The Protector

by Dawn Marie Snyder

  “If its ok with you, I will sleep on the couch,” he answered back from where he sat on the couch.

  “Suit yourself, but the bed is probably a lot more comfortable.”

  “I just think it would be wise to be closer to the door in case anything happens.” He moved from the couch and put his dish in the sink next to mine. As he did so, his hand touched mine and I shivered as that electric shock pulsed through every vein in my body. I had come to the conclusion I was nuts. I immediately looked at his face to see if he had the same reaction as I did. But he only looked away and quickly put his hand in the pocket of his faded jeans.

  I didn’t argue with him and quickly jogged upstairs to get some spare blankets and pillows for him. As I came back down with my arms full of blankets and pillows, he was sitting on the couch with his computer turned on.

  He jumped up and met me at the bottom of the stairs and took the blankets from my arms. “Thank you. I hope you don’t mind, I noticed you had a wireless router, I need to get online.”

  “Do you want my password?”

  Jack shook his head. “No, was pretty easy to figure out.”

  I wasn’t shocked by his revelation as his shock factor was fading slowly. I turned to walk back upstairs but stopped at the base of the stairs, “Um, I do want to go to the funeral tomorrow. You are more than welcome to join us if you would like. I just wasn’t sure if you were serious earlier about going.”

  Jack had thrown the blankets onto the couch and returned to the computer. “I was serious. He was a friend too.” He returned his focus to the computer in front of him and said nothing else. I shook my head and turned to walk upstairs. But stopped halfway and turned back around.

  10 Coffee Break

  “How long is this going to last Jack? I gave you the processor, can’t this just end here and now?”

  I didn’t look up from the computer and I didn’t hesitate in my response, “No. Unfortunately, they are still looking for it and they want it. I will not hand it over to them until I know you are safe. Their only option right now is to steal it, which puts you in more danger.” I wanted to be honest with her about that. Conway and Seth had made little progress in finding out who was after the processor. The only thing they had done was calm the Israeli’s nerves. It had been decided that once we knew who had caused this whole mess, we would give them the processor. Until then, it remained in my hands. And until I knew Alison was completely safe, she was stuck with me whether she liked it or not.

  “Great. So what happens next?” There was exasperation in her voice. I knew she was annoyed with the situation and exhausted. She had given me the processor and in her eyes it was all over.

  This time I looked up from the computer screen to answer her question. She was sitting on the bottom step of the stairs her chin in her hands. “We think that they will eventually contact you and offer you a hell of a lot of money for the processor. When they do, we will find out who it is. In the mean time you are stuck with me. I’m sorry.”

  She looked amazingly beautiful sitting there in the soft light. She leaned against the light oak railing of the staircase and took in my words. Her eyebrows came closer together as she contemplated them.

  “We could do this another way?” I wanted to challenge her thought process. I wanted her to know that there were other options and I was pretty sure they were options she wouldn’t consider.

  Alison’s head shot up and she looked at me with question. “How?”

  “We could stick you in witness protection program until we catch these guys. And there is no promise you could come back to your old life. You would have to give up everything.” I knew she wouldn’t like this scenario at all and watched as horror once again came across her face.

  She stood up from where she sat and walked over to where I was. “That isn’t an option and you know it. How could you even suggest that? My family, my job, my friends.” She rambled on for a few minutes and I let her vent her frustration and anger at me. I stood up and looked down and saw the fear she carried and I could feel its intensity radiate off her body like heat. She was scared and unsure of what was going on. And she was stuck with me, a man she hardly knew, to protect her.

  She didn’t have tears in her eyes as she looked up at me. I was so close I wanted to hold her. I had been taught over the years to keep my distance from the subjects I was watching or protecting. But I had thrown all this training out the window as I got to know her. She pulled me in and my mind wrapped around everything that was her. I didn’t think this made me weak, as Seth did. I thought her presence made me stronger and more willing to do what it took to protect her. I couldn’t read her mind, but was beginning to feel a connection to her thoughts and her actions. This was something I had never felt before with anyone. As I looked deeper into her eyes, I had to distance myself.

  “Well then, you are stuck with me aren’t you?” My voice was hard and cold in response to her. No matter how I felt about her, Seth was right about one thing, I needed to distance my feelings for her and not let her see what she did to me. She tilted her head and looked at me in bewilderment. She sucked in air and blew it out.

  I knew this was the end of our conversation. She turned and stormed out of the room up the stairs. I did what was right and I knew it, I just hated it. I wanted to desperately follow behind her and tell her I was sorry but I couldn’t and I wouldn’t.

  I tossed and turned all night on her couch and finally gave up on trying to sleep. I wandered through her kitchen looking for coffee and filters. It was interesting what you could discover about a person by glancing in their kitchen or bathroom cabinets. She wasn’t a neat freak, but everything had a place. As I looked in her freezer, out of pure curiosity, I saw she had quite a stash of Hostess cupcakes. I smiled at this and filed it away for future reference. I was a firm believer that most women had a chocolate obsession, and I had just discovered hers.

  I made a fresh pot of coffee and walked outside into her backyard as the sun came up over the Sandia Mountains. Clouds had moved in during the night and there was a pink tint to them as the sun came up from behind them.

  I heard the door open and saw Alison walk out carrying two cups of coffee in her hands. She handed one to me. She wore grey pajama bottoms and a long sleeve white shirt. Her hair was down around her shoulders. She was almost as breathtaking as the sunrise I had been watching. We stood there in silence for a few minutes and watched the sky grow lighter and lighter.

  “Probably one of the most beautiful sunrises I have ever seen,” I commented taking a sip of the coffee she gave me. It was strong and potent, just how I liked it. I looked over at her cup and it was black like mine. Nothing was there to dilute it.

  “And you’ve been all over the world?” she took a sip of her coffee and tried desperately not to look up at me. I wished at that moment she would have. I wanted to see the intensity in her eyes.

  I nodded my head. “Azores.”

  She turned and looked at me with confusion, “Azores?”

  “They have the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets. You should go sometime.”

  She nodded her head. “So I’ve heard.” She remained quiet after that.

  I could tell she was still upset from our conversation last night, and I didn’t want to rehash that but I needed to talk to her about the processor she had handed me last night.

  “I need more coffee I’ll be right back.” I walked back into the house and filled my coffee cup and grabbed one of the blankets that was on the couch. Alison had taken a seat on one of the lounge chairs on her patio. It faced the mountains and the view was spectacular. This little place had to have cost her a fortune and it was well worth the money as far as I was concerned.

  I held the blanket out for her and she took it quickly. I took the seat next to her but didn’t lean back. “Alison, do you realize the importance of the processor you gave me?”

  “It’s a satellite processor, I’m guessing. Tom talked a lot about the Israeli’s wanting
to put up a communications satellite. They would build it and NASA would launch it. I think they did that a few years ago. I know Sandia played a role in the technology on board the thing.”

  “Do you know what the ARROW Interceptor is?” She looked at me and then looked away as she thought about it. She had to know, not only because of her clearance but also because of the work she had done at Georgetown about information sharing and the consequences of it falling into the wrong hands.

  “It’s a missile defense system developed for Israel with our help isn’t it?

  I nodded my head. “How much do you know about it?”

  “Just that we helped the Israeli’s develop it and it is supposed to intercept incoming targets, theoretically like our proposed Star Wars system.” She looked at me puzzled now not sure how this was all tied together. Then it was as if a light bulb went on in her head. “Was that processor for Israel’s system?” She shook her head in disagreement with herself. “It can’t be. That system has been up for a while. Matter of fact they just did a test on it down out at White Sands in 2007. Tom went and observed.”

  “Did you know that they did a test a few months ago on a system that targets the upper atmosphere?”

  She shook her head no. “I know Tom went down south for some missile tests, but I thought it had to do with our system in development.” Her brows furrowed as she contemplated everything.

  It was as I had suspected, Tom kept Alison in the dark about most of it. “Did you hear about the two satellites that collided a few months ago.”

  “Yeah, debris fell over Texas. Bunch of idiots thought they were seeing UFO’s. It was all over the news.” I smiled as she remembered the news reports.

  “It was an intentional collision.” I could tell she was absorbing everything I was telling her and coming to her own conclusions.

  “How could that be?” She finally took the blanket I had put at her feet and wrapped it around her body. Although Spring had come to Albuquerque, it was still fairly cool in the mornings.

  “Simple, the Russian satellite intentionally hit an Israeli defense satellite that went up on the last shuttle mission.”

  Her eyes grew wide in disbelief. “I’m a little confused here Jack. First, it was a US communication satellite that went up in the shuttle. One of our processors was on that. Second how does one Satellite intentionally hit another?”

  “Alison, trust me it was an Israeli Defense Satellite that went up. It was something new designed to combat the threat of long range missiles from countries that have become increasingly friendly to Iran And yes, the Satellite could easily have been steered in that direction.”

  Alison put her cup of coffee down on the table beside her chair and looked at me in total disbelief. “So let me guess, the processor Tom had me deliver was to go into the new satellite that is set to replace the satellite that was taken down. So is it the Russians, Iranians, who did I give the processor to?”

  “Right now we are not sure. We think it was the Iranians who wanted the processor for their own program. But they will not claim responsibility, nor will they pursue you on it. There are a few other options we are looking into.” I didn’t want to tell her but I was beginning to think it was an inside job. There were many within our own government who did not want to see Israel succeed with this new upgraded system. If they couldn’t stop it on a funding level, then some would do what they could to stop the handing over of technology.

  “So why me? Why did Tom have me deliver it? I don’t get it.”

  I honestly didn’t know the answer to her question. We still had not figured out why Tom had sent Alison in his place. “I don’t know. I honestly don’t know why he did it.”

  Alison sat there in silence. The sun was up over the mountain now and a light breeze had picked up. She looked extremely cold sitting there. “Come on, let’s go in.” I held out my hand for her and waited until she grabbed it to help her up.

  “Thank you,” she mumbled.

  I felt bad that I didn’t have the answers to her questions. I also felt bad not knowing what the future would hold in the next few days. The only thing I was grateful for was being close to her. I didn’t let go of her hand until we walked back into the house. She walked over to the coffee pot and filled up her cup again. She held out the pot and I let her fill my cup once again.

  “I don’t mean to sound crass, but what time is the funeral?”

  “Do you want to go?” She looked at me in shock. “I, I didn’t think you would want to go. I didn’t think you would let me go.”

  “I could use a little communion with Christ,” I said with a smile on my face. And I wanted to get a look at everyone who was there. I was hoping someone with some answers would show up to the funeral.

  11 Funerals

  Tom’s funeral was held in a small Catholic Church in Old Town Albuquerque. It was one of the oldest Catholic Churches in the Southwest and rich with colonial New Mexico history. The tan adobe structure sat in the middle of the plaza which was busy with tourist activity. It hardly seemed appropriate for a funeral, but Tom was fond of the old Church and spent every Sunday attending mass and helping out his fellow parishioners. The pews were still old dry wooden benches that parishioners sat in every Sunday for Mass. Although I knew they weren’t original to the church, they had been around since the times of the horse and buggy. A large wooden Crucifix hung above the white marble Altar. The only ornate features of the church were the century old Stations of the Cross carvings that hung all along the church wall. And ironically the only thing young in the church was the Priest who stood at the front telling of a man I thought I knew well. The small church overflowed with people from the Labs and from Tom’s life outside of work. He was an active member in his community and a friend to many.

  It wasn’t a very long mass but it served to remember the man who had accomplished a lot down at the Labs. I was even more shocked to see all the people who had not attended the Mass, but went to the grave side service. I watched Jack throughout the services and although his focus was on the service, his eyes were everywhere, observing everyone. Most of the people I easily recognized from work. The director of the Labs was there as was half of management. His accomplishments were almost as many as his friends. Although he was not married, his sister and his niece, of whom he always bragged about were there. I was relieved to see that the circumstances surrounding his death, did nothing to stop the celebration of his life.

  Prior to the funeral I had not had time to mourn or miss the man I had grown to respect, admire and learn from. He had been my mentor out at the Labs and someone who always tried to do the right thing. This is why none of what was going on made any sense. The swapping of technology with Israel was important to Tom. The guarantee of a strong Israel was something he felt strongly about. He did not have Palestinian sympathies, all though he did feel that some kind of compromise could be worked out for all. He used to describe himself as idealistic when it came to Middle East peace. He would lecture me that there was always away to live in harmony. And when he would go off on these tangents, I would sweetly call him my hippie man who was working in the wrong industry.

  The tears flowed freely as I watched the service next to Jack. Although I knew his eyes were scanning the crowd, he occasionally would look over and smile at me. At one point, as the tears came down in a constant steady stream, he reached over and pulled me closer to him in a hug. I didn’t shun away, but accepted his offer of support and leaned my body against his. This was not something missed by my friend Stacy or her husband who stood next to us at the cemetery. A quizzical look formed across her brow as she watched our exchange. I knew that I would get the third degree at some point when she could get me alone and away from Jack.

  The last few days had been a complete blur to me. I was still trying to process all that had happened in Tel Aviv and all that Jack had told me about earlier in the morning. I still was not entirely convinced that Tom knew what was going on. Maybe he didn’t? Maybe
sending me was a test and it backfired and now he was dead.

  I didn’t know what to think or really how to process everything around me. We decided not to go to the reception after the graveside service. Stacy had reminded us all several times after the funeral mass that she just couldn’t cry anymore. It was too much for her. I watched the astonishment on Jack’s face every time Stacy opened her mouth. Both Ted and I knew how exceedingly self-centered Stacy could be and we usually ignored it. But Jack was new to her and well it was sort of humorous to watch someone else react to her.

  We did decide to go eat after the funeral which surprised me. I watched him intently as he followed Ted and Stacy in my car. He followed far enough back I noticed that if we needed to disappear Ted and Stacy would not know any different.

  “What?” he finally asked with a smirk on his face.

  “I thought I was under house arrest.” The tone in my voice was serious, and I turned my head as I spoke to him.

  “No.” He took a deep breath in and took the same turn Ted had taken moments earlier. I knew where we were going, we had no choice in the matter. Stacy wanted a Margarita from her favorite place and nothing was going to deter her from that. “You’re safe right now. They didn’t find the processor at your house. I think they are regrouping, we are good for a few days.”

  “Few days huh?” There wasn’t much confidence in my voice.

  “Look I still don’t know who killed Tom or exactly why. Until then you are still in some danger. Mike and Seth know I have the processor and we are doing everything in our power to keep you safe.” His voice was serious as we pulled into the restaurant parking lot.

  “So, no house arrest?” This time I looked up at him.

  “No, not yet anyway,” he smiled as he pulled into a space a few down from where Ted had parked. “I won’t let anything happen to you Alison. I promise you that.” He was resolute in his statement and I knew he was being honest with me. And remarkably I felt safe with him. “Shall we?” He asked as he opened the driver’s door.