One of the strangest things about dating a fellow acquisition agent was how it made Joey think about clothing. He had seen girls in every conceivable dress, from club wear, to cheeky fetish costumes, to some of the most extreme bondage gear ever invented. But nothing got him going quite like seeing Carla in her mission attire. In a high-waisted, green dress and carrying the over-sized purse, the short woman looked pretty and nonthreatening, verging on nondescript β the perfect look for putting prey at ease.
Joey himself was far too big to pull off non-threatening, but in slacks and a button down short-sleeve shirt over a white tee, he looked innocent enough. Side by side, they were a little more conspicuous than ideal, but endearingly mismatched. She made him look safe.
"Busy morning?" she asked, adjusting the heavy purse on her shoulder.
"Not too bad," he said. "Had to take over for Bronx with that party girl. Quick little workout, dropped her off at the machine shop, and here I am."
"The machine shop?" she asked, feigning shock. "What did she ever do to you?"
"Oh come on, those guys aren't bad."
"Oh I'm sure they're great. For the first hour or two. All, what, ten of them? " she said with a smirk.
He shook his head. "No, I think there were just, uh.... Shit, why can't I remember?"
She wrapped her arm through his, patting him affectionately.
"You're just a little preoccupied. Probably because you had your dick buried in that tart," she teased. "Serves her right for giving my man a wondering eye."
The two nodded to a dour guard, who waved them through into the garage.
"As for me, I foiled a daring escape plot."
He tensed.
"I'm joking, Joey. Mel saw it coming. The girl is clever, and Mel's looking for a new assistant β I was just there to help with the intervention. What's got you so jumpy today?"
He forced a smile."It's just jitters, like you said. So what did you do? Take down, a gangbang and some sensory deprivation?"
"You are such a barbarian," Carla said, squeezing his arm. "I appealed to her good judgment, and showed her an example of what happens when girls are too clever to do what they're told."
He opened the passenger door and offered her his hand. "Would a barbarian get the door and help you into the truck?"
"His woman, his truck? Absolutely."
"You really should have seen Fifi," she continued as he climbed into the driver's seat and started the truck. "She was magnificent in the role of 'Example.'"
"The big titty pet with the ink? Wasn't she an actress or something?"
"Or something. A producer, I think. I played up the story, but she really was a handful when we got her. Willful. She's turned into the most wonderfully placid pet. You really should-"
She watched his face color. "You already have."
He nodded, a little bashfully, starting the car.
"She rolled on her back and started begging last time I passed her in the hall. She had a full sensory deprivation hood on and everything. I don't even know how she could tell I was there."
"Such a good girl," Carla smiled, lazily.
"Yeah," Joey said, waving to the guard as they rolled out through the gate.
As he turned into traffic, his face took on a look she'd seen before. There was something he wanted to say, but wasn't sure he could. Carla watched him out of the corner of her eye.
Mouth or hand, in 3, 2, 1
He clicked the radio on. Right. Looks like she'd have to pry it out of him.
"So, are you feeling good? Ready?"
Joey sighed. "Ready as I'll ever be. I still think you guys take insane risks."
"Us guys? You're one of us now, remember?"
"Just for the fringe benefits," he said, putting a hand on Carla's thigh. "What about you? You feeling good about this?"
"Yeah. Just steeling myself for dealing with new age types all day."
"Imagine what they'll have to put up with," Joey laughed.
"Oh, I am," she said, suggestively, running her fingers over his hand. "So come on, it's the mission plan, isn't it? Tell me what you're thinking."
He shrugged. "Christ, where do I start? We're not even in the same room with the receptionist during the first acquisition, and she's sitting by the phone. And it's an upscale place β 'may I speak to the manager' central, only the manager is tied up in back. Not to mention the field test, and who knows how many clovers. And that's assuming research didn't miss anything."
"Tests," Carla said quietly.
"What?"
"I'll tell you in a minute, but look: we'll be okay. Our research team is good, and the two of us are even better, honey."
He nodded, squeezing her hand.
"Alright," Carla said. "Lets go through it from the beginning. I'm going into boss mode now."
She cleared her throat. "Standard procedures?"
Her tone and demeanor were entirely different. Clipped, officious β a mission lead persona.
Joey looked at her. "What, like the beginning, beginning?"
"Standard procedures," she repeat.
"Isolate, acquire, pack up the product, clean up and go. same as always, right?"
"Always as in the three months you've been here? Yep. Applicators, ragdoll shot or just manual control and restraint at the agent's discretion," she said with a nod. "I trust you."
Joey nodded. The applicator was usually the preferred method, because it kept the girl completely unconscious for hours, but the paralytic "ragdoll shot" could also be a great tool in certain situations. It certainly let you pack them tighter.
Manual control was Joey's specialty. He tried to be sparing because of the risks, both to the item and the picker, but it was nice to be able to use his brawn and keep his techniques in practice β especially now that he was starting to get involved with training. Without his practice with unrestrained targets in the field, the little game he'd played with Squirt this morning wouldn't have gone nearly as smoothly.
"Anyone with special handling rules?" Joey asked, nonchalantly.
"Nope," Carla said with a grin. "Everyone's available for a little light recreation, just as long as we keep things running smoothly. Just don't get too greedy."