“No time for that… I wanted to let you know that you were safe.  We have guys closing in, but I need you to keep your cool a little longer…”, he said, looking her new clothes over disdainfully, “not that you appear to be suffering or anything.”.

“It’s not what you think… really!  It’s not like I’m enjoying this!”, she sputtered, defensively tossing the bracelet on the table.  “I have something you might find useful.”.  Reaching into her purse, she handed Sean the tape recorder.  “Castor’s told me quite a few things over the past couple of days.” 

“I’ll send it along to headquarters… good work.”, he said grudgingly before sticking it in the front pocket of his jacket.  The sound of voices outside, approaching the steps, made him jump a little and pull the ski mask back over his face.  “I’ve gotta go … just keep your cool, alright?  And please don’t let yourself get emotionally involved with this guy… any more than you already are.”.

“I’m not emotionally involved… and what’s going to happen now?  Are you flying us back to the U.S.?”.

“No, but we’ve got a plan.  Just keep him amused and everything will be cool.  You’ll be back home soon.”.  Stepping out of the plane, he blended seamlessly into the tapestry of the crowded runway, and as Heather put on the bracelet, she felt a flush of embarrassment at how it must have looked to Archer… a naïve Midwestern girl falling for a flashy, glamorous bad boy.   While he would have been off the mark when it comes to her innocence, she wasn’t fooling anyone into believing she had no feelings for Castor.  His raw sexual magnetism was undeniable, but he was also a man who ached for something more meaningful than money and power… he wanted someone who made him feel real, who made him feel like he was enough… and that spoke to the deepest part of her soul more than anything else.  He wanted everything she could give him, and then some.  No man had ever wanted her the way he did.

The cabin door opened suddenly, a tropical wind rushing in, and Castor climbed aboard.  When he saw the bracelet on her wrist, his face lit up with a cheesy grin.  “Bay-bee!!  You got a new bauble!”, he teased her, wrapping his arms around her and nuzzling her neck.  Pollux was right behind him, and rubbed the back of his head nervously as he watched his older brother’s antics.  “Do you like it?”.

“It’s gorgeous.”, she said, simply, not wanting to ruin the moment with any more words. 

He gently took her wrist and held it up to the light.  “It fits perfectly.. I knew it would.  When I saw it, I thought of you.”.  Stroking the soft, fleshy underside of her arm firmly, he gazed deep into her eyes, and she noticed his pupils were dilated.  His voice had taken on a slurred, mushy quality.  “No matter what happens, it’s yours to keep.  When you look at it, you’ll remember me.  I know you will.”.  His lips, now dry and rough, brushed against her earlobe, and she definitely sensed more than a hint of alcohol on him.  Without warning, he forcefully sat her down in the seat and bucked her in, then reached in his pocket for his cell phone.  Heather tried not to look conspicuous as she casually looked over his head towards the cockpit… who would be flying them to Dublin?  Would it be another agent, or one of his guys?  What kind of plan did Archer have in mind?

After a few minutes of listening to Castor on the phone, blithering drunkly to someone about their plans for the cargo, she saw the pilot walking up the steps.  Now she could tell the difference between Archer and this man… he had a smaller frame.  Heather didn’t understand what was going to happen once they got to Dublin, but it must be an  ingenious plan.  It had to be good.  She told herself this, silently, over and over as the plane took off, the turbulence shaking the cases in the back room and causing a ruckus.   This had to be a plan that couldn’t fail.. to tell herself otherwise would lead her down a dangerous path.

Castor’s hands rubbed hers playfully, but his eyes were closed, his head tilted back against the seat.  She stared out the window and tried to imagine what her life would be like if she were to give up everything she had known and believed in before she took on this case, just give up on all of it, and run off with Castor.  There was no doubt that he would do anything to make her happy… but how long would it last?  Would he grow tired of her eventually?  As she looked down at the ocean, a dark, fathomless expanse of blues and blacks and purples, her eyes started to feel heavy and she found herself resting her cheek against the warm leather of the seat.  She couldn’t let herself worry about what would happen once they land… it was all out of her hands.  At one time, losing control of a situation would scare her.  But this time, she wasn’t feeling so bad about it.

            Heather awoke to fingertips gently brushing against her cheekbone, with eager lips close behind.  “Bay-bee……..”, a soft voice whispered.  Her eyes adjusted to the dark cabin.  She had been asleep for a few hours, and now only she and Castor were awake.  He unbuckled his seatbelt and stood up, gesturing excitedly for her to follow him to the back.  When he closed the door behind them and turned on the light, she looked around excitedly but saw nothing out of the ordinary… the cases of fake diamonds, but nothing else.  Walking towards it and opening it with a flamboyant gesture, she half expected to find a gaudy floor-length fur coat or a dozen red roses, but instead he pulled out a Starbucks cup. 

            “I wasn’t sure if they had Starbucks in Ireland, so I brought it along with us.  Thirsty?”, he purred, handing the cup to her with a flourish.

            She could tell by the spicy, creamy scent that he had known so much about her, had studied her so closely for the past six months, that he knew her favorite drink was Caramel Apple Cider.  The thought of this sent a shiver of realized paranoia down her spine, but when she saw how happy he was to make her happy, that he followed her every move out of fascination and bewitchment, she realized that she was as safe with him – at least for the time being – as she could ever be.  She tasted it, then offered to share it with him, but he declined.  Instead, he turned to stare out the window, and she looked as well… the view was gorgeous, with the pale moon washing over the rolling hills of southern England.  They would be in Ireland in just a few short hours. 

            The door suddenly swung open violently.  “We’re being followed!  Fuck it all, we’re being followed!”.  It was Pollux, his matted hair wild, arms flailing.  “Goddamnit, what the **** are we gonna do??”.

            Castor’s eyes widened, almost defensively, and he stormed out of the room with his little brother on his heels.  Heather looked out the window closest to the back of the plane… it was a small non-combat military aircraft, a twin-engine model.  After a couple of minutes, she timidly stuck her head out, just enough to hear the pilot conversing on the two-way, most likely with the plane behind them.  It was all in Spanish, and he was remarkably calm.  Castor and Pollux were seated along the right side of the plane, silent but in deep contemplation.

            Before long, the pilot motioned to Castor, and he crossed the cabin to him.  Heather heard hushed whispers between them as the pilot attempted to keep his eyes ahead.  At length, Castor said something about “taking them out”, and her stomach lurched into her throat.  He can’t possibly be planning to shoot down the plane!, she worried. 

            “Castor… what’s going on?  Who are those people?”, she asked him innocently.

            The sound of her voice changed his mood and expression change instantly.  His smile, warm and calm, reached out to embrace her.  “You’ve got no worries, beautiful.  We’re just going to have a little fun, that’s all!  We’re about to have the time of our lives!”.  His eyes were wild and eager… he was overstimulated and worn down, and was aching to bring her along for the ride.  He ran across the cabin, smooched her face, then flung open the door just enough to stick his head out.  The wind muffled his voice, but she could make out a few of the words he shouted at the plane behind them. 

            “Come on, you stupid mother ****er!!  Come on!!  If you want us, come and get us!!”, he screeched, waving one of his gold-plated Colts in the air.  He leveled it straight ahead and pulled the trigger, then laughed maniacally.  Heather dashed into the back room and peered out the window… the plane appeared to be nothing more than a cheap little flying can, painted in olive green and brown, and now it was veering off to the right to avoid the shots.  She couldn’t get a good glimpse at the pilot, but she was certain it couldn’t have been an agent… their flying was erratic, timid.  Whatever the reason for its sudden appearance, it dove back into the clouds just as quickly.

            “We should have stuck with the original plan.”, Pollux said to Castor as he shut the door.   “Landing at Brighton, then loading the cargo onto a train… we have a lot of connections in England.  They owe us, big time.”.  His voice was monotonous and nagging, and Castor walked by him, unfazed.  “Air delivery of this kind of **** is too risky.”.

            “Should we just land the ****ing plane right now, bro?”, Castor snapped, whirling around to face him before sitting back down.  “We’re already two hours from Dublin… I think they got the ****ing point!!  If they want to send any more of their bourgeois ****s after us and pull another cutesy stunt like that again, we can sell the **** to someone else!”.  At length, he turned to Heather, who was leaning against the doorway to the back room.  “That was one of the guys that works for our sucker… the one we’re gonna meet tonight.”.

            “Are you sure he works for him?”

            “It’s standard operating procedure.  Bring down the plane, take the cargo and run.  Like I said before, they’re not very people-friendly.”, he added with a small smile.  Patting the seat next to his to coax her by his side, he gazed up at her adoringly.  “I’ve got a good feeling about all of this, though.  I think you’re my lucky charm.”.