Chapter 25

The girls and I gave Dr. Wills as much information and detail as we could remember; where we'd been, who we came into contact with, what they looked like, what they were wearing, driving... everything. His stenographer took it all down and then rushed off to transcribe it.

My girls then attacked the food and drinks that Mr. Jones had provided like a pack of wild animals.

I pulled Dr. Wills off to one side and we spoke quietly.

"This congressman... he's on one of your committees, isn't he?"

"Yes, he is. He's also one of the most difficult ones to deal with when it comes to financing and operational approval."

"That figures." I paused, thinking for a bit. "What would you need in order to have him arrested and charged?"

Dr. Wills was pensive, rubbing a finger across his lips.

"In this case, in any case where we're dealing with a highly placed government official, we'd pretty much have to have a public confession and a mountain of corroborating data. It would be easier to get a conviction for tax evasion."

"And this would be officially outside our area of authority as well, wouldn't it?"

"Yes. If we chose to pursue this we'd have to turn everything over to the FBI and the Justice Department."

"Do we trust the FBI and the Justice Department to deal with this, or are they likely to be in bed with him?"

"Ike, congressmen are like cockroaches, everywhere and indistinguishable from one another. They have influence, but not nearly as much as they like to think. Where they become truly dangerous is in committee. Senators, on the other hand, are dangerous all by their lonesome. You'll occasionally hear of a congressman being brought down for influence peddling or taking bribes, or tax evasion. You'll almost never hear of anything similar happening to a Senator. They circle the wagons and defend each other and their 'perks' to the bitter end. Oh they'll beat one another up in the media... son, they are the closest thing we have in this country to a true aristocracy. Our version of Britain's House of Lords."

"So we can't rely on the FBI or Justice."

"Not unless we can get a public confession, in terms so plain that a lawyer couldn't rearrange the word order and make them look like Mother Theresa."

I nodded. "And I'm going to guess that your meetings with these committees are 'closed door, no press admitted'."

"Correct."

"Well then, if we want to plug these leaks we'll just have to do it ourselves in a way that can't ever be traced to us, but one that let's everyone know we were behind it."

"Ike, political assassinations are very tricky and awkward things. They rarely work, and when they do they tend to have consequences we never imagined."

"No, you're right about that. But I can eliminate them without firing a shot. The question now becomes, is that what you want?"

"I'd like to be able to expose them and their activities. But I've been in this town and in this business long enough to realize that may not be practical or realistic. I'll settle for plugging the leak and having them wonder how we did it."

I nodded. "Okay. After I've had a couple days to rest up I'll interview the woman from the hospital. Maybe she can give us the name of the Senator. If not, I'll get it from the congressman. When are you next scheduled to meet with the committees?"

"The end of this month. I'd planned on bringing you along and introducing you to them. Getting your feet wet, as it were."

"I'm looking forward to it. In the mean time, we'll need someplace safe and secure to stay. The way things have been going, I was thinking maybe Iraq."

Dr. Wills looked down.

"I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am for what happened. We... I misjudged events very badly. I got complacent, thinking I had all the bases covered."

I waved his apology off. "Neither of us knew there were other players in this game. But now we know, so we have to be prepared to take them on and defeat them. First and foremost this means I have to know Izzy, Lilly and Peggy are safe and protected. They are my Achilles heel."

"We've found a rather nice old horse ranch west of here. The house is large, recently modernized and upgraded; it sits on fifty acres of land and is remote enough that it's unlikely anyone would go looking for you there. And I've brought in a private security force to patrol the grounds. Even they won't know who they're guarding."

"That should do for the time being. Damnit! This is all getting so bloody complicated. I have to think, and I'm just too tired."

"Relax, my boy. As soon as Mr. Jones returns we'll put you and the ladies into a helicopter and fly you out to the ranch. We have direct phone lines there to my office. When you feel better, call me and we'll set up the interview with our mystery woman."

I sat down and tried to relax and be patient. Inside I was wound up tight, wanting to strike out at someone... anyone.

Mr. Jones returned as the girls were finishing off the last of the food. He handed me a plastic bag.

"I had to guess at the sizes, but they should be close enough for now."

I opened the bag and pulled out a pair of jeans, a pull over sweat shirt and a pair of generic tennis shoes. Standing up I pulled the jeans on beneath the robe and zipped them up. They were a little loose and a little long, but that was better than the alternative. The sweat shirt was marked extra-extra large. I shucked the robe off and pulled the shirt over my head. A bit snug, but good enough. The shoes, wouldn't you know it, were a size too small, so I ended up smashing the heels down and wore them like slippers.

We all piled back into the elevator and rode it to the roof, where a civilian helicopter was waiting for us, rotors turning and ready to go. The girls climbed in and strapped themselves into their seats; I followed behind and pulled the side door closed. Jones got in next to the pilot and buckled up. He put on a headset and started talking. The pilot nodded and we lifted off.

Peggy was bouncing in her seat, clearly excited, looking out the window and pointing things out to Izzy and Lilly. Izzy was calm, holding Peggy's hand and smiling at the smaller girl's antics. Lilly looked scared. I took her hand in mine and gave it a squeeze. I linked with her and fed her calm reassurance and support. She smiled bravely and squeezed my hand back.

I'd only been in a helicopter once before and I didn't have particularly good memories of that experience, but I tried to maintain my composure for Lilly's sake.

The flight took a little more than thirty minutes, flying over cities, towns and lots of Virginia country-side. If I'd been in a better mood, I might have actually enjoyed it as much as Peggy did.

We dropped down to just above tree top level and circled a large ranch house with corrals and wooden fences lining a long access road. On the second turn the pilot set down on the front lawn and Jones waved for us to get out.

I unbuckled, opened the side door and helped the girls out. We ran towards the house and as soon as we were clear of the rotors, the helicopter lifted. Peggy waved as it turned back the way we'd come and I saw the pilot wave back at her.

"There's no staff here, so you'll be on your own for the present. The pantry is stocked as are the refrigerator and freezers. The guards will patrol the perimeter of the property, but I've left orders that they are not to come within two hundred yards of the house." Jones told us.

"Izzy, Peggy, Lilly; why don't you three go explore the house and see where everything is. I'd like a couple of minutes with Mr. Jones, then I'll be right in and you can show me the place."

"Exploring! Let's go!" Peggy exclaimed and grabbing Izzy and Lilly's hands dragged them towards the front doors.

I watched the trio charge off, a bemused look on my face.

"There is a large walk in pantry in the kitchen. Against the back wall is a gas light fixture. There is no gas line. Twist the fixture to the left and it will release the lock. Behind that wall is a gun locker." He handed me a rather fancy looking key. "Inside the locker you'll find an AK-47, five thirty round clips and five hundred rounds of ammo, a 12 gauge pump action shotgun and several boxes of single aught buckshot, one British L96A1 with five hundred rounds of match grade ammo and two Glock 10mm pistols, each with four clips and two boxes of armor piercing rounds. I understand you are familiar with these weapons?"

I nodded. "I am."

"If anyone comes closer than two hundred yards, and they aren't with me or Dr. Wills... kill them."

I nodded again. "How are you going to get back to McLean?" I asked.

"I'm not going back just yet. I'll spend some time with the security people first and then I have some research to do elsewhere. You probably won't see me again until you're ready to interview our little assassin."

"You know, that reminds me... Dr. Wills said something about her being a highly trained killer. She didn't seem all that tough or skilled to me."

"Don't kid yourself, sir. Once she woke up it took five men to subdue her again and two of them ended up with broken bones. That little girl is very dangerous."

"Thanks for the warning. I'll try not to underestimate her when I see her again."

"Have a good rest, Mr. Blacktower."

"Thanks. Good hunting, Mr. Jones." He nodded and headed off down the driveway. I turned and walked into the ranch house. The sun was starting to slip down below the tree line and the air was getting colder.

I closed the tall, heavy door behind me. The entry way opened up to the right on a large sitting room, with wide windows. To the left was a smaller, cozier room that was probably meant to be a study or den. The hall way ended opening on a wide space with tiled floors and a small fountain and indoor pond. Behind the pond was a large curving staircase. To the right, next to a tall grandfather clock was a closed door; to the left, an identical closed door.

"Hey!" I shouted. "Where is everyone?"

"Up here!" I heard Izzy's faint voice call from beyond the top of the staircase.

Stepping around the pond I climbed the stairs to the second floor where I was suddenly mobbed by a stampede of excited women.

"Ike, this place is huge! Five or six bedrooms, each with its own bathroom." Izzy gushed.

"The master bedroom has a hot tub and a bathtub you could do laps in." Lilly added.

"And you wouldn't believe how big the bed is." Peggy exclaimed with wide eyes and a less than innocent grin.

"So I'm guessing you like this place, huh?"

"We love it!" Izzy said. "Can we keep it?"

I had to laugh at that. "I don't know about that, but if you all like this place that much I'll talk to Dr. Wills and we'll see if something can't be worked out."

They took me on a tour, showing me all the rooms they'd discovered and we found a few they'd missed. Finishing up the second floor, we went downstairs and explored. The kitchen was a chef's dream, two ovens, three microwave ovens, blenders, choppers, mixers, a monster center counter with sinks and disposals, built in chopping blocks, pots and pans of all shapes and sizes hanging from overhead hooks, two large double door refrigerators, and racks of spices and condiments. We checked the pantries and found stacks of dried goods, canned goods, boxes and boxes of just about everything you could imagine. I noticed the gas light fixture at the back of one and made a note of the quickest way to get there from anywhere in the house.

Leaving the kitchen we found a laundry room with a pair of washers and dryers, and then stumbled on a recreation room, complete with a large screen TV, VHS player, pool table, ping-pong table, air hockey, fussball table, an honest-to-god pinball machine and a wall mounted pachinko machine. This place just kept getting better and better.

One room that I fell in love with was the library. A large room lined with bookcases filled with hundreds of volumes, some I'd read and many I'd never seen or heard of before.

But the thing that absolutely clinched it for my girls was when we found a hothouse at the back. We were walking thru, admiring the plants and flowers, when Peggy shrieked at the top of her lungs and ran to the back wall of glass and started jumping up and down.

"Horses!" she moaned softly.

Lilly and Izzy ran up behind her and looked out the windows. Sure enough, horses. Seven or eight of them, most adults, but two were less than a year old. All of them were beautiful animals.

Izzy and Lilly 'ooh'd' and 'ahh'd', but Peggy was entranced. I looked around and located a back door that led outside. Leaning down, I put my hands around Peggy's waist, lifted her up and held her like a little girl. She put her arms around my neck and wrapped her legs around my waist as I walked to the back door and opened it. Izzy and Lilly followed us thru and shut it. I carried Peggy out to the corral where the horses galloped and frisked about.

"They're so pretty." she said softly.

I reached out and linked with them, feeling their powerful muscles, their strong heartbeats, their enjoyment of the world around them. I felt the comfort they got from being close to the others. The two youngest were excited and happy; jumping and kicking every few steps, nipping at each other as they played.

I sent them feelings of calm, strength, security, and acceptance. As a group they came towards us. They were skittish and wary. I increased the feelings of security and safety.

"Come on guys, come say hello to the girls." I called to them softly.

They moved closer and closer, until they were lined up facing us across the fence. I increased the power of my positive feelings to them and one of the young ones bravely stepped close. Peggy removed one arm from around my neck and extended it, putting her open palm out. The young horse put his nose into her palm and Peggy shivered all over and groaned with excitement.

"He likes you, squirt." I said

"He's so pretty. I wish I could ride him." she said wistfully.

"Tell you what, tomorrow we'll see if he'd be willing to give you a ride, okay?"

"Okay." she sighed.

I gave her a gentle hug. "Thanks guys. We'll bring you some carrots tomorrow." I called to the horses. I cut the links with them and they bolted away.

"I could do with something to eat and a good nights rest. I've had a little too much excitement today."

The girls were oddly quiet as we went back thru the hothouse and into the main house.

"Is something wrong?" I asked as I set Peggy down on her feet.

"No, just thinking." Izzy replied. Lilly nodded her agreement. Peggy had a dreamy look on her face and was ignoring us.

"Okay. But if something is bothering you, any of you, let me know, huh? I'm going to make something to eat, anyone else hungry?"

They said they weren't, so I went into the kitchen and threw together a couple of sandwiches. I ate standing at the center counter and cleaned up when I was done. I snagged a soda from one of the fridges and went in the direction of the rec room. I found Izzy there alone playing pool.

"Hey beautiful."

She looked up at me and smiled. She put her cue up in the wall rack and approached me.

"Hey yourself." she said as she pressed against me, molding her body tightly to mine. Our arms wrapped around one another and we held each other and swayed back and forth.

"Are we becoming a problem for you Ike?" she asked me.

"One woman is a problem for any man. Three would be more along the lines of a natural disaster." I told her.

"Goof! I'm serious, are we getting in the way of you doing what you want to do?"

I pushed her away from me and looked her square in the eyes. "The only problem I have right now is making sure you three are safe. Izzy, remember how I got when you pushed me away?" She nodded. "If anyone hurt you or Lilly or Peggy I wouldn't bother trying to drink myself stupid. I'd go on a rampage and they'd have to kill me to get me to stop."

We moved to the couch in front of the TV screen and sat down. Izzy snuggled up against me.

"There's a darkness in me Izzy and it's talking to me, the way you and Granddad and Mom and Carlie used to. The darkness is, I think, all the negative emotions in me; anger, rage, hatred, fear, guilt, anxiety, personal ambition, all lumped together and it's started talking. It keeps telling me I'm a god and that anything I want is right, anything I do is right and anything or anyone who gets in my way should be destroyed without a second thought."

I slumped down, resting my neck against the couch back. My sister shifted with me, resting her head on my chest, her hand over my heart.

"It would be so easy to give in and listen to that voice. But I know I'm no god, and I know... I know that I'm not always right. What I wouldn't give to just stay right here with you girls and never see another soul for as long as I live. But that isn't going to happen. There are people I have to help, if I can and if they'll let me. People like Lilly and like Peggy. I could do so much good..."

"Shhh... you need to get some sleep. You're exhausted."

She helped me up and we turned out the lights, walking together down the hall to the staircase and up to the second floor.