Olivia

“You’re sure about this contact of yours?” Dustin asks. I nod, tap my foot a little impatiently. Fashionably late, as usual so I shouldn’t be surprised; but being on edge has frayed my nerves and pushed me to frustration.

“She’s the last piece of the plan,” I reply. “If anyone can break into a high security facility, it’s her. If she shows up,” I add.

“You trust her?”

“Yes. She’s can come off as a little sketchy, edgy, and she’ll probably rub you the wrong way, but Lukshia is a very dependable person, and quite friendly once you get to know her. I wouldn’t want anyone else leading this.”

Dustin nods and shifts his weight, his arms crossing comfortably over his chest as he leans against the back, outer wall of the marine park. his thin, black glasses glint in the dying light. He only wears them for reading documents in his office, but he’s likely forgotten that they’re still sitting, slightly crookedly, on the bridge of his nose. Years of fixing my own crooked glasses, which I wear on a more permanent basis, lead me to reach out and adjust his without thinking about it. The motion shocks Dustin and he pulls back a little. “I forgot I still had these on,” he comments almost predictably as he reaches up to pull them off his face, folding the arms and sliding one into the collar of his shirt to hold them there. Then he checks his watch. “What time did you say we were meeting her?”

“Eight thirty,” I reply. “What time is it?”

“Almost nine,” Dustin sighs.

“Late as usual,” I comment, my lips pursing with displeasure. “How the woman keeps clients I will never know.” No sooner than I finish speaking, a small, sleek black car crawls up the dirt road that leads up from the harbor. It’s a tiny thing, with faintly tinted windows, but otherwise doesn’t seem as though it would draw attention or look suspicious in a neighborhood. I suppose that’s the point. It pulls to a stop about twenty feet in front of us and a woman climbs from it. Thick, wild black curls fall over her shoulder in a loose side ponytail. Lukshia is wearing a black tank top covered by a long, open black coat that billows out as she walks towards us, with sleeves that cut off at the elbow. Brown leggings cloak her legs, and her feet are clad in her signature dark brown riding boots. Her darker, earthy toned skin outlines the sinuous muscles of her arms and legs; revealing more strength than one would think after taking in her more petit frame. I know from experience that she’s not someone you provoke.

Lukshia closes the distance between us in a few seconds, her hazel eyes bright with mischief, a hidden, daring challenge, yet soft with warm happiness at the same time. She wraps me in a powerful hug. “It’s good to see you, Olivia,” she greets.

I hug her back and then pull away to meet her gaze. “It’s nice to see you too; would be nicer to have seen you at eight thirty,” I comment.

Her eyes move into an exaggerated roll. “I’m a little late, come off it. I’m always on time when I need to be.”

“I’m going to hold you to that,” I retort. “Now, I want you to meet Dustin; he runs the marine park.”

Dustin steps forward and offers Lukshia his hand, which is ignored. “Mrs. Blake,” Dustin greets, his tone pleasant. “Olivia has spoken very highly of you. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” A moment of silence stretches between us as Lukshia studies Dustin with a monotone expression. Dustin lets his arm fall awkwardly back to his side.

“Mm,” Lukshia turns her attention back to me. “I was a little surprised at the reason you contacted me; you’ve never shown much interest in my professions before.”

“I have need of them now,” I admit.

“Well, shall we go inside to a place more private to discuss why?”

“Of course,” Dustin steps in. “Let’s go inside. We can talk in my office.” He gestures to the open gate behind us. Dustin leads the way down the barren paths and empty halls of the marine park. He closes the office door behind us. I move to sit down on a spare chair near the desk. Dustin claims his seat and Lukshia leans against the desk, ignoring the chair that was put out for her.

“So, I first have to ask; how grey area is this request of yours?” Lukshia directs the question at me. “You wouldn’t have called me a demanded a late night meeting if this was legal. Which isn’t a problem, but I need to know what I’m getting into.”

I hesitate. “I don’t think grey area can be applied. We’re going to be committing a crime; a serious one.”

Lukshia nods. “This isn’t really your area, Olivia, but I’ll bite. What are you up to?”

I offer her a print off picture of Katie. She glances at it. “Her name is Katherine Waters,” I start.

“You need me to find her?”

“No. Katie is Australian and her funeral was held roughly four months ago.”

“So, you want me to find a killer?”

“We don’t think she’s dead,” I correct.

Lukshia raises an eyebrow. “Really? That’s not something I come across often. Fill me in.”

“I think the death was staged and that she was kidnapped. Brought here.”

“But you don’t need me to find her?” Lukshia clarifies. “And I’m not seeing the illegal part yet.”

Dustin removes a picture from a folder and slides it over. “We also have a rendering that proves it, but can you see any similarity?”

Narrowed hazel eyes study the image intently for a few moments before Lukshia nods. “Yes, definitely. Not many people would know, and it’s difficult to tell from a picture, but the freckles are fake, tattooed on probably. They’re too similar nearly symmetrical, yet all over the place. Freckles come in different shapes, sizes, and colors, but one thing remains consistent. Pattern. There is always some form of pattern with them. These are far too random and even. And her hair’s been dyed; you can notice a few lighter brown strands around her ears. I would confidently say that there is a strong chance that this is the same girl, but disguised,” Lukshia agrees.

“Well, the second image is of a mermaid in the Oregon Marine Research Facility. Have you heard anything about the attraction?” Dustin asks.

“I’ve seen it. And I have no doubt that those aren’t costumes. Which begs a question. If Miss Katherine Waters is human, how does she have a tail now?”

I shrug. “No idea. I don’t know how they did it, but I know for certain that it wasn’t done willingly. I’ve met Katie. She’s a very friendly girl with strong family ties. She and her adoptive mother are practically inseparable. She would never put Sophie through the hell of having to bury her daughter like this. She was taken by force. And we need to get her out.”

Lukshia grins. “Break into a heavily guarded government facility and smuggle out a member of a main attraction-”

“Actually we want to break both of them out. With Katie being one, odds are that the younger one is also a girl stolen away from her family and I don’t want to leave her there,” I interrupt.

“Even better.”

“So, you’ll help us?” I ask.

Lukshia nods. “Of course. Olivia, you could have told me you wanted to assassinate the president and I would help you. I would try to talk you out of it, but I would still help you. You should know that. At least this will be a good cause and a hell of a lot more fun. I’ve been wanting to screw with some the secret government projects for a while now anyways. So what’s your plan?”

“Well…”