by Finian Blake
“Sally, I hate to interrupt, but I wanted to ask a question.”
“And what would that be?”
“Would twenty thousand each help soothe your outrage? I know that I am asking a lot. I thought some incentive might help.” Sally and May perked up considerably.
“Alex, twenty thousand can buy a lot of amnesia. Anymore and I would not be able to remember my name.” Alex retrieved a brief case from his car and handed both women twenty thousand each. He looked at the supply of cash that was left and decided to make it fifty thousand each.
“Nadia, I am going to leave this in your hands. I believe that you can handle it. Wanda will do the ID photos for Cathy in any name that she chooses and Lynn will arrange the finances. Take good care of your sister.” Nadia looked in Cathy’s direction.
“She was a big help to me last night. I believe that we will do well. Cathy wants to learn the security business while she finishes school.” Cathy was hugging Nadia’s purse. Nadia turned her attention back to Alex. “Aren’t you going to stay until everybody leaves?”
“You are the one in charge of this show anyway, and you made all of the arrangements. The other girls will be picked up in a few days after we set up their homes. Frank wants you back in two weeks. Angela is going to fly back with Troy. It seems that he was appointed to the Manchester Fire Brigade as an international exchange. He is going to take all of his accrued vacation and report in two months.”
“Angela is going to be worthless for two months!” Nadia said with a moan.
“I am sure that you can handle it. I was sure about you all of the other times and was never disappointed.” Alex’s tone of voice was confident not patronizing. “Lynn will put your bonus in the proper account for you.” Nadia did not ask Alex how much the bonus was. She knew that it would be more than she expected. “I could do no less for my daughter.” Cathy’s eyes popped open.
“Alex is your father! Your father trusts you that much? He lets you run around with guns and all of this!” She was still hugging Nadia’s purse.
“That’s my dad,” Nadia said with a warm smile looking at Alex. “Kiss mom for me when you get home.” Cathy still had a stunned look on her face. “I might as well tell you that Anna is my mother, Sarah and Suki are my aunts, Angela, and Alice, are my sisters. Those are the ones that you have met. I have four more sisters and three brothers that you have not met. Since you just became my sister…” Nadia looked at Alex.
Cathy looked at Alex, “Dad…?” Alex leaned forward and embraced them both with a fatherly embrace.
“Nadia, when you get back set Cathy up with Beth and Arlene. Ten ought to do it.”
“Ten ought to do what? Who are Beth and Arlene?” Nadia hugged Cathy.
“Let us say that you have been accepted and you have several pleasant surprises coming when we get home.” Alex hugged them both again. Cathy hugged Alex and rubbed the area over his zipper. He stood back startled. Cathy was surprised at his reaction.
“When I said that you were my daughter I meant it. Cathy, you are not moving up to a higher class of treatment. You have been accepted as a daughter.” Cathy started to cry. Alex went to comfort her and she moved closer to Nadia. “Nadia, your new sister needs some more help. Would you reassure her that we are not like the others?” Nadia held Cathy gently.
“We need some time with this. Cathy, we are accepting you as family. When I first came to Alex from Russia, I told him that I would not whore for him. These are the same generals that wanted to use me as a whore for their profit. Alex adopted me and has always treated me as a true daughter. I work for Frank who helped rescue you. He employs me at a regular job in his security company and I can leave if I choose. You are my sister now and I would never let anybody treat you as the generals have. If you don’t trust us, we will work something else out. I do want you to understand that Alex has never molested me or done anything other than treat me as a true daughter. You will be living around the people that rescued you. Cherry will be living with Sarah and will be treated as a real family member.” Nadia said all of this in a gentle voice. When she was finished, Cathy moved closer. “Nobody expects you to get over this in a few days. You need to see the truth for yourself. Cherry will need some help too. Consider the way that we treat you and make your judgment based on the way that you have been treated by us.”
Cathy pulled Nadia closer. “You will stay with me?”
“I am your sister and we will be living together. I will give you my word that I will protect my new sister.” Nadia looked at Alex. “I think that Sarah has made it home. Do you think that we could call Cherry so that Cathy can talk to her?” Alex nodded his agreement.
“That is an excellent idea. I need to leave now. Make the call from here. I don’t believe that there will be a security problem at this time. You are leaving any way. I have to get going.” He kissed them both on the cheek and left.
Nadia made the arrangements for the call. She set the phone on the night stand instructing Cathy how to dial an international call. Sarah was out riding with Cherry and they set a time for Cherry to call back. About an hour later Cherry returned the call. Nadia let Cathy answer the call leaving the room as Cathy started to talk.
“Cherry, Nadia said that I could call you. How are you doing?”
“Cathy, you would not believe this place. I just got back from horseback riding with Sarah and we did not have to go anywhere. They have horses right here. Mom has been so nice to me. She had Beth and Arlene make clothes for me. I have my own room, and I can actually get dressed. This place is unbelievable.” The fact that Cherry called Sarah mom so easily did not go unnoticed.
“Is anybody in the room with you?” Cathy was still unsure.
“No, mom is in the shower. She showed me how to dial the call and went to clean up. I am calling from my room. I actually have a phone in my room! I can lie down on my own bed and talk on my phone. I can eat in my room and have whatever I want to eat.” Cherry composed herself. “What about you? They are not going to make you go home are they?” Cherry knew Cathy’s problem.
“No, Nadia made me her sister. She is going to take me out there to live with her.”
“My god, you are going to come out here too? That’s great you will love it so much.” Cathy decided to throw out another test question.
“How far away do Alex and Anna live from you?”
“They live in LA with Alice, and Grace lives next door to them.” Cherry rambled on without thinking. “If Alex and Anna adopted you, then we are cousins. When are you coming out here? I can’t wait to see you. Sarah is out of the shower and we are having a party in an hour, so we have to get dressed up fancy. I have to go now.” Tina hung up the phone without saying good bye. Cathy hung up and walked back in the hall way. Nadia was waiting for her at the nursing station.
“Now, that you have talked to Cherry do you feel better.”
Cathy blushed, “I did not mean to suggest…” There was a look of fear on her face as if she would be punished.
“It is alright to check. You don’t know us yet and you are making a huge decision. We need to build trust and that is how it is done.” Nadia knew after all that Cathy had been through it would take time to build real trust. She put her arm gently around Cathy’s shoulder and walked back to the room. “Let’s make some plans for our trip we will be leaving in a few days. We need to pick out a name that you like, so that we can do your papers.” After several hours of discussion, Cathy chose the name Victoria with Nadia calling the name in to Wanda.
Alex went to Wanda’s place to pack. She was cleaning up the third floor. Alex stopped by the door of the front apartment.
“Wanda, you have a real mess on your hands. Can I offer some help?”
“I will always accept help.” Alex started to help move the furniture back in place.
Wanda brushed his cheek, “I wanted to thank you for helping me to clean up this mess.”
“The mess was Mercury’s.” Alex shook his head i
n disgust. “That second operation should never have happened. ‘Mercury’, made that one up completely out of her head using the ‘MERCURY BLACK’ clearance.”
Wanda held his wrist, “By the way Alex that has changed to ‘CASSANDRA BLACK’. Don’t try to use the ‘Mercury’ clearance. It has been in place too long. It will have the reverse effect now. Be sure that Susan, Suki, and Frank know.”
“What…?”
Wanda went on with her explanation. “NSA and MI will both recognize the clearance. That little pooch screw with Buck and Creed in Nicaragua forced us to work closer together on the unofficial level, since none of the work is official anyway. Nothing about your operation is official. MI was impressed with Susan’s work and with the international flavor of your organization. Your Russians really drew some interest.”
“Wanda, it never has been an organization. We ask for favors and we get cooperation. Nobody is in charge and this operation is not mine. Everybody can accept or refuse any request and everybody participates willingly. That is why we’re so successful there is no single head. We can do several things at the same time. The Russians will think that Sarah is spying for them if they find out about her. Remember she was a colonel at the spy school. The Japanese believe Suki is in industrial espionage even though she was born in the U K. Even the Swiss are loyal, to you. NSA can’t get your financial information for diplomatic purposes even with a bribe under the table.
“The Swiss are loyal to money. Our government would never clear the kind of money that would be necessary for that information. Hans tried to buy Abdul-Rahman my contact in Pakistan for ten thousand dollars when I was paying him in the millions. The list goes on and on.”
Wanda made a solemn promise, “Well, I can guarantee that you will not have to deal with sabotage from the top. Come to work for us.”
Alex gave Wanda a warm hug, “Have I ever turned you down?”
“No, you have always been there for me. Would you ever work for the Russians?”
“Several of the crew are Russians. We have all of the flavors that the world has to offer. That is why we must stay independent. They ask us to do what no government can claim. What makes you think that I won’t be there in the future? Depending on what you need I will be there. You have always been good to work with.”
Alex and Wanda went through the building one apartment at time, until they reached her place. Wanda called down to the hot dog stand and ordered lunch. When they were through Alex took the wrappers to the trash.
Wanda pointed to Alex, “You always clean up after yourself whether it is food wrappers or renegade generals.”
“I was hoping to find a normal life out there. You know, home in the evening, or go out to dinner with friends, that sort of thing.”
“Not one in a million people have earned the loyalty that you have. You have thirty or so people out there that would back you blindly. You have many old friends and new friends too. Look at Cathy. She thinks that you walk on water.” Alex was surprised to get this feedback.
Alex asked, “Nadia…?”
“No Sally, she is an old friend. Both Sally and May thank you for the rescue and the money. We made a big mistake with Ivan and Petra. I was going to find them some work, but they disappeared once they received their money. They were actually going to make a snuff movie with Sally and May.”
Alex shook his head, “I thought that talking Sally and May into going along with the program was too easy. I must hand it to her. Sally can keep a straight face.”
“Sally had a particularly high opinion of Nadia,” Wanda commented. “She was initially worried when you turned everything over to her.” Alex’s face lit up.
“All of my daughters are my success story. I trust them and they prove me right every time. The thing that I was worried about was butting in too much.”
“Aren’t you worried about bringing Cathy in to the fold? She has no experience.”
“That was Nadia’s choice. After I pick my people, I trust them. If I give them the decision I don’t look over their shoulder all of the time. I am proud beyond measure of what Nadia has done.”
“What about Angela?”
Alex broke out laughing, “Angela fell in lust with Troy before he opened his mouth. Whether it is lust or love the condition is unstable at best. Hopefully, her hormones will calm down before anything permanent happens. Troy will be staying at the Amazon Inn. He may experience another hormonal shift, but only time will tell.” They both started laughing at his comment. Alex packed his bag preparing to leave.
“Wanda, you have always been a friend, and you will always be one. Come out to California as a friend and we will burn some steaks.”
“That sounds nice. I would love to but before you leave what about my offer?”
“We are a multinational organization. I would not ask any of my friends to betray their countries or their values. Call me and we can discuss anything, but there are no guarantees. Protection feels much better than assignation. I have only one promise. I will never forget a friend.”
Alex stayed for a few more days to handle any possible incidents. He contacted Troy about all the evidence that was left in the garage. It was decided that the Feds would clamp down on all knowledge of the files because of the international nature of the case which is why Troy immediately received the approval for his international exchange with the Brits and he would be leaving for the Inn within a few days. The evidence would be acted upon, but there would be no big splash in the news.
When Alex flew into LAX, Jeff and Cassandra gave him a ride home. Alex walked in the door of the townhouse in Huntington Beach noticing that he could hear several people talking at once. Susan was preparing to leave in the morning with Lynn, Adam, and Noah.
“How’s the shoulder.”
Susan rubbed her wound, “The bullet went through just under the skin. They sewed it up and it will leave a hell of a scar but the damage is not extreme. Anna tells me that you got all of the bastards that gave the orders.”
“Yes, I got the last of them two days ago. We gave two of them a reprieve and they started up another operation in the suburbs within weeks. I had to stop them. They came back to hit us the other night.” Alice stormed over to Alex.
“You said that you would not harm them. They helped me!”
“I am sorry for breaking my promise. If they stayed away, I would not have done anything. They came after the girls and the babies. Nadia stopped them cold and called me. This was a separate incident that happened after I kept your promise. They had already bought a house with a large barn and converted it, so that they could start their operation all over again. Petra and Ivan kidnapped two of the nurses for a snuff film. As promised, I gave them a clean slate. Ivan and Petra were the ones that put everything back on the slate. They would have done the same thing over again, so I took them out.”
Alice was still pouting, “They came after you?”
Alex held up his hands defensively, “No, they came after Nadia and the girls.”
“You intended to keep your word?”
“Look, I don’t care whether or not you believe me. It was something that had to be done.”
“You didn’t say trust me, why?”
“How does someone tell you they want to screw you?”
Alice shrugged her shoulders, “How…?”
“Trust me!” Alex’s face broke, into a huge grin. “Either you trust them or you don’t.” Alice caught on to his logic.
“I guess that you did give them their chance. I was wrong to trust them.”
“Alice, I am proud of you for trying. If we lose the hope of redemption, we are all screwed. You kept your word, and they were the ones that threw away their chance. Ivan and Petra had a fresh start, new identities and over a million dollars between them. They could have invested their money and been very comfortable. I was not going to let them do the same thing all over again.” He could see that Alice was not totally convinced. “Think it over and we can talk about
it later.”
“How is Cherry doing out there?” Alex turned the conversation to Susan.
“Physically she is in good shape, but mentally she took some heavy damage. Cherry will not leave Sarah’s side. She follows her around like a shadow. When Sarah is not around, she sticks to Lynn like glue. She loves the boys and is like a little mother with them. Lynn is teaching her to work with the dogs and it seems to be good therapy. MI helped me find a psychologist that will not turn the whole matter over to the police. I think that she will probably work through things with a lot of help.”
“Good, Nadia has a new sister that will need a lot of help too.”
Susan needed to ask, “What do you think about her coming to the Inn?”
Alex expressed, “Nadia made the choice, and I trust her judgment. Can you trust Nadia?”
“You know that I can. I just can’t help but think that the Inn is turning into a home for troubled young women.”
Alex could not help but laugh, “It is the Amazon Inn after all.”
Lynn was sitting back listening to the conversation, “I think that the troubled young women started with me. I worked through my problems and I am happy to help the others. Shultz loves Cherry and that is a good recommendation in itself. When Sarah is not around, Shultz guards her. He is good therapy for her and she is caring for my pups while I am away.”
“Lynn, how is Shultz?”
“The bullet went under his fur and just grazed the muscle. He is not even limping. When Cherry learned that the people who shot him will never be back she was greatly relieved. All of them were from the general’s operation and she was afraid that they might cause us harm. I told her that we made them disappear forever. Cherry loves the idea that Shultz is her protector.” Lynn gave a little chuckle. “Susan has cut the ‘full service’ down to a minimum and insists that the guests keep their little sex games to the cottages. We are pretty much a high end resort right now. The clientele has changed to rich people looking for a secure retreat.”