by Jan Coffey
The five people she’d spoken with all told her the same thing. If they were offered the opportunity, they’d do it again.
She’d asked each of them if they knew the reason for all the secrecy. The answers had been diverse. The best one was from one of the engineers she personally knew and who worked for NASA. He’d told her that what Lyons had him doing was like policing the police. The engineer had the sense that Lyons regularly hired on specialists to serve as short term watchdogs—often testing something that had been already tested. So it was important to not allow the word to get out. He also had a sense that Lyons was somehow taking orders from someone in the government. Someone big.
Alanna had other questions, too. Questions about things like confidentiality and possible violations of security. When it came to the work they were doing for NASA, the agency required all employees to sign document after document swearing to keep the work they did confidential. Again, the answer had been positive. Not one individual working in the private sector had encountered any conflict with their ‘day’ jobs. Alanna knew her responsibilities fell into a far more sensitive area, but even the other NASA engineer had affirmed the reports the others had given.
Ray called her on Wednesday night, as soon as Alanna arrived home from work. She’d spoken with him, but she hadn’t seen him since the day they’d met at the FountainGrove Inn. He sounded ecstatic.
“I talked to my contact at the U.S. Marshals Service. I also called my attorney. They both agree that this could work.”
One huge difference between Alanna and all the people she’d spoken to was the fact that Ray had put her into a corner. He was in a jam and that conceivably put her in one, too. What Lyons was offering Ray seemed shady, at best. Nothing was cut and dried in this case, but she was surprised that leaning on witnesses—or paying them to come forward—was not frowned upon by prosecutors.
“I wish you’d give me some of the names of your contacts,” Alanna told him. “At least someone at the Justice Department that I could speak to. I’m not comfortable with this, Ray.”
“You don’t trust me to look after my own life?”
She heard the hurt tone. She was used to taking charge and handling things herself.
“I do trust you,” she said gently, wishing that she believed her own words. They were talking about his life, his future. She was being dragged into it.
“So does that mean that you’re going to give it a try?” he asked hopefully.
“I still don’t have any of the details of what they want me to do.”
“I spoke to Lyons on the phone,” Ray said. “He told me that you’d be given everything when we arrive at Grand Bahama Island. At that time, if you have any doubts about whether you want to do the job or not, you can back out. They’ll arrange for us to take the next flight home.”
Alanna had never realized until now how untrusting her nature was. Everything that she’d been told seemed more or less reasonable, the background checks had held up, but there was still a huge question mark at the end that kept her stomach jittery.
Ray, on the other hand, had no problem with any of it. When she thought about it, she supposed this was another reason why she’d been attracted to Ray to start with. He was the kind of person who jumped in first and learned to swim later. She, on the other hand, felt she had to be an Olympic-level swimmer before she put her foot in the water. They were different people. They had different approaches to life. She wondered if those differences had already opened an ocean between them that would be too wide to cross.
“Two weeks on a Caribbean island, Ali,” he said quietly into the phone. “No crummy motels. No looking over our shoulders. The two of us, together for a few sunny weeks. A lot like before. Please tell me you want this as much as I do.”
Alanna sat down on the edge of the chair in her living room. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She couldn’t fool him or fool herself. She had to speak what was on her mind. “Ray…things are not the same as they were before you left. I think, when I was in mourning for you, I crossed a line back to the life I had before we met. And though it was far from perfect, I…I…”
“Ali, please. I’ve been under a lot of stress and that’s why things don’t seem the same. Give us a chance.”
She rubbed the back of her neck, trying to ease the headache that was beginning to pound.
“Ali,” he said softly. “I’m asking for a chance to live again. You still say you love me. What they’re offering is the first opportunity I’ve really had to get my life back.”
She let out a frustrated breath and then nodded to herself. Her job, her grandmother, nothing would be knocked off its orbit if she were to go on some ‘vacation’ for two weeks.
“Okay. Okay,” she said finally. “I’ll put in for the time.”
CHAPTER 35
FEAR
Nathan was so tired.
This had been an excruciatingly long and difficult journey. At times lately, he realized he couldn’t remember how it had all started. He had no idea how long he’d been here. He also had no idea if it would ever end.
But these past few days, since having his picture taken, Nathan felt a new sense of hope emerge like a bud in spring. One moment, it seemed that all he would ever face would be this interminable murk of winter. Then, he would remember the flash of the camera, and he would think that there might just be an end in sight, after all.
When his spirits buoyed at the thought, the possibilities from release were endless. Nathan imagined his photo being sent to U.S. officials at home. In his mind’s eye, he saw a daring rescue by U.S. Marines. In another version, he imagined his captors believing what Nathan had been saying about Steven Galvin. He could see them receiving cash from his father in a black case at one of the nightclubs under the Bosporus Bridge. They’d release him then.
Sometimes, Nathan’s mind wandered to thoughts of gathering enough strength and courage to fight his captors and escape by himself. That was the most exciting, the most pleasing thing to dream about. He should have attempted that when he was first captured. He couldn’t remember now if he’d ever had an opportunity. He didn’t think so.
The familiar noises in the corridor told him that someone was coming. Nathan felt a stir of excitement in his stomach as he pushed himself to his feet. The sound of latches. The door opened.
Nathan watched as two men entered. He was getting to know them pretty well, but he suddenly wished he knew them better, at least knew their names. Their faces gave away nothing. He was surprised, though, that neither told him ‘sit,’ as they always did. As always, however, the one closest to the door held the AK-47.
“Your name?” one asked, shining the flashlight at him.
This triggered memories of the early days of his imprisonment. He shrugged it off.
“You know, I don’t even know your names.”
Nathan stretched his arms out. Soon, it would be spring. He wondered if he could be back in Washington in time to see the cherry blossoms. He was starting graduate school. He’d made up his mind. This career was over. He’d invite his mother to come and see Georgetown. They’d go out for lunch.
“You took my picture,” he continued. “I assume you sent it to the U.S. Consulate. I just hope you sent a copy to my parents. I’m Nathan Galvin.”
“They told…you lie to us.”
Nathan stared at the man holding the flashlight.
“No, I didn’t. Who told you I lied?”
“All lies,” the man said as the other with the AK-47 took a step closer.
“I don’t understand,” he said. “My father—”
But Nathan never got the chance to finish, for the other guard lifted the rifle to his shoulder and fired.
BOOK 2
Come, “the croaking raven doth bellow for revenge.”
—Hamlet
CHAPTER 36
Amber Hersey sat in the very last row of the large auditorium. The lecture today was mandatory for all graduate students taking t
he Freedom and Self course. The event had also been recommended to law students at Georgetown.
She wouldn’t have missed it, anyway.
The guest lecturer, Senator Paul Hersey, had delivered his speech on “The Future of Human Rights” to a maximum-capacity crowd. The question-and-answer period following the forty-five minute speech was going very well, with her father weaving together the perfect balance of humor and fact to win over the audience.
A lifetime of involvement in politics, and Amber realized that this was the first time in her life that she had sat through one of her father’s complete speeches. Paul Hersey was confident, believable, charming. He looked so comfortable, so commanding, standing on the platform, the center of attention. Amber wished she had inherited some of those qualities. But at twenty-four, she had developed into more of an introvert. In term of personality, she was definitely becoming more like her mother. Quiet and shy, with an occasional burst of wildness, and then back into her shell again.
A comment of the senator’s made the audience burst into laughter. Amber smiled, realizing she’d totally missed whatever it was he’d said.
“He’s totally amazing,” the young woman sitting next to Amber said under her breath.
“And handsome, too. How old is he?” another grad student two seats over asked.
Amber bit her tongue to keep from saying, too old for you. She didn’t know any of the students sitting near her. None of them had any idea that she was actually Senator Hersey’s daughter.
The audience’s thunderous applause signaled the end of the lecture. Amber had made no plans to meet with her father this morning. She had a meeting with her advisor in an hour about taking time off for the upcoming book tour. The children’s book about the adventures of a ten-year-old girl getting lost in the White House and encountering a ghosts of past presidents had been a surprise hit. She figured the senator had tons of things on his schedule for what was left of the morning, too. She guessed he’d leave through the same door as he’d come in—closest to the stage.
She pushed up to her feet and turned to the exit door.
“He’s coming out this way,” the woman sitting next to her announced excitedly.
Amber turned and was surprised to find her father weaving his way through the students and up the steps toward her.
“Excuse me…Thanks very much…Thanks…Excuse me,” he was saying as he passed students who trying to talk to him. “Excuse me…I have to catch up to my daughter.”
A warm feeling rushed through her. Heads were turning, and people were noticing her. Amber could feel herself blushing under the scrutiny. It was awkward, but it also felt good.
The senator finally reached her.
“Well?” he asked, putting his arms around her. “How did I do?”
Amber hugged him back. “You were brilliant.”
CHAPTER 37
Alanna thought she could leave her doubts behind and come on this trip with open mind. But she was wrong. The arrangements alone only served to fuel her anxiety.
For their flight from Oakland to Miami, their seats had been up in first class. Alanna made an excellent salary, but this was the first time she’d ever flown that way. In all the times she’d traveled for business, she’d never been able to justify spending that kind of money on herself. She looked for the cheapest fare from point A to point B. She didn’t need pampering.
When they arrived at Miami Airport, there’d been an attendant waiting inside the terminal with one of those golf carts. Their luggage would be taken care of, they were told. She and Ray climbed in and were whisked off to a turbo-prop plane sitting fueled and ready outside a private hangar.
They met the pilot and co-pilot standing in the shade of the plane’s wing. They were the only passengers on the King Air C90B, a six-seater. The 125-mile flight would take about half an hour. Inside, the accommodations were even nicer than the first-class seating they’d enjoyed earlier on their flight cross country.
“Now, this is the way to live,” Ray said as they boarded the plane.
“You would think someone is trying to impress us,” she replied, moving to one of the cream-colored leather seats. She immediately buckled her seatbelt.
“I can’t see why not. You deserve it,” he responded.
Four of the seats came together around a maple table top that the co-pilot clicked into place once Alanna and Ray were seated. Before going back outside, he pointed out the door to the restroom and the refreshments stocked in the handy built-in coolers. The plane couldn’t have been more than a couple of years old. Everything still looked and smelled brand new. Ray reached into the cooler and took out a Heineken.
This was the first time in days that they had been able to be together like this with no one else around. A door separated the cockpit from the rest of the cabin. Outside the small window of the plane, Alanna could see the pilot and co-pilot inspecting the craft. As she watched them, she saw a cart drive up to the plane, bringing their luggage. She wondered how much a private arrangement like this cost. It had to be a lot.
She looked at Ray. “Why?”
“Why what?” he asked.
“Why do I deserve it?” she asked. “What is it that they want me to do?”
Ray shook his head, taking a sip of his beer and putting it in a cup holder on the table. “I guess we’ll find out when we get there.”
She looked around the cabin again. She played around with some of the buttons on the arm rest. A personal screen slid down from the ceiling, and entertainment options rolled onto it. She glanced at Ray and saw him put his feet on the table. He looked ready to doze off again. That’s what he’d done the entire length of their flight from California to Miami. She’d wanted to talk, but he’d slept. She heard a compartment door close somewhere beneath them. She figured their luggage was in.
“Ray, please tell me everything you know about these people.”
“I only know what you know.” There was a hint of dismissal in his voice, as if she was bothering him with her question.
She didn’t believe him…which was extremely sad. She was here because of how she felt about him—because she loved him—and yet she didn’t trust what he was telling her.
The pilot and co-pilot boarded the plane. Vaguely, she was aware that they were saying something to her and Ray, but Alanna was too consumed by her thoughts to be listening. Ray spoke to them and the two men went through the door into the cockpit, shutting it behind them.
Ray reached over and touched her hand. “Would you like some juice or a water bottle?”
She shook her head as the engines fired up. “There has to be more that you know about this Mr. Lyons…or Diarte. You took me to meet them.”
He shrugged. “Sorry, you know everything that there is to know.”
“Come on, Ray. You spoke to them,” she said in a determined tone. “Did they call you? How were they able to reach you? You weren’t staying in one place. I wasn’t even able to get hold of you. Please think back. You have to remember that first conversation with them.”
“Sure,” he whispered, getting out of his seat and crouching beside her. “But we only talked about you.”
He brushed his lips across hers. His fingers traced her cheek. He started to deepen the kiss…and then stopped.
“It’s been a long time since we had this kind of time together. What do you say we put this flight time to good use.”
Alanna pulled back as if stung. The plane started to move. She looked out the window, feeling as if her face was on fire. They were heading toward the runway.
“Ali?” Ray asked, taking her hand.
She pulled her hand away and tucked her fingers under her leg, out of his reach. Confusion was tearing her apart. When she was with him, she had no time to think. Lately, they’d spent a lot of time apart. They’d only talked on the phone. The last time that she’d seen him, before today, was when they’d met with the men who’d arranged this trip.
He touched her cheek. “What�
��s wrong, Ali?”
She should have felt embarrassed, guilty for the way she was acting. At the same time, she was starting to feel as if invisible threads were attached to her hands and feet. He was controlling her. He tugged whenever she got out of line. She hated that feeling, but…this was Ray. She looked into his eyes.
“You’re my weakness, Ray,” she whispered. “You know it…and they know it.”
“Let them. You’re my weakness, too. My everything. That’s what happens when people are in love.”
The pilot’s voice came through a speaker in her headrest. They were about to take off. Ray moved back to his seat and fastened his seatbelt.
“You’re exhausted, my love. Why don’t you close your eyes and try to catch some sleep. I—”
“No, Ray. I don’t want to sleep,” she blurted out. “I don’t want to stop asking questions. I don’t like being distracted when I’m asking questions. We’re like the blind leading the blind. We don’t even know really where these people are taking us. But it bothers me most that we don’t know what they want from us.”
“But we do.” He lowered his voice, motioning with his head to the cockpit. “You checked the references yourself. Neither Lyons nor Diarte look or act like criminals. There’s no one holding us at the gun point. You’re panicking for nothing.”
“Ray, you have nothing to lose,” she reminded him.
“But we have everything to gain.”
Alanna wished she could convince herself of that. The plane took off. She leaned back in the seat, looking out the window. They were immediately over water.
“There’s a good reason why I’m feeling like this.” She decided to say everything that was on her mind. “I went through hell the months that you were gone. Guilt, mourning, regret, loneliness, depression. I would have done anything in the world—absolutely anything—to get you back.”