THE PRICE SHE'LL PAY: For the secret she never knew she had...

by Cara Charles

  Dave smiled back, understanding.

  Dez gathered the reports and Iain cleared the plates. Dez patted Dave and Iain’s shoulder then went upstairs to get Elise, Sam, and Eamon.

  “Hope you have appetites. She’ll not let on we’ve eaten without Elise and Sam. That will feed Elise’s alienation, understood?” Iain offered as he replaced the plates with clean ones.

  Dez knocked on Elise’s door. Buddy had followed.

  Sam said, ”Come in Doctor Richards.” Sam had read the album. His face was a combination of emotions.

  Elise paced.

  “It’s all true then?” Sam asked.

  “Yes, Sam, I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be sorry, Doctor. You’ve been alone in this since our Father died. Thank you for taking on this noble cause. I always felt someone was out there and here you are. I now understand all of her past behaviors. I’m glad you’ve included me in the “need to know.” Whatever you need to avenge the loss of my family and my parents, I will do. We will do.”

  Desiree embraced him. Someone had to be there for him. Dez pulled Elise into their circle, “We’ll make this right. I promise.”

  Desiree led them to the bed, turned on a radio to scramble what she was about to say, and sat them down, pulled up a chair, and took each of their hands in hers.

  “Our organization METAPHOR, is a world-wide two generation group of retired intelligence professionals, that after much scrutiny, and vetting, like-minded professionals are asked to join us. We’ve slowly, painstakingly, amassed a loyal constituency in the last thirty plus years. We began just after we lost your father, slowly adding one member at a time. Many have already died in service. Understand, it takes years to trust someone enough to reveal ourselves. Some were not a fit after all and that was painful. I had to erase their memory of us. Aspects of our respective government policies discouraged us all, in one way or another. Our members come from all forms of government, initially. Then came those from the private sector. So now, we have presence in the private and public sectors. Best of all, we have just acquired the protection of the President. Our most difficult decision was to let a President know of our existence. Barack Obama will be our ally until we are all gone, and buried.”

  “The President?” Sam looked at Elise.

  “Yes, the President. He’s just learned the truth about our mission a mere few days ago, because our mission needed his support. Throughout our existence, we have been more than able to handle any situation. But this sudden onslaught, we reached critical mass, and had to involve him. In the past, we never ever trusted Presidents or Prime Ministers. When he leaves office all too soon, we will never trust the next President or any President after him. They always have an agenda, except President Obama. We’ve had to take this risk because we needed him. We were right to do so. He’s a dedicated protector of truth. He’ll do everything, including providing tactical resources to protect Elise and our biggest asset, Professor Shanti Larsen.”

  “Shanti, your old tutor? My God! All those nightmares? All those years. El? Dad was protecting Shanti? I’m sorry! I’m so very sorry, about all the doctors and the meds…”

  Elise hugged him. “It’s OK, it’s OK. You’ve been a wonderful brother.”

  Elise offering Sam comfort was empowering. Elise was a powerful personality, but fragile because of her personal tragedies and traumas.

  Dez wondered how long she could hold herself together. Dez knew the answer. ‘Until her mission was accomplished.’ She wondered if Elise had told Sam her plan.

  Perceptively on cue, Elise looked into Desiree’s eyes and shook her head, no.

  ‘Vengeance is mine,’ Elise mouthed, slowly.

  Dez nodded and smiled, ‘Yes.’

  Elise closed her eyes relieved by the response.

  In her heart, Desiree felt a release. Elise was a dedicated soldier on a mission, the objective personal, never a wise objective for the heartbroken. There would be no stopping her. No locks, or drugs, or dialogue would keep Elise from her duty. Dez had come to terms with that.

  “We have delicious food downstairs. Eating just a little, will be a comforting thing for you both. Shall we go down?”

  “We’re going down to eat now and meet the team all right, El?” Sam said as he pulled Elise to her feet. “Downstairs are guys who lost someone because of Mavra Kimirov too.”

  “Dave’s here? How kind. Yes, of course. Let’s go and meet them.”

  Dez and Buddy followed behind them.

  Buddy joined Deedee in the parlor. Watching the dogs play made her smile. After a quick romp Deedee greeted Sam and got a kind pet from Elise and Sam.

  “Hello Deedee.”

  Deedee and Buddy settled back on the rug.

  The men all stood as Elise entered the dining room. Dave was struck by her vulnerability and beauty. Their eyes met.

  Elise smiled as she walked directly to him and offered him her hand, “Dave…”

  Dave blushed. “Hello Elise. I’m so very sorry about your family.”

  Sam said, “Yes. This is Dave, Elise. Dave and Dr. “Mac” MacDonald are Vets who did six tours in the Middle East along with Iain, former British Special Forces. Dave was the EMT on the mountain. His rescue team found Tommie and Lara. He lost his old friend Chris to Mavra Kimirov, but saved his other buddy Mango. Dr. MacDonald found a derivative of the Middle-Eastern drug Qat, in their blood. Iain is a security specialist who works for Dr. Richards.”

  Iain stepped up and shook her hand, then on impulse he hugged her.

  “Iain, Ms. Andersen. We will avenge the senseless loss of your family.”

  Mac shook her hand next,“Elise. We are here for you.”

  “Thank you, Mac. Iain. The three amigos. Dave? I’m so sorry for the loss of your friend.”

  “Thank you. We will find Mavra Kimirov and administer a swift justice.”

  Elise fell captive to Dave’s kind but wounded face. He had the kindest, saddest eyes she’d seen since her husband’s. His understanding, empathetic smile had a comforting reassurance about it, that immediately put her at ease. She embraced him remembering his breakdown in her backyard.

  Dave embraced her back hugging her tightly as she was hugging him. Her sad beautiful face, and her brave smile moved him. He wanted to comfort and protect her. “Let it out,” he whispered in her ear. He felt her nod into his shoulder. He felt her stiffness relax and she melted into his shoulder and the sobs came. Tears welled in his eyes too as his wounds were nearly as fresh as hers.

  ‘How did he know she needed to be held?’ Iain thought.

  She felt warm and safe there and didn’t want to let go of him. But it felt wrong at the same time. But right now comfort is what she needed, a man’s strength and his comforting, protecting body.

  When she had stopped crying, Dave smiled down at her. Elise returned his smile.

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  “Anytime,” he whispered back.

  Dave offered her his napkin, as she wiped her tears, Dave led her to her chair and poured her a cup of tea. Dave pulled his chair close and held her hand as she wiped her face.

  “We’re all here for you,” Dave said.

  Sam smiled. Two wounded warriors were finding each other.

  Desiree sighed. She loved Dave already. She served Elise small portions knowing she had no appetite.

  Deedee had joined them and put her head on Elise’s knee.

  Buddy came to her other side and put his head under her hand.

  Elise laughed at their poignant offering of comfort and said, “thank you” to the dogs. “Thank you pretty girl. Thank you Buddy.”

  Desiree smiled and watched Dave and Elise naturally, effortlessly bond.

  “Deedee is a comfort dog, my dog actually,” Dave said petting her.

  “Yes you are, thank you Deedee and Buddy.” Elise stroked her head and Buddy’s.

  Deedee lay down under Dave’s chair. Buddy under Elise’s chair.

  “We will aveng
e the loss of your family and our friend, Chris. We have taken a vow,” Dave said.

  Mac and Iain nodded.

  “So have I,” Elise said, looking each one of them in the eye.

  “Then we’re a team,” Dave said with an earnest smile.

  “Yes, we are thank you Dave. All of you,” Elise said, smiling. She turned to Desiree, asking with her eyes, should they be told everything?

  Dez shook her head ever so slightly, no.

  Elise turned to address Sam, Dave and the men. “My plan is to be caught by Mavra Kimirov and avenge my family.”

  “The hell you are. Elise!” Sam said exasperated.

  Elise held up her hand as they all took in a breath to protest.

  “Sam? Amigos? There’s nothing to argue, except strategy. Accept this. The sooner we get on with planning our mission, that’s the only way it’s going to work, is… if she has me. Plan all you want to rescue me, but I have to get next to her to take her out. Understand?”

  “For now,” Mac and Iain said, simultaneously.

  “No,” Sam was close to losing it.

  Elise began to bristle, “Sam…”

  Dave said, “I understand your motivation Elise, but are you absolutely sure?”

  “Yes, I’ve had days to think this over. It’s the only way for me to…” She couldn’t say, ‘re-balance my life.’ “Get closure. I have to administer justice, personally.”

  Dez spoke, “You’ll need your strength then. In the morning, we’ll call the Seattle media. We’ve been working out a plan, too, but we have to wait for Sid. He’s been grounded due to weather. He has to wait it out and we must wait for him, agreed?”

  Elise and her avengers, nodded.

  Over the next few hours, another snow storm raged in Oregon and Washington. But the new team was fortified by Desiree’s food and Elise’s confidence. They had many arguments. Elise and Sam opposed each other. Accepting her mission, the Vets wasted little time and began prepping her.

  Sam watched the snow fall as his sister got a crash course on survival. Dez comforted him with mugs of Irish hot chocolate.

  Iain, Mac, and Dave demonstrated defensive and offensive hand to hand combat moves for Elise and Sam. Elise knew many moves.

  “Show me a manual and I’ll memorize it,” Elise said.

  They printed U.S. Army and Muy Thai hand-to-hand combat manuals they’d found on-line. She’d thumbed through them for five minutes.

  Dave had been into the Muy Thai discipline for a year, too. It had helped him with his PTSD, that and Alpha and Theta brainwave music. He mapped out a routine for her to run through. He demonstrated then walked her through the moves, especially the choke-out moves from different angles. He even allowed Elise to choke him out to get a feel for it. Her Tai-Kwon-Do and new Muy Thai training would be very useful.

  Over the next several hours, after nice comforting meals, the Amigos taught her the 32 points of weakness of the body, from the brain to the toes. Dave and Iain covered the defense of strangling, how to bend and break their fingers, drive their nasal cartilage into their face. They taught her weaponry and bomb making. Everything a soldier should have in their bag of tricks.

  Deedee and Buddy played, developing a doggie friendship quickly. Their antics broke the tension, making everyone laugh.

  Desiree smiled at all of them, healing in their own way by purpose and laughter.

  It was long after midnight. The dogs were asleep by the dying fire. Occasionally, Deedee would check on Dave to see if he was ready to call it a day.

  Dez said, “It’s time to retire.”

  Dave had assembled a newly printed manual on Morse code and American Sign-language and gave it to Elise as she and Buddy headed upstairs.

  “Homework,” Dave said Deedee by his side.

  “Thanks Dave. You’re a natural teacher.” Elise smiled.

  Elise went up to her room as Dave and Deedee watched her and Buddy go. Dez had several cots and sleeping bags ready for the Amigos in her parlor and third bedroom.

  At ten minutes before 0700 the next morning, Elise knocked on Desiree’s office door. The day was expected to be sunny, clear and cold. But weather changes quickly in the Northwest.

  “Come in,” Desiree said fatigue in her voice, watching her mother’s clock.

  Elise had a file folder under her arm. “At 0900 Sam will be at the courthouse. He’ll be ready to use your printer soon. I’d like to make the call now, if you agree.”

  “Of course. Sid says there’s a weather window coming. He’ll be here soon. I think your plan is brilliant, wonderfully brilliant.”

  Elise smiled, then dialed. As that distant phone rang, Elise’s heart pounded in her chest.

  “KIRO-7 NEWS DESK,” the assignment editor answered.

  “Yes hello. This is Elise Andersen, the woman reported missing from Santa Barbara. As you know, I’ve been running for my life. I’m here in Friday Harbor. I would like to hold a news conference at the Friday Harbor ferry dock. Today at noon. I’m offering a two million dollar cash reward for information leading to the arrest of Mavra Kimirov, granddaughter and heir to the billionaire industrialist, Ivan Kimirov. I believe Mavra Kimirov is responsible for hiring men to create the avalanche that killed my husband, my daughter, and my dog. Mavra is alive. Somewhere. I’m sure she staged her death to hide. I am a Partner in the law firm, Larsen and Andersen out of Los Angeles. We do work here in Seattle with the UW Environmental Law Clinic.”

  “Yes, Ma’am. We are so sorry your family was the victim of such ruthlessness. We know your work and reputation. Great and important work. By the way, I’m a fan.”

  “Thank you. Then you may remember the mining disaster case, Kimirov Mining, v. United Mine Fellows that last year awarded $500 million dollars in damages to the victims of the Kimirov mining disaster of 2013. “Instead of appealing…”

  “Ivan Kimirov paid double the award. That was quite the story!” he added.

  “That’s right. Tips can be emailed to kimirovtips.com.”

  “Mrs. Andersen. We at KIRO-7 are deeply sorry for your loss. See you at noon, today.”

  “I’ll be waiting for you inside the small terminal on the ferry dock.”

  “Yes ma’am, until then, once again, our sincerest condolences.”

  “Thank you. Goodbye for now,” Elise turned and looked at her team who’d assembled behind her. “I’m ready.”

  “So are we.”

  The editor on the news desk hung up and shouted across the room.

  “Listen up people. We’ve got an exclusive! Two million dollar cash reward being offered by Elise Andersen, the missing environmental defense attorney, from Santa Barbara who claims Mavra Kimirov is not dead, but alive. Ms. Andersen claims Mavra Kimirov killed her family as revenge for the verdict she and her firm, Larsen and Andersen won last year, against Kimirov Mining. Elise Andersen’s press conference is at noon today, in Friday Harbor. Let’s hit it hard, people! Berens? Pete? You’re on background.”

  “Yes sir!” The two rookies raced to their computers.

  The news crew and reporter grabbed their gear, foul weather coats, and hit the doors.

  The editor called the seaplane pilot.

  The story went out on the wires.

  Canadians were soon rushing crews to Friday Harbor, so were the other Seattle affiliates.

  Within minutes, CNN had breaking news, as did the other networks.

  “This just in. Mavra Kimirov, the presumed dead jet setter and new billionairess is to be accused of murder by Elise Andersen, well known Los Angeles environmental attorney in a news conference from Friday Harbor Washington, at noon. Ms. Andersen is the missing attorney who lost her entire family in an avalanche that authorities at the ski resort in the Mammoth Lakes, California say was deliberately set. Causing the death of an avalanche team captain and the chemically induced heart attack of another. Investigators at the scene of the avalanche also found body parts of an unidentified male. Four unidentified men were found dead in
a SUV on the same road as the Andersen family. Two others were buried outside the Andersen condo. It is apparent both vehicles tried to escape. A shoot out at the local hospital totaled five dead. Two intruders were captured on security cameras. One was a red haired woman that closely fits Mavra Kimirov’s description. One murdered road crewman was found near the Andersen vehicle, one unknown assailant, escaped by para-skiing off the mountain and is still at large. Photographs of these three assailants at large will follow. More of this story as it develops from field reporter Dana Winters in Mammoth Mountain, California.”

  Mavra’s cell alerted as she stepped from the elevator and entered the penthouse, dumping her stuff opposite the door. A text had come in from Dimitri.

  ‘Nice work! Tune into CNN, now!’ Dimitri smiled, imagining the rage to come.

  Mavra walked into the study and tuned on the TV, found CNN as her shocked staff peeked in on her, one by one.

  One made a call on their cell phone, “the Princess just walked in, she not dead!! Hurry back, sir.”

  Mavra watched in horror. Her face, Carlos, and a composite of Comedian were on the screen.

  “…Mavra Kimirov, missing billionairess and heir to the Kimirov Mining billions is to be accused of multiple murders by attorney Elise Andersen. Mrs. Andersen missing since her family was killed four days ago in an avalanche on Mammoth Mountain, in California is alive. Her press conference is scheduled to begin at noon live, from Friday Harbor, Washington...”

  Mavra screamed out enraged. “You fucking bitch!”

  Mavra threw her grandfather’s Ming vase against the wall, grabbed her purse, and ran to her personal elevator and pounded the down button. The door opened and she was gone.

  After twenty minutes of dead silence, one by one her timid servants came to see what Mavra had been screaming about. The CNN story was repeating, still unfolding.

  Peder had just arrived via the servant’s entrance and found them all in the study.

  They watched not uttering a word. Peder watched the poetic justice develop. The story repeated. An explosive laugh erupted from the cook. The staff looked at her, her meaty hands now on her mouth trying to muffle another snicker.

  The entire staff erupted into hysterical laughter.