by Dermot Davis
Smiling with fondness at the familiar surroundings, she instantly wondered what she was doing there. Had she made a subconscious wish that overrode her conscious desire to find Andrew? Was she being protected by being brought to a happy place instead of some place where Andrew was located which would sadden her immeasurably?
Unable to see clearly but sensing the strong presence of Andrew, she wondered if there was some overlap in space and time being created or perhaps some kind of inter-dimensional glitch? Perhaps she wasn't fully materializing in her new environment? As she concentrated more determinedly on being fully present, the room came into greater focus. As her vision improved, so did her mental acuity. She could now look around the room at all her old possessions which looked undisturbed since her departure.
A pair of men’s trousers strewn across her wicker chair got her attention as she noticed more articles of men’s clothing thrown willy-nilly about her bedroom. Even though she had no physical lungs she practically gasped when she saw a man sleeping soundly in her bed. On closer inspection, she smiled broadly as she recognized the sleeping face before it came fully into her view.
"Hello, my darling," a voice said which completely startled her. Rising up to meet her, Andrew's astral body floated up from the physical body in the bed.
Thrilled beyond comprehension, Fiona's being vibrated ecstatically. "Hello, my darling," she answered back, her body radiating light and love throughout all time and all dimensions.
Merging together in an embrace that defied science and logic, their bodies exploded into a unified field of shared light and soul love. Beyond the physical, beyond words, and beyond reason, their souls merged and danced in timeless unity. "I love you so much," their souls announced in unison as they held each other in blissful splendor. "Together forever," their souls exclaimed as their joy spilled out into the universe and beyond.
Seen only by the angels and blessed souls in adjacent realms, their shared intense light and love radiated out into the world and brightened everything in its path, its brilliance undiminished by gravity, distance, or any other aspect of reality. An observer, from the planets and realms beyond, would have seen a golden-white-pink light extend from a pair of joined specks above a small plot of land on planet earth and could soon observe it spreading out in a glowing arc that enfolded the planet then spilled its golden radiance into space to enrapture all that it met in its loving, warm and joyful embrace.
In that moment of togetherness, Fiona and Andrew were not constrained by time or by place; their shared presence existed in all places and in all times at once, simultaneously. Their souls buoyed by their otherworldly exuberance, they existed more as a conjoined soul love energy than as anything more concrete. They felt nothing but love; they were love, pure, simple, honest love and it was glorious.
"Come find me," Fiona said as Andrew broke away to return to his sleeping body.
"I will find you," he said as his astral body returned to the physical. "I will find you."
Chapter 15
Holy crap! Andrew said to himself as he opened his eyes from a night of slumber. Feeling totally energized and overjoyed, he nevertheless wished to remain in bed with his eyes closed in order to fully remember and comprehend the most joyous dream that he had ever experienced in his life. Whenever Fiona had been in his dreams before it was normally in a real world setting and they were usually involved in some kind of story or adventure.
His latest dream of her had been nothing like anything that he had ever dreamt before. Their interaction was so intense and so magical, that he felt like every cell in his body was not just intensely alive but practically on fire. Even though they had been separated for quite some time, he had never felt so close to Fiona. It was as if he felt connected to her at the very core of his being. If he had been feeling hopeless and despondent about their relationship before, he now felt so buoyant and optimistic, that happiness exploded from every molecule in his body.
Filled with renewed purpose, he jumped from the bed. There was now no doubt in his mind that Fiona wanted to be with him as much as he longed to be with her. He felt absolutely certain of it. They were meant to be together and he would find her.
"You're up bright and early," Simon said as they met in the kitchen. Still wearing his bathrobe, Simon was fixing himself a sandwich. "Man on a mission?" he then asked when he noticed Andrew's purposeful demeanor as he put on a pot of coffee.
"Among other things, I have a conclave to organize," Andrew answered, his head elsewhere.
"That's right. How's it coming along?"
"There's nothing to it, actually," Andrew confessed. "They've already picked the venue, some big vacant church downtown. All I have to do is send a memo to everybody telling them to show up. Want some coffee?"
"I'm having tea, thank you," Simon said, his mind preoccupied with something else. "I'm taking your mom to the zoo today," he then said apprehensively. "Thought you should know."
Stopping what he was doing, Andrew looked at Simon with a determined expression.
"What?" Simon asked, expecting the worst. "You don't approve?"
"That's funny," Andrew said, his face breaking out into a smile. "I thought that I'd have a problem with that, I mean I did have a problem, before," he said and paused as if trying to determine his true current feelings. "But I really don't care. At least, what I mean to say is that I wish you both the very best."
"You do?" Simon asked looking pleasantly surprised.
"Yeah," Andrew said, his face breaking into a smile. "If you truly can make each other happy, then, why not, right?"
"Right," Simon agreed as he searched Andrew's eyes for any evidence of drug use. "You have no issues, then?"
"Nope. You're both consulting adults."
"Cool," Simon said with a smile. "Sweet."
"I need you to call your guy," Andrew said as he poured his freshly brewed coffee.
"What guy?"
"The guy that can tell you where Fiona might be, with Abigail."
"I know where Fiona is," Simon answered as he took a lazy look into the refrigerator. "Abigail's got her holed up in that hotel suite of hers."
"We need to come up with a plan," Andrew said, his mind filled with renewed purpose.
"What kind of a plan?"
"To free ourselves from Abigail and the organization for good. Take them to heck down."
"Working on it, old son, working on it," Simon said as he nibbled on some cheese and crackers. "You not eating anything?" he asked as Andrew placed his empty mug in the dishwasher.
"I'll eat later. Want to get into the office before Abigail shows up. Have a great day at the zoo," he said and smiled. "Treat her good."
"Of course," Simon said, his face blushing a deep pink. "I do know how to treat a woman, Andrew."
"Don't want to know," Andrew said with a smile as he left.
Being one of the first to arrive at the office, Andrew sat down at his computer and compiled a list of files that most incriminated the organization. If he had success before, by informing on Simon to the SEC, then he figured that to repeat his efforts on a much larger scale would get a similar positive result. Starting with Simon’s list of high-level managers who had broken the law, he added the names of other organization members who would interest the authorities, individuals who had similarly transgressed.
Clearing any personal information, any digital address or imprint that would reveal his own identity, Andrew knew exactly how he was going to send the file without anyone tracing it to his computer or work IP address. Naming the file, Whistleblower, he saved it to a clean, new USB stick and tucked it into one of his jacket pockets. Grabbing a manila folder filled with official work tasks that he had completed, the young man left his office.
Casually walking the near-empty corridors, Andrew glanced around to make certain that Abigail was not nearby. Stopping by her temporary office, he saw that her secretary was already in and that the door to the inner sanctum was unlocked. He could hear someone
in the break room down the hall. He popped into Abigail’s office and quickly found the company laptop that she used.
He took it hurriedly to the conference room where Abigail held most meetings and often worked. Quickly booting up the computer he kept an eye on the closed and locked door. Should Abigail or anyone else appear and knock, he would hide the laptop, then unlock the door and make an excuse about looking for Abigail to return the manila folder of completed tasks that she had requested. He would say that he had locked the door for privacy, in order to make a personal call, if someone questioned him about the locked door.
Once the laptop was online he inserted the USB stick and used the Whistleblower: Submit a Tip portal on the Securities and Exchange Commission website to send off the file. Transmitted in an instant, Andrew also uploaded the file to a cloud account set up for a fake email. He then signed out and wiped the computer’s recent web history, then deleted the file from the USB stick and removed it, and shut down the computer.
Unlocking the door, he looked around and gingerly stepped out of the conference room. He carried the laptop like it was his own. As a colleague returned to his desk from the break room, Andrew casually announced that he had a file to put on Abigail’s desk. It only took him a second and he was able to put the laptop back where he had found it. Easy-peasy, he thought to himself as he felt his body relax. Taking the elevator back to his own floor, he returned to his office. "Hello?" he answered an incoming call on his cell phone.
"It's Simon and you were right."
"Right about what?"
"It bothered me when you asked about Fiona, where she was, so I called my contact. They moved her to our lab downtown. Probably nothing serious at this point but they'll subject her to all kinds of tests to find out how best they can use her abilities. She's not in immediate danger but I’m going to cancel my plans with your mom and pay the lab a visit."
"No, I can do this," Andrew confidently answered. “You’re out on bail and they could use any excuse to have you sent back there in an instant. Let me handle this.”
“I appreciate your concern but what are you going to do?” Simon asked.
“What were you going to do?”
“I don’t know. Create some kind of diversion and get Fiona out of there?”
“Great plan,” Andrew said sarcastically. “Look, leave this to me and if I can’t get her out, I’ll call you for back-up, how’s that?”
“You want the glory for yourself, don’t you? The shining white knight to the rescue of the damsel in distress?”
“You have a problem with that?” Andrew teased back.
“Okay, kid, go for it. Let’s see what you’re made of.”
"You guys have a great time at the zoo."
"Seriously, call me if you need me. Talk later," Simon said as he hung up.
Going straight to his computer to research and find out everything he could about the laboratory downtown, Andrew looked at online pictures and street views to try and determine some possible ways to get Fiona out of lockdown and off of the premises.
His cell phone range and he didn't recognize the incoming phone number on his cell phone. What now, he thought to himself as he picked up his phone. "Hello?"
"Andrew?" a male voice asked.
"Yes?"
"Guess who this is?" the man asked and waited.
"I don't know," Andrew answered, thinking the question very unusual. "Do I know you?"
"Sure you know me. It's your old buddy Henry."
"Oh, Henry," Andrew said with a big smile. "Sorry, I didn't recognize your voice there for a second. What's going on?"
"I got released," Henry said and Andrew could almost hear him smiling. "That legal team that you got set up for me really saved the day. Got them to take off all those contempt of court years that the idiot judge tacked on just because he was having a bad day. Anyways, this new judge said that I already served all the time that I had rightfully coming to me and bada bing, bada boom, I'm out a free man. All thanks to you. I want to buy you a drink, bro. Or lunch, if you're hungry. You have to eat, right?"
"Sounds great. I'm downtown. Where are you?"
"I'm right across the street. Took me a while to track you down but I don't give up and I don't forget the people that done me good."
"Okay," Andrew said, working things out in his head. "Hang tight and I'll be right down. I might need your help with something."
Even though most of the diners were ordering an early lunch, Andrew was still thinking breakfast. Ordering a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon, and hash browns, he was genuinely pleased to see his former cell mate all cleaned up and dressed in civilian clothes.
"I know that you sent that rich dude to sort things out but heck if I was going to trust that smooth-talking Limey, know what I'm saying? That dude could sell snow to the Eskimos and I didn't trust a word was coming from his mouth," Henry explained between mouthfuls of a huge hamburger that he ate from the plate with his hands.
"Yeah, I could see that," Andrew agreed as he smiled to himself with understanding.
"So what's this job that you might need some help with? I don't want to do anything illegal or stuff like that but I'd like to help you out if I can."
"Nothing illegal," Andrew said as he took a sip of his coffee. "Need to get my girlfriend back."
"I’m not too good with girlfriend advice, bro. No disrespect."
"No, I don't mean it like that," Andrew said with a smile. "She's being kept somewhere against her will, I think, and I need to spring her out."
"You think she's being held against her will or she is being held against her will because then you're talking about kidnapping and maybe you should get the police involved or something."
"She is being held against her will but she may not fully know it," Andrew explained with effort. "I guess it's kinda like, you know in the James Bond movies when the rich bad guy invites James Bond to a fancy dinner and he acts like James Bond is his guest but there's like a guard on every door and if James Bond decided to change his mind and go back home, the rich guy's mood changes from nice to nasty and then it gets crazy with guns going blazing all over the place and Bond has to fight for his life?" Andrew said and stopped to take a breath. "It's like that," he said. He was happy to see Henry nod with understanding.
"I love those Bond movies, man," Henry said fondly. "Sean Connery? Best Bond ever."
"Agreed," Andrew said, resuming his breakfast.
"So your girlfriend thinks that she's a guest but she's really a prisoner," Henry said just to be clear.
"Exactly."
"Well, good news is that she most likely isn't tied up in a basement somewhere with a few scary-ass bodyguards playing cards in the corner while the interrogator opens up his toolbox of surgical tools in order to get her to talk," Henry said thoughtfully.
"No," Andrew said with a horrid-looking expression on his face. "That's not the scenario, at all!"
"Yeah, that's what I'm saying," Henry said leaning back defensively. "That's not the scene we're talking about."
"I should hope not."
"So, what would James Bond do?" Henry asked thoughtfully. "He'd send in a pretty girl to create a diversion while he slipped past the guards unnoticed."
"Yeah, except you're not a pretty girl," Andrew said with a wry smile.
"No, but I know how to create a diversion," Henry answered back, like he knew what he was talking about.
"Could work," Andrew said, a plan forming in his head. "My boss is in a meeting with top brass right now," he said as he checked the time. "Last time she had a similar meeting it went on for like, hours," he then said as he dialed a number on his phone. "Janice, it's Andrew," he said when he was connected. "Abigail asked me to pick up Simon's daughter from the lab downtown. It's pretty urgent. I should be out of the office for about two hours," he said as he gave a wink to Henry. "Sure thing," he said to Janice as he hung up.
"You're going with the pretty girl diversion routine?" Henry asked.
"Yeah," Andrew said with a smile as he wiped his lips with a napkin. "Let's do this."
Once out of the restaurant, and a plan of action agreed upon, Andrew parted ways with Henry and went to retrieve his car. When the time was right Henry walked through the doors of the lab and walked straight up to the reception desk. "You do know that it's wrong to experiment on animals, right?" he said loudly to the young receptionist.
"Oh, we don't do that—" the young girl answered but was rudely interrupted.
"You wouldn't experiment on one of your own pets, would you?" Henry almost shouted.
"Sir, I'll have to ask you to leave," the girl said, looking towards the lab door to her right and hoping that the loud conversation would get the attention of the two well-dressed body guards who were sipping coffee just inside the closed door. "We're not that kind of lab."
"What kind of lab are you, huh?" Henry asked belligerently. "The kind that experiments on animals but doesn't have the nerve to admit it publicly?"
"Is there a problem here?" one of the guards asked as they both left the locked lab doors to enter the reception area.
"Yes, there's a problem," Henry said loudly. "If you love animals I'd say that there's a big, big problem."
"I tried to tell him that we don't do that here," the girl said to the guards.
"You heard what the girl said," one of the suited men said to Henry as he flexed his chest and broadened his shoulders.
"I'll have the animal rights people down here in the blink of an eye," Henry ranted, his volume increasing the more he spoke. "They'll close this place down, do you hear me? You can't treat animals like they don't have rights! They have souls too, just like people!"
As Henry continued to rant and rave, he made sure to involve all three of them in focusing their attention solely upon him and his position away from the entry door. Taking his opportunity, Andrew entered and stealthily made a bee-line for the lab door to the right of the reception area. Spotted only by the receptionist, he nodded to her in a friendly way as if to suggest that he belonged there and was merely returning to his workplace after a tasteful lunch. Too shaken by and invested in Henry's antics, the girl merely nodded back. Her attention immediately returned to Henry who had just increased his pleading on behalf of animals.