by Linda Hawley
Calvin and I quickly slid out of the seat and out the door, which he closed behind me. We bolted up the walkway, up the few stairs, and onto the porch, as the SUV pulled away.
At eye level was a large doorknocker in the shape of an eagle. Calvin knocked twice, waited five seconds, and then knocked once. A vintage peephole opened, and someone looked out. The door opened for us, and when we entered, it quickly closed. I turned to see who manned the door.
“Hi, Ann.”
I blinked in surprise.
“It seems that every time I need help, you show up,” I said to Chow Lai, smiling.
“I’m ready whenever you need me,” he said, looking at me.
I laughed.
I faced Calvin. “I wasn’t sure all that was gonna work out,” I said soberly. “I need to thank you,” I finished, offering him a hug.
He embraced me for a quick squeeze. “No thanks needed. When we try our best, everything usually turns out okay. Luckily, I’d already been picked up, and we were crusin’ around Union Station only because Chow said it was your old stompin’ grounds.”
I looked over to Chow again. “How did you know that?”
He looked like he had a secret and didn’t answer me.
“Well, thank you. Not just today, but for Canada too…”
“We’re all in this fight together, Ann,” Chow said softly.
“Speaking of which, I’ve got some questions that you promised to answer,” I said to him with a smile.
“I’m sure you do,” he replied, returning the smile.
“Ann, I’m Vanessa Pérez,” the driver said, suddenly appearing with her hand extended. She had entered the house another way. With her huge cat-shaped eyes, wide face, and pointy chin, she was an extremely beautiful woman. Vanessa stood at my height but weighed about fifty pounds more than me, clearly all muscle, as I could see her biceps bulging from her short-sleeved black shirt.
I shook her hand. “Thank you for showing up right when you did. I don’t think I could have outrun that guy.”
She smiled, her intense eyes suddenly going soft, seeming to smile too. “You’re welcome, Ann.”
“Can we sit down so I can debrief you?” Vanessa asked, looking at Chow and me.
She must have been military—I haven’t heard the word ‘debrief’ since my CIA days.
As we walked from the foyer over to the dining room, I noticed that the house looked ordinary, except all the windows had room-darkening shades, and it was lit by lamps throughout.
As Vanessa led the way, I purposefully walked alongside Calvin. “Thank you for earlier; you were cool as a cucumber in Pentagon City,” I said, looking at him.
“You know, the agent wasn’t following you—he followed me onto the metro.”
“No kidding,” I said, surprised.
“Yeah, he must have called in the guy you Tasered.”
“Guys—two.”
“You put down two guys since I saw you?”
“Yeah.”
“She put down two guys, not one!” Calvin announced to the group, laughing and pointing at me.
“What? Shh,” Vanessa replied loudly. “I put down four agents in one day before,” she said, rubbing her fingernails on her black cotton shirt.
We all laughed at that.
“Sit,” she sternly commanded the three of us.
We sat at the table, with Calvin and Chow on either side of me.
“Let’s cover some basics, so we can speak freely,” Vanessa began. “Chow, Calvin, and I are at your level in the organization, or higher,” she told me. “And this location is more than a safe house; this is our headquarters for all D.C. GOG operations, and I run it,” she said flatly, with authority.
“Got it,” I nodded.
“We need to cover your role in operations from here on forward…but first I’ll need to debrief you about today’s events.”
There’s that word again.
Vanessa continued. “Calvin’s filled me in on what happened at Pentagon City. Did you see the agent before that, Ann?”
“No, I never even saw him then.”
“Okay, let’s move on from there. We picked up Calvin once he was sure he’d lost the agent. But what happened to you?” she asked.
I explained the course of events up until they rescued me.
“So they knew your physical description, but not your name?” Vanessa asked, clearly leading the conversation.
“Yes.”
“And you said that you tried to call Bob first—before calling us?”
“Yes.”
“Can I ask why?”
“I felt that I didn’t have much time, and I thought there was a chance he’d be close. I also know that I can absolutely trust him. We’ve known each other a long time, and he’s my friend.”
“We’re glad you called us, because you wouldn’t have reached him.”
“Why?”
“He’s dead,” Vanessa said, abruptly.
I gasped. “But I just spoke to him the other day.” The words stammered out of me.
“It happened last night; he was found this morning.”
“How?” I asked, feeling my eyes moisten.
“They’re saying natural causes, but we doubt it.”
“Why?”
“He wasn’t GOG, but he’d been friendly with us for a very long time. Bob was a guy who believed in checks and balances in government, and knew that we had lost that equilibrium as a country in 2001 when the Patriot Act was signed into law. So he worked with us to restore it,” Vanessa said, matter of fact.
I was shocked. Bob and I had never had a conversation like this.
Vanessa continued, “We had a situation that got a little out of hand yesterday, and he was helping us tie up some loose ends. Then this morning he shows up dead. We think they learned of his involvement with GOG, and he knew too much about too many secrets for them to let him go.” She took a breath. “He’s now a martyr for freedom.”
The room was quiet with the word freedom hanging in the air.
“He was my last friend from my CIA team,” I said somberly.
“I am sorry, Ann.” Chow touched my arm compassionately.
“Okay,” I said getting myself together, trying to stuff my grief away to deal with later.
“You okay to continue?” Vanessa said, leaning toward me over the table.
“Let’s go on,” I said, looking up.
“You Tasered two agents, zero kills?” she asked.
“Yes,” I replied matter of fact.
“That’s all I need to know from today’s events. Calvin, do you have anything to add?” she said, looking at him.
“No. That covers it.”
“Okay…” Vanessa confirmed.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, Vanessa,” I began, “…but I have something that came up yesterday that’s kind of urgent to cover.”
“What’s that?” Vanessa asked, attentively.
“It’s nothing good. We either have a double agent or an undercover fed who’s trying to trap me…”
“Who is he?” she asked coldly.
“I work with him…”
“Let me guess. His name is Paul?” Chow asked, looking at me.
“How did you know that?” I asked.
“I was doing outer surveillance at the Canadian meeting, and I saw him there.”
“So he wasn’t there doing surveillance with you?” I asked.
“He’s not GOG, Ann,” Chow informed me quietly.
“That jerk set me up,” I exclaimed.
“How?” Vanessa asked.
“A few weeks ago, he arranged for me to go down to Portland for a GOG meeting. I thought he was in the family. He was planning to go with me and then backed out at the last moment. Then my plane nearly crashed and…”
“Your plane nearly crashed?” Chow interrupted, moving closer to me.
“Yeah…but that was a weather thing. So the plane nearly crashes, which makes me really late for the GOG mee
ting at the Botanical Gardens, and consequently, no one was there,” I said, looking at the three of them.
A look passed between Vanessa and Chow.
“What?” I asked, when no one said a word.
“You’d think they could have changed their play,” Vanessa said to Chow, looking at him intensely.
“But they got their man last time,” Chow replied, looking at her.
“What are you talking about?” Calvin asked.
“The government ran that play a few months ago and nabbed one of our guys,” Vanessa said, looking directly at me.
“Oh no,” I said. “So he set me up for them to take me down in Portland,” I said, the truth setting in. “No wonder he was so surprised to see me at work that next morning,” I suddenly realized.
“What does he know?” Vanessa pressed, serious.
“I’ve given that some thought since yesterday…”
“Wait—how did you find out about Paul?” she said with a raised hand, interrupting.
“My boss fired me and then told me…”
“You got fired?” Vanessa said, recoiling.
“Yeah. But I didn’t do anything wrong,” I said, dismissing it. I pressed on, “Can you confirm that my boss—my old boss I mean—is friendly to GOG?” I asked.
“He was,” Chow said softly.
“What do you mean, ‘he was?’” I asked reluctantly.
“Earlier today, he died…”
“What? Died? Died how?” I spat out with shock.
“He was kayaking in Bellingham Bay and he drowned,” Chow answered.
“What?” I questioned. “But that’s not possible! He went kayaking every weekend in all kinds of weather. He lived on the water. No way he drowned,” I said emphatically.
“He wasn’t alone. He was kayaking with his brother…” Chow added.
“Oh no,” I said, shaking my head. “You know…I knew it. There was always something about him that never sat right with me…”
“Who are you talking about, Ann?” Chow reached over again, putting his hand on my arm.
“Brock…Bennett’s brother. Brock murdered him,” I said, looking at the three of them.
“Why would Brock drown his own brother?” Vanessa asked, playing devil’s advocate.
“After Bennett fired me, he told me that he supported my cause. Then he told me the truth about Paul. After that, I asked him whether his brother was government, or if he was working with Paul. Bennett wouldn’t answer me, but what he did say confirmed that Brock was in opposition to our goals. Bennett said it was dangerous to speak of it. I guess he was right. Brock never liked me, but he was bosom buddies with Paul. I don’t think that Bennett and Brock ever saw eye to eye on anything, inside or outside the company.” I paused, thinking. “Bennett told me that Paul was there to spy on me. He said that by telling me about Paul, it put himself in real danger. Brock must have murdered Bennett for revealing the truth about Paul to me.”
“Tell me exactly what Bennett said to you,” Vanessa instructed me.
I told her the particulars of the conversation.
“Bennett did not drown doing something he was extremely good at one day after he told me about Paul,” I said, looking at them. “Once you confirm that Brock is working with the government, then I would say he is Bennett’s killer,” I said grimly.
“I’ll make a call,” Vanessa said, filing it away as a task.
“He was killed for protecting me,” I said somberly, looking down at the dining room table.
“Then he died a hero,” Chow said softly.
I looked up and met Chow’s eyes, and I could see his surety.
“Let’s take a few minutes and get some drinks. Calvin, why don’t you help me,” Vanessa said to him. They stood and walked to the kitchen.
“Ann, this is not your fault,” Chow said, facing me.
“I feel like people keep dying around me. Two people who helped me just died. But before that were all those people in Shanghai…”
“Whoa, hold on there, Ann. You have a great deal of paranormal power, but I don’t think you yet have the power to quake the earth,” he said.
I just looked at him, considering what he’d said. “You might be right. But now both Bob and Bennett?”
“There are dangers both in being a member of GOG, and in supporting our organization. Everyone who is involved with us knows that. You know it, and I know it. No one comes into the organization or helps us being blind to the dangers from the government. But yet so many risk their lives—just like you do. Ann, what do you think those two agents pursuing you today were going to do with you, had you not defended yourself with the Tasers?”
“I honestly have no idea. So far, they’ve never caught me.”
“You do know what they’ve done to other GOG operatives, though.”
“Yeah. Interrogation and then death.”
“Yes,” he repeated. “The fact that your paranormal powers are growing means that you are a living weapon that is adaptable. If you were to be captured by the government, your fate would be certain. Both Bob and Bennett assisted you. They did it because they had good intentions—had good within them—and they knew that you were worth saving.”
Vanessa and Calvin returned to our table and sat down.
I thought about what Chow said. “Thanks for the perspective,” I said, looking at him.
I didn’t feel any better emotionally, but I understood intellectually what he meant.
As Calvin passed around drinks, Vanessa asked me, “What does Paul know, Ann?”
“First off, he knows the Pacific Northwest GOG codes. So they need to be changed immediately,” I said, looking at Vanessa. “When I was in Bellingham, I placed a call alerting GOG to the fact.”
“Got it,” she confirmed. “What else?”
“He knows I’m GOG, because after he gave me the code, I confirmed it, thinking he was in the family,” I answered, feeling a little stupid.
“So we have a security breach, which places you in significant danger,” Vanessa announced.
“You’re right. I am. I think the only reason I’ve been safe so far is because they don’t have any hard evidence on me. If I hadn’t made my home a safe house, they would have had evidence by now, recorded by peekers. Right now, it’s Paul’s word against mine.”
“It was his word against yours. Now that we know he is a traitor, he will never get hard evidence on you,” Chow insisted, overtly protective.
“Chow’s right,” Vanessa verified. “What else does he know?”
“He knows I was in the CIA…”
“Does he know what project you worked on for them?” she asked directly.
“Yes.”
Another look passed between Vanessa and Chow.
“What?” I asked. “It’s not like the government doesn’t already know what I worked on for them,” I said in my defense.
“It is not that, Ann,” Chow began. “Does Paul know that you have been using your paranormal skills again?”
“Yes. He knows about my Canadian remote viewing hack…”
“So it was you?” Vanessa said with amazement, excitement in her voice.
“Yes. That was me,” I said proudly, with a smile.
“I certainly want to hear all about your hack later, but right now let’s make sure we cover the situation with Paul…” Vanessa said, redirecting back the conversation.
“Then Paul knows you altered digital information, using remote viewing?” Chow said, trying to keep his tone neutral.
“Yes.”
Chow looked at Vanessa. “So he knows what Ann’s capable of.”
“He knows Ann is a weapon against the government,” Vanessa said bluntly.
“So she is in further danger,” Chow confirmed.
“Most certainly,” Vanessa said, nodding her head.
“It’s actually worse,” I said, looking up at Vanessa. “I have a new skill I’ve been practicing…”
Chow and Calvin’s atten
tion snapped to me.
I decided to simply blurt it out. “I can go back in time and alter events to change history…”
“You can time travel?” Calvin spoke up, looking surprised.
“Yeah…”
“How?” Vanessa said, leaning forward.
“During the dream state. I can focus on a particular problem, and then my mind comes up with a solution to the problem during the dream. What I change in the dream is permanent, and the only person who remembers the original reality is me. Everyone else remembers the alternate reality. I’ve only done it a couple of times…”
“Remember how we met?” Chow said softly.
“Shanghai…and I brought the Herkimer back from my dream.”
“You did?” Chow said excitedly.
I brought the Herkimer out from under my blouse, on its chain, to show Chow.
“Remarkable,” Chow exclaimed, reverently.
“You can bring physical objects back from a dream?” Vanessa pressed.
“Well, I’ve only ever done that once,” I said, amending my statement carefully.
“But you did it…once,” she said, clearly impressed.
“Yes…”
“I want to hear more about the time travel,” Calvin interrupted.
Vanessa smiled at that. “Okay Ann…give it to us…tell us exactly how you did it.”
I explained going back in time and changing history so that Raymond would be clear of the tax lien. Then I explained how Raymond’s widow only remembered the alternate reality. It was difficult to speak about his suicide, but my friends were gentle with me in not asking more questions about that part.
“Do you realize what’s possible now, Ann?” Calvin asked with eyes wide.
“Yes, I think I do. I’ve been giving it a great deal of thought.”
“But Paul knows…” Chow began. “Which means the government also knows you can alter history.”
The room went quiet, taking on a solemn feel.
“Ann, you’ve just become one of the most important weapons we have in our freedom fight,” Vanessa declared.
I didn’t know what to say.
“You were right,” Vanessa said to Chow.
“Right about what?” I said curiously.
Chow turned to me, considering his words.
No one spoke.
“By my request, I’ve been shadowing you since you left the CIA,” he said finally, eyes and voice soft.