“That was lovely, Jacob.”
“Thank you, Gabrielle.”
Judy had been touched by the simplicity and sincerity of his words, but she could not bring herself to voice it. Instead she said, “I’ll fix a strong pot of coffee and throw together some lunch before we reconnoiter.”
“Great, dear. I have some phone calls to make.” They both looked at her quizzically.
“Travel arrangements,” was all she said.
They both nodded. Judy used her key to let them into Kenann’s apartment. Judy went to the kitchen and Jake followed her while Mrs. Gage began her calls.
“Can I help?”
“Yeah, sure. Check out the fridge and cupboards to see what our options are. Kenann’s never been known for her cooking skills.” She started out with a smile but then her face screwed up and the tears spilled over onto her cheeks. Jake’s big hand rested lightly on her shoulder. His instincts told him she would feel too threatened if he tried to hold her.
“She’ll be all right. Andy was telling you the truth. They won’t let any harm come to Kenann.”
“I know but what if she’s scared?”
“Danny Mac can be a formidable force to reckon with if need be. And thanks to his new heart in Jesus he will take pains to comfort Kenann if she is frightened.”
“You really love him, don’t you?”
“Like a son. I was so proud he came to me when he needed someone. He was hurting from all the years of killing and deceit his job called him to do. When he showed up on my doorstep here in Memphis, I hardly recognized him.”
Jake could see it again clearly. He had walked in without saying a word, sat down on the couch and leaned forward, arms on his knees, hands clasped, his handsome dark face staring at the floor. They sat in silence for a long while. Jake had given him all the time he needed. He finally broke the silence with, “I can’t take it anymore.” His voice was flat and lifeless. He poured out all the poison filling his heart. He talked until it turned dark outside. Purged and emotionally spent, he fell asleep on Jake’s couch. Jake had covered him with an afghan his late wife had made still draped across the back of the couch. Jake sat in silent vigil with him while he slept, offering up prayers for his peace of mind. Most of all, he wanted him to come to know the Prince of Peace.
“Judy, Danny Mac’s heart was healed.”
She met his steady gaze and knew what he was saying to her. Mrs. Gage had come to stand beside Jake. Her loving expression mirrored Jake’s. Judy sighed.
“It takes a lot of energy to keep certain things at bay.” Mrs. Gage nodded. Judy went on. “Kenann deserves the best I have to offer her. And right now, it takes everything I have to hold it together.”
She sat down at the table and looked up at them through eyes shimmering with tears.
“We know dear. Let us help you carry this burden. It will make it easier, I promise you.”
Suddenly all her vows to keep her past locked tightly behind doors of steel seemed ludicrous. She wanted free of it and its power over her. She said simply, “Okay.”
Jake and Mrs. Gage sat after Jake had filled coffee mugs for all of them. Judy looked at them and took a deep breath.
“My preacher asked me to go on a mission trip with him to Europe after I graduated from High School. There were two other women of the congregation going too so I readily agreed.” She stopped for another deep inhalation of breath before plunging on.
“He raped me repeatedly throughout the summer.” Mrs. Gage grabbed Jake’s hand as if to steady herself. She knew Judy did not want to be touched as she relived that horrid time.
“The first time I was so shocked I couldn’t function. I stayed in my room curled in a fetal position and threw up anything the women tried to get me to eat. I didn’t know what to think or what to do. The women pressed him to get me to a doctor. On the way he basically blackmailed me into silence. My Dad was an elder and he threatened to ruin my family if I said anything. Now I can see how foolish I was not to blow the whistle on that jerk but at seventeen, I didn’t know much of anything. He was such a slime ball. He said God had created his drives and knew he needed this from me in order to continue God’s work. I tried everything I knew to stay away from him, but he managed to manipulate things to get me alone.”
She remembered her parents concern when she came home sullen and hollow eyed. They considered it pre-college nerves and didn’t press her to talk. When she left a week later for the university, she felt she was escaping the nightmare. She shut the door on that summer never to open it again. She quickly earned the reputation as the Iron Maiden. She had to keep such Herculean control over her emotions in order to keep that door shut that soon it became second nature. Kenann had recognized and accepted this need in Judy and forged a friendship in spite of it. One of the only real friends Judy had. And now it was time to repay Kenann for never asking anything of her except to simply be her friend. Remembering Kenann’s unconditional acceptance of her, broke down the last vestige of her wall and at last her emotions flooded out. Her tears began to flow freely down her face. Jake got up and came to kneel at her side. She turned in her chair to face him and he took her hands in his.
“Sweetheart, what happened to you can’t change the core of you. The part that is really you. God loves you. That’s just who He is.” He paused. “And I love you.”
She felt swamped by the warmth pouring from him. She whispered in a choked voice, “I was a virgin,” as sobs wracked her body.
Jake wrapped her in his big arms and she clung to him like a child. Mrs. Gage encircled them with her arms and laid her cheek on the top of Judy’s head. When the sobbing quieted, Mrs. Gage slowly turned her and dried her tears with the cool silk of her blouse tail. Words poured from Judy in a stream.
“My parents couldn’t understand why I quit going to church. Once they asked if I had turned communist.” This produced a watery laugh. “Pretty soon I made excuses not to come home. Nursing school is demanding so I could hide behind that. Made top of my class with all that concentration. Then once I started working, I took all the overtime they would give me. It’s worked until now. I know my attitude is not really healthy, but it was the only way I knew to survive. But now Kenann needs me. I’ve got to be strong for her.”
She took a steadying breath and finished. “I’ll need your help.”
She clasped Mrs. Gage’s hand and turned to capture one of Jake’s.
“Sure thing, honey.” Jake’s smile made anything seem possible. Mrs. Gage spoke. “Judy, you are going to feel a little shaky for a while. Please talk to us. Don’t close up again. We’ll help you through whatever you’re feeling, okay?”
“If you are sure I won’t be a burden with everything else we have to worry about.”
“This will be new territory for all of us, honey. We’ve just got to trust and depend on each other.”
As if on cue, Jake and Mrs. Gage drew their hands together over Judy’s, forming a pact. Judy smiled the smile of a happy child.
“Okay, Chief. Where do we start?” she looked at Mrs. Gage.
“We leave Tuesday morning. I’ve arranged private transport to Alexandria. This will give time for you to take a leave of absence and call your parents to let them know you are taking a long-deserved vacation. We need to tell Kenann’s employers something first thing in the morning. Remember she had her first client tomorrow at 9:00. We’ll think of something. Jacob, you and I will discuss weaponry.”
Jake choked on the sip of coffee he had just put in his mouth. “Now Gabrielle...”
She cut him off. “We are all very tired now. Let us return to my home where there is ample space and provisions. After a long nap for all of us we can discuss things with clearer minds. Agreed?” They nodded obediently.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Danny Mac watched Angelo approach from under hooded eyes. Angelo stood for several seconds and finally pulled back his foot to deliver a brutal kick. In one swift, fluid movement, Danny Mac pulled back his
outstretched legs and stood to the side of the couch out of reach. When Angelo’s leg met no resistance, the momentum flipped him onto his back in the middle of the room.
His companions laughed raucously as they bent over him. One of them chided him,
“When will you learn, this Lion has sharp teeth.” Angelo scrambled to his feet and went for Danny Mac, but the men restrained him.
They continued in Arabic to Danny Mac, “Tell your lady to put on the belt. We are landing.”
Kenann had been awakened by the noise and sat up rubbing her eyes. Danny Mac was struck by her child like nature and yet again felt a pang of guilt for getting her involved. He gently turned her around and fastened her belt and then secured his own. She was fully awake now.
“Where are we?”
“I’m not sure.” He posed this same question to the guards.
“You will discover soon enough I suppose. We are in Alexandria,” they supplied. Danny Mac thanked him. The man nodded. Danny Mac decided to try again with Angelo.
“You know, Angelo, it looks like we will be working together again. How about a truce?” His only reply was to make the motion of spitting on the floor.
So much for that thought Danny. Yet he kept hearing the admonition to love your enemies. If Angelo did not fit that description no one ever would.
‘Lord, show me how this works. I know I don’t have to like my enemies but show me how to love him.’
Their arrival was uneventful. They were passed through Customs with minimal inquiries. They obviously had papers for them. A nondescript van was waiting to receive them. The only luggage belonged to their captors and since they were on private transport, they did not have to wait with the other travelers to receive their bags. Danny Mac held Kenann’s elbow as she stepped into the van. He felt her trembling slightly and slid in beside her pulling her over next to him with a friendly jostle.
“So, have you ever been to Egypt?” She knew what he was trying to do, and she appreciated it.
“Actually, I have. I was 12. I think I imagined myself a reincarnated princess. I had a dream about it and for years I liked to tell myself that dream was a vision.”
“Maybe it was.”
“Don’t make fun of me.”
“I’m not. You’ve been around the world enough to know there are many things that cannot be explained away.”
“Well, how do you reconcile that to your fundamental religion?”
“It’s not my religion, Kenann.”
“You know what I mean.”
“God is an awesome God. There are mysteries in the spiritual realm we will never understand until heaven and maybe not even then. I don’t usually rule anything out completely.”
“Keep talking like that and they’re gonna kick you out of your little preacher club.”
He raised his hand that had been lying comfortably across her shoulder and pulled her hair. Their captors remained silent, so they took the opportunity to look at the city. Danny Mac pointed out the Quaitbay Fort built on the site of the famous Pharos Lighthouse which had been one of the Seven Wonders of the World. He told her about the ancient library that was destroyed by fire in the 5th century that was believed to house literature on Troy and even Atlantis.
They pulled up in front of the Metropole Hotel. Kenann still wore Danny Mac’s tuxedo jacket over her evening dress. Her hair was lying in loose curls across her shoulders. Danny Mac’s dark skin against his white shirt made him look attractively native. As they made their way through the lobby, other guest wondered at their identity. They obviously had enjoyed a long night of revelry and they must be important to be surrounded by bodyguards. They came off the elevator and were ushered into a suite. Danny Mac and Kenann stood in the middle of the room waiting expectantly.
They did not have to wait long. The door opened and a woman in black robe and veil entered. Her movements were seductive despite the traditional attire. She moved within a few feet of Danny Mac before she stopped. She slowly and deliberately began removing the veils and slipping the robe off one shoulder, she then allowed it to pool at her feet. The woman exuded style in her white blouse with gray silk trousers. She was stunning. Long, sleek black hair. Almond eyes and flawless olive skin.
Danny Mac lightly squeezed Kenann’s hand that he had continued to hold. She wondered if it was to reassure her or simply a reaction to this woman’s impact.
“Hello, Danny Boy.” Her voice was deep and mellow. No real accent that Kenann could detect. These two obviously knew each other. And from the look in her eyes they had known each other very well.
“Hello, Katerina.” His voice was flat and without emotion.
“I’ve missed you.” She moved slowly and sensuously toward Danny Mac. She stopped so close Kenann cocked her head and lifted an eyebrow. You couldn’t slide a piece of paper between them. Danny Mac continued to hold Kenann’s hand as he made direct and steady eye contact with Katerina.
Completely ignoring Kenann, Katerina ran her hands over Danny Mac’s chest and encircled his neck. She was only slightly shorter than Danny and had no trouble leaning forward and covering his lips with her own. Despite his lack of response, she made the kiss very convincing. When she released him, she looked down her nose to Kenann’s much shorter position and sneered, “Who is this child, Danny Boy?”
Before Kenann had a moment to consider her precarious situation she smiled brilliantly up at Danny Mac and said, “Honey, you were right. She really is pathetic.”
A blur of movement and Kenann’s forearm blocked the vicious slap aimed at her face. Danny Mac had executed his own lightening quick block and found his hand covering Kenann’s. The look of easy affection that passed between them sealed Katerina’s rage into granite.
“Enough! Take them away,” she barked to the men standing nearby. Danny Mac and Kenann turned to go with the men who had accompanied them from America. Katerina called to Danny Mac and spoke to him in Arabic.
“Keep a muzzle on her lest I lose my patience.”
He answered her in Arabic, his voice low and menacing.
“This arrangement is of your own making, Katerina. She stays healthy and happy or it is over. You will do well to remember that.”
“Do you threaten me?”
“I speak the truth.” He turned and taking Kenann’s elbow, guided her into the hallway. Katerina slammed the door behind them. They proceeded in silence down the corridor, flanked front and back by the men until they stopped at another room. They were ushered inside and left alone. Kenann heard the sound of a traditional key locking them inside. Daniel went to the window that looked out onto a plaza. He surveyed the iron bars over the windows designed to keep people out but was just as efficient in keeping them in.
When he turned back into the room, he found Kenann standing very still watching him. He stepped toward her.
“Are you okay?”
“I think so. What now?”
“We wait.”
She nodded and swayed on her feet. He lifted her into his arms as her legs gave out beneath her. She uttered an expletive.
“Sorry, Danny. I hate a swooning woman.”
“You’re entitled, Kenann. I’d say you’ve been a trooper. Hey, by the way. Where did you learn to block a blow like that?” He sat in a chair still holding her across his lap. She was limp with exhaustion. She laid her cheek against his chest and murmured, “Oh, my Dad’s assistant had his black belt. He became my private Sensei as we traveled around the world.”
Danny Mac smiled. He sensed her breathing evening out as she drifted off to sleep. When he was sure she was sleeping soundly he gathered her close and rocked her gently. He wasn’t sure if it was for her or for himself.
* * *
Refreshed from four hours sleep at Mrs. Gage’s mansion, the trio gathered once more around a small table in the breakfast nook off the kitchen.
“What’s our game plan, Mrs. Gage? I don’t mind telling you, I’m feeling out of my league here.”
Desp
ite her concern for their impending adventure, Judy felt freer and more alive than she could ever remember.
“Well, we will approach much of it as it comes. But there are some things we can know and work on now. We know they’ve gone to Alexandria. Since people on both sides would recognize us if we show up and wander through the city, we shall have to assume disguises.
Judy and Jake exchanged glances.
“I’m afraid I shall have to exploit your beauty, my dear. I know in light of your recent revelations this may be difficult for you.”
“I meant what I said about doing whatever I could to get Kenann back. Now that I’ve let the demons out, so to speak, I feel,” she hesitated, “I don’t know, less vulnerable I guess.”
“Wonderful dear. Because your beauty will be a valuable tool, but I wouldn’t want to hurt you in any way.”
“Hey bring it on. I feel like taking on the whole world thanks to you two.” She looked at them and beamed.
“I am so glad. We’ll get you a wig, so you won’t have to dye that lovely hair.”
“What about me?” Jake asked.
“You my handsome man will be a dashing American tourist. And I’m afraid hair dye is in your future. Men simply cannot pull off the look of a wig.”
“And you?’ Judy asked.
“Me? I think I’ll don lots of those mysterious veils and robes. There is absolutely no reason we can’t have fun while we fight terrorists and save the day.”
Judy and Jake joined Mrs. Gage in a hearty laugh.
* * *
When no one returned to the room, Danny Mac pulled back the covers of the large bed and laid Kenann down pulling the covers over her. It was then he remembered the gun and GPS in Kenann’s jacket pocket. He reached for them but then realized their movements might be on video monitor. He got under the covers next to Kenann and gently pulled her to him without waking her. He was successful in retrieving both items and slipping them under his pillow surreptitiously. He could only hope and pray that Andy was on his way and could listen in as soon as he was in range. He lay back and finally succumbed to the bone numbing weariness. He was asleep in less than a minute.
Once, a Long Time Ago Page 8