by Ann Heathman
Arianna was defending her prowess as a marksman, when Zach and Tony arrived and joined them on the patio.
“Oh, hey, Zach,” Arianna said, giving him a hug. “I’d like you to meet my friend, Kevin. Kevin, this is Zach.”
“Nice to meet you,” Kevin said, then paused, a frown crossing his face. “Have we met before? You seem slightly familiar.”
“No, I don’t think so,” Zach responded.
“Tony, a pleasure,” he said shaking his hand, then looking back and forth between Zach and Tony. “Boy, this seems like deja vu. I feel like we’ve met before. But oh, well. Probably my imagination. Nice to meet you guys. Arianna’s told me a lot about you.”
Zach gave Tony a worried look. This could be a disaster in the making.
Thanks for a great evening last night,” Kevin said at breakfast the following morning. “I had the best seafood I’ve had in a long time and thought the entertainment was epic. I’m afraid lady luck abandoned me at the craps table, though.”
A cool, Caribbean breeze rippled across the veranda where the group sat enjoying breakfast. Lisa refilled everyone’s coffee while she kidded Tony about his hangover from over-imbibing the night before. Arianna filled her plate and seated herself across from Kevin while Zach sat perched on the veranda wall, texting on his phone.
“I may have had one too many,” Tony replied, “but at least I didn’t lose my shirt at the casino like our friend Kevin here did.”
Kevin laughed. “Yeah, guys like me are what keeps the casinos in business. I should have quit while I was ahead.”
Arianna popped a couple of aspirins into her mouth and washed them down with some orange juice. “I think we all were pushing the drinking limit last night, but we did have a good time. Have to say, Tony. You’re pretty funny when you drink.”
Kevin nodded his agreement. “There were a ton of laughs, for sure. Not to change the subject Arianna, but I’m leaving tomorrow, so you and I need go through some of the Afghan film I brought. I’d like to get our documentary together now that we’re occupying the same longitude and latitude.”
“Good idea. After breakfast let’s meet in the study and see what we can come up with.”
“I have an idea for another story for us to pursue as soon as we wrap this one up.”
“Which is?” Lisa asked.
“Yeah, which is?” Arianna wanted to know.
“Well, we have to run this by our boss, Harold Major, but I think we should cover the massive numbers of women and children smuggled into the US across the Mexican border. Not just from the illegal alien perspective, but from the dangerous and potentially abusive situation these children are thrust into in order to get here.”
“Hmm! Do you think there is enough interest in this story to make it worth covering?” Arianna asked.
“Are you kidding me? It’s all over the news, but I’d like to cover it from the human trafficking perspective. Sixty thousand unaccompanied children are making this journey from Guatemala and Honduras up through Mexico. Smugglers, coyotes is what they’re called, are charging a whopping five to ten thousand dollars a person to bring these kids into the US. Now, that’s big business. Many of them are abused, and some of the girls are being raped and sold into sexual slavery. There’s a huge story here.”
Arianna pushed her plate away and sat back in the chair as she considered what he was saying. “I like the angle of the story. What does Harold think? Is he willing to finance this venture? I’m not sure he’ll even take me back.”
“Are you kidding me?” Kevin asked. “You’re the best journalist he’s ever had. Of course, he’ll take you back.”
Zach stepped over to the table and refilled his coffee, then returned to his perch on the wall and leaned back. He took a sip of coffee and nonchalantly asked, “The drug cartels are involved in this too, you know? You’re not planning to go into Mexico to cover this story are you?”
Arianna frowned. She hadn’t really thought about that, but knew instinctively this idea would be dead on arrival if she said yes. She was pretty sure there was no way Zach would be okay with her going into Mexico to do the story, so she gave the one answer she knew was less likely to cause an argument. “No, of course not. We can get all the information we need by interviewing people on this side of the border. Anyway, we haven’t even decided if this is a story we want to cover, so no use worrying about it now. ”
Zach glanced at her as if assessing the veracity of her statement. Turning toward Kevin he said, “This Major guy, your boss, is he the same one that sent you guys into Afghanistan in the first place? Sent Arianna into a war zone full of Taliban who have no regard for women. Is this the boss we’re talking about?”
The veranda suddenly got very quiet.
Kevin nodded. “I know what you’re getting at, but trust me. Neither one of us were in favor of her going, but she insisted. I’m sure you’ve discovered she’s fearless and can be quite stubborn when she decides to do something. We gave up trying to fight her about it, and the trip was on.”
Zach continued texting on his phone, not saying anything at first. He snapped his phone back into the case on his waist and came over to the table. Looking directly at Kevin, he said, “You gave up fighting her? Despite the extreme danger you put her in, you went along with this risky plan? You thought it was okay to put Arianna in a situation like that?”
Kevin threw up his hands in resignation and gestured toward Arianna.
Irritation was written all over Zach’s face. “I think it’s lucky someone had the good sense to kidnap her and get her ass out of there.”
“Zach, please,” Arianna said, trying to head off a confrontation. “He’s telling the truth. I threw a fit when they balked about going into Afghanistan. I insisted we carry out this assignment.”
Zach switched his gaze from Kevin to Arianna, anger bubbling up just under the surface. “Never again,” he said tersely, and then turned and left the veranda.
Kevin sat frozen in his chair. “Wow! He’s really pissed off. So sorry, Arianna. I didn’t mean to bring up a sore subject. I should just leave now. I think he’s ready to kill me.”
“No. No, it’s okay, Kevin.” She looked at Tony. “I had no idea he felt so strongly about that. I can’t tell who he’s more pissed at … my boss, Kevin, or me.”
Tony shrugged his shoulders. “All three of you as near as I can tell. Your venture in Afghanistan is a very sensitive subject for him. He’s thinking about the close call you had over there. Just let him cool down a minute. He’ll get over it.”
“I guess I should be grateful he is so concerned for my well-being, and I am grateful.” Arianna looked off in the direction Zach had gone. “It doesn’t sound like he’s too happy about the idea for our next story either.” She sighed and turned to leave. “Excuse me, please. I just need a moment, Kevin. I’ll meet you in the study in about fifteen minutes.”
ARIANNA ARRIVED in the study twenty minutes later to find Kevin pacing back and forth, a forlorn look plastered on his face.
“Kevin, I’m so sorry about the blow-up with Zach. I’ve never seen him like that, but please, be patient, and don’t take it personally. It all stems from him being worried about me. I’ll talk to him again and make sure he understands going to Afghanistan was all my idea.”
“Hard not to take it personally. He blames me for you being there and for not protecting you better.”
Arianna sighed. True. She needed to have a long talk with Zach to get to the bottom of this, but she’d looked for him, and he was nowhere to be found. “I’ll talk to him and explain everything again, but for now, try to let it go. We have work to do.”
Kevin grimaced and began to set up his computer and projector for viewing the footage. “It was hell getting out of Afghanistan, but I managed to save all our film. I’ve got photos of the marketplace and the surrounding area. I think I even have some shots of the warlord who was assassinated— what’s his name— Fasi? The one thing I don’t have, which woul
d have been great, is the scene where those men were beating the women in the street. Do you remember that?”
“I do, and yeah, that would have been great, but also what about the time they were beating on me? No film of that either, I suppose?”
“Nope, but I think I’ve seen a video by another photographer with a similar scene. Maybe I can get permission to use his video, and you can do a voice-over talking about your own personal experience.”
“That works. It’s important to capture a first-hand experience like that. It gives our work a real air of authenticity.”
She moved over to Kevin’s computer and pushed play on the DVD containing her interview of the Afghan women. The interviews of both Fadia and Turilla were especially good. She’d asked all the right questions and gotten some poignant answers. The more she watched the more excited she became about putting the documentary together.
Most well-known journalists could point back to a certain interview or story they had covered which had propelled them from obscurity into the national spotlight and had given their careers a real boost. She hoped this film might be the piece of work that was her ticket to becoming recognized as a journalist of national acclaim.
“I’ll get with Harold in Jersey,” Kevin said, “and make the final edits while you start writing the script for this. That’s your forte’.”
“Sure. I can start next week.”
“So, here’s the question. When do you think you can get away to come to Major’s studio to put this together?”
“I’m not sure. We can get a lot done by Skyping back and forth. I’ll come to New Jersey when we’re ready to make final edits.” She looked at Kevin who suddenly had a curious expression on his face. “What’s the matter?” she asked.
He pointed over her shoulder. She turned and saw Zach standing in the doorway.
“Excuse me,” he said. “May I come in?” He walked over to where Arianna was sitting. “I lost my temper this morning and offended Kevin. I’m sorry, Arianna, and I’ve come to apologize for offending your friend.”
Arianna stared at him for a moment. ‘The entire project was my idea…”
Zach nodded, and put his hand up, indicating she should stop. “I know. I’m sorry. Turning toward Kevin, he said, “I’m afraid I behaved badly this morning. Long before we met, I blamed you for Arianna being in such a dangerous country. You’re a good friend to her, and I apologize for my rudeness.” He extended his hand toward Kevin.
Kevin accepted his conciliatory gesture and shook his hand firmly. “Apology accepted. Arianna’s lucky to have someone who cares so much about her safety and well-being.”
Zach nodded. “Well, then. When you’re done here, I’d like to buy you a beer if you care to join me out by the pool.”
“Sounds good to me,” Kevin said. “We’re just wrapping up.”
ZACH SAT out by the pool, sipping a beer and looking out to sea. His temper had gotten the best of him. He’d insulted Arianna’s best friend, a guy he actually liked. What was I thinking?
He knew what he was thinking. Because of his work, he’d seen too much. Knew too much about the extremists who were in these foreign countries and was irritated that two adult men had let Arianna put herself in so much danger by traveling to such a violent country to cover a story.
Also, he was angry with her, but he understood. She was a tenacious, independent woman. A damned good journalist who was determined to get the story. He admired that about her. He also knew she had stubborn streak. God, he’d surely seen that side of her. He understood how hard it had been for Harold Major and Kevin to tell her no, so he needed to cut Kevin some slack for caving into to her desire to go undercover in Afghanistan.
But now, what about this new proposed adventure or any other story that would take her into a dangerous country? On the surface, doing a piece about the undocumented children coming across the border seemed harmless enough, and it was, depending on how deep she wanted to dig into the story. Also depending on which side of the border she visited to get the story. Mexico was just as bad as Afghanistan. The drug cartels were vicious. If she got caught up in those, she might get killed, or worse be sold as a sex slave.
But could he, would he, stop her from covering this story or any story that put her in potential danger? She was good at what she did, and she loved what she did. He had no desire to hold her back from pursuing her career, but every fiber in him said, he would fight her tooth and nail if she gave any indication she wanted to go into a hostile country to get a story, even if it meant the end of their relationship.
Kevin threw his luggage into the waiting SUV.
“Call me when you have the film done,” Arianna said.
“Absolutely. And you, little sis. I know you live in paradise, but try to focus and get some work done.”
“Me?” she quipped. “You’re the procrastinator. You just worry about getting your own part done. I’ll be ready when you’re ready.”
He gave her a hug and turned to get in the car.
“Nice meeting you,” Zach said as he held the door open. “Come back any time.”
“Thanks, man. Take care.”
As the car pulled away, Zach took Arianna’s hand and said, “Come with me. I have something to show you.”
Curious, she strolled along with him down the drive toward the stables.
“Why hello, Miss Arianna,” José, head gardener, said when they entered the barn. “Nice seeing you again.”
“Happy to be back.” She gave him a big hug.
Turning toward Zach, he asked, “You looking to go riding?”
“No. I came to check on Duke. Is Rafa here this morning?”
José looked at Zach and then at Arianna as if unsure if he should answer. “You taking Miss Arianna to meet Duke?”
Zach nodded.
“Well, I see them coming back from a couple mile run.” He pointed to the back of the stables.
Arianna followed Zach out the backdoor where they saw a man jogging up the lane, a large dog loping along beside him. As soon as the dog saw Zach, he became excited and pulled in his direction. The runner dropped the leash, and the dog came charging. At Zach’s signal, he came to a screeching halt and sat at his feet.
“Good, boy!” Zach patted the dog’s head and scratched behind his ears. “Arianna, meet Duke.”
She looked down at the large canine sitting in front of her. He was tan with black tipping on the fur of his wiry coat. He had a black muzzle, black pointy ears, and dark piercing eyes that never diverted away from Zach.
“He’s a beauty. He kind of looks like a German Shepherd.”
“Close. He’s a Malinois, a Belgian shepherd. And this is Rafa,” Zach said, motioning toward the man who had been running with the dog. “Rafa helps with the training and exercise for Duke.”
“Nice to meet you,” Arianna replied. “Looks like you have your hands full with this dog.”
“Yes, ma’am. A lot of dog here.”
“Is this a new dog?” she asked Zach. “I’ve never seen him here before.”
“Hmm, kind of,” Zach answered. Turning toward Rafa, he asked. “Do you have his favorite toy?”
Rafa pulled a braided rope out of his jacket and tossed it to Zach. As soon as he waved the knotted cord in Duke’s direction, the dog latched on and a major tug of war ensued.
Arianna watched in wonder as the two tugged back and forth. “Boy! That dog is strong. Zach can hardly hang on, and he’s a strong guy.”
“Yep,” Rafa nodded. “He’s a beast.”
“Is he a guard dog? I’ve never seen him around the property.”
“Yeah, guard dog… kind of,” he said with a slight hesitation. “Uh, I think he goes with Zach a lot.”
Goes with Zach a lot? Goes where? Before she had time to ponder that question, Zach returned to where they were standing.
“Let’s show off a bit,” he said looking at Rafa. “Go suit up.”
A curious look crossed Rafa’s face, and
he paused before finally saying, “Okay. If you’re sure. Give me a minute.”
He went into the barn and returned wearing a heavily padded jumpsuit. He waddled on down to the end of the field and then, turned and waved back at Zach. On Zach’s command, Duke raced down the pasture and lunged at Rafa, latching onto the arm of the padded suit. His powerful jaws were clinched tight, and even when Rafa swung him around, the dog hung on.
“That’s amazing,” Arianna said. “I feel sorry for anyone who tries to run away from this dog.”
Zach called Duke off, and he released his grip on Rafa. Turning toward Arianna, he said, “Here. Give me your shoe.”
“What?”
“Shoe,” he repeated, snapping his fingers and pointing at her sandal.
She slipped the shoe off and handed it to him, curious as to what he was going to do with it.
“Okay, now go into the stables and hide. I’m going to send Duke in to find you.”
She hobbled inside with one shoe on and one shoe off, not relishing the idea of having to put her bare foot down on the dirty stable floor. Looking around, she decided the tack room would be the best hiding place. She grabbed a couple horse blankets, and then hid behind a jumble of barrels and horse equipment in the corner. She hoped the smell of the blanket would mask her own scent. She nearly puked at the pungent odor of horses from the blankets covering her.
She had no more gotten herself safely hidden, when she heard scratching and whining at the door. The door came open, and within seconds, she found herself staring at one scary dog through the crack between the two barrels. No whining, scratching, or barking now. Duke sat quietly in front of her, the way he was trained to signal when he found his query.
“Good, boy!” Zach exclaimed. He patted Duke’s head and tossed him a tennis ball, a coveted reward for a job well done.
Arianna dropped the blankets and wrestled her way out from behind the barrels.
“Boy, that didn’t take long. I would hate to be the bad guy this dog is chasing. He could track you down and rip your arm off before you knew what happened. ”