Ell Donsaii 13: DNA by Laurence Dahners

like he’d been told. He held his head still as if he was reading on his HUD, but actually his eyes were roaming the area around him. He frequently checked his HUD which was actually sending him the picture from a rear facing camera.
    Nonetheless, a shadow suddenly fell over him and a shiver ran down his spine. That damned Jamieson managed to sneak up on me again! He wondered why he found it so irritating. It was a sign of the man’s competence, which was what Wang’d hired Jamieson for. So far the piyan (asshole) had demanded $40,000 in two separate payments just to try to determine whether he thought the job could be done, so it was to be strongly hoped that he was competent. Wang kept wanting to tell his handlers that they should just bring over their own team to capture this Donsaii. However, since they’d lost three teams in years gone by while trying to do just that, he knew what the answer would be. Whoever was in charge back home had decided that they needed a competent native team. Someone who knew the ins and outs of America. Such a person could presumably do this job better, and in a more deniable fashion.
    Wang stood up, once again feeling a little intimidated by Jamieson’s large size and impressive musculature. Since the man had once been a Navy seal, Wang was fully aware of just how dangerous Jamieson could be if he wanted. They started walking casually along a trail in the park. Wang thought to himself that if anyone was actually watching them, they would find the pair, a large, sloppily-dressed Caucasian warrior and a dapper little Asian, unlikely.
    Jamieson said, “I’ve got a twofer for you.”
    “Twofer?”
    “‘Two for the price of one.’” Jamieson laughed, “but in your case it’ll be one and a half for the price of two.”
    Annoyed by the American’s irritating sense of humor, Wang grated out, “How much?”
    “Five million.”
    “Five million dollars?!”
    “Of course dollars.” Jamieson snorted, “Not yen for Chrissake.”
    Exasperated, Wang almost barked out that yen were Japanese, then realized that if this idiot thought he was Japanese that would be one more layer of anonymity protecting Wang’s country. “Five million dollars, far too much!”
    “Five million dollars is ridiculously cheap. I’m not only getting you Ell Donsaii, the most famous person in the world,” he lifted an eyebrow, “but I’m gonna get you her kid.”
    Wang drew back in startlement, “She not have kid!”
    Jamieson grinned at him, “Yes she does . And he’s exactly the lever you need to get her to do what you want. Don’t even try to tell me you don’t want him.”
    “Where is this boy?”
    Jamieson laughed, “I’d have to be an idiot to tell you.”
    Wang’s mind raced. If Donsaii actually did have a child, capturing the child as well would be a coup! Nonetheless, he shook his head, “Five million still too much.”
    Jamieson shrugged, “Kidnapping’s a capital crime. Six million’s cheap.”
    Not understanding what Jamieson was trying to do, Wang said, “No! Six million not cheap. Five million not cheap. Four million not cheap. I pay you two million.”
    Jamieson snorted, “You don’t understand. I don’t want to do this. It’s too dangerous . If you want me to even consider it, your next bid needs to be seven million.” He laughed, “Or, you can try to lowball me again… then it’ll be eight million.”
    Finally grasping what Jamieson was doing, Wang paused to think. His country would be happy to pay a lot more than seven million— if they got Donsaii— Wang just didn’t want to give Jamieson that much. “Okaaay,” he said, dragging the word out, “one million now and six million on delivery.”
    Jamieson grinned at him, “Four million now and four million on delivery.”
    Wang closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, Eight million! “Okay,” he said resignedly.
    Jamieson clapped Wang on the shoulder. He said, “Nice negotiating with you. Three million in gold, and