Convergence

by Brian W Claspell

  Regards,

  Alto and Tenor

  That is odd, he thought. Usually if he forwards an email it keeps the attachment. He checked his sent folder and sure enough there was no attachment. Then he checked his in box for the letter from Professor Blovaski. Hmm, must have deleted it and the deleted folder is empty.

  He figured that he might be able to get one of the IT guys to find it for him. He had deleted one before where they were able to recover it. He sent a quick email to the IT guy to recover his mail from the last couple of days. It wasn’t what he should be doing on this of all days. He figured, though, that a purpose driven day may be his best approach anyways.

  He went back to his email and saw a second one from Professor Alto,

  Arthur at the round table,

  I just got the news. It is too bad about Professor Blovaski. What are the odds, you forward an email from him and then, you know. It is tragic. Do you think we will ever see the mythical plate (or the pictures of it)? Maybe when things settle down we can call the university in Moscow and see if we can go look at the plate.

  Regards,

  Alto and Tenor

  Arthur scratched his head. He quickly did a Google search on Professor Blovaski. He did not need to read Russian to understand what the story said and to at least confirm that the professor was dead.

  “What are the odds?” he thought. Then it occurred to him. In the tube, maybe they were not after the outspoken American professor, but that he had actually been the target. He froze and then started to think about what his next course of action should be.

  Chapter 15 – University of Bucharest

  Dragos pulled into a lot and decided to take a short nap before going to the meet with Bucky. He was not as young as he once was and an all-nighter was not as easy as when he was in his youth. He figured he could get a quick fifteen minutes and then go in to see his old friend. A little over four hours later he woke up. In a panic he looked for the bag, it was still on the front floorboard on the passenger’s side. Glancing inside, the two plates had not been disturbed.

  He knew the office, but when he got there the professor was lecturing to a 300 level class on the other side of campus. His secretary knew Dragos and let him in the office. She offered him some coffee.

  He kept the plates hidden. After thumbing through some books, he decided to Google “Kings in 1131”. There were nearly one million references. Only most were of addresses and locations and not actual kings. He did find that the king of England at the time was Henry I Beaucler, but didn’t think that had anything to do with it. At the same time there was a rebellion by Antioch and Tripoli against the Kingdom of Jerusalem. The professor where Daniel got the plates was Jewish, maybe there was a connection. Then there was King Louis VII of France who became king in the year 1131.

  His mind was turning, he had read about the Knights Templar and the Crusades in the same timeframe and there strong connection to France.

  He even looked towards the Old Testament. It seemed that most Bible scholars he could find had the first king of Israel coming to power around 1100 BC. That wasn’t far off and King Saul was a pretty powerful name in history.

  He spent hours waiting for his friend and looking at just about every angle he could think of in his searches. In the end he realized he was just passing the time, just grabbing at straws. He had no idea what reference the departed professor had intended.

  Monday

  Chicago Time

  Chapter 16 – Morning Paper

  Jim rolled over long enough to see the back of Jenny walking towards the bathroom. It was a nearly 8 AM and she was still in the same shirt. She had made just enough noise as she got out of bed to cause Jim to be barely awake. As he watched her walk towards the bathroom and then shut the door behind her he thought to himself that he must be crazy. There is not likely a woman as good looking as her that would even consider sleeping with a man of his age and average stature.

  He knew that his belief in God prevented him from taking such a rash move. Then he thought that he at least owed it to his wife not to jump into bed with someone he barely knew, but she was a totally hot woman. She was also a woman he was starting to like.

  He could hear the shower in the other room as he slowly sat up to gather his thoughts for the day. He sat for a moment contemplating this interesting plight of a beautiful woman inviting him to compromise his values, a plight he would probably think about the rest of his life. He decided that it was one that he had contemplated long enough this morning so he went to the door to get the morning paper. It was sitting on a tray that had a breakfast spread on it. He rolled the tray in and opened the covered plates. It was a fabulous spread of smoked salmon, fresh fruit and two coffees. There was a small note next to another plate that said, “Mr. and Mrs. Smith, the Chef has created a new pastry she hopes you will enjoy”–obviously made to the normal order with the addition of the pastry.

  Jim opted to wait to eat until Jenny joined him. He started to glance over the paper while he waited. The front page was typical Chicago news. There was murder on the near north side that was likely gang related. Speculation was that the mayor would call for greater gun control from the surrounding counties. “Hmm, should have asked him last night at dinner,” Jim thought to himself. Next story was about a number of layoffs at a local manufacturing plant.

  Jim had finished the front page and started on the second page by the time Jenny came out of the bathroom. She came out fully dressed and ready for the day.

  “It is your usual Mr. Smith,” Jenny said with a slight smile pointing to the breakfast spread. “By the way, I thought about it last night and in the fake character being played by the fake character we are married.” She laughed a little.

  Jim smiled, “Guess it is a good thing we didn’t think about that last night.” He knew she was just kidding and he was too, at least mostly kidding. “So what is the plan this morning, off to find bad guys while I head into the office for some more exciting accounting work?”

  Jenny grabbed the paper to glance as she said, “I suspect Frank will come by shortly and let us know how we will get you home.”

  Jim was looking at the back side of the paper that Jenny had picked up. Jenny must have caught Jim’s look out of the corner of her eyes. She had seen him cool and collective over the last day since she had met him but he looked disturbed. “Jim, what’s the matter?”

  “Don’t tell me you didn’t know.” He was clearly thinking through the situation and determining his next course of action. He was at least observant enough to notice Jenny’s dumfounded look on her face and realize that she might not know. Of course, she might just be a good actress – would have to be as a spy. He grabbed the paper out of her hand and slammed it on the table so the side he had been viewing was side up. “There.” He said pointing to a picture of a partially burnt out, wrecked vehicle.

  The vanity license plate could clearly be seen, “MS CAROL”.

  Jenny said, “You know Miss Carol?”

  Jim was almost too angry to cry, “My wife is Carol and I miss her. I had a license plate made in her honor.”

  Jenny’s jaw dropped slightly, “Oh.” It was only a moment later when the realization hit her, “OH!” The article clearly called out that Jacob had been in a wreck on the Eisenhower after flying home from a business trip. He was in a coma at Northwestern Hospital in a secluded ward. “I need to talk to Frank.”

  “Jenny, this had to be done by someone in the CIA–maybe Frank. Where did you put my wallet and credentials? I think I should just walk out of here.”

  Jenny searched through all of the scenarios and thinking out loud said, “There has to be a reason.”

  “Maybe, but not one I signed up for. I am an accountant not a spy. It has been fun but this isn’t my life.” Jim folded his arms and sat back to hear Jenny’s response.

  Jenny would not have a chance.

  Chapter 17 – Frank’s Explanation

  Frank opened the door and walk
ed in unannounced as though he owned the place. He surmised that they probably already saw the accident as reported in the paper but was prepared to share the news if needed. He walked in with confidence. Trevor followed right behind him. Frank knew that he had to assure both Jim and Jenny it was in the mutual interest of all involved to keep Jim in the operation. It only took about three seconds for Frank to realize that they had seen the article. Jenny took one step on the couch next to Jim and leaped over the couch. She was across the room pinning Frank to the wall before he could shut the door behind him.

  Trevor quickly shut the door. He knew better than to interfere with Jenny and Frank.

  Frank was bigger than Jenny but she had mastered the technique of taking her opponent (or opponents) off balance better than nearly anyone in the CIA regardless of their size. Trevor had been the only agent to best her in simulated combat in the last four years. Frank had not ever won against her. He was older but still very skilled. However, he was now pinned against the wall with a very uncomfortable neck hold and Jenny looking at him directly in the eyes. “What do you think you are doing? This man has a life.” Jenny’s eyes were blazing with anger, both on behalf of Jim and because she was not informed of the plan ahead of time.

  Frank had thought about his words and the impact they might have on all of those in the room. They were intentional and precise. “Jim has a choice. But we need him for this operation to work out fully. He lost a lot of his life about a year ago. His life is what he chooses right now.”

  “You could have asked instead of having him in a fake coma.” Her grip relaxed slightly, but not enough for Frank to get an upper hand.

  Frank was not interested in the upper hand physically. He wanted the upper mental hand. “I know, but last night’s ride home was about the only time we could have pulled off an accident like this. If we waited for rush hour today there would have been too many witnesses.” Frank paused to let the words sink in.

  Jim listened from across the room intently. He was still mad but there seemed to be a bit of logic.

  Jenny tightened her stranglehold just to make it a little more uncomfortable for Frank and said, “We debriefed last night. You should have told us then.” Then she released her hold slightly.

  Frank continued, “Jim still has a choice. He can recover from his coma as quickly as today or he can recover in a few weeks.” Frank didn’t really believe there was a choice. He knew that the plan needed Jim as a real person in order to be fully executed. “Jim will be paid well for his service to his country, $50,000 dollars for a couple of weeks. If it extends, $25,000 a week or until he has had enough and then he comes back to Chicago.” Frank knew that two weeks would probably be enough. He had permission to promise more money from his superiors but he knew how much Jim made and $50,000 would be a nice addition to that salary for two weeks’ pay.

  Jenny released her grip. “I think it is a load of crap. I can’t believe Langley bought off on a scheme like this. I guess it is up to you Jim.” She paced a bit by the door.

  Jim looked up from the chair and saw Jenny’s frustration. He observed Frank’s anticipation. “Is there any danger?”

  Frank looked. He knew he had him now. “It is safe. You will deal with Ric pretty much and we will trace what we need to. We will provide any additional support to authenticate antiques you buy and set a price. We already have a bank account set up in Jim Conrad’s name that you can use for expense money, including making any purchases we agree to. Besides, Jenny will be with you the entire time.”

  Jim continued to look at the players in the room. “My own antique road show and I get paid.”

  It was clear to Jenny that Jim had decided to be part of this scheme. She also realized that the nature of this scheme was fairly safe. If something did happen, then Jim (or rather Jacob) would simply be reported as having died while in a coma at the hospital after a tragic automobile accident. She was not thrilled with this or with the fact that she had not been consulted on the plan. She, after all, would be tasked with his safety.

  “Travel and expenses paid. Remember you told Ricardo that you were going to France. The plane leaves later today.” Frank pulled out two tickets from his suit pocket. “First class, of course”

  “Not a private jet for a billionaire?” Jim asked.

  “Remember that you travel under assumed names. Sometimes private jets get more scrutiny than traveling commercial.” Frank walked over to hand the tickets to Jim.

  Jim took the tickets. “I’m in.”

  “Unbelievable!” Jenny walked across the room and grabbed her purse. “I need some fresh air.” With that she quickly left the room. Frank followed her.

  Chapter 18 – Searching

  Steve sat back in his chair in an office in Amsterdam. He was an international salesman for a small Midwest medical supply company. This allowed him to travel unnoticed around the globe to do “other” business. Steve, of course, was not his real name but the name he used for this “other” business. He was careful how he transacted this business so that it could not be traced to his visits as a medical supply sales rep.

  He had reached out to Yuri to give her the opportunity to find something for Ricardo and more specifically for Jim Conrad, but that did not mean he would not also be looking for an item to sell. His connections were tight and he knew that he could get just about any item in the world if the price were right. And for him, it was about maximizing profit. He had made it his life’s work to get as much money as he could. He earned a lot and kept out about 5% for his living expenses. Based on this 5%, he was a very wealthy man. The rest he split between an offshore Grand Cayman Island account and his favorite charity the “Friends of the World Charity Fund”.

  He would not enter the arena with Ricardo and Jim until he was sure that he could deliver. His reputation demanded this and he would not let that reputation be harmed. Steve was precise and to the point. After the message from Ricardo, he went directly to the internet and Googled “rare books”. He had a short list of about fifty in a matter of thirty minutes. Then he shortened the list further by eliminating those that he thought would be most difficult for him to acquire and those where he thought the challenge was less risky. Several made it on the list because he had connections at institutions that actually owned these manuscripts. Some of those connections were as Steve and some were as a medical supply salesman–but they were people he could leverage to get at the rare manuscripts.

  He came to the final two by determining relative value and risk of obtaining the item. The first item on his list was the “Cosmography” which was printed in about 1477. This was a world atlas created by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy.

  The second, Steve’s favorite, was a copy of the Magna Carta, created in 1215. He thought it would be brilliant to steal a manuscript that was one of the founding documents that defined individual rights and freedoms of the people. He might be tempted to keep this document for himself. To him, these fundamental freedoms of the individual have been missing from modern culture.

  Steve already had teams looking at how they might obtain each of these and what the cost of this acquisition might be. He already knew the payout for the “Cosmology” would be over four million dollars, one had sold in 2006. The Magna Carta would fetch well over $20 million dollars. There were no known copies that were still in private hands.

  Seema Patel had ignored the late text message from Ricardo. She also had ignored the first phone call from her father and finally answered on the third phone call. It was late in New York and she was sort of estranged from her father. She kept in contact with him primarily because of the contacts he had to help bring eastern culture art into the United States. For her, it was all about the “greater good”. She convinced herself that was the only reason she even tolerated a man that she considered a terrorist for supplying weapons to dissident groups around the world.

  She benefited from the spoils of this life style–a nice college degree, a nice stipend to start her business
, a great dowry when she married an American man and of course the connections across the east. She enjoyed many of the benefits, but despised his work especially after 9-11. She was living in New York and had even had lunch in one of the towers the day before the planes went into the towers. Her friend that she had eaten lunch with was one of the victims the next day. Intellectually, she knew that her father had nothing to do with this attack and would not condone it. But it was people like this that he did business with. She vowed to not take another penny from him after that date. She had not, but she still leveraged his connections.

  Reluctantly she listened to her father’s conversation about finding a “unique item”. Her father assured her that he would not get involved in the transaction unless she asked him too. She could use any money to fund the arts in New York if she wanted. Seema finally agreed. She hung up the phone and went back to sleep. In the morning she started to put a few simple feelers out to see if there were any unique eastern manuscripts that might be for sale.

  Chapter 19 – Jenny’s Insurance Policy

  Frank quickly caught up to Jenny in the hallway and grabbed her arm. “Jenny, where are you going?”

  “Oh I will be back. But this isn’t the place or time to talk and you know it. Walls have ears.” With that Jenny walked down the hall and out the back stairs.

  Frank would not have her followed. He knew that if she wanted to be elusive she was well trained and could get away. He also knew that it might draw attention to their situation. He would just let her blow off steam and she would be back soon enough.