Hunted

This story is by P.L. Perry and was part of our 2018 Fall Writing Contest. You can find all the writing contest stories here.

HUNTED

Daniela Fabares was humming the U2 song “Beautiful Day” as she walked to the subway. It had been a beautiful day, she thought. She had completed her assignment, met with her handler Andre, and bought two new pairs of Manalo Blahnik shoes and a Louis Vuitton bag that she couldn’t resist. Daniela loved being rich. She loved everything about it. Not only could she buy expensive clothing, but it also afforded her the luxury of owning an apartment in New York, and in Paris and a house in Tuscany.

She noticed she was being followed; and she knew just exactly who it was who was following her. His name was Henry Thompson and he was Agent Louise Mercher’s best friend and the senior member of her team. She ducked into a nearby alleyway and crouched behind a large silver trash can that smelled like rotting meat. She pulled her knife out of a small sheath in her pocket and waited. As expected, he followed her. She leapt to her feet and slit his throat.

As Thompson lay bleeding to death, Daniela snapped photos of him. Afterward, she ran down the stairs to the subway train that would take her to her apartment. Once there, she went into her office. On the wall above her desk, she had a space dedicated to Agent Mercher. Photos of her and her team, her office and home and her family. She jotted down her office address and called a local messenger service to deliver the photos to Agent Mercher. Next, she called Andre.

“Elo?” he answered.

“Elo,” she said with a giggle.

“What’s up?”

“You know how you wanted me to wait for a few days before doing that new job you gave me this afternoon?”

“Yes, I do, why?”

“I need to do it tomorrow and then I need to leave town for a little while.”

“Oh, my sweet Daniela, what is it that you have done?”

“I killed one of Agent Mercher’s team. The man, her friend.”

“Daniela! Why? Why do you do these things?”

“Because I enjoy doing them.” She giggled.

“This is not going to go over well with the powers that be.”

“I can’t worry about that right now. I need to get out of town.”

There was a long pause. “You must do what you must do.”

“Good-bye.”

“Call me when you get to where you’re going.”

She had already hung up the phone and was starting to pack. She would leave right after she took care of Judge Helstrom.

———————————–

Daniela smiled as she stepped over the dead body of Judge Walter Helstrom. She was pleased with how smoothly she had carried out her plans. It was easy. He had fallen for every word she said, and every move she made. He was practically drooling when he invited her to his home.

Whenever Daniela was given an assignment, she would go above and beyond the dossier of information she was provided by Andre and dig up whatever she could find on the person she was hired to eliminate. Inevitably, she would unearth some deep, dark secret that the stupid schlemiel had gone to great lengths to keep hidden. In the case of Judge Walter Helstrom, she discovered that he was a perverted necrophiliac. Armed with that information, Daniela arranged to have the body of a dead woman removed from a nearby mortuary which she staged in a sexual position with Helstrom. Every time she looked at the pair, she couldn’t help but laugh. She wondered how Mercher would like this one.

Louise Mercher was one of the most respected FBI Agents in the world. She had been chasing Daniela for two years both in the United States and Great Britain. Her opportunity to become part of the special investigation team came at the request of MI6 Dorothy Hodges after three members of Parliament were found dead. Their deaths had been linked back to Daniela. Yet, Hodges only wanted Daniela because she thought it was a way to find out who issued the orders. She wanted Special Agent Mercher on her team because Mercher had actually seen Daniela. The two had come in contact about six months previously. They had struggled, but Daniela had managed to escape. She even blew Agent Mercher a kiss and then skipped away down a darkened alleyway.

Daniela decided to return to her apartment in Paris. She always loved being in the city where she was born. She loved the food, and it would make it easier for her to buy more of the designer couture that she loved so much. The clothing looked terrific on her. She was pretty enough to be a model. Tall and thin, she had a lovely full smile. But her strongest feature was her green eyes. They were hypnotic and it was easy to see how she could use them to persuade others to do what she wanted.

It didn’t take long for Daniela to reach the airport. Luckily, she only had one bag that she could carry on because there were just a few minutes before her flight was scheduled to depart. After running almost the entire length of the concourse, Daniela made it to the gate right before they closed the doors. She boarded the jet and took her seat in first class. There was barely time for the flight attendant to bring her a cocktail before the pilot was taxiing down the runway.

The takeoff was smooth, and as soon as the Captain signaled the all clear, Daniela stood up and headed upstairs to the bar. When she flew, she enjoyed drinking gin and tonic and mingling with the other passengers in the lounge until she was able to fall asleep. But not this time. For the girl who thought of everything, Daniela had forgotten her sleeping pills. She hoped she would meet someone who had a spare pill they would give her. If not, she hoped she would meet someone she was attracted to and the two could slip into the restroom and have sex to pass the time.

She was still nursing her second cocktail when a beautiful woman entered the lounge and took the seat next to hers. Daniela never made the first move. She would generally stare at her drink and wait. She didn’t have to wait long.

“My name is Jenna,” the woman said. It was obvious that Jenna was American.

“Daniela.”

“I’m pleased to meet you.”

“I’m pleased to meet you also.”

“Are you French?”

“Yes, I am. I was born in Paris.”

“This is my first overseas flight”

“Are you nervous?”

“Yes” she said, blushing.

“Don’t worry, Daniela said. “We will be cruising for hours. It is very safe.”

“That’s good to know.”

The bartender stationed himself in front of the new lounge dweller.

“What will you have?” he asked.

“Gee, I don’t know,” she said. She turned toward Daniela. “What are you drinking?”

“Gin and tonic.”

“That sounds good.”

The bartender returned a moment later with Jenna’s drink. She smiled at Daniela and held her glass in the air. “Cheers.”

Daniela clinked her glass with Jenna’s. “Cheers.”

It wasn’t long before the two women were half drunk. Jenna placed her hand on Daniela’s leg and Daniela responded with a smile. As the two got up from their bar stools and walked to the restroom, Daniela spotted Special Agent Mercher sitting at the end of the bar. Her heart leapt to her throat and she wanted to run. Instead, she went ahead with her plan and slipped into the bathroom with Jenna. Maybe she didn’t see me, she thought.