Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2015 09:12:55 -0400
From: Ron Nelson <nelson99@comporium.net>
Subject: Emailing: Wrestler's Story - 15D - Todd Tompkins - TBP

Wrestler's Story - 15D - "TODD TOMPKINS AND THE TURKISH BORDER PATROL"
			  Part Four of Four Parts

By: Ron Nelson


(Copyright 2015 by the author.  All rights reserved.)



The Situation:    Monday - Todd Hears His Sentence and Conclusion


Todd woke up on Monday morning, the day on which he was to hear his sentence,
with the six o'clock morning bell, and went into the mess hall promptly at
seven.  Most of the men were already there having breakfast as usual and were
primarily focused on their duties of the day.

He didn't see the lieutenant, Kemal or Denir, but saw Cemar and Tayhut over at
their table again, and asked if he might join them.  "Sure thing," was their
friendly greeting as they once again shifted over to have him join them and share
breakfast with them again.

By now Todd assumed all of the men knew about him and his plight and his
probable sentencing this morning at nine o'clock.  That was the usual time for
the Operations office to open after the lieutenant and Kemal had made their
First Inspection of the men to be sure everyone and everything  was in order for
the day.

After breakfast Todd returned to his prison cell to put on the clean fitted
TBP t-shirt and camouflage pants Denir had brought up to him, and his own field
boots which Denir had cleaned for him so that he would make as good an
appearance as possible before the lieutenant for his sentencing.

At five minutes to nine, Denir knocked softly at his prison cell door and said
that the lieutenant would be pleased to see him at nine o'clock if that would be
convenient to him.

'Just like the lieutenant,' thought Todd, 'gracious and hospitable as he could
be at all times, just as he has been the whole weekend.'

Todd knocked on the lieutenant's office door, and the lieutenant immediately
asked him to come in.  The lieutenant was seated at his desk in his full and
smart "Inspection" uniform.  Next to him stood Kemal in a clean uniform also,
with Denir similarly dressed and standing next to the door behind him.

'To catch me if I try to flee after the sentencing,' thought Todd.  All of them
had serious non-committal expressions on their faces.  The sole thing on the
lieutenant's desk was a file folder with the impressive burgundy and gold
Turkish Border Patrol emblem on the cover.  On which file he saw his name
and of which he knew he was the subject.

In front of the desk was a comfortable leather office arm chair with polished
brass buttons on its sides.  The lieutenant asked him to be seated, which Todd
was glad to accept.  The tension in the room was high.


"Now Todd," said the lieutenant, "Or should I say Dr. Todd Tompkins, which is
your full and official name and title.  First of all, may I say it has been our
pleasure and honor to have had you with us as our guest this past weekend."

Todd almost fell out of his chair.

"How did you know that?" was about all he could think to say.

Broad grins broke out of the lieutenant's, Kemal's and Denir's faces immediately
as they couldn't hold their feelings back any longer.

"Dr. Tompkins, or Todd if we may continue to call you that as an honored member
of our Turkish Border Patrol family, we've known about you ever since and even
before we first met you!"

"Gawd, how can that be as we've never talked about any of that?" was again all
Todd could come up with at that moment.

"Oh yes," continued the lieutenant.

"Let me go back to the beginning and review the situation with you.

"You will recall that you came across the dried river bed, which is the border
between Greece and Turkey.   Then you couldn't get out of the river bed on our
side, and so you walked up through a small side ravine, got almost to the top,
and then fell back to the bottom, getting inconsequentially bruised in the
process, but, more importantly, losing your wallet and papers when they fell or
were torn out of your pocket as you fell back down into the ravine.

"Then, when you went back later to see if you could find your wallet, you
couldn't do so but, being devoted to your research, you continued with your
research and figured to rectify the problem with your papers that evening.

"Well, when you fell down the side of the ravine, you set off a number of our
surveillance cameras, motion and infra-red electronic border sensors, which are
especially focused on that ravine as it is a favorite passage point for
smugglers and other illegals trying to cross the border into Turkey.

"We were on a routine patrol in the area and we arrived at the point where  you
fell about twenty minutes after your accident.  However,  you had  already left,
but we did find your wallet at the bottom of the ravine.

"In it we found your passport for your ID, your permit to conduct your research
in Turkey, and even your permit to carry your .38 revolver.

"We then immediately radioed this information to our TBP Headquarters in
Istanbul.  They in turn quickly faxed the US Embassy and our Washington, D.C.
embassy, and got a full report on you up to that point.

"As a result we have known ever since fifteen minutes after we found your
wallet, that you got your B.A. degree from Roswell University in the Carolinas
and your PhD in bio-medicine at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and that
you are now on the teaching and research faculty of the University of Cheltenham
in Pennsylvania.

"We also know and have known all along that you have a very fine one-year grant
from the internationally famous Gadwell Foundation to conduct this study you are
engaged in, which would have world-wide benefits if it proves to be successful.

"So, as a result of all this, we have been honored and pleased to have had you
as our guest this entire weekend!"

Todd didn't know what to say, but he knew he was almost in tears as the
lieutenant alternated between looking at him and reading from the complete file
in front of him.

With that, Todd couldn't help but jump out of his chair to embrace the
lieutenant, who got out of his chair as soon as Todd got out of  his and met him
half way between the desk and his chair.  As he embraced the lieutenant, the
lieutenant said, "Not too tight, Dr. Todd, that's reserved for my partner in
Istanbul."

His hug of Kemal was even tighter, but that was ok, and Denir lifted him a few
inches off the floor in their embrace.  That done, Todd returned to his chair to
hear what the lieutenant might have to say next.

"Now, back to your situation here," the lieutenant resumed, "Your official
permit to conduct your research in this area, which you received from the
Turkish government said, and as our Turkish Border Patrol Headquarters
specifically reminded us, that you were to be given every consideration and
assistance that we could possibly give you while you were with us.

"Our Istanbul Headquarters is generally closed for the weekend, but they did
immediately inform your US Embassy that you were safe and sound and that we had
found you in good order and unharmed, and they in turn informed your Foundation
of your situation as well.

"It was agreed by everyone that as all of the Istanbul offices and
transportation facilities were closed for the weekend that you should remain
here with us for this weekend, if that would be agreeable to you, and that  we
would make further arrangements with you this morning.

"Back in the field, when we located you, we did have to be sure that you were
you, although that was merely a formality as we gathered almost immediately that
you were the Dr. Todd Tompkins we thought you were.

"We were then about to inform you of the situation, but we, and Kemal and Denir
in particular, noticed that you looked to be in particularly good physical
condition, and the fact that you were wearing a "State-Wrestling" t-shirt more
or less confirmed that judgment.

"Then, before we could proceed with our moves, you and Kemal found yourselves
in sort of an impromptu wrestling match, which obviously you both enjoyed and it
looked as if you were ready for more any time the occasion presented itself.
Some of the men too, like Cemar and Tayhut, although they had no formal vote on
the matter, were of the same opinion.

"So we felt, as life on our TBP base is otherwise fairly dull, and you were
going to spend the weekend with us anyway unless you had some objection to it,
that we would be very pleased to have you as our guest for the weekend with
whatever hospitality we could extend to you.

"The word of your official title and research quickly spread to every man on our
TBP base, but everyone was sworn to secrecy at all times and to treat you as our
guest even if perhaps you were under the false impression that you were a
prisoner of ours and doomed to some terrible penalty.  Please forgive us for our
little joke on you.

"I assure you it wasn't easy for our men to carry out this deception, but they
are well trained in border patrol and security matters, and the secret
apparently held.

"So, now, before I go on with the rest of the story, what do you have to say  on
this so far?" asked the lieutenant, their grins never leaving his, Kemal's or
Denir's faces.

"Gawd," said Todd, "I don't know what to say.  You gentlemen are the greatest!
You couldn't have treated me any better than you did the whole  time ever since
you found me, for which I am forever in your debt.

"And, considering how it all began with me having no ID, permit or papers, and
the .38 too, and then getting into it with Kemal here, you sure have handled the
whole thing just perfectly!

"And, you know, I'm really grateful for all that you`ve done for me the whole
weekend - and you know that I've really enjoyed it too," he said, looking at
Kemal and Denir in particular.

The lieutenant, looking at Todd, Kemal and Denir, said ""I'm sure it was just as
much and more our pleasure too, Mr. Todd!"


The lieutenant then continued, "Now, for this week,  here are what our Turkish
Border Patrol Headquarters, with the cooperation of the US Embassy and  your
Foundation, suggest, if it is agreeable to you, Dr. Todd.  As the lieutenant
said "Doctor," it was with special emphasis, just to make the professional point
and as a matter of courtesy before he reverted back to his more usual "Mr. Todd"
or just plain "Todd."

"No aircraft are permitted in this border security zone, so our Headquarters  in
Istanbul is flying a helicopter here, to arrive about eleven o'clock this
morning.  It will land about twenty miles away, which is our closest helipad,
and Kemal will drive you there in our base jeep.

Then you will be flown directly to Istanbul where you will first report in to
your US Embassy who will formally receive you back again and confirm that you
are in good condition and that we haven't abused you too badly.  Which I hope we
haven't after your encounters with Kemal and Denir, and now I understand Cemar
and Tayhut too."

"Couldn't be better, lieutenant, with particular thanks to all of them" was
Todd's smiling response, feeling very much better now.

"A Gadwell Foundation officer is in Istanbul this week, and on Tuesday he would
like to discuss with you the results of your field and research work so far.
Apparently it has gone well, and they will be very pleased with it.

"Then our own `Turkish Society of Science and Academics' has asked if  you might
give an informal presentation to them of your work here in Turkey on Wednesday.
As I understand it, they would like to give you all the support they can in
your very important work.

"And then the University of Istanbul would like you to give a workshop to their
senior students and fellows on your research, and have a luncheon with you as
well, on Thursday.

"Then, as a final point, our Turkish Border Patrol headquarters has authorized
that you may have one of our men accompany you as your aide for the week if you
would like."

Todd picked up on that immediately.  "I would very much appreciate that,
lieutenant, and if it would be convenient to you and to him, I would like very
much to have Denir accompany me for the whole week.  He has been so very helpful
to me the whole weekend in my research, and in other things too, that I surely
owe him that much."

"Consider it done," said the lieutenant with a smile on his face.


Denir came over to Todd and hugged him, with tears in his eyes, so tightly that
Todd could hardly breathe.  It felt real good.

Meanwhile, Cemar and Tayhut, who had been just outside the office door which
Denir had quietly opened after the lieutenant disclosed to Todd that they all
knew who he was, slipped in the room and they embraced Todd too.

"That's about everything I have in my file, Todd, except to say that, again, it
has been our very great honor and pleasure to have you here, and we hope you may
come back and visit us again some time," said the lieutenant, his own voice  now
cracking just a little.

"Thank you, lieutenant, for everything!" said Todd softly.  He knew that was
just about all he could say, but that it covered everything.

But then he added after a moment,   "You know, lieutenant, my research here
shows really good results but I think it could still use a few more days in this
Area for it to be really complete and establish a really good basis for all of our
future studies in this line.

"Do you think it would be possible for me to come back here next Friday, after
we finish with the University workshop, and stay with you for another weekend of
research -  and whatever else the weekend might hold?"

"I'm sure that can be arranged, Todd.  You are surely welcome to come back to us
just as soon and as often as you can!"


THE  END


(Reader's Comments invited at email:   nelson99@comporium.net )