The Tangled Web (11 page)

Magnus looked over at Vicky as he continued to talk.  The
two men shook hands and then they approached Vicky.  Magnus perched himself on
the edge of a small wooden table littered with magazines while Peter stood
alongside Flic.

‘Peter and I have discussed your situation,’ Magnus began.

Vicky and Flic exchanged nervous glances.  They remained
silent.

‘We’ve decided that Peter should go ahead and write the
article.  No publicity is bad publicity.’

Vicky tutted.  Confusion mixed with annoyance.  Who did
Magnus think he was to be making these decisions?  He wasn’t her boyfriend. 
Yet.  And he wasn’t at all involved with the business.

‘No.  It’s not happening,’ Flic asserted.

‘I’m writing it whether you like it or not.  I’ve been a
victim of your little venture and I’m entitled to report the facts,’ Peter
countered.  ‘A story like this is just the boost I need for my career.  It
could go national!’

‘Oh that’s just what you need, darling!’ Scarlett
encouraged from across the room.

Vicky sneered at Scarlett in horror.  Whose side was she
on?

Flic rose from the seat she had occupied and stood in front
of Peter, looking him square in the eye.  ‘We don’t want anyone to know about
this business.  The ramifications are horrific.  Can you imagine how our
families would react?  What it would mean for any future relationships?  And
national
?’
Flic spat the word.  ‘No.  I moved here so that nobody down my neck of the
woods would know anything about my life now.  I can’t be having them reading
about me being a virtual tart for money.  Oh no.  Not happening!’

‘We realise that,’ Magnus soothed. 

‘She’s right.  It’s not happening.’  Vicky crossed her arms
defensively.  She felt Flic’s determination and assertiveness rub off on her
and she liked it. 

‘Magnus and I have agreed that I will write the article,
changing your names, and he will become a partner in your business.  He’s
paying me to keep this anonymous for you two,’ Peter explained.

‘A partner?’ Flic queried.

‘This project is a brilliant idea.  I’d be happy to be your
financial backer.  I’ll get my money back within weeks.  You’ll make a packet –
with the right people behind you.  I want in,’ he confirmed.

Vicky wasn’t sure what to say.  It sounded too perfect.  A
motivated, experienced business partner who’d provide the funds they needed to
make a go of this and publicity from Peter, without consequences for their
personal lives.  And being in business with Magnus would mean she could spend
more time with him.  There would be opportunities for meetings.  And late night
calls to discuss clients.  And more opportunities for flirting during those
late night calls.  Win-win!  Where was the catch?

‘Flic, shall we discuss this?’ she asked.

Flic nodded and they moved to the opposite end of the
waiting room.  Flic waved to the man with the gash in his head on her way,
making Vicky realise that Magnus would probably be a better, more professional
partner than Flic was. 

‘This is actually sounding like a good idea to me,’ Vicky
whispered.  ‘Can you think of any reason why we shouldn’t take them up on
this?’

‘Well we don’t want Magnus bossing us around or getting too
involved in the day to day running of things, do we?  I like the set-up as it
is,’ Flic frowned.

‘How about we make him a silent partner then?  He gets his
share of the benefits – financially – and we run the show.  We have a weekly
meeting, the three of us, to let him know how things are going, but apart from
that he’s not involved,’ Vicky proposed.

‘Do you think he’d go for that?’ Flic wondered.

‘He’s got so many irons on the fire, he’s not got the time
to devote to this.  He will definitely want to be a silent partner,’ Vicky
reasoned.

‘Ok, you do the talking then, you know these guys better
than me,’ Flic said.

‘Hardly!  I’ve met Peter a handful of times and I met
Magnus at the same time as you!’

‘YOU do the talking!’ Flic repeated, ushering Vicky back
towards Magnus and Peter.

‘Um,’ Vicky faltered.

‘Yes?’ Magnus and Peter responded in unison.

‘We’ve decided that Magnus should be a silent partner and
we’re happy for Peter to write the article using fake names for us,’ Vicky
trembled with nerves.

‘Silent?  What do you mean by silent?’ Magnus twitched.

‘Flic and I are responsible for the day to day running of
the business.  We’ll have team meetings once a week which you can attend, or
not, to bring you up to speed on what’s happening and you’ll get to see what’s
happening financially,’ Vicky rambled.

‘And of course you’ll be involved in any major decisions. 
And get your share of the profits,’ Flic added.

‘Of course,’ Vicky nodded.

‘That’s not really silent, but yes, I’ll go along with
that.  We can meet tomorrow to deal with the formalities.’  He waved his hand
dismissively. 

Vicky got the impression he was only interested in the
economic side of things and wouldn’t be too concerned with the decision
making.  It suited her.

‘Make sure you have a babysitter for your daughter, we
don’t want any….distractions,’ he advised.

‘Babysitter?’ she quavered.  Part of the attraction of this
job was the she didn’t need to find babysitters for Sasha because it was all
done from home.  Maybe this wasn’t going to work after all.  ‘There won’t be
any babysitters, Sasha’s no trouble,’ Vicky assured him.

‘She WILL be welcome at ALL our meetings,’ Flic asserted,
looking Magnus right in the eye.  ‘That is not negotiable.’

‘I’m sure that won’t be a problem and you can iron out the
details later,’ Peter interrupted.  ‘I just want my story and my money.’

‘So much for me doing the talking,’ Vicky muttered and
flopped onto an uncomfortable cold metal chair, feeling defeated.

‘Come round at seven tomorrow night, to Vicky’s house.  We
can all meet there and have the first meeting of…what’s your business called?’
Magnus enquired. 

‘Flic and Vic’s Private Dics.’ Flic slurred her attempt at
a joke.  Vicky wondered when this name had been decided.  She thought they
didn’t have a name yet.

‘Not exactly anonymous, is it?  We’ll need to discuss
changing that,’ Magnus sneered.

So far that night, Vicky hadn’t been tempted to drink from
Flic’s hipflask.  Until now.  Magnus was taking over and she suspected this
would not be as much fun as it had first sounded.  She could see herself
handing over full control to Magnus within a month.  And being happy to do it.

‘Any word on Adam yet?’ Pamela breezed, parking herself and
the sleeping toddler she was holding on a chair in the centre of the room.

‘No, nothing yet.’  Vicky was glad to see Pamela for a
second.  She was relieved that Sasha was with her again and thought the subject
would be changed now that they had returned.  She then became aware of the grin
on Pamela’s face and knew there was mischief on her sister’s mind.

Pamela smirked as she announced, ‘I want to be a partner
too.’

7

3
^rd
February

CAUGHT IN A HUNE-TRAP

By Peter Blackwood

It was something I did every day.  I logged on to
my Tête-a-net profile to check what my old school friends and colleagues were
doing this weekend.  I noticed I had a friend request and a message.

An attractive redhead in stilettos and a nurse’s
uniform - her dress unzipped to generously reveal her cleavage – stared
provocatively at the camera and invited me to be her friend.

In her message, she wrote: "You look like a
man this nurse could take care of," clearly hoping for protracted flirty
correspondence.  I was tempted to flirt back but I responded that I was soon to
be married.

"Your relationship with your fiancée doesn’t
bother me.  You'd be amazed how many illicit conversations I’ve had with men
who are taken," she announced – then sent me another picture of her, this
time in a black polkadot bikini.

I was gullible and I was drawn into an exchange of
messages.  I found myself admitting that I too had been unfaithful in the
past. 

It was foolish, but it was just lighthearted chit-chat.
Regrettably for me, the woman I was conversing with was a “HunE-trapper” -
hired by my fiancée to test my loyalty.

The profile was a fake and the login details and
password were soon handed over to my fiancée.  The consequences could have been
disastrous for my relationship – had I not been able to explain that the fling
I spoke of happened three years before I met my beloved.

For the temptress, known only as The Pink Cougar,
it was simply another day at the office, another day’s wages earned in what
many will consider an immoral profession. To me, it was careless banter which
could have destroyed my relationship.

Her partner, Magnum PMT, brags, "Compliments
are the best way to start a conversation.  Ego massaging goes a long way.  In
real life flirting is much easier and more physical but when you’re online the
only way to get a man’s attention is a saucy picture and some flattering words.

"If you then play on your own immorality, the
guy will be putty in your hands.  He has to be able to trust you, and if he
thinks you’re the same kind of cheater as him, he’s more likely to fall for
it.  There’s no way he’d admit an affair to someone who thinks having a bit on
the side is wrong.”

What do The Pink Cougar and Magnum PMT think of the
poor wives and girlfriends who have had their dreams destroyed?  Other than
some careless boasting, which could be lies, and some naïve flirting, there is
no hard evidence of cheating.

The Pink Cougar is dismissive.  "Nobody who
was faithful would lie about having cheated.

“We’re employed to provide a service.  If the
clients find out something they don’t like, they only have themselves to
blame.  If you’d rather not know, don’t hire us.”

The Hun E-trap Investigators comprises a team of
four individuals, three females, and one male who oversees the financial side
of things and is heavily involved in the decision making.

So how did the girls become involved in such a
bizarre profession?

Magnum PMT, a single mother, explains bitterly,
"I discovered that my own boyfriend had a wife and family and I had no
idea.  I obviously dumped him right away, but the way I found out was through
social networking.  That’s how I met him too.  I was sure there were other men
out there using social networking to be unfaithful, and that's really what gave
us the idea.

"It sounded glamorous, and far more exciting
than my day job.  The fact I can do it all from the comfort of my own home
means I stay safe and don’t have to look for childcare for my daughter.”

The Pink Cougar continues, “I was made redundant. 
I worked in a stuffy office previously.  I’m still sitting at a desk all day,
but now instead of menial administration tasks, I’m like a virtual Bond Girl. 
It rocks!”

Are they recruiting new honeys?  The male team
member, known only as Sherlock Poems says, “For now we’re complete, but let us
know, email your CV, we may give you a go!

"Be witty and charming and sexy for sure,
appear genuine, even through lies to allure.  But most important is a good
memory, remember the lies to conceal real identities.”

The fourth member of the team, Haircurl Poirot, is
their creative assistant, in charge of creating the characters they use as
their honeys.  She has no part of the investigation side of the company as she
is under eighteen.  

"I love my job and as soon as I leave school
I’m going to start working for the business full time.  I’m not allowed to do
any of the exciting stuff yet because of my age, but I don’t think I’d have
time for it anyway due to having to concentrate on my Chaka Demus and Pliers tribute
musical that I’m writing.  And my school work.  Of course.

"People wonder where I come up with the ideas
for honeys.  It just comes naturally to me.  Making things up is a talent I’ve
always had.  Magnum PMT used to do it but it wasn’t her niche.  Truthfully, she
was crap at it.

“Sometimes I go into great detail.  I give the
honeys families and jobs and make them all friends with each other.  I even
gave one a husband and a baby.  I got a picture off Google to use.  I just
Googled ‘man with baby’ and used the first picture that came up.”

The agents are keen to keep their real identities
secret, even from their clients.  The Pink Cougar lives alone in Inverness and
admits that she hasn't told even her closest family of her new job.

“I’m proud of what I do and I’m good at it.  I’m
not sure what other people would think, but who cares.  I’ve almost lost my
boyfriend already when he found out and I doubt if my mother would approve, but
I’m providing a service and it’s well-paid.  There is a seedy element to what I
do.  It’s not a good feeling to know that I’ve played a part in the break up of
a relationship, but I’m merely the match setting the fuel alight.  If there was
no fuel, there would be nothing to catch fire.