Chapter 24

Well, Valeria had been uncomfortable, but then she wasn't a stranger to sex and rough men. It was when she saw the knife at Pinks throat that she gasped and gave out a shriek before a large hand clamped over her mouth and held her down, giving her a very hard and stern warning to keep silent if she didn't want to wash the concrete with her blood.
Pink didn't struggle or beg, no, it seemed more like a bad dream than anything else, one minute she was there and next she ceased, her life was snuffed out like a candle even before she could do any of the two. The very sharp blade had sliced through her throat so neatly that the blood flowed in a very straight horizontal lines and trickled to the already wet ground, giving it an automatic crimson colour, in some way, if was fitting, a shade of red surrounded her pink in a sick way that might have been funny to some psychopathic man (or woman). The man, unmasked had then proceeded to tear her pink outfit apart and then without remorse or any moral sense of right and guilt, he began to rape her dead body.
"I like mine alive" the one holding her had breathed into her ears, her skin crawled and tears leaked from her eyes, she didn't want to die and that very though was what scared her the most, it meant she hadn't even lived, she had too much dream and visions unfulfilled and too many wishes that were mere wishes, wishes girls her age he long turned to a reality and then moved past it and saw it as childish now. She swallowed and wordlessly prayed that the God above would have some mercy on her sinful soul, she didn't promise to turn a new leaf and sin no more, no, that in it's self would be a sin because it would be a very terrible lie as a death plea, no, she merely prayed that she be spared and allowed to live her life of sin a little more and maybe, just maybe when she had her fill of it all and found some direction in her boring and aimless life, then maybe she could think about repentance and redemption and how her soul should be saved. But for the then, she simply prayed to be spared. The beefy man had began to the tear her dress apart too. She was lucky that night, yes, it was just plain luck - or not because lucky and seeing someone killed didn't quite fit in the same statement - but even if pinkie was killed that night, she was alive and very very grateful for it, it might have been her on that cold asphalt, her body being defiled even in death and her blood washing it clean, it might have been her in the all pink regalia having her last breathe and looking into the face of her very killer and rapist. It might have been her and that was the thought that actually scared her.
Just at the nick of time, as if her prayers had finally been answered, just as the vile man began to palm her in all the wrong places, a very bright headlight had flashed into the alley and the men had fled,l without a second thought, weak men that had their power only in the dark, between the shadows and when with underaged girls, they had fled at the sight of light and another person, leaving Pink in a pool of her own blood, not knowing where her blood started exactly and where the puddles from the rain began.
The car had reversed out, possible a drunk clubber, it had made a sluggish turn, navigating wrongly a couple of times before finally finding the right spot to make a u-turn and head to wherever his drunk brain instructed him to. And that was how Valeria had escaped death that night at the alley, a shameful and disgusting death. She had remained frozen on the spot until the other girls had met her there and then seeing what had happened to pinkie, they cried out for help. Help had arrived and all the girls had sold the whole college girls story to them, saying they came from another state for a friend's graduation night. The cops had sympathized with them, took their statements and took away Pink's body in a black bag, a body bag that was in no way pink. Valeria could imagine that she would not be pleased with being dressed in something so dreary and bleak, she hated anything thing that wasn't pink in color but she distasted black pointedly. The cops drove them to a house they claimed was a relative's and promised to check on them from time to time and to ask questions when they had to, also they were told to come to the station anytime they had a useful information that would further help with the investigation or they remembered something they hadn't stated in the statement earlier.
The moment Mama Peng had air of the news, she had fled with them to Italy the next week, at first, Valeria had naively thought it was for their safety and to keep them out of harms way, it had dawned on her though that Mama Peng did it to save her neck her very profitable venture from ruin. She might not have been the worse of persons to work for but then, it was only fitting that she thought of her self and her business first before factoring in anything about them. The knowledge had hurt Valeria more than she wanted it to big it didn't erase the sad truth, they were being used by Mama Peng and it was Pink's death that made her realise that. Pink was so disposable, she was dead one day and forgotten the next. Many may have cried at night in their corners because of the gory sight but the mistress had prohibited and forbade totally that nah tears he shade for her sake. It was the rule and the girls had no choice but to obey it. The thought of it all was mind blowing and it left Valeria feeling an emptiness that she hadn't felt before. She no longer felt safe and even with the men that guarded their small duplex and night and the tracking devices in their purse, she still didn't feel safe at the very least. There and then, she had made up he mind, took a very deep breathe and decided that she had to make a choice that would favour her and not mind the coming consequence y f such choice, also, she didn't have to worry about the displeasing look that her mistress would no doubt give to her. She had decided she had enough of the life. At first, she wanted to retire clean, politely and make it formal, probably get some form of blessing from Mama Peng before she went off but one night, she seemed suffocated, like she couldn't breathe without it hurting, it felt like she was drowning slowly in her corner and no amount of open window or ceiling fan could help her, she knew she had to leave immediately. She broke off from the group, fled at midnight and after many days spent servicing old men and whoever was ready to buy her body, she was able to gather enough money to process her visa and arrived U.S.A a free woman.
The life hadn't left her though and try as she may, she always found herself coming back to the habit of stealing and cunning men out of their money. Her love for jewelry too had suck and Valeria began to do the 'lone Wolf' all over again.
She hunted eligible targets ranging from politicians, Princes, Ministers and once even the President's son. It had failed though but she had made a lot of money on the process. She disguised as a rich lawyer or pilot or whoever she wanted, stole what she wanted and vanished into thinn air. With the years passing, she'd had jobs too, some had come to know of her skills, contracted her and she took her percentage, most times the whole loot if the risk of reaching her contractor would expose her. That was how Pete had found her, offered her a job and then one job led to another and another and another and they become partners and then a team where Nick joined a few years after.
Valeria smiled fondly at the old memories as she sat on the bench at the airports waiting for her 9:00ak flight to be announced. The announcement came in two minutes and she rose from her seat, took her purse and mini suit case and boarded the plane.
_________________________________________________
The five hours plus flight passed uneventfully and Valeria landed at the Manhattan airport about 2:16PM. Her disguise was very intact. She would be attending the private affair as May Ronalds, an middle aged woman who worked for the assembly as a contract staff, a cleaner and had coincidentally passed on two weeks ago without resignation. Luckily, he death wasn't yet made public and Pete had been able to afford her IDs and other necessaries which was now tucked in her purse. She had her hair was dyed a dull brown, her coffee brown contact lens intact and her fake British accent there to top it off.
Valeria tried her damnest to control her nerves. She was walking into a building crowded with armed men, the local police, military men and personal trained bodyguards as well as God-knows-what the ticket society used to protect themselves. There were six CCTV cameras at the entrance of the building in all angles, four armed men at the door, a security guard who checks the Senators in after they may have been cleared and identified. That wasn't her entrance point.
By the east of the building was another entrance, two guards stood on either sides of the door. A small van filled with domestic staff and trained ushers was parked a few metres away as they each were checked into the building. The protocol was just as tight if not more so.
Valeria successfully checked in despite her nerves and was led to the kitchen and bathrooms where they proceeded washing and cooking and making the place ready for the event. The event was a dinner thrown to honor the wife of a late Senator in Manhattan. But the Congressmen had taken the change to host a small secret meeting considering the heat coming from the media and others concerning Moses' abduction.
Valeria, now dressed in her black pencil skirt and crisp white shirt with a red bowtie, she made her way to the bathroom where she had been assigned and quickly began scrubbing as orders were barked and the staff moved around setting up the venue.
The plan had been simple, wait out on the bathroom - again like she had in New York, and then whilst food was being served, she would ensure she switched for the ushers in a different outfit folded in he suitcase, made certain she got the tray to serve Brownson or his wife the meal, then she would be off after changing to a cleaner yet again just incase the "meal" was discovered before the event was over. If push did come to shove, she had an escape plan she didn't quite like but was sure it could work just fine. By the time they would open the food, they would see a small envelope with a tag. "I HAVE YOUR SON" and then they could wait for their call.
As it turned out, Pete had gotten his information from the ring source or maybe the Senators didn't even trust themselves anymore because as Valeria arrived the venue for the meeting scheduled at 3:00PM sharp, she discovered they were just dismissing and all that was left for the day was the actual tribute of the evening.
Caught between rock and a hard place and having depended solely on the information Pete fed her, she was both lost and confused and thought when next the Senator would be seen in a public space with with his wife and the security wasn't literally behind them. Going to Capitol Hill was out of question as the place was still brimming with security and all the forces they could deploy there.
This was their one chance, Valeria thought dejectedly and if she did what Moses to get back to his family unharmed by any of the crazy run they were making, then she had to act and aft fast.
With this thought, Valeria discarded the whole meal plan and decided to make a quick delivery to Martha while she could. Already, the Senators were filtering out of the small balcony where they spoke in hushed tones for long minutes. Some had gotten to the entrance and checked out while one where indulging in the event of the night.
While many other Senators took their seats in the hall, no doubt wanting to attend the nights event, Valeria doubted Brownson and his very pale looking wife were going to be in attendance.
True to her suspicions, Brownson shook hands and began to make him way down the stairs, heading for the lobby, his wife clinging to her arms.
Valeria took a deep breathe and moved. She quickly changed out of her cleaning outfit, quickly switching for the forest green skirt, white blouse and like green scarf that the ushers wore. She grabbed two glasses of a strawberry and martini cocktail, placed them on a tray in the kitchen and left in the flurry of many other ushers.
She met Mrs. Brownson a few steps to the landing, speaking with a petite African American woman who was no doubt giving her sympathies concerning the missing child. Judging from the look on Martha's face, she was fed up of the conversation but the smaller woman continued to chat away. Brownson was a few steps higher, shaking hands with two men who looked also go be sympathizing, judging from the look on their faces.
They weren't so alert and neither were their guard who stood at the respectable distance away, slightly at ease because they all knew the characters whom the couple were discussing with, that was her cue and Valeria took it in a split second.
Drinks skillfully balanced on the tray, she walked briskly, climbed the staircase and bumped into Martha who stood just at the landing, she gasped as her yellow two piece suit was completely bathed in red.
"Oh my god" Valeria muttered, a horrified expression on her face.
Two guards went to the wife who stood, dumbfounded on the staircase landing.
"I'm soo sorry, oh my god! I'm so so sorry, please pardon me please" she begged and began to dab with a paper towel.
"Move" a bodyguard said and pulled her away.
"Hey, that's no way to treat a lady" Martha scolded at the guards.
"It's just wine, it's not blood" Martha stated with a shrug. "I never like this jacket anyways" she muttered and nodded to the guards who let Valeria pass, still apologizing as she entered the hallway.
Quickly changing into her cleaner outfit, she pulled off the blonde wig and took off her skirt, ripped off the scarf and hung her bowtie crookedly, hurrying to meet up with Martha who had excused the husband and went to the bathroom to fix her stained jacket.
Valeria met her in the second stall, dabbing a wet handkerchief in the stain and sighing frustratingly.
"May I help ma?" She asked as she emerged from the third stall with a mop and a bucket, a bottle of disinfectant in hand and a small towel too.
"Oh no, don't bother, I have it" Martha replied politely with a smile.
"It's not a bother. I know how much pain it can be to get a stain off" she insisted.
"It is, red at that" Martha said with a soft chuckle.
"A tiny bleach always helps" she suggested.
"Won't that wash the color right off?" Martha wondered.
"No not if I soak it in water and dab quickly" she shrugged.
Martha nodded and moved way for Valeria for move close. She took the bundled towel, dipped it in the bleach and let it under the running tap, she patted the stain for a couple times before it began to fade. She repeated this a few minutes jd the fabric was free of the red cocktail, only a large wet patch remained.
Martha looked at the mirror and smiled, thoroughly impressed.
"Wow" she said and Valeria smiled.
"Just do same for the that tiny patch" Valeria said and handed her the towel and dropped the bottle of bleach too.
"Thank you so much dear" the older woman said and Valeria left with a nod.