by George Nagle
The question was, how had he gotten it all in? Nothing could pass without a battery removal. Unless, maybe, that was the genius part, getting past that force field, or whatever it was, with everything still working.
He made a note to dig deeper and hopefully find a connection to Yan.
He was trying to understand the reference to the X key, as no map or the like was included, when there was a knock on the door. “Come in,” James called.
Korey, the administrative assistant, poked her head in the room. “Can you come with me, please? There’s something you should see.” She had an astonished look on her face.
“I’m about to leave—have to get to work,” James said, which was true. “How long will this take?”
“Trust me, you want to see this.” She turned and left.
James closed the file and grabbed his bag. As they walked, he stuffed the file inside. She led him into the largest gathering room, and when he looked around, his mouth hit the floor.
Tim was standing in the center of the room. Covering the bulk of the light green walls were drawings. Incredibly detailed drawings. It was as though Tim had literally begun snapping a camera when they’d arrived at the fortress and had simply printed his pictures in blue and black ink.
The drawings contained details James had forgotten, like the two standing plants on either side of the bar, but the level of detail went far beyond that. Tim had even put in the hanging glasses over the bar, and James suspected he had the number correct.
James understood Korey’s expression now. Gaping in amazement, he found the main corridors and layout. This was better than any simple floor plan. It even had rooms James had not seen that Tim had written “guess” on. James recalled their conversation in the hotel on the first stage of their trip.
“I think this is okay. Is it okay?” Tim asked. “I mean, I know I didn’t draw each brick for each room. It would have taken me much longer to do so. Obviously, I can if you want. The detail is the easy part …” Tim was speaking very fast and starting to get nervous.
“Tim, no. This is just freaking awesome. My God.” James was still looking at the drawings when Tom and Andy walked in. Tom apparently had already seen them, but Andy was speechless. He looked around while James continued talking to Tim.
“I can’t even begin to tell you how impressed I am. That isn’t even a strong enough word. This is just incredible. You did this in just three days? How?”
Tim smiled so big you could see the bridgework to his back molars. “Obviously, yes, I did all this. But I also finished the office building and car lot like you said.” He pointed at a large stack of sheets on a table. “I would have done more, but that is all you said to do. And my hand started to hurt, too.” Tim cradled his right hand in his left.
“Can I see you in my office, please, James?” Andy asked.
James nodded and turned back to Tim. “This is great,” he repeated fervently. “Thank you so much, Tim. I owe you big time for all this. We’ll have a pizza party soon! I’ll organize it with Scott and get it on the calendar.”
“Oh, can I pick the toppings?” Tim asked excitedly.
“Of course! Whatever you want, buddy,” James said, matching Tim’s tone.
“Well, obviously pepperoni, but we will have to try a lot of different ones. Can I invite anyone I want?” Tim asked.
“Yes, we just have to organize it with Scott. I have to run now. Andy needs me, and I’m going to be late for work. But we’ll do it soon,” James said.
Tim paused a moment and then shook James’s hand with both of his, still smiling.
“Korey, can you let Scott know …” James said, breaking free of Tim’s grip.
“I’ll take care of it,” she said with a smile.
***
Andy was not a heavyset man, but he certainly had a heavy top to him. His broad shoulders and little neck sat upon what had once been a very built chest. It appeared that Andy had neglected to work on his legs, however, as they looked like spindles that could crack at any moment. He had dark grayish eyes and jet black hair that was just starting to gray. His dimpled chin suited his rather round head, and he apparently suffered from eczema, given how his skin always looked.
“Tim is really excited, James.” Andy gestured for James to sit. “You did well with him.”
“I can’t stay. Running late as it is.” James wanted to make it clear that he wanted Andy to get to the point and save the accolades for a different day.
“I see. I’m not going to fund any side projects involving that fortress,” Andy said, getting straight to the point.
James mind exploded with thoughts as it always did. He had his comment ready, but he literally bit his tongue to prevent himself from voicing it. He knew the silence was better.
Andy knew what he was doing. “You can keep your silence, hoping I’ll rethink what I just said. I won’t. I know you had Tim get those drawings together so you could front some type of attack or siege or whatever. I also know you need $115,000 in bonds that we have little chance of recovering, as well as men and equipment.”
James remained silent and stared into Andy’s eyes.
Andy went on. “The objective is Spara, not this trafficking thing. At least not right now. I need your focus on Spara. This is the biggest thing we have going and you’ve been phenomenal, as always. Finish this, and then we move on. Okay?”
James’s mind raced along its spider web paths, recalculating his answer. He came out with, “Okay, Spara is the focus. Got it. I have to run.”
Andy had clearly expected some type of argument. “Oh, okay. Thanks. I’m glad we’re on the same page.”
James headed for the door but stopped. “I’ll be taking Tim’s drawings for safekeeping, as this is still my case. Unless, of course, you’re going to give it to another team that hasn’t been there or established any type of relationship. Speaking of, I don’t think Tim would be willing, nor would he be a smart bet to send back.”
Andy gave a curt nod and closed the door.
James stopped to gather the drawings. The room was empty, so he made short work of it and was off, a solid fifteen minutes behind in a drive that would take ninety minutes.
He made it to Pittsburgh in eighty minutes with a bit of high-speed driving and luck that no police were on Route 22 that day.
Chapter Fourteen
Things were coming together. James made arrangements to see Carissa while doing some upcoming customer visits and training at the Aberdeen office. His colleague Dennis had spoken highly of James’s ability to turn around a critical field trial, and that customer had specifically requested that James be involved from here on out.
James couldn’t help but reflect that he’d really only given the customer what he wanted, a simple enough concept that apparently got lost in the day-to-day flurry of activity for most businesses.
He’d also gotten some preliminary information about Yan that required a trip to the UK. Yan had spent two years at the University of Cambridge studying magnetic fields. It just so happened that the leading researcher in the field, a professor Yan would no doubt have had, was giving a lecture the first week of James’s trip. Attending it would be a great way to gain some insight.
Now it was moving day from his parent’s home to the “Big City,” as his dad called Pittsburgh. His buddy Mark agreed to help. They loaded up James’s rusty Ford Tempo, the trailer on his dad’s truck, and a few things into Mark’s car and set off.
The day was hot. The hottest of the year, and the air conditioning in the Tempo wasn’t the best. Combined with hitting a traffic jam before the Squirrel Hill tunnels made for a long journey, though it was only a hundred miles. When they arrived at the apartment on Brown’s Lane and walked inside, it felt like an oven.
The apartment was a studio on the top floor of an old brick building. Sunshine poured in through two small windows, and the air conditioning unit was shut off. James immediately put down the box he was carrying and turned on the unit to t
ry to cool the place off. That wouldn’t happen until about fourteen hours later, around 6 a.m.
“You would pick the hottest day of the year to move into the hottest damn apartment you could find,” Mark commented, dripping with sweat.
“Whatever. I don’t want to hear about heat and you. You had the heat in the freshmen dorms on so high it felt like this year round,” James retorted.
Mark flipped him off in an amicable sort of way and walked out to get another load.
James’s dad was unstrapping the bed, couch, computer desk, dresser, and two small tables. He worked quietly until they got the first things up to the apartment.
“How much is this place a month?” he asked, but before James could answer, he said, “Never mind, I don’t want to know.” He then sat down on the air conditioner. He would do this for a minute after each load of things they brought up.
Since James didn’t have much, the unloading went quickly. When they finished, they all could have used a shower to cool down, but that wasn’t in the making, since all the towels were being used as packing blankets. Besides, Mark and James were hungry. Mark planned to stay the night, and James was taking him to dinner.
“We’re starving. Want to grab some food, Dad?” James pointed to his own wallet to indicate he was paying.
“Not really, no. I want to get back on the road and home. Besides, the A/C in my truck works a lot better than this thing.” He patted the unit he was once again sitting on.
They said goodbye downstairs, and his dad was off. Then James and Mark walked to a small shopping center next to the apartment building. Entering the mall doors felt amazing as they got a blast of frozen air. They both gave a sigh of relief, then laughed to see the other one doing the same thing. They had spent so much time together they were as much brothers as friends.
They grabbed some pizza from the café and talked about a lot of nothing for an hour, enjoying the well-earned break, then decided to buy some fabric to cover the windows.
That turned out to be a disaster. They had no idea on the size and guessed. Since they didn’t know how to hang curtains, they did some on-the-spot engineering until the windows were mostly covered. It took them well over an hour and the sun beat directly on them the entire time.
“Can it get any hotter?” Mark kept asking.
James snapped back, “Yes, every time you say something.”
This merely started an argument. After getting the covers up, they decided to go to the grocery store to get refreshments and cool off again. When they got back, the apartment was slightly less hot. Then they got to work, unpacking.
Mostly they worked in silence with the radio in the background. It was too hot to sleep, so they ended up working through the night until everything was done and even James’s “big ass” computer desk was in place. They both grabbed quick showers and crashed as the sun came up.
It had been an irritating sort of day, James thought as he dropped off to sleep, but he recognized that Mark was a true friend to stick with him until the job was done. As he often did, James dreamed.
He was dropping to his knees and reaching for something in dim light. He felt happy, but shouldn’t. There were footsteps coming as he grasped what he needed and started to come out from behind the curtain-like cloth …
After a few hours of crappy sleep, James and Mark got up. They fixed the windows properly and went out for breakfast, and then Mark headed for home. Alone at last, James called Carissa, who had tried to call him twice since he’d left his parents.
“Well, hello there, how’s you?” came her sweet voice on the other end of the phone.
“Brilliant. How are you, beautiful?” James melted inside at the sound of her voice.
Carissa gave a little giggle he had not previously heard. “I wager not many have seen how adorable you are.”
“I am not taking that one; the odds are stacked against me, and as far as I’m concerned, you are the only person deserving to see it,” James said in a sheepish tone.
“Love, you have no idea how that makes me feel to hear you say that. And I truly believe that is how you feel, too. Thank you.” She made a kissing sound over the phone.
James paused for a moment, letting that feeling he was starting to associate with her wash over him. It was a sensation like a slightly too warm day, but with a gentle breeze blowing over him, creating that perfect feeling of contentment and relaxation.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to take your calls. I hope it wasn’t anything urgent.”
“Actually, John, I do need something, and it is a bit urgent,” Carissa said.
James snapped immediately to attention. “Risa, what’s wrong?”
Carissa laughed. “Nothing is wrong, Love, but tae be honest, it’s nice tae hear you almost spring through the phone tae help. You know I have the opportunity and such with the bank, yeah?”
James relaxed slightly. “Aye.”
“Well, they want me tae move a bit faster than I was thinking they would.”
“I don’t blame them. They don’t want to lose you now that they have you. Smart lot,” James said.
Carissa paused a moment. “Makes this easier tae ask you now that you say that. Would you want a flat mate for a bit until I can find something else? I will pay the full rent for the time I am with ya and me stuff will go tae storage. I know you travel all the time so I thought this would be all right all around, you know.” She said all of this without taking a breath.
“Wow,” James said to give himself extra time. His brain had already spider webbed in its decision path, and he was surprised at his extreme emotional response. To make this work, he’d need to establish a place and the utilities under John’s name. That part was simple. Paying for it was another matter, as he tried to avoid tapping into resources he had access to for non-operational things. He was perfectly free to use funds as he saw fit, but still. However, if she were covering the rent, then he just had the other bills.
The hesitation in his response was emotional on two fronts. He wanted to say yes with every inch of him, and for all the right reasons, but she still thought he was John. This didn’t seem the right time to tell her otherwise, but if not now, when? The longer they saw each other, the harder it would be to tell her and for her to accept it.
“I’m sorry if that is tae much. No worries, I will manage something. Just thought ... Anyhow, how is your ...” Carissa had taken his three seconds of silence incorrectly.
Interrupting her, James said with a frog in his throat, “I think it’s a brilliant idea, and I truly would love for nothing more.”
“John,” she said slowly and James actually cringed. He felt uncustomarily guilty that she didn’t know his real name.
“Are you sure? I don’t want tae pressure you. I understand if you are not comfortable with this.”
“When are you moving in?” James asked.
Silence followed by a slight sniff.
“Are you crying? There’s no reason to cry,” James said.
Carissa laughed and said, “No, I am not having a cry. I was having a think for a mo’ and my nose itched. I am not a basket case type. Is that the kinda of girls you like?”
“Cheeky. Well then, my fair lady, I think we are in agreement. When are you moving?”
“I was thinking on that and want tae do it whilst you are home over a weekend. And if you can help that would be just about the best thing ever.”
“’Course. Want to do it the first weekend I am back, early Saturday morn’?” On the other end of the line, James heard a door slam in the background.
“Perfect. I have tae run, Love, but we can get the smaller stuff out of the way later. Judy doesn’t normally slam doors, but she just returned from hospital, so I don’t think it was good news.”
“Right. Talk soon then, Risa.” James was glad to end the call, as he would have had to do some fancy talking to avoid giving the address he didn’t yet have.
“Bye, Love,” Carissa said gently before the li
ne went silent.
This was one of those times that being a member of the group was extremely useful. James placed a phone call to Korey and explained that he needed a one-bedroom apartment furnished with a few basics in a decent part of Aberdeen, preferably newer construction, under his alias of John Arthur Boyd. He also asked her to specifically select places where the neighbors kept mostly to themselves.
Korey called back asking for birthplace information for John, which caught James by surprise. He said to list the place of birth at Glencoe but to say the family homestead was at Inverbervie. He explained John would have traveled a lot as a child.
The next day, he called Carissa and gave her the address. He wouldn’t actually see the apartment until he arrived himself, but he would have a few days to get whatever he needed and make the place seem reasonably lived in.
With these essential details taken care of, James finally began to relax. Yes, things were falling into place.
***
The next day at work, James was speaking with his boss, Todd, about how to best position two new thermodynamic fluids. They ran through a few different points, including the current market, how the company’s current chemicals were perceived, and where the value-add really was from the customer’s point of view.
The two men had differing viewpoints in a few areas. James was trying to stay respectful in the discussion, but his argument was logical and it was frustrating arguing against phrases like “I feel” or “In the past.” They had just finished talking about pricing and had agreed it should be done based on the market, not cost, when Todd gave a deep sigh.
“I think it’s time we terminate this internship,” he said.
James sat up, rather shocked. “But wait, why?”
Todd raised his eyebrows and began to speak just as James quickly cut in. “I have to say, that seems harsh. I realize this is your business and your call, but you asked what I thought. And it isn’t like there were others in the room as we talked. I will do what you think is best, but …” James was surprised to hear Todd chuckle.