The Protector

by Dawn Marie Snyder

“Confused, Jack.”

  As we said this we heard a car driving through the campground slowly. Jack grabbed my arm and slammed the car door, “Run.”

  “What? I thought you said.”

  “I know but until I know this is all on the up and up, I want you to hide in the bushes.”

  “The gun? It’s in the car.”

  “You won’t need it.”

  “Jack?” We ran a short ways into the woods. It was dense enough that we could see the campground, but they would have a hard time finding us. There was a faint sound behind us, I guessed it was the rush of water. But I wasn’t sure.

  “I want you to stay here. If something goes wrong, I want you to run along the water down there. It runs right by a bunch of campsites back there. Find one with people and tell them your husband was trying to hurt you. Then get a hold of Seth.” Jack handed me the cell phone which I shoved into my back pocket.

  Panic overtook me as we waited for the mysterious black car to show up. I could feel my pulse quicken and my body began to shake. I was overjoyed that I didn’t have the gun. I probably would have shot myself accidently anyway, complicating matters even more.

  “Sonny,” I heard his sweet voice next to me. I was so concerned with watching for the car, I didn’t realize how close he truly was to me. I felt his hand on my arm and I turned to look at him. His eyes were still the sweet golden color. “I promised you I would look out for you and I keep my promises.”

  “I know.” I whispered. His face was once again close to mine. I could feel his breath on my face.

  “I’m not ready for you to be out of my life yet.” He finished doing what he wanted to do earlier and gently kissed my lips. An electric current shot through my body. It was stronger than the jolt I had felt before. It was only a brief kiss, but it was soft and tender.

  Jack moved away from me and looked toward the car. “If I want you to run, I am going to fire my gun at one of them, hopefully both of them. Run like hell.”

  I nodded in agreement. “Be careful,” I said after him, but I was pretty sure he had not heard my words. They were soft. The current still pulsed through my veins as I watched him walk back up to the car.

  I was about 100 yards way, but could see clearly the road and the car. He walked to driver’s side and leaned up against the car, laying his arms and his gun on the top of it. He was stiff in his stance, ready for whatever the black car brought. He glanced briefly to where I stood and smiled. I know it took effort. This wasn’t a smiling situation.

  The car we thought we heard earlier had never come this far down the road. But the car I heard now, I was pretty sure it was the car we were waiting for.

  The black Camry drove very slowly up to where the BMW was parked. I thought I noticed two people in the car but I wasn’t sure from where I stood. I watched as Jack tensed up as the car came to a complete stop a few yards away.

  The passenger door on the Camry opened and a tall dark haired man, emerged, carrying a weapon. He wore jeans like Jack, what looked like hiking boots, and a long sleeved tan shirt. He stood holding the gun in his left hand and he held his right hand up, almost to what looked like a surrender posture.

  I looked closer at the man and it looked, as best as I could tell to be the same man at the Tel Aviv Airport I had been talking to when Jack walked up.

  “O’Brien?” I heard him call from his car.

  “That’s me what do you want?” Jack held his stance. He was behind the car for what looked like protection, but he also had moved the gun to its side, but he still held on to it, in case he quickly needed to fire it. I could tell, that he had the advantage on this man.

  “We’re not here to hurt her.” Joed did not move from where he stood.

  “She’s not going with you, Israeli.”

  A quirky smile grew across Joed’s face. “Then you have spoken to your friend Seth.”

  “Yep.” Jack did not move as the words came out. He said nothing more, only confirming what this man already knew.

  “Then you know we want Alison’s help.”

  “Yep. But it’s not happening.” Jack moved his feet a little farther apart and sank about an inch.

  I strained as much as I could without the risk of being seen so I could hear the conversation. I was not one to sit still for any length of time, but this was a life and death moment I had to be as still and as quiet as I could.

  “They are looking for her too. They are just searching in the wrong place. Eventually they will catch up with you.” Jack’s face was full of confidence and it did not disappear as this man spoke.

  “Not if I can help it! Joed, wasn’t it?”

  The Israeli man lowered his hand and gripped the car door. “We want to help hide her. “

  Jack nodded his head in disagreement. A breeze had come up from the south moving the tree branches.

  “Alison?” Joed yelled my name and looked around the campsite. “I know you can hear me.”

  I froze where I stood.

  “She’s not coming to talk with you. I’m the one you need to be addressing.”

  Joed turned his attention back to Jack. “She can help us catch whoever arranged this. All she has to do is lead them to believe she will give them the right processor. Think of it as a good deed for her country.”

  “She’s not doing it.” Jack again nodded his head. “I’m afraid you are barking up the wrong tree.”

  “We can keep her safe in exchange for the processor. That is all we want is her safe and the processor. And, I am afraid you have no choice.”

  “I agreed to nothing. I am her caretaker and well frankly, I don’t give a flying fuck to what you and Seth agreed to. She is not a pawn.”

  Joed slowly raised his right arm again and stepped away from the Black Camry. “Let us help you keep her safe. They will come looking for her.” Joed did not plead with Jack. He merely stated the fact. They would come looking for me and they would eventually catch up with us. Jack wasn’t buying it though. I could not see his eyes, but in the few short weeks we had been together, I knew his posture.

  “What until they catch up with us. Then you ask her to hand over the processor and she dies as you have a shootout with the nut who wants it for a nuclear bomb? Not going to happen my esteemed colleague.”

  Joed took a step toward Qui and he didn’t flinch. “You need us, if they come looking for her?”

  Jack only nodded his head. “I need a lot of things, but I can protect her without you.”

  I listened to the exchange, but I tried desperately to focus my eyes on the driver of the car. I couldn’t see who it was, male or female. Whoever it was turned the ignition to the car off and opened the driver side door to get out. A woman with long red hair who looked to be in her thirties got out of the car.

  “You do need us.” Her voice was feminine and her tone assertive. “We are not dealing with a small time group. They are angry they were deceived and they want the processor.”

  Jack smiled. “Noor, how good of you to join us. Haven’t seen you since,” he paused and thought about his words,” Afghanistan. Thought the Taliban had gotten you.” His words were sharp and curt.

  This exchange was getting tiresome. I watched as the woman closed her car door and slowly walked to the front of the car. It didn’t look like she carried a weapon of any kind. “No you weren’t that lucky.” Obviously these two had a history. A history I was pretty sure Jack would tell me nothing about. I continued to watch as she walked even closer to the BMW. Jack didn’t move at all as she approached him. His weapon, was still pointed toward Joed.

  “I don’t want to be here Jack. I have better things, bigger people to contend with than your little girl. But Seth asked me to help and well, you know I can’t refuse Seth. So let us get this over with and we all go on with our lives.”

  Little girl, I repeated with anger in my voice. Ok, so I was young and happened to get caught up in something highly beyond me, but little girl? Who the hell was this woman? I was twenty five
, a college graduate with a Masters Degree and she was calling me a little girl? Her arrogance or was it ignorance infuriated me.

  “Give it up Noor. Did Seth honestly think that if he sent you I would agree to this?” Jack watched the woman carefully. “You know my love for you! Have I not always made that obvious?” Jack continued to look back and forth from the woman he now spoke to, to the man still standing by the other car. He finally, lightened up his stance a little, He appeared less tense but his aim was still on Joed.

  “I volunteered to come. I wanted to confirm the fact you have gone mad! Now put the gun down and let’s all talk. Where is the girl? In the car? Or hiding in the woods?”

  The red headed woman looked around the campground. She looked in my direction, but I don’t think she actually saw where I was. Jack stood still not glancing in my direction, not glancing in any direction for that matter. He just stood there with his mouth shut. I wondered what I should do? My heart was racing in anticipation of everyone’s next move but the fear was gone. I wasn’t afraid of these people. Something about them, their calm, the way they talked to Jack, like they were colleagues, even if he did not like them. I shifted my feet quietly and continued to watch the exchange.

  “Alison is safe and that is all that matters. Now, thank you for your concern. Israel will get the correct processor, when everyone can guarantee me that Alison is safe.”

  “You can’t negotiate what is not yours Jack. The processor NOR Alison. You know Conway wants you brought up on kidnapping charges?”

  I listened in horror as Noor said this. Kidnapping charges? Jack hadn’t kidnapped me. I went on my own good will after someone tried to kill me. Twice in a day, I reminded myself. My instinct was to stop the conversation right then and let them know that wasn’t going to happen. I wasn’t going to let Jack get into trouble because I was an idiot. I could hear the thump of my heart as I contemplated what she said. My legs ached from standing in the same location for so long. I shifted again my weight and looked toward Jack. He was expressionless.

  J

  “I didn’t kidnap her and you know it Noor. Leaving her in Albuquerque was signing her death warrant. Tom’s dead and it wasn’t some Islamic terrorist organization that killed him.” Jack pulled his hands and the gun away from the car. “Maybe we should tell Alison the truth? Tell her, that someone within this country wants her dead.”

  I couldn’t see Alison from where I stood, but I imagined the look on her face. I was sure the blood drained from her face and she was wobbly on her feet. I had kept this small little detail from her, from the beginning. I knew who killed Tom. It wasn’t some extremist group who was angry at getting the wrong processor. It was an inside job somehow. I just wasn’t sure how deep it went.

  The tall Middle Eastern man stood still and did not say a word. The look on his face confirmed everything I already knew. He knew what was going on as much as I did. Something had gone terribly wrong. Alison had insisted Tom was not a spy. I had insisted she was wrong. Alison was only a pawn in a sick game of chess between two factions.

  “Kidnapping? I chuckled at the thought. “Let’s bring law enforcement into it why don’t we? Have me arrested for kidnapping, she goes home and everything is fine and dandy for about a week, before she is murdered.” The man’s face still didn’t change, but Noor’s did.

  “Jack, you need to let us help you. You know you can’t do it alone at this point. Someone was working with Tom and they can’t figure it out. You know that as much as I do. We wouldn’t be here if it were that simple.” Noor almost pleaded with me. Or at least her version of pleading.

  I had known Noor for a few years. We had worked on a few other Middle Eastern intelligence situations. She had started out as an analyst, her knowledge of different Islamic factions was immense. She understood the Israeli Palestinian conflict better than anyone in both Tel Aviv or Washington DC.

  “And I wouldn’t be here if it were that simple Noor. It’s not that simple. If I take her back, they will get to her. Until we know who Tom was working with, she can’t go home.”

  I could hear rustling in the bushes where I had left Alison. I wanted to yell for her to stay in her place but I didn’t want to draw any more attention to her. Joed had heard the same rustling and quickly turned, gun in hand and pointed the direction of the noise. Noor followed Joed’s lead and did the same. As they both slowly took steps toward the noise, I quickly moved my gun toward them and moved faster around to the front of the car, my back facing where I knew Alison was.

  “Stop!” I shouted from in front of the car. Both Joed and Noor stopped and lowered their weapons and looked at me. “Alison don’t move!” I kept my gun trained on Joed. I knew or at least had confidence enough in Noor to know she would not fire at Alison if she came out of the bushes. “Don’t !”

  Joed slowly tucked his gun in his belt. “Jack, let her come out and let’s talk about this. I don’t want her dead. His voice was sincere. He glanced back and forth toward the creek area where Alison hid.

  Noor also tucked her gun away.

  “Jack she has to be scared. Let her come out and we can all talk about this. Let’s let her decide.” Noor took a few steps closer to me and looked past me to where I knew Alison was.

  I looked over toward Alison, who had moved some and was now partly visible. Dread and fear washed over me. They had both her and I cornered and they could take or kill her easily, after they took me out. I thought about the situation. I didn’t want to go down without a fight, but if we went with them as they wished, I could at least stay with her awhile longer and still try and ensure her safety. I had a bargaining chip, I had the processor hidden.

  I slowly lowered my gun and turned to face Alison. “Come here.” My demand was soft, and she complied. Her face was pale but her walk was not one of fear but one of confidence. She walked not toward Joed and Noor, but toward me. Within seconds she was within in my reach and I grabbed her and pulled her to close to me.

  To my surprise, she struggled away from me. I tried to hold on to her, but the struggle was fruitless in front of the others. “Sonny?”

  She shoved me away from her and glared into my eyes. “Were you going to tell me?”

  Her eyes were full of fire. Her face was no longer white, but red with rage. “Tell you what?”

  “Tom. You lied to me and told me the Islamic group killed Tom. Why were you protecting him?”

  I didn’t quite understand her question, protecting him? She took a step away from me and looked at Noor. “So apparently it’s not this terrorist group I have to fear it is my own freakin government?” She yelled at no one in particular.

  I took a step closer to Alison. Her attention returned to me and I could see in her eyes the anger was intense. “Sonny?”

  “You knew who killed Tom back in Albuquerque. You knew there was the possibility of him being involved didn’t you? You knew why he sent me in his place. Unbelievable?”

  I again took a step toward her as she took a step away from me. Truth was, I had no idea who killed Tom until recently, but that didn’t matter, They were now after her. She focused her attention on Joed. “Joed, And you? I trusted you in Tel Aviv. You said you were a colleague! You’re not a colleague. Your no better than these two!” She waved her arms and pointed her finger at the man.

  Joed stood in his spot, statuesque like. He didn’t move and he didn’t acknowledge her rant. Instead he turned to me, “Perhaps we should take this elsewhere before we attract attention?”

  I nodded in agreement and took the final step to grab Sonny’s arm. I felt the sting as her hand as it connected with my face. She said nothing as she stormed off and opened the door to the BMW and sat in the passenger’s seat. I rubbed my hand against my burning cheek. “Let’s head back to Truckee. We can regroup at the hotel and decide what to do from there.”

  “So you trust us then?” Joed asked still unsure if I was actually going to cooperate. I looked at the new and unexpected companions and saw the hu
ge grin on Noor’s face. Joed still stood there, no real reaction on his face.

  “Don’t think I have a choice.” I turned and looked back toward the BMW. I am guessing you saw where we were staying last night? “Both nodded. We can go back and get rooms for tonight and try and figure this out.” I turned to walk to the car. “Wipe the grin off your face Noor.”

  I heard a chuckle come from the red heads mouth. And I heard as her footsteps came increasingly close to me. “I am riding with you.”

  I stopped where I stood and pivoted to look directly at her. She too had stopped and stood only inches from me. I could see her brown eyes. She was slightly taller than Alison, but not by much. “No. there’s no need.”

  “Yes there is a need, Jack. Joed and I have a vested interest in this.” Noor continued to walk to the car. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to stop her.

  I wanted and needed to be alone with Alison. Even if it was for a short period of time. I needed to explain to her why I didn’t tell her the truth. I wanted to set things straight with her. I wasn’t sure how much time we had left together but there was so much I wanted to tell her and needed to tell her.

  Noor walked to the car and got into the rear seat. I turned and looked at Joed. “You following?”

  He nodded and turned to walk to the black car. I took a deep breath and shoved my gun into the side of my pants and readied myself for the journey in the car. I turned and looked into the window. Alison was looking at me but quickly turned her head as she noticed me. It was going to be another long car ride in silence. And I wasn’t thrilled at the prospect of Alison and Noor talking.

  I turned and walked to the driver’s side of the car and got in. As I took my place behind the wheel the silence enveloped me. Alison sat in the front seat next to me. She was still which was rare. She had taken the phone out of her pocket and put it in the console between the two seats. I quickly grabbed as I did not want Noor to have access.

  Alison still didn’t acknowledge me or Noor. She sat quietly looking out the passenger side window as I put the car in reverse and pulled out of the campsite. I followed Joed around the curves of the campground. Once we hit the open road I would pass him and let him follow me.