Chapter 2
What a difference an evening makes. Her apartment now feels cold. Choking back the emotions, Cassandra checks her machine. She has one message. "Hey Cassandra, I know it's been a long time but this is Darius Parks. Please give me a call back, my number is 223-542-1629."
Darius!! He calls me after 12 years and leaves THAT message? She is excited to hear his voice. She is also mad at that impersonal message. She can hear urgency in his voice though. Her curiosity is going crazy. It is too late to call him back now so it will have to wait until morning, until SHE feels like calling him. He has waited 12 years to call her; he can wait a little more. While falling asleep, she reminisces about their time in college together. They became friends freshmen year in college, but nothing romantic ever happened until a few months before graduation. It was a bit awkward and fantastic at the same time. However, both were so goal-oriented with their futures already planned out that nothing came of it. After graduation, she headed to graduate school and he joined the marines. She never got up the courage to tell him how she felt, how long she had waited for him to touch her, or how much she has thought about him since their night together. She slowly trails off to sleep.
He is the first thing that enters her mind when she opens her eyes. The morning sun has washed away the feelings of last night. They scare her a little, she has never let that side of herself surface very much and she is unsure what would come of it if she did. As her own little way of controlling the situation she does not call him right away even though she very much wants to. She showers, has her morning coffee, checks emails, news stories, and gets out her laptop from the safe to check out the upgrades it received last night. Then when she is ready, she calls Darius to see what is so urgent.
"I am so glad you called me back, but I was just leaving. Can you have dinner with me tonight? I think I have a great story for you."
"Well . . . hi . . . it's nice to hear from you." she sarcastically interjects. "How are you and where the hell have you been for 12 years?"
"We can get caught up over dinner. I am staying at the Soho Grand hotel. Can you meet me at the lounge there at 7 tonight?"
"What is this all about?" Cassandra asks.
"I will explain tonight."
"Sure okay, I will be there." She rolls her eyes, shakes her head, and hangs up the phone, even more confused now. Did he just ask her on a date or what? What on earth do I wear to see the only man I have ever felt anything for and I haven't seen in so long? The Soho Grand? He must be doing okay for himself. He can't be in the military still. A casual skirt and blouse but with strappy sexy heels will be perfect. He always was a leg man!
As Darius hangs up the phone, he immediately feels bad for cutting her off and being so short. He was so nervous though . . . felt like a 13 year old again. She seemed a little bitter and suspicious of his intentions. He will have some explaining to do for sure. Darius says out loud to himself, "God, why didn't I congratulate her on her Peabody?! What an idiot!"
That evening, as Darius is sitting in the lounge waiting for Cassandra to arrive he finds himself thinking about that one special night they shared. It felt so natural. He could still smell her perfume and hear the irresistible moans of pleasure he pulled out of her. It was intoxicating to see her be uninhibited. What he wouldn’t give to see it again. Why did it take them so long and why did they never pursue their feelings any further? He spots her coming in! There she is. Wow she still looks great, he thinks to himself. Can Darius really keep this plan professional?
She enters the impressive lobby of the Soho Grand. I feel way under dressed! . . . but this isn't a date. She reassures herself. She spots him and walks over. He stands, they hug and both sit.
"You look great. I read your articles whenever I can, and congratulations on the Peabody, Cassie."
"Thank you, you look pretty good yourself. My god, do you work out all the time or do you find time to sleep too?"
"In my line of work, I have to be ready for anything"
"What line of work would that be? Obviously,” she says as she looks around the lobby, “you're not still in the military."
He goes into his past 12 years, and she also tells her story. He explains carrying out missions in various countries. He has since left the military. He slowly discovered he no longer shared the same point of view with the marines. He now works for an independent contractor but still works closely with military groups and assists in their missions. Still, he is realizing there is an underlining objective being played out and he feels like a pawn in the scheme. He has become suspicious about who is really pulling the strings on the missions his team are sent on. He tells Cassandra that he hates to use the word conspiracy, but he can't help but feel like something bigger is playing out.
"Please tell me you did not call me, after all this time, to talk about those mutant soldiers?" She chuckles a little.
"Huh? Why, what have you heard?"
"Oh no, you too?!"
"I'm just saying something weird is going on, and I don't know if I am working for the good guys or not. My next mission is my last, and I thought a prize winning journalist could possibly get some interesting information. Not to mention, if we get real evidence who better to inform the public then you? Have you ever been an embedded reporter before?"
Cassandra, always having trusted Darius, is beginning to think that something about this is actually true. In the age of information, it is very difficult to keep anything a secret for long, especially when it is government and/or military related.
She asks, "Is this a dangerous mission? Have you ever seen the mutant soldiers in person? I'm not interested in following some tabloid gossip or crazy monster story."
"I have some pictures in my room. They might make your decision a little easier." Darius now gets a rush of nervous energy about being alone with Cassandra in his hotel room. She is just as beautiful and confident as he remembers her being, maybe more so. Would he ever be able to tell her how he feels? How he has longed for her? Focus . . . you have to convince her that this is a good career move; this is a solid story; this needs to be told.
Cassandra agrees to come and see the pictures. Her curiosity is taking over. Then she also realizes she is about to be alone with Darius, in his room. She immediately decides she is not going to sit on the bed, that's for sure. In his room, seeing his clothes and personal belongings laying around, she is transported back to his dorm room. She remembers all those long nights of studying and watching movies. She is really trying to remain professional but she can smell his aftershave and it's almost more than she can handle. Her mind is swirling with thoughts of him, how gorgeous his body must look underneath those clothes! He seems to be keeping his composure mush easier than her, but he's not.
“So this is where I'm staying for the time being.” Darius is quickly picking up his laundry. “I told them my room didn't need to be cleaned every day. Maybe that was a mistake?” He sits on the bed and begins digging through a case of documents. “I'm used to not being told every detail when sent on missions. My problem is I've been in this game too long and am seeing connection lines between people, places, and events. Connections that if followed lead down a dark road. I know that when the government has secrets it is sometimes to protect themselves and not the American people. I can't explain it all to you right now and I really want you to make your own connections, once faced with the evidence. If it's nothing and I'm being paranoid, great. I can retire from all this and not feel guilty about my involvement in it. If it's something, I'm willing to risk everything to tell it.” He looks her square in the eyes.
“You really mean that don't you?” She realizes how passionate he feels about this. He shows her some pictures of the soldiers she saw yesterday on YouTube, but these are much clearer than that video. They are all wearing what looks like solid black SWAT style uniforms, but they do not say SWAT.
&n
bsp; “Please tell me that does not say B.L.O.O.D. on their uniforms? I've never heard of that alphabet department of the government before!” she says being an obvious smart ass about it. “What could that possibly stand for?” Cassandra asks with urgency in her voice now.
“Whenever my company has done missions with this group of soldiers, we are always following behind them, never working with them. My boss, when asked about who they are, simply tells us they are not a part of the contract and we aren't paid to ask questions.” She is intrigued and agrees to come along to see this for herself. They both know their respective bosses would never agree to this partnership. Darius's is far too interested in secrecy and Cassandra's is trying to fly under the radar of their D.O.R.M. agent. They decide to tell them it is to write a story casting a positive light on private contractors in the Middle East. To show how well trained and professional they are and are needed to accomplish American military goals.
As she is leaving, he thanks her for listening to him. "I just hope we haven't both lost our marbles. On the flip side, my production assistant is going to love me! It’s okay if he comes right? I rarely ever work without him and I cannot deny him the opportunity to see his mutant soldiers."
"Hey if nothing else, it will be a once in a lifetime experience you will never forget," assures Darius as he flashes her his sexiest cocky smile.
"It was really good to see you. Thank you for thinking of me . . . for the story I mean. I will talk to my producer on Monday morning and call you"
"Okay, hopefully I can have clearance for you and Kevin by then, and it wasn't just for the story." as he winks and smiles.
Sunday afternoon, Cassandra does research online about these mutant soldiers, weird sightings, and the defense contractor Darius works for. She finds that they have been accused of being involved in a few shady dealings, such as running security detail for some high level U.N. officials and transporting government lobbyists in and out of the Middle East. Maybe these are all connected.
Darius calls the owner of the defense contractor. "I met with Ms. Clemons and she is discussing it with her producer tomorrow morning. She seems excited about the opportunity to show the industry in a positive light and that we aid the US military and their initiatives. I will call you with specifics Monday. When do we ship out?"
"I have you on a flight to Colombia leaving JFK on Thursday morning. I will have the tickets delivered to your hotel once we know how many you need."
"Thank you again sir." Darius hangs up.
Monday morning after the staff meeting, Cassandra talks with George about her opportunity to be an embedded reporter. She explains it as a chance to show the defense contractors as being allies with American goals internationally and not a hindrance to them.
“This doesn't seem like your sort of story Cassandra, why this one?” inquires George. He is curious about why this man contacted her with the story and why she is interested in it. Not to mention being imbedded is always dangerous and she is no longer trying to make a name for herself professionally. She picks up on his reservations and has to tell him about her and Darius's past, well most of it anyways. She also decides to clue him in on the truth that she is actually going to investigate some conspiracy that Darius is picking up on. She also tells him that Darius can get her and Kevin very close where they can see the mutant soldiers in action.
“I thought you weren't buying into all this?” George says, sounding a little disappointed.
“I'm not buying it, but enough has surfaced to merit at least taking the chance to see them in person.”
George has learned to trust her instincts and if she says it deserves some research, than it deserves some research. He asks how long she will be gone. She requests to bring Kevin along. “You know I work best with him at my side.”
Cassandra calls Darius and tells him George has given his blessing. “Great, we leave Thursday morning for Colombia.” She is surprised by how fast this is moving, and asks what type of things she should bring and if there is a plane ticket for Kevin also. He assures her everything is taken care of. The actual mission will only be 1 night and 1 day, the other time they will all be in a hotel so it shouldn't be too rough. He will bring enough provisions for her and Kevin, just in case.
She has a lot of questions for him and asks if they can have dinner again tomorrow night. "Of course," Darius says relieved. He had been spending the last few minutes trying to come up with a way to ask her to get together again without it sounding like a date.
“Great. Now I have to tell a certain production assistant that he just won the conspiracy nut lottery!”