Part 1--
Within an hour, the Regional Coroner had arrived at the House of Hope to take away the earthly remains of Neil Hope. A forensics expert would work to establish an identity for the corpse, then notify the next of kin.
Josh sat outside, trying to take in and wrap his head around everything that had happened that morning. His lawyer offered to take him home and call his employer to say that Josh wouldn't be at work for a couple of days due to a court case in which he would be testifying. That much was true. Josh would be giving a statement to what he initially found and his reaction to finding it was indeed a dead body.
"Poor bastard," Josh said. "I hope he didn't die a violent death. It didn't look like he had any wounds."
"He probably died in his sleep," the attorney said. "Natural causes is what they'll find as cause of death, I'm certain of it."
"Just as long as the sheriff doesn't get any fucked up ideas about arresting me," Josh said. "This is just too weird and surreal for me."
"I couldn't agree more, Joshua," the attorney said.
They then walked to the car, got in, and got the hell out of there. When Josh got home, he went into the bathroom and threw up.
----------
After Rebekah left Christine's house, she knew exactly where she wanted to go.
Back to the sleazy hotel she lived in before going to Chicagoland.
She saw the same old people there, doing the same old things. Rebekah was disgusted. Nothing changed in the months she'd been away.
Instead, she went to a local bar to see if that scene was the same as well.
She slipped into the ladies room, and thankfully, no one was there. She got out the concealing makeup she'd been given to cover up the scarring on her face and neck. At least I won't look like a complete freak, she thought.
Even with the makeup on, she still didn't look like her identical twin. She looked more like a female version of her father. Rebekah hoped that the drunks and druggies couldn't put two and two together and get four.
She walked into the main room of the bar and ordered a beer.
The barkeep just looked at her, decided she was over twenty-one, and poured her a beer. He slid it down the bar to her.
She sat there drinking the beer when a man who appeared to be in his mid to late twenties sat down next to her. "You new 'round here?" he asked in a thick New England accent.
Rebekah just rolled her eyes. "I've heard all the lines, pal," she said, allowing for the first time in years her Vermonter accent to show. "Ain't ya got something I ain't heard before?"
"You're a New Englander," he said softly. "Can't place the accent though. I want to say western New Hampshire or Vermont. I'm from Maine."
"Vermont is where I am from," Rebekah said. "Where in Maine?"
"Bangor."
"You gotta name, or should I just call you Vermont?" he asked.
"Rebekah," she said. "And you? Or should I just call you Bangor?"
"Chris," he said. "Chris Patrick."
"Chris Patrick what?"
Chris laughed. "Patrick's my surname." He then pulled out his wallet and showed her his NewEngland Region driver's license.
When he pulled out the license, Rebekah saw something else.
A Disturbed Ones ID. He's one of us, Rebekah thought. He could be a spy for the Illegals, so I'm gonna watch what I say.
"You're a pretty girl, Rebekah," Chris said. "You with anyone?"
"Nah," she said. "No one wants to date me. Under all this goop on my face, I have some major scarring. Scares people sometimes."
"Pissed off boyfriend cut you?" asked Chris.
"Car accident," Rebekah said. "Lots of broken glass."
"I see," Chris said. "Say, you do dope?"
"I did, but not anymore," Rebekah said. "You do dope?"
"Off and on. Mostly off. Helps me forget shit."
Rebekah looked at him and couldn't decide if he was the real deal or not. He was incredibly gorgeous, and she could see herself having some fun with him.
"You off now?" asked Rebekah; "Off the dope?"
"Yeah," he said. "The high is great. The crash is hard. Not really worth it."
"I know what you mean," said Rebekah. "Other than this beer, I usually drink tea. This will be the only beer, so don't even think of trying to get me drunk."
"That was never my intent, Rebekah," Chris said. "My intent, to be honest, is to take you to my place and fuck your brains out."
"At least you're honest," said Rebekah. "And I haven't been laid in ages!"
"I was going to hire a whore," said Chris. "Unless you are one."
"No, I'm not," Rebekah said. "Just a lost soul trying to prove something to herself."
"Come home with me Rebekah," said Chris; "Please?"
He then kissed her, and Rebekah surprised herself by responding. He was gentle, searching. God, she thought, don't let him be an Illegals spy.
They then left the bar through the back door; from there, it was literally steps to his apartment across the alley behind the bar. He lived on the fifth floor.
He opened the door for her and ushered her inside. The apartment was barely furnished. There was a table, two chairs, a couch that looked like it was a rummage sale reject, and in the one bedroom, a mattress and boxspring on the floor.
"Rebekah, I know we just met and all, but if I don't rock your world, you can leave," Chris said. "It's been a while since I got laid, too."
"I'm sure you'll do fine," Rebekah said. "I'm sure you'll rock my world, and I'll rock yours. Then we can see what comes of it later. I just need a place to crash tonight."
They sat on the bed and undressed. Rebekah noticed much about the man she was about to sleep with. One was a tattoo of a girl's name on his chest: Corryne.
"Who's Corryne?" she asked.
"My sister," Chris said. "She was arrested by the Illegals and never seen again. Next thing I knew, she was dead."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up a painful memory," said Rebekah.
"No matter," he said. "I'm over it." He then said, upon seeing Rebekah's naked form for the first time,
"You're so tiny, Rebekah! I've always liked small girls."
"I've always like well endowed men, Chris," she replied, referring to his hard on. "C'mon, baby, let's fuck."
And that is what they did all night long. God, it's been too long, she thought as he pummelled her relentlessly.
He indeed rocked her world.
----------
Rebekah awoke the next morning about the time that Christine found her missing and called Morbus. Chris was still sleeping, barely covered by a sheet.
God, what I wouldn't do to rock your world again, she thought.
She went into the bathroom to use the toilet and to take the concealing makeup up off.
It wasn't smudged, but Rebekah hated wearing it. It was too heavy on her skin and made her feel like she had on a mask.
Once she got it washed off her face, she felt much better. Rebekah wanted to see if Chris thought the same about her now that her scars were exposed.
As she walked back to the bed, she saw the butt of a gun sticking out of a jacket's interior pocket. The jacket was hanging on the doorknob of the bedroom.
I wonder why I didn't see that before, Rebekah thought as she removed the gun from the pocket. She popped open the chamber and saw that it was loaded.
Was he assigned to kill me? she thought. Or is it just a coincidence?
The safety was off, and that concerned her. Either he's really careless with his weapons, or he was going to use the gun at some point.
She brought the gun with her to the side of the bed. Chris slept unaware that she had found his weapon.
Rebekah cocked the gun and pointed it at Chris.
Chris came awake with a start, the first thing he saw was Rebekah holding his gun.
"Thought you might shoot me?" Rebekah said in a low, angry voice.
"No," Chris said, cursing himself for not putting the gun away; "It's been in my jacket for months. I'd forgotten it was there."
"A good marksman doesn't forget shit like that, pal," Rebekah said. "So tell me the whole story. Were you assigned to pick me up last night?"
"What are you talking about?" asked Chris. "I don't kill people. The gun's for protection since I deserted the New Army last year. They're looking for me."
"Who do you work for?" Rebekah asked.
"Why should I tell you? You could be one of them looking for me," Chris said, getting angry.
"Well, I'm not," Rebekah said. "I suspect we're on the same side."
"Tefached."
"That's not good enough, Chris...if that is your name," Rebekah said. "The second line of The Sickness might convince me. That is, if you know it without looking it up."
"Broken, your servant I kneel," Chris said. He'd been warned that he could be asked for any lyrical snippet to any Disturbed song, and that he'd better know them all. "Happy?"
"Delirious," Rebekah said, lowering the gun. "Sorry about that. I was trained to question everyone's motives, including those who are on the same side."
"Trained?" Chris asked. "By whom?"
"Morbus."
"You're from Chicagoland? Where Draiman and the band is?"
"I'm from Vermont," Rebekah said; "I thought we established that last night. Look, it's a long story about how I came to be at Chicagoland, and it's one I don't feel comfortable enough to tell to someone I just met."
"Fair enough," Chris said. "So you're one of the five female assassins I've heard so much about?"
"Maybe. Why do you ask?"
"You mentioned Morbus," Chris said. "He only trains the BlackOps and Ghost Squads. You have to be in one of those."
"I am," Rebekah said. "But I was initially trained as a sniper by another sniper. I was recommended to Morbus by the Director after I'd worked for her for three years. I lived here in the Arlington Sector until five months ago."
"You went to Chicagoland then?"
"Yes."
"So you work for Morbus," Chris said. "How do I know that's true?"
"You could ask the Director yourself if you wish," Rebekah said. "I'm sure she's discovered me missing and has someone looking for me."
"Why are you missing?"
"Because I promised not to go back to my past, and I did anyway," Rebekah said. "Nothing here has changed. I don't need smack anymore, and I don't need to get my jollies with just anyone."
"I see," Chris said.
"No, you don't," Rebekah said. "I came back here with you because I wanted to. Not because you had my drug of choice. I'm done with that shit. I just wanted companionship."
"I find it really hard to believe that you came here looking for that," Chris said. "You know the scum that hangs out here."
"I was part of that scum at one time," Rebekah said. "And I'm not proud of it."
"Rebekah, come here for a minute," Chris said softly, patting the empty space next to him on the bed. When she climbed on the bed next to him, he said,
"We all have things we're not proud of; I told you last night that my sister was arrested by the New Army. I have no idea what they did to her, but I soon found out that I was ordered to serve with them. After my basic training, the bastards told me she was dead. She was my little sister, and I didn't protect her. She was only fifteen, Rebekah, and I failed her. So when I deserted from the New Army last year, after serving with them since I was twenty-one, I sought out Disturbed Ones. The person I found was a woman in Tidewater named..."
"Miranda Cooper," Rebekah said; "Right?"
"Yes," Chris said, shocked; "How did you know?"
"I met her recently," Rebekah said. "She does espionage ops. So you really are one of us! I'm sorry I doubted you."
"You were just reacting as you were trained to do," Chris said. "And I don't want to change the subject, but has anyone told you how strongly you resemble Julia Terranova? I suspect you're a little older than she is, but you do look a lot alike."
"They say that everyone has a twin," Rebekah said; "And I really do. It's not Julia. We're cousins, but if you breathe a word of that, I'll deny it. Julia doesn't know, and I'm not supposed to tell her."
Chris drew her into him. He wanted to take her again, but he also wanted her to trust him. "I won't tell, Rebekah. But why did you tell me?"
"Because I'm tired of keeping other people's secrets."
"I hear that," he said. "Can I love on you again, Rebekah?"
Rebekah felt herself getting aroused. "Yes," she said as she allowed him to caress her most sensitive parts. "I need..."
Before she could finish speaking, Chris had swallowed her words with a kiss.
----------
Morbus arrived at the airfield and was taken straight to Christine's office, where he met with the Director and Miranda Cooper.
Christine was distraught. She was certain that Rebekah had sought out someone with heroin and was getting high. She blamed herself for not taking Rebekah's concerns and wishes seriously.
"It's my fault that she's run off," Christine said. "I practically drove her to it by ordering her not to go anywhere until we'd talked about it."
"Christine, you couldn't have known that was what she had planned," Miranda said. "Don't be so hard on yourself."
"I have to agree with Miranda, Madame Director," Morbus said. "Rebekah is headstrong and stubborn. Just like a certain daughter of mine."
"You only have one daughter," Christine said, laughing a little. "But I get your point."
"She'll come back, because she doesn't want to disappoint you," said Morbus. "Maybe she really did want to see if the desire for heroin was still there. And she hasn't been with any young men since she's been at Chicagoland, so maybe she really did need to have that contact."
"What I gathered from the brief time I spoke with her," Miranda said, "is that she's a pretty intelligent girl. Because you trained her, Chris, then she probably feels some obligation to you. You can't keep the girl on a short leash. That goes for you, too, Brother Mine," she concluded, looking at Morbus. "Especially with your daughter."
"So I'm just being paranoid? Is that what you two are saying?" Christine asked.
"Not at all," Miranda said. "She could still get into trouble if she's not careful, and we should still go look for her. But if she's doing okay, she'll be back soon."
"And if she's in trouble?" asked Christine.
"We'll rescue her, Madame Director," Morbus said. "But I have confindence in Rebekah that she'll do the right thing."
Christine sighed. She knew both Morbus and Miranda were right. But she still worried about Rebekah. Rebekah was the daughter Christine never had, which was something that Christine had never admitted, even to herself. Of course she was going to worry about her.
"I know you're both right, but I can't sit here and do nothing."
"I'll go to that place she was living before she came to Chicagoland," Morbus said. "If she went anywhere, especially if she wanted to test her sobriety, that probably would be the place."
"If you find her," Christine said; "don't make contact. I just want to know she's okay."
"Madame Director," Morbus said; "I'll just observe if I see her."
Morbus then left, leaving Christine and Miranda alone.
"Chris, you need to trust Rebekah more," Miranda said. "I'm a mom, too, and I still worry about my kids...even the two who work for me. But Rebekah isn't your child. She's an adult with issues that she has to work out on her own. If testing to see if she can resist heroin is what she needs to do, then she should do it. Morbus will get her out of any trouble she may have gotten herself into."
"You hate that he's been known as Morbus all these years, don't you, Miranda?" asked Christine.
"To me, he's still my little brother Jacob. I don't care what name he uses or what he looks like," said Miranda. "I'm glad he's not dead like I was led to believe. I'm also glad he found someone like you."
"I have to live with his memories of Jordan," Christine said. "She's who he measures me against, whether he realizes it or not."
"I never got to meet Jordan," Miranda said. "But I'm sure he loved her with everything he had."
"He still loves her," Christine said. "She's his daughter's mother. But she's also someone else's wife now. We met because he couldn't have Jordan anymore."
"Big shoes to fill, I'm sure."
"I decided I couldn't compete with his memories of her, so I made sure to create some of my own for him," Christine said. "He calls me his beautiful butterfly, so I must have succeeded."
"And you have JT," Miranda said.
"Yes," said Christine. "We should be getting back to the house. I was going to be working from home today. JT is going to expect us when he gets home."
"Lead on, boss," laughed Miranda.
----------
Rebekah and Chris spent most of the day in bed, fucking and getting to know one another.
Things were going well until Chris brought up having children someday. "I'm almost thirty-one years old. I have aunts who are looking to me to provide them with someone to spoil."
"You mean kids?" Rebekah asked.
"Yeah," Chris said; "But I'm not in a big hurry. And certainly not now, being on the run and all."
"Oh."
"Oh?"
Rebekah looked at him, not certain what she was feeling other than an overwhelming urge to cry. She slowly got off the bed and walked a short distance away.
She thought about that late October day almost five years before when she handed over her hours old son to Christine so she could place him with a Disturbed Ones family.
"Do you want to name him, Jessikah?" Christine asked. "The family I'm placing him with told me they'd let you do that."
"Why do I want to name a child I can't keep and will probably never see again, Madame Director?" she asked. "Giving him up isn't hard enough?"
"Please, Jessikah," Christine said, "give this little boy a name."
She thought about it for a long while before she said one name: "Jared."
He was the boyfriend she left behind when she was "killed" in the car accident. She'd learned that he left school shortly afterwards and moved out of the area. She had no idea where he was now.
"Jared it is, then," Christine said. Then she walked out of the room with the baby in her arms.
And Jessikah started to cry.
"Rebekah?" Chris asked, noticing the look of anguish on her face before she got up and walked to the other end of the room. "What's wrong?"
Chris got up and went to her. She looked at him and he saw her tears.
"Talk to me, Rebekah," he said. "Tell me what's wrong."
But she couldn't stop crying long enough to tell him. So he held her until she calmed down. Then she told him the story of the little boy she had to give up.
----------
After making sure the truck had a full tank of gas, Noah left the keys in the ignition, closed the door, and walked away. He was within five miles of the Chicagoland compound. I can walk that, he thought.
He was just about there. He could see the compound over the next hill. What happened next would remain a blur for him.
He heard running behind him, then shouting. Noah couldn't make out what was being said, or who was running towards him until he could see them.
Soldiers. Six of them. They were armed and he was not. If he wanted to live and stay out of prison, he knew what he had to do.
He ran.
Most of the trip was downhill, so Noah let gravity take over. He had crossed into the compound, but didn't want to lead these soldiers straight to the band.
He saw a ditch on the side of the road and made a beeline for it. When he got to the edge, he saw it was a good six foot drop.
And it had water in it.
He then heard what the soldiers had been yelling. Noah thought, oh fuck, they know it's me!
What the soldiers were yelling was Noah's true surname.
The next thing Noah knew, he was falling into the ditch face first. The water would break his fall, but he missed it and landed hard on the dry edge. Noah knew something was broken. His shoulder, maybe.
He then saw the blood on his chest and knew he'd been shot from behind. It was the exit wound and it was located on the right side of his chest just above his ribs.
He decided to play dead, and hoped that the soldiers would just leave him there. Then he passed out.
"Looks like we got him, Captain," one of the soldiers said. "He's as good as dead."
"That wound will bleed out in a few minutes. We'll come back for him in the morning," the Captain said. "The only good Undesirable is a dead Undesirable."
"Aye, Captain," the soldiers said, turning around to leave.
Noah lay in the culvert, unconsicious. But his secrets were still safe.
----------
Part 2--
"What?" Dan practically screamed into the phone; "New Army soldiers on our property? Someone shot? I'll get the ambulance myself and come out there and take a look."
Mike walked into Dan's office as Dan was rushing to exit. "What's all the yelling about, Danny?"
"New Army shot someone trying to get safe haven here," Dan said. "I'm going to get an ambulance and check it out. Want to come?"
"Fuck yeah!" Mike said. "I'll leave word with Viki to tell David when he gets back from his meetings. Meet me out front."
Soon, Dan and Mike were headed to the northern border of the compound to see if there was someone who needed their assistance.
Security Forces were already there, in the drainage ditch on the side of the main road leading into the compound. Dan and Mike got out of the ambulance and went over to the squad leader.
"What the status?" asked Dan.
"I think he's not long for this world, Dan," the squad leader said. "But let's see if we can save him."
The EMTs were already headed into the ditch to get the man who appeared to be dead out and get him medical treatment. When he was finally got on to the roadway, the squad leader went to talk to the EMTs and got a status report. He then reported to Dan and Mike.
"Male caucasian, age undeterminable. Broken shoulder and gunshot wound from back to front. EMTs think he'll make it."
"That's good," Dan said. "Can I go see who it is?"
"Sure," the squad leader said. Dan then walked to the ambulance just as the EMTs were preparing to put the man in the back. Just then, the man on the stretcher groaned.
"Hey, buddy, we're going to get you some help," Dan said before he'd even seen the man's face. When Dan saw his face, he gasped loud enough for Mike to hear.
"Oh, my God! It's Steve!" exclaimed Dan.
----------
"I'm so sorry, Bekah," Chris said. "I had no idea you had to do something so gutwrenching. But he's being well taken care of, right?"
Rebekah nodded her head. "I'm sorry I got all emotional on you," she said apologetically. "I usually keep my emotions in check, but for the last couple of weeks or so, I've been getting emotional over all kinds of stuff I thought I'd dealt with."
"I know we've shared a lot of deep dark secret stuff with each other," Chris said; "and we haven't even known each other twenty-four hours, but I feel comfortable with you. I haven't felt comfortable with anyone in at least ten years."
"I think I better be getting back to where I'm staying, Chris," Rebekah said. "I don't want anyone to worry about me."
"Rebekah..." Chris began, then stopped.
"What, Chris?" she asked.
"I want to go with you. I can't let you get away."
"Please, Chris," Rebekah said, "please come with me. I think if the Director met you, she'd understand."
"I'd like to meet her," Chris said. "You were brought back here for a reason, and I was meant to meet you for a reason. I have to know what that reason is!"
"I walked here last night, but we probably shouldn't walk back while it's still light out," Rebekah said.
"I have a car," Chris said. "I'll drive you there myself."
"I'd like that," Rebekah said. "I don't want anyone to have to worry about me. I came here to find out something. I found out what I needed to find out, and I never have to come back to this part of town ever again!"
"That makes two of us," Chris said as he gathered his belongings, what few of them there were. "I don't rent this place, Bekah. The owners of the bar let me stay here free when I'm in town. I eventually have to get to the Tidewater Region, and I was planning to leave today anyway."
Rebekah looked at Chris oddly, and noticing this, he explained,
"Rebekah, you're beautiful, smart, and cautious. And like I said, we were meant to meet somehow. Fate, the stars aligned, whatever bullshit you want to believe. You came to find out something, and I came because I had nowhere else to go. I'm a deserter from the New Army, and there's a price on my head. They will do anything to capture me. But I have to know if this fate thing is real, and if there really could be something between us besides sex."
"I see," Rebekah said.
"I had been planning to leave soon anyway. Last week, I decided that today was the day," Chris said; "I was going to spend my last night in town getting laid and getting wasted. I was looking for a hooker. Fortunately, I found you and we hooked up."
Rebekah looked at him wide-eyed. "Is that all I was to you? A hook up?"
"No, Bekah, not like that," Chris said; "I saw this beautiful girl at the bar, and I wanted to talk to you. I didn't know if you'd talk to me or not. That's why I used that lame opening line, and you called me on it. I knew that if you were that perceptive, maybe you were worth getting to know."
"You...you think I'm beautiful?" she stammered.
"I know you are," Chris said. "You have scarring, true. But your scars do not define who you are. It's not always what's on the outside that counts. I think that you are so self conscious about your scars that it keeps you from having what you really want. We all need someone, that one person who cares about us. You think you have to push that away, but you don't. I want to be the one who cares about you, Bekah."
He then tilted her chin up, looked into her eyes, and kissed her.
"Come on, Rebekah," Chris said softly; "Let's get out of this shithole and never look back."
They went down the five flights of stairs and out to Chris' car. They got in and left the parking lot, headed to where Rebekah was staying.
----------
On the top of one of the nearby buildings, someone was watching.
They had taken a picture of the young couple who got in the green late model car. A message was sent with the picture that said only,
She's okay. On her way homeward.
----------
"What?!" asked Mike, incredulous; "Dan, are you fucking serious?"
"As a heart attack, brother. It's Fuzz."
Mike looked down at the man on the stretcher, then looked at Dan.
"You're right, it is! Dave's gonna freak!"
They heard a loud moan, and Dan looked back at Fuzz. He had his arm outstretched with something in his hand.
"Take it," he said weakly. "You might not believe me if I tell you. Just take this and watch the video chip and use the jumpdrive for information on how to win the war."
"What's your name?" asked Mike. He expected to hear Steve Kmak, instead he heard,
"Noah Paul. I'm an escapee from the New Government prison in the Milwaukee Sector. I don't know how I got this information, but I knew I had to get it here to one of you."
Dan took the pendant on its chain and put it in his shirt pocket.
He and Mike rode back to the main offices in the ambulance. After the ambulance went on to the hospital, Dan and Mike went into the building and up to the fourth floor. David intercepted them as they walked down the corridor.
"What's this about a shooting on the northern border?" he asked.
"A prison escapee came here with what we hope is vital information to help win the war. He was shot and has a possible broken shoulder," Dan said. "But the thing you probably won't believe is who this escapee is."
"Who?" asked David.
"Come to my office," Dan said. "The escapee gave me a pendant that has a video chip in it. I'm the only one with a computer that can read it."
David looked at the pendant and recognized it immediately. Oh, God, it couldn't be who I think it is, could it?
Once in Dan's office, he inserted the pendant in a box on his desk, and a video came on the screen. It showed a familiar, yet older, face. Then the man spoke:
My name is Steve Kmak, also known as "Fuzz". I was born on September 5. From 1996 to 2003, I was the bassist for the outlawed metal band Disturbed. I was arrested by the New Army in 2003 and imprisoned without trial on charges of treason against the Republic of America. As of this recording, I have tried to escape from the New Government High Security Prison seven times, failing each time. If you are watching this, I've either managed to escape and get this pendant to the Disturbed Ones compound at Chicagoland, or I'm dead.
May the cause prosper and be triumphant!
"Oh, my God," David said. "The man who was shot was Fuzz?"
"He told Mikey that his name was Noah Paul, but he looks an awful lot like that man in the video," Dan said. "Is there some other way we can verify his identity?"
"DNA testing?" Mike asked.
"That's a thought," David said. "We have Fuzz's profile in our records. We could do it. Maybe we can arrange it with the hospital to have blood drawn for it."
"I assumed all these years he had either been captured, or was dead," Mike said. "I hated telling that story that he was fired. You can't fire someone if the reason they left was that they were taken against their will."
"True," David said. "We don't yet know if that's really Fuzz in that hospital, though. Let's not jump to conclusions, okay?"
Dan and Mike nodded.
"Let's find out for sure first, then jump to conclusions," said Dan.
----------
Christine sighed with relief.
"She's on her way home," she told Miranda, "and she's not alone. She's with some young man."
"Who?" asked Miranda.
"Morbus sent me a picture with the message, take a look," said Christine as she handed the phone over to Miranda.
Miranda looked at the picture. She could clearly make out Rebekah. The man she was with looked familiar. Oh, it can't be, Miranda thought. That would be too much of a coincidence.
"He looks familiar," Miranda said, handing Christine the phone. "He kind of looks like a New Army deserter I recruited about six months ago named Chris Patrick."
"A New Army deserter?" asked Christine. "Any info on him might be helpful."
"He was forced into the New Army after they arrested his teenage sister," Miranda said. "Parents died a couple of years before, and that was the Illegals motivation for taking the sister. Chris was told if he didn't join the New Army's ranks, they would kill his sister. He did, out of fear, but they killed his sister anyway."
"When did he desert?"
"A year ago," said Miranda. "He contacted someone in my office in Tidewater that he was ready to serve the Disturbed Ones doing anything for the cause. He's supposed to be in Tidewater at week's end to begin training."
"He certainly has an axe to grind, doesn't he?"
"Indeed."
"It sounds too much like coincidence," Christine said, "but if it is him who is with Rebekah, then we'll do a more extensive background check. Last thing that Rebekah needs is someone using her to get to the heart of the cause."
Just then, a car pulled up into Christine's driveway.
----------
Part 3--
David went home that afternoon with a heavy heart. What if the man who was brought into the compound hospital was Fuzz? How would he deal with it?
It was still weighing on his mind when he walked in the door to an enthusiastic welcome by his twin daughters. When he walked by them and didn't even say hello, Kimber started to cry. Niki comforted her sister.
"Maybe Daddy's head is full with thinkings, Kimber. That's why he didn't say hello."
"Daddy always says hello," Kimber sniffled; "He can't have that many thinkings to not say hello."
David went into the kitchen, where Jordan was fixing the girls their snack.
"Where are they?" David asked. "Taking their naps?"
"You walked right by them in the living room, David," Jordan said. "You didn't hear them chattering at you to get your attention?"
David was shocked. He always said hello to his girls when he came home from the office. Why didn't he hear them?
"I've had a lot on my mind today, Jordan," he said. "Not that's an excuse, but I feel bad that I just walked through the living room and didn't even acknowledge them."
"You better take care of it, Daddy," said Jordan, handing David two plates with carrot sticks and apple wedges. "This can be your peace offering."
David took the plates and walked into the living room. He saw the girls on the couch, Niki with her arm around her sister. Kimber had tears in her eyes.
Oh, God, thought David, I've made my little girls upset.
"Kimber, Niki," he began, placing the plates on the coffee table; "I'm so sorry I didn't say hello when I came home. I've been doing a lot of thinking today and was still thinking when I came in."
"Daddy," Niki said, "you made Kimber cry."
David didn't miss the anger in his little girl's voice. She's the protector, he thought.
"Kimber, come here," said David softly. When Kimber came to him, David gave a her big hug. "I didn't mean to upset you, sweetheart. I'm so sorry I made you sad."
Kimber said nothing, so Niki started to, and David said to her, "No, Nicole. I want Kimber to talk to me. You go eat your snack now."
Niki did as she was told. "Now, Kimber," David said to his younger girl; "tell Daddy what's wrong."
"You didn't say hello when you came in," she said, sniffling. "You always say hello. Did we do something to make you mad, Daddy?"
"No, no, no," David said. "You and Niki haven't done anything to make me mad. Sometimes, when you're a grown up, you have lots to think about, and that's what happened with me today. I was thinking about someone I hadn't seen in a long time until today, and that's why I didn't say hello. I had too many thinkings."
"You couldn't stop thinking about that person long enough to say hello?"
"Sometimes, that happens, Kimber," David said. "I know it hurts. I've had that happen to me when I was little, too. Just know that I will always love you and your sister and your mother, even if I have too many thinkings to say hello right away, okay?"
"Okay, Daddy," Kimber said. "I love you." And she gave her Daddy a hug.
Later, after the girls had had dinner, their baths, storytime, and went to bed, Jordan asked David what he had been thinking about so intently that he didn't hear their daughters welcoming him home.
"You remember our original bassist, Steve Kmak?"
"Not off hand," Jordan said. "John's been the bassist since I've been with you."
"Well, anyway," David said; "I think he came here to give us important information about the Illegals, and he got shot in the process. He's in the compound hospital, and we're verifying his identity to see if he really is who he says he is."
"You're not sure?" asked Jordan.
"For all we know, he could be an Illegals spy," David said. "We just want to cover our asses in case he is."
"I see," said Jordan. "Didn't he have a funny nickname or something?"
"Fuzz," David said. "He was known throughout Chicago as Fuzz. He'd played in number of bands and that's the moniker he gave himself."
"Why did he leave the band?"
"We think he was captured by the New Army around 2003," David said; "We had to come up with a reason why he suddenly left. We put the story out that we parted by mutual agreement, and asked John, who was already living on the compound with his family, to take his place."
"What information did he have?" asked Jordan.
"Danny's analyzing it, to see if it's legit or bogus," David said. "If it's info that we can use to finally end this God damned war, then that's what we'll do. I'm tired of hiding, tired of living like a rat in a maze."
"Me, too," said Jordan. "I'm tired of seeing good people go to prison for shit they didn't do, or for reasons they can't help. I don't want Niki and Kimber, and the baby boys to have to fight this war when they grow up."
"That will not happen, Jordan," said David angrily; "I'll not let my children, our children, fight this war. I will end it before Niki and Kimber start school. I promise you that."
Jordan only sighed. She wished David wouldn't make promises he wasn't certain he could keep. She hoped that the war would end sooner than that.
But it could cost her dearly.
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Josh tried to get his life back to normal, but his mind wasn't having any part of it.
All he could see was that skeletal face he saw in the bedroom in the House of Hope. He closed his eyes and he could see it. He saw it in the customers who came by his place of employment; he even saw it in the face of his younger brother.
I'm losing my fucking mind, he thought one day about a month after the remains of that poor person who died in his sleep were found.
There had been no information about who the man was or how he died. Josh's lawyer was too kind to suggest that the reason nothing's been said was because it was Neil Hope's body and the Committee was keeping it quiet out of respect for the President.
"I don't see how that can be," Josh had said; "Neil Hope was divorcing his wife, and the Committee has no respect for anyone, not even the President."
"It's just a theory, Joshua," the attorney said. "This is just between you and me and the walls. Got that, boy?"
Josh got it.
And still, he could see that ghoulish face. And he couldn't say a word to anyone about it.
But that was all about to change.
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A thick file had been amassed with the finding of the corpse that was brought in from the Eastern Shore. The Regional Coroner's office knew everything about the man who had died there except for one vital detail.
His name.
The technicians had a devil of a time trying to get enough DNA material to do a test. The deceased's hair was no help. His internal organs had turned to mush, and his blood was too compromised to use that in DNA testing.
They finally found enough bone marrow in his hip to do a test, but the testing usually took weeks, and even with a rush on it, would still take about a month.
In the meantime, the technicians had done testing on the fetal corpse that was in the cedar box that was found by the body. There wasn't even enough DNA from that to even determine the age of the fetus when it was ejected by the mother's body during a miscarriage. Instead, they estimated the fetal age at nineteen weeks. Enough of the body was intact to be able to determine that the fetus was female.
But why did the dead man have it? That's what the coroner didn't understand. And, he never would.
The coroner made his preliminary report that the body found on the Eastern Shore was approximately sixty to sixty-five years of age at the time of death; was six feet, three inches in height; weighed approximately 175-200 pounds; and cause of death was a cancerous, rapidly growing tumor at the base of the brain. Not even surgery would have saved this man, the coroner concluded.
"We are awaiting identification so the next of kin could be notified," the coroner recorded; "The body had undergone significant decomposition prior to being found some three and one half months after death. With the adult male corpse was a female fetal corpse that was approximately at nineteen weeks of gestation before the mother miscarried. How the adult male came into possession of the fetal corpse is unknown, and will probably never be known."
He then stopped the recording and wrote something in the corpse's file. For now, he was John Doe. His real identity would shock everyone in the Coroner's Office.
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Dan knew what he was reading was the real thing.
This was the document that he, David and Morbus had asked Vixen and Rebekah to retrieve.
Good thing they refused, Dan thought; We'd have sent them back into that world for nothing.
How did Fuzz, if it was indeed Fuzz who lay unconscious in a hospital room, come to have this? Did one of the junkies or whores get arrested and had this with them, and gave it to Fuzz, or what? Questions like that plagued Dan all night long.
He watched the video identification chip of the man who said he was Steven "Fuzz" Kmak several times, looking for additional clues.
Maybe I'm just too tired to see anything, if there is anything to be seen, Dan thought.
But this document, he thought. Miranda Cooper and her espionage team needed to see this. They're the only ones who could pull this plan off.
He would talk to David in the morning about contacting Miranda Cooper.
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Miranda looked outside the window as Rebekah and Chris got out of the car.
"It is Chris," Miranda said. "At least we can trust him."
Christine looked over at Miranda. "I'd still like more information on him, if you don't mind, Randa," she said.
"No problem, boss."
"And stop calling me 'boss', Randa! You know I hate it when you do that."
"Why do you think I do it, Christine," Miranda laughed as Rebekah and Chris walk in the front door.
"Christine?" Rebekah called out tentatively.
Christine turned around to the sound of Rebekah's voice, telling herself, don't get mad, don't get mad, don't get mad.
"In the kitchen, Rebekah," she called back pleasantly.
Rebekah and Chris walk into the kitchen where Christine and Miranda were sitting at the bar. Miranda greeted Chris,
"Mr. Patrick, how fortunate that you and Rebekah met one another. I was going to introduce you two at some point."
"Rebekah," Christine said, "are you going to introduce us?"
Rebekah seemingly became embarrassed, Chris noticed.
"Madame Director Collins, this is Chris Patrick," Rebekah said. "Chris, this is the Director of all Disturbed Ones Security Forces, Christine Collins."
Chris extended his hand towards Christine; "Pleasure to meet you ma'am. Bekah's told me a lot about you."
"Pleasure's all mine, Chris," Christine said, shaking Chris' hand firmly. "I understand you're going to be working with Director Cooper in EspOps?"
"Yes, ma'am," Chris said. "She recruited me personally when I deserted the New Army. I never believed in their cause or their ignorant laws."
"She'll be tough, but if you've been in the New Army, then you can handle it," said Christine. She was starting to like this young man.
Then to Rebekah, she said,
"Rebekah, can I speak with you alone for a moment?"
"Yes, Madame Director," she said. Rebekah almost knew what was coming. But Christine would surprise her.
She followed Christine into the living room and sat on the couch. Then Christine said,
"I know why you had to leave last night, Rebekah, and I should have listened to you; It was brought to my attention that I'm not your mother, so I can't make you do anything. As your boss, I can't order you to not live your life the way you see fit."
"Is this an apology, Madame Director?" asked Rebekah.
"Yes, Rebekah, it is," Christine said. "And about that young man you brought with you, he seems nice, but I'm still going to have him checked out."
"I understand," Rebekah said. "But he gave me a snippet, so I know he's one of us. The Illegals wouldn't have known to tell a spy to do that."
"True," agreed Christine; "but we can never be too careful. Are you going to be seeing more of him?"
"I'm planning to, but he's working with Director Cooper, so I might not get to see him as often as either of us would like," Rebekah said.
"How much do you know about him?" asked Christine.
"I know that he's from Maine, he had a sister named Corryne, and that he's a deserter from the New Army," Rebekah said. "And a few more things that are more personal."
"I see."
"By the way, Christine," Rebekah said; "I know you're not my mother, but you're the closest I've had to one since I was six years old. I'm sorry if I made you worry when I left."
"You did," Christine said, "but I can't keep you on a short leash. You have to find things out for yourself, with or without my blessing."
"You didn't have Morbus come back here to look for me, did you?" asked Rebekah.
"I panicked, Rebekah," Christine said; "I didn't know who else to call. I'll speak to him about not punishing you when you return to Chicagoland."
"Thank you, Christine."
She got up off the couch then, and Rebekah followed suit.
"Let's talk about dinner plans with Miranda and Chris," Christine said. "JT will be home soon. He thinks you went out for a walk this morning, so don't say anything about being gone all night when he gets here."
"Yes, Madame Director," Rebekah said.
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David hadn't been in his office for five seconds when Dan came in to talk to him.
"I went over the information on the jumpdrive that Fuzz brought with him," he began, "and it's the document that we were going to send Vixen and Rebekah out to get."
"Shit! Really, Dan?" asked David; "I'm glad they refused the assignment then."
"That's what I thought when I realized what it was," Dan replied. "But it's all espionage work, so we're going to need to talk to Miranda Cooper about this. Her team can pull this plan off. It's pretty powerful shit."
"What is it about, in a nutshell?"
"How to bring down Parks, Sizemore, and the President all at the same time," Dan said.
"How did Fuzz get this?"
"I have no idea, unless he came in contact with whoever had it and got it that way," said Dan.
"We'll have to talk to him about that," David said; "After we establish that the person in the hospital is indeed Steve Kmak."
"How's that coming?" asked Dan.
"I haven't yet heard this morning, Dan," David said; "I'd barely sat down when you came in to talk to me."
"Sorry, brother," Dan said. "I thought that you might want to know about what I found out."
"I do," David said, "and I'm glad you told me. But I have to get out of the doghouse with my daughters first."
"Uh, oh, David," Dan said, laughing, "what did you do to make them mad?"
"Kimber got upset with me because I didn't say hello to her and her sister when I came home yesterday, and Niki was as pissed off as a two and a half year old girl can get because I upset Kimber."
"What are you going to do about that?" asked Dan. He had a grin on his face that was making David squirm. First time disappointing your kids, huh, brother? Good luck with that, Dan thought.
"I don't know," David said. "Let them do something to me? Make me go to one of their dollies tea parties? Fuck if I know what to do to make Niki stop being mad at me."
"Better come up with something, Dad, or..." Dan said, taking a little pleasure out of David's discomfort.
David sighed; "I don't even want to think about what comes after 'or', Danny, thanks!"
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Vixen had been keeping herself busy with her own personal regimine of firearms training and personal training. She was in the compound gym one day when Nik brought his son, Matty, with him.
"Hey, Vixen," Nik greeted her warmly.
"Hi, Nik," she replied. "Who's the little man?"
"Vixen Vincent, this is my son, Matthias. Matty, say hello to Miss Vixen."
"Hello, Miss Vixen," Matty said shyly.
Vixen felt as though she'd seen the little boy before, long ago. She shook away the thought and said,
"It's nice to meet you, Matty;" And she watched as the little boy turned beet red. To Nik, she said,
"How's KateLynn and the baby?"
"They're doing great, Vix," Nik said. "Sandrina's getting really big. You and the other girls should come over soon."
"Rebekah's out of town, but I think I can convince Susie and Kylee to come with me. I know that Julia will be there already."
"It's kind of a party thing," Nik said; "Jere's girl just learned she's expecting, and he's pretty excited about it."
"Wow, I had no idea," Vixen said. "Coming to get motherhood advice from KateLynn?"
"And from Tracy," Nik said. "She and Joe are coming into town for a few days with Danica."
"I vaguely remember Tracy," Vixen said. "She's blonde, blue eyes, weird accent? Right?"
"She's from the New England Region, and they do talk with an accent there."
"So when is this big shindig, Nik?"
"Saturday," Nik said. "Around seven-thirtyish. After the kids go to bed."
"I'll be there," Vixen said as she caught sight of Matty again. That little boy reminds me of someone... she thought to herself.
"Great! I'll see you then, if I don't see you before," Nik said as he gathered up his son and headed out the door.
Vixen stared after them as they left. Matty looks just like his dad, she thought.
But the thought that the little boy looked like someone she should have known wouldn't go away. It wasn't until she got back to the dorm, and after she told Susie and Kylee about the get together at Nik and KateLynn's, that she found herself alone.
She took out the picture of her family she kept hidden. When she looked at the little boy in the picture, she gasped.
"Oh, my God!" Vixen said under her breath. "Nik's my brother!"
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