Chasing Shadows Read online

  DANCING WITH SHADOWS

  BY

  C PARADEE

  Ebook by

  PDAFiction.com

  Table of Contents

  Disclaimers

  PART 1

  PART 2

  PART 3

  PART 4

  PART 5

  PART 6

  DISCLAIMERS

  Note: This story is a sequel to The Agent. While it is not necessary to have read it first, there are references in it that will not be clear without the background provided in The Agent.

  Subtext: This story depicts sexual relations between two women who are in love. If that offends you, there are plenty of other stories you might want to read. If you are under 18 or it is illegal where you live, please stop and read no further.

  Thanks: I would like to thank Alina, Buff, and Lunacy for beta reading and providing feedback. The story is much stronger because of their valuable input. Thanks also to Lori, Nancy and Verda for their help. I would also like to thank the people in the Expert's Directory who never tired of my endless questions. Lastly I'd like to thank Lunacy for creating and maintaining the Beta Reader’s Directory and the Expert’s Directory.

  Comments: Feedback is encouraged. Questions and comments are welcome.

  ©July 25, 1999

  DANCING WITH SHADOWS

  PART 1

  TONY VIGLIONI WALKED down the familiar hallway toward Huey’s office. Knowing she probably wouldn’t have a reason to visit this part of Quantico again, her thoughts flickered back in time to when she had last seen her ex-boss. It had been less than two months ago, yet it seemed a lifetime. The only life she had known revolved around her assignments. Tony remembered the uneasiness and fear she had felt when she made the decision to transfer. She hadn’t known if she could adjust to a "normal" life. Turned out all that worry had been for nothing. Not only was she adjusting, but she was happier than she ever thought possible. Smiling to herself, she acknowledged the transition wouldn’t be going so smoothly without Megan’s help.

  Tony focused her thoughts on the upcoming meeting. She was looking forward to seeing Huey again. It would be nice to voice her concerns to him. I hope I’m wrong. If I’m not, it has to be someone from inside the agency. What would the motivation be? Well Huey should be able to figure that out. I’ll turn it over to him and be done with it.

  Tony didn’t know many of the other covert agents. They basically operated in cells. There were usually just four agents to a cell, and none of them knew all the other members. Each knew only one other. That way, if anyone was compromised, the information they had was very limited and it prevented the whole cell from being exposed.

  Tony stopped in front of a door with a placard attached to it identifying it as the office of the Director of Covert Affairs. Walking over to the secretary’s desk and stopping in front of it, Tony looked at the elderly woman fondly and smiled. "Hi Jean. How are you doing?"

  Jean returned the smile. She had always liked this agent. The tall attractive woman was always pleasant and took the time to speak. "Hi Tony. It’s good to see you."

  Picking up the phone, she said, "Mr. Straton, Agent Viglioni is here to see you." Nodding her head, she said, "Ok," and hung up the phone.

  "You can go on in."

  Tony flashed a smile and said, "Thanks."

  Huey settled his large frame comfortably in the chair, leaned back and propped his feet up on the desk. He had an hour until his next appointment. It was the first one today he was actually looking forward to.

  Tony Viglioni had called a couple of days ago asking to see him. Smiling, he knew the reason for the visit. Life in Cleveland had turned out too mundane for her. He’d known all along that she’d never be happy outside the fast life in covert operations. Maybe I’ll tease her a little first. Let her think we don’t need any more operatives now. Yeah. That would work. Smiling to himself, he picked up the cordless phone and began going through his messages, returning calls.

  When Jean announced Tony, Huey stood up and walked to the door to greet the special agent. Smiling at her, he was amazed that he had forgotten just how attractive she was. Tony was wearing a mauve suit with a very light, rose-colored blouse accenting her olive complexion. Her thick black hair flowed loosely over her shoulders with longish bangs almost covering her eyebrows. Her skirt was fashionably short ending just above the knee, yet professional in appearance.

  "Are you going to stand there and stare or are you going to ask me to have a seat?" Tony asked smirking, her blue eyes twinkling. She was used to this reaction from Huey and loved to tease him.

  Huey’s face warmed at the comment, but not one to be caught short, he replied, "Hey, you can’t blame me for looking. And besides, if you didn’t come in here looking so good I might not have noticed."

  Tony chuckled and said, "I look the same way I always look, but thanks for the compliment." She walked over to the chair in front of his desk and sat down. "Same old Huey. So did you get the files on my last two cases? I asked Jean to make sure they were available for this meeting."

  "Yeah. I got them. But what do they have to do with anything? And how are you Tony?" Huey asked trying to keep a smug expression off his face, but not being entirely successful.

  "I’m wonderful. And why are you grinning like a Cheshire cat? Got something up your sleeve? Whatever it is, it won’t work."

  Huey’s smile lost some of its luster. Wait a minute. That didn’t sound like someone who was unhappy and wanted to come back to the fold. It was time to ask a few specific questions.

  "How do you like Cleveland?" He asked, watching Tony closely.

  Tony smiled and said, "I like Cleveland just fine. You giving me that assignment was the best thing that ever happened to me."

  Huey, who had long ago learned to control his facial features when meeting with the operatives in his section, was just able to prevent his mouth from dropping open in surprise. The smile remained plastered on his face, but it no longer reached his eyes.

  "Care to fill me in?" He asked in a neutral tone. Damn, I can’t believe she’s content there. What in the hell could have happened in Cleveland? I told everyone she was coming back.

  Tony smiled and said, "I met someone wonderful. Guess I should thank you for giving me that assignment."

  Huey watched the change come over Tony when she spoke. Gone was the teasing, all business operative he was used to seeing. She literally glowed. It was obvious that whomever she had met, this was not just a diversion. This was very surprising. One of the things that had made Tony so effective was her ability to not become involved. Whoever it is, they must really be something.

  Huey left his position propped against the desk and walked around it to sit down in his chair. He needed to gather his thoughts. Things were definitely not going the way he’d planned

  All of a sudden it dawned on Tony why Huey thought she’d made the appointment. Raising an eyebrow in question, she said, "You thought I wanted to come back?" Her voice rose as she finished the query conveying her surprise.

  "Well Tony, think about it. What other reason could you possibly want to see me for? It made sense to me. You’re one of my best operatives. Couldn’t see you rotting away in a desk job."

  "Was, Huey. The key word is was. I am now just a regular special agent like almost everyone else in the agency. I have a place to call home now, and I’m not going to throw that away. I never knew what I was missing. I do now. I’m not the operative you remember," she smiled kindly at her ex-boss, knowing he was disappointed.

  "Well, what did you want to see me about then?" Huey asked, now genuinely curious.

  "Could I see the files on the cases I asked for? I just need to verify something first," Tony replied, but imperceptibly tensed. This would
let her know if her suspicions were correct. I hope I’m wrong.

  "Technically, since you’re no longer assigned to this office, I can’t authorize that. Is there something specific you want to know?" Huey asked, picking up one of the reports and flipping through it. He had quickly scanned the files before the meeting and they looked like routine cases.

  Tony raised an eyebrow and said, "I’m the one who wrote the reports."

  "Well then it seems to me you should know what they say," Huey answered reasonably.

  Tony knew Huey was just following procedure, but she’d wanted to look at them first to see if they had been altered, and if they had been, how they copied her signature on the bottom.

  Sighing, she said, "Would you read me the impressions at the end?"

  Huey picked up one of the reports and flipped to the last page. "This organization is deemed to be no threat to the security of the United States or to the safety of other citizens."

  Tony felt a sense of relief flood through her. "What does the other say?"

  Huey picked up the other case folder and located the summary. He began reading, "Based on the irrefutable evidence that this organization is planning a major terrorist activity, I recommend termination at the earliest possible time."

  Tony’s eyes narrowed and in a steely voice, she said, "I never wrote that." Her thoughts turned to what she had written and for Huey’s benefit, she added, "My impression was that there was absolutely no threat from that group. They were merely soldier wannabes."

  Huey forgot his disappointment and said, "What are you saying? Do you think someone falsified your report? That’s a very serious accusation Tony."

  Looking pointedly at Huey, she said, "Yes it is. Unfortunately, it happens to be true."

  Standing up, she began pacing back and forth in front of his desk. "I just can’t imagine why someone would do that. You know how rare termination orders are. I can count on one hand the number of cases in which I recommended termination. Most of my cases that were possible threats I suggested further infiltration of."

  Tony had unconsciously reverted to her most intimidating persona and she met Huey’s look with cold blue eyes.

  Huey’s mind registered the change in the tall woman standing in front of him glaring before he was even cognizant of it. She was radiating an essence of danger. Huey felt a chill run through him.

  "Hey, take it easy." She certainly hasn’t lost her edge. I’d hate to be on the receiving end when she’s like this.

  Tony forced herself to relax. Just turn it over to him. That’s what you came here for. You’re out of it now. Taking a deep, calming breath, she said, "Sorry. It just infuriates me that some asshole is doing this."

  Huey thought quickly. This was very delicate. Tony was one of the best operatives in the agency. He had no reason to doubt her. But no matter what he thought, it was going to be difficult to try and investigate something of this magnitude on the word of one agent.

  "Why didn’t you say something before now?" Huey asked.

  Tony sighed. "Because I wasn’t sure. I needed some time to think about it. I was going to check it out on my own. But I decided it would be better to turn it over to you." With a little encouragement from Megan, of course.

  "Ok. I’ll look into it. There is a possibility you could be called back to Washington to testify if evidence is uncovered to support your accusation."

  Tony shook her head, saying, "Yes, I know."

  Huey stood, indicating the meeting was over. Tony walked with him to the door.

  "Good seeing you. Take care of yourself."

  "You too," Tony said before exiting the office.

  * * *

  The sun emerged from behind the clouds and reflected off the large bay window in the hotel room. Megan raised a hand covering her eyes from the unexpected glare. She was sitting at a small table in the hotel room looking at a pamphlet about tourist attractions. It had been a cloudy, rainy day and this was the first time the sun had appeared.

  Standing up, Megan walked over to the window and opened it. The bright light filtered through the window accenting the red highlights in her hair. Little dust particles danced through the air visible in the arc of light from the window to the floor.

  Megan smiled at the sight. When she was a child, she used to try and catch the little flying specks. She never could though. Laughing at the memory, Megan thought, the sun always makes you feel so good. It had been sunny when they’d left Cleveland that morning bound for Washington, D.C. and a bit of trivia popped to the forefront of her mind. She remembered reading once that Cleveland was a top contender for the fewest days of sunlight per year. Amused, she thought, what a thing to be known for. A few minutes later the wayward sun once again disappeared into the clouds.

  Megan turned her back to the window and looked around the hotel room. Tony probably wouldn’t be back for another hour or two, and she didn’t want to watch TV. She remembered seeing an entrance to the indoor swimming pool when they had arrived at the Marriott. That’s what I’ll do. It wouldn’t hurt to get some exercise. I’ve been kind of lazy lately. That thought prompted another of a tall, dark, beautiful woman who had been taking up a large part of her time. Grinning, Megan thought, not that I’ve minded.

  Megan opened the drawer and took out her black Speedo. Looking around for something to wear over it, she spotted a white, cotton, button down blouse of Tony’s hanging on the clothes rack. It was perfect. Tony was so much taller than she was, it hung halfway down to her knees.

  Megan thoughts turned to the last time she had borrowed one of her partner’s tops. Tony told her that maybe it was time for them to go shopping since she didn’t have anything of her own to wear. But the half smile and dancing blue eyes gave her away. Funny thing is, I have way more clothes than she does. I just like to wear her things. It makes me feel closer to her. Shaking her head, and smiling, she thought, you are just a hopeless romantic.

  After donning the Speedo, she put on the long white blouse. Taking a towel out of the bathroom, she slipped on her thongs and headed toward the pool. Megan shivered in the cool air of the hotel air conditioning and by the time she neared her destination, she had goose bumps over the exposed parts of her body.

  The warm humid air around the pool was a welcome reprieve. Megan was surprised to be the only visitor. Setting her towel on one of the lounge chairs, she removed Tony’s blouse and her thongs and dove into the water.

  Megan swam the first length slowly and leisurely wanting to give her muscles a chance to loosen up. Reaching the end of the pool, she kicked off the wall, her well-toned leg muscles propelling her a quarter of the length of the pool. With powerful arm strokes and a forceful kick, she began pushing the muscles in her body wanting to give them a good workout. After swimming several laps, she slowed her stroke, just enjoying the feel of the warm water against her body. Rolling onto her back, she began floating, only occasionally propelling herself with a lazy stroke that generated a ripple traveling the length of her body before disappearing.

  Megan's thoughts drifted to her relationship with Tony. A warm smile covered her face. I am so in love. Chuckling to herself, Megan remembered the first time she had seen Tony. She hadn't even wanted to meet her that day, but Tony had been very persistent. Her curiosity, spurred on by a very alluring voice, had finally gotten the best of her, and she'd agreed. Her life hadn't been the same since. It was hard to believe how new their relationship really was. They had reached such a comfort level with each other, it seemed they had been together for much longer than they actually had.

  Her thoughts turned to their vacation. Megan was looking forward to seeing some of the sights. The Smithsonian museums were a must see. They’d probably spend several days at the museums. From what Tony had told her, most of the other major attractions were in close proximity and it wouldn't be too hard to see most of the monuments even with the limited time they had. A half-hour later, her body pleasantly tired, Megan swam to the side of the pool and pulled hersel
f out using the bars at the deep end of the pool.

  After toweling off, she sat down in the chair and watched the antics of two young children who were playing in the water under the close supervision of a woman. Her identity was revealed when one of the children addressed her as Mom.

  She smiled over at the busy mother who gave her a grin and shook her head. A short time later Megan decided to head back to the room so she could take a shower and do her hair before Tony got back. They were going to go to dinner and then come back to the room and relax.

  It had been a longer day than they expected. The plane had been delayed in Cleveland for mechanical reasons, and their arrival was two hours later than originally planned. When they finally arrived at the hotel, it was time for Tony to start getting ready for her meeting with Huey. Since most of the day had been spent at the airport or on the plane, they decided to start their sightseeing the next day.

  Megan took a leisurely shower washing all the chlorine from her body and hair. Drying off, she put on her underpants and bra. Unwrapping the towel from around her head, she began styling her hair with the blow dryer. Megan had already decided to wear it loosely around her shoulders.

  Tony opened the door to the hotel room and heard the hair dryer. Walking over to the bathroom, she stepped in behind Megan, and placed her arms around her bare midsection and drew her close, kissing an exposed part of her neck.

  Megan saw Tony’s image in the mirror a fraction of a second before she felt the warm moist mouth against her neck. Her mind barely had time to register surprise before her body acted of its own accord, and leaned into the one behind hers.

  Smiling at Tony’s reflection in the mirror, Megan said, "Hi. I didn’t expect you back yet."

  "Weeelll, I could always leave and come back later," Tony drawled, smirking.