Chapter 22

Friday, June 25, 2010

Jake pulled out his laptop and checked his email. He found a message from Donna. It had come late the night before.

From: Donna.Glenn@morningjournal.com

To: 23b7d5i@gmail.com

Subject: re: Family is what counts

Hey, 23.

It’s late and we’ve finally gotten the morning edition to press. I’ve been working like crazy to confirm the details of your story. Everything else checked out so we went ahead and took a chance that your allegations about the bar examiner are true as well.

The people of this state owe you. Given the story last week plus this one, I don’t see how Cox can survive as a public figure.

I owe you, too. If nothing else, I’ll be the most famous newspaper reporter in the state this year. This is the kind of stuff that makes careers. Please, let me show you my appreciation. Dinner. Drinks somewhere. Anything. I’m dying to meet you.

And I don’t believe that you are disfigured. I’m a reporter. I’m not that gullible. But even if you were, I would still want to meet you and tell you in person how much I appreciate what you’ve done.

Jake stopped at a convenience store on his way to the physical therapy clinic. Donna’s story was on the front page, above the fold.

Cox Corruption Erupts Again

by Donna Glenn, staff writer

A week ago, the state’s political establishment was rocked by the revelation that the Speaker of the House had accepted a bribe to throw his weight behind a controversial bill. The furor resulting from that scandal hasn’t begun to die down yet, and already there are new and volcanic allegations of impropriety emerging to shake the political landscape.

The Morning Journal has learned that Tommy Cox (R-Pecan Grove) used his position as speaker to insert a $2,000,000 earmark into a Parks Department spending bill to induce Holy Cross Hospital in Grandberg to offer employment to his brother, James Cox.

A representative of the hospital refused to comment claiming that personnel matters are confidential. However, an employee of the hospital speaking on condition of anonymity claimed that it was unlikely that James Cox, who is employed by the hospital as a staff attorney, would have been offered the job based on his own merits.

“The guy’s an idiot. People have to go back behind him and do his work again. But it’s his attitude that’s the real problem. He’s arrogant and mean and impossible to work with. Fortunately for us, he is almost always late and usually leaves early.”

Allegations have been laid that James Cox actually failed the bar exam for the third time in July, 2009, but a bribe from Speaker Cox to a member of the State Bar Examiner’s Commission in October resulted in a passing score when bar exam results were announced in November.

No one from the Bar Examiner’s Commission would respond to requests for comments. However, it was noted that Bar Examiner William Logan began construction of a new addition to his home in November.

James Cox denied the allegations.

“I’ll [expletive] sue anybody who says that I’m not a good lawyer. I don’t have to take that kind of crap from anybody anymore. I’m a [expletive] lawyer.”

When asked to explain the sudden improvement in his bar exam score, he said, “That’s just because I didn’t apply myself before. I could have done okay the first two times, too.”

A spokesman at Speaker Cox’s office refused to comment. Ryan Caldwell, the former chief of staff for Speaker Cox who is alleged to have delivered the bribe to the bar examiner could not be located to respond to the allegations.

In addition to his political problems, Speaker Cox is defending a lawsuit that alleges that he killed one woman and seriously injured another in an automobile accident that occurred following a night of sex, drinking, and drugs.

Jake smiled. Donna Glenn was a gem.

Jake arrived at the physical therapy clinic ten minutes before Boris and Nina. He parked on the back row of a parking lot which gave him a good view of the clinic entrance and its approaches. The man Andy had described was already there, standing across the street.

Jake got out of his car, crossed the street, and approached the man who took no notice of him. When he reached him, Jake took control of him, commandeering his loyalty and making him speak frankly.

“Who are you?”

“Martin Lynch.”

“What are you doing here?” Jake asked.

“I’m watching for a crippled girl.”

“Why?”

“We have a contract to keep an eye on her.”

“Who are we?”

“My brothers Jesse and Wyatt and me.”

“Where are they?”

“They are staking out the girl’s house.”

Jake felt suddenly numb.

“They know where she lives?”

“We followed her home on Tuesday.”

“Then what are you doing now?”

“We’re verifying her schedule.”

“Why?

“That’s what the contract calls for — find and surveil.”

“Who is the contract from?”

“Jesse says it’s some politician.”

“Why would the politician want to know what she’s doing?”

“Couldn’t say. That’s not the kind of thing they tell us.”

“Make a guess.”

“She’s a looker. I would have thought it was a divorce case except for her being crippled. It might be to get intelligence for a snatch and grab or a hit. Probably the snatch. Why would anyone want to snuff a pretty girl?”

“How close are Jesse and Wyatt to the house?”

“They’ve got a little blind in a stand of trees about a hundred yards from the house.”

“I want to know more about who hired you and what their plans are. Dig around and see what you can find. Don’t tell anyone about me, not even Jesse and Wyatt. I want to know about any new orders you guys get.”

Jake got contact information from Martin for him and his brothers, and they exchanged phone numbers.

Jake went into the clinic and waited for Boris and Nina. He sat with them until Nina was called in for her appointment.

We picked up a tail on the way in, Boris sent after Nina had left with her therapist. I didn’t try to shake them. You said they already knew about the visits here, so I didn’t want to let them know that we had twigged onto them.

Twigged onto them? Are you sure you’re not from around here?

Quite sure. It’s a phrase of Slovak origin.

Jake laughed.

Ellen arrived ten minutes after noon. Everyone else was already there, seated at the dining room table eating. She gave Jake an unmotherly kiss that Brian and Boris both watched closely. She sat in the open seat at Jake’s right.

“Annabelle, please take the other servants to the kitchen,” Jake said. “This is not a meeting that you can hear.”

Annabelle had been standing at the far end of the dining room looking to see if anything was missing from the table. She nodded and held the door open for the others as they left, taking their plates with them.

“Let’s get this family meeting started,” Jake said. “I asked Boris and Jan to join us today because I value their counsel.

“Before I get started, I might as well mention that the fact that I can read minds, the secret that I hold most closely, that I’ve never voluntarily told anyone, save Brian, has somehow become known to everybody at this table.

“For your information, the servants know that my father is a mind reader so I’ve never hidden it from them. Shannon Harrison and Carol Finch know as well. I believe that makes sixteen, seventeen with me. Let’s keep that number from getting any larger.

“The reason I called this meeting is that Boris and I have learned that Tommy Cox knows that Nina is here.”

Jake felt fear bloom in Nina. He was proud of how she kept it under control.

“I’m personally sworn to protect Nina until this lawsuit is over. But I would do the same for her because of the affection that I’ve come to feel for her. She is brave and good and beautiful and doesn’t deserve to be threatened by an evil man like Tommy Cox.

“I’ve got a lot of resources to throw at protecting Nina, and I will use all of them if necessary. Unfortunately, Cox has more resources yet and a lot to lose. He has the will to do whatever it takes to get to Nina, and has years of experience doing that kind of thing.

“That makes the risk to Nina dire and the risk to my family unacceptable. We are here to choose a course of action.”

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” Kate said, “but who is Tommy Cox and why is he after Nina?”

“Cox is the speaker of the Texas House of Representatives and the most powerful politician in the state. Nina, would you tell everyone about your accident?”

Nina gave a brief account of what had happened that night and the aftermath.

“The dead girl’s family sued Cox,” Jake said. “Nina is the only living eyewitness to the accident. If Nina testifies, Cox will lose millions in the lawsuit. But he’s concerned about more than just the money. He will be publicly disgraced and lose his office and the power that it gives him. He is very practiced at using that power to ruin lives to get what he wants.

“The critical date is July 5th. That’s when Nina’s deposition is scheduled. After that, it doesn’t matter what happens to her because her testimony would be preserved for the trial. Well, if something happened to Nina, it would matter a lot to her and to me and to the rest of you who have come to love her as well. But as far as Cox is concerned the damage will have been done. If he went for her after that, it would only be out of spite.

“So let’s decide what to do between now and July 5th.”

“There’s really only one possible course,” Boris said. “We have to sneak Nina out of the house and get her to someplace safe and unknown to Cox.”

“Why not keep her here in the house,” Brian said. “They can’t do anything to her if she stays out of sight.”

“Brian, I spent two and a half of the foulest hours of my life cooped up in a room with Cox. I read dozens of the vile things he’s done. It doesn’t matter that there is nothing legal he could do because he won’t hesitate to break the law. If we keep Nina holed up in the house, he will most likely have hired goons break into the house to kidnap or kill her.”

“I concur,” Boris said. “If she stays here, it will almost certainly mean violence. Nina has to be taken to someplace secret. It’s hard to get into one this time of year, but a week at a beach house down on the gulf would be a good idea.”

“No,” Jake said. “He has too much control over the state police and maybe local police forces, too. Even if she were surrounded by security guards, Cox could probably use the local police to arrest Nina. We have to get her out of the state. I don’t have my passport yet, or my first choice would be to take her out of the country.”

“I don’t have one either,” Nina said.

“Nina, love,” Jake said, “even if you did, you’re not going anywhere without me. I’m your last line of defense. If everything else we try fails, I’ll be there to stop them.”

“Jake, as we know from trying to protect Ellen,” Boris said, “your weakness is your range. You can’t stop a bullet from hitting her — or you — if it’s fired from beyond thirty feet.”

“I gave my word, Boris. I’ll be there to do what I can,” Jake said. “But first things first. We take Nina out of the state. We don’t want the state police to get involved. Or any law enforcement for that matter. So we have to sneak her across the border. It’s only fifty miles to the northern border by the most direct route, but I’d rather we avoid the interstate.”

“Why not fly out?” Jan asked.

“If he has the airports staked out,” Boris said, “he will be able to see where we’re headed by seeing which flight we board. I don’t want his goons waiting for us when we arrive.”

“It’s only a six-hour drive to Missouri from here,” Kara said. “What’s the name of that tourist town there?”

“Branson?” Leanne asked.

“That’s it,” Kara said. “That should be safe. Cox would have no reason to look for us there, and we’d be out of state.”

“We?” Jake asked.

Kara looked at him dangerously.

“We, Jake Fielding. Together we’re a lot stronger.”

“Yes, I suppose we are. Besides, I don’t want to worry about an attack against anyone left behind or maybe give Cox hostages to use against us. But if we all go, it will make us more conspicuous.”

“Maybe while we’re on the way,” Boris said. “But once we’re there, a large group would not be out of place in a tourist town.”

“So how do we get everyone there without Cox following us?”

“Shaking a tail isn’t that hard,” Boris said, “provided you have some training. Unfortunately, I’m the only one with the training.”

“And we can’t drive our own cars,” Jake said.

“That’s true. If we could get rentals or borrowed cars, that would be much better.”

“Why not just take control of Cox?” Brian said.

“That would be the best plan of all except for one thing — access,” Jake said. “I can’t take him over unless I can get him within range. I’m the 14-year-old junior employee at a law office. There is no way he would agree to meet me.”

“But you could take control of the low man at his office and then work your way up until you get to him.”

“You’re right, assuming I can catch him at his office. Taking control of Cox makes many problems go away. It’s worth trying. But it’s a plan that counts on information we don’t have.”

He pulled out his cell phone.

“Hi, Denise, this is Jake ... I’ve missed you, too, love. Can you ring Jerry for me? ... It’s pretty important. I’d say it’s worth interrupting him even if he’s with another attorney ... Hey, Jerry. It’s Jake ... Yes, we’ve got a problem. Cox found us ... They staked out physical therapy clinics. Apparently, they spotted Nina on Tuesday. We only became suspicious yesterday when we realized that someone was watching Nina ... Yes, I’m certain. I took control of the guy they had outside the clinic ... All he knows is that the client is a big politician, but who else could it be ... We’re making our plans now but it looks like we are going to take Nina out of state until her deposition. I’ve always wanted to see the Anasazi ruins. There’s no way he could come on us unawares out there ... I’d like to be here for Caldwell’s deposition, too. What’s the chance that Cox will be there? ... That’s too bad. It’s the reason I’m calling. If I could get him in range, I could stop all this drama ... Jerry, he’s a direct threat to Nina and now he’s a danger to the rest of my family. It’s the best solution to this problem ... If you can find out where he will be sometime in the next 10 days and let me know, I’ll go after him. If he’s going to be at his capitol office or any place certain that I can talk my way into, I’m willing to give it a try. But I need to know where. I’m not going to leave Nina without my protection unless I’m doing something worthwhile ... If you do find out when and where, call me on my cell phone. I’ll drop everything ... Okay. Bye, Jerry. See you Monday morning.”

Jake looked at everybody.

“He said he’ll get someone to find out Cox’s plans until the day of Nina’s deposition. For now, let’s get back to planning how to get Nina out of the state.”

“And just who is Denise?” Kara asked.

“Who? Denise? Oh, she’s Jerry’s receptionist.”

“‘Hi, Denise. I missed you, too, love, ‘“ Julie said, mimicking Jake’s voice.

“Look, she was pissy with me when I first met her. I’ve been playing games with her. Sort of like what I did with Christine for a while. If anyone wants to know I’ll tell all the sordid details when time isn’t pressing.”

“Yes, it will be something to talk about to fill all those empty miles on the way to Branson,” Leanne said.

“The next question is who goes,” Jake said. “I want everyone in this room to go if they can, except for Jan. Well, I’d be glad for Jan to come, too, but she won’t be in danger if she stays.”

“Thanks for the offer, Jake, but how would I explain an emergency ten-day out-of-state vacation to Mark? Besides, I’m not sure Branson is my kind of place.”

Ellen got her phone out and placed a call.

“Grant, this is Ellen. I got called home during the lunch hour because of a family emergency. I’ve got a pretty big problem. I need to take the rest of the day and all of next week off to deal with it ... No, everybody’s still alive. It’s, well, kind of sensitive. Not the kind of thing I’d want to talk about over the telephone. I’ve got plenty of vacation, or I can take a leave of absence ... No, I’m still planning to take those two weeks off in July. Listen, Grant, you don’t want to get between me and those two weeks ... No, nothing is going on next week that Dave can’t handle ... I’m sorry that it’s short notice, Grant. I’ll try harder to schedule my emergencies to be less of an inconvenience to you next time ... Fine. I’ll see you a week from Monday.”

She dialed again.

“Hi, Dave. I’m really sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to reschedule our date tonight ... I’ve got to go out of town for a family emergency. I’ll be gone for ten days ... Yes, I’m going to miss work next week. You’re going to have to carry my workload as well as your own ... If anyone can handle it, it’s you. If it’s okay with you, we can go out when I get back. How about two weeks from tonight? ... Thanks for being understanding, Dave. I’m really disappointed to have to cancel. I was looking forward to it ... Okay, bye.”

Ellen looked at Jake. “I’m in.”

“Are you in trouble at work?” Leanne asked.

“No, that’s just how managers talk. They can’t just give you what you ask for without some kind of argument. They don’t want you to think you can have whatever you want. He’ll be okay.”

“Good,” Jake said, smiling at her. “It wouldn’t have been the same without you. Now, we’ve got to figure out how to pull this off. I want the bad guys to know that Nina is gone but not know that everybody else is, too.”

Boris left to pack. He was to be back by four. Ellen and Leanne went to rent a van and get spending money. Kara got hotel reservations over the Internet. Nina, Julie and Brian researched things to do while they were in Branson.

Jake drove to the store to pick up a stock of food for his father. This was perhaps the most dangerous part of the plan. The last thing Jake wanted was for his father to come in contact with Cox. Jake had to be certain that he wasn’t being followed. The possibility of someone with Cox’s resources and ruthlessness gaining the services of a mind reader was too scary to contemplate.

Jake stopped at the grocery store. He walked the aisles getting a variety of stuff that didn’t need to be cooked. Then he drove in the direction of the farmhouse. He didn’t see anyone following him but he didn’t know how good a tail could be. Jake used one of the tricks that Boris had taught him and the women. He turned into a subdivision and drove through the streets. He made a quick left turn and then another into an alley. He saw no evidence of anyone following.

He got back on the road, watching his rearview mirror carefully, looking for cars he had seen before. Out of the city on the Farm-to-Market roads, it was easier to ensure that there was no one following him. Jake drove a half-mile past the farmhouse and then made a U-turn. No other cars appeared and Jake turned onto the road that led to the farmhouse.

Harris was sitting on a chair inside the front door. He set his new laptop down and stood as Jake approached with several plastic bags of groceries. It took Jake one more load to get them all.

You realize that this throws my nice, orderly world all askew, Harris sent. You’re here early, and you’ve learned that not everything edible in the universe is found at McDonald’s.

Jake reactivated Harris’s vocal cords.

“How’s the writing coming?” Jake asked.

Harris cleared his throat. “I already finished today’s tips.”

Jake handed him a flash drive. Harris copied his file over.

“If you find yourself with some spare time, why don’t you get started on your autobiography. I’m sure I’ll find it fascinating.”

“You’re a funny guy. Thanks to you my whole life is this computer, its word processor, and Minesweeper. Spare time I have in abundance.”

Leanne and Ellen were already back when Jake got home. Boris was not. Jake asked Ellen to get her pistol and meet him on the front step.

“The people watching the house are in a stand of trees a hundred yards away, according to the guy I talked to today,” Jake said. “Can you see them?”

Ellen scanned the trees.

“Yeah, sure. They’re at eleven o’clock.”

“You can see them?”

“Uh-huh, it’s easy. They’ve got something with a lens — a camera or a telescope. I can see the sunlight glinting off it.”

Jake looked and he saw the hint of a reflection. It came and went.

“I’m going to rename you Eagle Eye,” Jake said. “Jesse and Wyatt are over there. Jesse is the one who’s been in contact with their employer. How do we come on them unawares?”

“We ask Boris what he would do. He’ll be here any minute.”

“Spoilsport.”

Jake and Ellen stood there chatting in the hot sun for several minutes before Boris pulled up in front of the house. Jake gestured him over.

“I wasn’t followed when I went out,” Jake said.

“Me neither,” Boris said.

“Neither Leanne nor I saw anyone,” Ellen said. “I was watching closely. We tried a couple of the tricks Boris suggested, too.”

“That means they are focused solely on Nina,” Boris said. “Good.”

Jake explained to him about the watching post.

“And you want a word with them?” Boris asked.

“I want to find out what they know, and I want to turn them.”

“That means we have to get you close enough to take control of them. It will be hard to sneak within thirty feet of them with all the dried leaves and brush. They’d hear us coming.”

“I have trained a new mind reader. Her range is a lot better than mine — one hundred feet.”

Boris stared at him. “You can turn people into mind readers?”

“Uh-huh. It’s a new skill I’ve learned recently.”

“Any chance you can give me the skill? I’d be glad to reconsider our payment arrangements.”

“This has nothing to do with money, Boris. As you can imagine, I’m not willing to give it to just anyone, not that you are just anyone. The character of the recipient is critical and anyone I give it to has to be extraordinary.”

“I understand. If I were in your place, I would exercise extreme care, too. I’ll get by without it.”

“Don’t count yourself short, Boris. I’ve already got a small crop of mind readers. I’m going to see how it goes with them before I make more. Probably not for several months at the least. I’ve got a lot to learn about how a society of mind readers gets along first. We’ll know more later.”

“So one of your new mind readers has a range of one hundred feet?”

“Meet my prodigy,” Jake said nodding toward Ellen.

“Why is she so good?”

Ellen blushed and Jake chuckled.

“Now’s not the time to go into that, Boris. It’s technical,” Jake said. “My point is that if you can get Ellen within a hundred feet, she can paralyze them.”

“I’ve never done that before,” she said.

“So practice on me before you try it on them,” Jake said.

“Their blind isn’t much more than a hundred feet from the road,” Boris said. “Ellen and I could go that way as though we were taking a walk. When we get just past them, you could do something to attract their attention. From that point, it would only take a few seconds to get Ellen in range. We could do that fast enough for Ellen to paralyze them before they could get word to Cox’s people.”

“How do you want me to distract them?”

“See that stand of trees at one o’clock? Just walk in that direction. You will definitely get their attention, but you won’t be heading straight for them so they’ll watch you to figure out what your intentions are.”

“Okay.”

“Ellen and I will start walking down the road. I’ll signal you when I want you to start. Watch for me to put my hand behind my back and move it up and down.”

“Okay, but one thing,” Jake said. “Nobody gets killed or nothing.”

“Just watch out for yourself. You’ll be the person most at risk.”

Boris stood and offered a hand to Ellen.

“Wait a second, Boris,” Ellen said.

Jake felt his body go limp. Ellen was there to stop him from falling. Then his muscles began to work again. He stood up straight.

“Boy, that’s weird,” Jake said.

“Now you know how the rest of us feel, boss,” Boris said.

“Come with me, Boris,” Ellen said, putting her arm in his. “It’s hot but it’s still a nice day for a walk.”

Jake watched them walk away, Boris enjoying the feel of Ellen’s breast against his arm. They were almost even with the blind when Boris signaled.

Jake started walking. He crossed the road and went into the scrubby grass of an undeveloped lot. He watched Boris and Ellen’s progress out of the corner of his eye. He hoped that Jesse and Wyatt really were watchers and not assassins. He tried to walk naturally, but he could almost feel the stares of the watchers. He walked forward resolutely, his anxiety climbing each moment that he heard nothing. Just before he got to the trees his phone rang.

“Got ‘em. Come on over.” It was Boris.

“It took you long enough,” Jake said when he reached them.

Two men were lying in heaps on the ground having fallen out of lawn chairs. A camera with a telephoto lens and binoculars were next to them, along with handguns.

“We got into position without any problem,” Boris said. “We waited to see what they were going to do about you before we acted.”

“And what happened?”

“That one reached for his gun,” Ellen said, pointing. “I put them down.”

Jake turned the watcher’s loyalty to him and then unparalyzed them.

“What are your orders?” he asked.

The bigger of the two answered. “We are to watch for the girl in the wheelchair and phone in when she leaves.”

“Phone in to whom?” Boris said.

The big guy just looked at Jake.

“Answer him.”

“I don’t know. I just have a phone number. It’s someone from the other team.”

“What does the other team do?”

“Those are the guys who are tailing her.”

“You have no other orders?” Boris asked.

“No. Just watch her until the contract ends.”

“When’s that?”

“They said to expect it to end on Monday.”

“Why?”

“Didn’t say.”

“Who is your contract with?” Boris asked.

“He hasn’t identified himself. But we all know who it is.”

“Who? How do you know?”

“The word’s out that Tommy Cox is after the girl. The guy is a boss in Cox’s office.”

“What’s going to happen to the girl?”

“I don’t know for sure, but I figure he’s gonna kill her. He’s thrown tens of thousands of dollars at finding her. I don’t know how many teams he had watching physical therapy places before we happened to find her.”