Chapter 2: Voices from the Past

I wake up to the sounds of the street outside my window. I wake up quick, my senses fully alert. Years of training and routine have honed this skill. Years of stalking and hunting, waiting in the dark for the right moment. The moment to make my move. Since I have taken that bad turn down life's dark alley, I have slept with one eye open.

The shouting I hear coming from the street three stories below, sounds angry, confused. There's even a difference in the usual background noise.

Something out of the ordinary has happened in front of the building and the ordinary stretches very far in this part of South L.A. This is not exactly gangland but the place is nevertheless a jungle, with people getting mugged, raped and killed on a rather regular basis. To create this kind of turmoil, some heavy stuff must have gone down.

I get out of bed and quickly put on my jeans, a shirt, and a pair of lightweight canvas shoes. Retrieving the gun from underneath the pillow, I slowly approach the window, making sure I stay out of sight. When I first moved here, I attached a small mirror to the wooden frame of the window, enabling me to scan the street without being seen. I adjust my position beside the window slightly in order to be able to look at the crowd on the sidewalk. In it's center there's a little girl and a woman is on her knees next to her, howling like a wounded animal.

The little girl's name is Angie and she was no stranger to these streets but at the age of eight she wasn't yet involved in any of the usual trades of this neighborhood. Angie sometimes ran little errands for me like getting cigarettes from the corner shop or a carton of milk. Now she is lying naked on the grimy concrete and she's dead.

The scene sends a series of thoughts flashing through my mind but I shut them off. I need to concentrate on the facts.

Fact number one: Nobody from around here would have killed little Angie. She wasn't a threat to anybody. She knew better than to ask the wrong people the wrong questions.

Fact number two: The guy who did her, had balls. If you come to this part of town to kill a little girl, you're likely to come to a very undecent end at the hands of the residents.

Fact number three: This was no sexual assault. The guy had to get out of here, and fast.

I ponder this for a while, then decide that I have to go down there to get a first hand look. I know that it's risky, but my gut feeling tells me that this is somehow connected to me although I don't know how and why. But I trust my instincts, instincts that have saved my ass more than one time in the past.

When I carefully descend the stairs, I find the usual junkies gone. Another sign of something or someone having disturbed the natural order of things. I step out onto the street and walk towards the small crowd. I move casually, not wanting to draw attention to myself but several heads turn in my direction, hard eyes staring at me.

They know I'm not one of them although they don't know who or what I am. They instinctively feel that I'm playing in a different league, that my trade is far different from that of a common street thug. They are wary, but never ask questions, sensing the unspoken threat behind my casual attire. I'm an outsider, albeit tolerated.

Among the onlookers I spot Ernie. Ernie is the local small arms dealer and he's supplied me with some fancy toys in the past. At six-five and without an ounce of fat on his muscular frame, he's an impressive guy. Ernie is black as night and his shaved head in combination with the eternal shades gives him a menacing air. In spite of his appearance, he is a calm guy, playing by a code that only he knows, but which he will never break.

"Hey Ernie, what's going on?" I ask, trying to sound casual, offhand.

"Little Angie's been popped, that's what." He spits out the words, contempt in his voice. "What do you care? 'You an acquaintance of hers?"

"Relax, man. Just trying to find out what's going on."

Ernie seems to calm down a little as he turns towards me and looks at me for the first time but my radar senses his suppressed rage. I won't be able to get to much out of him.

"All right, Max, I'll give you the news" he whispers between his clenched teeth "She was killed execution style. Two shots in the back of the head. Nobody heard the shots. This was a pro job, man."

"That doesn't make sense, Ernie. A pro taking down a little girl like that?"

"Seein' is believin', man. You go look for yourself." His head motions for me to step closer. When I look at the body, it hits me like lightning. Somebody has written a few words on little Angie's naked chest. I'm feeling cold all of a sudden. Whoever did this, is targeting me, is sending me a warning, wanting to draw me out. Ernie is right. This is no random killing, it's a hit, a hit with a precise aim.

The writing was done in a hurry but I can read it all right: "NEXUS WILL DIE"

Back inside the building, I descend to my storage room in the basement. This room is my sanctuary. I keep my equipment in this room, as well as files and a sophisticated comunications setup.

While I open the custom-made steel door, my mind is racing. Angie's death is no coincidence, I'm sure of that, for I am Nexus, I am the man behind the code name, known only to a chosen few. Somebody has breached my security, has pried open my cover and is now out to get me. I have to find out who, have to move faster than my opponent and to do that, I will use all possible means.

All of a sudden my thoughts return to the previous night, to Karen Delaney and her desperate need of raw, furious sex. She had gone from high-class bitch to dirty slut in less than an hour, but, surprisingly enough, had maintained style and composure. She was a lot tougher than I thought underneath that I-am-a-good-wife-and-party-host surface. After her initiation she had all but tried to kill me with that hot little body of hers. When I finally got her into a cab, she could hardly walk and smelled like a whore.

I sense, that the connection is here, that she is somehow involved in this, knowingly or unknowingly. I need to spread out a net, a sticky spiderweb to catch all the information I can. And I will need Marek.

I have never seen Marek and my guess is, that nobody ever has. He exists only on the Net, connected to the world through his own secure servers and phone lines. If there has ever been a hacker worthy of his name, it is him. I fire up my Powerbook and get online, typing the name of his box.

Marek's mailbox is active and I make contact.

>Need your assistance _ Possible Nexus uncovered _ What does rumour mill say?<

Marek responds almost immediately and I can tell he is not surprised by my message

>Somebody digging on Net _ ID unknown _ Possible CIA connection _ Will try check _ Post back couple hours<

I sign off and kill the connection. I have several hours to kill and I might as well put them to good use. First I load a GPS tracking software and while I wait for the necessary satellite uplink, I break into AT & T's phone logs, looking for calls made from the cellphone of Karen Delaney. Scrolling through the records, I find nothing suspicious but I save the logs to my hard drive. I'll look at them later.

Returning to the tracking software, I enter Karen's cell number and get lucky. She's on the phone and according to the software, she has been talking for close to ten minutes already. Within thirty seconds I track down her location.

Apparently she is trying to gather some strength, having a late breakfast in one of Hollywood's finer joints. I listen in on her conversation briefly, but she is only speaking to her husband. From what I hear, hubby is out of town on business and wants to make sure his beloved wife is doing fine. I really should send him that tape. Might be a nice eye-opener for him.

When they are finally done talking, I launch my own call, re-routing it through Marek's secure servers. The apparent caller ID will probably be somwhere in Burundi and nobody will be able to put a trace on it. After two rings, she answers.

"Yes, hello?" Her voice is tired, but it has a hard edge to it. I like that, inspite of the major fuck up she might have caused.

"Do not speak unless I tell you to. Order some more coffee. In exactly 45 minutes I want you to be in front of the Oyster Club on Hollywood Boulevard. Now say something about a wrong number and hang up."

"Sorry, you must have dialed the wrong number."

I break the connection and shut down the computer. I look at my watch and decide that I have enough time for a shave and some hot java before heading out to Hollywood.

Nobody is around when I enter the downtown parking, so I move fast towards the old Buick. The car is old and rusty, but the engine has been tuned by a pro and the gas tank is almost twice as big as usual. This baby can outrun anything short of a formula one racer.

I check the markers I have left on the doors and hood but can't find a trace of foul play. Next I inspect the underside of the vehicle. Clean. I start the engine, check gas and oil pressure and head out to my meeting with Karen.

I make several detours to check if I'm being followed, but no car appears in my rearview mirror long enough to make me suspicious. Either I'm not being followed or my pursuers are too experienced. I decide to take the risk and keep going straight to Hollywood Boulevard.

Karen is standing on the sidewalk when I pull the car onto the curb and motion for her to get in. She looks up and down the street quickly, then slips into the passenger seat. She barely has time to close the door before I spot a break in the traffic and step on the gas.

"What the hell is this?" she asks, clearly confused "Somebody could have seen me getting in your car, you know that?"

"Relax, lady. There's no point in shouting now." I turn to grin at her. "Somebody could have seen you in heat last night."

That shuts her up for a while. I drive out of the city and into the hills, checking my rearview mirror constantly. When I'm satisfied, I turn into a fire road and keep going for another 5 minutes. Karen continues to look at me, her alarm growing but she doesn't say a word.

When I finally pull into a small clearing between the trees, she just sits there, eyes alert, and waits for me to make my move.

"I wanted to see you." I tell her "You gave me quite a show last night. I was wondering if you had some other things to show me."

"You bastard, you humiliated me!" she hisses, her green eyes ablaze with anger. "You all but raped me, playing your dirty games with me."

I look at her in silence for a while. She doesn't blink, but slowly her gaze wavers until she turns to look out of the window.

"You came to me, remember? And if I remember right, you liked it quite a lot. You found out that sex can be rough, without restrictions, pure and wild. Then you found out that you like losing control and now you can't go back."

I put my hand under her chin and turn her to face me. Her facial muscles move as she strains to gain control over her inner turmoil. Then she nods slowly.

"I need to get out of this life, the marriage, everything. I simply want to be free." she blurts out suddenly, her eyes begging me to help her. I slowly lower my hand onto her breasts. Under my touch her nipples harden and I slip my hand into her blouse. Again she wears no bra and I wonder if this woman ever wears any underwear at all.

I pinch her nipples slightly and her breathing becomes laborious. She sits perfectly still, not daring to move. My other hand moves towards her crotch and I can feel her heat pulsing through the fabric of her trousers. She spreads her legs and I start to rub her mound slowly, causing her to breath even faster. When I unzip her pants, she shudders, then takes my hand and thrusts it into her pants and onto her wet pussy. She cries out when I part her lips and find her clit. Her hands push onto mine outside her pants, wanting to create more pressure on her clit and she arches her back. I insert one finger into her pussy, then another.

"Yes. Oh my god."

All of a sudden she pulls my hand out of her trousers. Looking at me with a sly grin, she slips out of the car in one swift movement. Once outside, she slowly starts to take of her clothes, revealing that firm little body of hers. I can see her running her hands over her hips, her breasts.

At last her fingers find her swollen lips and she starts to maturbate seriously. After a few minutes she walks around the car and climbs onto the hood. She lies down on the metal and spreads her legs as wide as she can, placing her feet on the roof of the car. I can see every detail of her pussy behind the windshield as she spreads her lips wide for me.

Karen inserts two fingers into her twat, moving them back and forth slowly and I can hear the wet noises her lips are making. She adds a third, then a fourth finger, spreading her lips further and further. Her hips are bucking now as she tries to satisfy her animal needs. I decide it's time to get out of the car and give her some real action.

I get out of the car and grab one of her legs, turning her to face me, pulling her hips towards me.

Quickly I ram two fingers into her and start to finger-fuck her at a fast pace. She goes wild, thrusting out her hips to meet my hand, unintelligible noises coming from her mouth. I push two more fingers between her swollen lips and pull my fingertips upwards, pressing against the wall of her tunnel. Increasing my pressure, I move back and forth with a steady rythm. Karen arches her back and becomes completely stiff, only the back of her head and her ass touching the hood. I increase my movements, pushing upwards with all my strength until finally she lets out a long wail.

Now is the moment. I force my whole hand into her tight pussy, stretching her to maximum, ramming into her until I hit rock bottom. She wants to go over the edge now, screaming and twisting, completely impaled on my fist. But I have other plans, I'm here to find out who is stalking me and why. And Karen is going to provide me with some answers, if she wants it or not.

I grab a handful of her hair and pull her up and towards me until I can feel her hot breath on my face. This woman is always in heat, it seems.

"Who did you talk to?" I ask her abruptly. She opens her eyes, staring in disbelief.

"Talk now, woman, or I will turn your pussy inside out." With that I grab the slippery flesh inside her with two fingers and the thumb. Her face twists in pain, tears in her eyes.

"Spill it out: who knows about me?" I start to twist my hand but she doesn't make a sound. She has become one tough lady.

"Warren" she mutters finally.

I slowly let go of her flesh and she breathes in deeply. Then she looks right into my eyes.

"Fuck me now, big man. Make it hard and good. Then I'll tell you."

I am completely perplexed. She is trying to make the rules, trying to make a deal with me. She's tough, I can see that much, so I decide to accept her as an equal player. Until I hear her story that is.

"Did you make up your mind, big man?" Her voice brings me out of my thoughts. I look at her for a moment, then decide to play it safe. I pinch her soft, wet flesh once more, harder than before. She flinches and her nails dig into my shoulders.

"You sure got yourself some balls, little Karen. But if you doublecross me you're gonna regret the day you first laid eyes on me.'You understand?"

She looks at me for a moment, then she speaks.

"Do me now, big man. I don't give a fuck if you rip me apart."

In response I pull her head slowly towards mine, my fingers inside her never letting go of her flesh. Then, for the first time, I kiss her. I kiss her hard, sticking my tongue in her throat, biting her lips and she bites back, fighting like cat. We tongue-fuck each other for what seems like hours, ripping at each others hair, each one of us trying to win the fight.

At last we break apart, breathlessly. Karen's hands are trying desperately to free my shaft. I pull my hand out of her pussy and she shudders. As soon as she can move freely, Karen literally rips of my clothes and pushes me against the car.

Her hands and mouth are roaming all over my body, covering me with hot saliva, scratching and biting. She squeezes my balls as she takes me into her mouth. Incredible heat envelopes my shaft, making it swell to abnormal size. She starts to move up and down my cock now and her tongue seems to be everywhere. With each movement she forces me further down her throat until I fill her completely. I feel the surge rising up from my loins, all my muscles tightening.

I put both hands on the back of her head and pull her towards me, ramming my now enormous cock deep into her throat, closing her windpipe.

"Do you realize that you could die right here, suffocated by my dick?"

In response she bites down hard onto the base of my shaft, letting me know that I could bleed to death right here in the dirt. I let go of her head and she quickly pulls me out of her mouth.

"Come in my throat now." Her husky voice drives me crazy. I ram myself into her mouth and she takes every inch of me, pressing her hands on my ass. Her head moves fast now and I match her speed, sending the tip of shaft down her throat with every thrust.

I feel the pressure building, my cock becoming so hard that the pain is hard to bear and my balls seem to explode. When she senses that I'm about to come, she squeezes my balls as hard as she can. The she pushes a finger into my ass and sends me reeling.

A searing pain shoots through my cock as I come into her throat, my semen feeling like needles. But she is not finished yet. Leaving my shaft deep in her throat, she slowly starts to milk me with the muscles of her mouth and neck. I can barely stand the sensations, my nerves over sensitive now, but she never let's up.

After several minutes my nerve endings respond to her continuous squeezing. An incredible sensation invades me, captures me. I groan and clench my fists. Neither of us moves, only her muscles pump relentlessly. I can feel my cock pulsating inside her, the heat building up.

Then I come again, exploding, shooting my load into her once more. She is gagging now, trying to hold everything in. As I pull back a few inches, she finally manages to swallow.