(http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk137/HaibaneR/Monaco/Characters/Avatars/NerezaAvatar03.jpg)<br/><span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;">NEREZA FABRIZIO</span></span><br/><strong>Location:</strong>On the sun terrace at the rear of the casino.<br/><strong>With:</strong>Ricardo Reyes and slaves Leotie and Kamala.<br/><br/><strong><em>"Especially if they take the pleasure of driving it regularly, an older vehicle like that needs to have eyes and skilled hands on it constantly."</em></strong>His words seemed at first to be a generalization but then I realised he was actually telling me that the current owner of the car drove it regularly and had it maintained. I realised Señor Reyes most likely knew who the owner was, after all.<br/><br/>I reached down beside me and smiled at my pet, feeding her a tomato and a small piece of duck from my<em>salade perigourdine</em>, letting her also lick the slight grease from my fingers. Her satiny little tongue felt good even on my fingertips. I decided later that I’d enjoy its flicking wet warmth teasing at my clit.<br/><br/><strong><em>"I am positive we can keep the greedy middle men to just me. I ask only because I wish to know if I should simply inquire on its whereabouts and verify or if I should setup a meeting right away. But I suppose if you are willing to take it off his hands by seizure as you put it, even if he’s willing to sell I can inform you now that at the very least he will demand double that insurance price. No one parts with celebrity pieces without exorbitant increases in price and that piece is iconic."</em></strong><br/><br/>I extended a small chuckle towards his middle-man joke with just enough forced bonhomie to make my false mirth be sufficient comment on it, then listened to the rest of what he had to say. This was indeed a delicate situation and one that perhaps was going over Señor Reyes’ head. Perhaps I had come to the wrong man after all, as he didn’t seem to have grasped what it was I had proposed: if the car was seized, the owner wouldn’t be receiving a single Euro. That was the whole point. Nevertheless I stayed composed and nodded at all the right points.<br/><br/><strong><em>"As long as the integrity of my good name and business remains untarnished I will consider it, if the price is right. I imagine you will treat such a fine machine with the love and devotion it deserves. That's all that counts. Besides, like you said it’s not like he will call the police."</em></strong><br/><br/>And now he was reversing what he had said before. Was he suggesting we buy the car from the current crooked owner or steal it? He had said it both ways. I needed to pin this confusing man down.<br/><br/><strong>“Can we please be straight here and talk plainly?”</strong>I asked as I finished another mouthful of the wonderful turbot.<strong>“I need to understand what you are suggesting. Are you saying we approach the present owner and offer him money for it – or are you suggesting we use people to steal it from him and I merely pay you for the costs and risk of such an… ah… <em>transaction</em>?”</strong>I lifted my Vesper for another heartwarming sip.<strong>“To my mind the second option seems to incur less expense, but more risk. Though I know you’re a gambler…”</strong>I let the small spur to his risk-taking ego fall to the table and lie there in a way that wouldn’t be too offensive or obvious. Then I added the sweetener:<strong>“Of course, after said transaction I will naturally bring the vehicle to you for its periodic sessions of loving care and attention, providing, that is, that all of what we are proposing does not… as you put it… ‘tarnish the integrity of your good name and business’.”</strong><br/><br/>It was curious. The only way his ‘good name’ would be tarnished was if he, or whoever he used to steal the car, fucked up, which was his problem. There was only one other way and that was if I said something to the wrong people. Therefore I frowned. Had that been a threat?<br/><br/>Either way, lunch was over – I placed my knife and fork tidily together across my plate from left to right – and I had other business to attend to this afternoon. I made motions to depart.<br/><br/>After signaling for a waitress and passing her my plastic, and seeing the transaction for the meal completed, I rose from the table and tidily drew my skirt down, smoothing it over my behind.<br/><br/>My pet was drinking from her water bowl, making happy lapping sounds, when I jerked her leash. There was no need to; it was just fun to hear her cough and splutter.<br/><br/><strong>“Bad slut!”</strong>I chided her over the noise I had caused her to make and spanked her behind twice. I turned back to my dining companion and potential business associate with a genuine smile.<br/><br/><strong>“Thank you for your company, I enjoyed lunch very much. You will most likely need a day or so to discuss options with some people. Do please drop by my club – you know it, yes? And let me know what is your preferred kind of transaction – or telephone me. The club’s number is in the phone book.”</strong><br/><br/>I thought it was important that until this tricky matter had been successfully concluded, my mobile phone number didn’t appear on his phone, nor his on mine.