Part 1--
It seemed like forever before the local sheriff's office called the kid back with information about who he may have seen in the house. But, one afternoon, that call finally came.
"We've found out the owner of record of the house you thought you saw a dead body at, and I'm sorry to say that person died some time ago," the deputy the kid has spoken to before said. "Her name was Cassandra Hope Myers, and she died several years ago. Her only living relatives are her brother, sister in law, and nephew. She made provisions on who should inherit the property, and her will stated her brother, and only her brother, should."
"So are you going to get in touch with her brother?" the kid asked.
"That might be a problem," the deputy said. "Her brother is Neil Hope, the President's estranged husband. As you might be aware, the President reported him missing several weeks ago."
"Could he possibly be the one laying on the bed in the bedroom?"
"I can't say one way or another," the deputy hedged. He didn't know, either. "But the only way we can enter the house is to wait thirty days, then get a court order to enter to do a welfare check."
"When that happens, could I still come along?" the kid asked.
"The sheriff doesn't see a problem with that, since if there is a dead body in there, you'd be the one credited with finding whoever it was who died."
"Please let me know what you find out," said the kid. "I feel bad that I could have done something to prevent it and didn't act."
"If the person died of natural causes," the deputy said, "there's really nothing anyone could've done at that point."
The kid hung up the phone, then called his family's lawyer. "If they call you to say you can come along when they do the welfare check, let me know," the lawyer said. "I'd would like to accompany you in case they want to pin the death on you."
"That's why I came to you to begin with," the kid said. "I'd be considered an enemy of the New Government if I expressed that I don't believe in their laws. I hate pretending I do, because I don't."
"Then stay away from any counter government rallies for the next couple of months," the lawyer advised. "If you're seen at one, your ass is grass."
"Yes, sir," the kid said.
----------
After David and Jeremiah landed at the airstrip, they parted ways for the time being. "Go home, get some rest, and report to my office in the morning," David said.
When Jeremiah returned home, he was surprised to see KateLynn and the children visiting Jasmine on her day off. When she saw that Jeremiah was alone, KateLynn asked him where her husband was.
"He's still in the Arlington Sector, KateLynn," Jeremiah said. "He was asked by the Director to remain behind to use the skills he gained as part of the Ghost Squad. For some reason, the Illegals still think he's dead, as they've not had intel on him for nearly a year."
"How soon do you think he'll be home?" asked KateLynn. The tone of her voice told both Jeremiah and Jasmine that she was bordering on panic.
"As soon as the threat against the Director has been neuralized," said Jeremiah. "There's really nothing to worry about. If Director Collins didn't think he could handle it, she wouldn't have asked him to stay."
"KateLynn, it's going to be okay," Jasmine said. "Nik is competent and skilled. Nothing's going to happen to him. And if you panic, your kids will pick up on it."
"I know," KateLynn said. "And I'm trying not to panic for that reason. I just wasn't expecting this."
"It's the nature of the job, KateLynn," Jeremiah said. "Sometimes, plans change, and change quickly. We always have to be ready for something that we hope doesn't happen."
KateLynn knew that both Jasmine and Jeremiah were right. Why do I have to be so panicky? she thought. Nik's going to be fine.
----------
Nik joined Julia and Rebekah at Christine's house as part of her security detail. As far as anyone on the outside knew, he wasn't even there.
New intel had come in stating that Christine's life could end the following day. Morbus was skulking around outside her house, checking to see if the stalker was hiding on the property.
Morbus was concerned about the disguise he'd have to wear. A specially trained makeup artist would essentially build him a new face that would last a few hours. He hadn't seen his real face in so long, he almost forgot what he used to look like.
Then he'd look at pictures of his son to get a general idea.
He was glad that JT was safe with his sister. If she had to make any more trips to Arlington from the Tidewater Region to protect JT, he wouldn't feel right about it.
Fortunately, her children were adults, and lived on their own. They were putting together an elaborate trap for members of the Committee, which was still a year from being ready to execute. It was careful planning by Val and Vince that kept things running smoothly. They had learned their lessons well as children, and were very valuable to the cause.
For now, though, Morbus had finished his rounds, and Nik would take the next watch. He wanted nothing more than to spend time alone with Christine.
He was glad he was now officially retired as David's bodyguard. Maybe he could spend more time with Christine and JT.
And to tell his daughter she had a brother.
----------
David's return was met with two very excited little girls and one very patient wife. Jordan had prepared David's favorite meal, steak and baked potatoes, and had a nice bottle of wine waiting for him.
"What are you drinking, Daddy?" asked Kimber.
"Wine, Kimber," David said. "It's only for grownups like me and Mama."
"It looks like Kool-Aid," Niki said.
"It's not," Jordan said. "It's for grownups like Daddy said. Little girls drink milk with their meals."
"Oh," said Niki. "How come Daddy never drank it before?"
"I have, just not when you two were around," David said. "But Mama thought that this was a special enough occasion for her and me to drink wine."
"When we get bigger, can we drink wine?" Kimber asked.
"No. When you're a grownup, and you want to, you can," David said.
"When will we be grownups, Daddy?" asked Niki.
"Not for a long, long, long time."
"That's forever, Daddy!" Kimber said.
"No it's not, it just seems like it is," her father said. "Sometimes, when you're a grownup, you wish you were a little kid again."
"That's silly, Daddy," Niki said.
After dinner, the twins got ready for bed, and David read them bedtime stories. Jordan was clearing the dinner dishes and putting things away.
When he left the girls' bedroom, David went to the kitchen, but Jordan wasn't there. Then, remembering what she told him when he called her when he was in the Tidewater Region, he went to their bedroom.
Sure enough, there was a very seductive looking Jordan waiting for him. She lay on the bed wearing nothing but a smile.
"God, Jordan..." David said, aroused; "You look good enough to eat!"
"Do I?" she asked him, practically purring. "Come here and get your fill of dessert..."
And as she had told him on the phone, she ripped his clothes off his body and pounced on him like a tigress.
She made love to him all night long. David loved it when she took the lead. It had been a long, long time since Jordan ravished him, and he enjoyed every second of her seductive expertise.
----------
At 2am, Nik took the next watch. He took careful notice of his surroundings, finding at least three avenues of escape in case he somehow got cornered.
That was one of Peter's first lessons when Nik and his siblings were young: always find more than one way to escape capture, confrontation, or ambush.
Despite his height, Nik blended into the background, mostly because he was so ordinary looking. No one would be looking for an assassin that's six-foot-six. Most assassins were of average height with dark features, not Nordic looking blonde males. And Nik's hair was not just blonde, it was white-blonde. He remembered the comment his wife had made about looking like he had no hair with his current hair style.
One of Nik's Ghost Squadmates called him Le Fantôme (The Ghost) because Nik reminded him of one.
It took him a good hour to go over Christine's property with an eye for detail. Nik would know if anything was out of the ordinary. And out of the corner of his eye, Nik saw something that didn't look like it belonged there.
Hiding in the shadows, Nik saw someone moving towards the backyard. He followed. Nik saw the unknown combatant try the back door of the house-- the one that led into the kitchen. Oh no you don't, Nik thought.
With a swiftness few men his size possessed, Nik was behind the man at the door; when the intruder turned around, he looked the eyes of a nightmare.
"Who the fuck are you?" he asked in an angry tone of voice only Nik could hear.
"The judge, jury... and your executioner," Nik replied in a like tone. "Who are you and who sent you here?"
"I don't have to tell you a God damned thing, motherfucker!"
"You will," Nik said, "or you die where you stand."
Nik then pushed the call button on his phone. This piece of shit will talk when he's surrounded by people who want to kill him.
----------
Up in the apartment overlooking the plaza, someone was waiting for a scout to return from a recon mission to the home of his target.
He should have returned already, the assassin thought. He must have gotten caught or killed. Well, no matter, I'll find out what I want to know another way.
Never send a boy to do a man's job.
----------
Soon, the intruder was surrounded by four other people with weapons, and he knew he'd failed his mission.
"Talk, fucker," Nik growled at him. "Who sent you here?"
The intruder said nothing. Then Morbus walked behind the intruder and pulled his head back by his hair. He felt a knife at his throat, and realized that these people weren't messing around. If he didn't tell them something, they would let this creep kill him.
"The-the- the Committee sent me here," the intruder stammered. All those who held weapons on him knew that was a lie.
"Don't fucking lie to us," Rebekah said; "we hold your life in our hands, and right now, your life means nothing. Talk or we kill you."
"A man named Thomas Scott sent me," the intruder said. "He is supposed to kill someone who lives at this house tomorrow afternoon at four."
"Where can we find this Thomas Scott?" Christine asked.
"I don't know," the intruder said; "he called me on the phone and asked me to spy on this house."
"Gimme your phone," Julia said, and the others noticed the change in her demeanor. She was in full assassin mode now.
The uninvited guest handed over his phone, suddenly afraid of the petite brunette. He knew who she was and what she was capable of.
"We'll just give this Mr. Scott a call," Julia said, dialing the only number in the phone.
When the line was answered on the other end, Julia heard, "It's about fucking time you called, you maggot!"
"Your maggot is about to meet his maker," Julia said. "You'll have to deal with me."
"Who the fuck are you?" asked the voice on the other end of the line.
"Who I am doesn't matter," said Julia; "What matters is who you are."
"I'm going to kill Christine Collins, and there's not a fucking thing you can do about it, bitch!"
"Wanna bet?" taunted Julia. "I can find out where you are. And I can guarantee you'll be sorry you ever fucked with me."
"So much you know, you whore," Scott said; "This is an untraceable phone."
"No, it's not," said Julia. "I can find you to within ten feet of where you sit. Do you want me to prove it to you?"
"I dare you," said Scott. "I dare you to find me before four tomorrow afternoon. That's when Collins, Terranova and Mannion all die."
"How do you know you're not talking to one of those three," Julia asked, realizing that Scott had no idea who he was talking to.
"They wouldn't be stupid enough to call."
"Oh, you think so, do you?" Julia said. "Do you even know what they look like? How will you know them when you see them? How do you know they'll even be together at four tomorrow afternoon?"
"My intel is not wrong," Scott said. "I know that Terranova has short brown hair and brown eyes. She's five-foot-three, and weighs maybe a buck five."
"What does Mannion look like? Is she blonde? Brunette? A redhead?"
Silence on the other end of the line. Julia knew she had him. He had no idea what Rebekah looked like.
"Who would be with Collins at the time you're planning to kill her?" asked Julia.
Still nothing on the line from Scott. Julia knew he hadn't hung up because she could hear him breathing heavily.
"Look, asswipe, I don't have time for games," Julia said. "Let's see who kills whom first. I'm betting that Collins will still be alive tomorrow evening and you won't."
"You gonna send my scout back to me?"
"Fuck no," said Julia; "You're just going to kill him. We, on the other hand, have plans for this poor excuse for a man. Maybe we'll let him tell our people what we need to know."
"So, who am I talking to?" Scott asked.
"Your fucking nightmare." Julia closed the connection before Thomas Scott had a chance to reply.
Just then, several Security Forces officers stormed Christine's backyard and took the failed scout into custody. Christine had called them while Julia was talking to her assassin.
After the scout was off the property, Christine had Nik give her a status report.
"Until our unexpected visitor, everything looked normal. You know there's probably more than one scout, Madame Director," Nik said.
"I'm aware of that," Christine said. "They're like cockroaches: you see one, but there are thousands hiding in the walls. Morbus..."
"Yes, Madame Director."
"Do a bug check, inside and out," Christine said. "Someone knows something about what's been going on here."
Morbus left to check the house and property for electronic listening devices.
"Rebekah," Christine said; "Get Lisa Powell on the phone. Tell her she needs to be here now, and not at 0600."
"Yes, ma'am." And Rebekah left to call the Agency's "Mistress of Disguise".
"Julia, since our friend Mr. Scott knows what you look like, you'll need to change your appearance, too," said Christine. "You'll sit for Lisa as well. Can't change your height, but we can change your looks."
"Who else is sitting for Lisa?" Julia asked, thinking it was Christine herself.
"Morbus," Christine said. "Lisa's been working on a new/old look for him. You'll get to see what he looked like before he was disfigured and aged fifteen years."
Julia wasn't too sure that she was ready to see what Jacob Rossman really looked like. In fact, it scared her. I've always known him as Morbus, scars and all, she thought. Will his disguise change the way I see him?
Then she thought of her mother. This would freak her out, Julia thought.
----------
Part 2--
Morbus returned to the kitchen in Christine's house with a handful of electronic "bugs". He laid them out on the counter.
"The Illegals knew everthing that was said in this house over the last six weeks, Christine," Morbus said. "Even that you suspected you were being followed. They knew you were having me come up here, they knew that you would be having Julia and Rebekah here, and they know that your son is with his aunt."
"Six weeks, huh?" Christine said. "That's about the time I had people in here to fix the window JT broke playing baseball. You think they planted these?"
"Maybe not the window installers, but someone who knew they would be here and took advantage of it," Morbus said.
"Great," Christine said; "So everything I've said in the privacy of my own home the Illegals knew about. Just fucking great."
"Not anymore," Morbus said. "These were all over your house, even in places that no one would think to look. Like your bathroom. There were three in your bedroom alone. Two in JT's bedroom. Six in living room, kitchen and dining areas. There were even some in your garage."
"In my bedroom?!" gasped Christine. "Morbus, when were you last here?"
"More than six weeks ago," said Morbus. "Before you called me from work to tell me that JT broke a window."
"It was nice of you to pay for it, by the way," Christine said. "I didn't expect that."
"I'm the one who bought the baseball equipment, so I felt it was my responsibility to at least pay for the broken window."
Just then, Rebekah came into the kitchen to tell Christine that Lisa Powell had arrived as requested.
"Thank you, Rebekah," Christine said, and the girl left the room. To Morbus, she said,
"Ready to see your real face again?"
"Not really, to be honest, Christine," Morbus said. "I've gotten used to seeing the face I've had for the last seventeen years. I'm not quite sure I'm ready to be reacquainted with my former self."
"Well, she has to work on Julia first," Christine said; "since my assassin knows what she looks like. That will take a couple of hours, at least. Yours, on the other hand will take, by Lisa's estimate, four to six hours."
"I don't know if I have the patience to sit that long," Morbus said. "But if it will throw the assassin off, then I'll do it."
----------
Stupid bitch, Thomas Scott thought blackly. Says she can find me within ten feet. Who the fuck is she?
"No matter," he said aloud. "Christine Collins will be just as dead tomorrow afternoon."
He was still pissed off about the scout. The kid said he could break into any house at any time and not get caught. Well, he got caught, Scott thought. I hope the Resistance kills the stupid son of a bitch!
While Scott was fuming about this particular failure in his plan, he was being watched.
By someone who was within ten feet of where he stood, hiding in the darkness of the apartment.
Just like they promised.
----------
"I sent her out for a quick recon mission, Lisa," Chistine said. "Julia should be back momentarily. Meanwhile, let's see what tricks you have up your sleeve to change her appearance."
Lisa Powell had been doing reconstuctive makeup work for the Disturbed Ones since the war began. It was a natural offshoot of her sculpting and photography skills. Before the New Government took over, Powell was photographing skulls and doing reconstructive work on them for the Oklahoma County Sheriff's Department to help identify missing persons. When the Illegals took over, she offered her services to the Disturbed Ones to identify those who had gone missing after human remains were found. Then she started working with the Security Forces to disguise undercover agents who had been identified by the New Government.
She had been asked over the years to take occasional plaster casts of Morbus' head and figure out how she could temporarily restore his features in the event he needed to go undercover. One of these casts, out of which she had made a bust of Morbus' head, neck and shoulders, was used to put the pieces of Morbus' face together based on his bone structure. This was what she was showing Christine after she gave her ideas on how to change Julia's appearance.
"Based on old pictures of Jacob Rossman I dug out of the archives in Chicagoland, I think I came pretty damn close to what Morbus might look like now," Powell said. "What do you think, Madame Director?"
Christine looked at the photos of a twenty six year old Jacob Rossman, and the completed disguise on the bust, including a dark hair wig with some grey streaks, and had to admit to herself that Powell had done a great job. Christine also noticed how both JT and Julia resembled him.
"Morbus is a little hesitant about this," Christine told Powell. "He hasn't seen his 'real' face since before he was hospitalized after his escape from prison to look for his baby daughter."
"It's probably tough to get used to seeing one face, then suddenly be faced with his previous appearance," Powell said. "I'd probably be a little concerned, too."
Julia came into the living room at that point and Powell audibly gasped. She looked at the pictures of Jacob, then back at Julia. The girl is related to him somehow, she thought.
"I did what you asked me, Madame Director," Julia now said. "I got within ten feet of the bastard. Had you given me permission to kill him, I would have done it with pleasure!"
"And he had no idea you were there?" Christine asked.
"No, Madame Director," replied Julia. "He thought he was all alone with his thoughts. He talks to himself a lot."
"Julia, this is Lisa Powell," Christine said. "She's going to change your appearance for the day. I understand your hair used to be quite long. You're going to have that back for a few hours."
Both Christine and Powell literally saw Julia's demeanor change from highly trained killer to a normal seventeen year old girl. Damn, thought Powell, everything I've heard about this girl is true!
"Are you just going to change my hair?" Julia asked Powell.
"No," Powell said, finally finding her voice; "I'll change your face from the eyes down. It will mean wearing moldable plastic putty. Once I get the features I want, I'll cure the putty, then reapply it to your face. You could walk up to your mother with it on and she'd never know it was you until you spoke."
"That sounds cool," Julia said. "When do we get started?"
Powell said, "We can start molding the new features now, and by the time you wake up later, they'll be ready to wear."
"Let's do it," Julia said.
----------
Jeremiah reported to David's office that morning as he was asked, after a restless night where he and Jasmine talked about KateLynn's growing paranoia that something terrible was going to happen to Nik.
"She knew what she was getting into," Jasmine said; "Why all of a sudden is she freaking out?"
"I think it's because she was in denial that Nik would be named as one of Morbus' possible successors," Jeremiah said. "But how could she not know? She's seen him training, and she knows how good he is at his job. If she expected him to stay home and work a boring desk job, she's sadly mistaken."
"I guess some women get that way after they have children," Jasmine said. "I hope I don't get like that!"
"I'm sure you won't," Jeremiah said, kissing her forehead. "I think you're a little tougher than KateLynn San Marco."
Now, though, Jeremiah waited for David to arrive. It wasn't like David to be late. Within minutes, the leader of the Disturbed Ones walked down the corridor to his office. Jeremiah noticed David wore a big grin as he walked toward him.
He must have gotten some last night, Jeremiah thought, remembering something that Jasmine said about Jordan's surgeon giving the okay for her to resume all her "wifely duties".
David looked at Jeremiah as if he could read the younger man's mind.
"Yes, Jere, I did get some last night," he said. "And it was worth waiting nearly six months for."
"I know nothing," Jeremiah said, laughing.
----------
Julia, not the most patient person in the world, obediently sat in a chair while Lisa Powell placed putty on her face, shaping it to change Julia's appearance. Powell's goal was to make the teenager look as little like herself as possible.
After about ninety minutes, Powell was done, and let Julia take a look at the results before the pieces were removed to "cure" for a few hours.
"Wow!" Julia exclaimed; "I look nothing like me!"
"That's the point," Powell said. "And when we get the wig on you, you're going to look like you're about thirteen years old."
"So that's the plan? For me to look as young as possible?" asked Julia.
"No one would ever suspect a girl of thirteen of being an assassin," said Powell. "I know from reading your file that you are not a typical teenage girl. It's my job to make you look like the All American girl."
"How long would I be able to wear the putty on my face?"
"No more than six hours, because after that, it will deteriorate," Powell said. "Then you'd look like Edvard Munch's 'The Scream' painting!"
"So the putty has to cure, right?"
"Yes, so it can maintain a permanent state during the time you're wearing it," Powell said. "Taking into account such things as your body temperature, how much you sweat, things like that. The material is breathable, so you won't be uncomfortable even though it's going to be very hot this afternoon."
Powell began to remove the pieces from Julia's face, which took about thirty minutes. "It will take me about an hour to put the pieces back on, apply make up, and fit you for a wig," Powell said. "The goal is to have both you and Morbus ready by two this afternoon."
"It's six," Julia said. "I need to get some sleep."
"Can you be ready for me at noon?" asked Powell.
"I'll be here," said Julia.
----------
Julia went into a back bedroom and lay fully clothed on the bed. She wondered what Ryan's been doing since she's been gone. She couldn't wait for this to be over so she could go home to him.
She knew it was too early to call him, because it was an hour earlier in Chicagoland. She would call him later in the day, after she and the others eliminated the scum who was sent to kill Christine.
By then, she would have some story to tell.
----------
Morbus paced; it something he rarely did.
It wasn't the hit on Christine that worried him. He knew that between him, Julia, Rebekah and Nik, they could bring the Illegals assassin down, and Christine would be safe.
No, it was the prospect of seeing his former face again that worried him, even if it were a temporary thing.
What would I look like now had I not been disfigured, Morbus asked himself. He had long ago put away the pictures he had of himself before his disfigurement, many of them with Jordan. He had properly mourned the loss of his former existance and moved on.
Now, in order to keep Christine safe, he would have to look at an older version of himself. He realized he would do anything to keep Christine from harm, including wearing a disguise that made him uncomfortable.
However, though Morbus, nor Christine, nor anyone else in the house realized it, the disguise would raise more questions than he was ready to deal with.
Especially from his own daughter.
----------
"So, this is the plan right now as to what's going to happen in the Arlington Sector this afternoon," David was telling Jeremiah. "Morbus and Julia will both be wearing disguises, because the Illegals assassin knows what they both look like. Lisa Powell's going to make Julia look like a younger version of herself; and Morbus will get to see what he would have looked like now had he not be disfigured."
"What about Nik and Rebekah?" Jeremiah asked. "What's their part of the plan?"
"Rebekah will be working at the hot dog cart in the Plaza, and Nik will be perched on a nearby rooftop ready to take out the assassin who is tasked with killing the Director."
"David, I have some concerns," Jeremiah said.
"About what, Jere?"
"About Nik's wife," said Jeremiah. "She practically freaked out yesterday when I returned home alone. She and the kids were at mine and Jasmine's place, and the first thing out of her mouth was, 'Where's Nik?'"
"Not even 'Hello, where's Nik?'," David asked.
"Jasmine and I seem to think that because KateLynn is a mother, that her fears stem possibly losing Nik and having to raise the kids alone," Jeremiah said.
"That's just not like her," David said. "I wonder what got her thinking that some harm could come to Nik on this mission?"
"I have no idea, David."
"I'm not recalling Nik just because KateLynn has some fears about his safety," David said. "Nik would kill me if I did that!"
"What do we do, then?"
David thought about it for a moment, then said,
"She and Nik have a nanny or someone come in and help, right?"
"Yes, a couple times a week," Jeremiah said. "Yesterday was her day off."
"You know the woman's name, by chance?"
"I've never met her," Jeremiah said; "But Jasmine might know. Should I ask her?"
"Yes," David said. "I have a suspicion that someone is feeding paranoid thoughts into KateLynn's subconscious. I just want to rule any outsiders out before I look deeper."
"I'll get on it," Jeremiah said.
----------
Part 3--
Julia's sleep was uneventful, and she woke up at quarter to twelve without the aid of the alarm on her phone. She reached over and shut the alarm off, then got off the bed. She slept nearly six hours in her street clothes.
"Hey, Jules, it's time to wa...oh, you're already awake," Rebekah said as she entered the bedroom.
Julia laughed. "I must have been tired, because I didn't even change back into my pajamas or anything."
"Well, Lisa's ready for you when you go back into the dining room," said Rebekah. "I have to go get ready to sell hot dogs! I'm working a six hour shift at the hot dog cart in the Plaza with the owner's daughter. She's going to cover for me if the hit on Christine goes down like that bastard said last night."
"You gonna be packin' at the hot dog cart, Rebekah?" asked Julia.
"Damn straight I am!" said Rebekah; "We're on a mission, remember?"
Julia ran her fingers through her short hair, and said,
"How could I forget?"
----------
As promised, it only took Powell thirty minutes to reapply the putty to Julia's face, do her makeup, and fit her with a long hair wig the same color of dark brown as Julia's own hair. Julia even had bangs, something she hadn't worn since she was a little girl.
Powell handed her a mirror and asked Julia to take a look at her finished appearance.
"Wow! If I didn't know that was me staring back, I'd swear it was someone else!" Julia exclaimed. "I look completely different!"
"That was the idea, Julia," Powell said. "Normally, I would have gone for hair extentions, but those take more time to apply than we have time for now, so the wig will have to suffice."
Christine came into the room, took one look at Julia's new appearance, and gave Powell the thumbs up. "You look nothing like the girl who walked in here half an hour ago!"
"Pretty cool, huh?" asked Julia. "My own mother wouldn't know me!"
"Again, Julia, that was the goal," Powell said. "Now scoot, I have to finish up Morbus now."
"Where is Morbus?"
"He's in the bathroom, looking at someone he wanted to forget," Christine said.
"His old face?" asked Julia.
"Yes," Christine said. "He's not dealing with it very well."
----------
Even though the disguise was not yet finished, Morbus could see what Jacob would have looked like at age forty-three.
"I look like my father," he said aloud. "I never knew I resembled him so strongly. Miranda must have taken after Mom... God, why couldn't I forget this face?"
Morbus remembered some things from his past that he would have liked to forget. The argument he had with his father over his relationship with Jordan was the last time he saw his father. When he died several years later, Jacob's family thought that their middle child was dead. What they didn't know was that Morbus had come to the funeral anyway, just to make sure the old man was actually dead. It was the first time in four years that he had seen his sister Miranda. He accosted her in the parking lot after the services were over.
"Miranda!"
The woman turned to the sound of her name, and what she saw scared her more than the eternal damnation she was sure her father was going to experience.
"Who-who are you?" she stammered as the man in the hood approached her.
"I was renamed Morbus the Sickness and I work for the Disturbed Ones," Morbus had said; "Listen to my voice, Miranda. Who do I sound like?"
"If I didn't think it was impossible," Miranda said; "I'd swear you were my brother Jacob. But he died four years ago. He was killed at a Disturbed Ones rally."
"Miranda," Morbus said in a soft voice, "I am Jacob. I survived. But I go by the name Morbus now. I want people to think I'm dead. But I can't let my only sister think that."
"How do I know you are who you say you are?" asked Miranda cautiously.
"Ask me a question only Jacob would know the answer to."
Miranda thought about it a moment, then asked,
"What are my children's names, and what years were they born?"
"Your daughters are Victoria, born in 1991; Vanessa, born in 1992; Valerie, 1994. Your son's name is Vincent and he was born in 1996. Your husband is Matthew."
"Jakey, it really IS you!" Miranda exclaimed softly and gave Morbus a hug. "Why are you here?"
"I heard that our father died, and I wanted to come, even though I could not make my presence known," Morbus said. "You came alone. Why?"
"To make sure the old bastard was really dead," Miranda said. "He was not happy that Matt and I married. He pretty much disowned me."
"He and I argued the last time I saw him," Morbus said. "He was unhappy that I had gotten a non Jewish girl pregnant and planned to marry her.
"Jordan, right?" asked Miranda. "I heard she was in prison. I don't what happened to the child she carried."
"I broke out of prison to find Jordan, and after four days of searching, I found the prison hospital where she gave birth to a daughter. The Illegals were planning to give the child to a family of sympathizers and tell Jordan the child died. I found the baby unattended and took her to the Disturbed Ones leaders. She is being raised by a Disturbed Ones couple until Jordan can escape or be released."
"I have a niece?" Miranda asked. "What's her name?"
"Julia. She's four now, and very intelligent. I get to see her on occasion, but she doesn't know I'm her father. I'm just Morbus to her."
"Maybe that's best for the time being," Miranda said.
She then looked around and saw several people coming toward them.
"Jacob, we need to get out of here," Miranda said; "Those people coming toward us, they're some of Dad's friends. They were not happy that I came, called me a harlot and my children bastards."
"I'll take care of this, Miranda," Morbus said.
"But, Jacob..."
Morbus walked toward the group of older men who did not seem happy to see him. One of the men spoke up.
"That harlot needs to leave sacred ground, so get out of my way!"
"I don't think you have the authority to do that," Morbus said in a menacing voice. "Who died and made you judge and jury?"
"I don't know what your connection to that whore is, but she needs to leave."
"We are all God's children," Morbus said. "You have no right to judge anyone."
"The man we came to honor today would not have wanted her here."
"So you would deny a daughter the right to mourn her father's passing?" Morbus asked. "You're no better than he was!"
The man stopped in his tracks. "How do you know him?"
"Let me ask you this," Morbus said; "Do you believe the dead come back to haunt the wicked souls of the living?"
The man just stared. The other men that were accompanying him were slowly inching their way backward. They saw the scarring beneath the hood and were frightened.
"And who are you?" the man asked Morbus.
"I am Morbus the Sickness, here to avenge the wrongs you narrowminded bastards perpretated upon Jacob Rossman, may God have mercy on his soul!"
"Jacob Rossman burns in hell! God has judged him!" the man cried out.
"Not yet, old man," Morbus said; "But you certainly will!" And with that Morbus removed his hood to reveal his scarred face and head.
The man got the message and turned tail and ran back in the direction he came, crying out something in Hebrew in a frightened voice.
Morbus let out an evil and satisfying laugh, while his sister stood speechless behind him.
I'll wear this face, Morbus thought, for Christine. After she is safe, I never want to see this face again!
----------
Morbus finally emerged from the bathroom, ready to complete his disguise.
"You okay?" asked Christine.
"Not really," Morbus said, "but I will be when this is over."
He went and sat in the chair that Julia had previously occupied, and Lisa Powell started to complete the work she had begun before Julia was even awake.
Soon, nearly two hours had elapsed, and Powell finally pronounced she was finished with the makeup work.
"We just need to slip this wig on, Morbus, and your disguise will be complete," Powell said.
When the wig was in place, she asked Morbus if he wanted to see the finished product, and Morbus declined. Christine entered the room and liked what she saw.
"Lisa, you're a freakin' genius! No one will suspect this man is really Morbus!" she cried.
"I don't know what we're going to do about his eyes, though," Powell said. "That's something beyond my expertise."
"Sunglasses?" asked Christine. "Wouldn't that work since it will be sunny out today?"
"That's the best I could suggest," Powell said. "I'm sure there's a contact lens that might correct the redness, but since the redness covers both eyes entirely, that might be a stretch."
"I can do sunglasses," Morbus said. "I'd rather do that than put something on my eyes."
"Then here you go," Powell said, handing Morbus a pair of sunglasses from her kit.
Morbus put them on, then asked for the mirror.
Hmmm, not bad, he thought as he looked at himself in the mirror. At least I don't look like my father that much.
----------
Julia sat at the small vanity in the bedroom where she had slept, looking at her new face, and becoming reacquainted with long hair. She couldn't believe that it had only been a couple of years since she chopped it all off into the short boyish style she currently wore.
She thought about all the times Kiera had her sit at a vanity similar to the one she was on, brushing out her long hair.
"Now, Julia, you need to sit still while I comb out your hair," Kiera said.
"But it hurts, Kiera."
"That's because you got knots in it, and keeping it brushed will prevent that," said Kiera.
When the knots were out, Kiera brushed Julia's hair one hundred strokes every night before she went to bed, then loosely braided it.
"Why do you do that?" the girl asked.
"So your hair will grow long and lovely," Kiera said.
"Did your mama do that for you when you were my age?" asked Julia.
"Yes, she did," said Kiera.
"Is that why your hair is so pretty?"
"Maybe part of it," Kiera said. "Genetics played a part in that too, I'm sure."
"Like Mendel's pea plants, right?"
"Exactly! I'm happy that you remembered our lesson today!" said Kiera. "Now, off to bed with you, Julia!"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Damn, Julia, if I didn't know that was you, I would have asked if you were in the right house!" Nik said, startling Julia out of her daydreaming.
"I know; I look nothing like me," Julia said.
"I like the long hair," Nik said. "I remember Kiera brushing it when we were little."
"That's what I was thinking about," Julia said; "My long hair and Mendel's pea plants!"
"Mendel's pea plants?" asked Nik; "Where did you drag that up from? Genetics gave me fits!"
Julia laughed. Nik noticed it was the only real normal thing about her, given the disguise she wore.
"So, are we ready to kill some Illegals today?" he asked
"Fuck yeah!" Julia said.
It was Nik's turn to laugh. She may look different, he thought, but Julia's mouth will out her every time.
----------
"What do you want the name of KateLynn's nanny for?" Jasmine asked Jeremiah when he met her for lunch.
"David seems to have the idea that someone is putting sublimial thoughts into KateLynn's head that her husband is going to die," Jeremiah said; "He wants to rule out anyone from outside, and the nanny was a good starting point."
"All I know about the nanny is that she's in her forties, medium build, kind of on the heavy side," Jasmine said; "I think her name is Patti or something."
"Girl, don't make me ask KateLynn these questions and give her something else to fret over," Jeremiah said.
"I think the nanny's at KateLynn's today," Jasmine said. "You could casually drop in on KateLynn on the pretext of seeing your nephew and niece. See if you can get KateLynn to tell you without having to ask her directly. Say something about David and Jordan looking for a nanny for their kids."
"That's a thought," Jeremiah said. "I'll run it past David, just in case Jordan may have already asked."
"Who would be stupid enough to purposely freak out KateLynn?" asked Jasmine.
"The Illegals, Jas. They want David. If they can deprive him of one bodyguard by making suggestions to a full time mom that her husband is going to die, then it would just be me out there protecting David's ass," Jeremiah said.
"Morbus chose both of you because you work well together," Jasmine said. "I can see why the Illegals might want to separate you two. You're a couple of dangerous dudes!"
"Damn straight we are," Jeremiah said; "My brother and I are a team, and I'm not gonna let anyone mess that up."
"I know, baby," Jasmine said, getting up from her chair and giving Jeremiah a kiss on the forehead. "Go show those Illegals bastards who's boss!"
----------
Morbus was starting to feel stupid in the clothes that his disguise called for: a suit, dress shirt, and a tie. He hadn't worn a suit since college, and didn't like wearing them on the rare occasions he had to then.
"Why am I wearing this get up?" he asked Christine.
"You're supposed to be my bodyguard, and most of the bodyguards the Agency employs are dressed just like that," said Christine. "David liked you to dress as you usually do. Today, you dress to fool an assassin."
"I swore that the next time I wore a suit, it was to be married," Morbus said. "And since that did not happen, and probably never will happen, I could have lived the rest of my life without wearing a shirt that chokes me."
"I got the biggest neck size they had, Morbus," Christine said. "It's an 18 inch. Any larger and it would have had to be special ordered, and we didn't have time for that."
Morbus made some disgusted vocalization and let the subject drop.
"There's only one hour til showtime," Christine said. "Let's get the actors in here and get this farce on the road."
----------
Julia and Nik heard Christine calling for them and started down the hall.
"Rebekah got off easy," Julia said. "She gets to sell hot dogs all day!"
"Now, Jules, that's not nice," Nik kidded her playfully. "I'm sure Rebekah would rather shoot the bad guys, and she might get a chance to, but it's all part of the plan."
As they passed the piano in the living room, Julia stopped and looked at the pictures on it. The one that was centered was JT's latest school photo.
The more I look at this picture, Julia thought, the more I'm convinced I've seen that face before somewhere. He is a handsome little boy and Christine has every right to be proud of him.
"Now that's something we didn't get to do," Nik said from behind; "Because we were taught at home, we didn't get those yearly school pictures done. Think we missed out, Jules?"
"Naah, Nik," Julia said; "Joe hated having his picture taken anyway. Maybe it's a good thing we 'missed out'."
They walked on into the dining area, and the first thing Julia saw was a familiar face. Much older, but still familiar.
"Oh, my God!" she gasped.
----------
Jeremiah hated what he was about to do.
He had to try to get KateLynn San Marco to tell him the name of the woman who worked as a nanny for her and Nik, without her realizing that was what he was doing.
He rang the doorbell, and he heard little feet running for the door. It opened and a tired looking KateLynn stood there with Sandrina in her arms, and Matty at her feet saying, "Unca Jer'miah!"
"You look like you've been through it," Jeremiah said as KateLynn let him inside. "No help today?"
"No," KateLynn said. "Patti has the flu, so I'm on my own today."
"Need help? I'm free for a little while. I have to call David later, but I'm available if you need to rest or something," Jeremiah offered.
Sandrina squirmed in her mother's arms, and Jeremiah took the six month old and sat her on his lap. "Hi, cutie," Jeremiah said to her; the baby made vocalizations that sounded like she was trying to talk to him.
"So what brings you to the land of fun, Jeremiah?" asked KateLynn.
"Haven't seen my niece and nephew for a while, so I thought I'd drop in," Jeremiah said. "I didn't know your nanny took a powder."
"She has that flu that's been going around," KateLynn said. "It was kind of the reason I was at your house yesterday to see Jasmine. I just needed to get out of here for a while."
"Ahh, I see," Jeremiah said. "Seeing you and the kids isn't the only reason I'm here. I'm kind of on a information mission for the Draimans. They're looking into hiring a nanny, and David thought that since I was coming over anyway, I could ask you for recommendations on their behalf."
"Well, I have a couple of Patti's cards, I'm sure she'd be happy to recommend someone for David and Jordan," KateLynn said. "But wait til she's over the flu. I know when I'm sick I don't want to talk to anyone." KateLynn got up and retrieved a couple of business cards and handed them to Jeremiah. He notated the name and put the cards in his pants pocket.
Jeremiah prevailed on KateLynn to lie down for an hour, and he'd watch the little ones. Matty wanted to show his uncle his superhero stuff; Jeremiah put Sandrina on the floor where she attempted to get up on her hands and knees. She wasn't quite getting it, but she was laughing and giggling the whole time, so Jeremiah wasn't worried that she wasn't going to crawl today.
However, he still worried about KateLynn. Maybe she's getting paranoid because she's not getting enough rest, and it isn't something to do with the Illegals, he thought. I'll have Dan check out the nanny anyway. Just to rule her out.
----------
Part 4--
Christine looked in Julia's direction, and saw a look of shock in the girl's eyes upon seeing Morbus in his full disguise.
Julia turned around and went back to the piano, then returned a moment later to face Morbus.
"Oh, my GOD!" she repeated.
"Julia, what's wrong?" Morbus asked.
"You..." Julia stammered; "You're JT's father, aren't you?"
"Yes, Julia, I am. You have a brother," Morbus said. "I wanted to wait until after this was over before I told you."
"He-he looks just like you!" Julia exclaimed. "What other secrets are you keeping from me?"
"Julia, I'm not keeping secrets from you intentionally," Morbus said. "I do it to keep you and your mother safe."
"My mother has nothing to do with this, Morbus!" Julia said. "How is my not knowing I have a nine year old brother keeping my mother safe?"
"I'm sorry, Julia," Morbus said, silently cursing himself for agreeing to be made up like his former self; "It's not something I wanted to do. I was under orders not to say anything."
Julia then turned to Christine, saying, "Orders from you, no doubt."
"No, Julia," Christine said. "Orders from your stepfather. He was afraid you'd react like this if you knew before the mission."
"Well, you all practically gave it away disguising Morbus to look like he did before he was disfigured! Didn't that cross your mind that I'd figure it out?" Julia said, angrily. "Do you both really think I'm that clueless? I mean, I know I'm a teenage girl, but seriously, did you think I'd not notice, especially since I met JT already?"
Julia then stormed out of the room. Nik went to follow, and Morbus said, "No, Nik, let her calm down."
Nik turned and just glared at Morbus. To Christine, he said, "With all due respect, Madame Director, this is the one part of your plan you didn't think out so well. You've seriously misjudged Julia. You both have. No wonder she's pissed off!"
Nik then turned and went back up the hall to try and find his sister.
He found her in the bedroom, sitting on the bed trying not to cry. It wasn't working.
"Nikky, how could they do that? How could they think I'm stupid?" asked Julia.
"I don't think they think you're stupid, Jules," Nik said. "I think they were honestly trying to protect you. They just went about it the wrong way. Sometimes, kids think like grownups, and grownups think like kids."
"I have to pull myself together, Nik," Julia said. "We have a mission to complete. I'll tear Morbus a new asshole later, after we're back in Chicagoland."
"That's my girl," Nik said, helping Julia regain her composure. "Think of the mission, then get your revenge."
"It's not going to be revenge, Nik," said Julia. "He's going to tell me the truth about everything. He's not going to keep any more shit from me, especially shit I should know about, like having a brother."
"Well, then, let's get this show on the road," Nik said.
----------
Scott was readying his weapon for the most important assassination of his career; to eliminate the Director for the Disturbed Ones Security Forces. He knew he only had one chance at it, so wanted to make sure it would count.
"Stupid bitch will die today," he said aloud. "No more Christine Collins and her band of assassins getting in our way. Getting Draiman will be easy after today."
He had no idea that someone had been in the empty apartment with him for half an hour early that morning. Someone who had heard every word he uttered in that time, including how he was going to kill the two female assassins who would be accompanying her.
He didn't know that their plans had changed based on the information that he unwittingly gave out when he thought he was alone.
-----------
Rebekah was sick of the smell of hot dogs, but she sold lots of them.
It was all a run up to the main event-- to keep Christine from getting killed.
In her apron was her Glock. If anyone got close to Christine from her vantage point, Rebekah could take them out.
She knew that both Morbus and Julia would be in disguise, and that Nik would be on a rooftop with a high powered rifle. How could this go wrong, she thought as she dressed her umpteenth hot dog of the day and collected the four-fifty from the customer.
----------
Nik was on the roof of a local five story motel adjacent to the Plaza. Its facade was perfect for Nik to hide behind. The balcony of the apartment across the Plaza from him was also on the fifth floor, so Nik had a clear shot of whoever it was who would be shooting from there.
His instructions before leaving the house were clear. Don't shoot if someone else from his team shoots first. Julia would try to regain access to the apartment and eliminate the assassin, but only after he attempted to carry out his plan.
Nik realized that either Christine, Morbus, or both of them could be shot in the process. He didn't know if either of them realized it. After all, they underestimated Julia, didn't they?
----------
At five minutes before four, Christine and Morbus, going by his original name, Jacob, started walking across the Plaza to the hot dog cart. Julia was in a shaded section of the Plaza opposite the hot dog cart. Her gun was strapped to her thigh under the skirt she wore. She was chatting up some real thirteen year old girls, telling them she was visiting her aunt for the summer.
Almost like it was scripted, a single shot rang out, and when Julia looked, both Morbus and Christine appeared to have been shot. She saw Rebekah race from behind the hot dog cart; Julia, who had parted from the girls she had been talking to, ran to where Christine and Morbus lay on the ground.
This wasn't supposed to happen, Julia thought. Aloud she said one word to Morbus: "Dad!"
Rebekah, who had gotten there by that time said, "Dad? Morbus is your dad?"
"Julia," Morbus said; "Christine has been shot in the shoulder. The bullet went through her and into my arm. Neither is life threatening. You need to neutralize the assassin. Call Nik and tell him to hold his fire until you give further instructions. Special Forces are on their way. Go, Julia!"
Without a word, Julia stood up and ran towards the apartment building. Once inside she took the stairs, calling Nik to relay what Morbus had told her.
She arrived at the fifth floor and went to the apartment she had been in earlier that morning. She could hear the assassin loading another round from the hallway.
She had jimmied the door and walked inside without a sound. The assassin was on the balcony, preparing to fire another shot at the couple on the ground. Julia hopped up on the bar and said,
"Mr. Scott, I presume?"
Scott turned around to see a young teenage girl sitting on the bar, holding a gun on him.
"Who the fuck are you, and how did you get in here?" he asked.
"You should have believed me when I told you I could find you within ten feet," Julia said. "As for who I am, I told you last night I was your fucking nightmare."
"Oh? And what are you going to do to me? I'll bet you can't even fire that gun you're holding!"
"Drop your weapon!" Julia ordered in her assassin's voice. "Don't take a chance that this weapon isn't loaded or that I can't fire it. I was trained by two of the best marksmen in the country from the time I was five years old. Now, Mr. Scott, drop your fucking weapon!"
"And if I refuse?"
For answer, Julia shot the rifle out of Scott's hand. It clattered to the floor. When he went to pick it up, he noticed his arm was bleeding. He looked at her and said, "What the fucking hell..."
"Say your prayers, Mr. Scott," Julia said. "And prepare to meet your maker."
"You're not going to kill me," Scott said. "Who do you think you are? Julia Terranova?"
"Yes," Julia said as she pulled the trigger. The bullet found its way into Scott's neck, severing the jugular vein. He staggered outside on to the balcony, where he collapsed against the balcony railing. He was dead seconds after that.
"Underestimate me, will you, motherfucker," Julia said.
She then took Scott's rifle and left the apartment.
----------
Christine and Morbus were taken to the local safe hospital, where, as Morbus had said, their wounds were not life threatening. Both were stitched up and sent home. Morbus was pissed off that the fucker actually got his shot off. But his aim was all wrong.
"I'm taking this shit off as soon as we get back to the house, Christine," Morbus said. "I don't want to look at this face again as long as I live!"
"We fucked up, Morbus," said Christine. "We should have told Julia up front that you were JT's father, instead of letting her find out the way that she did. She's pretty pissed at both of us, I'm sure."
"Nik was right," Morbus said; "This part of the plan was not well thought out. Julia's not a stupid girl, and she must think that we think she is. I'm sure she'll let me have it at some point."
"She's going to have to explain to Rebekah why she called you 'Dad'," Christine said. "But she figured out that Julia and JT were related. She even asked me about it. Julia hasn't figured out that she and Rebekah are also related, but their resemblance isn't as obvious due to Rebekah's own disfigurement."
"Still, Christine, we knew we were dealing with a highly intelligent girl," Morbus said as the car they were riding in arrived at Christine's house. "We're going to have to come clean about stuff that relates to her family ties, both mine and Jordan's."
"Telling her that she and Rebekah are cousins will put Jordan in danger, and in turn, put David and their children in danger," Christine said. "We have to keep that from her for a while longer."
"You're right about that," Morbus said, sighing. "The Illegals want David, and we've frustrated them at every turn. They think, and Rebekah's family thinks, she is dead. Any knowledge that Jessikah Terranova is still alive and living under an alias could tip the war in the Illegals favor. I will not allow that to happen."
"She's the lynchpin to this whole thing, isn't she?" Christine asked. "One twenty three year old woman everyone thinks is dead could cost David his life. You know something, Morbus, that really sucks."
"As long as Rebekah keeps her end of the deal and doesn't tell Julia in a moment of weakness, we'll be okay," Morbus said. "I hate keeping secrets from my daughter, because you saw how angry and betrayed she got today. I don't want her to hate me because I'm only trying to keep her and her mother's family alive."
Part 5--
"Motherfucker asks me, 'Who do you think you are? Julia Terranova?' I said yes, and shot his jugular out from under him!" Julia told Nik and Rebekah about her encounter with Thomas Scott.
"At least the fucker's dead and Christine and Morbus were more or less able to walk away from an assassination attempt," Rebekah said. "Bet Morbus was pissed off that the guy was able to fire before someone stopped him."
"I don't know," Julia said. "I haven't talked to him since before I went up to that apartment to take care of Thomas Scott."
"You're still pretty pissed off at him and Christine, aren't you?" asked Nik.
"Damn right!" Julia said; "Seems like everyone but me knew that I had a brother. I had to see Morbus' disguise to make the connection."
Rebekah gulped. "Um, Julia, I figured it out when we first arrived after JT came in from school that first day. You both look a lot alike."
"You know, Rebekah, I don't go on mission to find lost relatives, or relatives I didn't know I had, so I'm not looking for someone who looks like me, or resembles one of my parents."
"What I didn't know is that it was Morbus that was the connection," Rebekah said. "That's why I was so surprised when you called him Dad."
"I didn't realize I had done that until after I was headed to that apartment to confront Thomas Scott. By that time, it was too late," Julia said.
"I noticed your disguise was gone when I came to get you," Nik said to Julia.
"Yeah, I peeled the shit off my face and threw that and the wig in a dumpster," Julia said. "I'd rather be myself next time, thanks, though Lisa did a great job changing the way I looked. And, I have to admit that she did a good job on Morbus, too. I never knew what he looked like before... he became Morbus."
They heard a car door close outside and the three knew that Christine and Morbus would enter the house momentarily.
He went straight to the bathroom to remove the putty from his face, while Christine stood in the living room with her shoulder bandaged and in a sling.
"Well, I'm still alive," she said. "That means everyone did their part."
"When can I go back to Chicagoland," Julia asked.
"When do you want to go back, Julia?"
"Now would be good."
"Could you at least wait til morning?" asked Christine. "I know you're still angry about this afternoon, and I apologize if the way I went about it offended you."
"I'll get over it, Christine," Julia said. "But I would like to go home tonight if it can be arranged."
"Let me see if I can arrange that for you," Christine said. "It might not be safe to do so."
"Christine, cut the bullshit, okay," Julia said, not caring at that moment if she was being disrespectful to her boss; "I am still angry that everyone but me knew I had a brother. Why all the secrecy? Is there anything else you people are keeping from me? Like do I have a secret aunt or cousin or something?"
"You do have an aunt," Morbus said as he entered the room; "My older sister. She's the aunt JT is staying with not far from here. Her name is Miranda Cooper. She's worked for Christine for thirteen years. She lives in the Tidewater Region."
"Look, I don't want to hear about the extended family tree right now," Julia said; "I just don't want to be fucking lied to or have important shit kept from me for my own safety. If it concerns me, I want to know what it is!"
"Okay, Julia," Morbus said; "I'll tell you everything you need to know, when you need to know it. Any questions about my family, ask me. I know you know more about your mother's side than mine, and I'd like to change that. Now that you're getting older, you'll need to know that stuff anyway. But now, I think you owe Christine an apology. You should not be speaking to your superior in the manner I heard you address her a while ago."
"Morbus, she had every right to say what she said," Christine said just as she was getting off the phone. "We did keep stuff from her that she had a right to know."
To Julia she said, "We didn't realize that the best way to protect you is to let you make that decision for yourself. You're an intelligent young woman, and we treated you like a child. And for that, I'd like to apologize. I've never had someone work for me who was as young as you and as good with weapons as you are. I know some people want to protect this petite little thing, and I fell into that trap. You have more of your father in you than I think either of us realized, with a liberal dose of your mother's inner strength mixed in."
"I accept your apology, Christine," Julia said; "But I still want to go home tonight if I can."
"What about you guys," Christine asked Nik and Rebekah, "Do you want to go home tonight if it can be arranged?"
"I wouldn't mind," Nik said. "But whenever it can be arranged is okay with me."
"Same here," Rebekah said.
"I'm waiting for a call to let me know if it's safe to send you back tonight," Christine said. "It might not be, because by now, the New Government has realized their latest assassination attempt failed. I'll know in a few minutes."
Julia sat back on the sofa and sighed. She knew she wasn't going home that night.
----------
After Jeremiah left Nik and KateLynn's (much to little Sandrina's dismay), he went over to David's office to give him one of cards that KateLynn had given him for the nanny.
"Is it possible that KateLynn's exhaustion could be giving her all these paranoid thoughts?" Jeremiah asked David. "I know when I don't sleep well, I hear and see things that I know aren't there."
"I suppose that's always a possibility," David said. "KateLynn should have a check up when Nik gets back. But I'll have the nanny checked out, and if she's clean, I may call her for recommendations."
"That's good," said Jeremiah; "I hope for KateLynn's sake that she's just exhausted and someone isn't trying to mess with her mind."
"Well, Nik should be home tomorrow," David said. "The mission in the Arlington Sector was successful in that Christine is still alive. She and Morbus suffered minor injuries, and Julia wiped the assassin off the map."
"Julia strikes again!" Jeremiah said. "Go little sister!"
"Yeah," David said, "but if what I'm hearing from Morbus is correct, I might have a bit of explaining to do when she gets home."
"Why's that?" asked Jeremiah.
"Seems that Julia found out some things that were being kept secret from her for her own safety," David said; "And she's pretty pissed off at being treated like a child."
"It's not nice to piss off a woman who handles a gun better than you do," Jeremiah said.
David sighed; "Don't I know it!"
----------
Private investigators who were looking into the disappearance of the President's husband did not have an encouraging story to tell her when they returned to the Presidential living quarters after searching for Neil Hope for over a month.
Sarah Kathryn had the team come into a meeting room to give her a status report.
"Madame President, we have searched the globe, literally, for your husband," said Declan MacManus, the lead investigator; "and we are sorry to report that he was nowhere to be found anywhere on the planet."
"People don't just disappear into thin air!" exclaimed the President; "He has to be somewhere!"
"I don't know what to tell you, Madame President," MacManus said; "Where else could we possibly look that we haven't looked already?"
"That's what you're supposed to find out!" Sarah Kathryn yelled at him. "You're not getting paid to travel the world hanging out in pubs singing 'My Aim is True', you know! You have two weeks to find something about what happened to Neil. If I don't hear anything by July 4th, then you're done, okay?"
"Yes, Madame President," said MacManus as he and his team left.
After Sarah Kathryn was alone, she racked her brain as to where Neil could have gone after he left the hospital back in February. It's not like a man walks out of a hospital and goes poof! thought Sarah Kathryn. He has to be somewhere!
"God," she said under her breath, "someone just fuckin' kill me!"
She had no idea that Neil was less than fifty miles away, laying on a bed in a little house by the sea, dead. The last person Neil wanted to know where he was, was Sarah Kathryn.
And she didn't.
Neither did a highly paid team of investigators who looked everywhere in the world for a man who had been dead nearly three months.
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