Alisha, Sara, and Sara's cousin Avery walked into the hotel after a while. Alisha went and ordered some coffee while Sara bought a bottled water and sat down next to Jan. Both girls had their hair up and wore shorts and sandals. The weather here in February was nice to say the least, plus both of the girls were proud of their legs. Alisha and Avery came and sat down too. They all talked and joked except Jan. She wasn't in a joking mood. The elevator door opened on the other side of the large area and eight barely dressed women came out. They walked past the front desk and out the door.

Alisha raised an eyebrow. "Hey were those-"

"Hookers?", Avery finished for her. "Yep they were. One of them is this girl named Alice. She went to junior high with my younger brother Fletcher."

"Well they just walked straight through the lobby." Alisha shook her head. "I guess because its Mardi Gras."

Avery looked up from the 'Sports' section. "Mardi Gras got nothin to do with that, Alisha. This is Nawlins. This city's got whatever ya want."

Melissa came over and made sure she sat down next to Avery between he and Alisha. She and Avery left after a while. Jan, Alisha and Sara were alone. Jan had a chance to tell them what had happened. She led them upstairs to the room of Avraham Ben-Ami. Sara and Alisha were not happy, but they waited to meet the guy spying on them in person. The meeting wasn't pleasant.

Jan knocked on the door, but she didn't have to. Avi had seen them coming while they were still down the hall. He opened the door and tried to smile, but Alisha grabbed a fist full of his shirt and pushed him back into the room.

"How dare you spy on us! Who do you think you are?!? I should beat you fuckin bloody."

Avi straightened up. "Don't think I'm a pushover Miss von Edder."

Alisha snorted and looked over her shoulder. "Between the two of them there wouldn't be enough of you for the coroner to identify. So stop with the tough talk."

"As soon as you stop with the anger. I spoke with Miss Caufield earlier and if she didn't kill me at that time, I'm not worried now. So get focused. We have work to do."

Alisha took several deep breaths. "Jan, you didn't tell me that he was a fucking asshole on top of being a fucking peeping tom."

"I am no such thing. I do my job just like you." Avi turned to face the girls. "I understand believe me. This is for the greater good. Forget the politics. We're soldiers here, all of us. Miss Caufield asked me earlier if I knew what it was like to watch the life drain from someone from your actions. The answer is yes. Not as many as some, but more than I would like to remember. I have asked your help because these few men want to end the lives of hundreds of thousands if they can. We have the power to stop them. I believe that our powers are gifts from the Lord and we must use them for the greater good. You three believe the same thing deep down. You must or you would not do what you do. People like us aren't used to being helpless or powerless. By our very nature we are used to being in control of our fate. Let us take control and make sure these men do no succeed."

Sara nodded and stepped closer. She didn't want to do this anymore than the rest of them, but as far as she could tell, Avi was telling the truth. "Let's get started. What do you have?", she asked.

A team of some of Israel's finest came up the stairs to Avi's room just before 11 am. Most of the men were medium height, short by Jan's standards, but they were serious men. The men knew at once that these girls may have been dressed like typical teen aged Americans, but they were serious too.

"Let me introduce you. This is Jan, Alisha, and Sara." Avi motioned to each girl as he named them. Then he looked over at his fellow Mossad agents. "Ladies, this is Shumlik, Sa'ar, Ari, and the fresh faced one on the end is Rafi."

"Nice to meet you", Alisha began. "Even if those aren't your real names."

The five men in the room frowned. "Those are their names", Avi said quickly. "We are working here from a place of trust. You trusted us, so we trust you. Now, that's over. Let's get started." The five former members of the IDF and current members of the Mossad were impressed with these girls. All of them had a good grasp of how to take care of business. America was always too heavy handed when it did something, but not because it didn't have people who knew how to do it right. Whoever had taught these girls was good.

The Israeli team had a van ready to go. They drove north from the city up to the area near the shipping ports and docks. They drove for over an hour before they found the place. The Israelis had brought uniforms and weapons for the girls. They weren't happy though because they had all had their hair done and combat was always hard on the hair, but they were ready now and in the right frame of mind. Jan tested the weight and balance of the Jerico 941 pistol they had loaned her. It wasn't bad. She would have preferred her Springfield 1911 Custom, but the Baby Eagle would do. She couldn't get used to the uniform sleeves. After fooling with them for nearly 10 minutes, Jan just tore them off. The team found a nice spot to observe the actions of the terrorist cell. For nearly four hours they just watch and counted. Mostly they relied on Avi.

The terrorist cell was operating in what had been a sugar refining mill years ago. The site had no fence, but it had a large clearing around it. So large that team couldn't get with 200 yards of the main building without coming out into the open. The sentries had overlapping lines of sight all the way around. These guys weren't amateurs.

"They have night vision goggles", Avi told the group as night fell. They look like military grade. They can certainly see movement at 200 yards out with those." Their spirits sank. Five large commercial trucks drove up the gravel road leading to the old building and pulled inside. Once the trucks went in through the main gate only Avi could see what was going on.

"Ok, I see six men inside. They are all armed. They look like they're working on the explosives. They're packing them in large boxes or crates. With the four men guarding the perimeter, that's a total of ten. They all have submachine guns, and have overlapping fields of view." Avi rubbed his eyes. It was hard for him to see into the center of the large processing building where the activity was. "Stand-by", he whispered and held up his hand.

"The sentries are heading towards the edge of the clearing. They're checking to make sure there aren't people hiding in the bushes." They all looked and saw the sentry nearest them walking towards them. They knew they had to move. Everyone's spirits sank even lower, but not Alisha's.

"Hey, isn't that the terrorist guy who was raised in Egypt?"

Avi looked closely. "Yeah that's him Ahmed Abdel-Raouf."

Alisha smiled broadly and nodded her head. "Bring him here. That's the one I need. We got lucky. Just make sure he's alive."

Avi nodded and two of the Israeli's pulled out their tranquilizer guns and went down after Abdel-Raouf. Avi turned back to Alisha. "Why do you want him?"

"Because the guy I learned Arabic from is Egyptian", Alisha answered him in nearly flawless Arabic.

"Not bad."

Ten minutes later Sa'ar and Ari carried the unconscious terrorist back. He had a cut and large bruise on his head, but he was breathing. That was enough. Alisha put down her M4 carbine and knelt down. She ran her hands over his hands and then up his arm and then over his head. She even felt his blood. The Israelis shared puzzled looks. Alisha pulled her hands off then stood up. Her body blurred as they all watched and when it cleared they were looking at Ahmed Abdel-Raouf.

"Did you bring his weapon?", she asked in Arabic and in his voice. They nodded and handed her the AKS-74U that Ahmed had been carrying. Alisha went back to the clearing. She even moved like Ahmed. It was amazing.

Alisha fell into Ahmed's patrolling pattern. It wasn't long before she broke it and started getting closer and closer to the sentry to her west. Once they were within a 100 feet Alisha motioned for the man to come closer. He tried to wave off, but Alisha motioned more urgently. The other sentry looked around and then jogged over. Alisha said something then pointed out towards the wooded area. The man didn't see anything. He leaned in closer. Alisha raised the gun over her head and brought it down with all the strength her arms could produce. The sentry dropped like a stone. Alisha smiled and waved the rest of the team over. There was a big enough gap in the perimeter to get to the building. The rest of the team started moving. Everyone was startled at the sound of a horn from a ship out on the river. The port never closed.

The team took cover against the side of the building. They looked around for a good way in. There were windows, but they were at least 20 feet off the ground and Avi had already said that there was no floor under those windows anyway. Jan had an idea.

The building was covered in old rusted and misshapen corrugated steel. She worked her hands behind the metal and carefully found the attachment points. Her arms flexed hard and she tugged quickly. The panel came off in her hand. The noise wasn't much, but it was enough. One of the men who had driven a van had been outside having a smoke. He started heading around the corner in a hurry.

The team got ready to shoot. Alisha quickly held up her hand. She closed her eyes and concentrated. The whole area blurred and then her body changed to look like Ahmed. When the man came around the corner he saw the wall intact and one of his sentries with his back turned and zipper undone. Alisha recognized the man as, Abdulla, second in command of the cell.

"Oh, sorry, boss. I had to take a leak", Ahmed/Alisha told him.

He chuckled. "You shouldn't have left your patrol. In my day were had to hold it or let it out as we move!", Abdulla chuckled again. "Have you seen anything?"

"Well, just one thing." Alisha turned around and pointed out at the tree line. He turned. Alisha reached into her pocket and pulled out a tranquilizer dart that went into the special gun. She didn't need to shoot this one. She stepped closer and plunged it directly into Abdulla's neck. His eyes shot open, but the drug cocktail worked too quickly for him. Alisha shook her head as Abdulla fell to the ground. "Trust is a fucking powerful thing", she said as the Israelis bound and gagged the man. They wanted to take as many of the leaders back to Israel as they could. A dead man can't give any information.

The Israelis went in through the hole Jan had made. They moved quickly. Avi had the point since he could see through almost anything. It didn't take them long to find the four men taking the explosives from military containers and putting them inside civilian style crates. No one around the city would even look twice at a white commercial truck carrying crates like that. Avi knew that those trucks were going to be used to blow up bridges of the lake to the north and over the river to the south. The rest of the explosives were going to be used to blow holes in the canal walls and in the levee walls. Avi shook his head at the thought. The city was full of extra people. The panic would be worse than the flood that followed. Avi took a deep breath. He wasn't going to let that happen. The four men were up on a well lit platform near the center of the building. Eight trucks were backed up in a semicircle around it. Two of the trucks were already loaded. It would take a few more hours to load the other trucks, but they wouldn't get a chance.

Avi looked over his shoulder at the four men behind him, and nodded. They rushed out from their cover and rushed the platform. The four men barely had time to look up before the 5 Israeli's were on the platform with guns pointed at their head. It looked to be over before it started. The terrorist put up their hands and went down to their knees. The Israeli team looked at each other as they started to put restraints on their new prisoners. It was all going down too easy. The terrorist mercenaries had bemused smiles on their faces like they knew something the Israelis didn't.

There was a blur in the corner of the room. The Israelis turned, but didn't see anything. They heard a rush of air, but still didn't see anything. Avi frowned and looked. They saw another flash and heard a rush of air. The ghostlike blur moved quickly from place to place. The team frowned and looked at each other. The blur moved again and then it was gone. The terrorists smiled and waited.

Avi and the team tried to follow the blur, but they couldn't. They gripped their weapons tightly, but had no idea what they were seeing. It became clear a moment later. The blur stopped next to Avi. Mohammed Akbar was the sort of man who could blend into almost any crowd. He had the sort of face and body where no immediate feature stuck out. Mohammed liked it that way. He didn't have to look special. He could do something that made him special. He could move so fast it was almost like he could stop time. He loved the look on people's faces when he slowed so people could see him. Avi Ben-Ami had that look on his face. Mohammed reached out faster than Avi could move his head or his hands and snatched away his carbine. He pulled the weapon so quickly that Avi couldn't even squeeze his fingers together to hold on. The other team members turned and brought their weapons up to fire on Mohammed. He just smiled, and became a blur again. Their weapons were snatched from their hands too. The Israelis jumped from the platform and pulled out their pistols. They all knew that they had no chance to hit Mohammed. Instead they aimed at the weapons at the mercenary terrorists they had been about to restrain. They fired their weapons. One man went down, but Mohammed was fast enough to move the other men out of the way. The Israelis took cover and tried to understand what was going on. The intelligence data had said that Mohammed's special ability was minor bordering on useless. Some idiot analysts was about to get them killed.

Jan, Sara, and Alisha looked at each other as the gunfire started. "What's going on?", Jan asked through the comm.

They could hear gunshots over the comm before hearing Avi's voice. "The leader can move faster than we can see. He's disarmed us and set loose his men." They could hear the emotion in Avi's voice.

The girls looked at each other again. This mission had started so well to drop into the toilet now. Sara pointed out towards the perimeter. The sentries had also heard the gunshots. They were running towards the building as fast as their legs would carry them. The girls couldn't let those two guys get inside.

The three of them ran back towards the sentries. They were getting closer. Alisha stopped as she got to the corner of the building and closed her eyes in concentration. Jan and Sara blurred then disappeared as they ran. The sentries never saw them. Jan went to the one on the left. She pulled her right arm back and waited. He was about to run right by her. He had no idea she was there. Jan uncoiled her punch. Her huge fist slammed into the side of the man's face with enough force to knock him off his feet. Teeth flew from his mouth as he fell to the ground. Jan stabbed him with a tranquilizer after that. She could have stabbed him with it at first, but she just felt like hitting somebody. When Jan turned, Sara was just finishing with her sentry. They both ran back towards the building. It was time to open a new front in the battle inside the building.

Sara reached out with her mind and pulled a large piece of the corrugated metal from the side of the building. They ran in through the hole, and ran towards the center of the building.

"We're inside", Jan said over the comm unit.

Avi and the rest of his group was crouched as low as they could go trying to dodge bullets and pieces of wood flying from the crates they were behind. He managed to turn his head a little and look towards the back of the building. He saw the three Americans coming towards him. Some instinct deep down told him that he should be protecting three young girls running to the sound of gunfire, but they were coming to save him.

Jan held up her hand. The team stopped and spread out. They couldn't see the center of the area clearly, but Jan was about to take care of that. It was time to announce their arrival. Jan went up to the end of a large conveyor machine. The machine was old, rusty, and in their way. Jan slung her rifle over her shoulder took a firm grip on the dirty metal of the machine and started to push. Jan's perfect body reacted immediately. Her shapely arms thickened and bulged as she pushed forward. Her triceps and shoulders flexed and rippled with power as the huge machine creaked loudly. Muscles flexed and strained as she pushed against the machine. Once she felt it move, Jan shoved the machine as hard as she could. The machine tipped and Jan's powerful shove made it fall even faster. It slammed to the ground with a thunderous noise than lingered in the space even drowning out the gunfire for a moment. Sara and Alisha started shooting at once.

Mohammed was already in action. He ran from his place of cover towards the fallen machine. The girls saw the blur, but couldn't follow it as Mohammed ran in circles around them getting closer and closer with each pass.

"Can you catch him?", Jan yelled at Sara.

"Not a chance! I can't even track him. He's moving way to fast!"

"Anybody have any fly paper?", Alisha yelled over her shoulder as she kept firing at the terrorist on the other side of the room.

Mohammed rushed past Jan and snatched her rifle as he continued to run. The strap had been around her shoulder, but he didn't care. He moved so fast, that gave him a strength of his own. Jan was snatched off her feet and dragged until she slammed into the side of a crate bursting through the wood. Jan yelled as the crate above fell down on top of her. The crate above her had been filled with spare parts for the old machines. A large sprocket fall and hit Jan in the forehead knocking her head back to the concrete floor. Jan exhaled as the cold metal sat on her forehead and she felt hot droplets of blood running down the side of her face. She inhaled deeply as the anger built inside of her. She had been ready for action before, but now she was pissed. The Israeli team had seen Jan get dragged and saw the huge crate fall down on top of her. All but Avi thought she was dead. They knew a moment later that she wasn't even injured.

Sara and Alisha saw their friend fly into a crate and they heard her scream as who knows what fell down on top of her. They were tired of playing with Mohammed.

"Alisha, can you make a wall appear somewhere in front of this guy?", Sara asked Alisha with a thought.

Alisha looked over at Sara and nodded. Mohammed looked at the dark haired girl and knew that she was his next target. He never came directly at his targets. He ran in zigzag patterns. It was more fun to watch their heads turn trying to follow him. Some times he would slow down just a little only to speed up again. This girl was so pretty and young. It was too bad. He was going to kill this one and then the blond one too. These people were so foolish sending little girls to do a man's job. As Mohammed turned to make his final move to break Alisha's neck, a solid brick wall appeared in front of him. He stopped immediately. That was all Sara needed. She wrapped her power around him so tightly that his heart could barely beat. She wasn't about to let him loose. The wall disappeared and Alisha smiled up at him and waved. He was in pain and confused. He was about to get more confused.

Jan pulled the sprocket off her face and got to her feet. Debris and junk was all around her, but even worse a solid wall of junk blocked her way. The wall of building was behind her. She could have easily torn a hole in that, but no. That wasn't dramatic enough. Jan bent down and worked her fingers under the mass of junk. She found an intact section of crate that sat on the floor. That was perfect. Jan's bare muscular arms throbbed and swelled as power flooded into them. Her back and legs grew with dense hard muscle, but it was Jan's arms that worked the hardest. Usually Jan's arms were toned, but when she flexed them they grew. Her upper arms were 14.5 of the hardest most dense inches in the world. Sweat ran down Jan's neck to her shoulders and down her arms. Her body shook with pure unstoppable power as tons of debris blocking her started to rise.

All heads in the building turned as the entire pile began to rise. The movement started slowly, but it got faster as the pile became higher. Jan grunted with effort as she got the mass above her knees, but she wasn't close to finished. She took a deep breath and bent her legs to get the weight balanced over her chest. Her hard striated pecs were flexed to the max attempting to hold the weight steady. She was almost done. Once she had the weight balanced, Jan shot up and thrust her arms out. Muscles burst and erupted from her skin as the huge mass of debris flew out. The entire building shook when it landed thirty-five feet away. Jan stood where it had been. Her face was hard and grimy as she strode forward. She smiled when she saw Mohammed captured and suspended in the air by Sara's power. Jan walked over to the man and made sure he got a good look. "Let's finish this", Jan said. She reached out and grabbed Mohammed by the throat. Her large hand wrapped almost all the way around his neck. Her right arm flexed and her forearm thickened slowly as her fingers dug painfully into the flesh of his neck. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't even cough. He finally blacked out and just hung there. Jan held him up like a trophy.

The three girls walked from behind their cover toward the center of the room. The terrorist couldn't see everything that was going on, but they could see enough. They started firing. Sara was ready. With Jan holding Mohammed, Sara didn't have to worry about any distractions. The bullets from the terrorists' guns made it to within ten feet of the girls and then they all stopped. Sara let them hang in the air for a few seconds to make sure everyone saw them before she let them fall to the ground like pebbles.

"Throw down your weapons and surrender!", Alisha yelled in Arabic as the three girls walked up to the platform. "Throw your weapons down or my friends here will tear your leader to pieces!"

Jan and Sara could see the look on the terrorists' faces, but they had no idea what Alisha was talking about. She translated for them. They both smiled.

"I think they need a little demonstration to show them that we're serious", Jan began. "Can you hold him for me?"

"Certainly", Sara answered in her aristocratic way.

Jan held Mohammed up even higher and made a show of opening her hand. Mohammed didn't move a bit. Jan looked at Sara and smiled. Then Jan bent down and picked up a thick steel bar from the machine she had pushed over earlier. The bar was at least 2 inches thick and solid. Jan loved a challenge. She twisted the bar in her hands to get a grip. At once all the muscles in her body flexed hard and big. Jan's body was normally toned and athletic looking, but when she flexed her body swelled with thick vascular muscle. Her body was flexed like that now as she poured all her power into that bar. Years ago, Jan's strength had been random, but not now. Jan knew where to find her strength when she needed. She went down inside herself to that place where her rage and anger was stored and let it out. More and more power surged and fueled her. Her forearm was a mass of cords and veins as Jan applied more and more pressure to the bar in her hands. Her muscles shook with power and flexed harder and harder each moment as she demanded more and more power from deep within herself. Her face was red from effort and from anger. The bar resisted for a few short seconds before it gave in. A whine and groan came from the metal as it bent into a 'U'. Jan gave it one more finally bust to push the ends together. Her muscles bulging one last time with the effort.

"Your turn", Jan told Sara. Jan reached out with her left hand and carefully dug her fingers into Mohammed's neck again. Jan felt Mohammed's weight as Sara released him. Jan opened her right hand. The thick steel bar floated off her palm and hung in the air so everyone could see. Sara took a deep breath set her jaw. The hard dense metal groaned again, as Sara straightened it back out. Sara wasn't finished until the bar was ramrod straight again.

The terrorists' mouths hung open. The Israelis saw their chance and attacked from the side. In a matter of moments the terrorists were disarmed. Alisha stabbed Mohammed in the butt with her last vial of tranquilizer, and Jan let him fall to the ground.

In just over an hour the scene was wrapped up. The team from Israel was well prepared. They had a boat waiting. It took two trips haul the terrorists to the waiting boat. After making sure that they had left nothing behind, Avi made an anonymous phone call to the FBI in New Orleans that a large stash of explosives were in an old mill. The team was long gone by the time the FBI arrived. Avi and Shumlik drove the girls back to New Orleans. Everyone was silent on the trip back. They were satisfied, but after a mission emotions ran high. It was better to let them simmer and die on their own. After a trip to a room in a cheap motel to shower and change, the van pulled up in front of Avery's loft.

"I guess this is where we part ways", Shumlik began. "You ladies are excellent. You're some of the best I've ever worked with."

"Same here", Alisha said after a yawn. "You guys know what the fuck you're doing."

The two Mossad agents were about to get into the van. "Avi, you aren't going anywhere. You own me remember."

Avi frowned. "Yes, I do owe you. What do you--"

"You'll find out what I want tomorrow morning", Jan cut him off. "I'm too tired tonight. Besides, my head still hurts. I'll call your hotel room in the morning. Goodnight, Avi." Jan smiled and waved over her shoulder as the three girls walking into the building and up the stairs.

All the girls slept well that night. Alisha was the first to wake up. Melissa got up not long afterwards. There were a few awkward words between them. Alisha wasn't going to let this tension stand. She went into the master bathroom to make sure her makeup looked right, but also to talk to Melissa.

"I've noticed that you've been a little colder to me than to Jan or Sara. You don't have to worry about me", Alisha said while both women looked in the mirror.

Melissa hrumphed. "Don't I? I see the way you look at Avery, and I see the way he looks back."

Alisha smiled slyly. "I'm not going to lie. Avery is a fine specimen of maness. If aliens come to Earth and want to know what a man is, they should take Avery." Alisha glanced over in time to see Melissa crack a smile. "But you don't have to worry about me taking him, or even trying. That is if I could. The only woman I see Avery look at is you. So stop worrying and lets enjoy Mardi Gras. This is my first." Alisha stood up straighter and adjusted her top to show off more of her glorious cleavage. Alisha wasn't wearing a bra. She figured she'd have some fun that evening.

Melissa was a very attractive woman. She had even done modeling as a teenager, but she admitted to herself that she didn't have a body like the 19 year old standing next to her. Melissa wasn't sure what she would do for breasts like those, but it would have been a lot. Alisha's breasts seemed to ignore gravity as they sat proudly on her chest. Melissa glanced down. Large breasts on a tight trimmed body with long toned legs, tight stomach, pretty face, and long luscious dark hair to top it off. Melissa grinned. "I don't think you'll have a problem finding guys. You're probably going to have more beads than you can carry by the end of the night."

Jan met Avi at the door to his hotel. Avi was confused as Jan approached. "Your payment to me is that you're going out with us and you're going to have fun. You're going to enjoy this Carnival you helped to save."

"Are you serious?", he demanded.

Jan's grin widened. "As triple bypass surgery", she answered. "Now we're going to eat and then head to the first parade, and then get some king cake. Let's go."

Avery and Melissa dressed up in costumes. The others didn't, but they had a great time. People threw stuff off the floats. The children picked up the coins and other small things while the young men grabbed up all the Mardi Gras beads they could get their hands on. They would need those later that evening.

As the sun set, the girls walked down to and around the French Quarter from Canal Street. Music and laughs and peoples voices filled the air. The place was choked with people, but no one seemed to mind. Everybody was enjoying themselves. Especially the young men.

A group of young men came up to the three of them as they walked down the street. "Come on! Come on!", they yelled and teased the girls with beads.

The girls looked at each other. Alisha laughed loudly and pulled her top up to her chin. Heads turned all around.

"Holy Shit!", the guys yelled as Alisha gave them the best flash they would see all night. Alisha collected several strands of beads. She was just getting started. Eventually the girls ended up in a club with Avi. Alisha was heavy with beads as she walked in. The music spilled out onto the street.

Avi somehow managed to get them a table. Jan ordered the first round of drinks for everyone. A perky waitress brought four beers and a large empty glass. Jan reached into a bag she had brought and pulled out two bottles of pure grain alcohol and poured her glass full.

"What are you doing?", Avi asked.

"Same thing everybody else in here is doing. Getting drunk."

"I saw you get drunk off of beers the other day."

Jan laughed and took a long drink from her glass. She twisted her face like she had bitten into a lemon. "I can get buzzed from beer or regular liquor just fine, but it wares off too quick."

"That stuff causes alcohol poisoning", Avi protested.

Jan laughed, and finished the last of the glass. "This won't poison me. It'll just keep me going all night."

Avi downed several beers and had felt his inhibitions loosen. He laughed and joked with the group. They told stories of the things they had done and the things they had seen. Jan laughed at some of Avi's stories of the things he had seen that he wished he hadn't, like the day he saw his little sister being conceived. Avi stole glances at Jan. Her blue eyes sparkled when she was happy and carefree. He like that look so much. She reached out and grabbed his wrist while laughing at something he had said. He took her hand in his for only a moment before letting it go. He wondered if she noticed.

Music blared down from the stage filling the space and spilling out through the open doors to the sidewalk and street beyond. The music was traditional New Orleans music mixed with a modern twist. The beat was strong and had a nice groove for dancing. It had been such long a time since he had done this. He wondered if he had the courage. Avi shook his head. If could face bullets and killers then he could do this. He grabbed up Jan's hand. "Would you care to join me on the dance floor?"

Their eyes met and Avi knew the answer before Jan's mouth moved. The answer was written all over her face. It was confirmed when she responded, "I was wondering when you were going to ask." Jan stood up quickly. They held hands and Avi lead her to the dance floor.

It wasn't long before Alisha and Sara had young men asking them to the floor as well. Sara hated loosing the table. She went to the waitress and gave her a $100 bill to hold the table and promised to give her another $100 if the table was actually clear when she got back from dancing.

Avi was a good dancer. His hands didn't roam as much as Mike's had on Sunday, but he had better rhythm. Jan was enjoying it so much. There was only one problem. The piano player on stage sucked. The rest of the band was jamming though. People clapped as a song ended and band took a breather. Jan heard a few other people mention the piano player. She had thought it was just her.

"Let's get another drink." Jan lead Avi towards the bar. There was a short line. Jan finally made up and ordered two beers. She took one and handed it to Avi and took a long drink from her own beer. She knew her breath probably stank of alcohol, but she didn't care. She tapped the bartender on the shoulder before he walked off. "Hey, what's up with the piano player?", she asked.

The bartender rolled his eyes before he answered. "That's Derrick, the owner's nephew, his wife's sister's son. Eddie thinks he sucks too, but he doesn't know how to get the guy off the stage. He thinks he's good."

Jan took another long drink from her beer. "He does?" Jan knew how to end this madness. Jan lead Avi towards the stage. She walked to the side of the stage and whispered something in the bouncer's ear. Whatever she said, the man smiled and let her pass. Jan walked on the stage still holding a cup of beer. She walked up to Derrick and looked down at him. She was drunk so it was hard to stand perfectly still.

"Can I help you, baby?", he asked in his smoothest voice.

Jan had to stifle a laugh. He was so lame. "Yeah, you can get up from the piano bench. You suck!" She said the last statement louder than she wanted.

"What? Who the hell are you? Get off the stage! I suck!?! I'm going to call security!"

Jan laughed loudly and had to lean against the piano to steady herself. "Security let me up here, and your own uncle thinks you suck. I'm drunk and I can play better."

"Really?!?"

"Yeah!" Jan set her now empty cup on the floor and leaned over the keys of the grand piano. The set list was taped to a board sitting on the top of the piano. Jan smiled. She knew these songs. They had even put the key of the song next to the title. Not like Derrick knew anything about that. Jan pushed him over slightly and put her hands over the keys. She cracked her knuckles and played the opening riff of Big Chief. She laid down a heavy bass line with her left hand and the fingers on her right hand tickled the ivory like Derrick couldn't even imagine doing. Jan played the opening fast and hard. The crowd cheered as the rest of the band joined in. She slid over and Derrick finally got up from the bench. The bouncer patted him on the shoulder as he walked off the stage. Avi moved to the song and smiled as Jan played on-stage. She looked so happy. Avi felt his breathing quicken watching the whole thing go down. He had always admired a take charge woman.

Jan finished every other song on the list with the band. The crowd wouldn't let that band off the stage until they did an encore of Big Chief. Jan was more than happy. Avi met Jan backstage as the next band tuned up and started playing. The song Iko Iko started. Jan loved that song and the voice of the singer was so perfect for the song.

"You play the piano great", Avi told Jan as he came in the small backstage room and closed the door. He swayed his hips to the music half joking as he spread his arms. Jan smiled and walked into his arms. They swayed to the music cheek to cheek. Avi hand's went to Jan's swaying hips. Jan's hands went up to Avi's head and then down his strong shoulders. Avi had the body of a runner. Avi let his hand slip down to Jan's thigh. Her skin was so smooth. Her legs felt as good as they looked.

Avi pulled Jan's head back as their bodies moved as one. He looked into Jan's sparkling azure eyes. He could have stared at her eyes forever. He could see everything she was in those perfect eyes. Her brown hair was slicked from sweat, both hers and his. Jan stared into Avi's eyes and realized that she was helpless. She was almost panting.

Avi frowned and grabbed Jan's head and pulled her head to his. Their lips met quickly. Passion ruled and strengthened their embrace. Jan ran her hands down Avi's chest and pulled his shirt up over his head. The lust and passion danced back and forth in both of their eyes. Avi reached down and grabbed two handfuls of Jan's round ass. He breathed deeply as their lips met again. Jan's tongue was long enough reach the back his throat as they kissed. That just turned him on more. He pulled Jan's top off over her head. She threw her arms up and helped. Avi was already working on the bra. He didn't wait. He pulled the bra off and threw it over Jan's shoulder. He felt her supple breasts and tore his lips from her lips and went to her right nipple. She moaned as Avi went to her left. His saliva soaked Jan's hardening nipples. Avi pulled his lips back and ran his teeth along the length of Jan's nipple. A loud moan escaped her lips. Avi ran his hands down Jan's body to her hips and then down to Jan's round behind. He pulled her skirt up and felt the smooth skin. He squeezed her ass hard as he ran his tongue between her breast. A sound, part growl and part purr, came from deep in Jan's throat.

Avi growled himself and lifted Jan up. Jan ran her hands down his arms as he held her up. He turned and put her down on the counter. Their lips locked again. Avi quickly unbutton his pants and pulled them open. Jan ran her hand down his chest down to his crotch. She squeezed and worked her hand back and forth. Avi's hips moved in rhythm of her motion. His hands went behind her back and he pulled her to him. He could feel her body. He could feel her sweat, her perfect skin, the power of her muscles beneath, her heat, her lust, and she could feel his. Avi ran his hand from Jan's ankle up her long legs. He felt them tremble as he went between his her legs. He brought his other hand over and pulled Jan's thin satin panties down. He tugged them slowly over her legs admiring them as he went. He tossed them on the floor and brought his hands back up. His hand went back to her crotch quickly. He could feel the warmth. She was already beyond moist. Avi looked down before let his finger touch her for the first time. Jan's entire body shuddered as he entered her.

Jan moved towards the edge of the counter and Avi straightened a little. Jan pulled her face back and looked into Avi's green eyes. "Put on a condom", she whispered through heavy breaths.

"Why?", Avi could barely manage to ask.

"I have my reasons." Jan reached into the pocket of her denim skirt and pulled out a Trojan. She tore it open. Avi took it from her hand and did as she asked. A moment later, Avi thrust his hips forward. Jan felt her legs tremble, her arms go weak, and her mouth water. She moaned and wrapped her arms around Avi's back. The music boomed through the walls of the club while Avi and Jan steamed the mirrors. She wanted it. She needed it so badly. Avi grunted and spoke to her in Hebrew. Jan didn't need to understand. There are some things that cross all cultures.

They ended up on the floor. Avi grunted one final time as Jan squealed and then exhaled. Avi rolled over and collapsed onto the floor next to Jan. She sighed and rubbed her hands over her own body and then she rubbed his chest. He pulled her head to his and they kissed again.

Jan pulled away and let her head fall back to the floor. "I think that was the best I've ever had", she stated after a few moments reflecting.

Avi smiled and his pride swelled. He looked down his body. Nothing else was going to swell. He was spent. "Thanks. I have some advantages." He looked over at Jan lying next to him. He watched the rising and falling her chest and the way her abs showed when she laughed. "All I have to say is that you have an amazing body, which does amazing things." Avi felt himself stir. He smiled. "We should get out of here before someone catches us."

Jan stood up and pulled her skirt back down. She looked around for her panties, but couldn't find them. At least she found her bra and shirt. The two of them walked back out into the club holding hands. They were finished in the club and order two cups of beer and walked back out onto the street. They made it half way down the street when the mounted cops came and informed the crowd that Mardi Gras was over. Avi and Jan walked uptown with their arms wrapped around each other. Jan and Avi laughed and joked leaning on each other for support at times. Jan wanted to know more about him. Avi opened up and told her more than he had told any other girl.

"I'm from Kiryat Shemona. You've probably never heard of it, but its just south of Lebanon. I never thought that I had powers or anything. I just knew that I could see pretty much whatever I wanted to see. I remember one day the town was getting shelled. They were landing not far from our house. My mother and older brother and me were heading to the shelter, but I turned and saw the man firing at the town. I broke from my mother's grip and ran to an IDF officer. I told him that I could see the people firing at us. He didn't believe me at first, but I pointed out the spot on the map. They put in the coordinates and fired a howitzer. The shelling stopped. The officer told me that the mortar had been 4km away. I shrugged my shoulders and wondered why he couldn't see them firing. He told me that people couldn't see that far. I told him that I could.

"I was seven years old when that happened. By the time I was 15 they started taking me on raids. I could tell them where everyone in a building was. That helped a lot. I joined the IDF as soon as I could. A couple years later, the MOSSAD approached me and now I do this. That was a year and a half ago." Avi sighed and finished his cup of now warm beer. "There's my life in a nutshell."

They talked some more as they walked. They stopped in front of the door to Avery's loft. Jan and Avi looked at each other's faces again before they kissed again. Jan pulled away and leaned forward and nibbled Avi's ear just a bit. "I don't do one night stands. Don't make a whore out of me." Jan smiled and pulled her head back. They held hands until Jan opened the door and went up the stairs. She collapsed on the bed and passed out from massive alcohol consumption.

The sun rose and shined through the windows of the loft. Jan's head felt like it had been put in a vice and her eyes barely opened. She looked around and saw Alisha stirring in a bed. Sara was still asleep on the couch. Jan pushed Alisha a little to wake her. Alisha turned towards Jan, but had to pull her hair from her face before she could see her. Alisha turned and looked at the clock. It was 6:45 am. Both girls still stank from the night before, but they showered and got dressed. They were still very delicate as they brushed their hair and fought their hangovers.

"Where yall goin", Sara muttered from the couch.

"Church", Jan answered. "We came down here. We're going to do Mardi Gras right."

"What?", Sara asked after putting both her hands over her face.

"Its Ash Wednesday. We're going to church."

"I know what today is. I mean are you both going to same church? I mean, Alisha, I thought German's were Lutherans."

Alisha sighed and felt sorry for her friend. "Sara, you know my family's not German. We're Austrian. I have family buried at St. Stephen's in Vienna for goodness sake. Sara, go back to sleep. You ready Jan?" Jan just chuckled and headed towards the door.

The church was packed. Jan and Alisha were glad they got their fairly early. They even had time to get some of the free coffee being offered in the back of the church. Most of the people in the church had the same look on their faces, as they sipped coffee hoping it would hold their heads together.

After church Jan and Alisha inspected each other's ash crosses. "Hey, wait for me", Jan said to Alisha. "I think I'm going to confession."

"Really? Well, make sure you go to the younger priest."

Jan frowned. It looked funny with the ashes on her forehead. "Why?"

Alisha giggled. "The older one might have a heart attack."

Jan dismissed Alisha shaking her head and walking back down the aisle. Jan felt better after she finished. She met Alisha and they walked out the front doors of the church. Jan was surprised at who she saw there. Avi stood at the foot of the steps. It was obvious that he had been in the church. He was just removing his matching white and blue tallit and kipa. Jan smiled as she got closer. He looked so cute with them on.

"Hey, what brings you here?", Jan asked as she got closer.

"You", Avi answered. He reached in his pocket and pulled out several folded sheets of paper. "I wanted to give you these. These are all the notes I took on you and your friends. I don't think my government needs to have this information. I also wanted to say good-bye. I'm heading back to Israel later today."

Jan looked down at the sidewalk before looking back up. "I had a good time last night. I thought you might stay for-"

Avi shook his head. "I can't. I have to go, but I'll be back. I promise"

"You better. I meant what I said. I don't do one night stands."

Avi smiled and then chuckled. "Yes, I remember. I saw though, that you went to the priest to confess your sins."

Jan took Avi by the shoulders and leaned close to him. "I didn't confess that one", she whispered in his ear then pulled back and kissed him gently. "Just make sure you keep your promise."

Avi grinned as their eyes met. "I always do."

On the airplane home Sara had recovered, and the girls talked and laughed about their very short trip. "So, Alisha", Sara began, "now you've been to Vegas and New Orleans. Which one do you think deserves to be Sin City number one?"

Alisha pursed her lips as she thought. "Let me say it like this. The devil might have a summer house in Vegas, but he lives in New Orleans."

This is a chapter in the ongoing story "Power and Fury"!  Check out the earlier chapters here:

Chapter 1 -- Chapter 2 -- Chapter 3 -- Chapter 4 -- Chapter 5 -- Chapter 6 -- Chapter 7 -- Chapter  8 -- Chapter 9

More on the way soon!!!