Starting Over Pt 09 Ch 01

Starting Over IX, Part 1

This is the ninth section of the continuing saga "Starting Over".

In Part I, LTC (Retired) John Jackson had moved to Seattle after being widowed. He ran into some trouble and some decent people (okay, and a few strippers), while working towards getting his private investigator license. That took place between Sep and Dec 2012.

In Part II, he got involved in a ring trafficking in young women. The main perpetrators were captured, but the hired gun/enforcer slipped away. That took place in Apr and May 2013.

In Part III, which took place in 2013 and 2014, John managed to find the enforcer in Key West and was planning to kill him, but changed his mind. He really didn't know if he could kill someone in cold blood, but the man was living with a woman and had decided that he was retiring. John let him go with a promise to do intelligence work for him and returned to Seattle, where Maggie gave indications that she wanted a serious relationship. Then he used that enforcer from Key West to assist in capturing an assassin. The assassin had been hired to kill him and the detective who helped him break up a leg of a human trafficking chain.

In Part IV, it's 2019. John and Maggie couldn't work things out and now John was working on a case that, at first, involved someone who had assaulted Luke's wife Maria. John then had two men try to break into his apartment to attack him. The authorities caught the two men by tracking them to a strip club, but John got beat up by them before the police got there. When he woke, he found that Vanessa, his waitress at the strip club, was an undercover officer. There were several events that were taking place and it was being done by an anarchist group. However, funding for these events was tracked to someone in human trafficking in Singapore by a hacker that John found through Bob in Key West. He returned to Seattle with the information on a thumb drive, and the FBI and others started tracking him. Finally, the master of the human trafficking ring had his son try to soft sell John's daughter into visiting Asia with him, primarily to kidnap her. John found out, he and his buddies stopped it, and then John, feeling the rage, flew to Singapore and, with the backdoor assistance of a government person, was armed and killed both the leader and his son of this trafficking ring.

In Part V, Yvonne, the young hacker came to live with John. She had nowhere else to go and felt so alone during the pandemic that she was craving human interaction. She also admitted that she was attracted to John, even though there was 19 years difference in their ages. A bad guy was hired to hit him due to his involvement in some operations being run by a rogue CIA manager and some disenfranchised CIA members. John and company got them in the end and Yvonne got shot in the leg. She decided to stay with John.

Part VI involved a woman, going by the name Julie, who had been "hidden" by a woman called a "guide". She had been given a new identity and moved to Seattle to get away from a potentially fatal relationship. That was back in Tennessee. This led to the woman's guide, Dani, discovering that the brothers of the husband that Julie had killed, were running meth labs out of the woods of the land that Julie and her husband had owned. They were worried about losing the land and the labs. This ended up with the labs being pointed out to the FBI, and then one of the brothers and one of their dealers coming to Seattle to get revenge on John and the FBI agent in charge of the case back in Tennessee.

Part VII involved John and the others getting involved with a Romanian gang out of Chicago. It turned out to be more than that, including Maggie and others getting shot. A party at the Bradford's was interrupted by gunmen shooting randomly into the gathering. Finally, in the end, law enforcement got the bad guys and the good guys got someone who turned evidence. Maggie was recovering quickly, and as summer arrived, John was hoping for good weather and a calmer life.

In Part VIII, John got involved in a kidnapping that turned into an international trafficking ring, and included a place where people could abuse young women. It was led by a billionaire, Lucas Berenson. John lost his wife, Maggie, when Lucas sent people to kill John, Maggie, and all the members of the detective agency John worked for. They tracked down Berenson in Canada and he was captured. Yvonne went to work legally and is living with John.

Recurring Characters

LTC (Retired) John Jackson, 5'11", 180, 56 years old.

Marie Jackson, John's dead wife, 5'8", 140, 44 years old, died 15 Jan 2012

Angelica Jackson (Angel), John and Marie's daughter, 5'5", 125, 29 years old.

Mary Bradford, bartender, 5'5", 120, 44 years old.

Margaret (Maggie) Bradford, Mary's sister, 5'6", 115, 45 years old.

Madeleine (Maddie) Bradford, Maggie's daughter, 16 years old.

Samantha (Sam) Walker, 5'6", 130 pounds, 49 years old, John's former neighbor.

Joyce Walker, Sam's daughter, 5'4", 120 pounds, 29 years old, and now an exotic dancer using the name Lily

Marion Walker, Sam's daughter, 5'4", 115 pounds, 27 years old.

SFC (Retired) Craig Smithson, 6', 190, 56 years old, NCO from John's Army unit.

Captain Jeff Smithson, 5'11', 185, 54 years old, SFC Smithson's brother and a captain in the Seattle Police Department.

Luke Cole, 5'10", 180, detective in the Seattle Police Department.

Maria Cole, 5'6", 135, Luke's wife.

Jeanne (aka Jasmine) Welch, 5'5", 110, 31 years old, exotic dancer.

Olivia, 5'4", 120 pounds, 31 years old, called Livy, exotic dancer.

Max Meridian (real name Harold Johnson), Mark's lead kidnapper and enforcer. Now changed his name to Bob Thomas and is married to Susan. They own and operate a bar in Key West.

Susan Thomas, Bob's new wife.

George Watson, a new member of the detective agency.

Vanessa Williams, 5'6", 130, detective in the Seattle Police Department.

Yvonne, 5'2", 105, illegal hacker who helped find the human trafficker who had funded the anarchists in Seattle.

Danielle (Dani) Parker, 5'8", 120, known as a "guide". She takes cases where an individual is in mortal danger and "hides" them by giving them new identities and teaching them how to lay low.

Benjamin Smothers, Deputy Director of the FBI.

Allison June, 5'7", FBI agent in Seattle.

---------------- Friday, March 3, 2023, Seattle, WA -----------

John was sitting in his apartment working on some research for a client. It was one of the most boring things for a private investigator, but there was a lot of it. He was working on it, but not very aggressively. He was bored. Yvonne was next door, where she had set up a three-screen work area on the kitchen table of the other apartment.

John and Yvonne were living together and John was slowly getting over Maggie. He still carried the guilt of her murder, because the shooters sent to kill all of them were sent by Lucas Berenson, a man they were investigating. But Yvonne was patient and he was getting better. He was talking to his daughter more, and she was doing well. She was married now, to Brad Washington, and they were expecting a baby.

John was really looking forward to that. A grandchild. He told her he was coming back for that, and to spoil it beyond belief. Angelica believed him.

It was about 4:45pm when John heard the notification that someone was coming to his door. He looked at his phone and saw that it was Marty. He grinned and went to the door. When Marty got there, he opened it.

"Hey, Marty, good to see you."

"You, too." Marty looked over to where Yvonne had gotten up to stick her head around the corner from the other apartment. "Hey, Yvonne. I'm just here because I'm bored and want to go get a beer." He turned back to John. "Wanna go next door and have a couple?"

John nodded. "Oh, yeah. I'm more than ready." He turned toward Yvonne. "You wanna come?"

Yvonne gave them the 'you must be kidding look'. "And listen to you two talk about sports? I think not."

"Okay, later." John grabbed his jacket and wallet and they headed out the dor.

John and Marty sat at the bar. They both checked out the bartender. Mary Bradford owned the bar now, and she had hired excellent bartenders who looked and dressed like models. She paid them very well, it was bringing in the crowds, and the crowds were tipping well. This one was about 5'10", wearing a short jean skirt, a red bra, and a black v-neck t-shirt that made sure you could tell the bra was red. It helped that she was well-endowed, as well. John had ribbed Mary, who fought against discrimination and the objectivation of women, about how she was using sex to sell in her bar.

The bartender grinned when she came to serve them. "Hey, John, Marty. No ladies tonight?"

John shook his head. "Not tonight, Suzy -- unless you want to join us." He grinned.

Suzy laughed and touched him on the arm familiarly. "Yeah, right. Guinness?"

"Yes, both."

Suzy served them and left. Marty shook his head. "You always have a steady woman and yet others still flirt with you."

"No, she's just friendly with both me and Yvonne."

"Yeah, yeah." Mary scoffed at that answer.

They had been drinking for about 15 minutes and talking about the upcoming NCAA basketball tournament, when a young woman appeared, approaching the two of them by coming up between their bar stools. They both leaned back a little.

She spoke. "Excuse me," she said turning and looking at John. "Are you John Jackson?"

John looked at her quizzically. "Yes, who wants to know?"

She held up her phone. "I recognized you from this picture." John's photo was on it. "Can I talk to you in private for a moment?"

"If you are looking for an investigator, you should call our agency office. Marty and I work there with some others and you'll be assigned someone to handle your problem."

The woman looked back and forth between them. "I was told to go directly to you. Can we talk?"

Marty picked up his beer. "I'll move down a few stools and you can talk."

Marty moved and the young lady took his vacated stool. She held out her hand. "Hi. I'm um, well, I'm living is Seattle as Sara O'Connell." John looked her over. She was a pale, slightly ginger-headed woman, about 5'5", wearing jeans and a light jacket over a t-shirt. She was pretty, but understated.

"Hi, Miss O'Connell. I'm John. What is this about?"

She glanced around, appearing nervous. "You can call me Mary. Anyway, I was sent here by Dani. She told me to tell you that I was in danger and would need some protection until she could get here."

John held up his hand to stop her. "Wait. I need to make something clear. I know Dani and I respect what she does. However, I won't be able to protect you without the support of the others in my agency. I have to bring them in."

Sara thought about that for a second. "I can't make that decision. I'll have to call Dani."

"When is the next time you can call her?"

"She told me to call when I got to you tonight, but not before 6pm."

"Well, it's almost 6 now. Let's grab a booth and you can call from there." John got up with his beer and led her to a booth in the far back corner. It was much quieter and a little isolated from the rest of the patrons, at least at this time of the night. She sat on the side with the wall behind her, and John slid in next to her.

At 6pm, Sara called Dani and told her what John had said. Dani wanted to talk John and so they discussed the situation. She was currently getting someone settled and wanted John to hide Mary until she could make arrangements to relocate her. John told her he would do so, but needed the support of his agency. John wouldn't give away Dani's identity, but needed assistance to keep Sara out of sight. Dani agreed.

John stood up and waved at Marty, who came over and sat across from him and Sara.

"What's up?" Marty asked.

John explained about Sara being someone who had been relocated due to the danger to her life from some bad guys. Marty just nodded. He told her that she just needed a place to hide out and be protected.

John then called Yvonne to get her over to the bar before Sara told her story.

John had Marty get everyone another beer, as Sara said she wanted another and Marty and John were dry. He had just come back from the bar when Yvonne came in.

"So, what's going on?"

"This is Sara. She was hidden out here by Dani." Yvonne knew Dani, but Marty did not. John turned towards him. "Dani is someone who hides people who are in mortal danger from a bad actor. These are people who do not have anything that they can use to get U.S. Marshal's protection, so they are kind of left hanging. She has people she has known in certain industries who assist by providing very good IDs and other things. She hid Sara out here, but she hasn't said why yet. That's what she'll tell us now, right Sara?"

Sara looked back and forth between everyone. "Okay. If Dani trusts you, I guess I can, too." She took a deep breath. "I graduated from high school in May 2019. My mother and father were not doing well. My father had lost his job and my mother was trying to work anywhere she could. She had not worked in a while, so there was not much she could do. I was working at a Denny's to earn some money so that I could go to college. I was taking a year off and planned on starting in Sep 2020.

"In December 2019, this guy that was a regular started lightly hitting on me. He acted a little shy, but was well dressed and seemed to have a nice car and money. I started flirting back and let him take me out to some safe places a few times. He was a perfect gentleman and took me to places I couldn't afford. I knew that eventually he would want sex, and I was willing because he was so nice, educated, treated me well. I was starting to think of him as a solid boyfriend. On Valentine's Day we went to this nice place where we ate well and then had some drinks. He must have spiked the drinks, because two days later I woke up in Miami.

"I was in a hotel in Miami, and there wasn't much to do at first when the pandemic hit, but soon the owners had made it clear that we were sex toys, there for the taking of anyone who paid enough. All the girls I met were young and pretty. They even had some woman come around who would provide us with all our makeup and clothes, if you could call he slutty wear we were given clothes. We didn't leave the hotel for anything.

"And so, I was prostituted for 18 months." She looked a little ashamed, but pulled her head back up and continued. "But I learned how to get around things and found a way to get past the security in the emergency exit stairwell and down to the ground floor. I did that several times and eventually found a way out. One of the vendors that did the laundry, would leave their van unlocked while they were retrieving everything and loading. I knew when they would come and so I hid in some sheets after they loaded the first carts, and got out. This was in August 2021.

"I got to Chicago on some money that I had squirrelled away, and immediately looked for something to do. I was homeless for about three weeks until I found a waitress job. I worked there and proved myself to the owner, who had a more upscale restaurant, moved me to there in December 2021, just before Christmas. I was living in the least expensive place I could find that felt safe.

"Meanwhile, I was dying inside. I was afraid to contact my family in case the traffickers were watching. I had no friends and found it hard to trust anyone. It all became overwhelming one evening after watching a happy family celebrate a young woman's 20th birthday. I realized that I was going to be twenty-one in two weeks, May 19th, 2022. I was three years out of high school, scared to trust anyone, had no friends, and nothing to look forward to in my life.

"One night after work just before my birthday, I was getting ready to leave and the owner, a very nice and smart woman, was there making sure everything was ready for the next day. She asked how I was and, well, I broke down. I was completely overcome by my situation. I sat and cried and suddenly the entire story came spilling out. She comforted me, then went and got a bottle of wine and started pouring for the two of us. Everyone else left.

"After a couple of glasses, while I was still trying not to cry, she lifted my chin and looked into my eyes. She asked if I wanted to start over. I was confused, but she explained that I could have a new identity and start over. I wanted to know how this was possible and she told me she could help. She told me to be at work early next Saturday and we would discuss it.

"The next Saturday, I got there 2 hours early. When the owner arrived, she grinned. She said she knew I would be early. She then explained that she knew a woman who helped others who were in danger, but had nowhere else to turn. She then told me to wait. About 20 minutes later, Dani walked in. She asked me to go over my story. I did. She then asked me if I preferred Seattle or Boston. I said Seattle and she brought me out here and set me up. That was almost a year ago.

"I thought I was safe until I saw some guys sitting in a car out in front of my apartment building. Dani had taught me the basics of how to look for surveillance or anything else suspicious. I was immediately suspicious because I had never seen anything like that. I went around to the back of my building where there is a pretty well-hidden back entrance. Nobody was watching that. I went up to my apartment, gathered my essentials, turned on the kitchen light, rushed back down the emergency stairwell and out the back, and then went to the front of my building. I watched my room and saw that someone had entered when they passed in front of the curtains. That's how I knew they were there for me.

"I called Dani and she told me to find you."

Yvonne reached over and held Sara's hand. "You are a very brave woman."

Sara smiled briefly. "So, can you help?"

John didn't even flinch or think about it. "Absolutely." He turned to Marty and Yvonne. "Yvonne, you go out the front and head to the apartment. Marty, you and I will go out back and circle around each side a few blocks to look for anyone who might have followed you. Sara, we'll call you on that phone if the way is clear. Here, put that number into my phone See you there in 20 minutes."

Everyone got up and headed out.

Everything was clear so John called Sara and they all made it back to John's apartments.

Sara told them more about how the guy seduced her and how she got to Miami, but by the time she was done with that she was exhausted. Yvonne showed her where the other apartment bedroom and bath were, Marty left, and everyone hit the sack.

Yvonne was acting a little frisky, but John wasn't feeling it. Too many things were running around in his head. She was very nice about it, and that made John feel bad. He knew he needed to move on from Maggie, but it had only been six months, and he had loved her. It was the second wife he loved that he had lost and he thought maybe Alison's father was right, he was a shit magnet. If that was true, he didn't want to lead Yvonne into an early grave, too. Just live your life, as John had heard before, was a little hard right now.

---------------- Saturday, March 4, 2023, Seattle, WA -----------

When John woke in the morning, it was early, as was typical, but he was feeling really bad about Yvonne. He decided that he was going to make her feel better. He stood over by her side of the bed where she was on her back, one leg straight out and the other bent at the knee, only a sheet over her. He slowly lifted up the sheet, since she had kicked off the blanket, and crawled up toward her crotch.

John ginned to himself. He loved that she, like he did, usually slept naked. He got situated between her legs without waking her, so he began by placing light butterfly kisses all around her shaved to a small strip over the top pussy. Damn, he loved that so many women kept their lips shaved, at least. She stirred a little, so he then began licking her up along her slit lightly, not parting her lips, but just teasing them.