Outside Forces

by R E Swirsky

CHAPTER 59

  Friday 09:45 Near Okotoks, Alberta, Canada

  Tawnie was seated at the breakfast table in front of her laptop, coffee in one hand, her mouse in the other. Richard and Michelle sat on the opposite side of the table discussing Michelle’s need to get back to work and Richard’s upcoming seminar in Regina. Michael was still in bed.

  It had been well over one full day since Richard had spoken with Senator Diamond. All talk about what more they could do on their own had dwindled away by the previous evening. Without the surfacing of more facts, it seemed they had hit a wall. There was nothing more to do but wait on Senator Diamond. He and Michael had picked up Michael’s belongings from the dorm in the morning and unloaded it all into the garage in the afternoon. The evening had ended as normal, if normality was possible these days. Tawnie and Michael picked out a DVD, Michelle made popcorn, and Richard made sure everyone had a refreshment before settling down to watch the movie.

  On reflection, yesterday had been a great day for Michael. He was still traumatized by Lucy’s death, but his mannerisms had returned to the more subdued calmness he had before everything fell apart. If the voices were still talking, Michael was containing them.

  Tawnie expelled a cough and gasped after inhaling a gulp of coffee. Her mouthful sprayed out onto the laptop and table before her hand shot up to cover it. She leaned forward, trying to catch her breath and hold back from spewing more coffee. Her eyes, fraught with dread, were fixed on the computer screen. She grabbed a napkin, wiped her mouth and laptop screen, and continued to cough away, clearing the remains of coffee from her windpipe.

  Both Richard and Michelle read the alarm in her expression. Tawnie pointed at her screen and waved her hand about in a frenzy, still unable to breathe properly.

  “What is it?” Michelle asked.

  Tawnie coughed some more. “There…” was all she could manage to say, and pointed at the screen. She cleared her throat. “Sorry, but.…” She coughed again. “This story.…” Her eyes ran across the words on the screen and her mouth dropped open in horror.

  Her expression was enough to make both Richard and Michelle rush around the table to see what had shaken her.

  “Look…it’s him…them. It’s them.”

  Richard could hardly believe what he was seeing. It was a news update from CBC about an accidental drowning off the coast of Vancouver Island near Campbell River.

  CBC News UPDATE: Bodies recovered in a Seymour Narrows boating accident have been identified as Kaito Hui, Chief Executive Office of AltaCan Pump, and his son, Takahiro Hui.

  The bodies of Kaito Hui and his 19-year-old son, Takahiro, were recovered early this morning just south of Seymour Narrows in Discovery Passage. Their abandoned fishing boat was spotted by sailors at daybreak this morning as they waited for tides to settle in Seymour Narrows before passing through. It is not known at what time the accident occurred, but poor weather conditions yesterday evening were said to be a contributing factor.

  The 16-foot boat was found adrift near Yellow Island. Both men were wearing life vests when recovered. They are believed to have drowned sometime last night after attempting to pass through Seymour Narrows after dark when the tide was wrong and the weather severe. An advisory was issued for yesterday evening with high wind gusts of 20 knots and light rain.

  Kaito Hui and his son were from Calgary, Alberta.

  The small fishing boat was rented from a shop in Campbell River early yesterday morning. The owner of the shop said the two were planning on fishing Deepwater Bay north of Seymour Narrows for the day. They never returned.

  There was a photo of Kaito Hui with the article.

  “This is impossible.” He glanced at Michelle, whose mouth was open. He shook his head.

  “I know what you’re thinking, Richard, but this one has to be a coincidence.”

  He laughed nervously. “Coincidence? Really, Michelle? How many ‘accidents’ does this make now, five?”

  Tawnie squirmed in her chair. “Five that we know of. Why is everyone dying?” she asked.

  “Now just hold on there a minute,” Michelle responded.

  There was no question in Richard’s mind. “Michelle, anyone connected to Lucy and her father is now dead. Am I wrong?” Worry fell upon him and he glanced towards Michael’s bedroom.

  “Maybe now the Senator will respond, Richard. If Kaito Hui was a friend of his and he just died in one of these accidents, maybe he’ll finally understand what we’ve been trying to tell him.”

  He let go a nervous chuckle. “Yeah, or maybe he won’t.” He was concerned for his family now, and he held back from discussing his thoughts.

  Tawnie sighed. “I’ve been thinking about this a lot. Maybe none of this is about Lucy at all. Just like the earth isn’t the centre of the universe like those teachers long time ago figured out.”

  “Philosophers?”

  “Yeah, those guys. Philosophers…yeah. I don’t think this is about Lucy at all, or even her dad.”

  Richard frowned.

  “I think she was just another cog or whatever you call it at the end of one of the spokes in this crazy wheel that’s spinning us all around, just like that Russian who died in the car accident, or that murderer Shaw. If they are all really connected and connected through Harvey Metcalf, then maybe we should be looking the other way, like towards the middle of the wheel. Mr. Metcalf certainly wasn’t the centre of the wheel. He didn’t even have any idea of what was really going on. If he did, he wouldn’t have kidnapped Michael and then let him go.”

  “He didn’t let him go,” Richard reminded her.

  “But he sure didn’t seem to know what was going on during those phone calls.”

  “So who’s in the middle then?” he asked. Only a few names fit in that slot.

  Tawnie shrugged. “Well, it’s not Kaito Hui, so there’s only one choice that I see, and that’s Senator Diamond. Everyone’s dying. First it was Lucy and then the Russian. Next was Shaw, then Kaito and his son.”

  Michelle dropped her chin and studied Tawnie. She didn’t challenge her this time because what she said made sense. After Kaito Hui’s death, there was no one else in any way connected to any of these accidents, and when she thought about what she heard on the patio at the golf course, she could see no one else.

  “So what do we do?” Michelle asked.

  The manner in which Tawnie described the deceased caused Richard to pause. He looked in the direction of Michael’s bedroom again. Could he turn a blind eye to all of this like he told the Senator he would? He thought about Kaito Hui and his son. They weren’t like Shaw, the Russian, or Lucy. They seemed more like middlemen. And both were dead. Lucy wasn’t in the middle, either. A precursor, maybe; definitely not in the middle. Was there a pattern? “Can you say that again, Tawnie?” he asked.

  “What? The Senator being in the hub?”

  He waved one arm about rashly. “No, no. The order…you said they died in a certain order.”

  “Yeah. Lucy, the Russian and then Shaw. And now Kaito Hui and his son.”

  Richard jerked up straight—so fast that he startled Michelle. “We need to get out of here.”

  Michelle frowned. “What? Michael’s still sleeping.”

  They hadn’t just been through a storm these past few days, it was a hurricane, and the quiet calm they now enjoyed was a deception. They were now sitting in the eye. The leading edge of storm might be nothing compared to what was about to hit them from the backside. “We need to get out of here,” he said again in a quiet whisper. He backed up slowly away from the table.

  “Richard. You’re scaring me now,” Michelle said as she watched him move slowly about the room almost in a daze.

  He jumped, startling both women. “Now!” he shouted. “We’ve got to get away from here! Tawnie, go pack a bag! Michelle, you too. I’ll go get the truck ready.”

  “But, Richard…” Michelle remained sitting. “Go where? What are you talking about?”

  “Just go, Mic
helle! Pack some clothes—hiking and mountain clothes. And Tawnie, go wake Michael.”

  “But, Richard…” she replied. “I don’t understand…why are we going hiking?”

  Tawnie disappeared immediately towards Michael’s room.

  He set his eyes upon Michelle. They were ablaze with worry and confusion. “Don’t you see? Kaito and his son…” he said as if it was so obvious. “They were like Lucy.…”

  Her eyes danced across his as she studied him, trying to comprehend what had sent him on this rampage.

  “Lucy was first, but she wasn’t ever the real target. Don’t you see? Neither were Kaito and his son.”

  “I don’t…” Michelle replied confused.

  “They’re in cleanup mode.”

  “Huh?” She didn’t understand. “Who?”

  “Kaito and his son were just mules,” he said. “Extras. And now they’re dead.”

  Michelle’s eyes grew large, and suddenly she understood. “Oh my God, Richard. The Senator.…” She rushed out and down the hall.

  “Once you’re done, explain to Michael. Tell him everything. Grab Tawnie if he doesn’t understand and have her explain.”

  Richard packed everything he could think of that wasn’t already packed inside the trailer and then hitched it up. He filled a number of water jugs, loaded up the cooler and tote boxes with food from the fridge and cupboard. In the garage were backpacks, tents, and bedrolls that hadn’t seen a mountain for years. He tossed those in and then rushed downstairs to his study to retrieve his roll of maps. He knew a place up in the mountains. It had been many years, but he knew they would be safe up there.

  Michelle appeared next to him as he rechecked the items he loaded into the truck.

  “You’re absolutely sure about this, Richard?”

  “Is Michael up?” he replied, ignoring her question. His focus was on evacuating as fast as possible.

  “Yeah. But can’t we just stop for a minute to discuss this?”

  “I’m not waiting for them to come for Michael…” his eyes caught hers and he read her uncertainty. “…or any one of us. We have to go.”

  “But what about work and…” she waved her arms around in the air, “…and everything else! Our friends, the kids’ friends, and school?”

  And then he stopped. “These accidents were not accidents, Michelle. And right now, we need to protect ourselves. School’s out for the summer and our jobs can wait. I just want us all to disappear, just for a while, that’s all. A few weeks to be sure until we see what unfolds.”

  He wasn’t sure if she was willing. She seemed distant.

  “Do you believe any of this, Michelle?” he asked. He wanted her to believe with him.

  She shook her head and stammered. “I…I don’t know, Richard…I don’t know.… What you’re asking, it seems so…so extreme. I’m sorry.”

  “You know it’s true, Michelle. I know you do. We never should have called the Senator. That was our mistake. I told him what we were all thinking, that Lucy wasn’t the only accident.”

  She stared back blankly.

  “Look at me. I told him I thought there were other accidents that weren’t really accidents. And he knows we have photos of him and Kaito Hui.”

  She frowned again and it was clear she was having second thoughts about running. “But what if it isn’t him?”

  He shook his head. “I’m not about to wait and find out. If it’s not him, then maybe we’ll be in the clear in a few days or weeks. Everything that has happened has happened fast, within days or hours. Whoever was behind all of this planned it very well. Kaito and his son died while boating! Christ Michelle, how did they manage this one so quickly yet make it look like just another accident? If anyone’s coming for Michael, my bet is they are already on their way.”

  Her eyes were sad and droopy.

  “Please, Michelle. Call your office and just tell them you need two weeks off. Please.”

  She nodded once and kept staring at him. She seemed to be measuring him for his sanity. He couldn’t read her. What was she seeing or looking for? Voices? Was that it? Did she suspect he’s now flipped over the edge, listening to his own strange voices inside his own head like Michael?

  She nodded again and whispered, “Okay. You’re right this time. We need to go. Tawnie?” she called out. “Where’s Michael?”