Skirted Spies: Season 1

Episode 1-1: The Willow Society

New York, Syracuse: Foxtrot Mansion

The Mendoza Gala, one of the biggest and most secretive parties that are happening this year. It's actually the gathering for the coalition of the Willow Society. The Willow members are apparently the most successful professors from well-known universities who were hand-picked to join in and discuss academic goals, but my company knows better.

If it really was just a bunch of geeks getting together to have some leisurely fun, why take so many steps to ensure the privacy of the party? The Foxtrot Mansion that they've reserved for the night was paid in unmarked bills, and the host's name was signed Ulysses S. Grant. The research we've done for the past week shows no member going by that rare and famous name, but the head honcho hosting this particular party is Raul Mendoza.

Raul Mendoza graduated high school in two years, breaking several academic records in not only his local school but across the country as well. He went on to study abroad, writing a rather average record of his college life. Too average if I could have a say in it. My guess is he made some very interesting contacts during that time and used a violated paper trail to have a good cover-up. Five years passed when he decided to come back to his home town, where he became a professor at an advanced university. It wasn't until a year later that the name Willow Society started popping up on our radars.

So here I am now standing in the front garden filled with ornate lawn furniture and exotic flowers expertly decorating the mansion in a most graceful design. And if I can get a little conceited for a moment, the garden isn't the only thing that's beautiful. The black sleeveless dress with a thigh slit and white floral pattern I picked was a very good compliment to my natural orange fur. My short, orange hair made a good look for the Official Woman style too. Makeup was lightly applied to my face, and my black stilettos fused perfectly with the black stockings. Of course, I needed a hole for my tail, guys always fall for the foxtail. 

Standing next to me is a muscular grey-furred dog named Clyde Barker, wearing a traditional black tux with a red bow tie. I insisted he'd wear an orange flower to match my fur, but we couldn't find one in time.

"Okay Troy," he begins, "repeat the plan back to me."

I sigh and roll my eyes. I've repeated it four times while driving up here already, he worries too much. "My name is Ally and I'm posing as your date. Your name is Desmond and you're a professor at Woodland University. We go in, I break away after a friendly introduction and explore every nook and cranny I can find."

He raises his eyebrows, dissatisfied until I complete the entire monologue.

I continue, "The mic I'm wearing records directly back to the hard drive in the car. If I see compelling evidence of anything out of the ordinary, the glasses I'm wearing come equipped with a concealed camera on the left lens. Our time limit is two hours, we meet up back at the front entrance, we give friendly good-byes, then we leave. Good enough for you?"

He huffs. "Perfect. Okay Mr. Confident, showtime."

I practice my girl's voice a few times to get it perfect, then we walk to the big double doors, arms interlocked with each other, to have a chat with a suited bouncer.

The man gives a quizzical look at Desmond, "I don't recognize you, sir? Are you new?"

Desmond clears his throat. "No, no. I just have that forgettable face. Besides, the Willow Society stopped taking in new members back in 2007."

The bouncer chuckles lightly. "Yes, that's right. You did bring the invitation with you, yes?"

"Got it right here!" Desmond pulls out the expertly forged invitation from his suit pocket and hands it to the bouncer. "This lovely girl here is my plus one."