With a Bullet

by Femfan1 from story concepts by P. O'Donnel

A gloved hand reached up to knock on the massive oaken door. A courtesy. She had been under constant video surveillance since her vehicle had entered the front drive. Upon her arrival, the steel security gate had swung open allowing her access to the walled compound of the estate. She was expected. Indeed, her presence had been requested.

Before she could rap her knuckles against the wood, the door clicked open and she was confronted by a large man in an ill-fitting suit. His unbuttoned jacket did little to conceal the bulge of the automatic weapon beneath.

Disappointment registered on his face as his eyes gave her the once over. With a gesture, he ushered her inside, closing the door behind her.

"Please, follow me."

The Weapons Mistress took in the floorplan of the rooms as she casually obeyed the instruction. To the side, rooms led to more rooms, interconnected, while the entrance foyer shifted into a narrower hallway at the center of the dual staircase between which they now travelled. At the back of the hallway, a left turn brought them into a study where two more men talked. The larger of the two gentlemen was dressed much like her guide and was roughly the same height, although a little puffier. The seated man, dressed in jeans and a golf shirt, was almost certainly her host. Their conversation broke off as she entered the room.

"Ahhh, Colt! Thank you, for coming!" The man rising to his feet extended his hand in welcome. "I'm Jim Courtwright."

"Hello, Mr. Courtwright." Colt nodded to her host and acknowledged his companion, as well.

"Forgive me, this is my head of security, Bill Mueller."

"It's nice to meet you both. What can I do for you, Mr. Courtwright? You seemed to be in quite a hurry to see me."

"Mmm... right to it. Yes, that's for the best. Wilson, would you mind leaving us alone for a moment. Close the door behind you, please."

Her guide exited the room and the door shut.

"Would you like to have a seat?"

"Thank you." Colt moved toward the offered chair but, feigning distraction, detoured to the antique flintlock pistol displayed on the wall. "I take it you're an afficionado of firearms, Mr. Courtwright?"

"Uhm, yes, yes, I am. Well, antiques, actually. Not just firearms, either. Furnishings, sculptures..." Breaking off his thought, he lifted a piece of paper from his desk and extended it towards her. "This is why I've asked to meet with you."

Colt took the piece of paper, blank except for a short note printed in standard type.

"Enjoy tomorrow because the next sunset will be the last time you live to see daylight."

An agitated Courtwright held up a handful of similar papers. "These came before. I hadn't taken them very seriously. Because of my wealth, the threat of kidnaping for ransom is always present. I've even had threats on my life before as a result of ill feelings after business deals. Mueller here has been handling my security for many years and I have the utmost confidence in his abilities. No threat has ever come close to being carried out."

The big man's eyes seemed to be staring a hole in the floor. Colt handed the threatening note back to Courtwright.

"I initially hired Bill because he had the reputation as one of the best security men in the business. He's proven his abilities and I've trusted him with my life. However, while one of the best, he's not ‘the best' in the business. From all I understand, that title belongs to you, and present circumstances require that I be protected by the best."

"What makes the most recent threat of any more concern than the others, Mr. Courtwright?" Colt studied Mueller's attempts to hide his discomfort at the perceived injury to his reputation by his employer.

"The fact that it was waiting on my pillow when I went to bed last night. That's a breach of security that's unprecedented. What's worse, nobody can tell me how it happened so I can't be certain it won't happen again."

"So, you want to hire me to find out how security was breached."

"Yes, for a start. I also want to live to see tomorrow morning and I want whoever's making these threats caught. If you're as good as I hear you are, and given the rather specific nature of the most recent threat, I believe we're talking about one night's work. Needless to say, I'll pay handsomely for your services."

Colt considered the offer. She wished she had more background on her potential client. The quick background check she had completed this morning before agreeing to meet with him had revealed only that he had no criminal record or known criminal associates. Her more detailed check conducted on the plane ride here had disclosed that much of his wealth had been inherited, although he had invested wisely and had added to the family fortune. A rare mention in the society pages. An even rarer mention in the financial section. He seemed nervous, eager to have her accept his offer. Natural under the circumstances.

"My normal rate for investigation is $1000 a day, plus expenses. I don't generally act as a bodyguard, although under the circumstances keeping you alive is part of the deal. In that regard, I wouldn't want there to be any friction with Mr. Mueller and his associates. I'd appreciate his assistance, but I'd be working for you."

"$1000?" Courtwright reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a stack of bills. Peeling two from the top, he handed them to Colt. "This being Friday, I went to the bank and withdrew some money so that I'd have cash for a down payment in the event you agreed to help me. It appears my idea of the value of my life is quite a bit higher than your ‘normal' rate. Strange, I find myself wishing you'd asked for more, although I suppose I'll get your best effort no matter what I pay."

Colt took the bills and slipped them into her jacket pocket. "I'll need a rundown of everything that's happened so far. A layout of the estate and the buildings on it, and the security measures in place."

"Of course! Bill, take care of it."

Mueller nodded his head in assent. "Yes, sir! Colt if you'll come with me we can head over to the main security room and I'll answer any questions you have."

Colt followed Mueller out of the study and down a staircase. The security chief seemed to be handling the incursion into his area of responsibility well. He swiped a passcard through a reader and a metal door opened into a room full of video monitors. Sitting down at a table, he pushed a folder in her direction. "Here's a copy of the file. Everything we've got on this case."

The Weapons Mistress surveyed the contents. "Mm-hmm. Tell me about the estate."

"About 25 acres. Roughly rectangular. It's walled on 3 sides. Stone. You saw. About 8 feet high. The top has broken glass cemented onto it and a 3 foot barbed-wire extension tilted out. There are motion sensors on the inside perimeter set about 4 feet high and 10 feet wide. The fourth side is a cliff face that looks out on the ocean. There's a 12 foot high electrified fence that's turned on at night. There's also a security gate that leads to steps down to the beach. Three of my people patrol the grounds randomly every night, coding in their arrival at checkpoints they're required to reach at least once every hour. We also have electronic video surveillance of the grounds. The cameras pan automatically but can also be manually operated from this room. There are no blindspots within 100 yards of the main house."

"What about the other buildings?"

"A guest house, a 6-car garage, an outdoor kitchen, a shower when you come up from the beach. We've swept the structures and all are empty. Video surveillance around each."

"How about surveillance inside the main house?"

"None. Mr. Courtwright doesn't want it. Instead, he's got live-in security. Myself, Wilson, Jones, de Souza, and Ames. Those are my people. We've all worked together at least 10 years. They're professionals. I just don't know how this guy got into the house!"

"Guy?"

"Man, woman, who knows. My gut says it's a guy!"

"Mmm...Okay, theories on how the threat got into his room?"

"He was at a charity function last night. People knew that he'd be attending and that it would run late. Three of us were with him, so only two people were left to watch the grounds. One outside and one in this room. Neither saw or heard anything suspicious."

"What about other staff?"

"A cook, a butler, and a maid. They had left for the day before we headed out to the charity event on Thursday evening. This morning he called them all and gave them today and the rest of the weekend off. Fewer people for us to keep track of inside the house."

"Okay, I'd like to meet the rest of your people."

"Let's take a walk."

With efficiency, Colt was introduced to Candace Jones, Patricia de Souza and Ronald Ames, and re-introduced to Phil Wilson. All four seemed fiercely loyal to Mueller but she didn't sense great irritation that she had been employed. The Weapons Mistress found it odd that they weren't more ticked off that she was there. It would only be natural for them to be annoyed by the thought that their employer had found their services deficient.

By the time she had inspected the length of the grounds and all of the structures, it was dusk. Colt returned with Mueller to the main house where both once again met with Mr. Courtwright.

The Weapons Mistress wasted no time, "Let Mr. Mueller and his people handle things on their end, business as usual. I'd like to put a wire on you so that we can communicate directly at any time. I'm aware of your feelings about your privacy b..."

"Nonsense! These are extraordinary circumstances. You want me to wear a wire, I'll wear a wire!"

"Good. That's sensible." Colt pulled a small transmitter/receiver from a pouch on her belt and inserted it inside Courtwright's ear. One of her own earrings received transmissions on the same frequency. "Okay, everyone can carry on as usual. I'll be around."

With that pronouncement, the Weapons Mistress turned on her heels and walked toward the steps leading to the main security room, leaving Courtwright to ponder what exactly she would be doing to protect him. After a moment's hesitation, Mueller followed.

"You'll be around?" A grin flashed across Mueller's face.

"Yeah. I want to see those floorplans again and I'm going to want access to every room in the house."

Mueller slid his access card through the door lock and they entered the security room. "Sure, I'll tell my people not to get in your way."

The bank of video monitors panned the grounds. "Well, the sun's set. 9 hours ‘till dawn. Time to get to work." Colt strode out of the security room with plans in hand, leaving Mueller to oversee his own people. Something about the "security" didn't seem right to her, but she didn't sense that any of them were behind Courtwright's troubles. The first question to answer was how somebody got into the house to leave the note. Even with only two security people present last night, the other measures should ordinarily have been sufficient to keep unwanted intruders from accessing the grounds. Perhaps a highly skilled thief? Not usually the type to commit murder. Although not out of the question. Dollface leapt to mind! Still, what dealings would Courtwright have had with her?

Another possibility was an inside job. Her earlier walk-through of the house hadn't measured up. Now, as she paced the formal living room, it was clear that the dimensions did not correspond with the floorplan. Secret passageways wouldn't be uncommon in a house of this vintage. If the occupants knew of them, why wasn't she told, and, if they didn't, who might?

In her ear, she listened to Courtwright as he prepared for bed. The sound of the TV turning on caught her attention. Reaching into her belt, she activated her transmitter, "Mr. Courtwright, please turn off the TV, the noise might mask something I need to hear."

"But, how'm I going to fall asleep?"

"Read a book, count sheep, no TV, no radio."

The TV turned off and she could hear him rummaging around. The sound of his body climbing back into bed was followed by the flipping of pages and muttering. It would seem he'd chosen reading a book. Colt returned the transmitter to her belt and continued examining the living room. If there was a secret passageway, she placed it between this room and the study. She surveyed the fixtures. None appeared to be original to the room. At the rear of the room, two thin lines of dust at the baseboard of the inset bookcase. Typical, but where's the release catch? Extracting a small aerosol bottle from a pouch on her boot, she sprayed the woodwork of the cabinet. The oily residue of fingerprints concentrated in one area led her to closer inspection and, when she pushed with her own thumb in the same spot, the bookcase slid forward noiselessly to reveal the passageway between the walls that she had suspected.

Extracting a small flashlight, she entered the darkness, following a collection of footprints left in the dust. Her path took her to the edge of a staircase leading both down into the darkness and up toward the second floor. She had an idea where the passage up came out, Courtwright's bedroom, but what of the one going down?

Suddenly, in her ear, she heard the sound of Courtwright stirring. "Wha..? You! How'd you get in here? Wait! Colt! Colt, where are you!?! No! Nmph!" The sound of Courtwright's muffled voice echoed in the Weapons Mistress's ear as she bounded up the steps of the interior staircase. Then, two muffled shots and silence!

Colt had reached the top of the stairs and turned a corner in the passageway when she saw that the secret entrance to Courtwright's room was ajar. Her Clippers already in her hands, she proceeded cautiously. Whoever had been in Courtwright's room hadn't exited this way and she had to assume was still in there. Sliding out of the passage into the moonlit room, she found no one. Moving quietly and ever alert, she checked the bedroom door and found it locked. A quick glance under the bed and up at the ceiling revealed nothing. The closet was empty, as was the bathroom, and the window latched shut. Could there be another exit to a different passageway?

She approached Courtwright's bed. His body, sprawled out beneath the covers, was motionless. A bullet-riddled pillow covered his face. "Damn!" A note pinned to the other side of the pillow caught her attention. Leaning over, so as not to disturb the scene, she grasped the corner of the message and peered at it in the low light.

"Good night, Colt?" A flash of light from below blinded her as smoke billowed up into her mouth and nostrils! Coughing from the noxious fumes, she stepped back, her mind reeling! In a daze she stumbled back toward the bed, grabbing the now destroyed pillow and tossing it aside to reveal the shattered head of a mannequin.

She was vaguely aware that the lights had come on in the room as she fell forward, queasy, her head swimming in an ocean of swirling colors. Her body slumped upon the bed, but rubbery legs were unable to support her and she slid down until her momentum left her toppling backwards onto the floor. Lashes fluttered over glazed eyes before heavy lids shut and she sank into unconsciousness.

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