Whatever It Takes

Chapter 1 - The Meeting

Foreword

The year is 2034 and the world is in turmoil. Even in the United States of America, over half the major cities are under martial law.  As a child, her parents taught her one thing. Grow up fast or you won't survive!

Chapter 1 – The Meeting

Cassandra Noble stood barefooted on the plush turquoise carpet that blanketed her high rise apartment floor.
Her apartment decor was modern and elegant which complemented her style and good taste in fashion.

Cassandra strolled over to a full length mirror hanging on a nearby wall. She gazed into it to check her appearance. She had matured both mentally and physically faster as a teen than other girls her age. She now stood about 5' 7" tall with blonde hair that fell to just below her shoulders. Combined with her translucent green eyes and petite, yet well proportioned figure, she wore a short pleated skirt and halter top.
She was actually quite stunning looking for a 16 year old girl...even if she did say so herself.

"This will do for the time being." she thought.
Cassandra knew her company would be arriving soon!
Publicly, Cassandra worked as the liaison coordinator for a large weapons distribution company.

A job she had gotten using fake ID, a fabricated resume and a few strong recommendations from some influential people that had been friends of her parents.

Secretly however, she was the leader of the local cell of resistance fighters. A group started by her parents, but now led by her since they were killed over a year ago in a skirmish with military forces while trying to save books from a library that were scheduled to be burned after being classified 'politically incorrect' by the current administration.

Her guest, who would be arriving soon, was the CEO of one of the largest weapons manufacturers in the U.S..
She didn't know much about him except he was 27 years old and had recently taken over the family business after his father's recent passing.
Rumor had it though, that he was very charming and very handsome!

"This meeting has to go well" she muttered softly.

Cassandra needed to acquire weapons! Not for the company that she works for (which is what he will believe), but for her group of resistance fighters.
To this purpose she knew she had to be willing to due whatever is necessary to accomplish this...even to the point of seducing him...if that's what it will take!

It was shortly passed 6 pm when Cassandra heard her door chimes began to ring.

"He's here!"

She quickly looked into the mirror and fluffed her hair and made sure her clothes and makeup were presentable. "Yes...I should be able to pass for 20, maybe even 21!" she thought to herself.

Satisfied with her appearance, she walked confidently to the door and opened it.
Standing in front of her was the smiling face of a blonde haired, blue eyed, very good looking man. He stood about 5' 10" tall with a firm muscular build.
So, the rumors had been true, she mused.

"Ms Noble, I presume?" He queried?"

Cassandra nodded...her body momentarily frozen in time as she gazed into his light blue eyes.

"I'm Marcus Hawthorne, from Hawthorne Industries...but you can call me Marc!"

Cassandra snapped out her momentary trance and responded with a smile "Hi, I'm Cassandra but you can call me Cassie".

It wasn't until she finished speaking that she noticed Marc was holding a bouquet of flowers and what appeared to be a very expensive bottle of champagne.

"Please come in!" Cassie said with an elegant smile. "Those are beautiful flowers...Thank You so much"

Cassie escorted Marc across her living room to a corner of the room where she had a fully stocked bar.

"Why don't you chill that Champagne while I put these beautiful flowers in a vase."

As Marc was locating an ice bucket from behind the bar, he spoke. "Pardon me, Ms Noble...I mean Cassie, but you look awful young to be the head liaison coordinator for a large corporation such as Stafford Distributors! I mean no offense, of course."

"None taken" Although his comment left her slightly unsettled. After all, her plan of seduction, if needed, might fail if he viewed her as a young lady of only 16, which she truly was.
Cassie chuckled "I'm older than I look!" Hoping her exaggeration would go unchallenged.
Marc gave Cassie a smirkish grin.

What ever her true age was, Marc had to acknowledge that she was one of the most beautiful women he had ever laid eyes on.

Marc finished chilling the champagne and poured each one of them a glass. Cassie graciously accepted the offer and they both took a sip.
She had only tasted champagne once before, and that was a year earlier when her company had thrown a party for her for closing the deal on a very large and lucrative contract. She recalled not liking the taste that much...but this Champagne was different. It was sweet, good, and the bubbles tickled her nose.

"So, spending the money on the 'good stuff' is worth it after all. This is much better than that cheap crap they served us at work!" she mused.

Even though Cassie had a fully stocked bar, she rarely drank alcohol. The bar was there for entertainment purposes when she wanted to loosen up clients to close a deal.

Cassie finished her glass of champagne and as Marc began refilling it, Cassie said smoothly "Shall we discuss a little business?"

"That's what I'm here for!"

Cassie continued, "My Company is looking to expand its operations...to do that we need a larger manufacturing base. That's why I invited you here. We want to offer you a contract...a fairly sizable contract!

"How sizable?" Marc raised his eyebrows slightly.

"How does 12.5 million dollars sound to you?" Cassie got that feeling she usually does when she senses she's close to closing a deal.

Marc had a contemplative expression. "That's a pretty sweet contract alright...but I have some reservations about doing business with Stafford Distributors!"

Cassie's heart almost imploded when she heard that! Regaining her composure she blurted out "Why?"

"Let me explain" Marc paused for a moment. "My father was a ruthless bastard when it came to who Hawthorne Manufacturing did business with. Sure, we make weapons and are in business to make money, but I didn't always approve of who he sold our weapons to. I know for a fact that many of them wound up in the wrong hands that killed many innocent people. I vowed that when I became the CEO, I would put a stop to that. I believe your company is one of those that doesn't care who it in turn sells its weapons to.
Sure, it might hurt our bottom line a little, but innocent lives are more important than money in my book!"

What Cassie didn't know, and Marc couldn't tell her, is that he secretly was a supporter of the resistance fighter's cause. He also knew that her company had contacts with the government to supply them with weapons.