BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - Thursday, 2143 Hrs Local Time
Colonel Lacey was not having a good night, she felt cramped, tired and her Compulsion was a constant buzz in her ear. She walked over to the immigration desk, the overhead lights not helping her bad mood after her 12 hour flight across two airlines. She'd let her neighbour fondle her leg just to have some kind of stimulation in that flying coffin and the bastard hadn't even done that right. She handed her passport to a bespectacled, balding, middle aged man in a glass booth who, she thought looked like a textbook immigration desk clerk - maybe he had been born just like this and got his job the day he walked into the airport? The lights reflected off his spectacles and gave his perusal of her passport a ridiculous emphasis.
He peered back and forth between the picture and her, as if certain he would discover she was not in fact the dirty blonde, tanned, 32 year old woman from Washington DC named Abigail Lacey it proclaimed her to be. Well it certainly didn't mention she was a US Army colonel assigned to military intelligence nor did it show nearly enough of the countries she'd been lucky(?) to visit. Truth be told it was just one of many passports she had, each of them telling a different story. This one was pretty new and just showed some travel in Germany and the UK, which was in line with her cover.
"Staying?" the clerk asked
"Hotel Grand Palace" Lacey replied
"Purpose of visit?"
"Tourism" actually business
"Duration?"
"3 weeks," though that was just a guess
"Single?" he asked, as if daring her to say no
"Yes" she replied, the question was usually 'married?' but this guy was clearly not feeling professional today.
She couldn't see because of the spectacles, but she was pretty sure he rolled his eyes.
Unable to find anything wrong with her passport, he let her pass - though not without no-so-quietly muttering "Yankee Slut" as she moved past.
"Damn, maybe I should just have used my power" Lacey thought, "don't know what's got that shithead so worked up."
"Excuse me Madam." came a voice behind her. She turned to see an older, fat, white haired security officer walking towards her. She noted the name on his chest: Viktor HalΓ‘sz.
"Need to interview, random check." he said, eyes flitting back and forth between her face and her boobs.
"I do not have the fucking time for this" she thought, but she also needed to determine if her cover was blown, that was mission critical enough to use her power.
She opened up her mind and let the familiar sensation of having her head pricked wash over her, then she targeted Viktor.
"Lets have some fun with the bitch" was the first thought that came through the link, Lacey exhaled - not just because she was relieved at not having her cover blown before the mission started but because it was in character for someone after a 12 hour flight.
"I'm very tired sir, is this necessary?" resist just a little.
"Very important - national security" he answered, not even pretending to look at her face.
"OK, lead the way" then give them what they want, so they think they're in control.
He led her down a corridor to the side with a series of interview rooms, most of them empty, stopping at the last one, he opened the door for her and pointed inside, Lacey obligingly walked in, wheeling her suitcase behind her.
Viktor followed after and closed the door behind her, locking it with a click.
"There would be no interruptions" thought both Viktor and Abigail, although for very different reasons.
As Lacey looked through his mind, she went over all the times he had done this before over a career of 15 years and counting, usually with scared young Eastern European women, he had a whole routine of convincing them that they were in trouble and extracting sexual favours from them - she was impressed and disgusted at the same time. But she didn't have time to play his game and saw an opportunity to add a valuable asset to America's network in Hungary. She moved close to Viktor and placed her hand on his cheek, her power didn't need her to do so but it was more effective when she did.
"Wha-?..." Viktor started in surprise, then trailed off into silence as her power took hold of him.
"Is this room being recorded?"
"No, its extra and unused so no recording equipment"
"What did you plan to do with me"