Agent Olsen, Executioner

Redundancy firings can hit when least expected. Oliver Olsen had worked four months in his first job after graduation with a Master's in Marketing Research, attached to a team of eight charged with developing marketing strategies for a company producing and marketing tinned foods.

Oliver worked conscientiously but alas others including the totally ineffective unit manager fooled around chin-wagging, picking wings off flies (some of them), having long lunch breaks and long private telephone conversions and flicking paper balls at Oliver, the only one to be head down working.

Without warning the unit was disbanded and the seven workers made redundant. The manager, daughter of the operations manger, was placed elsewhere in the company.

During the next two months before he was hired for another position, Oliver had been forced to economize and downsize his living accommodation to a studio and he lost 24lbs from living on chicken-fried rice, pork belly and pizza to conserve his inadequate cash reserves. He kept in shape by working out at the gym daily and running miles each evening. He'd think later that activity kept him sane.

Oliver had thought about going back home in disgrace but then his 31st job interview led to a job training new sales recruits engaged by the company to sell cosmetics door-to-door.

Just when Oliver was thinking his bank balance was healthy enough to upgrade his apartment, he was fired in the reshuffle after the company he worked for was taken over by the larger competitor.

Dog eats dog, thought the victim who'd been bitten twice by Dark Forces that treat workers like shit.

Oliver thought he must handle the fear of being disgraced. He should return home and admit Washington DC was a hostile environment for him. He left the coffee shop to go back to his room to change and do the Western Ridge-Valley Trail Loop.

Right in front of him Oliver saw a guy walking behind a blonde with a great ass. The guy drew a knife and raised it in two hands to bring down into the women's back, or it appeared that's what he was doing.

Oliver lunged forward and knocked the guy over. The guy knocked the woman over.

It seemed to be happening in slow motion.

The guy still had the knife and ignoring the person who'd crashed into him shaped up to lunge at the blonde again. Oliver was off-balance, unable to stop that second attack but the blonde took care of it herself. She pulled out a gun and shot the guy through his ugly, twisted mouth. The bullet plus other stuff went out of the back of his head and splattered the street pole behind him.

Oliver pulled the babe to her feet and grabbing and pocketing her gun said, "Come on, my car is in the parking area through here."

It happened so quickly people around them were still gaping.

Down the alley she pulled back and said, "How do I know you're not in this?"

"In what?" Oliver scowled and handing the gun back by the barrel said, "Fend for yourself you stupid woman."

He could now see she was a bit too old to be called a babe. "I'm out of here before the cops arrive."

He ran off and unlocked his old gutless Chevy compact, backed out and the blonde opened the door and jumped in beside him.

"Drive south. The police will mostly arrive from the north and east," she said.

"Good thinking," Oliver grinned. "Where's the gun."

"Holstered. Slow down you idiot, you'll draw attention to us."

"Yes ma'am."

"It's miss. You have great reactions and anticipation."

"No one shoots blondes with great asses on my patch."

She giggled, shuffled around to take off her panties, tipped the mirror towards her and calmly began wiping blood from her face that must have spurted on her from her victim.

"Is that hygienic?"

She laughed and told him to concentrate on his driving. "Can you take me somewhere to clean up? We may be stopped at road blocks."

"Yeah I live less than a minute away. It's only a room and not tidy."

"I'm only going to clean up, not to be seduced. My name is Anna."

"You have good humor Anna. Here we are. Easy to park here during the day."

In the room Oliver scratched his head and said, why don't you take off your skirt and shirt and I'll sponge the blood off them?"

"Funny boy Oliver," she said, holding up her panties. "Wrap these in newspaper and trash them."

Anna looked better with the blood removed but not so pretty with all the make-up gone.

She made some calls while Oliver made coffee and a chicken sandwich that he cut and handed her half.

"Is this hygienic?"

He grinned. "I can't get over how calm you stayed. It makes me wonder were you trained for that?"

They heard great noise on the flight of stairs leading up to the room and gun-toting guys burst into the room as Anna opened the door just as they arrived.

"Sorry Oliver, we have to take you in for ID and my debriefing."

Oliver gaped as he was body searched and then cuffed. He thought it was useless protesting being outnumbered five to one so closed his mouth and wondered if he'd be found in the Potomac or on a running trail or wherever these guys deposed witnesses after the debriefing. Who were Anna and these guys?

Oliver had been waiting in a room for at least an hour before a guy and Anna entered and sat down and he was told to stop slouching. The hard-eyed guy asked, "You check out. You are who you claim to be, well sufficient for our immediate satisfaction. Who is Anna?"

"An attractive blonde who drops her panties to wipe her face before having sex with a guy."

"You are being uncooperative. You have the choice of being taken to the cooperative stage with rubber hosing or electric shocks."

"Wow I suddenly feel cooperative."

"Sir I told you he had humor," Anna said but was ignored.

"I think Anna is homeland security involved in counter terrorism."

"And how do you figure that?"

"Because she was so cool under attack and made every effort to get clear of the cops, so it was unlikely she was police. She is a little too hawkish to be an FBI decoy. Her mouth line is too hard and her tits are not large enough."

"Are you for real?"

Anna warned, "Oliver you'd be wise to present your best analysis to avoid being assaulted with rubber hoses or being chained nude with electrodes clipped to your balls and you being hosed with freezing water."

The boss grinned and asked, "Why isn't a smart guy like you in employment?"

Oliver gave a précis of his work experience.

"Hmmm. Well consider this Oliver. You can go right now and forget you ever saw us or you may choose to stay here and go through our induction program. But if you stay be warned it could be a waste of time; fewer than 15% of our raw recruits get to stay on and occasionally some of them get killed, usually assassinated."

"If I stay may I have contact with Anna?"

"Why?"

"Because I saved her life and figure she'll want to reward me in the best possible way."

Anna blushed and the boss grinned.

"You are a sound thinker. Did your college business studies include performance analysis?"

"Yes and I went at it like a duck freshly back in water. It's where I wish to be."

"Right Carla who is waiting outside will take you to your quarters."

"What will happen to my room and my car?"

"We'll send in a team dressed in police uniforms with a fake warrant who'll purge your room, bringing back here a few personal items. Your car will be recycled via a crusher but you will be given a much nicer vehicle if you graduate from our academy."

Oliver turned to look to see how Anna was taking this and when he looked back, his interrogator was disappearing through the now open doorway. He looked back for Anna to find she'd gone.

A stern looking woman introduced herself as Dr Stein. "Come with me sir for a comprehensive body search for implanted devices and then you will be decontaminated in the shower."

She had two grim-faced guys standing behind her so Oliver said meekly, "Yes ma'am."

* * *

Four nights later Anna knocked and entered Oliver's very comfortable small suite and locked the door. She was looking sexy.

Anna put a bottle of wine on the table and Oliver, wearing a big smile, fetched two glasses and sitting down opposite said, "Hi, lovely to see you again."

"Thanks to you it's lovely being alive. I've been instructed to update you. Your claimed background checks out 100% but for as long as you work for the agency you will be treated with suspicion. Yes we have a counter intelligence role and no I don't know the name of the agency and neither do I know if the boss's real name is Captain John Vincent. The whole idea is to have everyone unsure of whether or not we really exist and if Curtis Warehouse Storage Inc is just a front or whether we are sole residents in a warehouse unknown to the legitimate workers."

"Is it a front?"

"You be the judge of that. You are in the Curtis Warehouse Storage Inc's building complex."

Oliver rubbed his chin. "I see. So we work robotically, live like dummies and only really react and get into the real world when commanded to do so?"

"God that's good," Anna said. "I've never heard it explained like that. Well we do know an underground terrorism network is working here in Washington and at times has exercises to test strategies. Our role is to eliminate it."

"So you were getting close and that guy was set after you to close your mouth?"

"Yes to make it look like the work of a wronged husband finding his wife had a sexy girlfriend."

"But you wouldn't have married an ugly bastard like that?"

Anna said good thinking. The agency had concluded that although this foreign-led outfit they were seeking to eliminate was modeled on military lines, it was superbly organized and its personnel highly trained. "Strategically it flounders at times and that's why the agency is managing to chip away at it's flanks."

"Anyway, you have scored comfortable passes on fitness, reaction both in speed and accuracy and that is importance because we have no wish to take out bona fide citizens should you become physically involved in both defense and attack. But where you have excelled is in counter-intelligence particularly in analytical and lateral thinking. We never have had a recruit with those twin skills because they are not considered compatible but you are mentally armed to outthink the thinkers. Usually recruits are sent to boot camp and then into the marines and then gain a little experience in field operations but as Captain Vincent will explain tomorrow at your induction, you are considered too valuable for that so will go straight into the counter-intelligence strategy unit with the rank of analyst, second class."

"Is that good?"

"Very good, Oliver. New recruits usually enter service with fifth class ranking."

They continued drinking and as the bottle was on its last legs Anna said casually, "It's hot in here. Do you mind if I remove my shirt?"

Oliver decided not to be gentlemanly and say he'd turn down the air-con. "Sure no problem. Make yourself at home."

He watched as Anna removed her jacket and gun holster and unbuttoned her shirt to allow the multi-color sports bra come into view. She make a great show of pulling her shoulders back to take off the shirt.

Oliver stood and leaving his unfinished drink on the table held out his hand and said, "It's probably cooler on the sofa.:

Anna smiled and took his hand and Oliver swung her into him and they kissed and as that progressed he unclipped the bra, freeing a couple of beauties, firm with big nipples pointing up proudly.

"Great tits," he said, pulling back and looking at them admiringly.

"I'm glad you like them. Take a mouthful."

The fledging homeland security analyst allowed himself to be seduced.

On the sofa Anna rested against his shoulder and as Oliver's slowly worked down her front her legs opened slowly and when hooking under the skirt his two probing fingers found she was without panties.

"Oh I love your fingers up my cunt," she sighed and Oliver thought what crap was that; he must be dreaming? But at that moment Anna unzipped him and hearing that familiar sound of the zip and feeling her fingers touching his penis he knew it was no dream.

They fucked like rabbits... on the sofa... on the carpet... back over the end of the sofa.

Finally Anna said, "One more time?"

"Anna, I'm fucked."

"Me too," she giggled.

She went into the bathroom to clean up and when Oliver came out of the bathroom after his turn he found Anna in his bed asleep. He squeezed in beside her and slept till 5:00 when the gong sounded through the speakers and it was time for the morning run at 5:30.

Anna came to Oliver's room most nights for almost three weeks while he continued the basic training program compulsory for all recruits. Then she left for Raleigh, North Carolina, to see her parents.

He never saw Anna again.

Two days later Oliver was called to the captain's office and received a friendly welcome and was invited to sit.

"I have some bad news. On the way back here Anna was assassinated; they got her this time."

"H-how do you know? It must have been away from Washington?"

"I have some photographs that seem to prove it was Jake Jackal himself."

"Jake Jackal?"

"It's what he calls himself. We don't know his real identity but Anna got close enough before you met her to learn what his men called him."

"Is that so? Show me the photographs."

The photograph of the big knife that had smashed through Anna's back to pierce through to Anna's heart was gruesome enough. The murder took place at a bus station. The attacker had then rolled her over and carved over her right breast.

"Why did the killer mutilate her body like that?"

The captain said, "The guy was in a hurry. He crudely cut his visiting card, writing his initials 'J J'."

"I want to kill him."

"We all do," said the captain hollowly. "The murderer kept his face covered so security cameras didn't get anything that identified him. But in his haste to depart he made a small slip and a perimeter camera got a good shot that has been enhanced. It matches the shot Anna got on her cell phone camera three months ago of the guy who was identified to her as Jake Jackal."

"We are unsure of where he comes from in the Middle East or he could even be from North Africa or even northern Europe. His features suggest mixed blood."

Oliver looked at the features and agreed. The guy had very hard eyes, a slightly twisted mouth and goatee beard. The problem was out on the street one saw guys every day who looked like that. The hair was black, long and unruly and the guy wore a single very small diamond ear stud.

Thanking the captain for the briefing Oliver asked to be allowed to go to the funeral.

"It's today and we are represented by Kathy your section head. I don't want you there and being identified as one of us if the Jackal outfit has the scene under surveillance. That should make sense to you. If we track down the Jackal I want you there when we close in."

"Thanks captain."

Next afternoon when Oliver heard Kathy had returned he went to her and they hugged. She went to dab her tears and Oliver took the handkerchief and did that for her.

The blue eyes looked at him in surprise. "That was done very tenderly," Kathy said.

"Well it's been tough on you. You and she were close friends."

"We two were the only blonde females in the agency," Kathy said. "A couple of blonde field operatives were useful to be used to mingle together on field work. We worked on perhaps thirty assignments together.."

"You are with Jed aren't you?"

"Yes but he transfers to New York soon."

"I'm available provided there's not rule about it."

"You are graded G2 which is only one grade below me which is allowable in the code covering internal fraternization. Let's see how it goes huh?"

"Yeah excellent. Look could you get me a good copy of Jake's photograph and the name and address of the bar where that photo was taken and download the dossier on him to my computer?"

"You are not classified as a field operative."

"I'm given some free time Kathy and what I do with it in my free time is my business providing what I do is legal."

"None of the few Jackal outfit personnel known to us have been seen in that bar again since the night it was suspected Kathy had taken that cell phone photo. She was chased but lost herself in a crowd lined up outside a night club."

"It doesn't matter. It establishes environment."

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing. Keep your mouth shut about this Kathy unless you feel compelled to report it."

"No this is for Anna. I'll come with you."

"No, you may have been seen attending the funeral."

"Oh right. That would have meant me blowing your anonymity."

"Good thinking."

As with everyone in HQ, Oliver was required to carry a .32 handgun. He went to Captain Vincent and explained how he wanted to look around in the neighborhood when Anna had identified the head of the Jackal outfit.

"I wish to try to find where they have relocated."

"We have tried that, exhaustively."

"Perhaps I think differently?"

The captain tapped a fingernail against his teeth staring at Oliver. "I have to say you might be right about that. I'll keep you free from night duty."

"It doesn't matter. I'll work on this when I'm free day or night. They might visit their bar during the day."

"Yeah you might be right but you'd be more noticeable."

"So I have to be careful not to look suspicious."

"Right. Well this conversation has been recorded. You are authorized to investigate privately and warned to watch your back and evacuate if you feel under threat."

"Thank you. Um I want to pack a better gun?"

"Okay I'll write the authorization now. What do you want?"

"A Glock 22 with .40 S&W rounds. My best results on the range were with that gun and that ammo."

"Good choice. Take care son; we have you for your brain not for your bravery."

"Aye captain."

Oliver was cleaning the Glock when Kathy came in.

"How did you get that?"

"The captain authorized it after I told him about my private nosing around and he also authorized that."

"Good, that means I no longer carry the responsibility for you acting in that matter. Do you want to move in with me after Jed moves out next Wednesday?"

"Yeah, on the Friday afternoon."

"God you could sound a bit more enthusiastic; I'm offering my body."

"Yeah I've been wondering about those big tits."

"God Oliver, you're an animal," Kathy said, a little nervously.

"Believe me Kathy, I consider your offer is a great honor and will treat you gently and with dignity at all times."

Kathy now looked a little worried. "Um not too gently?"

"No," Oliver grinned, and she left the room smiling.

A little later an operative, Mark Slyfield, knocked and entered Oliver's room. He said, "Want to come to the bar for a beer?"

"Yeah thanks for asking. I'll lock my gun safe and will be right with you."

As they sat drinking Mark said, "Kathy wants me to talk to you about surveillance in a bar."

"I see. Did she say why?"

"No."

"Okay continue."

Mark emphasized the need to try to act and behave naturally.

"Eye the chicks but not the guys, right?" Mark said.

"Understood."

"When you are eyeing chicks you'll get guys in your peripheral vision. Look when casually scanning the room for sentries at doorways but also look beyond any group in front of them to appear to having a general gaze around."

"Sentries?"

"The lookouts for any threats. You can almost bet if there are no sentries then no top brass will be in the room, but you cannot take that for granted. Now this is Number 1. Make sure of your exits and make sure they are clear. If you run down a no-exit passage to say the toilets you could end up dead. Oh and don't take a phone with you."