Enjoy!!

Chapter 6

“What did you say?” Jax asked, stepping closer to Brenda. It looked as if
she was in physical pain at his nearness. He took a step back. “What’s
happened to you?” he asked, the urgency on his voice. “Why are you acting
this way? What are you afraid of, Brenda?”
“I’m not afraid of anything!” Brenda said defiantly, and then writhing in
pain. Jax went to her at once, but suddenly remembered he wasn’t to touch
her.
“Are you in pain?” Jax asked, stuffing his hands into his pockets,
because he didn’t know what else to do with them.
“As if you’d care,” Brenda said. “Just leave, please. I’m so tired, and I
really can’t deal with you right now. Besides, aren’t you supposed to be in
training?” Jax nodded, his breathing rapidly increasing at the sight of her in
pain. “Don’t worry about me, just get out of here. Take care of yourself, Jax,
and for your own good, forget you saw me here like this.”
“What do you mean?” Jax asked, his attention being turned to the
warning bell from the elevator, signaling that it would soon reach the floor
they were on. “Are they doing something to you? Brenda, did you contract
this disease on a mission to Nigeria?” Brenda remained silent, giving him only
a vacant stare. Before Jax could ask her anything else, the doors opened, and
Davis cautiously stepped off. She glanced at the doctor who was sitting in a
far corner of the room, typing furiously on a computer. He would have given
her a look or some sort of signal if anything inappropriate had happened.
Satisfied, Davis turned her attention to Jax.
“I know that I told you an hour, but we’re ready for you now.”
“Couldn’t I have a few more moments alone with her?” Jax asked.
Davis’ movements indicated that it was not up for debate. She turned and
took her place on the elevator, waiting for Jax to take his place beside her. He
sighed and glanced back at Brenda, who was still staring vacantly at him. For
a moment, Jax imagined that she had passed out, and that there was nothing
behind the eyes staring back at him. But just as the doors closed in front of
him, and his eyes remained locked on Brenda’s face, he noticed a single tear
slide down her face.
Inside the elevator, Jax sank to his knees and sighed deeply, cursing
under his breath. Davis showed no signs of concern, and when Jax stood up
again, he looked at her and stated plainly, “I’m not sure I can do this.”
“You can,” Davis countered, “and you will.” She then motioned to the
room that he had seen from above earlier, on the catwalk. Several small
classes were going on all over the room. People were typing away on rows of
computers, some people were practicing fighting moves on one another, and
some were in the corners of the room, engaged in peaceful meditation, and
Tai-chi, oblivious to the world around them. Jax couldn’t imagine what the
next to years would be like, but he really hoped he could meet with the
challenge.
He went into his first lesson into the martial arts with a lot of energy,
conviction, and focus. He did exceptionally well, as Davis had assured his
sensei. In just one day, he had mastered several moves that would be
beneficial to him one day. By the end of the day though, he was exhausted.
He was running on a tread mill, and had been for the past thirty minutes. He
wasn’t sure how fast he was running, but he already knew that he had
covered more than a few miles. His heart felt like it was going to burst, but
his instructor told him to keep on running. Jax was hooked up to several
monitors as he ran, and his breathing was becoming labored. He didn’t
remember when he had worked so hard in his entire life. Out of nowhere,
the machine monitoring his heart began to go off, and his instructor told him
to get off and that he was done for the day. Jax stopped running and allowed
himself to move backwards until he was off the tread mill. He grasped his
knees with his hands, and bent forward, trying to calm himself. He was sure
he was going to have a heart attack, he could hear the blood rushing through
his veins.
A blonde woman appeared next to him suddenly, and handed him a
towel and bottled water.
“Thank you,” Jax rasped out. The young woman nodded.
“I know how you feel.” She glanced at the reading and let out a low
whistle. “That’s pretty impressive. I didn’t reach your level until I was here
six months, and you did that on the first day? I can see why they recruited
you.” Jax liked this woman instantly.
“What’s your name?” he asked, when he could manage the words.
“My name is Carly,” she said.
“That’s a nice name. Do you know--do you know a woman, she’s an
operative here, Brenda Barrett?” Recognition crossed Carly’s face, but she
didn’t say anything to Jax.
“I’ve got to get back to my station,” she said, motioning to what Davis
had referred to as comm. “I’ll be over there, see you around, take care of
yourself.”
“Sure, thanks,” Jax said, watching her go. She was young. So was nearly
everyone in here, except for Davis, who actually wasn’t much older than Jax.
He knew that there had to be more people involved than those around him at
the moment. If the Agency had been there for decades, and he was sure it
had, then there had to be some people more invested in this, unless they kept
getting rid of people in order to keep their secret. Still, there had to be some
veterans in the Agency, right?
“You’ve done well today,” a voice said from behind him. Jax turned to
face her.
“Do all of you people do that?” Jax asked. “Sneak up on people?”
“Whenever I can,” the woman said, smiling at him and chuckling
merrily. Jax was surprised at her demeanor. She seemed, dare he say it,
normal. She extended her hand, not for a shake, but for a kiss and Jax was
more than happy to oblige. He was looking at an extremely beautiful woman.
She appeared to be in her mid 30s, and had thick long brown hair. She had a
shapely figure, and a small waist, and she reached slightly above Jax’s
shoulder. She smiled and her eyes crinkled in an adorable way when Jax
lifted his lips from her skin and smiled back at her. “Very good. I was told
you already excelled in manners.”
“But you’re here to give me even more of a lesson?” Jax hypothesized.
“You would be correct in your assumptions,” the woman said. “My
name is Taylor Hayes-Forrestor, and I’m in charge of training here in the
Agency. I train all of our operatives in every rule of etiquette. I am glad to see
that I won’t have to start at the beginning with you.”
“My mother sought to that,” Jax offered, the memory of Lady Jane
sneaking up on him. He was surprised to feel the way that he did. Somehow,
even though she was still living, he felt as if he had lost her, as if he would
never see her again. Taylor registered the note of sadness that came across
his face and gave his hand a gentle squeeze.
“I know that you are finding adjusting difficult. Everyone does when
they first get here. So did I.”
“How long have you been with the Agency?” Jax asked, feeling
somehow that she would be more forthcoming.
“Several years now,” Taylor admitting. “Going on ten very soon.” She
continued, and answered Jax’s question as if reading his mind. “Most of the
people you’ll meet down here have only been with the Agency five years or
less. But once you make yourself familiar with the other levels and Agencies,
you’ll see that many of us have been with the Agency for decades.”
“There’s more than one Agency?” Jax asked.
“Certainly,” Taylor said, smiling. “Now then, if you’re done with your
questions,” something told Jax she didn’t care if he was or not, “go and
shower and change, and then meet me back here. We’ll go to my class rooms,
and see what you know, and if there’s anything left for me to teach you. I
hope that there is.” With that, she sauntered away, and Jax got an eyeful as
she left. He just shook his head and smiled. He was going to be working with
quite a group of characters.
He showered and changed quickly, surprising himself at how fast he
got from one place to another. He took a moment to think on the elevator
ride down. He had no intention of staying in this place longer than absolutely
necessary. He’d play their little games, agree to whatever they said, and they
would make Brenda well. And he didn’t care how long it took, how many
years, he’d make them believe he was totally on their side, and the moment
they let their guards down, he would get out with Brenda, and they’d
disappear, to where no one could find them, not even the Agency.
The elevator doors opened, and Jax returned to the spot he had been
standing in about a half an hour before. Taylor appeared just moments after
he did.
“Right on time,” she said, her voice breathy and relaxed, not at all like
Davis’. He extended his arm to her, as any gentleman would, plastered on a
smile, and let her lead the way to her offices. If there was one thing he could
tell from this woman, besides being exceptionally beautiful with her tanned
skin and full lips, she was very good at her job. She flirted shamelessly within
the bonds on professionalism, and she was all business. Like everyone else he
had met so far, except for Carly, every statement, every move was calculated.
She escorted Jax to table, where they simulated a dinner, and she threw every
rule at him that she could think of, but Jax had been used to dining with
contessas, princes and princesses, rulers of countries, there wasn’t a piece of
silverware he was uncomfortable with, not a scenario she could propose that
he wasn’t able to think quickly on, and resolve in an extremely dignified way.
He could tell that she was extremely thrown, she hadn’t expected him to be
so prepared.
“Well,” she said, clearing her throat, and getting up. “Excuse me for a
moment, won’t you?” Jax stood immediately and said quietly,
“Of course, please.” Taylor nodded and smiled, and walked to her desk.
She looked in a thin black book and ran her finger down the page, mentally
checking things off of her list for Jasper Jacks. She reached the bottom of the
list, and then smiled, tapping the page lightly with a bright red, perfectly
manicured nail. Taylor had perched herself on the corner of her desk and
crossed her legs. She easily got off and walked over to a candle that was on
top of a nearby bookcase. Taylor cupped her hand around the flame, looked
at Jax from the corner of her eye as he looked on, intrigued, and then she
softly blew out the candle.
The room was shrouded in darkness for about ten seconds, and when
the light returned once again, Taylor startled him by already being right by his
side, looking up at him and smiling. The wall that had been previously in
front of them had now disappeared, and was replaced with rows and rows of
racks of clothing.
“Attire for any occasion,” Taylor said, motioning to the rows and rows
of clothing. “Pick out something nice for yourself, black tie affair. Very
formal.” Jax nodded and proceeded to search through the clothes.
“Will there be something in my size?”
“Of course,” Taylor said, her back to him, as she went to sit down at her
desk. She watched him for a few moments, and when he disappeared among
some of the clothes, she picked up her phone, a direct connection to Davis’
office.
“Hello,” Davis said.
“It’s Taylor,” she said. “He’s done remarkably well. What I thought
would take days took hours. Where on earth did you find him? I’ve never met
a man so refined.”
“I told you he was special,” Davis said, letting her emotions peek
through for once. Taylor was surprised to hear Davis so enthusiastic about an
operative. She never had before.
“There’s only been one other person to come through here with such
lovely manners without my tutelage,” Taylor commented. “And that was
Brenda. You told me there was a connection, but did they know each other?”
Taylor asked.
“They did,” Davis answered. “They were friends, best friends, lovers,
and then several times husband and wife.” Taylor nodded.
“They do fit and compliment each other well. If he’s as good as I think
he will be, you could do wonders with him, Alexis,” Taylor said, taking a
liberty few people in the Agency had, and called Davis by her first name.
“I’m very proud of him,” Davis answered. “You’ll keep me informed on
his status, won’t you?”
“Of course,” Taylor said. “Though there isn’t much to tell. I know you
must be going over his schedule, and much as I’d like to spend more time
with him, there’s just no reason for it. He’s not going to learn much of
anything else with me. I’ll need one more lesson, just to cover things no one
outside the Agency would know, and other than that, you can clear the days
he was scheduled to meet with me.” Davis nodded to herself, making notes
on Jax’s file.
“That’s fine, thank you,” Davis said.
“You have an incredible man here,” Taylor said. “Don’t ruin him,
Davis.” With that, Taylor hung up the phone as Jax reappeared before her
eyes, looking as gorgeous as ever. He put a hand in his pocket and angled his
head to the side, the only posing necessary to show off his attire. Taylor
stood and clapped quietly. “Very nice,” she said, nodding. “Very nice.”
“Thank you,” Jax said. Taylor moved closer to him, making slight,
unnecessary adjustments to his tie and collar.
“You’ve done exceptionally well,” she said, looking up at him. “I
expected to take longer with you, but you have exceeded my expectations.
Our sessions have been shortened significantly, we only have one more day.”
“Oh, I am sorry,” Jax said, truly sorry he would no longer be in this
woman’s company. She seemed to be one of the few genuine ones. Taylor
angled her head to the side.
“Forgive me if I don’t believe you,” she said. “I’m sure you consider me
as what, a glorified madam?”
“Now you’ve given me no reason to think that,” Jax said, “but I’m sure
there are some operatives who come to you and need lessons in how to,
behave,” Jax said slowly, emphasizing the word.
“It’s true,” Taylor said, “that some women, and men, need a little fine
tuning. The gift of beauty is an incredible one, Jax. Brenda, now she
understood that. She was a rare gem, that one. One of my best students. She
knew almost more than I did.”
“You knew Brenda?” Jax asked, hope gleaming in his eyes. “I mean, I
know you knew her, but did you really know her?”
“We got to be good friends,” Taylor said, leading Jax back to their table.
“You must know that she loved you a great deal,” Taylor ventured, after
pausing for a few moments. Jax raised his eyebrows at her statement.
“Loved?” Jax asked. “That’s an interesting choice of words. What do
you mean?”
“You have to understand,” Taylor said, “that she thought you would
never find her. She thought you’d never know she was alive. Otherwise,
she’d never have agreed. She was trying to save her own life, because she
didn’t think you could.” A thousand questions were running through Jax’s
mind.
“What do you mean?” He asked. Before Taylor could answer, Davis
appeared in the doorway.
“Well,” she said, coming over to the table and smiling down on Jax and
Taylor, “I hear that you two have had a very productive lesson.”
“We have,” Taylor said, standing, and kissing Davis delicately on one
cheek, and then the other.
“It’s been a while,” Davis said, making small talk that it was painfully
obvious she did not want to make.
“Well you know that my business in London kept me away for a few
months, but it’s good to be back.” Davis nodded, not really paying any
attention to what Taylor was saying.
“Well then,” Davis sighed, “We’ll be going.”
“Of course,” Taylor said. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Jax.”
“Yes,” Jax said, “definitely tomorrow. And thank you for everything,
Taylor. I know you don’t think so, but I’ve learned a lot from you.” Taylor
nodded and kissed Jax on one cheek, and then the other. When he kissed her
on one cheek, he whispered quickly into her ear, “I look forward to learning
even more.” Then he stopped to kiss her hand, and said, “Until tomorrow.”
Jax didn’t see Davis’ warning glance that she tossed at Taylor. Taylor just
nodded once again, and sighed as Jax finally let go of her hand and left with
Davis.
“Why did you interrupt?” Jax asked, once they were on the floor his
room was located on. He glanced at a watch that Taylor had given him. He
knew it was late, and all it took was him seeing the lateness of the hour, to
grow tired. He yawned, and as he did this, Davis didn’t answer him. He
maintained her pace, and asked her again. “I said, why did you interrupt?”
“Your time was up,” Davis answered casually. “It was time.”
“So what is Taylor, exactly?” Jax asked.
“She’s a teacher, and an operative,” Davis answered. “But she rarely
goes out on missions. We only use her for special occasions. Her only other
job is to teach operatives everything they need to know about dressing
appropriately, etiquette, style, grace, all of the things which Taylor exudes, in
case you hadn’t noticed.”
“Oh, I noticed all right,” Jax said, when they had reached his door.
“You must be tired, have a good night’s sleep. You need it, I can tell.”
“Yes, I do,” Jax said, noting the ache in all of his muscles, especially his
back, arms and thighs. “I learned a lot today, but I’m still not sure I’m up to
the task you’ve set before me.”
“An attitude of optimism,” Davis said, walking away, “is half the battle.
Get some rest, Mr. Jacks.” She disappeared behind a corridor, and Jax opened
the door, pretending to go in. He waited a few moments, and then left his
room again, heading down the hallway he’d just come from. He wanted to
get back to Taylor before she left her office. He knew that she must have a
suite as nice as his, everyone in the Agency with a position of power must
have one, he thought to himself. He found the room easily, but when he tried
the knob, it wouldn’t budge. He saw that there were no motion sensors
anywhere around her door.
Jax noticed then, a small camera with a button just below it. He
pressed it, taking a chance that Davis wouldn’t be inside. He was relieved
when he saw that she wasn’t. Taylor was sitting at her desk, writing
diligently. She raised her head at the sound of a low bell ringing throughout
the room. She looked straight ahead at her monitor, and then smiled to
herself before getting up and answering the door. Jax was once again taken
aback at how beautiful she was.
“You shouldn’t be here,” she said. “Go back to your room, good night.”
She tried to close the door, but Jax gently blocked her path.
“Please,” he said, “I only wanted to ask you a few more questions about
Brenda. You seemed so willing to talk to me,” Jax pleaded with her. “No one
else here is half so forthcoming. I already feel as though I can trust you.
Won’t you please tell me what you meant by all that you said?”
“If I do, it’ll mean both our deaths,” she said under her breath. “Now
I’m going to give you a piece of advice. Trust no one but yourself, including
your Brenda. I’m sorry if I got your hopes up. I know how very much you
want to be with her, and how long you’ve waited. You’ll have to wait a while
longer though, you’ve quite a journey ahead of you.” Jax wasn’t satisfied with
her answer, and she knew it. She left the door open, but pressed her hand
slightly against his chest, indicating that he should remain where he was. She
placed whatever she had been writing in a desk and locked the drawer. She
then surveyed the room, hit a small intercom button and called for
‘housekeeping’, and then turned off the light and closed the door behind her,
locking the door. Jax looked at her questioningly. No one else in the Agency
since he’d been there had locked ANY door. He assumed there was so much
security, there was no need. “I like to maintain my privacy,” she said, walking
down the hall.
“You’re going to your room now?” Jax asked, following her. She
nodded. “Perhaps we could talk there?” Jax asked. Taylor pressed the button
for the elevator, and turned to face Jax. She leaned up and placed a soft kiss
on his cheek.
“Good luck,” she said. “You can’t come up with me.” Jax looked
exasperated, and prepared to argue with her, but she held a slender finger to
his lips. “If you ever want or need my help again, you have to do what I say
right now.” With that, she kissed Jax passionately, but briefly on the lips. He
looked a little shocked and taken a back, but he kept his hand slightly resting
on the small of her back. She angled her head to the side and whispered in
his ear, “They are always, always watching. Even when you think they’re not.
There’s nothing more I can say now, and there won’t be anything I can say
EVER, if you don’t do as I say. Now, turn around, go back down this hall, and
go to bed. Believe me when I tell you, it’s all you can do tonight. Goodnight.”
“Good night,” Jax said, watching the elevator doors close.