by Mark Lemke
CHAPTER 69
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Prichard stood up and went over to greet my dad.? "Mr. Connor, good to see you again.? It's been a long time.? I didn't know you were associated with this disreputable rabble!"
"I'm actually retired.? I just consult from time to time," he said with a glance at me.
Prichard smiled.? "Looks like you do considerably more than that to me.? We owe you a debt of gratitude sir."
Then he moved over to Dave and shook his hand.? "Good job last night, Dave!? You did an excellent job holding things together in the control room.? I appreciate everything you did.?I really do.? I know you're tired and have, well, some things on your mind.? We'll try to get you out of here just as soon as we can."
Dave looked drained and said, "Thank you, sir."? He turned to me and extended his hand.? I took it and gripped it firmly.? Dave's eyes teared up, but he didn't say a word.? He didn't need to. ?I understood all too well.? Just then, my phone rang.?
"Connor," I answered.?
"Boy, what a cluster," Pete said.? "I can't get within a mile of The Headlands.? All the roads are closed and there are more law enforcement around here than you can shake a stick at.? I assume you took care of business out there for us?"
"I did my part, but we had a lot of help," I said, glancing around the room.?
In a more serious tone, Pete asked, "Did everyone make it okay?"?
"Eric and the boys are fine.? By the way, did you find anything out about Waxman Industries?? Do we have them this time?"
Prichard was now looking at me-hard.? He couldn't hear the whole conversation, but just listening to me probably made him wonder if my being there was really his idea in the first place.? He was a smart man and I was sure he'd figure it out sooner or later.? Whatever he couldn't figure out, I knew the National Security Agency would fill him in on-at some point in time.
"Matter of fact, we do," Pete said.? "We've got more on Waxman than I'm sure the FBI and CIA want us to have.? But right now, I'll bet we're the flavor of the month, so they can't do jack about it."
"Have you figured out how they did it yet?? It's time to end this," I said? "They've stepped way over the line. ?Brenda Williams' death is simply unacceptable."
"The real power is upstairs with Mr. Waxman himself.? These guys are good.? We've got the intel and paper trail to shut them down permanently this time," Pete said.? "I hacked their system the way the Chinese have been doing to us, for years now.? I had to go through a server in Hong Kong-too many firewalls over here.? But over there, it's a wide-open infrastructure.? I opened a portal in Suriname of all places, and fed some breadcrumbs to the FBI through the NSA. ?There's now a paper trail all the way back to Mr. Waxman himself, that even they should be able to follow. ?He's on record as having met with Mr. Chiu and arranging this whole debacle."
"Good work, Pete.? What do you recommend?"
"Mr. Waxman has a private plane waiting for him at the executive terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson airport.? He's on a plane for a high-level meeting in D.C. this afternoon with some government officials at the Department of Commerce and Trade.? He thinks he's negotiating some trade agreements with China. ?We've arranged to leak some incriminating information through the Washington Post, just to get the ball rolling."?
"Well done," I said.? "Sounds like this thing is about wrapped up.? You'll have to give me a complete brief when you get a chance."
"Oh, you can be sure of that," Pete replied.? "We've been summoned to Washington.? There are some folks there who want to talk to us."
"Oh, and who might they be?" I asked with mock surprise.? "Are they the ones at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue again?"
"They're the ones."
"Say, I got a guy here who'd love to talk with his family.? I don't suppose you can help out with that, can you?"
"Funny you should ask.? They're right here.? Wait one . . ."
With that, I handed my phone to Dave.? I gave him a wink, and said, "Just make sure I get that phone back, okay?"
I put my good arm around Marti's slender waist, looked down at her, and noted the longing in her eyes.? It was as if a floodgate of emotions was suddenly opened and I felt myself melting in her arms. ?
I turned and nodded at the Old Man and Eric.? With my arm around Marti, we headed out of the room.
"Anybody hungry?" I asked.
"You could say I've worked up an appetite, yes," Marti said with a devious grin.
I smiled back at her.? I hadn't felt this good in a really long time.?
EPILOGUE
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Three days later, I was driving across the high desert of Arizona, heading for NeXus headquarters in Virginia, windows down, music on low.? Marti was in the passenger side bucket seat, sandals off, and her bare feet are tucked up to one side, underneath her.? The dry desert air was blowing her hair back and her dress up, both of which I was enjoying.? We weren't talking very much, just enjoying the moment.?
Some time later we heard on the radio that " . . . the limo belonged to a Mr. Waxman of Waxman Industries.? He was a giant in the world of trade negotiations with countries such as China.? However, recent reports indicated he had previously undisclosed ties with the Chinese government that brought into question his impartiality.? The Senate committee on Foreign Relations had convened a special meeting and issued subpoenas.?? Mr. Waxman and a close working associate were killed instantaneously.? It's believed the driver was drunk at the time and lost control of the car, steering into oncoming traffic. ?Mr. Waxman and an aide were killed instantly. This could set back trade negotiations with the Chinese for some time . . . "
I turned the radio off, looked over at Marti who appeared to be enjoying the drive, and smiled to myself.
Just then my phone rang.? Marti shot me a questioning look.? She knew my phone number was limited distribution and wasn't sure we were even in range of a cell tower.? She reached for the phone from the console tray it was sitting in.? The phone showed only a number, but as an NRC inspector, she had reason to recognize the number.? The White House was calling.
I took the phone and said, "Connor?"