Date: Sun, 5 Apr 2009 01:54:00 +0000 From: Jacob Latson Subject: Agony & Ecstasy Chapter 18 Disclaimer: This story will describe the life of John Miller from his time as a man devastated by divorce and who made it into a new life of wealth. This story will include descriptions of male sex, including M/M, M/T, M/b, T/b and b/b. If stories involving sex between consenting males of all ages, including mainly gay sex, offends you, go back to the Archives and pick a different story for your reading pleasure. Don't expect constant descriptions of erotic sex in this story. I always want to develop a plot and characters before the hot action starts. There has been minimal research for this story therefore, names, places, and events are mostly fictitious and similarities to real life are coincidental. Some companies and organizations mentioned actually exist, but references to the activities, policies, programs and procedures are fictitious. This story will include references to the United States government, the FBI, CIA and other agencies. Any references are purely fictional, and only used to develop the plot and characters. Again I thank Bill for editing my story. Agony & Ecstasy Chapter 18 The Czech Republic John returned to Michigan and was quickly returned to reality when he arrived at the NAO Headquarters. Helen was waiting for him, and she was upset. "James Stanton owned an orphanage in the Czech Republic, and I kept in contact with the woman and man who run everything," Helen began. "Kvetka Paulikova used to call me at least once a month to tell me how things were going, but I haven't heard from her in three months." "What does that mean?" John asked. "A few times I talked to the man who controls the finances for the home, and I don't like him," Helen said. "His name's Josef Polanko, and he said that Kvetka quit working there. James Stanton rarely talked about the orphanage, but always said that Kvetka could be trusted. If she's gone, something's wrong!" "I might have to take a trip to Europe to do some banking, and I'd like to visit our store in Madrid, Spain," John said. "Philippe said that all of our Vice Presidents are good people, but he said he has concerns about Manuel Artega. Manuel's the Vice President with control of Spain, Portugal, France, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Scotland, Iceland and some tiny countries. He has his office in the Madrid store, and I want to meet him." "You should meet all of the Vice Presidents," Helen said. "Would you please consider calling Josef Polanko to make sure everything's okay?" "Let me get caught up with some paperwork and I'll make the call," John promised. He went to his office and stared at the stack of documents for his review. He sorted through everything and opened his email account, and saw that he had over 60 messages to read. He sighed and realized that his hunting trip had created a backlog of information, and he felt overwhelmed. His phone rang, and Helen reminded him that he had an interview in 10 minutes. John sorted through the documents and found a resume for Roberto Mendez who was interviewing for a security guard position. He wondered why he was conducting the interview, and thought that Donald Cassidy, his temporary Security Chief could have talked to Roberto. When John looked at the resume, he was shocked! Roberto Mendez had been a Deputy Director of the FBI, and John couldn't believe that the man was applying for a regular security job with a starting salary of $60,000. He scanned the resume and saw that Roberto liked the nickname of "Butch" and had served in the Secret Service, Hostage Rescue at Quantico, Virginia, and had been an officer in the Marine Corps. He had a bachelor's degree in Criminology and a Master's Degree in Business Administration. Helen knocked on the door to John's office and announced, "This is Roberto Mendez." Helen smiled and left John's office to return to her busy schedule. John was shocked when he saw Roberto Mendez for the first time. He had expected a Spanish or Mexican man, but broke out laughing when he saw a tall black man with a shaved head! "I apologize for laughing, but after reading your name and your nickname, I sure didn't expect to be meeting a black man with no hair!" John admitted. He shook Butch's hand and thought that he would have broken bones in his hand from the powerful grip! "My mother's black and my father's Mexican," Butch said. "I got my nickname when I was in the Marines, and it stuck!" "Please come and sit with me in the lounge area," John said. "Would you like a cup of coffee?" "Yes, please," Butch replied. "Thanks for taking the time to interview me today. I know that you just returned from a long trip, and you must have a very busy schedule today." "I have to admit that your resume is far in excess of what I would expect for someone applying for a security guard position," John said. "There are rules that I can't ask you questions about your ancestry, so thanks for clarifying why you look completely different from your family name and nickname. Why don't you tell me what you want me to know?" "Well, I learned a long time ago, that honesty is the best policy," Butch began. "I had an important job with the FBI, but I made a serious mistake that resulted in me being fired. I can't give you a lot of details, but I was in charge of an operation that went bad." John was confused, and decided to remain silent to see if Butch would continue talking. "You might have read about a situation in Philadelphia, where the FBI and DEA were in a standoff with some drug dealers," Butch said. "They were holed up in an apartment building and two agents were killed and four were wounded by gunfire from the building. My team was called in and we determined that the building was fortified with telephone poles that stopped any bullets that we fired. I made the decision to drop a large tear gas bomb on the top of the building to end the standoff." John remembered reading about the tragic events in Philadelphia in the newspapers and watching the inferno on the live television reports. "We didn't know that the drug dealers had a methamphetamine lab in the building, and the tear gas bomb caused a large explosion and intense fire," Butch explained. "The drug dealers were all killed in the fire, but before the fire department could respond, five other buildings were engulfed in flames. Six innocent people died in the fire, and the public demanded that the responsible parties be punished." "I remember those events," John admitted. "I was in charge of the government actions, and I was fired along with eight of my men in the Rapid Response Division," Butch admitted. "Six DEA agents got the axe at the same time." "I remember that no criminal charges were filed against you or anyone from the FBI or DEA," John said. "Now I'm out of a job and my family used to live in the Detroit Area, so that's why I'm here today," Butch said. "I lost my retirement and health care benefits, and I need a job to support my wife and three children. I'm looking for a chance to start a new career with your company." "Very interesting!" John said. "What salary range are you asking for?" "I'm willing to start at the bottom and prove myself," Butch began. "I was making $150,000 with the FBI, but I'm willing to start at $70,000 or even less if I have to." John realized that Butch was being totally honest with him, and now he understood why Helen had scheduled the interview with him. John was being tested by Helen! "Let me ask you a hypothetical question," John began. "What if you were working in our Security Department, and you found out that someone in our organization was doing something illegal. Let me be more explicit. What if you found out that they were importing drugs?" Butch was surprised that John hadn't ended their interview when he disclosed his firing from the FBI and was asking for a starting salary of $70,000. He thought about the question and chose his words carefully. "Agencies like the FBI and DEA have internal problems too," Butch began. "I won't go into details, but when we found out that someone in our organization was doing something illegal, we had to take action. We called it `clean up' and we took appropriate actions that depended on the infraction and the seriousness. We were constantly tempted by bribes from criminals and when we made a major bust, some of the confiscated money would sometimes disappear. To protect the integrity of the federal government, some people had to be fired or convinced to resign, but in a few cases we convinced them to return the money and clean up their act. If I was working for your company, it would be my responsibility to disclose the infraction to my boss and let him decide what to do." John was listening closely to what Butch was saying, and wanted more information. His silence caused Butch to become uneasy. "Every import business gets a lot of attention from the DEA," Butch said. "The U.S. Customs Authority can't examine every shipment that comes into this country, so we know that drugs slip in under the radar. To protect the image of your company, you'd have to clean up the offenders and make sure it doesn't happen again. If arrests are made, the public would crucify you and your company." "Interesting!" John said. "So now I have a talented man with a fantastic resume who admits that he made a mistake and was fired. He wants an entry job, but I'm convinced that you're overqualified!" "I'm sorry that I wasted your time and mine with this interview," Butch said while getting up to leave. "I may be overqualified, but I'm sincere in wanting a chance to prove myself to you and your company." "Please sit down, Butch," John said. "I said that you're overqualified for an entry level position in my Security Force, but I didn't say that I wouldn't hire you!" Butch had thought that the interview was over, so he wondered why this handsome man was giving him a slim hope that he might still be hired. "Have you ever heard of Blackhawk Security?" John asked. "Of course I've heard of Blackhawk!" Butch said. "The FBI used Blackhawk for some contract jobs. I've worked closely with Donald Cassidy on some very sensitive situations when we couldn't use our FBI or DEA agents." "Don's my temporary Chief of Security," John said. "I'm meeting with him this afternoon to finalize the purchase of his company. What kind of contract work did he do for you if you can tell me." "Blackhawk has some men who have informers in the cities where we wanted to curb crime," Butch replied. "Their informers have provided key information that helped us make some huge drug busts. Don's men can do things and go places where our agents can't. I can't be more specific, but he's a very valuable resource!" "I'm not going to offer you a job as a security guard at $70,000," John said. He paused and saw that Butch was getting up to leave. "I'm offering you the job of Chief of Security, with an annual salary of $250,000 and a signing bonus of $100,000 plus a full benefit package that includes health care and retirement," John said. "Are you interested?" "Are you serious?" Butch asked. His emotions soared and he prayed that the offer was legitimate! This was beyond his wildest dream! "I'll add another $50,000 a year if you need more incentive to accept my job offer," John said. "I want you!" Butch choked back his emotions and quickly accepted the job offer with a crushing handshake! He couldn't believe that he was being offered twice what he had made at the FBI, and couldn't wait to call his family in Washington D.C. to give them the fantastic news! John was elated that he had found a fantastic replacement for Donald Cassidy and added, "Of course, we'll cover all of your moving expenses and even fly your family here so they can find a suitable home in the area. It's a great time to be buying a home in Michigan, and a lousy time to be selling!" "You'll never regret hiring me!" Butch said. "I'll get Helen in here so she can help you with the damn paperwork and get you a cell phone and American Express card," John said. "I want you to fill out an expense report to cover your trip here today and any other expenses that you've incurred. We have a fleet of company jets, limousines and different vehicles that I expect you to use. You'll have a company vehicle for business and personal use." "This is like a dream for me!" Butch admitted. "What about the men in your Rapid Response Team?" John asked. "Are any of them available, and would you recommend that we hire them?" "They're all job hunting like me, and yes, they're all excellent people!" Butch replied. "There are four male and two female agents from the DEA, and I'd trust them with my life!" "Work with Helen and see if you can hire all of them," John said. "You'll be in charge of the budget for the security force, and I'm not worried about paying what it takes to get the best people. When you're settled into your new job, I'll tell you what plans I have for cleaning house in the NAO Headquarters. I'm going to fire a bunch of people who are dishonest, and I expect some problems. We might need our own Rapid Response Team, so your background will be vital to make it happen. I want the best of the best in my security force, and I'm counting on you to make it happen!" "I won't disappoint you!" Butch promised. When Helen arrived, John shocked her. "You're starting to piss me off!" he said to Helen. "What do you mean?" Helen asked. She was afraid that she had done something wrong, and wanted to apologize. "You waste my time with these interviews!" John said. "First you make me waste my time interviewing Christina, then Mike, and now, Butch! Why didn't you just hire them and tell me later?" Helen laughed and realized that John was teasing her! She saw the happy expression on Butch's face and realized that he had been hired. She was thrilled. "Helen, Butch is going to be our new Chief of Security," John said. "I just offered him the job at $300,000 a year with a $100,000 signing bonus. I want all of his expenses covered for his move to Michigan, and maybe you can ask Joyce Adams to help his family find a suitable home. Butch will have full use of our company transportation, including air travel." "Congratulations!" Helen said to Butch. "Welcome to the Sea & Jungle family!" "Keep his salary information away from Glen Young and Jacob Coleman," John instructed. "Please issue Butch an American Express card and a cell phone." Helen was thrilled that John had hired Butch for that vital position, and she felt a great deal of pride in finding three excellent people for the company. John had paid her a huge compliment, and she was excited about her increased status. James Stanton had never put this level of trust in her, and she was energized to help John Miller clean up the company. John reviewed more of the documents and emails, and decided to take a break. He thought about having lunch in the cafeteria, but decided to leave early and go to his farmhouse to get a gift for Mario. He owed his friend something for helping Tom Jeffries with the mall project, and knew exactly what would be a big surprise for Mario. Derek Kaufman and Lindsey Smith wanted to ride with John, and were happy to ride in the 1957 Belaire Convertible. They loved John's cars and wanted to thank him again for including them in the hot action in Nassau. John asked to be alone inside the farmhouse, and his two bodyguards waited for him to return to the car. They saw that John had two notebooks, and wondered what was inside. They would never know, but they trusted that it wasn't anything illegal. When John drove up to the valet station at the Hidden Harbor Yacht Club, Jeff Morgan was excited to park the beautiful car. "Nice wheels, Mr. Miller," the handsome teen said when John handed him the keys. "You have the most awesome cars of anyone!" "Be nice to her," John teased. He knew that Jeff would be very careful with the vintage car, and walked up to the security desk at the entrance. "Mr. Genovesi's here in the bar," Matt Russell, the guard manning the visitors' station said. "Welcome back from your hunting trip. Did you have any luck?" "We bagged some real trophies," John replied. He turned to his bodyguards and said, "I'm going to have a drink with Mario, and then I'd like you to join me for lunch." "We should wait here for you," Derek said. "Matt can order us some sandwiches from the kitchen." "Nonsense!" John replied. "I want you to meet Mario and I think that you'll love the food here. I promise not to get drunk, but one of you should drive me back to the office." John walked into the Members' Only bar and was pleased to see Mario talking to Michael Costanza. He greeted the two men and was surprised when Michael asked to talk to him in private. "Things went very fast for our business transaction," Michael whispered. "A deposit of $56,760,000 has been made to this account at the ABB Export Bank in Zurich." He handed John a slip of paper with the account number and access code and thanked him for the lucrative business. John thanked Michael for the quick results in laundering the cash from the farmhouse, and wondered what Butch would say if he knew what John had done. He decided that some things would have to remain private from his new security chief, and went to talk to Mario. "Can we go somewhere private?" John asked. "I have something for you that I don't want anyone else seeing. You did me a big favor by agreeing to help Tom Jeffries with his project, and I have a gift for you." "I still owe you more than I can ever repay!" Mario said. He ordered two "Miller Manhattans" from the bartender, and led John to a remote corner of the bar. "I know that you collect U.S. paper currency, so I have some additions to your collection," John said. He handed Mario the first notebook and watched his friend open it. "HOLY FUCK!" Mario said when he saw the first plastic page of vintage bills. The pages contained the oversized bills that had been taken out of circulation before 1930. "I can't accept these bills! They're worth a fortune!" "I thought that you were in a currency club and liked old bills," John said. "I have a huge collection, and these are only a tiny fraction of what I found that James Stanton had collected." "I'll pay you for these bills!" Mario insisted. "Some of these are very rare and no one in my club has them!" "I've done some research on the Internet because I found some bills that were never in circulation in my collection," John said. "We both know that the U.S. Treasury pulled all of the $500 and $1000 bills out of circulation, but a long time ago the banks used larger denomination bills when they transferred money from one bank to another. I don't know how James collected these, but his father and grandfather owned several banks, and I suspect that they found a way to own these bills." John handed Mario the second notebook that contained bills that Mario had never dreamed that he would ever see. His hands shook when he saw four $10,000 gold certificate notes, four $5,000 gold certificates and two $100,000 Federal Reserve notes. "OH MY GOD!" Mario exclaimed. "No private citizen in this entire country has even one of these!" "They're a gift from me to you," John said. "I know people who'd pay a million dollars for just one of these bills!" Mario exclaimed. "My currency club members would shit to see these!" "Well, they're yours now, so you can show them or sell them!" John said with a grin. He was thrilled that Mario was so emotional after holding the bills that were encased in plastic protective sheets. "John, this is too much for me to accept!" Mario insisted. "I'm thrilled that you brought them here so I could see them, but you should put them in a safety deposit box!" "Would you believe that I have several more of these bills?" John asked. "When I first met you, we talked about friends doing favors for each other, and I want you to keep these bills as my gift to you. You connected me with Michael Costanza, and he surprised me at how fast he took care of my problem. Then you bailed out Tom Jeffries and his mall project, so I insist that you keep these bills as a token of my friendship!" "All I can say is thank you, but that seems trivial for a gift that's so valuable!" Mario said. "I'd like to sit here and use a magnifying glass to examine each bill in detail, but I don't want to attract any unwanted attention. I'm going to put these notebooks in the club safe!" Mario hugged John and practically ran to the club office so he could put the books in the safe. John smiled and watched Mario leave the bar area. His gift would make Mario the king of the collectors' club, and John was happy for his friend. After lunch at the club, John returned to the NAO Headquarters. He called Mike and asked him to schedule a trip to Europe where he could transfer his new bank account to one of his private accounts. "We'll need to go to Switzerland so I can do some banking, and I'd like to go to Madrid for a few days too," John said to Mike. "We should go to Prague where the Expat Center will transfer ownership of a bank account and some businesses from James Stanton to me. Philippe will go with us, because he's the transfer agent that James Stanton designated in his will." "Helen's insisting that you call the orphanage," Mike said. "Instead of calling Josef Polanko at the orphanage, we'll make a surprise visit there," John said. "If there's a problem at the orphanage, he won't have time to hide the truth from us if we just arrive at the front door." Mike wrote down the details of the European trip and went back to his office to arrange for the transportation. He was excited about going to Europe, and quickly made the arrangements. Before John left for Europe, he met with Donald Cassidy and Butch Mendez to finalize the purchase of Blackhawk Security. Don was very pleased that John was hiring all of his employees and also approved of Butch's hiring as his replacement. "I'm happy to report that I was able to contact all eight of my Rapid Response Team members and the six DEA agents," Butch said. "They're all excited about having new jobs with us to support their families. Now I'll start working on finding the weapons and materials that we need." "We're getting ready to put two new Gulfstream jets into service and retire at least one of the existing ones," John said to Butch. "We have helicopters and 737's that we can convert into transport aircraft if that'll work for you. Why don't you look at what we have available and see if the equipment will work for your needs." "I'll get right on it!" Butch promised. "Do you have any restrictions on the weapons for our security forces?" John smiled and decided to take Butch on a tour of his home in Bloomfield Hills. They left the office and drove to the mansion where John showed Butch a Dodge one ton pickup truck in the large garage. "Look at this truck and tell me what you think," John said. "I might be wrong, but it looks like the suspension has been beefed up," Butch said. When he looked at the bed of the truck, he said, "I haven't seen a bed like this since I left the Marines. We mounted 50 caliber machine guns on trucks when we didn't have armored personnel carriers." "Wait till you see what's stored in the basement of this house," John said. He led Butch through the beautiful rooms of the mansion, and had to pull Butch towards the basement steps. Butch wanted to take in the grandeur of the home and furnishings, but John insisted that they go downstairs. "This home has an elevator that services all three floors," John said when they arrived in the basement. "Now brace yourself for a shock! James Stanton must have been preparing to start a war because he hoarded more weapons than I could imagine!" When John opened the first door to the gun collection, Butch just stood in awe of the most extensive collection of priceless weapons that he had ever seen! He walked around the room and kept identifying each unique weapon by manufacturer and intended use. John was impressed by Butch's knowledge of firearms, but wanted to show his new friend what was behind the heavy steel doors. He disarmed the alarm, punched in the security code and asked Butch to help him open the blast proof doors. "OH MY GOD!" Butch exclaimed when he saw the cases of sophisticated handguns and automatic rifles. "I haven't seen this much firepower in any place other than a government armory! You could arm an entire division of soldiers with what's in this room! How did he get all of this? It can't be legal for anyone to own all of this!" "Get ready for an even bigger shock!" John said when he led Butch to the back of the room and lifted up the edge of a plastic tarp. "SON OF A BITCH!" Butch exclaimed. "Do you know what this is? It's a fucking buzz box!" "I'm no expert on weapons like you are, but I could tell that this weapon must be something special and probably very illegal!" John said. "Only the military has these!" Butch exclaimed. "A buzz box can fire over 200 rounds of 50 caliber ammunition a second! Look, it's even got a laser sight and gyroscopic suspension to hold it on target! This is DEFINITELY illegal to own!" "Behind those doors are cases of ammunition," John said. "There are huge cases of 50 caliber ammo that must weigh a ton!" "That truck's built to hold this weapon!" Butch said. "What are you gonna do with all of this?" "I'm not gonna do anything with it, but you are!" John said. "I'm no expert in military equipment, but look at the body armor, night vision equipment and sniper rifles! Would any of this work for your Rapid Response Team?" "This equipment is state of the art!" Butch said excitedly. "Only the Special Forces have equipment this good! Of course it'll work! We'll have the best equipped strike force in the country with all of this!" "Now we know why James had the elevator installed," John said. "We sure couldn't carry these weapons up the stairs! Let's just forget about the buzz box for the present time, and you can figure out a way to get rid of it without me getting arrested!" Butch was excited about having the modern weapons for his security forces, and was pleased when John gave him the codes to disarm the security alarms and enter the home and basement storage areas. He was in heaven for having a new job and also that his new boss trusted him with the security codes. John and Mike flew to New York where they met Philippe. Derek Kaufman, Lindsey Smith, Lou Williams and Ross Johnson were included in the trip to provide security, and everyone was excited about this trip which would most likely provide important information. When they were aboard the private 737, John explained what he wanted to accomplish during their trip to Europe. Their first stop was in Amsterdam, where John wanted to visit the diamond district. He talked to a jewelry designer and picked out designs for earrings and necklaces that he wanted to have created for some very special women in his life. "I'll bring the diamonds back here before I return to the United States," John said to the jeweler. He explained that he would provide larger diamonds than the ones included in the sample jewelry, and was pleased that the jeweler would start creating the gold and platinum settings. The trip to Switzerland was enjoyable, and John let Mike and his bodyguards tour the country like tourists before they left for Prague. He was in for a big shock when he walked into the Expat Center to do his banking. "Mr. Ducharme, and Mr. Miller, we welcome you to our bank," Pavel Pekar said. "Please follow me to the conference room so we can talk in private." "I'd like Mr. Mahon to come with us," John said to the bank manager. "My security officers will wait outside the conference room if that's acceptable." "Mr. Ducharme called me and told me what documents we need to sign and witness to transfer ownership of the accounts and property that James Stanton owned," Pavel said. "Would you like a cup of coffee or glass of wine before we start?" John and Mike were shocked that a bank manager would offer them a glass of wine, but Philippe knew that European business was often conducted in a very relaxed atmosphere. He laughed at the shock on the faces of his two American friends and teased them. Pavel started putting documents in front of John to sign, and Philippe helped explain the purpose of each document. "This is the title for the orphanage and the surrounding property," Philippe said. "James named the orphanage, Proud Les Domov, which I'm told translates into River Forest Home," Philippe said. "With the buildings, you now own over 10,000 acres of land near the village of Ceska Skalisce that includes a power generating plant and a lake fed by the Mala Upa River," Pavel said. "It's a beautiful area of farms and vineyards in a remote area of our country." John understood the translations and couldn't wait to see the property. It was like he was returning to his roots when he was in the country where his grandparents had been born and raised before immigrating to the United States. "This is the bank account for the orphanage," Pavel said. He handed John the document that showed that the account had over 500 million dollars on deposit. "I've personally controlled the releases of operating funds to Mr. Josef Polanko at the home. Mr. Stanton left me in charge of the account, and I'm limited to 120,000 Czech crowns per month for wages, food, and essentials for the children. That's approximately 6,000 U.S. dollars a month." "How many people work at the orphanage, and how many children are there?" John asked. "I don't know the exact numbers right now, but when Mr. Stanton set up the monthly expenses, there were 30 workers and 70 children," Pavel answered. "Each worker gets paid 500 crowns each week. That's about 25 U.S. dollars." "How can anyone exist on $25 a week?" Mike asked. "The average income in that Kraje, or district, is approximately 250 crowns a week, so the workers at the home are considered very lucky," Pavel said. "We don't have the incomes of workers in your country." John thought about his own income when he was struggling to pay his bills after his divorce, and reflected on his new wealth and his promise to make life better for other people. "Can we move on?" Pavel asked. "I apologize," John said when he realized that everyone was staring at him. "This is the document transferring ownership of the Czech Productions Company, or CPC to you," Pavel said. "With ownership of CPC, you also have one of the largest accounts in our entire bank, currently valued at over one billion Euros!" "HOLY SHIT!" Mike exclaimed and then quickly apologized for his outburst. "In U.S. dollars, that's approximately 1.5 billion," Pavel said. "We hope that you will continue banking with us. We'll do anything to take care of your banking needs so please let me know if ever I can do anything to convince you to keep your accounts open with us." John left the Expat Center and tried to comprehend the latest addition to his immense wealth. He had signed so many papers that he was still confused about what he owned from the visit to the bank. Philippe knew the directions to the Sea & Jungle store in Prague, and asked the limo driver to take them to the store. Mike had made the arrangements for their flights to Europe and ground transportation through World Wide Transportation, the company that had rental cars in every city where the company had an outlet store. He had his laptop computer with him, and was able to give the driver directions to anywhere in the Czech Republic. John was impressed with the Sea & Jungle store and met the store manager and several of the sales associates. He was tired, and wanted to go to his apartment in Prague to shower and relax. Mike wasn't prepared for the apartment in Prague. He expected a nice place with possibly two bedrooms, but instead the "apartment" was the top floor of a beautiful hotel overlooking the Vltava River that wound through Prague. The suite of rooms included 10 bedrooms, each with a private bathroom, a living room with a fully stocked bar, a game room with a pool table and video games, and a spacious office with computers, phones, copier, fax machine and maps of the Czech Republic. "I've been here before, but I never visited the orphanage," Philippe said. "For some reason, James never took anyone to the orphanage. He said it was going to be his private retreat where he could get away from everyone! World Wide Investments owns this entire hotel." "You sure know how to treat us like royalty," Derek said when he realized that each of the bodyguards would have their own bedroom and bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower and then take a short nap," John said. "I'm still suffering from jet lag." "Is it okay if I use your office to make a few phone calls?" Philippe asked. "It's not my office, it's our office!" John said. "Mike, can I talk to you in private in my room?" When John and Mike got inside the huge bedroom, John grabbed Mike and gave him a passionate kiss. His hands roamed over Mike's hard body and he ground their groins together until they were both hard as steel. "This is exactly what I need!" Mike said when they broke apart. "I've got a huge load of cum stored up, and I'm gonna shoot in my pants if you don't take care of Little Mike for me!" "I'm in the mood for a blowjob in the shower," John admitted. "We'll have to hold down the noise, but I plan on sucking you dry before I take my nap!" John and Mike had a great time in the shower, and blew each other twice before getting out and drying off. John was wearing a thick terry cloth towel when he heard someone knocking on the door to the apartment. He was going to open the door when Derek stepped in front of him and looked through the peephole. "Guys, we have armed visitors!" Derek yelled at the other bodyguards. Lindsey, Lou and Ross ran to the door with their hands on the weapons in their shoulder holsters. "John, I want you, Mike and Philippe to get dressed and wearing your body armor before I open the door!" John ran to his room and quickly put on Dockers, a T-shirt, his bulletproof vest and a long sleeved shirt. He could hear Derek talking to the visitors through the closed door, and John was afraid that someone was going to be shot. "IDENTIFY YOURSELVES!" Derek ordered. "I know that you're armed, and we are too!" "Gunther Hapsburg and Joachim Lopez! We're INTERPOL agents, and we want to speak to Mr. John Miller," a voice said. "Let me see some identification!" Derek demanded. He and the other bodyguards leaned against the door so that it could only be opened far enough for the visitors to show their identification. "The I.D. looks legitimate, but I'm not going to let them in," Derek said. "INTERPOL doesn't just show up for a casual chat with a tourist! I'm calling Butch!" John walked to the door and said, "Gentlemen, please be patient while we confirm who you are." "We'll wait," the voice said. "Ask your man to call Inspector Andrei Datsyuk here in Prague to verify our identification." It was 6 p.m. in Prague, but it was noon in Michigan when Derek called Butch. "We've got a problem here in Prague," Derek began. "Two armed men are outside right now, and they say that they're INTERPOL agents and they want to talk to John." "Did you see any I.D.?" Butch asked. "Yes, and it looks legitimate," Derek replied. "Lou was out for a walk and came back right before the two guys showed up at our door. Lou said the entire building is surrounded by suits, so we can't slip out of here." "I know some people in INTERPOL," Butch said. "Did they give you a name to contact to verify their I.D.?" "Inspector Andrei Datsyuk here in Prague," Derek said. "Have you ever heard of him?" "I've worked with Andrei before on some international smuggling cases," Butch said. "I've got my planner with my phone numbers for important contacts, and I'll see if I can contact Andrei. I'll call you right back! Stay there and be prepared for the worst!" Derek hung up the phone and ordered John, Mike and Philippe into their rooms. John wished that he had a Manhattan to drink while he waited anxiously for something good to happen. Fifteen minutes later, Butch called the apartment and asked to talk to John. He explained that the two men were legitimate INTERPOL agents, but didn't know why they wanted to talk to John. "Andrei Datsyuk's a friend of mine, and he's going there to handle the interview with you personally," Butch said. "I trust Andrei, but I wish that we had Bobby or some other lawyer to be with you during the interview. Will you trust me and tell me if you've done something illegal in Europe?" "I have some huge bank accounts here in Europe that I don't want the IRS to know about," John admitted to Butch. "When I was in Zurich, I took some diamonds out of my safety deposit box that I'm going to take to Amsterdam to have some jewelry made. Today I signed papers to take ownership of the Proud Les Domov orphanage about 100 miles from Prague, and also took ownership of the Czech Productions Company and some other businesses. I actually signed so many papers that I couldn't tell you what I own now, even if I tried. The production company is known as CPC Limited, but I don't know what kind of a business it is." "Thanks for your honesty," Butch said. "Let me do some checking about CPC Limited. I'll call you back as soon as I know something important, but in the meantime, be cautious with INTERPOL! They don't mess around or waste their resources on innocent people!" Now John felt real fear. Ever since he took the job with S&JI, he was overwhelmed with the magnitude of his new responsibilities, and now he was going to be interviewed by the international police force. He wished that he were back in Michigan and in the safety of his own home! John explained what he knew to his bodyguards, and asked Philippe to join him and Mike in the interview. Derek was pacing back and forth in the living room, and it was obvious that he was wound up like a spring! He was determined to protect John at all costs, and didn't want any armed men in the room during the interview. When Andrei Datysuk arrived, he knocked on the door and identified himself. "I'm unarmed, and I would like to talk to Mr. Miller in private," Andrei said. He showed Derek his identification and was relieved that he was allowed in the apartment. "Mr. John Miller?" Andrei asked when he saw the group of men in the room. "I'm John Miller," John said. "Have I done something wrong to bring out a horde of INTERPOL agents?" "Could we please talk in private?" Andrei asked. "I'm unarmed and mean you no harm. I have a very delicate matter to discuss with you, and I really don't want anyone else involved." "I'm armed," John said. He opened his sports coat and revealed the Glock that Derek had insisted that he wear for protection. "I'd rather have my friends, Mike Mahon and Philippe Ducharme with us, but I'll talk to you alone as long as my bodyguards are close by." "That sounds fair to me," Andrei said. "You can hold your weapon in your hand if that will make you feel more comfortable with me." John sensed that Andrei wasn't going to harm him, and despite the protests of his bodyguards, he agreed to talk to Andrei in private. He sat on the couch and faced the INTERPOL Inspector. "It's our understanding that you are the new registered owner of CPC Limited," Andrei began. "Do you know the type of business that CPC conducts?" "I have absolutely no idea," John said honestly. "All that I know is that the business must be very profitable, based on the balance in the account with the Expat Center." "CPC is a holding company for a collection of smaller companies," Andrei said. "One of the subordinate companies owns a company that we've been investigating." "How does your investigation involve me?" John asked cautiously. "Sergei Modeling Studio is the company that we're investigating," Andrei said. "The company operates in the former Soviet Union countries, and entices young boys and girls into signing lucrative contracts. The children and their parents think that the company is legitimate, and that the child will make a lot of money modeling designer clothes. Instead, the children are taken out of their home country to remote locations where they are forced to make child pornography and become prostitutes." John was shocked. How could James Stanton be involved with kidnapping of children and the production of child pornography or prostitution? If what Andrei was saying was true, government agencies could shut down the Sea & Jungle stores and confiscate all of the company assets! "Our investigation has been ongoing for over two years, and about a year ago we made a major breakthrough when James Stanton contacted us," Andrei said. "Mr. Stanton was suspicious of some of his people in the Detroit offices and wanted our help in investigating shipments out of Costa Rica. He was honest with us and believed that people were using his company contacts to smuggle in cocaine from Columbia through Costa Rica." John felt dizzy when he thought about the crate in the pole barn of his farm. He had given the crate to Mario's people, and now he feared that he had contributed to drug smuggling. "With Mr. Stanton's help, we investigated all of the international operations of the Sea & Jungle Imports company, and we found out about CPC and the Sergei Modeling Studio," Andrei said. "CPC makes a lot of money with legitimate businesses, but the modeling studio changed from a legitimate business into human trafficking about a year ago. Mr. Stanton was cooperating with us, and agreed to help us identify all of the perpetrators and where they took the children, but his death ended everything. The modeling studio started making `snuff' films, and that's the most heinous crime that I can imagine." John knew that snuff films showed men having sex with young children and then the films documented the murder of the child. He was appalled at the thought that James Stanton was involved with a company that could do something so vile. He tried to compose himself before asking, "What do you know about James Stanton's death?" "He was murdered," Andrei said. "We tracked a payment of $100,000 from a bank in the Bahamas to an outfitter in Zimbabwe where Mr. Stanton was taking a hunting safari. The son of the outfitter heard his father talking on the phone with a man from Michigan. His father said the name, `Mr. Coleman' and agreed to `taking care of the problem' for $200,000. The son heard his father agree to $100,000 down and another $100,000 after the problem was eliminated. Before the second payment was made, the outfitter, Julius Rosenthal was found murdered by elephant poachers." "Jacob Coleman's the Financial Manager of the North American Operations in Detroit, Michigan," John said. "He works for me, and I'm very suspicious of him and a bunch of other managers in that office." "James Stanton was cremated, but Thomas Mason was buried in Michigan," Andrei said. "We're working with the FBI and DEA to investigate your company, and we've uncovered some strong evidence of the murders. They exhumed Mr. Mason's body and recovered two bullets that ballistics matched with the rifle owned by Julius Rosenthal. The two bodies were trampled by elephants, but that was post mortem." "I'm sick about this, and now I know why you wanted to talk to me in private," John admitted. "Are you going to arrest me or Jacob Coleman?" "We've identified the people who killed Julius Rosenthal, and they identified Jacob Coleman and Glen Young as the men who paid them to murder Mr. Rosenthal and all of his hunting guides," Andrei said. "We have the money trail, and the FBI is waiting for the right time to make the arrests after INTERPOL can complete the investigation of the modeling company. Now I need your help with the Sergei Modeling Studio investigation." "I'll close down the company and fire all of the employees!" John blurted out. "I won't be involved with kidnapping, prostitution or murder, and I hope that this doesn't affect my international companies." "If we get your cooperation, you won't have any problems with your legitimate operations," Andrei promised. "Please don't close down the modeling studio until we can identify the entire organization." "What do you want from me?" John asked. He was trying not to vomit after hearing what Andrei had told him. "Let us put someone into the CPC operations so we can get investigate the Sergei Modeling Studio," Andrei asked. "I'll do better than that!" John said. "I'll sign over ownership of all of the CPC operations and give you the money in the bank account with the Export Center to fund your investigation." "You can't be serious!" Andrei said. "I was hoping that you'd let us slip an agent into your company, but having control of CPC will work much better! Are you sure that you want to donate over one billion Euros to our cause? You could still own the other CPC businesses and make a fortune in profits!" "I see that you have connections in the Expat Center to know my account balance," John said. "The money in that bank account and the profits from the legitimate operations of CPC are all yours!" "I'm overwhelmed!" Andrei said. "Butch Mendez and I have worked together, and he told me earlier today that you could be trusted and were an honest man. He was right, and I'm excited to have your complete cooperation. If there's anything that I can do for you, please let me know!" "I'd like you to communicate with Butch about everything that we've talked about," John said. "He's my Chief of Security, and he needs to know who the culprits are in my company so he can protect me and my honest friends. When the time's right, I'm gonna fry some asses!" "I was saddened when Butch was fired by the FBI," Andrei admitted. "You hired the best man that I could imagine to head up your security forces, and I look forward to working with Butch again." "Would you please contact Pavel Pekar to get the papers ready for my signatures," John asked. "By the way, can Mr. Pekar be trusted?" "I'd trust Pavel with the lives of my family," Andrei said. "He's one of my agents!" John was relieved when the interview ended, and he wondered how much he should share with Mike, Philippe and his bodyguards. He was afraid that if he told Mike about Jacob Coleman and Glen Young, his young friend might slip in a moment of anger and disclose the investigation of the murder of James Stanton and Thomas Mason. He decided to call Butch for advice. Butch was very pleased that John called him and agreed to work with Andrei. He had already called some friends who still worked for the FBI and DEA, and wished that John was back in Michigan so they could talk in private. "I know that you fired Merle Gardner, the Store Manager in Houston and temporarily replaced him with Karen Frazier, one of the Assistant Store Managers," Butch said. "If Karen moves to the San Francisco store, would it be possible to put a qualified person in the Houston store as the Store Manager?" "I promised Karen that she'd be transferred to San Francisco, but she doesn't know that she'll be promoted to Store Manager there," John said. "I'm getting vibes that the person that you want in the Houston Store has some connections with your former employer. Is that right?" "Exactly!" Butch said. "James McArthur, your District Manager for the Southwest Division might be upset if he doesn't get to name the new store manager, but I'm sure that you can grease the skids for us. I assure you that the man we need down there knows how to run a furniture store." "I'll be here until tomorrow and then I'm going to visit the orphanage," John said. "Send me an email with the information about the new man, and I'll announce the appointment to Mr. McArthur. If he gives me any shit, I'll take him out! He might be part of our Houston problem." "If he's part of the problem down there, we don't want to scare him away," Butch said. "Remember what the Godfather said. `Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer!' We can say that the new man's a college friend of yours. It's time for the shitheads to be able to complain about you showing favoritism in hiring an old college buddy." "Great idea!" John said. "Let's do it!" John hung up the phone and faced his travel companions. He was very cautious in explaining that he had just sold the CPC Operations to get rid of a problem. "One of the operations is illegal, and I won't tolerate that in our company!" John said emphatically. He refused to answer any questions and asked Mike to make him a drink. After today's events, he needed a whole pitcher of Manhattans! Stay tuned!!! Feedback is appreciated to Jacob_latson@hotmail.com