An hour later, Ben arrived in a posh apartment complex in his bike. He nodded to the old security guard named Buloy and pedaled himself to the last apartment in the complex. There he easily hopped the 4 step stairs and knocked at the beautiful mahogany door.

The door opened at the third knock and Bobby step into a dark living room area. He stood in the middle of the room and sighed. “Can you please stop pointing that gun at my head,” Ben said testily.

A European blond stepped out of the shadow to his left and drop her suppressed .22 pistol to her side. “You’re no fun, Benjamin,” She said. “I’ve even let you borrow one of my spare guns so that you can point it back to me and we will have a sexy Mexican standoff. That will really get my juice going!”

Bobby rolled his eyes as he sighed. The girl could have been every heterosexual male’s dream girl, with her classy long legs, Silky long blond hair and just the right amount of cleavage made her more than qualified to be the cover girl in sports illustrated. Except there is one itty bitty tiny little problem: the girl is a cold blooded psycho bitch killer.

Three years ago, the two of them first met in a glamorous bar in California. Ben was a replacement bouncer and is watching in amusement when the fifth guy who made a move on her was coldly rejected. But his amusement slowly died down when she started to emanate a strong killing aura around her. Ben followed her gazed and it fell on an old man groping two underage working girls while two bodyguards covered him.

Ben walked toward the Brigitte Bardot look-a-like, leaned over the bar and smiled. “I’m sorry,” She said coldly, not even bothering to look at him. “But I am not interested-”

“Get the fuck out,” Bobby said, interrupting her. The bartender looks at Ben curiously. Ben nodded to him as if to say “I got this.” The bartender shrugged and proceeded to clean his glasses.

“Excuse me?”

“Look, in five more seconds, you are planning to do something that is not going to be good to the interest of the bar owner, my client. So-”

“Is this dude bothering you?” A body builder loomed between them. Before the hot girl can speak, though, Ben’s hand swooped at the back of the man’s neck and smashed his face at the wooden bar. Everyone in the near vicinity heard something cracked in the man’s face before his body slowly slid down the grimy floor.

Ben’s eyes never left the girl’s own blue eyes. “So as I was saying, whatever is your beef with that old dude, I would appreciate it if you do it outside and away from the club perimeter.”

Her eyes sparkled. “What is your name?”

“Ben.”

“Well Ben, I will do what you asked of me, but know that you received something that most stupid men will kill for but should never have.”

“Oh? And what is that?” Ever since he was a child, Ben hated riddles.

The curve of her red lips rose slightly upward. “My attention. And currently, you have that in full.” Ben raised his eyebrows as the blond stood up gracefully and left the club. Every man, and most women, watched her walked outside with the feline grace of a puma.

When Ben’s shift ended that day, he said his goodbyes to his fellow coworkers and then decided to exit the club by the side door toward the alleyway. He knew the woman was waiting for her in the shadows with a silencer.

He barely remembered the fight simply because it wasn’t actually memorable to him. Suffice to say that she put up a good fight, but in the end, he beat the crap out of her. He is normally a gentleman towards women, well, generally speaking anyway, but in terms of fighting women, he had a lot of respect for them to take them seriously, even far more than man, simply because of his experiences in the village. His Mom as well as his ever-present bodyguards, the Shul-Altana, reinforced that expression to him a long time ago.

He did remember bringing her half dead body to a nearby hospital without being seen. She was forced to stay in that hospital for 4 months (3 months of that is in a coma) before finally escaping. That was Ben’s first mistake. The psycho bitch hunted him for the next 12 months with at least 28 assassination attempt against him. The last attempt was in Chicago when his team checked into a third rate hotel. Ben sense her presence and after widening his Ki, found the bomb in his room. The Blond was sitting alone across the street and holding a remote control detonator when Ben showed up in front of her and drop the bomb on her table.

“I tolerated your shenanigans because you go out of your way to find me when I'm all alone and always kept the civilians out of harm’s way. But I guess you are breaking your own rules today, so what’s stopping me from breaking your neck right this moment?”

That is when all hell broke loose. Glasses shattered as machine gun fire popped everywhere. Chaos began and panicking people started running.

Ben didn't also remember much about the fight, simply because the fight wasn’t memorable to him either, but he did remember that a two 4-man team attacked the cafe in two different vectors. Ben slaughtered them all plus the two dudes in a van a mile away who is coordinating the teams.

Ben dragged the blond back to his hotel room, while the rest of his team is gossiping and gawking outside, then started asking pointed questions.

The blonde is Russian by birth but her parents emigrated to Israel. At a very young age, she became a Mossad operative but left the agency when she was 19. As a freelancer, she quickly reached the top and became one of the most sought after assassin in the world.

And yeah, the old dude back in the bar when they first met was, in fact, her target. But after Ben interfered and then beat her up, she became slightly obsessed with Ben. Unfortunately, the former target is already paid for and her former client, a south American drug cartel, was not happy when she disappeared and started hunting Ben instead. The cartel was the one who attacked her and Ben in the Cafe.

“Slightly obsessed? Seriously?!”

In Ben’s total disgust, the entire Bakersfield Jam played so lousily that night that they lost by 30 points and incidentally, ended their season prematurely.

The attack in the cafe was lauded by the media as one of the worst terrorist attacks in the United States since 9-11. The incident killed almost 20 people and severely wounded at least another 10. According to the report, the gunmen were killed by responding police officers.

The following day, Ben took a flight to South America and two weeks later, the cartel was silently annihilated. Then he went back to the US, and made his second big mistake: He hired the psycho bitch to work for him.

Before he left his old village, His mom gave him an old 20GB desktop hard drive. “Our accountant overseas gave that to me and I’ve been told that there is a substantial amount of money inside that. Use it when you arrive at the new lands.”

Two years later, after he arrived in America, he created a startup company with three other interesting people that he saved throughout the years. The company was an investigation agency. And now Ben hired this psycho bitch as the fifth member of his team.

Ben asked her once, “By the way, what should I call you?”

To this day, Ben never found out why this woman, after trying so hard to kill him for an entire year, agreed to join him.

Her smile would have melted any other man’s heart. “Call me Natalina,” She said.

But to Ben, the only effect her smile gave him is to raise the hair on the back of his neck while his gut screamed at him DANGER! DANGER!

I wish I listened to my gut back then…

“Is there something in my nose?”

Ben blink back to reality and shook his head to clear his memory of the past. “Nothing,” Ben said tersely. “So what’s this big mission that you guys can’t handle on your own?”

Natalina slowly slid down the sofa in the dark room. “The client is Amapola Vasquez. We already worked for her last year when she hired us to check her husband’s fidelity.”

“And is he?”

“Somewhat.”

“Somewhat? What the hell does that mean?”

“The guy is a flirt and will chase anyone with a skirt, but he doesn’t have a mistress or use the family credit card for hookers.”

“Okay, so the guy is loyal.”

“Or a cheapskate.”

“And our client?”

Natalina shrugged. “Mother of two brats. Been a teacher for like forever and looks good for a late thirties woman. Anyway, a year or so ago, Our client is in a PTA party and taken a bit of alcohol. When she drove home, she got involve in a hit and run scenario.”

Ben raised an eyebrow. “She killed someone?”

“Naah,” Natalina said, then pulled out a small notebook. She opened it and flip over some of her notes. “The victim’s name is Arturo Bayles, 62 years olds, and a carpenter. He too was drunk that evening. He got hit by the car but stood up later and walk himself to a nearby hospital. We have a copy of his medical records: some bruises but nothing permanent. That is also where we learned that he is drunk at the time.”

“So what’s the problem?” Ben asked, confused.

Natalina sighed. “The problem is that our client ran away from the scene of the crime. Unfortunately, a nearby hooker captured the entire scene with her smartphone. Did you know that Oplus camera phone can really take good videos even in the dark? I’ll buy one with my next paycheck.”

“Focus Lina,” Ben admonished.

“Oh right!” She said. “Well, it turned out that the hooker is also a junkie and when she needed a quick shot of pick me ups, she traded her phone to her pimp who turned out to be a freaking police officer.”

Ben sighed and closed his eyes. He knew where this is going. “Shit,” He said under his breath.

“The cop watched the whole video and traced the car with her license plate. Like I said, the video was really good. The cop confronted our client and demanded 25 G’s,” Natalina reported then shrugged. “Our client paid the cop and the cop promised to erase the video. For a while everything is quiet.”

“Let me guess, the cop didn't erase the video.”

Natalina nodded. “He appeared 3 weeks later, that's yesterday and demanded 50G’s this time.” Natalina eyed Ben with piercing blue eyes. “And that is not all: Our cop friend wants to invite our client to his friend’s bachelor party and he is not taking no for an answer.”

“So where do we find him?” Bobby asked as he stood up.

“Marriott Hotel,” Natalina answered immediately. “He and four buddies are already there.”

Ben stop and turned back to her. “Cops?”

“Naah, Miko already ID’ed two of them as bankers, another as a lawyer and the fourth is a little vague, some sort of consultancy business.”

“And how does our cop friend contact the client?”

Natalina offered Ben a slightly well-used smartphone With a rabbit-tail keychain attached to it. “This is the client’s phone. I borrowed it.”

Ben smiled. It was not as if his team is incompetent, far from it. But if Natalina is left to her own devices in a volatile situation like this one, then more likely than not, there will be a bloodbath. That is why Ben imposed a rule a long time ago that the agency prioritized cases like tailing promiscuous wives and money trails, things that are boring but did not put his team in danger. But if they do take clients with possible danger in mind, then Ben insist on being called and be the one to handle it.

Most of the time his people complied, Miko for one, had no problem with money trail investigation and seems to enjoy it since everyone in his group knew how passionate the boss is about his NBA career. But every now and then the agency receive jobs that are more complex than the usual jobs, and Ben gave the team a more grounded option.

“Keep the phone,” Ben said. “If the cop calls, he will be expecting a more feminine voice. Let’s go.”

“Where are we going? The Marriott?”

“No, 7-11,” Ben answered simply.

Natalina was taken aback. “Why?”

“Because I need a drink.”

***********************************************************************

Two hours later, Ben and Natalina are walking toward the Lobby of the Marriott Hotel. While Bobby felt the awe and glamor of the new five-star hotel, Natalina was looking at him with a face that could not be painted.

“You said you needed a drink?” She asked sourly.

Absently, Ben raised his bottled water for Natalina to see.

“Then why in the world did you buy all those hard liquor and left it in my car.

“Props,” was all Ben could say.

Natalina sighed and covered her eyes with a sunglass. She knew that Ben is stubborn enough not to tell her his plan no matter how many times she bugs him. Besides, She will find out soon enough.

Ben took his time checking out the lobby then nodded to himself, before turning around and started walking toward the reception desk, Startling his companion. “What’s the cop’s name?” Ben asked slowly.

“Marcus,” Natalina said automatically. “Sgt Marcus Veeno. A 12 year veteran of the force. A few complaints now and then and he even got investigated by IA, but all of them were squashed. This guy knows how to work the system."

"And the client isn't coming here, right?"

"I'm not stupid, Benjamin."

Despite questioning his comrade's sanity every now and then, Natalina's way of calling him with his full name while using that eastern European accent of hers is rather... stirring.

The pretty receptionist gave Ben a fake smile and asked him how she can help him. Natalina raised one manicured eyebrow when Ben's accent suddenly change to a latino one. "You can help me indeed chica," Ben said with a wink. "Me and my hombres are planning to do little partying in your fine establishment and actually I'm already late. Can you direct me to the room reserved for Marcus Veeno? He is a big time cop you know."

A nearby consigliere pops his head from the notes he is studying and smoothly cut in the conversation. "I'll handle this Marla, you may go." The receptionist named Marla shrugged and left, this gave her more time to gossip with her fellow receptionist if the big-boobed blond that accompanied the wealthy Arab guy is a wife or a mistress.

The consigliere played with his computer for a moment then gave Ben an exaggerated frown. "I'm sorry Mr..."

"Smith," Ben Offered and the consigliere nodded.

"I'm sorry Mr. Smith," The man repeated. "But we don't seem to have a name with the one you provided me in our database, Maybe he'd used an alias instead...?" The man prompted expectantly.

"Yeah," Ben said, showing a bit of embarrassment. "He mentioned something like that, but I don't remember." The consigliere showed a sympathetic face, but he is obviously also not gonna budge if Ben cannot give any concrete proof that he is indeed a friend of Marcus. "Tell you what, I'm just gonna call him right now, refresh my memory and get back to you."

He turned around and walk away. Natalina hurriedly followed him. "What the hell was that?!" Said the blond completely baffled.

Ben sighed as he slowed down. "Our boy Marcus has been doing this for a while now, and he could not have done this without developing a few contacts on the side. That consigliere over the desk is one of them. Did you see how he smoothly reacted after I name-dropped the cop?"

Natalina surreptitiously turned back and watched the consigliere now busy on the phone. Ben continued speaking. "Maybe he blackmailed other women before or he used his own girls, but they developed a system a long time ago and obviously I don't know anything about it, which made me a very suspicious person."

In his first year in the US, Ben watched a popular sci-fi movie about a galaxy far far away with people who can manipulate the minds of weak individuals, and this gave him an idea to used his Ki in a somewhat similar fashion. What he can do though is simply erase a specific data, like blur his image, in the mind of someone.

"uhmm, I don't know how to explain this but once the cop comes down and interrogate the consigliere, he won't remember much about me, except that I have a latino accent and that I am being accompanied by a fine young woman such as yourself."

"Not even the fact that you have Asian features?"

"Not even that."

"..."

"..."

"Someday, you will have to teach me how you do that."

Ben smiled. "Maybe, but right now what is important is that the cop will come down the elevator and the consigliere will only remember you. Watch them talk while you stay outside the lobby. Once the cop mark you then you lead him to his car, do you know where it is?"

Natalina smiled. "Across the parking building at the side of the street. Level two. Bastard even brings his mobile to the party. So I lead him there and then I shoot him?" She said, hope in her voice.

Ben sighed. "You just lead him there and I'll tail you both. When it's time, I will be the one doing all the heavy lifting."

******************

"Who the fuck are you?!" The heavy-set cop named Marcus snarled at the sexy blond leaning over the hood of his mobile. Bitch was holding something behind her and his years of experience as a beat cop told him that it was a weapon, so he jumped the gun, so to speak, and pulled out his own Glock and pointed it directly at the woman.

The Bitch didn't react and even kept that half-smile on her face that is making him angrier. "I asked you a question, bitch! Who the fuc-" A shadow slid behind him and when he turned it was already too late.

Darkness engulfed him.

Ben kneeled at the crumpled cop and shook his head. How could any of this people not sense the Ki around them? It is just so stupid. Just a small amount of ki flickered at the back of the neck and they are out for days if needed be. Without Ki, humans are just so... fragile. I wonder what it feels like living like that.

"Did that bastard just called me a bitch?!" She asked, pulling out the Kukri knife behind her and walking menacingly toward the unconscious man.

"Whoah, easy! No killing, I got this!" Ben said, projecting an absolute wall of authority that made Natalina stopped her blinding rage.

"You are no fun, Benjamin," She said, a bit calmer.

With one hand, Ben carried the 300-pound officer in his shoulder seemingly without any effort then placed him carefully in the mobile. Hurriedly, he grabbed the plastic bag full of hard liquor they bought earlier and dump it inside the car as well.

When everything was set, Ben turned back to Natalina. "Go back to the lobby of the hotel and wait for me," He said.

Natalina groaned but Ben ignored her. "Do it," He said. "I promised you'll have your little fun when I get back."

Eventually, Natalina walked away and he was left with the unconscious cop. He calmly sat in the passenger seat and studied the mobile's wheel handle for a moment, satisfied, he started the car using the cop's key and proceeded to drive the car. His long limbs and innate discipline made it possible fo him to drive the car despite being on the passenger side of the mobile.

There was no guard at the entrance of the parking lot since everything is automated. A quick palm strike and the video camera pointed at the entrance simply exploded. Then Ben smashed into the thin yellow roadblock and while whistling a tuneless tune all the while, he drove the mobile out into the daylight street.

While driving the car, Ben decided to look around the mobile and check every compartment. He already grabbed the guy's phone plus the evidence and then tinkered with the cop's laptop at the back of the car and stole 2 usb's that he found in the computer case. He blinked in mild surprise when he saw a few stashed of weed in the side compartment of the mobile.

He was probably six blocks away from the hotel when he activated his Ki around him, the plastic bag stirred and the bottles of rum and vodkas began floating around the mobile. With a little infusion of effort, ben popped the bottles and the liquid swirl out of its container and formed into this massive liquid ball floating inside the mobile. Ben guided the floating liquid until it touched the unconscious cop and slowly the skin absorb the alcohol into the man's body. Every now and then, Ben stop the absorption for a few minutes for fear of killing the man in alcohol poisoning, but eventually the entire ball of alcohol was absorbed by Marcus.

He gave one final check in the car and after gathering more Ki in his hand, injected it right at the back of the cop's neck. The Ki instantly woke Marcus up. He looks around bewildered, and upon seeing Ben he started attacking him. Ben easily deflect the awkward punches directed at him then seemingly without any effort, he grabbed Marcus at the base of his neck and the man was suddenly paralyze from the neck down.

"Relax, dude, this is almost over," Ben said as he eased the mobile toward a long alleyway. "Just to recap and make sure you understand what is happening: You try to blackmail our client and we are here to set you up so you will never be a threat to her ever again."

"Client? You mean the teacher?! When I get my hands on that bitch I'll-"

"Are you even listening?! I told you, you won't be able to get near her ever again," Ben said as he increases the pressure in the accelerator.

"What the fuck are you doing?!"

"Actually you are about to crashed your police car into that alley wall 2 blocks away."

Marcus' eyes widen, and despite himself, he tried to move, but the paralysis was complete. Meanwhile, Ben continued talking as if he had no care of the world around him. "Relax, I guarantee that you won't die from this sad accident since I already strengthen with Ki your internal organs. But the pain will still be a bitch. Also, a concerned citizen already called 911 about a suspicious police car moving erratically in the neighborhood, so after the crash, paramedics should be here in a few minutes... maybe. Unfortunately, after they check you out, they will realize that your blood contains at least 6x the normal alcohol level and a few goodies in your pocket." Ben deliberately showed him the weed he found and put it gently into the man's pocket. Ben just smiled at the cop's incredulous look. "That should free our client from your influence."

"I still have the video-"

"You mean this?" Ben showed him the hooker's smartphone that contains the video. "Or are you talking about the backup in your laptop? I already grabbed the hard drive and your own phone just in case."

"Somebody will notice that the hard drive is missing."

"After your tragic accident, the laptop will be in several pieces, and no one will really care to look for it."

Ben could see the man's mind working full time, trying to find a way out but there was none. "Come on man," Marcus pleaded suddenly. "I got a few money stashed away, you don't need to ruin my career just for this!"

Ben's eyebrows rose. "You have no problem ruining a woman's career, break up her family and make her your sex slave, and you believe you deserve to keep your job?"

"They deserve it?!" Marcus screamed. "They are all bitches and whores! And they needed to be punished!"

"Maybe, but not by you. I told you that you won't die in this accident, but I never told you that you'll be able to walk again for a while. With the disciplinary hearing, and then the physical therapy and counseling plus the legal mess, After this accident, you won't be anyone's pimp daddy anytime soon."

Marcus was still screaming when the mobile smashed into the solid wall. As expected, the airbag deployed and Marcus' head drive right through it and kept him alive. The rest of his body wasn't so fortunate, though. Ben actually flew from the passenger's seat and smashed over the wall outside. Groggily, he stood up, shook himself like a dog to clean his hair of the tempered glass pieces.

He immediately checks Marcus who is now unconscious then winced at the guy's broken legs. Ben cleaned places in the car that he remembered touching and then walked away with the evidence like nothing happened.