Undercover Ops Ch. 07

Undercover Ops: Ch. 07

The blocks looked pretty much the same during the day as they did at night. Sure, there was far more light, but that only helped to illuminate the depressing grime that stained the walls and ground. Cas was out hunting down hotels. Max gave her a list of relatively reputable establishments which would assure anonymity and even some security while providing hourly rates.

Some clients weren't content, or comfortable, with an alley assignation so Cas needed to know where the hotels were. Likely, any client so inclined would also have transportation so distance only needed to be a minor consideration. Sometimes, the expense came out of her pay, so price proved another consideration. All in all, Cassidy found she had to weigh as many variables as she did on an op. Combined with a set of skills, supposedly instinctive, that she severely lacked she felt out of her league for the first time in recent memory. The task wasn't beyond her abilities, simply beyond her current knowledge.

Even with stable landmarks and directions Cas discovered the difficulties of navigating the Barrens.

"Why can't this forsaken place at least have street signs?" If there had once been street names they had been lost to time and vandals.

Likely the Barons of the Barrens decided to change street names when they took over a region and constant warfare has eliminated the signs as a necessity.

She crossed the district slowly, up one street and down the next, and memorized landmarks. Most important to memorize were the fortified manors, only a few blocks in towards the heights. Not only were they the most recognizable, and best designated, landmarks but knowing the names of all of the families could prove useful.

Even after the assignment was finished, she vowed to follow the various power struggles within her own city. They could prove enlightening and potentially profitable. They might be 'small fish' compared to the corporations but the resulting size implied a greatly reduced difficulty on the assignments.

Finally Cassidy found one of the hotels Max suggested. A critical eye told her how far the establishment had fallen. Where guards should stand, before the doors, now agents and pushers loitered. Even a quick glance showed a repeated tattoo. Cassidy laughed.

The Barons have their own crests.

Clearly the hotel was under new management. So far out, of the three hotels she should have found only one still remained, and it was no longer acceptable. Soon she would have to give up and head back to ask Luna for advice.

Unfortunately, Cassidy failed to find anything that even resembled a brothel. According to Max it was a tricky subject to broach without arousing suspicions, and there were very few in the Barrens. Catering to vice implied catering the level of comfort and style to the clientele. Stable locations attracted a higher quality clientele. While the services might be no better, the atmosphere and presentation would be.

A brothel in the Barrens, especially one so specialized as to maintain former IOs, would not only be the exclusive occupant of a building, but likely an expensive looking one. While not an absolute certainty it was a logical conclusion Cassidy was willing to live with. The first part would be necessary to maintain the level of security needed to keep the unwilling participants in. The later was suggested by the amount of money the unknown proprietor spent to acquire them.

Cas moved on another few blocks, to put distance between herself from the potentially jealous and lethal agents, before she finally slumped onto some stairs. One at a time, she removed her sandals to rub her tired feet. The footwear cost almost as much as the underwear. Unfortunately, despite where she spent money for comfort in the clothing, the shoes were cheaply made. Priorities notwithstanding Cas wished she'd spent more on her feet.

After she relaxed her feet slightly, she restored the torturous shoes and simply leaned back to gaze at the sky. One of the benefits of being so close to the protected Heights, where no building within a twenty-block radius could exceed four hundred feet in height, was that the shortened buildings permitting an actual view.

"You look out of place in that outfit!"

Cas virtually jumped up. She glanced instinctively at her choice of clothes. For her tour, she had settled on a charcoal grey miniskirt, made by wrapping the fabric a couple of times around her waist, and a simple, yet very tight, white midriff t-shirt made from some inexpensive synthetic fabric.

With the way she sat, the skirt should have fully covered her skin-tone thong. Nothing should have given her away as out of place, but the man who leaned against a lamp-post across the street was clearly talking to her. He pushed away from his support and began to saunter across the empty street.

He was passably handsome in a disturbing sort of way. He was taller than her, had sharp brown eyes and spiked natural blonde hair. She knew she had never seen him before and was fairly sure there was no way he could connect the woman before him with the infamous 'Cassidy'. She began to run through her possible 'tells' when he solved the issue for her.

"You'd look much better lying naked in my bed."

He was halfway across the street when the pathetic pick-up line sunk in. She thought quickly, tried to sound professional rather than disgusted, and formulated a response.

"It could certainly be arranged. What did you have in mind?"

The man literally stopped in the middle of the street, his eyes wide and eyebrows raised.

"You work around these parts?"

Cas shook her head. "Not really. To be honest I was trying to get my bearings. There were supposed to be some decent hotels in the area but the advice seems to be out of date."

As she spoke the man, intelligently, moved out of the street to lean against the handrail on the other side of the steps.

"You're looking for the 'safe' ones aren't you?" Cas nodded. "How fortuitous!" She had to force herself not to understand the word, figuring it beyond her persona. "How fortunate. There are very few left and I happen to know of one not far from here. However, let me propose an offer. My own lodgings, a more traditional hotel, are slightly beyond the one you seek. I could show you the other on the way to mine, where we could engage in various acts for whatever sum you desire."

Cas wasn't sure about the man. The offer sounded legitimate and there seemed no deception in his eyes, but something simply felt 'wrong' about the entire situation. However, she had little to lose by going with him and potentially much to gain. For all that he played the rogue he was relatively well dressed for the region. Where the agents flashed their wealth for all to see, this man wore simple jeans, t-shirt and a leather vest. A practiced eye noted all were expensively tailored. She nodded, cautiously, and began down the steps.

"Price depends on exactly what you want to do. And some things are out of the question at any price."

He waved the thought off with a hand, though Cas wasn't sure if he was waving off the restrictions or the assumption that some things could not be bought. As her foot landed on the sidewalk he swept forward. His arm closed around the exposed skin of her back and sides. His scent was overpowering.

She felt herself grow instantly lightheaded from the power of it. His cologne was a combination of earthy smells and synthetic human pheromones. Likely he would use their advantage to bargain the price down. That is if he couldn't simply get her to attack him before any price had been discussed. The dosage was very strong. Her body already tightened deep within in anticipation of him.

As they walked his hand began to slide up and down across her skin. The slight contact sent shivers through her body, resonating especially powerfully within the hollow core between her hips. His fingertips traced a line across her back, making her jump slightly as he passed across her spine.

The heady smell began to fade. As her head cleared, she realized he stood a number of feet in front of her, downwind, and gestured at a building. As the fog lifted more, she realized it was a hotel, one of the ones on her list. The man saw comprehension dawn within her eyes and waited a few more moments before he spoke.

"To get back to where we were, you simply go seven blocks around the Heights in the direction you were already headed, and then turn away from them for another six blocks."

We've walked thirteen blocks!?

Cassidy could have sworn there had only been time for a couple of blocks at most. If the pheromones effected her that much, then she needed to deal with prices now or else he would likely accomplish his night of samples.

"What are you looking for tonight?" He stepped forward with a lopsided grin. She quickly stepped back in response. His smile grew.

"If I hadn't stepped away you wouldn't have been able to ask that." His sigh was entirely facade. "Damn my sense of honor. I couldn't rightly claim I'd shown you the hotel if you couldn't remember how to get back here." He took another step forward and she another step back. "I'm impressed. How did you know? The smell or the effect?"

He took another step. Cas took an even larger step backward. "The smell. But I didn't know how effective they were until you told me the distance." Cassidy screamed at herself for revealing any, and all, of that. Even despite the distance, the traces of his masculine scent played on her subconscious. "The price?"

He took another step forward and she another back. This time she felt the press of building in response. She could now only move left or right, either of which would be a clear retreat, a panicked flight. He saw her tense and stopped moving but his eyes shifted from playful to firm.

"You agreed that I would show you the safe hotel and in exchange you would agree to let me engage your services, within reason, for whatever price you deemed acceptable. That bargain is more than fair to you as it allows you to claim whatever outrageous fee you can reasonably think of." His eyes hardened further. "And seeing as I've already fulfilled half of my side of the bargain it would be very inappropriate for you to back out now."

In his maneuvers he managed to place himself no longer downwind from her without being upwind. As a result more of the euphoric scent washed over her without offering the full assault he was capable of. Cas nodded in agreement. The two had entered into a deal of sorts, and she had agreed before she was within the effect so likely it had sounded reasonable then. Now it was her stubborn and paranoid nature that rebelled. Besides, he offered to pay her whatever she requested for each and every act and that was her profession. She and Luna did need money to pay the rent. Of course she agreed to it. It made a great deal of sense.

Too much sense!

Cassidy, her breath held instinctively as she pondered the situation, remembered more than just her cover. That part of her realized, at least, that under the effects of chemicals she seemed to fall most naturally into her disguise rather than revealing herself. There were good points and bad to this but...

Held breath exploded outward as his hand traced the curve of her breast. Her lungs swelled with thick air, which quickly flowed into her blood to race throughout her body.

"Yes."

She gasped out her agreement. The handsome, roguish, face smiled as he closed the space between them. Her eyes shifted from straight ahead to wander up to his eyes as her world narrowed to what she could see. Her hands grasped, slid under the leather and adding his chest to her awareness. She began to press her body against his when a flare of electricity spiked from engorged nipples that defined themselves against the coarse fabric of her shirt.

She despaired when he pulled away from her to hold her shoulders at arms length.

"Come, let's be comfortable. We can have all night for this."

She nodded dumbly, excited by the prospect. It was hard to control herself as he returned to her side. His right hand brushed across her skin; left a trail of feathery delight to drift slowly between her legs and settle in burning need. As they walked his hand wandered electric paths up and down her bare side. She leaned heavily against his shoulder, let his tremulous hands support her as she floated towards his room somewhere ahead.

Pleasure spiked through her as his other hand shifted from her left arm to cup her breast. If mere contact brought this much euphoria how much more if he would caress her. He whispered, "gladly," as if she'd spoken her desire. A moment later his hand slid up her chest. She shuddered as his thumb passed across her nipple, pressed it upward for a second before it snapped free. Her knees nearly buckled as the jolt seized upon her nervous system. Even as she began to straighten, thumb and forefinger closed against the flush skin, pinched and rolled her covered nipple. A loud moan erupted from deep within her chest.

His arm wrapped tighter, to hold her entire weight as they paused their travel. In the shift he lost contact with her breast, as it turned to press its side firmly into his chest. Her head lolled, and her face sank into the pulsing warmth of his neck. Her nose filled with his aroma and the beat of his heart brought images of other parts of his body as they throbbed for her.

Her hands began to scramble, as she tried to pull his shirt from his pants in an attempt to delve under the material. He caught her hands easily, held them to her sides as he turned her forward, back towards the path to his bed. His weight held her arms securely in place.

Such a torment, for him to begin but suddenly stop. And to stop her! His hand returned to her nipple even as the other crept around to grasp its mirror. She screamed in pleasure as both twisted and kneaded as one.

She didn't know if he held her aloft or whether her feet stumbled along somehow, she could barely see the pavement as it glided past. All she knew was that she needed even more. Her blood was aflame, but it was only a hint of the possibilities. The cheap fabric fought his attentions and dulled the sharp ecstasy he manipulated within her.

There was a pause where she caught her breath. She breathed deep his heavy fragrance. A thrilling conflict of cold washed across her, simultaneously holding in check the inferno that cascaded across her nerves and racing a chill up her spine to spike at the base of her skull.

Even as his hands came around her breasts, blessed silken skin sliding across her flesh, she screamed. Tender fingers dusted across and around her tender areola. As an errant finger made contact with a sharp nipple, his collected essence, thick in her lungs, released to coat her innards as it crashed downwards. Quickly pressure surged against the confines of her body, sought a release only he could provide. She needed him to pierce her to free her need.

"Shhhhhh. Soon. See that building ahead?"

She failed to focus. She barely heard his words and saw nothing. All she heard was the blood that pumped fast within her ears. All she saw was a white haze of desire. She grabbed his left hand, reluctant to forego the comforting presence of his right arm, and dragged it down her body.

In his surprise her didn't resist. Within a moment his hand pressed against the waist of her skirt. The slightest shift, and it began to fall free. It caught and hung limp from one side by the elastic band of her thong. Cas ignored the material and pressed his hand to her barely covered mound. The two hurried forward. She pawed at his hand desperate for him to bring her to glory before he thrust his raging form deep inside to send her through oblivion.

Suddenly the racing pair stopped. After a moment she shook with need. She could feel him shake with need. The world trembled for their need. She realized he stood beyond her reach, and she his. Hands reached to remove her shirt, only to discover it already rested comfortably above her pert breasts. She slipped free of the arms and tossed it to the floor.

His eyes were wide with wonder and desire as he dropped to one knee before her. He leaned forward, now inches from her lust. She shrugged off the inconvenient thong. He scrambled to either side of her but not forward. She growled in frustrated fury and grasped to bring his face into her need. Dodged deftly and stood, amidst the earthquake, still fully clothed. Once the earth ceased to move he rushed her forward more quickly.

Finally, they stopped moving. Her animal anger raged as the man collapsed fatigued into a chair. Cas jumped to straddle his clothed lap. His jacket was gone in a moment of confusion. He began to struggle as his shirt flew up his arms and off his head. She pushed herself forward, buried his neck between her breasts with his chin at her collarbone.

Wondrous, panicked eyes, met those of the animal astride him. His arms moved to encircle and hold her back but her arms snaked free at the last moment quickly returning to trap his. His eyes flew wide and his erection sprang free as she pushed the pants only far enough for her lust.

Her screams filled the world as she impaled herself at last. An eternity of pent up need surged deeper, forced aside by his throbbing length. The electric shock, as he was thrust completely within her, threw her muscles forward. As he slid free her body froze, balanced for an instant between being filled with him and with molten desire. The world shifted beneath her. Pressure seemed to explode through her nerves and flashed across every inch of her body. Her muscles collapsed into atrophy, unable to hold her aloft under the raging torrent of delirious rapture.

Her body pressed against his. Her face buried in his neck, absorbed his essence, and fed directly to the solar reaction as he thrust harder and faster between her legs. She was lost. Hands clutched at the sparse hair of his chest. Trimmed nails attempted futilely to rake gouges in his arms as her pushed her farther and farther from reality. Finally she felt his rhythm become spastic. Cas screamed in orgasmic pain as his tip pushed too deep and held firm, to launch his seed against overstrung nerves.

He pulled free all at once, his length trailed lust. Free from the support of his solid member she collapsed to the floor. Her head landed in his lap, inches from his still pulsing form. She inhaled. Mixed with the salty smell of his need and the bittersweet of sweat was the force of his cologne. She lunged forward. It had not been enough!

Not enough by far!

Copyright 2006, By Deathlynx