Chapter 9

It appeared the girls and I had just gone into business together.

After dinner we all returned to the hotel MS Wilkenson was staying at along with her father. They were sharing a suite. We needed to figure out what we were going to do next. Erik explained the details of the routine each day basically took. Mostly it was guarding the hotel MS Wilkenson was staying at. Occasionally she would visit a museum or attend a luncheon which presented a greater risk. In these situations, the area had to be checked out beforehand and the number of guards was determined based on the overall access and risk. Erik had three men that worked with him until one was killed the other night. Another quit when he realized that he could have been killed too. The company Erik worked for would provide additional guards as needed but he would have to pay them which meant his profit decreased.

Neither of the Wilkenson’s had any plans to be out of the hotel today as it was nearly 0200 in the morning. Erik and MR Wilkenson’s guards could handle guarding them, so the girls and I returned to our hotel for some sleep and to go over what we just got ourselves into.

It was almost 1100 when MR Takidi called waking me up this time. We both laughed at that. He said that MR Black had contacted him just about 20 minutes prior to him calling me. It seems that MR Wilkenson had someone run a background check on JT Elbon. MR Black just wanted to report that the information was solid, and the storyline was accepted. I told MR Takidi to thank MR Black and let him know what new plans are.

The girls were awake now, so we ordered breakfast from room service, and all shared a quick shower before it arrived. We started talking about our new endeavor as we ate breakfast.

Jen started by saying that this was perfect for us since we all had the needed skills to be successful at this. Tammy added that we all had unique skills that would prove to be vital in our success and safety for both us and any clients we were protecting. Dove pointed out that her driving skills were as good as or better than most professional limousine drivers and the fact that she could shoot just about any firearm made combined with the fighting skills she knew and what we were teaching each other as a group had already proven quite effective. Jen continued saying that her fighting skill was matched only by mine, and she too could shoot most firearms quite effectively. Tammy reminded everyone that she was a skilled trauma nurse and could handle just about any serious injuries as well as fight and shoot too. I just laughed and said that the only reason I had agreed to this was the fact that all three or you are more than capable of handling the job. I would not allow any of us to be at risk or at least unnecessary risk. I wanted them all to know that I understood the danger and risk involved with this type of work and they all let me know that they understood the risks and dangers too.

I called MR Black and asked where I could get the best body armor available. He recommended two places here in France. They happened to be number three and five out of the top five manufacturers in the world. I thanked him when he said that he would let them both know I would be contacting them. I contacted them both and made appointments later that afternoon so after a quick lunch we went shopping.

The first place specialized in concealable body armor that business types and celebrities would wear. It was designed to be light concealable and able to withstand most handguns and small caliber rifles. We were all measured, and molds were made for each of us as the armor was made to fit almost like a second skin. I laughed when all of us were required to strip from the waist up. The two women making the molds were nice looking but were all business. It took almost an hour to get all four of our molds made. It would be a week before our armor would be ready and I paid extra for the high-capacity armor which was supposed to be able to stop both the NATO 5.56 and Russian AK 7.62X39 and up to .50 caliber handgun rounds.

It was almost an hour drive to get to the other store but worth it when we found that they stocked standard body armor in various sizes. We all left wearing a light vest designed to stop most handgun rounds. And a heavy combat vest with ceramic plates that were designed to stop just about every round smaller than a .50 caliber machinegun round.

We had just returned to the hotel and were getting out of the car when Dove and Tammy noticed several men entering a side door that was an emergency exit only or the sign over the door said it was.

When they pointed it out to Jen and me, I called Erik on my cell phone as we all rushed inside the hotel. The emergency exit gave access to stairs that went to every floor. Dove and Jen went to the stairs and were taking them two and three at a time. Tammy and I were each in an elevator with service keys locking them in the up mode so they would not stop until we stopped them, or we reached the top. I was still talking to Erik as the elevator ascended to the top floor. Tammy and I would lock the elevators there and come down the stairs to MS Wilkenson’s floor. Erik told me that he had contacted backup and they were on their way ETA seven minutes. When the elevator door opened, I was not shocked to see several men moving down the stairs from the roof access door. The man closes to me was holding an SKS assault rifle. My snap kick to the fore stock pushed it toward the other men as he fired trying to shoot me. Tammy struck one man across his throat grabbing his pistol as she kicked another in the back. Tammy ducked back into her elevator to keep from being shot by the gunfire the guy I kicked was spraying. I stepped behind him and quickly broke his neck grabbing his SKS as he dropped to the ground. Of the six guys three were dead two were wounded one fatal the other very serious and Tammy and I shot the last guy at the same time.

We started down the stairs two and three at a time. We wanted to make sure that none had made it down the stairs before we got there. I heard shooting coming from MS Wilkenson’s floor. Erik was not talking anymore but I was guessing he was quite busy.