#1-3--The O’Connells

by Lorhainne Eckhart

  He was there beside her, reaching for them and taking them from her. It was the image of Bonnie and what was left of her head that he took from her first.

  “Are you telling me that you left me all those years ago so I wouldn’t end up shot, killed, like her?” Karen said. “I don’t understand, Jack. That makes no sense at all. Then you said the restraining order was to protect me. Come on, Jack. I don’t like games…”

  He picked up the file, as well, which had gone flying during her brother’s outburst. She was glad she had a moment alone with Jack. “Yes, Karen, I left because I allowed myself to fall in love with you. Marrying you was my mistake, because you weren’t a secret anymore. You know, as a lawyer, I can see the beauty in a well-told lie. You can manipulate the truth, control the story—but the minute I put the ring on your finger, I lost all control. I had to create a story when I realized my mistake and the danger I put you in.”

  “What the…?” She knew she’d stuttered. She was flustered.

  He let out a heavy sigh.

  She stood up and stepped away from him, mainly because she didn’t know what the hell to do. “I think you need to start at the beginning, Jack. This doesn’t make sense. Are you in trouble, or were you? Why would someone want to hurt me because I married you? That’s ridiculous. Are you telling me that Bonnie is dead because—”

  “I allowed myself to care again.” He cut her off. “Yes, she is very much dead because I didn’t keep her at arm’s length, didn’t control her. You know, it was fine, the affair, the meaningless sex, the dating, nothing serious. But the minute I cared, the minute I shared things about my family… They’re crazy, dangerous. Yeah, that would have been you. That was why I walked out the door when I knew what was going to happen. I had to, Karen.” He put the file on the table and started toward her, to touch her, so she shrugged and stepped away.

  “What the fuck? This is crazy. What kind of family do you have that they would do that? That is ludicrous. It makes absolutely no sense.” She knew she was yelling. She didn’t want him to touch her, and she lifted her hands for him to back off when he went to reach for her again. This time, he stepped back as if he got it.

  “I know it sounds crazy,” he said. “I don’t know what I was thinking when I met you other than just maybe, I could be happy—as if I had a right to be happy. I tried to tell myself that marrying you was a crazy instant reaction, but I just knew I wanted everything about you. Then, at the same time, just as fast, everything came crashing down. I was happy for a moment, thinking maybe I could have a future like everyone else. I hadn’t given a second thought to my family, how they work. They wouldn’t just let us be, because they’d use you to keep me in line. As I heard growing up, from my father, we’re not like everyone else. I couldn’t have you anywhere near them, so I did the only thing I could think of. I walked away from you, told them you were a mistake, meaningless. I knew everything I said had to be damn convincing or they’d never believe me, so I played your messages, every one of them. It just about killed me, hearing the hurt, the anger, knowing I deserved all of it and more. You said just enough that I could do something to ensure you never came near me…” He pressed his hands to the back of the metal chair and leaned down, squeezing.

  She felt her chest tighten, and she struggled to breathe. “Why…?” Her throat ached. Everything ached. She wanted to step back, but she couldn’t get her feet to move.

  “Because I was selfish. I just wanted to be happy, but I knew that wouldn’t happen. I was selfish for bringing you in.” He was shaking his head.

  She couldn’t wrap her head around what he was saying. “I don’t get it. Why would you want me to stay away from your family? I don’t understand. This makes absolutely no sense. They wouldn’t like me, or they…what? What do you mean, they would use me against you?” she yelled, gesturing toward him.

  “Oh, they would have liked you. You’re perfect, and they’d have seen how much I loved you.” He stood up, rested his hands on his hips, and took a step toward her. “They would have liked that, and that would’ve been the problem. You see, they’re not your regular folks. Me going to law school was for them. They planned it out for me. I was supposed to go to Yale, their pick, but I went against everything and landed at Missoula. I mean, how could I have done that, changed the rules, the script? They didn’t have anything to hold over my head, no way to control me and make me do what I was supposed to. I had the one thing my father, his brothers, all of them didn’t: a sense of right and wrong, a conscience. To them, that was nothing but a weakness.” The way he was looking at her, she’d never seen that kind of intensity, and for a moment it reminded her of when he’d left.

  “You keep saying ‘they.’ Who are you talking about? Who are they, your family?”

  He was thinking, considering something, maybe what to say to her. “Secret societies have always existed. It’s not like there’s a membership committee, just groups of families who make things happen. When I say ‘they,’ I mean not just my father, who’s part of it, but my uncles and other men I had always known because they did business with my father. Growing up, they were kind of like family friends, just part of my life, but in a different sort of way. The fact that I knew things about them had me on their radar. Initiates, as they call them, are handpicked. I was supposed to be grateful. I’m not part of them, but I know too much, which, to them, is dangerous.”

  “What are you talking about, associations, independent orders? I don’t even know what you mean.”

  Was he about to laugh? He made a sound and then shook his head. “You wouldn’t have any idea, because they know how to stay hidden. The Trilateral Commission, the Bilderberg meeting, the Council on Foreign Relations, Skull and Bones…those are just a few with a public face and diverse membership. But truly secret societies are controlled by a handful at the top, and no one really knows what goes on aside from manipulation. In the freemasons, for example, they’re not all conspirators. There’s a small inner core who manipulate everything, and the huge outer circle has no idea the inner core even exists. The reason what they know is so secret and remains that way is because their knowledge would empower the average person, and that’s not what the ruling leaders desire.

  “They know how to stay hidden. On the internet, you may hear whispers of names, but that’s all you’ll hear. Membership is for the notable only. The truth is something you can find only outside of the classroom, outside the walls of universities, outside boardrooms. No one really knows all the details. There are more than a few men in suits talking about power and money, and every one of those guys knows how to shut it down and spin questions to make it seem like the people asking are crazy or spewing nonsense, playing up a conspiracy.

  “They can easily have you labeled delusional, because no one will ever have any proof, not the kind of proof that could expose them. If proof exists, it’s destroyed. Before the internet, they burned unwanted documents, or they scratched out names and references from records. They control the internet, the banks, and they occupy every seat of power from the Wall Street boardrooms to the corridors of government. They have existed for centuries behind the scenes, a mysterious influence on the world that you can’t even imagine.”

  What was it about the way he spoke? It had always riveted her, but right now, as she allowed herself to take in their surroundings, she couldn’t get her head around what he was saying. “You’re right,” she said. “You sound delusional. For a minute there, I almost believed you. It’s a great story and almost makes what you did sound reasonable, except the world doesn’t work that way.”

  “You sure about that, Karen? The society my family is a part of, its members are prominent. They’ve already ensured that the next sitting judge of the second circuit will be their person, and they control the industries, the agencies that run our cities and countries. How do you think they can get away with the kinds of things they do? You know about the shadowy side of life that no one else does. Everyone is handpicked, and
the society is steeped so deep in racism, bigotry, and elitism. They always excluded women, until recently. They’re responsible for things the world over that no one would ever believe.”

  She just stared at him. “So your family is…”

  “Not just wealthy, no,” he said. “Growing up, I didn’t really know. I saw and heard the kinds of things your average kid never would, closed-doors meetings with powerful people who made things happen. I remember being called in by my dad one day. I was back from school. That was my first time hearing about reprisals. I was told to just fall in line, because when I didn’t listen to a request, which was really an order, there would be punishment. They could destroy people. They had a way of controlling us. You didn’t talk, because if you did, they knew where you banked—and that was just what they did to the little guy, your average peon out there.

  “I learned early on that they had members on the councils of every major bank. They’d ensure you never got credit again. Their members were all influential people in influential positions. You already know that the CIA is known for its shadowy acts, pulling the strings from positions of power, so how many of the society are in there, running things from within US intelligence agencies? They definitely don’t like people tampering and prying into what they do.

  “One family launched the international drug trade, putting heroin onto the streets, and they still maintain it today from their position in government. Controlling the drug trade is a huge step toward gaining financial power. They also control the illusion of choice, playing the public like puppets. They own properties, islands. This super elite group has a history that goes back hundreds of years. Now you’re likely thinking, so what?”

  She just stared at Jack. She couldn’t get her tongue to move, because she didn’t know what to say.

  “I can see you don’t get it—or maybe you do,” he said. “My father was picked. My uncle was picked. I was picked, but I said no, because I understood clearly that this group had their hands in every level of power in this country. And, like all secret groups, they don’t let their members talk. No one in the outside world has any idea of the kinds of things they can do. You understand? They’re in government, industry, media, finance. They run not just this country but the world. I had my own plans, to run for the DA’s office, then attorney general, senator, governor, the White House. All of it, but the right way. They could make it happen, would make it happen…but I wasn’t joining them, not with how they did things. I knew how they operated.

  “One time, I was at the dry cleaner with my mom. I wasn’t even that old, just a little kid. This guy my mom knew—let’s call him Charles—he walks in, friendly as all hell, like a gentleman. I remember his reaction to a stain on his shirt that hadn’t come out. Like, who cares, right? Buy another damn shirt. Well, he went on about it with owner, calling him out. The owner stood up to him, arguing that was the kind of stain that doesn’t come out, and I remember Charles said he’d make sure the owner didn’t get the opportunity to ruin another man’s shirt. Like, was he kidding?

  “Next thing I knew, a few days later, maybe a week, the man was out of business, gone. The dry cleaner was bulldozed down, and my father and uncle were joking about it one night, like if he hadn’t stained the shirt, or he’d just apologized, he wouldn’t be out of business. Charles had just made a call. It was nothing for him, but he had taken everything from that man. I didn’t know him, but I was old enough to understand that kind of thing wasn’t going to be part of who I was. It sickened me, hearing it. I said no when Yale called to say I was in. I applied to Missoula instead. Did my family let me go happily? No, but they did let me go. I thought it was easy. Great, I was out from under their thumb.

  “But they knew everything I was doing, and the minute I married you, they knew. The day we got back from Georgia, it was the happiest and worst day of my life. You’d gone to pick up your things. It wasn’t my dad who called; it was my uncle at the door, with his associate. I recognized him, the guy who did the dirty work when my dad needed something cleaned up, someone to disappear, someone taken care of. They knew about you, your family, your mother… I just had to come back into the family, and everything would be fine. That was what men did, he pointed out to me. We run things, decide things, change things. I’d run the country one day—but not really, because it would be them behind the scenes, really running things. I said I had a life, I was happy, I wanted a simple life, the right way, my way…and you know what my uncle said?”

  Why was he telling her this now? She was being flung back into that memory, not wanting to relive that feeling, that ache, even though it was burned into her mind. She knew it had happened a certain way, the way he’d looked at her, talked to her, gutted her. Now he was trying to say it had been a lie. She wrapped her arms around her middle again, crossing them tight because that was the only way she could keep it together.

  “I can see you’re having a hard time with this,” Jack said. “I was young and idealistic, and I had just had the rug yanked out from under me, knowing they wanted to bring me in as a young man and groom me, train me, condition me to be placed in a position of power and carry out the agenda of the older members. They don’t operate in isolation. They’re just a thread in the greater web, producing the leaders and stewards of the ruling class, diplomats, spies, senators, supreme court justices. They basically just funnel who they want into positions of power and influence. They form companies whose investors are family, society members. It’s not just an old boys’ network. It’s a vicious group of interbred bloodlines seeking to impose their will and their way of life upon the global population. If people really understood their secrets, they’d understand they live in anything but the land of the free.

  “My uncle’s associate said it was funny: One of your brothers could suddenly find himself under investigation. A murder charge was always good, especially when the weapon’s found on the suspect. Drugs were another option, considering your brothers’ pasts. Or maybe your mom would have an accident. I knew the minute he said it that I was being cornered, and I couldn’t have that. I loved you. I knew they’d find a way to use you against me, so I did the only thing I knew I could do. I would rather you hate me than see you hurt. My dad and my uncle have friends, friends who are closer than family, friends who will kill for them. Can I prove it was them who shot Bonnie?” He shook his head. “No, you’ll never prove it. They’re too good, too powerful, exerting too much influence. Any evidence would’ve been planted professionally. The local authorities here wouldn’t have just stumbled upon it.”

  She pressed her hands to her face just as the door opened and Marcus stepped in with the deputy. She was absolutely gutted. “So why Bonnie? This doesn’t make any sense…”

  The deputy cuffed Jack again, and she wanted to yell for him to stop. She found herself touching Jack’s arm. She could see something in his eyes that had her freaking out, shaking. Like, who the hell were these people? Who the hell was Jack, really?

  “Because Bonnie knew,” he said. “She talked about exposing them. I heard my uncle say once that if the American people really knew what they had done, they would chase them down and lynch them. The initiations are so ritualistic that no one speaks. They swear never to reveal their members. You’d think someone would talk, but no one does, not ever, because every candidate is subject to blackmail. Everyone has secrets. They can’t have loose ends running around, and Bonnie became one. I was worried. I warned her. She had crossed a line, and I told her that. She wasn’t just a friend; she was a reporter. Now, because they can’t control me, can’t get me to bow to them, I too am a threat. Killing me would be easy, but the best way to silence me is with a murder charge. Not only have they destroyed my credibility, but now they’ve ensured no one will even want to listen to me.”

  Chapter Nine

  This was bigger than her.

  Listening to Jack and the nonsense he’d spewed had her thinking he was insane. What he’d shared had sounded crazy, like villain
s talking about global domination. That was all she could think of. She had to dial him back. This was not the kind of thing to base a defense on. At the same time, something about his paranoia had planted a seed of doubt in her.

  “You haven’t said two words since we left,” Marcus said.

  She took in the file in her lap, glad her brother was driving. It was dark, and she was hungry, but at the same time, she didn’t think she could eat. “What do you want me to say, that he’s evidently crazy? You want me to also point out that you shouldn’t have hit him? That was really stupid on your part. I have to figure out a defense by Monday based on some conspiracy I have no proof of. Sure, if I had an army of investigators, years to prepare, and an unlimited budget, maybe I could suggest there’s some truth to what he’s saying, even though you and I both know it’s impossible. It’s crazy…”

  “Not really,” Marcus replied. “I don’t think you should stay at your place alone tonight. In fact, I don’t want you alone right now.”

  She gave him everything, resting her hands over the file. She’d decided not to open it again, because hearing Jack’s explanation, she couldn’t shake the image of the dead woman, a bullet to the back of her head. It could have been her.

  She was about to say no, she wanted to go home, but something about all of this had left her so unsettled. “Maybe you’re right. Sounds like you believe him. I know you were out there, listening to everything, but it’s crazy, Marcus.”

  “Yeah, what exactly do you know about this man, Karen? I mean really, and no bullshit answers. What do you know about his family, where he’s from?”

  Something about the way he asked had her racking her brain. “Evidently not very much, because everything he said tonight flies in the face of what I believed. I thought he just didn’t like his family, that they were pushy, wanted him to be something he wasn’t prepared for. They had their ideas, and he had his. That was all he ever said.” She let out a breath. “I don’t know. If I think back now, is there anything that makes sense in what he’s saying? It’s crazy talk…” she added, for her benefit or for Marcus.