The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

Akiko’s New Protégé

Part Seven

Visit me at http://www.asstr.org/~AK_Home.

The people and events in this story come from my brain, not the real world Regardless of what that tells you about my brain, it means that I’m not writing about you, your mom, your friends, or your friends’ friends. So you can’t sue me. Neener neener.

If you’re underage in your territory (and you know what I mean), then read something else, please. If you’re easily offended by sexually explicit fetish content, may I suggest reading something else? If you’re easily offended by sexual content and are determined to help yourself to a dash of moral outrage, I put it to you this way: you have too much time on your hands.

Synopsis: We rewind things now and follow Akiko as she looks for the puppet-masters behind the Stringray conspiracy and wraps this joint up.

* * *

The operating theater door was locked, and as far as I could tell no one else was around anyway. Dr. Ally Giles and I were all alone and I felt like a little payback. Can you blame me?

“What’s... happening?” she wondered as the insanely powerful mind control field she’d invented worked its magic on the very last person she’d expected. Her big brown eyes were opened as wide as they could go and she stared right through me. Her chestnut hair was wilted and damp. She shuddered and moved her palms up and down her thighs like she was trying to rub something off. I gave her five minutes, tops, before she lost it.

Smiling, I grabbed her waist and shoved her against her twisted, Pepto-pink operating table. “What’s the matter, sweetie? You can dish it out but you can’t take it?”

“You... No!” Her words of protest and tone of “Oh, but it feels so good” were so at odds with each other that I needed a change of underwear.

I slipped her lab coat down over her shoulders and kissed her neck, feeling the strength of the field on my tongue, in the sharp, electrical tang of her sweat. It was like licking a battery, only half as bitter and twice as yummy.

She wailed, struggling to come to senses that were long gone. “Akiko listen,” she stammered, “You’re making... permanent changes to my... Ooohhhhh...”

I should’ve known that the only things she’d be wearing under that lab coat were her neon blue bra and panties. It excited me nonetheless. I bent her over the operating table to show her who was boss. “So is this how you wanted me?” I asked, brushing my lips against hers.

Eyes still wide, she finally seemed to look at me now that we were nose to nose. She swallowed and shuddered. “I can’t...”

I planted a big sloppy one on her trembling mouth. “Isn’t this way so much nicer?”

“Yeah,” she whispered. “No!”

“Hm,” I laughed, pulling back from the kiss with a slutty suck. “Remember the other night? You fooled me into thinking I was on top.”

With tremendous effort, she raised her hand and put it on my chest. “Akiko, this is... very important...”

“What is?” I indulged.

It took her a minute to get it all out. “You’re... making permanent... changes to my... brain... che-mi-stry.”

“How? Like this?” I slipped my hand down her panties.

“Hhhhhh!” Her tummy jerked against my palm and her feet left the floor, so I took the opportunity to ease her the rest of the way onto the operating table. Her nipples looked painfully stiff. In fact, her whole body screamed its readiness. I peeled her damp underwear away, taking my time as I pulled them down to leave them dangling off her left ankle. I made for her jenny, but her thighs clamped against my arm like a vice. I couldn’t tell if she did it consciously or if she was just ticklish, but when I finally got where I wanted to be, she welcomed my fingers with hot slickness and a sharp inhalation. “Neural... response to... stimulus,” she babbled.

Man, she was sexy like this. So young, so smart, so thick and so scrambled. I licked my lips and started up the Fingerbang Express. “Doctor, are you asking me to make you come?” I teased.

“No! I have to...” Her hand slapped around on my back. Devious little thing was trying to peel off the insulation pad Dr. Sato had so thoughtfully given me on her way out. The only thing protecting me from this field and keeping me from turning as stupid as her. I slapped Ally’s hand away and strapped her down but good. She moaned and squirmed uselessly against the restraints until I pushed her knees down and picked up where I left off. “I won’t climax!” she resolved, in that “must—warn—the—others” way that only made me work her faster. A few revolutions of my finger and her eyes became lidded. A few more and I wasn’t sure she remembered what she’d just said.

Then the lights dimmed and something made my hair stand on end. “What the fuck?” I wondered.

“Oh,” Ally remarked as her hips began to rock, “It’s Phase Two.” She said it like she was telling me about the most fabulous cheesecake ever. The lights flickered, then grew impossibly bright. Across, the room, a couple of fluorescent bulbs shattered. There was a hum and the vibrating floor tickled my bare feet. Suddenly I worried that I might need more protection than the little plastic thingy on my back, and I got so distracted I stopped frigging Ally. She ground against my fingers in frustration, as the insulation disc got very warm. Her eyes rolled back in her head and all she could do was stupidly work herself against my hand with more and more gusto The disc on my back was almost too hot to bear, but I didn’t feel woozy or anything.

Still, the hum was so loud I started to freak. “What’s happening?”

Either she ignored me or couldn’t understand. Her hips were nearly a blur, she was working it so hard.

“Ow!” I cried, from the hot disc on my back and from Ally’s thighs strangling my wrist. To be honest, I was getting jealous as I stood there and let her use my hand. I wondered if I should be planting suggestions in her head, or if I needed to wait until Phase Two was over. I doubted she could hear me anyway.

Then her rhythm slowed to rough, jerking motions and I knew it was almost over. Her back arched and she let loose, filling the room with dumb, earsplitting rapture. No way was I getting my hand back until she was done. I just bit my lip and resigned myself to some broken fingers. She convulsed violently, eyes rolled back in her head, glowing with sweat.

Thirty seconds later I was still waiting for her to stop coming. Then the equipment cycled down and Dr. Giles went still.

“Dammit!” I swore, flexing my fingers. Ally had passed out and I could smell smoke in the air. I’d been so focused on the battle. Now I could afford to wonder just how much damage I’d done to her, and how I might get the hell out of here.

There was a console across the room, and I limped over to see what it had to say. Lucky for me, Ally—with her penchant for bunnies and kitties—had designed the interface for ease of use. Big, friendly graphics conveyed that the field was deactivated and there was no more danger. So I peeled off the insulation disk, wincing as it took a little skin along with it: I was a little burned but not enough to worry about. Something in the data grabbed my attention then: a colorful readout told me all about Ally’s head, and she wasn’t just lying across the room in a stupor. I’d seen a lot of data like this since joining Marlin—the anti-MC unit of the Global Intelligence Agency—and this was the most receptive trance state I’d ever witnessed. Her P/O curve had gone from very shallow to nearly vertical. In fact, I had access to layers of her psyche that were supposed to be impossible to reach. Any of her dominant tendencies had been squashed but good.

If the good doctor were left in a room with a bowl of custard, she would end up deferring to it.

I hobbled back over to my new conquest and admired her loveliness. She was so much hotter now that she wasn’t playing Evil Genius with my free will. Now that she was helpless to resist me... I touched her skin and thought about jumping her bones, but it was time to get serious. Besides, she wasn’t up for very much. Her mouth worked noiselessly as her eyes crossed. “Shhh, listen to me,” I soothed, my finger brushing her neck. I’m glad I’m doing this to you and not the other way around. When you can talk again, you will tell me everything I want to know, understand?”

* * *

Lots of things had gone my way that day. Ally Giles had been arrogant enough to bring me out of a tangle of trances so I could bob to the surface while she gloated and cooed over me. Natsumi had been strong enough to come to my aid when it counted. And now I knew that Ally’s playground took up a whole floor in an abandoned facility, out in the middle of nowhere. We were all alone. Security was good out at the road, but no one dared bother Ally while she worked, and she had planned to work on me for a long time.

She had lovely brown eyes. They were even prettier to me now that they were nearly expressionless, focused on nothing in particular, while my words passed unimpeded into the depths of her soul. “You’re ready to learn the truth about yourself,” I suggested.

“I am ready to learn the truth about myself,” she mumbled distantly.

“You are under my complete control.” It was hard to keep my voice from catching on arousal.

“I am under your complete control,” she said. “I don’t remember how to resist.” We’d been working on that one for so long that she offered it without prompts.

“No, babe, but you will remember how you planned to treat the little addiction you gave me.”

“Yes... I prepared medication for you,” she offered without remorse. “You will need to take one p.o. t.i.d.”

The doctor-talk sounded strange, wrapped up in that nighttime singsong of hers. “What do the letters mean?”

“’By mouth, three times a day,’” she told me, as if reading from cue cards. “You will still have to deal with the pain.”

I rubbed her forehead. “That, my brilliant, foxy doctor, is not your prob. All you need to do is go deeper. Deeper into your nice, relaxing trance.” I didn’t really know if she could be submerged much more, but dude, it was making me hot.

“I will obey without question,” she told me.

“Nice. Mmmmh...” I rubbed myself experimentally. “Hope you don’t mind if I play with myself while we talk.”

“No.”

“Hmmm. Of course not. Now listen to me very, very carefully.”

* * *

“Boss lady, I can’t see,” she complained in the dark.

“Get into character, little doofwad!” I hissed.

“Yes ma’am!” she whispered back.

The warehouse was cold and quiet as a tomb. They were keeping us waiting, no doubt scanning us for weapons and God-knows-what before anyone would come near us. I gripped my crutch tightly and tried to look Mui Dazed and Vulnerable for the night vision cameras.

After I’d finished doing unto Ally as she would’ve done to me, I had considered my options. Marlin had gone dark: all communication protocols had been revised, and since I was out of the loop (i.e. compromised and extremely dangerous), I wasn’t invited to their party. The next logical step was to see how much I could get out of Ally. Unfortunately, Stingray wasn’t an official government agency, but a black budget project. And it conducted itself like a terrorist network (which I guess it kind of was). That meant Ally only had access to compartmentalized info, which consisted mostly of current GIA assets listed for “acquisition” and a cell phone for contacting her superior. From her database I had learned that Nina and most of my colleagues were still listed as “At Large.” But Devon was listed as “Intensive Reeducation In Progress.” Which—to put it mildly—scared the hell out of me. She was stuck in some nightmare in eastern Russia, and Ally didn’t have the clearance to do anything about it. Since I couldn’t contact or help anyone I cared about, I had decided to follow the White Rabbit, so to speak, and see if I could get to the bottom of all this.

So here we were, in Lyon, in this smelly warehouse, waiting for Ally’s Stingray contact to show up. It had taken several days to get here and set up the meeting.

A door opened on the other side of the room, bathing us in soft amber light A figure appeared, and high heels clicked on the cement floor as she approached. “You’re early, Dr. Giles,” said a brisk, sultry and very Italian voice.

Ally didn’t answer right away, and I thought about the pistol stuck in my waistband. “I’m sorry, ma’am,” she said finally, “but I’m all done with her and she’s ready, like you asked.”

I couldn’t let out my sigh of relief upon hearing her play her role without drooling on herself: I was too busy playing the recently reeducated double agent.

The other woman stopped halfway across the room. I still couldn’t make out her features because of the backlighting. “You know, you could’ve played with her for another week and no one would have objected.”

Ally curtsied. “I know we’re on a tight timetable, ma’am. The sooner I deliver the acquisition, the sooner we can move forward. Right?” The question belied a little too much willingness to please, so I tensed a little.

Mystery Lady snapped her fingers. “Lights please, Renato.”

The fluorescents flicked to life in series, working their way from her to us. I tried to keep it together, but I couldn’t help it: I looked Ally’s handler in the eye.

I swallowed hard before I could stop myself. She was a smoldering brunette with absurdly big boobs. And she was dressed like she couldn’t decide whether to go to a porno shoot or an art gallery opening. Her powerful physique threatened to cut her slinky, expensive dress to ribbons. She closed the gap between us breezily, with the swagger of a gal who owns her high heels. “You’ve exceeded yourself, Dr. Giles.” She orbited us once before lighting up a cigarette. While she took a long, deep drag, her eyes went oh-so-slowly from my feet upward, and eventually she exhaled when her eyes arrived at mine. “Why don’t you introduce me to our new acquisition?” She savored the last word the way she’d just scoped me out. I have to confess, it made me feel warm and squishy inside.

It seemed that Ally was similarly affected, judging by the slight tremor in her voice. “Assistant Director Akiko Masumi, as you requested. Subjected to my newest recalibration procedure.”

In my mind, I rewound the conversation up to that point, and came to the conclusion that this woman had never told Ally her name. Which is the classic mark of a VIP in a spy organization. I didn’t dare dwell on it while she evaluated me. If this bitch even suspected I might not be the obedient pod person I pretended to be, then Game Over.

However, some girls wish they could fake an O like I can fake a trance.

“Fucking brilliant,” she decided. “Sold. I’ll take her. You,” she said to me. “Come along. Ally my love, you may move on to the next one on the list. Ciao ciao.”

She was already walking away! Stupid bullet wound. I hobbled after her as fast as my crutch would allow, wondering how Ally would fare when she couldn’t even open a door without help. I decided I didn’t much care, as long as I made it out of the building. Ms. Italian Porn Star didn’t even hold the door for me. I managed to stick out my crutch to protect my leg. I was fuming! Stupid door. Stupid crutch. Stupid hole in my leg. And stupid conspiracy to take over the world...

Outside, a car and three goons awaited us. Mystery Diva was on her phone and almost couldn’t be bothered to trigger me. Almost. “Wasabi Sunspot,” she remarked, as she looked up a number on her cell.

Right. Her guys had clearly been briefed on me. They made no attempt to conceal their ogling, but they touched me like I was a hungry piranha. As they tried to guide me inside the car—and as Ally’s handler turned her back on me—I pulled the silenced pistol from my waistband and dispatched the men before my crutch hit the ground.

She was quick, but by the time she dropped her phone and reached for her own gun, I’d drawn a bead on her heart.

“Stubborn Marlin bitch!” she spat. “Why do you not behave?” A stream of Italian left her lips. “Christ, Giles is such an idiot.”

See, before we left Ally’s workshop, I commanded her to put me under and change all my triggers. Then I’d conveniently made her forget them. Only I knew how to trigger me now, and I didn’t feel like sharing that with anyone “Get in the car,” I told her, waving my gun and balancing on my good foot. “We’re leaving.”

She was dumbfounded, the way extremely dangerous people are when they get stepped to. “My twinkly-eyed thing,” she laughed. “Your threats are adorable.” She still had her gun.

“You know, you’re a hottie and all,” I said, “but you need to get over yourself, get in the fucking car and do what I tell you. Or you won’t be hot for long.” I looked at one of the dead bodies for emphasis.

She dropped her piece and showed me her palms very slowly. “Now that we’ve established our mutual attraction, I hope you won’t shoot me in the face.”

I said nothing, in order to remind her that she wasn’t in the car yet.

“That looks painful,” she observed, pointing at my leg.

“It is,” I agreed, pulling back the hammer on my pistol. “Would you like one?”

That motivated her to get in. It took a minute for me to retrieve my crutch and take up position in the back seat, because I had to keep an eye on her. She started the engine and sighed. “You do realize that it won’t be long before someone is sent to cancel the both of us?”

I was busy opening the pill bottle Ally had given me. My leg throbbed and the unwelcome need for morphine coursed through me. “Then you’ll just have to make sure that we stay a couple of steps ahead of them,” I mumbled around the capsule.

“You don’t have a damned clue what you’ve gotten yourself into.” She crossed her arms smugly, refusing to take the wheel.

These pills were hard to swallow without water. I dropped the little bottle back into my pocket and put the muzzle of my gun to her temple. “I didn’t get myself into anything,” I said. “You did. You wanted me, you’ve got me It’s easy, really. Do you want to die now, or do you want the chance to walk away once I have what I want?”

She groaned and stamped her foot on the floorboard. “All I wanted to do tonight was fuck, have a good meal and get a good night’s sleep. But all right, you win.” Her eyes met mine in the rear view mirror. “To be perfectly honest, I’m getting turned on,” she purred.

“I do have that effect on people,” I acknowledged. “Now drive.”

She wouldn’t shut up. All the way to her hotel she entertained herself by lobbing nasty come-ons my way. Some of them were a little shocking, and I was glad my mom wasn’t around. Her insane driving fucked with me in other ways. I knew her type: she was a button-pusher, the kind of chick who lives for getting a rise out of people.

Once in the parking garage, she turned off the engine and put her hands on the wheel where I could see them. “Now we come to the interesting part of the game, my pet.”

“Oh?”

“Oh yes,” she smiled. “Why don’t we begin with you telling me what you want?”

“All right, I want a meeting with whoever the hell is running this Stingray freakshow.”

“Yes, yes,” she dismissed. “Predictable and tired. I can set it up, but you’ll be dead long before you get there. And what do you plan to do with me?”

“You’ll be coming along.”

She feigned delight. “Oh, I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Now. If you’re sure you want to do this...” She studied me in the rear view mirror and I nodded. “The only way to do it is with a computer—a laptop with a very specific signature—that is upstairs in my room.” She put her finger to her lips and mused. “I wonder how you plan to walk me through the hotel with that gun and your messed up leg.”

I’d been thinking about that. Her purse was next to me in the back seat, from her ride to the warehouse. I dumped out its contents and picked out a familiar little canister. What Stingray agent would leave home without her hypno-gas? “Be a dear and dose yourself with this,” I ordered, tossing it over the seat.

Her blithe mood threatened to evaporate. She turned sideways in the driver’s seat and put her back to the window, cursing softly to herself as she looked at the spray. Then she did that hard tack from Pissed Off Big Kahuna to Sultry Bombshell again, giving me one hell of a come-hither look. “How naughty. I only hope you explore all the possibilities once we’re upstairs.”

That dress she had on... I definitely would not have minded seeing it crumpled up on the floor. “Less talk, more spray,” I said.

She aimed the little silver nozzle at her head, pausing again, no doubt making sure she had no other option. I pulled the hammer back on my piece again to let her know she didn’t. There was a hiss, and a thick cloud wreathed her head. Jesus, she’d emptied half the canister! I jumped out of the car just to be safe, taking up position next to the driver’s side door. The can spilled out of her fingers and her head lolled back against the window. I tried to ignore a certain jolt of arousal, and tapped my gun against the glass before opening the door. “Come on. Bring the stuff,” I said.

Everything was suddenly very difficult for her. It took her a moment to get it together. “All right,” she managed, as she grabbed my arm to try and stand. For a split second I wondered if the drug had been fake and she was about to take me out. But as she labored to get up, I realized that I must’ve caught a whiff of it myself. The parking deck began to spin ever so slightly as she clung to me, and I almost tipped us over.

There we stood, looking drunk and brainless. A passing couple gave us big smiles. Somehow I gave a friendly wave and snuck my weapon back in my waistband, as I slipped my arm around her. Then my bum leg bumped her groin and her strong thighs reflexively squeezed my cast. I gasped at the pain, but it did clear my head a bit.

“Hey,” I said, tapping her cheek to get her attention. “What’s your name?”

She frowned. “What?”

“What should I call you?”

Her eyes went wide. I sensed some heavy conditioning against telling strangers her name. She wrestled with this and her new, pressing need to comply with me. “Call me Pia,” she decided, pressing the canister into my fingers.

My hand was on the small of her back, and my inhibitions were taking the night off. “All righty then, ‘Pia.’ Let’s go up to your room.”

“Yes...” she whispered as she watched her feet, apparently hoping they would remember how the whole walking thing worked.

We made it to the lobby okay, but a brunette behind the desk called out to her as soon we reached the carpet. It seemed Pia had messages. My pulse rate went up, but she handled the transaction smoothly, and the little hotel worker was no doubt used to interacting with intoxicated guests.

We made our wobbly way to the elevator, Pia hanging back while I carefully hobbled along behind her. The doors slid shut and I relaxed at the chime. “Which floor?” I asked.

“Seven.”

I’d just pecked the button when she backed me into the corner. I was suddenly all wrapped up in 100% delicious European mama. She held me up so I didn’t have to hop on one leg while she assailed me with wet kisses. This whole situation had me so turned on—and I’d caught just enough of the Silly Spray—that I kissed her right back. I hoped someone was lucky enough to be watching our impromptu porn flick over the security camera. I had to bat her busy hands away from my top three times before the ride was over.

It took a snap of my fingers in front of her nose to get her to behave. Reluctantly, she led me out of the elevator and through the quiet hall. Then she got very eager to get me into her room, so I had to slow her back down. I used the time to lecture myself sternly. The temptation to forget about the big picture for the night—while I misted Pia until that canister ran dry—was overwhelming. I resolved to dump her on the bed and drink coffee until I wised the hell up.

She fumbled with the card key to the room for so long that I snatched it away and did it myself. She lunged inside, but not before grabbing my wrist and pulling me along. I made a swipe at the light switch on the way by, but missed. Presently I was on top of her, in the dark, in the middle of a plush king-sized bed, and now the whole coffee drinking idea didn’t seem like fun at all. My hands were up her slinky dress and they had no intention of coming out. Her body was warm and very toned.

We got some good, sloppy kissing in, and she had me out of most of my clothes, when something soft and heavy hit my neck so hard that I barely had time to see stars before going night-night.

* * *

It was still dark. I was still on the bed, only on my back, alone. Cold. I realized I’d been in the process of coming to for a long time, because I’d been dreaming of these icy muscle cramps, which had finally become real and throbbed me awake. I recognized the chill in my veins as the stuff Jack Barlow had dosed me with at the beginning of this hayride, and I couldn’t even groan.

“How long was I out?” I heard Pia ask.

“Two-and-a-half hours,” a man answered.

“Why did you hit her like that?”

He seemed flabbergasted. “I’m on your security detail?”

“I had the situation under control,” she groused, fussing with herself nearby.

“That’s not the way it sounded over your channel. I assumed you left it open intentionally. And when Masumi-san decided to bring you here, I felt it would be best to wait and overpower her.”

Pia laughed a Euro-smoker laugh, making it sound classy. “The only reason you ‘overpowered’ her was because of my charms. I knew what I was doing. Make a note for yourself: if you ever interrupt me in a situation like that again, I will feast on your testicles.”

“Ma’am.”

“That said, I do appreciate you helping me to sober up.”

“Don’t mention it.” I felt their eyes on me. “Shall I dispose of her now?”

She coughed. “Are you insane?”

“I’m afraid that my obligation to the Secret Service outweighs my loyalties here. She posed—and still poses—a threat to the administration. She was one degree of separation away from it, for God’s sake...”

She tsked him to silence. “Yes, and your cunning boss with his decaying heart can relax with the knowledge that he has people like her under his complete control. Many, many such people, in fact... And the two-term limit will soon be a thing of the past.”

“I’m afraid I have to insist—”

“If you kill her, I promise you that the people you think you are protecting will mount your head on a wall somewhere,” she warned.

I couldn’t move or make a sound, but I still burned with amazement at what I was hearing.

“Okay, I’ll defer to your judgment,” the Secret Service man decided. “What are your plans for her then?”

She stood up and began to pace. “Obviously Ally Giles was not able to finish her work.” She lit up a cigarette. “By the way, did we pick her up?”

“Yes. God knows what happened to Dr. Giles. She’s like a child.”

The light bulb went on in Pia’s head. “I believe she received what she meant to give. Bring her with us.”

“And A.D. Masumi?” he asked.

She laughed softly. “There is the work we have done on her up to now. She has a Reset button. We will simply press it and take her with us. When we’ve sorted out the mess she made of Ally, we’ll have her fully reprogrammed.”

“Yes ma’am.”

Wish I could say what happened next. Sorry.

* * *

The next few weeks were a blur. I do know that I wasn’t on conversion detail this time. My leg was still fucked up, but I was also too valuable to waste on turning GIA agents, running around like the frickin’ flu. By now there were plenty of folks doing that. Besides, GIA was onto Stingray now and the fight was out in the open.

Somewhere along the way I got out of my cast. While I finished mending, they (big surprise) brainwashed me. I spent long nights as Pia’s personal sex toy, and she got her revenge for Lyon in spades. Later on I was assigned to guard her as she jetted here and there, meeting with politicians, doctors and some shady dudes.

Then came my big day. Pia was taking me to the new facility in Zurich. Apparently others had been trained to use Ally’s equipment—following her “retirement”—and they had moved all of her stuff to Switzerland. Looked like I was going to get mindwiped after all.

My next memory was of my pounding head. Pia led me out of a van and I was standing on an airport tarmac in a hot breeze. The jet was fueled and ready. It was late at night and several black-suited guys accompanied us. I was definitely in a deep, tingling trance, all the better to transport me The deep cold in my veins told me that I’d been drugged again.

I knew by now when someone had been playing in my head. I could sense the blankness where forgotten thoughts lay, and the weird, intense convictions about certain things and people. Not to mention the sexual burn that hovered over my every move, pulsing warmly when I obeyed, turning prickly when I didn’t.

“All aboard, my love,” Pia prompted, poking me in the back.

“Yes ma’am.”

Most of all, I felt tired. It was time to say uncle and admit I couldn’t stop what was happening to me. My inner submissive’s desires had subverted my career as an agent ever since my first run-in with the Blue Room, and I didn’t think I could fight her any more.

To my surprise, everyone around me in a suit chose that moment to drop dead Snipers! What the hell? Pia ducked behind a service truck as bright lights flooded the runway, making me squint.

“Get down, Akiko!” someone yelled. In my hypnotic stupor, I completely failed to do something sensible, like getting out of the line of fire.

I shielded my eyes from the glare. That voice... “Devon?”

“We’re here to collect you, love.”

How on earth... “But I thought you were—”

“Get down!”

I froze. There was no way to trust my instincts, because they weren’t really mine any more. I had been programmed to guard Pia with my life, and the thought of hurting Devon again jolted me right out of my pity party. I just stood there stupidly as Pia pulled me behind the truck. “Ms. Knightley is it?” she called. “I knew you had escaped, but I’m afraid you won’t be able to help your colleague. Don’t think I won’t put one in her fucking head!” She pressed her gun to the back of my skull. Goodness. I guess the loyalty in our relationship only went one way.

Devon was a cool customer. “There’s no need for that.”

Pia murmured into my ear. “It’s been fun, my dear, but push has come to shove, and you’re in no condition to protect me, so you’ll be a good little human shield.”

“Yes,” I answered, ever the helpful slave minion. Slowly, we came out from behind the truck.

“Akiko...” Devon prompted, stepping forward to draw a better bead on Pia.

“That’s close enough!” Pia warned her. There were red dots dancing all over me: the laser sight guides of the snipers, looking for something to put a hole through.

“Akiko, work with me here.”

“I can’t,” I said. “Do what you have to do, Devon.”

Then there was someone else standing behind her. I couldn’t make her out in the spotlights. “Baby?” she said.

I couldn’t help it. I started to cry. “Nina, what are you doing here?”

“Where the hell else would I be?” she asked, incredulous.

I put up my hands. “You have to stay away. I don’t know what I might do!”

Pia was getting a little twitchy. “Enough! Akiko and I are going to get on that plane!”

Devon stepped forward. “Out of the question,” she informed. “Akiko, for fuck’s sake...”

I was getting a little tired of the way Pia was moving me around, trying to keep me between her and the guns. I didn’t much care for the pistol jammed in my back either. “Devon, I’m dangerous. Look what I did to you...”

She tucked some curls behind her left ear absently, her gun unwavering. “I’m fine, love. I know you wouldn’t hurt us, so sod her!”

I was still sobbing half-heartedly. “You don’t know me any more, Devon.”

Nina took a step forward. ”I know you,” she said. “Come home with me.”

Pia had other things in mind. She shoved me, hard. As I fell to the pavement I watched her dart behind the truck. The snipers all opened up, but couldn’t cover the ground between that truck and the plane. She took aim over the hood and got off a couple of shots in Devon’s direction, but Devon put one through her collarbone as she hauled ass back to the van. I saw blood splatter onto the side, saw her double over and almost collapse. But that steely bitch jumped in and gunned the engine.

“Are you okay baby?” Nina begged, struggling to help me up.

“Sure,” I said, trying to sit. “But I’ve been drugged. For like, a month.”

She hugged me so hard I couldn’t breathe. Her cheek mashed against my lips and all I could do was smile at her familiar scent.

Pia’s van lurched forward, even as the snipers pumped it full of lead. It screamed off toward the hangars, but then veered off the tarmac, into some bushes, before crashing into some sensor gear.

“Lock it down!” Devon said over her walkie. Several men emerged from their hiding places and ran to secure the van. She knelt next to Nina and me. “Are you hit?”

I shook my head. “You?”

She just grinned. “If you don’t mind, I’ve booked you on a different flight.”

* * *

All over the world, inquiries were opened. Some people were fired and some were convicted of treason. Those at the top of the food chain were a convenient distance from the dirty work. They denied everything, and the inquiries were quietly buried. And you didn’t hear about any of this, because it all took place in the shadow world of covert intelligence. My world. “Pia” turned out to be Pisces, a deadly rogue operative who had supposedly died in 1998. She survived our night at the airport and had no problem ratting out the Stingray cabal to avoid untimely execution. Last I heard she was in a secret prison in the ass end of Montana. Ally ended up at some GIA sanitarium that doesn’t officially exist. And Marlin had its hands full with treating the scores of field agents who’d been absorbed into the Stingray collective. We lost lots of agents to early retirement. I didn’t blame them.

I was incommunicado for several weeks, quarantined in Tokyo while Dr. Sato worked her magic on me. My head was a real mess, and it took all of her considerable talent to help me get my shit together. Nina was tireless, doting on me and spoiling me rotten. She even wore this adorable nurse’s uniform to the infirmary every day, much to my delight and that of the male staff.

Devon flew with us back to Sydney, to see us home safe and hang out for a bit. She’d needed more looking after in Tokyo from Doctors Sato and Takagi Then there were all the visits from one Roderick Davis. She’s a lucky lady

Once home, the three of us decided that our next mission would be to get stupid bent, in my parlance, or “rotten” in Nina’s, or “pissed” in Devon’s.

“Beer me!” Nina requested, as I headed for the kitchen.

I looked at Devon expectantly. She shook her head. “I’m good, thanks.”

Nina wasn’t having any of that. She made an X with her arms. “BEEEEEERNT! Wrong answer. Represent or I’m sending you to drink with the shielas and shazzas.”

“And the bevans and the bogans?” Devon inquired.

“Those,” Nina giggled. “Don’t forget the bazzas.”

Honestly. I’m not sure when it happened, but the two of them had clicked so well that now they spoke this weird twinspeak. Sometimes I couldn’t keep up. When I got back with the next round, a heated discussion of bride’s maid dresses was in progress.

“There is absolutely no bloody way I will be seen in taffeta,” said Nina, deadly serious.

“Did I miss something?” I asked. “Whose wedding are we planning?”

Nina threw a beer cap at me. “Well it ain’t mine, Sparky.”

Devon was blushing. “Get out!” I enthused. “When?”

“July, actually.”

I threw Nina’s cap back at her. “Thanks for filling me in, precious moppet.” She stuck out her tongue. “And where are you guys going to live?”

“Oxford. Close enough to the relatives, far enough away to stay sane.” She leaned forward. “Um... Can I ask something of you?”

“Devon, you know I’d walk over hot coals for you.”

She was wringing her hands. “Well, the thing is, I want you as my maid of honor, but Roddy wants you for his best man.”

I swallowed. “Whoa, that’s a big job for one girl.”

Nina held up a finger. “And you do not want Akiko planning his bachelor party.”

Devon’s eyes widened as she imagined her fiancé involved in some unseen debauchery. “Then it’s settled. You’re with me and he gets his brother.”

“Wise,” Nina proclaimed.

“So what are you going to do now?” Devon asked, eager to change the subject

“You mean at work?”

She nodded and I downed about half my beer while I thought about it.

Nina bounced excitedly on the couch and grabbed Devon’s hand. “She’ll be loopy in an hour. It’s fantastic. Make sure to ask her if we have a karaoke machine.”

“I’ll be sure to,” she said, raising her bottle to me. “Now about your next assignment...”

“Well,” I said, wiping my mouth, “they’ve offered me Marlin and I definitely want to be sitting behind a desk from now on.”

Devon nearly did a spit take. “Director?”

“Yup.”

“You’re sure you want out of the field?” she asked, looking at her toes. “I quite liked working with you.” It sure didn’t sound like she was retiring any time soon.

I regarded the gorgeous women in my living room. “If you two hadn’t come when you did, I’d be as good as dead. I’m over it.”

Nina jumped into my lap. “I’m over it for you, baby.”

Devon looked like she wanted to join us. She stood up, reached over the coffee table and put her hand on my knee. “For the record, I would never have given up on you.”

Nina watched this with an impish gleam in her eye as she swung her legs back and forth. “Babyness, pitch the job to her.”

Devon’s eyebrow rose. “What job?”

“Work for me,” I blurted out. “Do you realize how much the brass love you? You’re a total badass, Devon,” I said. “If you had a little more experience you’d have my job right now. I want you with us.”

As I expected, she was horrified. “I don’t think I’d be suited for that...”

I nodded. “It’s too much for you...”

“Bloody right it is! Do you have any idea...” she said, before remembering who she was talking to.

“Devon, I’m supposed to be one of the best agents in the world for this, and I wasn’t up for it. You saved the day.”

“Well, if Nina and Roddy hadn’t come for me...” she deferred.

I gave my gal a squeeze and she giggled, pleased to be right in the middle of the action. “Nina rocks too, but she’s retired. Besides, she’s a star.”

Devon shrugged. “I don’t know, Akiko.”

“You can still live in Oxford. And think of all the people you could help when someone gets their hands on the Stingray tech. You know it’s still floating around out there.”

She shook her head. “That’s not it. It’s getting stuck with needles while you’re trying to do your job, being controlled and losing your—”

“You think you’re going to avoid that risk in Black Ops? Sweetheart, I finally read your file. I know what happened to you.”

It was like I struck her, which wasn’t my intent at all. She half-collapsed back onto the sofa. Her hand instinctively went to her hip. “Please don’t push my buttons,” she warned quietly.

Before I could get my foot out of my mouth, Nina jumped up and perched next to her on the couch. Played with her lovely curls. “She isn’t. She won’t She just wants you to think about the big picture, Dee.”

They shared an intense, wordless moment, and I remembered how Nina went all the way to Russia with Roddy to spring Devon out of that hellhole. There was some apparent telepathy, some nodding back and forth. I was starting to get jealous, when Devon smiled and turned to me.

“When do I start?” she asked.

Fin