by Alex Howell
Raina then motioned toward the endless racks of merchandise and declared, “Anything you need—go ahead and get it.”
Not expecting such as gesture, Clara looked uncertainly at her father, prompting him to encourage her, “Go ahead now Clara—Raina has already signed in on her App, anything you get will be automatically charged to her account the second you walk out the store’s front doors with it.”
Clara becoming nothing short of ecstatic, startled Raina by wrapping her arms around her in a big hug as she exclaimed, “Raina! You’re going to be the best step-mom ever!”
Raina who wasn’t yet married to Mason, surprised at the sudden, spontaneous promotion to “step mom”, gave Mason a quizzical look.
Mason shook his head, laughed and muttered, “I don’t know… this girl always gets way ahead of herself.”
ABOUT AN HOUR LATER AT AN OLD HOUSE ON THE STANFORD CAMPUS. Raina stood next to Clara as she knocked on the door of her new campus home. Feeling move-in day jitters, after there wasn’t an immediate response, Clara nervously remarked, “Oh well maybe they’re not here after all…”
No sooner than she made the remark however, a familiar face opened the door and greeted her, “Clara!! You made it!”
With all her worry and concern melting away Clara grinned, “Serena!”
Serena had been Clara’s roommate in the dorm and the two of them had already been through quite a bit together. Besides the usual bonding experiences of two young girls away from home, in college—they had bonded over a recently shared traumatic experience. Because it was during their first semester at Stanford, that Serena and Clara had both been accosted by sex traffickers.
Both of them were thankfully rescued by Onyx before any serious abuse occurred, but the psychological scars they bore were there with them all the same. And so it was, that the help that they gave each other as fellow sympathizers proved to be crucial in their ability to move on from the trauma that they had experienced.
They also happened to like each other quite a bit. A fact that wasn’t lost on Raina. Clara motioned toward her, “This is my dad’s girlfriend Raina.”
Serena offered, “Nice to meet you.”
She then stated the next most obvious question, “Umm—where’s your dad at?”
This prompted Clara to look behind her as she muttered, “He should be coming…”
Then as if on cue Mason—huffing and puffing—appeared around the corner of the house with a giant duffle bag slung over his back. Serena eyeing the bag laughed, “What is all that?”
Clara grinned, “Oh just a few things for the house.”
As Mason lumbered forward with the newly bought merchandise, Serena shook her head, “A few things for the house?! You’ve got your dad coming up here with a bag slung over his shoulder like he’s Santa Clause or something!”
Mason shouldering the weight with just one of his tree trunk arms, put his free hand on Clara’s shoulder as he declared, “It’s alright… For her it’s alright.”
Serena who’s own biological father had abandoned her, couldn’t help but admire the silent strength and dedication that Clara’s father provided for her. Stepping out of the house, she held the door open, as she smiled at Mason, “Right this way Mr. Walker.”
After Mason passed over the threshold, she then beckoned Clara and Raina, “Alright guys. Come on in.”
Upon entering they were met by another girl who was sitting on the living room couch. Raina immediately recognized her as being a girl that they had interviewed during a previous case. The girl recognized her as well, as she stammered, “Um—hey aren’t you with the campus police?”
Raina shook her head, “No—we’re with a special group of contractors. You can think of us more like private investigators.”
Mason then realized what was happening and inquired, “Oh—we interviewed you didn’t we. What’s your name again?”
The girl nodded, “Yeah I’m Rebecca. You took down my testimony as a witness on the sex trafficking case.”
The girl did indeed provide substantial information for the case, her and her roommates at the time had successfully identified the car that had been involved with the traffickers. Mason however, recalling how the girl had been staying at one of the worst party houses on campus, began to get a little nervous as he wondered if this was the kind of environment that his daughter was stepping into.
He looked over to Rebecca and raised an eyebrow as he asked, “Now—was this the house you were living in when you gave your testimony to us?”
Rebecca shook her head, “Oh—no. No sir.” Rebecca perhaps detecting a hint of concern, then sought to assure Mason, “I never want to go back to that flop house again.”
Mason glancing at Raina added, “I hope that this place doesn’t become another party house like that one was.”
Serena standing next to Clara spoke up, “Nope…” She then added with dry laughter, “No…. you don’t have to worry about that Mr. Walker. I think that all of us are pretty much partied out at this point.”
With the father in him coming out, Mason glanced up the stairs to the upstairs bedrooms and remarked, “No boys living here are there?”
To which Rebecca assured him with a grin, “No just us girls.”
To which a voice called down from the stairs, “Who’s down there?”
Rebecca called back, “Hey Karen—Clara’s down here with her mom and dad, you might as well come down here.”
Raina blushed a bit at being misidentified as being Clara’s mother, and looked to Mason as she mouthed the words, “Really? Mom?”
In reality, by most standards, Raina in her mid-30’s was barely even old enough to be considered to be Clara’s mother. And if she was, that would have meant that her and Mason were High School sweethearts who got married and had kids right out the gate. It was in some ways a pleasant thought, but a bit bizarre one all the same.
Clara for her part had a mind that was either too distracted or too enamored with the idea, to even bother to correct her roommate’s remarks. And after obligatory introductions were made the other girls departed and Clara led Mason and Raina up to her room in order to get settled in.
Mason finally weary of the giant bag of merchandise he carried, hoisted it over the threshold and into the corner of Clara’s room. To which Clara protested, “Dad! Don’t be rough with my stuff!”
Mason catching his breath, sat down in a wooden rocking chair by the window as he scolded her, “Come on Clara, while you are ordering me around here—who bought you all that stuff?”
To which Clara squeezed Raina’s arm and declared, “My new best buddy that’s who!”
Raina laughed, reveling a bit in Clara’s newfound playful affection for her, “I guess she has a point Mason.”
Mason rocking slightly in the chair, growled, “Sure—I see how it is. I’m just the hired muscle.”
Clara in her own little world paid no heed to her father’s complaints and grabbing some curtains out of the bag they brought in, was busying herself putting them up in the window.
Mason watching her carefully, cleared his throat, as he told her, “Clara no matter what happens this semester—I really want you to be safe.”
Clara spreading the drapes over the window sill, absent mindedly intoned, “Yeah dad, sure…”
Mason then looked over to Raina as he continued, “And we’ve got something we would like to give you in order to help guarantee that safety.”
Clara now suddenly paying attention turned and asked, “What?”
Raina then stepped over to her and pulling a small, metal device out of her pocket handed it to Clara, telling her, “Here Clara, take this.”
Clara taking the small device in her hand, stared at it, asking, “What is this?”
Mason then informed her, “It’s something we had Kyle make. It’s an emergency GPS tracking device.”
Clara understanding what the deice was, protested, “Tracking device?”
She sighed, “Wh
at am I? Some kind of pet that needs to be tracked, monitored, and kept in the yard?”
Leaning back in the rocking chair and staring up at the ceiling, Mason sighed, “Come on Clara—we have been through this before. You know better than anyone else that I have a lot of enemies. And that makes you more vulnerable than other young girls your age.”
Mason paused before continuing, “And as much as I want to allow you the experience of going away to college—I think that we both need a little bit of extra assurance that you are going to be alright while you’re away. And this piece of hardware provides us with that insurance policy.”
Clara shook her head, “Don’t you think I might want just a little bit more freedom—not to mention privacy, without you guys tracking my every move?”
Seeing the disappointment in Clara’s face, Raina knew exactly how Clara felt, but she also knew how Mason felt. And furthermore, she knew he was right. Mason’s enemies had already come out of the woodwork in the past and demonstrated that they were more than willing to strike out at his most valuable assets—namely his loved ones—if they were given the chance.
She couldn’t blame Mason for his concern, but she also knew how desperately Clara just wanted to have a normal college life. Raina now feeling thrust into the role of mediator between the two camps, sought to ameliorate the situation, as she spoke up, “Clara—I think you misunderstand us. It’s not like that. This device doesn’t track your every move. It’s an emergency tracking beacon. We have it set up to only activate if you manually press the activation button…”
Clara turning the object around in her hand and eyeing the big red button on the front of it, muttered, “Activation button…”
Raina nodded, “Just hit that button if you are in a jam and it will turn on the GPS beacon.” Raina then continued in a low voice, “But it will also automatically turn on if you don’t call or text your father in over 48 hours.”
This was not something Clara wanted to hear as she shrieked, “Oh my gosh… You’ve got to be kidding me! You guys have me on a 48-hour leash?! Seriously?”
In reality, Clara normally would call or text her father every other day if not every single day, but it was just the idea of them forcing her to do so that made Clara so upset. Growing increasingly upset and frustrated Clara quietly remarked, “All I want is to be able to go to class and have a normal life just like everyone else, why do I have to be burdened by all of this?”
Raina’s attempts to encourage Clara then suddenly fell flat when she told her, “Clara please—it’s for your own good.”
Clara incensed by the remark, halfway joking and hallway serious, scoffed, “And I thought that you were the good step mom!”
Raina who had not yet signed up to be anyone’s step mom, or even a wife, looked over to Mason and mouthed the word, “Help”.
Prompting Mason to intervene, “Clara you’re being unreasonable, after what you have been through this past year, I would think that you more than anyone else would realize the need to take some precaution.”
Clara didn’t want to admit it, but deep down she knew that her father was telling her the truth. And as such she finally relented, “Oh—alright. I guess you’re probably right. Just don’t embarrass me.”
With a heavy sigh Clara reiterated, “If I slip up sometime because I’m busy studying or my phone dies and I don’t call fast enough, just don’t send the SWAT team to campus to embarrass me okay?”
Mason agreed, “I won’t… you will just get a call from a worried father that’s all.”
After this frank discussion, Clara led the two back out to the front porch of the house where they said their goodbyes. Clara hugged Raina and thanked her for all the things she bought.
Mason then went to hug Clara, before suddenly pausing and pulling back. Clara thinking that she had done something to upset him asked, “What’s wrong?”
In a thoughtful and somber voice, Mason quietly remarked, “I’m sorry Clara—nothing’s wrong. I just couldn’t help but think how you just look more and more like your mother every single day.”
Clara smiled, “Aww dad—come here.”
As the two embraced, Raina was sincerely moved by the outpouring of emotion, but as much as she didn’t want to admit it, she also felt a twinge of jealousy. She knew that she could never compete with Masons’ deceased wife Bree, and Clara was a living testament of that.
Yet it still bothered here all the same, as if she would be forever playing second fiddle to his first wife’s memory. She loved Mason, but in some ways it almost seemed unfair. Nevertheless, she pushed such dark doubts to the side. And with their final goodbyes taken care of, Raina took Mason by the hand as he walked her back to the car.
Taking a breath, she smiled as he helped her into her seat. She barely registered Mason starting the car, and her thoughts were a blur as they roared back down the freeway. She knew it would be a long trip back to Baltimore.
2
Friends in High Places
TWO DAYS LATER, IN BALTIMORE MARYLAND.
Mason’s automated SUV pulled up into his driveway just as Mason remarked, “We made it… I thought that drive would never end.”
Raina taking off her seatbelt, shifted in her seat as she took a breath, before agreeing, “I think that 48-hour drive from West to East coast is going to go down in the record books Mason.”
As Mason put the car in park and pulled his key out of the ignition, with concern crossing her face, she asked, “I mean… aren’t you tired? You didn’t even sleep!”
Mason chuckled as he corrected her, “That’s not true—I got a couple hours in at that rest stop remember?”
For Raina two hours within a 48-hour window of time certainly didn’t equate for much, but she knew that Mason was a man beyond driven as she humored him, “Alright… whatever Mason. I don’t know how you do it.”
Mason picking up an energy drink from the cup holder next to him, raised it in the air and remarked, “With this.”
Mason then proceeded to guzzle the drink down as Raina cautioned, “Mason, those really aren’t good for you—you know.”
Not paying any head Mason finished the can, and slammed it back down into the cup holder, as he answered, “Nothing is Raina. Everything we do from the moment we are born wears out our body in one way or another.”
Mason then hopped out of the car and joined Raina on the other side of the SUV just as she was getting out of the vehicle.
Opening up a new topic of conversation Mason remarked, “Well—I think you certainly hit it off pretty well with Clara.”
As the two walked up the driveway to Mason’s house, Clara responded Mason’s summation of events with a less than convincing, “I guess so.”
Standing before his front door, Mason turned to her, and commented, “You guess so? There is no guessing about it. She absolutely loves you.”
Raina sighed, “Yeah…. I’m just wondering if I’m a good influence for Clara that’s all.”
Mason shook his head, “Good influence? I’ve never seen her look up to anyone like she looks up to you!”
Raina responded, “Yeah, but am I a good influence? Being considered her buddy, and being a good adult guidance figure are two different things.”
Mason swiping his hand over the palm reader that was built into the doorknob, didn’t immediately answer. He waited for the click to let him know that the door was unlocked and opened it up, motioning for Raina to go in ahead of him.
Mason then stepped inside and as was his custom glanced around the house to make sure everything was in order. In his line of work, you could never be too careful after all, and he always had to be a little bit wary, lest some intruder might someday get the drop on him.
Confident his home was secure Mason stepped back into the living room, and bid Raina to sit with him on the couch. Here he picked up the previous conversation right where he had left off, “Yeah anyway—what are you talking about Raina? You’re worried about being a bad influence on Cla
ra? You are a great influence.”
Raina with arms folded across her chest, sighed, “But I just feel so inadequate when it comes to her—I mean I’ve never had kids.” Raina laughed, “I don’t even have a niece or nephew!”
Growing more serious, Raina frowned, before quietly confiding, “I don’t know Mason—I just don’t feel quite like parent material.”
Upon hearing this, Mason laughed, “Well, it’s not like anyone is asking you to change diapers or anything. She’s already full grown.”
Raina shook her head, “It doesn’t matter Mason, she still has a lot of growing up to do even if she is physically developed. I just hope that I can provide a good support structure for her.”
Mason put a comforting hand on her knee as he told her, “Look Raina, before you came along it was just me and Clara. Any way you look at it, having you around now has really changed things for the better.”
It was a simple statement of confidence, but Mason said it with such conviction that it helped to allay Raina’s fears. She looked up at him hopefully, “You think so?”
Mason leaned in and gave her a quick kiss, “I know so.”
It was moments like this that Mason proved himself capable of dispelling all of Raina’s deepest doubts and fears with just a loving gaze and a few simple words. It was almost like magic the way that he could set her mind right. Feeling more loved and secure than at any other time in her life, Raina lay her head on Mason’s shoulder and basked in the warm glow of his affection.
But just as Raina was getting ready to snuggle up close to her boyfriend, Mason revealed he had something else in mind, as he suddenly announced, “Alright let’s go to the armory—I want to show you something.”
Raina taken a bit aback, laughed, “The Armory?”
Mason nodded, “Yeah I want to show you some leads that I’ve been following on the virus case.”
Raina shook her head, and thought to herself, ‘Any other guy all snuggled up with me on the couch with him, would be looking for a little more action than leads on a case could provide’.