The Adventurer
Copyright© 2025 by A Well Traveled Man
Chapter 9
Trey was doing his forms at 2 a.m. on Thursday. He went to the gym and completed his weight workout. After returning to his bedroom, he showered, dressed, and packed for his trip. He included a disguise, $10,000 in cash, the audio/video detector, and his golf clubs. Trey printed his itinerary, carried his bags to the F250, and drove to the airport. After checking his bags at the ticket counter, he went through security and to the gate. It was a 6 a.m. flight, and they were boarding when he arrived.
They took off on time, and Trey had an idea to protect his calls to Jack. He started programming the app. Trey called it “The Silencer” because anyone listening would hear nothing when the call was made through the app. Both phones had to have the app to listen to the conversation. Trey finished it when they were ready to land at LAX. He saved the app and still had more work to do on it. It needed to be password-protected and also copy-proof.
A town car met him at baggage claim and drove him to the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. Trey checked in and unpacked, and the driver took him to Michel’s Fine Clothing. Samuel met Trey, and he said, “I’ve got something special for you.” They went to the fitting room, and Samuel left while Trey undressed. Samuel returned with a tux, a pair of snake-skin boots, and a black Stetson cowboy hat. The brim tilted down, and it had a snake skin hat band matching his boots.
Trey tried on everything and changed into a dark red shirt. Samuel said he’d steal the show. Trey agreed and tipped Samuel $500 for his excellent service. He left the shop with his new tux and shirt in a custom garment bag, and the boots, hat, and accessories in shopping bags. Stan, the driver, returned him to the hotel, and Trey tipped him $100. He went to his suite, hung his tux and shirt in the closet, then ordered room service for lunch and unpacked. While waiting, he swept the suite for bugs and cameras. Thankfully, there were none.
After lunch, Trey went to the concierge and asked which golf course was nearby, and the concierge said the Bel-Air Country Club. Charles, the concierge, asked when he would play, and Trey said early Friday and Saturday mornings. Charles said it would be arranged, and a car would pick him up at 7 a.m. Trey tipped Charles $200 and returned to his suite. Richard called and asked if Samuel had set him up. Trey said yes, Samuel did an excellent job. Richard said, “Great,” and warned Trey he would be photographed everywhere he went, so he should be careful. Then Richard said a limo would pick him up Saturday evening at six, and they’d meet at the premiere, then said goodbye.
Then, he resumed programming the safety features into his phone app, “The Silencer.” Once completed, he double-checked it and installed it on his phone. Next, Trey sent a copy via text to Jack, asking him to install it on his device and call him. Jack followed Trey’s instructions and called back. Trey told Jack to open the app and call him again. Jack did so, and Trey explained that their conversation was now private, and anyone listening would hear nothing. He described how the program worked and how it was password protected. Jack was amazed and promised to keep it confidential. Finally, they said goodbye.
Trey ordered room service for dinner, then checked his cloud account. He wasn’t surprised that he had computer files for Patty Bell, the governor’s wife. The photo and video section was extensive, featuring Patty engaging in sex with men and women. None of the photos or videos included George. With this evidence, he planned to drop the bomb after Jack was nominated and sworn into the Senate. Dinner arrived, and he ate while reviewing Patty’s emails. Afterwards, he watched TV and then went to bed.
Early Friday morning, Trey did his forms, put on his swimsuit, went to the hotel pool, and swam laps for 30 minutes. Returning to his suite, he showered, dressed, and went to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. At seven, he met the town car and was driven to the Bel-Air Country Club. The driver gave Trey a business card and asked him to call thirty minutes before needing a ride to the hotel.
Trey checked in at the Pro Shop and gave his name to the clerk. The club pro, Joe Clark, introduced himself and welcomed Trey, then asked to play a round with him. Trey said, “Sure,” and grabbed a course guide as they took bucket balls. While warming up on the practice range, Trey took it easy because he hadn’t played golf in a while and asked about the course fee. Joe said they had an arrangement with the Beverly Wilshire, and his rounds were comped.
After warming up, they headed to the starting line, and Joe teed off first. Trey followed, hitting his drive 75 feet past Joe’s. As they played, Joe asked Trey about his golf experience and why he was in Beverly Hills. Joe was surprised to learn he had won the golf academy tournament against the top amateurs in the Southeast. Then Joe was shocked to find out Trey was here to attend the movie premiere of “Retribution at Grove Creek.”
When they reached the 18th tee, Trey called his driver, and Joe made a call, too. They teed off, and several people took pictures when they reached the green. Trey birdied the 18th hole, and Joe made par. They add their scorecards, and Trey shot a seven under par to Joe’s two under. He posed for a picture with Joe and gave him his signed scorecard. Joe said he’d arrange for Trey to play with some club members tomorrow, and they shook hands goodbye.
Stan, his driver, picked Trey up, and they returned to the hotel. Trey tipped Stan $50, and arrangements were made for tomorrow. He returned to his suite and swept it with his audio/video detector. It was clear, but Trey knew the risk would increase now that his presence was known. He decided to stay in the hotel and avoid the paparazzi. Trey ordered room service for lunch and checked his cloud account. He installed a backdoor to the surveillance program that the NSA accepted from him at the White House. When it was installed, it sent him a link to the program.
Trey quickly checked the keywords used to see if they were using the program properly, and they were, so he disconnected the link. Then he looked at the programming on his phone tag app. His programming skills had improved, and he wanted the app to avoid detection. Trey programmed the tag to embed itself into the phone’s core instead of a separate app. Then he changed the reporting to his cloud account and scheduled updates for 3 a.m. daily. Trey updated the phone tag program on his tablet and phone, then ordered room service for dinner.
While waiting for dinner, Trey called home, and Grandmother answered. He asked where our flasher was, and she laughed and said at their condo. He told Grandmother about his day and the attention at the 18th green. Trey said he was considering not going to the Bel-Air Country Club tomorrow. Grandmother told him to go, but to call and request that they have security staff on hand. They should anyway after the attention today, and they said goodnight. Room service arrived, and he ate dinner while watching TV. There was an entertainment segment, and they discussed the movie premiere of “Retribution at Grove Creek.” At the end of the program, he went to bed.
Saturday morning, Trey did his forms, then went to the hotel gym and did his weight workout. Then he returned to his suite, showered, dressed, and went to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. Trey’s driver was Stan, who arrived on time and went to the Bel-Air Country Club. The club pro, Joe Clark, met him in the Pro Shop and asked Trey to wear a hat and polo shirt with the country club’s logo. He agreed, changed, and they went to the practice range. Joe introduced Trey to his golf partners, John Connor and Tim Bradford.
They warmed up, then went to the starting line, and Tim and John teed off first. Then it was his turn, and Trey’s drive past theirs by over 150 feet. Trey eagled the first hole, and John said we should have gotten extra strokes, and everyone laughed. Then John and Tim questioned Trey on his acting experience, hobbies, education, sports he played, and any foreign languages he spoke. At the 18th tee, Trey said Now that the interview was over, was there a script to read and everyone laughed. When they reached the green, ropes kept the spectators away. Trey sank his putt for birdie.
They added up their scorecards and signed them. Joe met them on the green and congratulated Trey for setting a new course record for amateurs at 12 under par. Pictures were taken, and then he signed over two dozen autographs. On the way to the pro shop, Tim asked Trey for his agent’s name. He said Richard Harper was the managing partner of WME in New York. Trey bought Jack a polo shirt and hat from the pro shop and shook hands with Joe, Tim, and John. Stan was waiting, and they returned to the hotel. Trey tipped Stan $50 and went to his suite.
Once inside, Trey ordered room service for lunch and swept the suite with his detector. He found a camera in the alarm clock, so he unplugged it and covered it with a towel. Room service arrived, and he ate lunch. When he finished, Trey ordered a 5 p.m. wake-up and lay down for a nap. The call woke him up, and he ordered room service for dinner and showered. He ate dinner in his robe, dressed, and went to the lobby at a quarter to six.
The limo arrived on time, and they went to the premiere in Hollywood. He was well photographed on the red carpet, and then one of Richard’s assistants directed Trey for several short interviews. Once inside, Richard met him and introduced Trey to dozens of people whose names he’d never remember. They were producers, directors, and a few actors. Then they saw Jarrett Brook, the director, and Ed Graves, the producer, and greetings were exchanged.
On the way to their box seats in the balcony, Trey told Richard about meeting producer John Connor and director Tim Bradford at the Bel-Air Country Club and to expect a call from them. Richard laughed and said your golf excursion was well covered by the networks. The film started, and he was surprised how well it turned out. The audience loved it, too, and clapped at the end. Trey mingled in the lobby, getting handshakes and a few hugs and kisses from females.
He finally left after eleven and got back to the hotel around midnight. Trey swept the suite with the detector, and the alarm clock was plugged in. He found a camera in the bathroom soap dish. He put the cameras in his bags, undressed, hung up his tux, and crashed.
Trey woke up Sunday morning and skipped exercising. He showered, dressed, packed, and went to the lobby. Trey checked out and met the town car at the hotel entrance. When they arrived at LAX, Trey had to hurry to check his bags and go through security to catch his flight. The last group of passengers was boarding when he reached the gate. The flight attendant served him breakfast, and they landed after 11 a.m. CST.
When he arrived home, Jack, Mom, and Grandmother were there. Jack said, “So the cowboy returns home,” and everyone laughed. They sat and ate lunch, and Jack said, “You can forget about privacy after setting a record at the Bel-Air Country Club and then the premiere.” Trey said, “That’s alright. I used your address when filling out the paperwork.” Mom yelled, “How could you do that?” Everyone laughed but Mom. Grandmother told Kay that Trey has never been to the condo or knows the address.”
Trey told them he wanted to go shopping, but was worried about recognition. Hopefully, he can do his shopping on the next trip and get everyone something. Jack and Mom left, and Trey opened the newspaper to the classified section. He saw two ads for German Shepherd puppies for sale and tore out the page. Grandmother told Trey that his mom doesn’t like dogs like the asshole. Trey said, “That’s too bad, but with Mom gone and my travel needs, you need protection.”
After lunch, Trey took his bags upstairs and unpacked them. Then he changed clothes, took his dirty laundry to the laundry room, and headed to the stables. Blackie was happy to see him. Trey saddled him, and they headed out for a ride. When they returned to the stable, Trey cared for Blackie and went to his room. He turned on the computer to check the reviews of his movie “Retribution at Grove Creek.” All the reviews were excellent, so he knew he’d have a busy week. He shut off the computer and went to the kitchen.
Grandmother had dinner ready, so they sat and ate. Trey asked Grandmother if Tuesday was a good day to go dog shopping. She said yes, but they needed to leave early to avoid Kay’s arrival. He asked if she needed to vote first, and Grandmother said she had already voted by mail. They finished dinner and watched the news. The election occupied most of the program with projections of the winners. The senator led by 7%, and the governor had a comfortable 15% lead with the early voters’ results. After the program ended, they said goodnight and went to bed.
On Monday morning, after doing his exercises and martial arts workout, Trey showered, dressed, and went to the ranch he had purchased. He checked out the house first, which needed paint and new flooring. The kitchen appliances were outdated and also needed replacing. The only items in the house were a bed, a kitchen table, and a 40” TV. Surprisingly, there was power, gas, water, and internet. He’d need to do discreet research on the utilities in case of illegal hookups.
Then, Trey unlocked the pole barn and found a Kubota MX5400 tractor with a snow plow and lawn mower attachments. There was also a late-model F150 4x4, a workbench, a mechanic’s tool chest, and two 55-gallon drums with fuel. He figured Jose mowed the grass runway in the summer, and Miguel or one of his employees cleared the runway with the snowplow in the winter. Trey locked everything up, and on the way home, he thought Carlos would be pissed about losing the ranch. But when he finds out his drug dealer, Miguel, has also disappeared, he’ll go ballistic.
Edward Whitten, CEO of Callaway, calls David Scott into his office. He shows David the Sunday newspaper and asks why Trey Bowman wasn’t wearing Callaway apparel. David tells him Rodney told him to withdraw the sponsorship offer because we only sponsor top amateurs. Edward calls Rodney to his office and tells him the order was to cancel sponsorships of underperforming amateurs. Not rising stars with a high profile like Trey Bowman.