Above Reproach

by Lynn Ames

  Vaughn pushed the joystick all the way forward, speeding up the drone’s flight.

  “Put it down, now,” the scientist said.

  Sedona announced, “Quinn is about twenty feet away.”

  “If you wait another few seconds, he will be almost on top of the blast, but not quite,” the scientist said.

  “In other words, he won’t be close enough to stop it, but he will be close enough to be killed instantly.”

  “Yes.”

  “Understood.”

  Sedona didn’t know if she could watch. “What will happen when the bomb detonates?”

  “Very little, actually. You will not see any destruction of the building. In fact, the only way you will be able to tell from here that it worked will be that the drone will go blank.”

  “Now, Vaughn!” Lorraine urged.

  Vaughn depressed the button. The image on the laptop screen flickered then went completely blank. She sat back and closed her eyes.

  Sedona closed her eyes, as well. Archangel Michael, please escort any lost souls to the light. Please, angels, bring them peace and comfort on their journey. And so it is.

  “I want to talk to my lawyer,” Wayne Grayson bellowed.

  “That shouldn’t be a problem,” the Deputy US Marshal said. “He’ll be here any minute. Of course, he’ll be wearing shackles just like you. Maybe you can play chess against each other for the one hour a day each of you will be allowed out of your solitary confinement cells.”

  The prisoner van came to a halt and the back door swung open. The marshal hopped out first, then helped Grayson down onto the pavement for the perp walk into the federal courthouse for his arraignment.

  Once inside, Grayson squinted as cameras flashed everywhere. He held up his arms as if warding off blows.

  Officers of the court escorted him to a seat on a bench in the front row. He looked back as a commotion broke out when the entry doors swung open. The members of the media present along the aisles surged forward to capture the moment as federal marshals ushered in Homeland Security Secretary Daniel Hart, US Senator Emily Kincaid, NSA Deputy Director Orlando Niger, noted defense attorney Stanley Davidson, and Calico Petroleum CEO Astin Trulander. All of them were wearing identical prison jumpsuits and shackles.

  Grayson sifted through a mental list of judges on the federal bench who owed him a favor.

  Sedona let her gaze travel around. The party was in full swing, the ribs were on the grill, the beer and wine were flowing, and her backyard was fully alive for the first time she could remember since…well, since before Rachel died.

  She watched as Peter and Lorraine tried to teach Sabastien to play bocce. He was, of course, hopeless. She could hear Kate and Vaughn trash talking with each other about their racquetball game from that morning, and Jay was entertaining Justine.

  “If you plan on eating, I suggest you all come and get it,” she announced.

  “Mmm. These smell great,” Jay said, as she heaped a half rack of ribs, cornbread, corn-on-the-cob and mashed potatoes onto her plate.

  Sedona chuckled. How it was possible for one small woman to eat so much food in one sitting was beyond her. “How do you stay so slim?”

  “I have no idea,” Jay said.

  “I keep her pretty busy,” Kate said. She came up alongside and wrapped an arm around her wife’s shoulder.

  Sedona could feel so much love flowing through their soulmate connection. It left a poignant ache in that place in her heart that Rachel used to fill. She struggled to shrug off the melancholy.

  They were halfway through eating before any of them brought up the subject that remained on all of their minds.

  “I went down to the courthouse to watch them arraign Grayson,” Kate said.

  “The problem is, what more can they do to him that they haven’t already done?” Jay asked.

  “They can continue to narrow his world,” Lorraine said.

  “Severely restrict his access to outside,” Peter added.

  “You all knew this guy from before?” Sedona asked.

  “Unfortunately, yes,” Kate answered. “Back in the late 1980s, he ran a shadowy organization called the Commission. They had tentacles everywhere—government, business, entertainment, sports… You name it, they had a connection to it.”

  “We thought we’d wiped it out with the arrest and convictions of Grayson and some of his colleagues,” Jay said.

  “Now it seems pretty clear they’re still out there finding ways to disrupt the world,” Peter said.

  Lorraine raised her glass. “I propose a toast. To the end of the Commission.”

  “Here, here,” everyone agreed, as they all clinked glasses.

  “I’m sorry the president couldn’t make it,” Sedona said. “He sent his regrets from the nuclear non-proliferation talks with Russia.”

  “I’m so glad he was able to publicly clear your name,” Justine said.

  “If he hadn’t, I’m sure Sabastien would’ve mucked with the file and eliminated any blots on Sedona’s record anyway,” Lorraine said. She ruffled Sabastien’s hair.

  “Are you going back to the NSA?” Peter asked.

  Sedona toyed with her mashed potatoes. “I don’t know yet. I don’t think so. I think I’m just going to take a little time and figure out what I want, you know?”

  Heads nodded sympathetically around the table.

  As everyone helped clear the dishes away, Sedona noted that Vaughn hadn’t said two words since they’d sat down. She followed Vaughn as she was emptying the trash.

  “You don’t have to take out my garbage, you know.”

  “I know.”

  “Are you okay?”

  “Sure. Why?”

  “You’re awfully quiet,” Sedona said.

  “This is how I usually am.”

  “That’s because you spend too much time alone.”

  “About that,” Vaughn said.

  “Hey!” Sedona’s neighbor Dex yelled from across the street. He ran to greet her with a big hug. He stepped back, still holding her in the circle of his arms. “You look fabulous. I’m so glad you’re back. Life was dull without you around.”

  “Sure it was.” Sedona smiled. “By the way, if I haven’t said so already, thanks for your help.”

  “I’m not sure how telling you there was a bunch of really bad men in dark SUVs ransacking your home was helpful, but anytime.”

  “Dex, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine, Vaughn Elliott. Vaughn, this is my friend Dex.” Sedona faltered at the end of the introduction. She could have sworn she saw a look of recognition pass between Vaughn and Dex.

  “Nice to meet you,” Dex said.

  “A pleasure,” Vaughn agreed, shaking his hand.

  “I’ve gotta run, sugar,” Dex said to Sedona. He kissed her on the cheek. “Ta for now.” Halfway across the street he turned back. “Nice to meet you…”

  “Vaughn.”

  “Right. Nice to meet you, Vaughn.” He laughed and disappeared into his house.

  ”What was that about?” Sedona asked Vaughn.

  “What was what about?”

  “Dex’s reaction to you. It was almost as if… Do you know him?”

  “Our paths might have crossed somewhere along the line.”

  “In what capacity?”

  “You’ll have to ask your buddy about that. Right now, it seems to me you’re entertaining guests.” Vaughn pulled Sedona toward the backyard, effectively ending the interrogation.

  Sedona wanted to pursue the matter. She wanted to know how Vaughn and Dex knew each other. Could Dex be CIA? Sedona thought back to something Dex said when she called him. Hadn’t he said, I can help you, but only if you level with me? What had he meant by that?

  “Just tell me—”

  “Thanks for a wonderful party,” Lorraine said.

  “You’re all leaving?” Lorraine and Peter, Kate and Jay, Justine, and Sabastien were gathering up their things.

  “I don’t know how you’re s
till standing, but we’re all still jetlagged.”

  Peter hugged Sedona close. “Keep in touch.”

  “I will.”

  “I hope next time our paths cross, it’ll be for something fun,” Jay said.

  “I’m right there with you,” Sedona agreed.

  “You take care of yourself,” Kate leaned over and gave her a heartfelt squeeze.

  “I have enjoyed getting to know you very much,” Sabastien said.

  “Me too.” Sedona leaned forward and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. “Be sure to drop a line every now and again.”

  “Don’t worry. I will be watching your bottom.”

  “Your back,” Vaughn corrected. She cuffed him on the back of the head.

  “Oh, yes. That too,” Sabastien said.

  Justine pulled him by the hand. “I’m his ride since, as you can see, he’s had a little too much to drink.”

  “Yeah,” Sedona agreed, “but he’s a cute drunk.”

  “Did you hear that? She thinks I am cute.”

  “Come on, Sabastien.” Justine waved. “I hope to see you soon.”

  Just like that, only Sedona and Vaughn remained. It was the first time they’d been completely alone since the car on the tarmac in Kuwait.

  “Do you want another beer?” Sedona asked.

  “No, I’m good.”

  They stood awkwardly looking at each other for a few seconds.

  “Want to tell me about you and Dex now?”

  Vaughn shook her head. “I don’t want to spend our time on that.”

  “Oh?”

  Vaughn reached out as if to touch Sedona, but instead let her hand drop to her side. “I wanted to… That is… Can I ask you something?”

  “Sure. What is it you want to know?”

  “Lots of things, as it turns out,” Vaughn said. “But let’s start with the psychic thing.”

  “Ah.” Sedona frowned. She’d been wondering when Vaughn was going to bring that up.

  “Why do you have that look on your face?”

  “Because invariably, when people find out about my abilities, they decide I’m a freak and they get all nervous around me thinking I’m reading their minds all the time.”

  “Are you?”

  “Of course not. My motto is always ‘See, don’t seek.’”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means just because I can know, doesn’t mean I should. I don’t pay attention unless someone asks me to look into something for them. Otherwise, I know things, see things, hear things, feel things, because the angels want me to know them. If it’s for my Divine best good, or someone else’s, the angels might give me the piece of information.”

  “Like what happened in Iraq.”

  “Yes, like that. In those instances, the information was necessary to keep us safe or to protect the lives of others.”

  “Okay, I can see that. Nice work, by the way, pinpointing the location of that scientist’s family. Because of you, they’ve got a happy future.”

  “My turn,” Sedona said.

  “Okay, that’s fair.”

  “Why were you so willing to blow up your own house, and why is it that you seem so unaffected by it?”

  “Unaffected?” Tears sprang to Vaughn’s eyes and she looked away.

  “I’m sorry. It’s just—it didn’t feel as if it touched you.”

  “Not true,” Vaughn said. “All my life I’ve been trained to keep my feelings locked up tightly inside. I guess it’s just become second nature to me.”

  “Your profession reinforced your own nature.”

  “Yes, I guess that’s true.”

  “I can see that. But Vaughn, you’re not working now.”

  “I know.” Finally, one of the tears fell.

  “Come over here and sit down.” Sedona took her by the hand and led her to a patio chair. “You could have avoided it, you know.”

  “I remember you saying that to me at the time. You were really steamed about it.”

  “It just seemed to me like you wouldn’t entertain any alternatives. Yet I ‘knew’ that blowing up the house was unnecessary to achieve the goal.”

  “Was that the psychic thing again?”

  “Yes. But I wasn’t ready to tell you about that, so I tried using logic.”

  “That’ll teach you,” Vaughn laughed.

  “Why, Vaughn? Why were you really so hell-bent on destroying a home I know you loved?”

  Vaughn looked down at her hands. “When you all descended on my place like locusts, I lost my privacy.” She held up a hand to forestall Sedona’s comment. “When the goon squad came to town, I knew my peaceful, anonymous existence had been permanently disrupted. It just felt like that time in my life, the time for isolation and ignoring the world, was over. I guess blowing up the house was a symbolic gesture.”

  “Well, no one can accuse you of not making grand gestures.”

  Vaughn leaned forward. “My turn again?”

  Sedona felt Vaughn’s heart rate pick up. She steeled herself. “Sure.”

  “How is it possible that a magical woman like you isn’t married? I-I know we haven’t known each other very long,” Vaughn rushed ahead, “but I know what I feel for you is more real than anything I’ve felt in a very, very long time.” She wet her lips and took Sedona’s hands in hers. “I never thought I’d say this to anyone again, but I’m falling in love with you, Sedona.”

  “Don’t.” Sedona stood up, breaking the contact. “You can’t, Vaughn.”

  Vaughn stood, also. “Why not? What are you saying?”

  “You don’t know anything about me except bits and pieces.”

  “So tell me.” Vaughn’s eyes showed the vulnerability in her soul, and it was almost too much for Sedona to bear.

  “All right.” Sedona turned away. “You asked why I’m not married. There was a woman.” Sedona cleared her throat. “Her name was Rachel. She was the most beautiful woman in the world to me.”

  Vaughn came up behind her and hugged her, but Sedona pushed her hands away. “No. Let me get this out.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay.” Sedona turned back around and gazed at Vaughn kindly. “Rachel and I were like two halves of a whole. She was my sun and my moon and I was her stars. In her eyes, I saw the reflection of my own soul. Her breath was an extension of mine and our hearts beat in perfect synchronicity.”

  “What happened?” Vaughn asked quietly.

  “She got cancer. The doctors thought they’d caught it early enough, but they were wrong.” Sedona sobbed. “For all my work with the angels, for all my prayers to Archangel Raphael to heal her, I couldn’t save the one person I really wanted to save.”

  “I’m so, so sorry.” Vaughn wiped a tear from her own cheek.

  “I know.” Sedona smiled sadly. “For a long time I questioned why God and the angels gave me these abilities if I couldn’t use them to save Rachel—Rachel, who was such a bright light.”

  “Did you get an answer?”

  “Eventually, I came to understand what I knew all along—that Rachel spent as much time with me as she was meant to spend in this lifetime. I know we’ve been together many times before and I know we’ll be together many times again. Our souls are bound together. We’re all made of energy. Energy never dies, it just reconstitutes. Rachel’s energy and mine will always seek each other.”

  “I wish I believed that.”

  “Your soul mate was Sara.”

  Vaughn’s head snapped up. “How do you know about her?”

  “You and the angels told me.” At Vaughn’s perplexed look, Sedona said, “That night in Ahmed’s house when you held me. My hand touched your scar and I relived what happened to you.”

  Vaughn gasped.

  “I couldn’t have seen that unless on some level you gave me permission. Nor would the angels have shown me unless there was a reason for it. Now I know what that reason is.”

  “Oh?”

  “The angels want m
e to bring you and Sara closure.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Sedona closed her eyes and opened them. “You may not realize it, but Sara’s with you all the time. I can prove it to you, if you want.”

  “I don’t—”

  “Sara is referencing a huge book she dropped on your foot. She’s laughing about it. What does that mean?”

  Vaughn’s jaw hung open. “That’s how we met. It was in Art History class. She dropped the textbook on my foot.”

  “You know there’s no way I could know that, Vaughn, unless Sara told me.”

  “I’ve never told that story to anybody.” Vaughn started to cry and Sedona took her hand.

  “Sara doesn’t want you to cry. She wants you to stop blaming yourself for what happened. She says she’s the one who decided to go without you. She wanted to prove herself.”

  “She didn’t need to prove herself!”

  “She can see that now, Vaughn. There are many things we can see on the other side that we can’t understand here. She also wants you to come back to the land of the living. She’s telling you to open your heart again—really open your heart again.”

  “That’s what I feel like I’m doing with you,” Vaughn said.

  “I know, and I must say you have touched my heart in ways I no longer thought possible. Maybe someday down the road, if you’re still interested and I’m ready… But for right here, right now, we both have too much healing to do on our own. I can’t tell you where our lives are going to take us, Vaughn.”

  “You can. You just choose not to.”

  That prompted a surprised laugh from Sedona. “Fair enough. I can tell you some things about where your life is going to take you.”

  “Do I want to know?”

  “I don’t know, do you? I can tell you this—you are who you have always been. Your life, your purpose, is to protect others. It’s what you’ve always done. It’s who you’ve always been. And so it will be until the end of time. You’re not meant to live your days in solitude on some island, tempting as that might be.”

  “Humph.”

  “And, might I add, the world is a better place for having you in it.” Sedona moved forward into Vaughn’s arms and kissed her on the mouth. “Thank you for once again taking up the mantle of the warrior, Vaughn Elliott. The world needs you. Even someone without any psychic abilities can see that.”