine the bragging rights.
Just imagine being able to declare you are the one that took out Jane.
Another loud commotion pierced the silent night and I could hear Iron grunting on the ground floor.
I saw her.
I saw Jane.
She’s dressed in black, exactly the same manner in which we were dressed.
Her Balaclava alone is enough to leave a permanent scar in the minds of kids if they see it.
The black fabric of her mask is illuminated around the eye sockets. You know those glow in the dark stars you stick in your bedroom for some glow in the dark fun ?
Jane’s mask had a row of stiches glowing in the same manner.
Imagine watching a horror show with a woman that had her eyelid sewn shut, only the string used is glowing in the dark, like 2 monstrous slit.
Her mask extended backwards and I could see a budge that presumably catered for her hair.
There are no loose pony tail flying around. It’s all tied up and hidden within the mask itself.
As if the devil himself had made the mask, 2 spiked horns about 5cm long extended near her forehead.
Unlike the simple construct of the mask I used, Jane’s mask is a work of art.
A work by a very sick individual.
Tapering down her neck is a collar that held the whole mask together.
Iron : aRGHHH !! HEEERRR!!!!
Iron punched hard, driving his knuckle duster and it’s attached dagger in the direction of Jane.
She ducked most of the attempts. She’s really fast.
On her left hand, I could see the butcher’s cleaver.
Iron was punching the air most of the time. With his build and size, it would all be over for Jane if he got his hands on her.
Iron’s brute strength is no match for Jane’s agility.
Within seconds, she broke off the engagement and disappeared down the hallway.
Iron gave chase and he too disappeared into the dark.
I brought my weapon back up and heading in the direction where the action was. Then out of nowhere, I saw a dark figure jump down to the ground floor from the 2nd.
Like a seasoned parkour player, Jane dropped silently onto the ground, rolling to a stop about 30 metres away from me.
Our eyes met and I saw her tilt her head sideways as if saying she has yet to engage me before.
Fuck the knife. This is not a Hollywood show where you need to drag the run time for a physical fight.
I squeezed the trigger, sending lead through the air where Jane is.
Jeff : Fuck me…
I did not remain stationary, with each round I squeezed, I marched forward towards Jane.
Jane literally rolled and did a full somersault in mid air before diving into the back of a concrete column.
My magazine holds 10 rounds, I counted 6 shots which leaves me with 4.
I saw Jane attempt to switch her cover on the right and I sent another round over, the hot lead chipping off a small chunk of concrete and plaster.
3 more rounds in my magazine.
I closed the distance between her and myself to 20 metres.
I saw her foot extend out and I placed another shot, cursing as her foot retracted right before I squeezed off.
2 more rounds.
What happened next took me by surprise.
Jane rolled out from the bottom of the concrete column and started shooting at me.
The whistle of the bullet followed by the cracking sound of it breaking the sound barrier ringed closed to my ears.
I saw 3 muzzle flashes before I fell backwards to the ground.
The 3rd shot hit me by the side of my waist, grazing pass my body armour but the impact was enough to knock me off balance.
I fell and I knew there was no time to lose, I immediately reached for my knife and brought it up in time for the serrated edge of my friend to meet the sharpened cleaver that used to belong to Butcher.
Jane was right in front of me.
Her right hand swung her pistol towards my head but I knocked her off her feet with my right leg.
The speed at which she regained her balance is frightening, almost like a spring wound to it’s limits of tension, bouncing back with each push.
Jane kept her distance and disappeared back into the dark within warning.
Before I could get on my feet I heard footsteps behind me and Gourmet appeared.
He was panting.
Gourmet : you got shot ?
Jeff : I was wearing body armour…
Gourmet : fuck… I should have taken that from the armoury….
Gourmet’s weapon of choice is both a knife and a fork.
Unlike the fork you use for your steak, Gourmet’s fork is a foot long. A mean piece of hardened steel splitting into 2 at the end like the forked tongue of a poisonous serpent. Gourmet’s knife is like a carving blade with 2 colours. The cutting edge is in blood red while the rest of it extending to the handle is made of stone.
He’s the last person you would want to dine with for sure.
Gourmet gave chase into the dark and silence once again filled the school compound.
I went up to level 2 and kept my ears open. I could hear rapid footsteps running about above me.
I spoke into the intercom to warn my colleagues about Jane’s pistol.
Hibiki : Jane is armed…. Fired 3 shots…
There was commotion on the 4th floor again before Gourmet updated the rest of us.