Chapter 32

Miranda, Columba, and I slept the sleep of the dead, but only after I asked Columba, "What if Joseph comes home and finds you up here instead of in the master bedroom?"

I saw my question was hurtful, and Columba smiled very sadly, "David, Joseph and I have never slept in the same bedroom. Even when I still thought we had a chance to be like ... other ... couples, he always slept apart from me. Don't get the wrong idea about my husband, David. He is a wonderful man, who is truly devoted to Miranda, Leah, and me. When he isn't obsessing about his latest project, he spends every possible minute with us. We go places, see things, and enjoy wonderful times together.

"He just doesn't do sex." Columba said like it was perfectly understandable. Her eyes showed no hint of disappointment, other than the loss of conjugal rights and her intention to be with me was as clear and normal to her as it was amazing, and unbelievable to me. She cuddled in tight, pulled my arm over her, and went right off to sleep.

I was toweling off after a quick morning shower, when Columba wrapped her arms around me and said, "Your body is just covered in scars, David. When I look at your chest I feel so ashamed that you got this way protecting Joseph and me. I never told you, but Joseph was at the hospital to check on you the night after you took the three bullets meant for us, and he came home almost in tears. He said, 'That boy is torn to pieces. They were changing his bandages, and he is a mass of blood from his neck to his waist. I don't know how he survived the trauma of all that was inflicted on him, and he did that to protect us without knowing us at all.' He was torn between gratitude and the burden of responsibility.

"You were asleep on a lounge beside the pool, yesterday, when Joseph was home. He saw the scars all over your chest and looked at me with such sadness. He said, 'Columba, I'm grateful that you like that boy enough to let him take care of things for you ... you know ... in the bedroom. He has suffered so much for us. At least you give him something that he'll appreciate forever.' He said, 'I'll still find a unique and appropriate way to take care of rewarding him, but at least you and he, and Miranda, of course, are taking care of his ... you know ... male needs.'

We cohabited together while I fully healed, then got my strength back. Once I felt stronger, I started to use one of Joseph's many cars and go meet my CIA contact for briefings, weapons practice, and advice. The CIA was convinced someone inside Joseph's organization was specifically there to facilitate whatever their enemies had in store for him. It was up to me to find a way to get a tour of the inside the operation and see if I could spot anyone out of place.

It was during this healing period that I notified the airport hangar manager that I wasn't up to resuming my job. I lived a short time as David, but long enough to know I wasn't nearly as fit and strong as I was before I took on ISIS in Knoxville.

For two weeks I worked on getting back in shape. On the fifteenth day Joseph invited me to go for a ride to the lab and see his new invention. Columba was ecstatic because Joseph simply didn't take people inside his private sanctum.

We spent the entire afternoon together, and Joseph talked me through a number of his prize inventions. With my years as VP and President, I had experienced plenty of briefings on national security advancements, so the terms and ideas weren't foreign to me. When Joseph realized I was grasping a good part of what he was explaining, he became extremely animated.

I found his work astounding and told him so, many times. He preened like a peacock each time I surprised him with a compliment included in a question or comment.

The next morning brought a big change.

"Daddy said to tell you he wants to take you with him to his weekly update meeting. He'll leave at seven so get up and shower. You don't have much time." Miranda was excited. I could feel the excitement in her words and see it in her eyes. I guessed that Joseph didn't just take people to his meetings, and this was a show of enormous respect towards me, so I needed to treat it as such.

The meeting room was off of Joseph's office and appointed in a Spartan fashion. It made sense that Joseph would furnish his suite minimally, as a way to show his staff that work was more important than status. I hoped the lesson was well received, as people could get very resentful when they imagined they were being treated less than they thought they should.

The assembled department heads came in ready to work, and Joseph sat back and let everyone present their developments to the rest of their peers. Two men seemed overly interested in technical up dates, taking notes furiously, and then totally ignored the other facets of the company update. As I was looking for anything out of the ordinary, that got my attention.

The two men wandered out together and disappeared the moment the meeting broke up. I knew my hunch was panning out, so I asked Joseph about them. "The tall one is Heinrich. He is our relationship guy. Heinrich talks back and forth between our foreign suppliers, and every now and then, he finds us a scientist needing work who has expertise in our areas.

"The short, dark skinned guy is on borrowed time. He just doesn't fit in, and I'm about to have legal send him on his way. There's nothing special about him except for the letters of introduction he brought with him when he interviewed."

"Please don't take this the wrong way, but those two guys are most likely behind the attack on you and Columba. When I closed my eyes and concentrated, I could see them back in the crowd the day you got attacked. Just now they acted like they had a great big secret, and you were it. Your bodyguards need to dig really deep into their backgrounds, because they are somehow your enemies."

Joseph gave me a doubtful look, then all at once some kind of light dawned, and he grabbed his nearest guard and started to speak urgently into his ear. I suggested they find and remove both men from the property immediately and keep Joseph safe in his inner office until the plant was clear. I had my Glock and assured the guards that I wouldn't leave the office until they returned having taken care of the problem.

The big guy, who was clearly the leader of the group, handed me a walkie-talkie and went to join the search. He was talking to the security office, and they were checking current video to locate both men, but they were having no success. That got my attention, and I sat where I could see the office entrance, keeping Joseph out of the line of sight and fire.

We chatted aimlessly as the minutes ticked off with no sign of the two men reported. Joseph was getting antsy, but I was focused on the entrance hall leading into his office. When the far door slowly opened, I saw both men sneaking in and knew instantly what they intended.

Joseph was telling me about plans to renovate the cabana and pool for little Leah, when I drew and fired the Glock twice, almost over his shoulder. The noise of my shots covered the suppressed noise of their little twenty-two pistols, but I knew they were still armed, even if they were both wounded.

That made them far more dangerous.

I shoved Joseph down to keep him out of their line of sight and urgently informed the guards. Creeping around using the furniture for cover, I worked my way to the open door. I could see the tall one. He was no longer in the game. My shot took the top of his head off.