by Jan Thompson
When Corinne wasn’t working, they stayed in their cabin. Sometimes they cooked fresh vegetables from the retreat garden. Sometimes they ate at the lodge.
Like tonight.
It was Thanksgiving Eve, but Corinne planned to stay indoors all day on Thanksgiving Day, so tonight was their turkey night.
Sitting at a corner table and talking very little to strangers who had nothing to say to her, Corinne ate quietly and thought about her life up until now.
Mostly, her thoughts turned to Martin.
He had proposed to her on the beach that day back in July. She didn’t give him an answer. She thought he was probably emotional and not thinking straight.
They had just met again after four years apart, so how could he be so sure he wanted to marry her.
Unfortunately, it was the second time in four years he had proposed to her, and both times, Corinne had disappointed him.
She could never…
Well, never was such a severe word.
Sitting beside her, Dahlia was falling asleep. It was only about seven o’clock in the evening, but Corinne had trained her daughter to go to sleep by eight. That way, Mommy had time to herself for a couple of hours to read the Bible and take it easy before she went to bed.
Alone.
As soon as Corinne finished eating, she asked for a takeout bag. A server cleared her plates, so she didn’t have to leave Dahlia by herself with a bunch of strangers at the dinner table.
However, when Corinne tried to carry Dahlia, she felt that the girl was pushing too hard against her womb. The seven-month-old baby kicked his big sister.
Corinne had to let Dahlia down, but the little girl didn’t want to walk. She was starting to whine.
“No whining,” Corinne said sternly.
Through the windows, she could see that it was snowing harder now. How could she walk uphill with a griping child? The last thing she needed was to fall in the last trimester of her pregnancy.
She prayed for wisdom.
When she stopped at the door to take a deep breath, she heard someone call her.
The Mendenhall Retreat co-director came her way. Larina always smiled when she saw Corinne and Dahlia. On the other hand, her husband, Joseph, the other director, often wore a scowl, as if everything was deadly serious.
And perhaps it was.
Mendenhall Retreat, Corinne found out, wasn’t like any other mountain resort. Its guests ran the gamut from people in the military and government to private security companies. They came here to recharge and rest before they launched back into their work and career. Some others came to hide and wait until the danger was over.
Corinne learned never to ask questions, and to assume that many might be using nicknames or false identities.
Larina Brannigan wasn’t her real name. And no, Corinne wasn’t allowed to ask about her life. All she needed to know was that Larina led a women’s Bible study at the retreat every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Every Sunday, the Mendenhall Chapel held services, and so did the Misty Mountain Chapel in the nearby town. While trusted employees were allowed to go to town, Corinne wasn’t. Not until danger passed.
To keep her and Dahlia safe, she had to trust Larina completely. That’s what Agent Tanaka had told her.
“Happy Thanksgiving to you and Joseph.” Corinne smiled, getting the attention of the octogenarian. “Are your kids coming to town?”
“Oh, they can never come here, as you know.”
“Ah, yes. I forgot.”
“No worries.” Larina gazed at the sleeping Dahlia. “If you ever need a babysitter…”
“Thank you. I will let you know.” Corinne put the pink winter coat on Dahlia. She slept through it all. Corinne would have to carry her out.
“If you stay here long enough,” Larina replied.
Corinne nodded. “It should be over soon.”
“I hope so, but if you have to stay through your baby’s birth, I’m fine with it. We have a discreet OB/GYN on my rolodex, and the bill will be taken care of.”
“Delivery too?” Corinne teared up. God had indeed provided for her in so many ways she hadn’t realized.
“And postpartum. Don’t worry about anything.”
Corinne nodded.
Neither broached the subject, but as soon as the FBI caught Oscar, Corinne would be free.
Even if it made no sense for Oscar to come after her, there was no way to prove to him that she had no idea where any more diamonds were. That information went with Flavian to the grave.
Outside, the snow fell harder, and beyond the porch and parts of the parking lot, it was pitch black. Her cabin was way up there on the side of the hill.
Uh-oh.
Larina stepped in front of Corinne and closed the door. “I think I have a spare room upstairs. Maybe you can go back to your cabin in the morning.”
“That’s a great idea. How much would it cost?” Corinne asked.
“I told you. Everything is included.”
“I heard you, but I thought that’s only for the cabin and food. Oh, and everything else.”
“It’s a deal.” Larina gave Corinne the room number and key card. “You better take her up before your arms break. There are toiletries in the drawers near the sink. Stay there until morning or sleep in until lunch or later. Whatever you prefer.”
“Wow. This is the life.” Corinne laughed. “Eat and sleep all day.”
While she was taking it easy here, she wondered what Agent Tanaka and her team were doing. Life must be hard for law enforcement people, continually chasing criminals. Corinne couldn’t even begin to understand.
All she knew was that God had protected her and her daughter all the way.
As she walked toward the elevator taking her to her room for the night, she said a quiet prayer for Tanaka. For safety and success.
Then she prayed for Martin. That God’s perfect will would be done in his life, regardless of whether His perfect will included Corinne or not.
Lord, I surrender Martin to You.
Chapter Thirty-One
Two weeks after Liam was born and two days after Valentine’s Day, FBI Special Agent Tanaka showed up at Mendenhall Retreat, bearing gifts and accompanied by another agent, Stella Evans.
Corinne was alone in her cabin that afternoon. She had just nursed Liam and put him down for a nap—hopefully a long one—and was about to take a nap herself when the doorbell rang. At first she thought it might be Larina bringing Dahlia back from preschool.
It wasn’t.
Tanaka had been here once before, but that had been seven months before.
“Please tell me you have good news for me.” Corinne invited them to her small living room in the cabin.
The living room was so small that it was comprised of a sofa and a coffee table. Beyond that was a small dining table placed in the middle of the kitchen.
The single bedroom was upstairs, where two single beds were flanked by a new bassinet for Baby Liam.
Corinne kept her voice down. “My baby is sleeping.”
Tanaka and Evans nodded.
“Would you like some tea or coffee?” Corinne asked.
“Water is fine for me.” Tanaka sat down on the small couch. “I drank too much coffee this morning.”
“Whatever you have is fine.” Evans walked past Tanaka and sat on the armchair.
“I can’t drink any caffeine since I’m nursing Liam, but if you’d like tea, I’ll boil some hot water.” Corinne studied Evans.
“That’s perfect.” Evans swiped her phone. Then looked at Tanaka as if to ask her to take the lead.
“Gail—I mean Dinah—I mean Corinne.” Tanaka laughed. She kicked off her shoes and stretched out on the sofa. “I’m so tired. Why can’t Oscar just give himself up?”
“Wouldn’t that be easy for all of us?” Evans chuckled.
Corinne put a pot of water on the stove and covered it. She carried a kitchen chair with her to the living room and sat down on it.
“How can I help you?”
“I’ve already told you more than I should,” Tanaka said. “But you had to know so that you’d be careful wherever we put you, right?”
“I appreciate that.” Corinne realized then that she was still wearing the sweatshirt and sweatpants she had on the night before. In fact, she hadn’t showered. It seemed that these days, her life revolved around her new baby. There was no time for self care.
There should be, she told herself.
“Evans is here to ask you some more questions so that our investigation can proceed and get to a satisfactory conclusion.”
Corinne turned her attention to Evans. “Well, I know I won’t be safe until Oscar is caught. However, Oscar has many enemies. He’s a patient man and will hide for as long as he can. I don’t want to be living here for years.”
Evans nodded. “I know. We’re doing our best, ma’am.”
“From the bits and pieces you’ve told me, and from my own knowledge of how Flavian, Nikos, and Oscar operated, I’m gathering that the operation is ongoing, and I’m stuck here for the foreseeable future.”
Evans and Tanaka stared at each other and then at Corinne.
“Many of our informants are in danger,” Tanaka admitted.
“You’re here to tell me that I can’t go home.” Corinne would love to go back to Key Largo. To see Pete and Angelina and everyone else at church again. To send Dahlia to school. To get a decent job somewhere. To live a normal life.
“Like I said, we’re doing our best,” Evans repeated herself. “I can’t tell you much more than that.”
“So why are you here?” Corinne tried not to lose her patience. But any time now, her baby could wake up, and then their conversation would be over. “If you need my help, I have already told Agent Tanaka before that I can’t remember too much about the years I was with Flavian. I was abused and I blocked most of the days from my memory banks. However, if you ask me pertinent questions, maybe they will trigger a memory or more. You know what I mean?”
Tanaka sat up. “I told you, Stella. I would like to trust her, or else more informants will die.”
“Die?” Corinne nearly fell off her chair.
Tanaka nodded. “We’re having a crisis. That’s why we had to go outside the FBI to get help. That’s why you’re here at this hideout instead of at a documented safe house.”
“Have you talked to Esperanza Diaz-Mendenhall?” Corinne asked. The owner of Mendenhall Retreat was also the leader of the Mendenhall Security team that did undercover work and special operations all over the world.
“Actually, we have a meeting with her after this.” Tanaka pointed to the kitchen where the pot of water was boiling.
Corinne didn’t even hear it. It wasn’t a whistling kettle, after all.
As she made loose leaf tea for Evans, she heard Tanaka saying she’d like a cup too, if it wasn’t too late. “No, not too late.”
Corinne wished she could have a cup of hot tea too. The weather outside was still cool this February, but unseasonably warmer than past years, she heard. No snow this month so far.
She carried the two cups on a tray, with a bottle of honey, just in case anyone asked. She didn’t have sugar in the house, so she didn’t bother asking them if they wanted sugar.
“Sorry I have no sugar, but I do have slices of frozen lemons,” Corinne said.
“This is fine. Thank you.”
As they sipped their hot tea, Tanaka began to broach the subject.
Since the days Corinne had known her as Stephanie, her non-cousin in Hawaii, Tanaka had been forthcoming with her—as much as she could. To gain Corinne’s trust, the agent had told her all the horror stories of how bad Flavian really was behind Corinne’s back.
Corinne had known much of it, and wasn’t surprised by any of it.
Now it was about Oscar, a little-known business associate of Flavian’s.
“I’m assuming you don’t have Oscar because whatever information I gave you didn’t help,” Corinne said.
“No, no. It helped,” Tanaka said.
“We just need more,” Evans added.
“He’s elusive.” Corinne knew that much. It was in the interest of her daughter and son that Oscar was caught as soon as possible.
Yes, Dahlia and Liam.
Corinne closed her eyes to whisper a prayer to God for her children. She didn’t care what happened to herself, but she knew that she would do everything for her children, even if she had to sacrifice her own life.
Yes, she would go that far.
The log cabin was quiet. Outside, no birds chirped. No vehicles roared by. Any time now, Corinne would hear footsteps on the porch, accompanied by Dahlia’s giggles or laughter as Larina walked her home from preschool.
Home? Hardly. This was still their mountain safe house, all because danger had not passed by.
Corinne recalled the two verses she had left with Martin the last time they kissed on the beach in Key Largo. Was it in July? Seven months ago now.
She wondered if Martin had looked up the verses in his Bible app. Whether he did or not, it was between him and God. It wouldn’t change her memory of him.
Yet somewhere in her heart, she hoped he had read the verses, especially Psalm 57:1, which she had committed to memory.
Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.
Regardless of whether she had memorized many verses yet, the most important thing in her life was her salvation in Christ, making her a new creature in Christ.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Corinne had memorized that verse in the first year of her salvation. Her journey as a Christian had continued in weekly Bible studies at church, where she studied more verses to infuse into her new life. She had been studying the Bible ever since, with God renewing her mind day by day, and filling her heart with the love of Christ.
She thanked God for II Corinthians 5:17 again and again. “New in Christ. Blessed thought indeed.”
“What blessed thought?” Tanaka asked.
“II Corinthians 5:17.” Corinne opened her eyes.
“Ah yes. ‘Old things are passed away’ and ‘all things are become new.’ I like that verse,” Evans said.
“Are you a Christian?” Corinne asked.
Evans nodded.
“Well, whatever floats your boat,” Tanaka said.
“My boat was sinking fast until Jesus fished me out of the deep waters.” Corinne looked at Tanaka and Evans intently. “Now God has brought you here to keep my family safe.”
“Great.” Tanaka smiled. “Which leads me to Oscar.”
Oscar.
“He’s not in Cuba?” Corinne asked.
“No. He fled Cuba. We don’t know where he is.”
“If you think Flavian and Nikos were bad…” Corinne didn’t want to fear again.
“Glad you mentioned Flavian and Nikos. Since they’re dead, we can’t interrogate them,” Tanaka said. “However, we figured that if we knew more about those two, we might be able to extrapolate where Oscar might be hiding.”
“Once we find him, rest assured we will put him away for a very long time,” Evans added. “If you must know, we need him to connect the dots to a terrorist at large.”
Corinne knew whom she was referring to. “It’s Molyneux, isn’t it? A few years ago, I overhead Flavian say that Oscar works for her.”
Evans’s eyebrows rose.
“I told you she can help us,” Tanaka said.
“I try to forget many things,” Corinne explained. “Because I value my life.”
“We’ll protect you.”
Corinne studied Tanaka. The veteran agent meant what she said, but she couldn’t protect anyone more than God.
Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings, from the wicked that
oppress me, from my deadly enemies, who compass me about.
In Psalm 17:8, the psalmist prayed that God would hide him under the shadow of His wings, even as his wicked and deadly enemies surrounded him.
That was the other verse Corinne had shared with Martin. Did he still remember even now, seven months removed?
Martin? Why did Martin’s name pop up?
Maybe if this entire mess was over, Corinne could be free to live again. Then she could visit Martin, if he still wanted to see her. There were so many things she wanted to tell him.
Including giving him the answer to his question.
Until then, she had to trust God to protect her.
Hide me in the shadow of Your wings, Lord Jesus. Don’t let me be afraid.
“If you don’t help us, more informants will die,” Tanaka said.
Corinne shifted in her chair. “You haven’t caught your mole.”
Neither Tanaka nor Evans replied.
That told Corinne a lot.
She drew a deep breath. “Ask me anything.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
One year to the week since Martin had been in Key Largo, he arrived again to visit Pete and Angelina at their invitation. Apparently, those two had become an item, gotten married, and now lived in Angelina’s houseboat.
When Martin pulled up at the parking lot next to the waterway, Pete was outside washing his truck. He stared at Martin’s rental car and shook his head.
“You didn’t drive your Shelby here.” Pete dunked a rag into a bucket of water.
“Nice to see you too.” Martin locked the car, and pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head as he made his way to Pete.
Pete wiped his soapy palms on his tee-shirt and shook Martin’s hand. “Glad you could come for lunch.”
“Want me to help?” Martin looked at the bucket. He was wearing shorts and a pair of dock shoes, but if they got wet, he had a change of clothes in the trunk.
“No need. I’m just going to spray some water all over it and be done.” Pete picked up a water hose. “I don’t want your clothes to get wet. Just talk to me while I do this.”
Pete made a quick job of rinsing off his car. “I’ll let the sun dry it all afternoon before I wax it.”