More Than the X Can See

Chapter 12

Author’s Note: ^dialogue^ = Character internal thoughts/dialogue.

A taxi sat parked at the Institute’s front steps waiting to take Cable, Logan and Angel to the airport. Angel had changed into a navy blue pants outfit with a cream blouse and pumps. A cream handbag held football style in the crook of her right arm. Charles stood just inside the doors talking to Cable and Logan. Logan had changed out of his shorts and into a soft flannel red checked shirt with jeans and cowboy boots. His cowboy hat kept his unruly hair under wraps. Angel could tell he was wearing a tank undershirt, boxer-briefs and socks underneath it all. Cable wore boxer-briefs also she noted with a small smile. Boxer-briefs, she thought, the bicycle shorts of the underwear world. Giving men the support of briefs without the ‘panty-lines’--and they thought women were vain! She caught herself before she giggled, ^Damn! This sexual frustration is wearing thin, I hope Logan planned on sharing a room.^

Charles had a large dark gray lightweight flannel hooded jacket thrown over his arm and a gray circlet held casually in his hand. He’d contacted Jean mentally earlier to find out what size shirt Angel wore and then had retrieved a jacket one size larger. As Angel approached them, he held it out and said, “Angel, I want you to wear this jacket as much as possible or carry it around with you when you aren’t with Cable or Logan. For your safety, it has a homing device.” He knew she’d detect the beacon so why try to hide it.

Angel looked at the jacket with disgust, “Does it come in a different color?”

Charles smiled, “Yes, but Cable may want to have you work at night and the dark gray will make you less conspicuous. Jean said you didn’t have anything appropriate for covert nighttime activities.”

“Can’t we just take the device out and put it in my purse?” she asked holding up a small cream handbag.

“You can,” Charles replied and showed her how to open the interior pocket in which it was hidden, “but it registers body heat and heartbeat when it is worn which would help Cable and Logan determine your condition when they try to find you. Also this jacket will help conceal the inhibitor I’m going to place on you. You told me you wanted to be asleep for the plane trip. Have you changed your mind?”

“No, I’d rather be asleep,” she sighed.

“Good,” he smiled. “Then I’m going to put the inhibitor on you now and put you to sleep after you get into the car. Logan will help you out to the taxi and get you on the plane. You should wake up tomorrow morning in your hotel room.” He held out the jacket and she put it on, zipping up the zipper. The pockets on either side of the fastening were big enough that she was able to put her handbag into one without it falling out.

Next, Charles raised the gray circlet and placed it on her head, this inhibitor had gray duct tape wrapped around most of the red plastic to keep it from glowing in the darkness. Logan walked up behind her and turned the inhibitor on. There was a small amount of red glow emitting between small sections of the tape towards the back of her head to indicate it was on and working. Logan pulled the generous hood of her jacket up to conceal the inhibitor and also concealed half of her face in the process. He took her arm and led her out of the Institute and down the stairs to the waiting taxi.

“Thank you,” Cable told Charles, “I didn’t want to have to fight Scott to take her.”

“Your father is justified in his opinion,” Charles replied. “It is too soon for her to go on another mission, we really don’t know enough about her and she’s completely untrained, but we don’t need another World Trade Center style disaster. Keep her safe, Cable, and make sure I don’t regret my decision.”

Cable gave him a brief nod before he headed out the doors, down the stairs and into the front passenger seat of the taxi.

“I’m not going to be able to sleep with this thing on my head,” Angel whispered to Logan. “It gives me a headache.”

“Don’t worry, Darlin’,” Logan said pulling her towards him in the back seat so she rested in the crook of his shoulder. “You’ll be asleep in no time.”

The driver asked, “No luggage?”

“No,” Cable said, “There’s an extra fifty in it if you get us to JFK in forty-five minutes.”
The driver’s eyes widened and he grinned greedily, “Sure, Man, no problem!” He put the car into gear and it sped away from the Institute.

From inside the doorway, Charles stood still and concentrated on Angel’s mind. Mentally he contacted her, *Angel, Cable and Logan have both had military service and they’re trained professionals. I understand you have a dislike for the military, but you’ll need to put it aside for the sake of this mission. They know you’re a civilian, and they’ll try to accommodate your needs, but not at the expense of the mission or the lives of others.

*Cable is in charge and he’ll expect you to follow orders, so do what he says and you shouldn’t get hurt. Don’t do anything courageous and don’t offer to do anything that you’re not absolutely sure you can do. Be honest with them and don’t be afraid to speak up, neither of you have worked together so you need to learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses. If you have any problems with something he asks you to do, tell him so he can consider alternatives. If Cable isn’t around, then consider Logan in charge. If neither one of them is available, use your best judgment or contact Warren if you can’t figure out what to do. Do you have any questions?*

*When can I take the inhibitor off?* she asked.

*They’ll take off the inhibitor at a convenient location so you should wake up without it. Anything else?*

*I don’t have Warren’s phone number.*

*Do you have a cell phone?*

*Yeah, in my purse.*

*Is it still set up for California use?*

*I upgraded to the National plan.*

*Good. I’ll have Logan program the numbers you need into it while you’re asleep.*

Angel sat up and pulled her purse from her pocket.

“What’s wrong, Darlin’?” Logan asked.

“Charles wants you to add phone numbers to my cell while I’m asleep.” She opened her purse and took out a stylish silver flip phone with a camera attachment and handed it to him.

He flipped it open and looked at the controls. She gave him instructions on how to enter new names and numbers and he immediately added his own cell phone number to her list to make sure he did it right. He had her sit back in the crook of his arm, “Chuck’ll put ya t’ sleep soon.”

“He hasn’t done it yet.”

*That’s because I’ve been waiting for you to get settled,* Charles’ voice came into her mind. He’d also been going through her psyche now that her defenses were down. She was attracted to Logan, which was good since he’d be her buffer against Cable’s dictatorial militaristic style. She was upset about being ordered about, but she knew that lives were at stake so she was doing as she was told—for now. He’d have problems with her when all this was over.

*I’m settled,* she told Charles in her mind. *I can feel a headache starting already.*

Charles checked the pain receptors in her brain and she was right. The inhibitor was interfering with her natural functions and her body was telling her to correct the problem. *I’ll do what I can to alleviate the pain,* he told her. *Sleep now.* He activated the serotonin receptors in her brain and she quickly fell asleep against Logan’s chest.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The pain was dissipating. That was the first thing she was aware of when she woke up. Immediate relief from a migraine she only remembered having. She was so tired, dead tired. She could feel Logan mentally and physically, she was lying back against his chest. He put the hood of her jacket back over her face then held her steady with an arm as he picked her up. She decided to keep her eyes closed and pretend sleep. His arms and chest felt so good, so warm and strong. She could smell his breath, tobacco from the cigar in his mouth and alcohol that he must have drunk on the plane. He was walking in a grassy field towards a SUV parked along a nearby road. The engine was still running, Cable stood inside the open driver’s door. The front and rear passenger doors were wide open.

“Did it hitch?” Logan asked him quietly once he reached the car.

“Nope,” Cable replied in a low voice, “I guess it doesn’t affect electronics.”

Logan deposited Angel in the rear passenger seat and pulled the inhibitor off her head. She started to slide down the seat and he caught her, slowing her descent but allowing her to half lie down in the back seat.

“Pop the trunk,” he told Cable. Cable flicked the switch and the trunk unlatched. Logan reached into the luggage, opened Angel’s suitcase and put the inhibitor inside before shutting it and then quietly closing the trunk with just enough force that the latch caught. They both got inside the front of the car, Cable put it into gear and drove down the road. “We still have to be careful until we get her into the Institute Simulation Room and verify its effects.”

Angel realized they were talking about the effects her kinetic field had on her surroundings once it restarted after turning off the inhibitor. Her expanding awareness told her they were on a service road near SFO, the San Francisco Airport, heading north towards the 101 Freeway. She lay in a daze, the roads were familiar to her so she passively let her senses give her the information on her surroundings.

She was in a Ford SUV, an Expedition she read from the exterior. The seats behind her had folded down and the space was now occupied by their luggage. She found her suitcase with the laptop inside. Jean had included everything she needed which mustn’t have been hard to figure since she’d barely unpacked before she’d headed out to White Plains with Warren and Logan. She found Logan’s suitcase, a carryall in which he had stuffed his clothes and toiletries and a box of condoms. The hint of a smile crossed her face. He was a man responsible for his own actions and she liked that. She sifted through the rest of the luggage and found Cable’s clothes including more gloves, toiletries and another box of condoms in a larger size than Logan’s. The other bags contained a laptop and cell phone, various equipment set up toolkit style in one case, various bladed weapons, a couple different guns and ammunition. Considering they were going up against terrorists, she wasn’t going to complain unless they wanted her to handle the weapons.

Finished with the luggage, she concentrated on Cable and let her senses tell her about this new person who would essentially control her life for the unforeseeable future. The wrinkles around his eyes and the lines on his face told her he was in the late forties or the early fifties she believed him to be. He had a strange metal with circuitry in his skull surrounding and including his left eye although visually it looked normal. This same metal and circuitry formed his left arm from where it bonded to the flesh in his shoulder all the way down to his fingertips. She could tell he had a type of glove over his left hand. She thought it must be flesh colored since she hadn’t noticed his metal hand earlier when she didn’t have access to her scanning ability. He was very muscular, which visually she had noticed before, and very male. She knew how large a man could get from the muscles and blood vessels in his penis, Cable was ten inches with a decent girth to back it up. No wonder his condoms were larger, they must be special ordered. What a monster! But she wouldn’t mind tasting it. Unconsciously, she licked her lips and murmured, “Mmmm.”

Logan heard her and looked between the bucket seats at Angel. Noticing his movement, she shifted her hips laying flatter in the back seat and brought a hand up to her breast, resting it there. She felt Logan take a deep breath through his nose and almost immediately the blood flow to his dick increased. “Angel?” he asked tentatively, “Are you awake, Darlin’?”

“Mmmm,” Angel murmured again and licked her lips again, turning her head towards the front seats. She let her other hand trail between her legs, she could feel her thong pressing against her clit and liquid warmth began pooling in her vagina.

Logan’s nostrils flared, “Shit, woman, ya wake up like that every time?”

“What?” Cable asked looking in the rear view mirror not seeing Angel, he quickly glanced between the seats before he returned his attention to the road and the route to the hotel. He had seen only a brief glimpse of her bottom half where her hand was rubbing between her legs. “She wakes up fuck ready?”

“So far,” Logan replied. “Angel,” he said loudly, “you ‘wake?”

Angel sighed slowly, there was no denying it so she slowly opened her eyes and breathed, “Yes.” Her eyes locked onto Logan’s.

“Damn!” Cable exclaimed, and shot a jealous look at Logan.

The thought briefly crossed Logan’s mind to climb into the back seat with Angel, but they were driving through the downtown area already and they’d decided he would sign and pay for the hotel through his front company, Gulogulo Security. He sighed heavily and turned around to face forward in his seat and willed his cock down to semi-flaccidness. It wouldn’t look good for him to walk into the hotel lobby with a stiff one tenting his pants. Gruffly he ordered, “Angel, cool it down. We’re almost to the hotel and I gotta get us checked in.”

Angel sighed, he was right. She wouldn’t be in a hotel room for another thirty minutes, She took a couple of deep breaths trying to calm herself down. She could wait half an hour. The hotel was expecting them so all Logan would have to do was give them his credit card and sign a few papers and they’d give him the card keys. A few minutes up the elevator to the room and—^Damn! Couldn’t Cable drive any faster! Ooohhh, Cable … he’d be waiting in the car with her. Wonder what he tastes like? His mouth, his dick, his—^”

“We’re here,” Cable announced as he spotted the hotel up the block. He turned into the drive and parked in front of the lobby.

A young uniformed valet stood in a booth trying to keep warm, but when Cable and Logan both got out, he came forward and asked, “Would you like me to get you a Porter?”

“Yes,” Cable said as he popped the trunk and came around to begin taking suitcases out.

The valet followed Logan into the lobby, “Sir, there’s no smoking in the hotel.” Logan looked at his cigar stub, shrugged and made a slight detour to a sand receptacle and ground it into the grit before heading to the front desk. The valet headed to a door marked ‘Staff Only’ and soon returned with another uniformed young man who grabbed a brass and red-carpeted luggage cart from an alcove before heading out to the truck parked in front of the hotel.

Angel had been surprised when both of the men had exited the car, but when she realized what they were doing and that it would get them up to the room faster, she was glad. She had gotten a hold of herself and straightened her clothes by the time Logan walked back out of the Hotel and Cable and the porter had loaded the luggage cart. The valet opened her door and she got out and immediately walked over to Logan and put her arm through his. He gave her a quick glance to make sure she was presentable before he turned and led her back inside. The porter pulled the luggage cart into the hotel while Cable gave the car keys to the valet and got his receipt tag. After finding out which room they were staying in, the porter led them towards the elevator. He held the door while Angel, Logan and finally Cable entered the enclosed space.

Logan asked the porter, “How’s the food from room service?”

“Excellent, sir,” the porter answered. “Our restaurant on the top floor also prepares all the food for our room service orders. They’re open twenty-four hours a day so there’s always a chef. A pastry chef makes fresh scones, muffins or anything you’d like in the mornings for breakfasts. There’s an order sheet you can fill out tonight and they’ll pick it up and deliver it when you want it tomorrow morning.”

“What time you want to get started?” Logan asked Cable.

Cable looked at his watch, “It’s almost midnight now. Say seven?”

Logan glanced at Angel and then back at Cable, “Make it nine. She’ll have jet lag.”

Cable knew once they hit the room, he wouldn’t see Logan or Angel so he asked, “What do you two want for breakfast?”

“I don’t care,” Angel replied.

“Meat,” Logan told him, “Order enough for five people, these fancy hotel restaurants are notorious for small meals.”

Cable looked at the twenty-something porter who nodded and said reluctantly, but truthfully, “He’s right.”

When the elevator opened, Logan led the way to their rooms and opened the door to a suite. While Cable paid the porter a generous tip after he dropped off their bags and showed them the breakfast menu and what he recommended, Logan and Angel scouted out the rooms.

The door to the suite had opened into the kitchen. Sink, hotplates, stove, microwave on the countertop and refrigerator lined the wall to their right and a six person oblong dining table finished the kitchen area. Further into the room, an entertainment center was set up against the right wall across from an oval sofa table, sofa bed, chair and two side tables. The far wall was actually a sliding glass door that opened onto a balcony with an outdoor table and four chairs. A door on the right wall led into the bedroom with a king sized bed, nightstand on each side, across from a television and chair. The bathroom included a Jacuzzi tub, shower stall and two sinks. A connecting door on the left wall of the kitchen led to a normal hotel room containing two double beds with a shared nightstand across from a desk with chair, television and the ubiquitous single chair in the corner next to another set of sliding glass doors leading onto a balcony with two chairs around an outdoor table. The bathroom to this room was next to the door out into the hall and contained the standard sink, toilet and shower bath. The only extra amenity in the room was a mini bar across from the connecting door separating the bathroom from the beds.

“A king on that side and two doubles on the other,” Logan told Cable when the porter left.

“Doubles are too small for me,” Cable said, “I’ll take the king.”

“Awww,” Angel exclaimed. “That bathroom has the Jacuzzi tub!”

“Tough shit,” Cable said. “This isn’t a vacation.”

“The doubles are in the extra room. We can lock off the rest of the suite and have the hotel change the doubles to a king tomorrow,” Logan said placatingly. “Cable can sleep in the king tonight and we’ll switch rooms tomorrow.”

Cable’s eyebrow rose, he hadn’t expected Logan to suggest the change. “Fine,” he agreed, not wanting to bother with a stupid argument about room arrangements. “Call them tomorrow and have them do it.” He walked over and grabbed the breakfast list off the table. Pointedly, he said, “I’m going to order breakfast for delivery at eight thirty.” He wanted them ready to leave the hotel by nine. He didn’t want to waste any more time. Logan grabbed up his and Angel’s bags and walked into the connecting room with Angel right behind him.

Cable sighed and grabbed the pen that had been with the breakfast menu and quickly marked several items on the list. He knew he was probably ordering too much, but it was better to have too much than too little. A lesson he had learned quickly growing up and recently reinforced by the many different faces of the third world countries he’d traversed in his hunt for terrorists. Knowing the late hour, he called service to notify them to make sure they picked up the breakfast list on the outside of the exterior door.

He’d stripped and had just gotten into bed when he heard Angel’s cries from the other room. Jealousy surged in him, how Logan had gotten her into his bed so quickly was beyond him. She was a nice piece and knowing she was a bitch in heat didn’t make it any easier on him. He considered jacking off, but remembered her scanning ability. If he wanted her to follow his orders, it would be best if she hadn’t ‘seen’ him masturbating. With a sigh he concentrated on relaxing his body and falling asleep.