Second That Emotion
by
Latikia
Copyright © 2006
Chapter 31
There is, for me, something about watching my girls sleeping that is indefinably soothing. I don’t know if others feel the same way while watching their loved ones resting, but for me it’s both calming and restorative.
I sat down carefully on the foot of the bed and watched the three of them. They pressed together, Lilly and Izzy on the ends with their arm thrown over little Peggy in the center, tiny smiles on their lips.
I linked with the three of them and added a spark to their glowing rings, easing the tiny flames into place as gently as I could.
Peggy’s mouth opened slightly and she cried out softly.
Lilly moaned and shuddered, hugging Peggy tighter.
Izzy shook all over, rolling away from Peggy and onto her back; her eyes opened wide and looked at me. She smiled brightly and lovingly.
“God, I love how it feels when you do that.” she whispered.
“I love how it makes you feel when I do that.” I whispered back.
I got up off the bed, dug into the duffel, pulled out a pair of jeans and put them on, slipping into my tennis shoes.
“We’re going to have visitors this afternoon.” I said. “Dr. Wills, Mr. Jones and Colonel DeBerg will be here around three thirty. I think we should have a little dinner party, sort of christen our new home. What do you think?”
Izzy’s eyes brightened. “I think that’s a terrific idea. We’ve been feeling kind of cooped up, not being able to go anywhere.”
“We get to be hostesses?” Lilly asked, unwinding herself from Peggy.
“You three are the ladies of the house. You decide what you want to do and Anya and I will help.”
“Party?” Peggy said excitedly. “We get to have a party?”
I grinned at them. “I’ll get breakfast, or brunch, started. You three decide what you want to do while you get cleaned up and dressed. We’ll talk some more downstairs.”
I left them chattering happily on the bed and went downstairs to the kitchen. I found Anya sitting at the dining room table.
“Are you hungry?”
“Yes sir…Ike.” she said.
“I’m going to throw a little something together for all of us. We’ll be having a dinner party of sorts this afternoon. Dr. Wills and company will be joining us. That’s what the phone call was about…letting me know they were coming.”
She followed me into the kitchen. While we were scrounging around in the pantry I showed her the gun locker and the weapons.
“Have you ever used a sniper rifle?” I asked her.
“Yes, on the rifle range during training. Never in the field.”
“This one is very good.
I used one like it in
“I liked firing the AK. It felt…comfortable.” she said.
“Well then, if anything happens that makes you think you’ll need a lot of firepower come down here and grab it. I don’t keep it locked, just in case. What kind of pistol do you prefer to carry?”
“I don’t have a preference for pistols. Most of my assignments relied on hand to hand.”
“Are you any good with a pistol?”
“I’m a very good shot with most guns, but except for the AK I don’t really like anything more than the rest.”
“I’m not much of an expert. I know what I like, but you might be better off with something else. We’ll ask Mr. Jones what he would suggest.”
She nodded. I pointed out the gas light fixture and how it worked and she tried it a couple of times to get the hang of the mechanism then we went back to putting together breakfast.
By the time the girls came down, everything was on the table. Eggs, bacon, toast, butter, juice, fruit, all laid out and waiting.
I sat down and was reaching for some juice when I noticed the palm prints burnt into the heavy wood of the table top. I pushed the plate and silverware to the side and put my hands over the burnt areas. They were a perfect match.
The girls, including Anya, were filling their plates and sliding into their chairs.
“Did I do this?” I asked, pointing to the hand prints.
My girls looked at one another and then as one turned to look at Anya.
Anya shrugged slightly, looked at me and said, “Yes.”
“And my clothes?”
“You were sitting there last night, getting very angry…I could feel you getting angrier and angrier…and smoke started coming from your shirt. Then there were little flames that popped up all over you and you didn’t seem to notice or care. That’s when I went into the kitchen and got them.” she said, motioning with her head in the direction of the girls.
“When we came out you were on fire.” Izzy said softly.
“It was a glowy kind of fire.” Peggy added.
“The table smoked when you put your hands on it, and when you went outside we watched from the window while you were running and your clothes all turned to ash and blew away…except for your shoes.” Lilly finished.
I sat back heavily in my chair and closed my eyes. I took a couple of deep breaths and let the air out slowly. Opening my eyes I saw the four of them watching me carefully.
“I suppose I’d better learn to control my temper, huh?”
“You were a red head once, so I guess you come by it naturally.” Izzy said.
“Really? You were a redhead?” Peggy asked. “I bet you were really cute with bright red hair and your pretty white skin.”
“He was adorable.” Izzy said confidently.
“I looked like a match stick.” I said and started peeling an orange.
“I like the white hair. It makes you look distinguished…and a little bit sinister.” Lilly said.
“Sinister, huh? Hmmmm…I think I like that. Sinister.” I laughed deep down in my throat, the most evil kind of movie villain laugh I could imagine.
Peggy giggled and shivered. “Wicked!”
“Don’t encourage him or he’ll never stop.” Izzy warned.
“I’ll creep into your room at night, carry you off to my secret lair and have my wicked way with your tender young body!” I rasped as close to a bass as I could without hurting myself.
“Oooooh, take me, take me!” Peggy squealed.
Everyone laughed, and we ate and discussed the plans for our dinner party. Izzy and Lilly decided on a menu, Peggy offered ideas from time to time and Anya and I sat there and mostly listened. Izzy jumped up and ran off, returning with a pad of paper and a pen and began making notes, cooking times, place settings and whatnot. This was turning out to be a battle plan.
I excused myself and went into the study and called the CIA. The line was answered on the second ring.
“Jones here.”
“Mr. Jones, Ike Blacktower…you might want to warn Dr. Wills and Colonel DeBerg that you will all be expected to stay for dinner. If they have to get back by a certain time we can move dinner up…but the girls are kind of excited about having company.”
Jones chuckled. “Hang on a minute and let me talk to the Doctor.”
I waited, taking a seat behind the medium sized wooden desk.
Jones came back on. “Mr. Blacktower, Dr. Wills says that the four of us will be completely at the disposal of your ladies for the evening.”
“Four? Let me guess, Mr. Davenport has decided to come see what’s been causing him so much grief?”
“Excellent guess. Can we bring anything with us?”
“No, we’re fine out here. There is one thing you might think about though. Anya could use a couple of personal handguns. She doesn’t have any preferences, other than a liking for the AK-47. Her hands aren’t very large, so I wondered if you might be willing to suggest something for her.”
There was a brief pause. “I’ll give it some thought.” he said.
“Thanks. See you later.” I hung up and returned to the dining room.
“There will be four guests for dinner. Mr. Davenport, the acting Director will be coming as well. Dr. Wills said to tell you that the four of them would be completely at your disposal for the evening…so plan away. If you need help with something, just let me or Anya know.”
The girls huddled together and plotted and planned.
“I’m going to show Anya around the house so she can get an idea where everything is. We’ll be right back”
So for twenty minutes I took Anya on the nickel tour, upstairs, downstairs and out around the house. The horses were out racing around and ignored us.
When we came back in, the girls put us to work, cleaning dishes, dusting and sweeping, setting the table with china, silver and crystal from the large cabinet in the dining room. Anya helped them with making appetizers while Lilly dragged me down into the wine cellar and loaded my arms with bottles of various types, some for cooking and some for drinking.
Lilly kept the bottles for cooking, I took the rest and put them in the refrigerator to chill except for two bottles of table wine and one of brandy that went out to the dining room.
At
So I stood in the kitchen, listening for timers, stirring the contents of pots and watching for signs of smoke. Fire warden of all I surveyed.
There wasn’t much danger of anything getting burnt, most everything was on low heat, but the girls weren’t taking any chances that something might ruin their big event. It wasn’t bad duty, since the kitchen was full of wonderful smells. Even though I’d eaten recently I was getting hungry again.
At about three the three of them came rushing into the kitchen, all dolled up, and preening like peacocks. I whistled softly.
They didn’t have evening gowns to wear, but they made the best of what wardrobe they did have and looked marvelous.
“You three look good enough to eat.” I leered and licked my lips. Peggy giggled, rushed forward and I bent down and kissed her. Then Lilly and Izzy. And then they shoved me out and told me to get cleaned up and presentable. I guess jeans and tennis shoes wern’t good enough for company, so I walked out and came face to face with Anya, who wasn’t looking any too happy.
They’d put her into a combination of their own clothes, blow dried her hair and done her face in light make-up. She looked much nicer than I’d ever seen her before.
“You look lovely Anya.”
“I feel stupid.”
“I take it dresses are not your normal clothing of choice.”
“Not hardly!”
“Look on the bright side…it’s only for one evening. When Mr. Jones arranges for your things to be brought out you can dress as you like. They just want to make a good impression. And you really do look very nice.”
“Thank you…Ike.” she said as I passed her on my way upstairs.
I ran up and took a quick shower, dressed in the best (least wrinkled) slacks and pullover shirt I had and dug out my sole remaining pair of leather shoes from the bottom of the duffel. Combing out my hair, which was over my ears for the first time since I’d gone to boot camp, and inch long beard I looked about as presentable as I was going to get. I went downstairs to see if there were any last minute things that needed doing.
Anya was standing near the front door, the AK slung over her shoulder and looking highly incongruous. I nodded my approval and she stepped out onto the porch to wait for our guests.
I went into the kitchen where the girls were tasting, sampling, rearranging things on plates and platters and generally having a mild panic attack. I gathered them together, poured each one a shot of whiskey and had them down it quickly.
“Girls, you’ve done a fine job and I’m very proud of you. Relax. There’s nothing to worry about.”
Me and my big mouth.
Anya came rushing in, AK held across her chest. “There are two helicopters circling the house.”
“Shit, shit, shit!” I swore. I went into the pantry and grabbed the shotgun, a box of shells and the two Glocks and rushed back out. I gave the shotgun and shells to Izzy and one pistol each to Lilly and Peggy.
“You girls get down into the wine cellar and wait for either me or Anya to come get you. Anyone else and you shoot them, alright? Okay…get going.”
The girls headed down into the cellar and I went back into the pantry, bringing out the L96A1 and a handful of rounds that I was busily shoving into my pockets.
“Anya you cover the front lawn. If it looks like they might try to rush the house, get back inside and protect the girls. Let me worry about the outside.”
“Yes sir.”
She planted herself just inside the front door where she could cover most of the front lawn from the shadows. I strode out onto the grass, shoved a round into the British sniper rifle and started broadcasting high levels of anxiety and paranoia at those in the circling helicopters above.
I flipped the covers off the scope and lifted the barrel up, looking for the pilot of the first aircraft and linking with the man. He was scared. Hell, he was terrified. I tried to see who else was in the helicopter, but I could only catch brief glimpses. I recognized the helicopter and pilot as the ones we always used to get around in. But I didn’t recognize the second one at all.
I shifted the rifle scope to the second bird and linked with its pilot. The man flying this one was one was nearly as frightened as the first.
I motioned to the pilots abruptly, indicating that they should set down immediately. I kept the rifle pointed at the pilot of the second bird as they both set down at nearly the same time. I lowered the rifle and relied on my eyes, not the optics.
They came tumbling out of the helicopters, looking as if the lot of them were going to puke their guts out.
I started counting bodies and ID-ing
faces. Jones, Wills, DeBerg all came out
of the first bird.
I waved for
I glared down at
“Who the hell are they and why the hell didn’t someone tell me more than four people were coming?”
Dr. Wills glanced over at Mr. Davenport and gave him an ‘I told you so’ kind of look.
“I’m sorry Ike. It was a last minute change of plans and I didn’t have time to let you know.” Dr. Wills said, by way of explanation.
I looked hard at
“Anya!”
The blond woman in her dinner finery came trotting out carrying the AK slung at her hip, ready to fire. I handed her the sniper rifle. “Go tell the girls that it’s safe to come up and put all the weapons back in the locker. Hand to hand will be fine for the rest of the evening. I’ll bring the two men on the grass inside.”
I turned to the four men in suits. I stopped broadcasting and the looks of relief on their faces were oddly gratifying.
“Gentlemen, follow Anya inside and I’ll join you once I’ve put Mr. Davenport’s friends to bed.”
Anya turned on her heel and walked quickly to the door, with the four men following like baby ducks.
I walked over and picked up one of the fallen men in a fireman’s carry and lugged him inside the house and upstairs into one of the unused bedrooms. I went back down, picked up the second man and hauled him up and put him in his very own room. I relieved them both of their weapons, carrying the guns down with me to the dining room.
When I arrived everyone was standing awkwardly around the dining room table. I put the two pistols on the table and looked around.
“Girls, this is Dr. Wills who’s going to be my boss, one of these days…if I live long enough. You all know his assistant Mr. Jones. This is Colonel DeBerg, the chief shrink at Walter Reed. And this is Mr. Davenport, the acting Director of the CIA.”
All of them nodded their heads towards the girls, who smiled slightly in return.
“Gentlemen, allow me to introduce my girls; Isabeau on the left, Lilly in the center and Peggy on the right. And I believe you all know my assistant, Anya.”
Dr. Wills spoke up first. “Ladies, let me apologize for our unorthodox arrival and any unpleasantness it might have caused you.”
Izzy smiled. “I think Ike probably caused you more unpleasantness than you did us. So I suppose we’re even. Why don’t we all move into the living room and have something to drink. Dinner won’t be ready for a while yet, so we’ll have time to relax and get better acquainted.”
“Capital idea young lady.” Dr. Wills beamed at her.
I took everyone’s order and while the girls escorted our guests into the living room, Anya and I got the drinks and brought them out.
By the time everyone was seated and had their drinks in hand the conversation was well under way.
Izzy was charming Dr. Wills and Mr. Davenport, while Colonel DeBerg was deep in conversation with Lilly and Peggy. Mr. Jones took Anya aside and they were discussing handguns and their various merits. I sat back and watched, marveling at the way the girls easily manipulated their individual discussions.
Mr. Jones and Anya rejoined us, he took a seat next to mine and Anya stood on my opposite side watching everyone closely.
“I think we have a couple of things in the armory that will suit Anya. I’ll have them sent out along with her personal effects in a day or two.”
“Thank you, Mr. Jones. I figured if anyone could fix her up right it would be you. I’m afraid my knowledge of weapons is more along the lines of aim and shoot.”
“Tell me something…what you did out there today with all of us and Mr. Davenport’s men, could you do that over a video link?”
I looked at him curiously for a few moments. All the other conversations went dead quiet and everyone was watching me.
“You know, I’ve never even considered that before. I have no idea if I could or not. Sure would be interesting to try.”
“Mr. Blacktower, I’ve seen the results of what you do. I suppose I’ve even felt them. But…what is it that you actually do?” Mr. Davenport asked.
I eyed him closely. “I guess you, and possibly Mr. Jones, are the only ones here who don’t know. Tell me, Mr. Davenport, have you ever wondered what someone else was feeling?”
“Of course I have. I imagine everyone wonders at one time or another.”
“I don’t have to wonder. I can find out any time I want to.”
“Empathy? You’re an empath?” he asked, amazed.
“Worse than that…I’m a projective empath. Not only can I tell what you’re feeling, I can let you know what I’m feeling. If I chose to, I can show you what someone else is feeling or, I can make you feel something you might not want to.”
“Jesus Christ!”
“Would you like to find out what it’s like to experience someone else’s emotions?” I asked him.
“It is the most amazing, sublime experience I’ve ever had.” Colonel DeBerg told him.
“It took my breath away when he showed me.” Lilly told him.
“You never showed me.” Peggy pouted.
“Or me.” Izzy said with a sly grin.
I grinned wickedly. “I show you girls every single day.”
“That’s different.” Lilly pointed out. “You show us what you feel.”
“True. I tell you what…how ‘bout I link all of you with each other? Unless someone is feeling something they’d rather not share. This sort of thing is much more…intimate…than say, spilling your guts in group therapy.”
No one had any objections, so I got up and moved back so I had everyone in view and linked with all of them. Very carefully I started cross linking, feeding emotions from one to the others and back, up and down the lines. I was starting to feel like I was juggling bowling balls using only my stomach muscles.
Eyes were going wide, faces blushed, eyebrows raised and lowered, smiles appeared and vanished, and frowns did the same. Peggy giggled several times, Lilly was grinning, and Izzy was watching me closely and bursting with pride. I winked at her and kept the flows going. Dr. Wills and Mr. Davenport were eyeing each other and nodding. Mr. Jones had a curious expression on his face as he watched both me and Anya. And Anya’s eyes darted from person to person, never stopping to rest on anyone for more than an instant before moving to the next.
After a minute of this I cut the links and leaned heavily against the back of a chair. It had been harder to do than I’d expected.
“Wow!” Peggy whispered. “That was…wow!”
“Definitely ‘wow’!” Mr. Davenport agreed. “You can do that with anyone?”
“So far. Including animals, trees and the earth itself. I haven’t tried bugs yet. I’m not sure I care to know what they feel.”
“The things you could do with an ability
like this are…it boggles the mind!”
“Arthur, be very careful what you say about this. This sort of talent used irresponsibly could have devastating consequences.”
“The man could be the finest spy or assassin who ever lived!” the acting Director of the CIA exclaimed.
“True. He could. But how would you control him?” Mr. Jones said. “How could you make him do what you wanted and only what you wanted?”
I smiled. “Mr. Jones is quite right, you know. The only way you could make me do anything would be if you had someone like me who was more powerful than I am. And then how would you control them?”
“But if we could study your ability, learn how to duplicate it…”
“And then what? Suppose you could duplicate it. Who would get this wonderful ability? Someone like our dear departed former Director of the CIA? Or perhaps we could give it to members of the Senate or Congress. I’m sure they’d never use it for their own personal gain or to advance their own ambitions. Who would you trust with that kind of power?”
He sat there and I could see his thoughts lining up and recognition dawned on his face.
“You see the problem? You aren’t even sure you can or should trust me. Well, in your place I wouldn’t be all that eager to trust me either. Mr. Davenport, I’ve had this ability, this talent, since I was thirteen years old. I never wanted it, and for the most part it’s brought me nothing but pain, suffering and misery in amounts and levels of intensity that I hope you are incapable of imagining. I wouldn’t wish this gift on anyone. The up side of having it is that I’ve been able to do a little bit of good with it. I’ve helped a few people…a very few people. I’ve hurt a lot more. I’ve killed with it three times, and used it to kill I don’t know how many more. But I don’t want power; I don’t want to be king or emperor or president…I don’t even want your job. I want to be left alone, to love and take care of my family and try to do some good in the world. That’s all.”
“How can I know that? How can I be sure that you aren’t the most dangerous threat this country or the world has ever known?” he asked quietly.
I smiled sadly at the man. “You can’t. You’ll never know for sure.” I stood upright and walked over in front of him and hunkered down on my heels. “I have never used my talent against someone who didn’t attack me first…except as a soldier and even then in a mostly defensive fashion. If people leave me alone, I’ll leave them alone. Mr. Davenport, the very first time I used this talent I felt a living thing die. I killed a deer I was linked to. I felt its death and it scared the hell out of me. I was linked to my wife when she died. I felt her and our unborn child die. I have felt the deaths of many others, but those two deaths and all the pain and agony that accompanied their deaths are still locked inside me. They never go away, not for an instant. Can you imagine what that’s like? I could show you, if you want. I showed the man who killed them. He didn’t enjoy it much.”
I stood up and sat back down in the chair next to Mr. Jones.
“You’ll never know for sure, Mr. Davenport. Your choices are simple, once you accept that as a given. Either you trust me to do what I say I’ll do or you don’t. If you trust me, I’ll work for Dr. Wills and hunt down your moles and spies. The rest of the time I’ll devote to my family and doing what I can to help people like Lilly and Peggy with their problems. If you don’t trust me…well then you’ll have to kill me. You won’t capture me or study me. You’ll have to kill me. Odds are you’ll have to have a sniper or a demolitions expert do it though, because the chances of getting someone close enough to do the job aren’t very good…just ask Anya or the late unlamented Wilson MacGruder. And if your sniper misses, or fails to kill me, you don’t even want to think about what’ll happen next. Ask Colonel DeBerg to introduce you to Captain Rossi if you want a hint.”
I sipped my drink and watched
“Kinda like the Cold War all over again, isn’t it?” I asked.
“Mr. Davenport,” Colonel DeBerg interjected, “I have examined and tested this young man more thoroughly than we ever checked the people who manned our nuclear missile silos. I’ve observed his interaction with other patients on a daily basis for some time. He has an extremely strong sense of personal ethics, compassion and understanding of individual suffering and a deep respect for the feelings and sensitivities of others. I’ve seen the results of the good he’s capable of. For instance, Peg here. She came to us with one of the most fractured personalities it has ever been my misfortune to encounter. With years of therapy and drug treatment we might, might, have been able to give her a semblance of a normal life. She was by turns withdrawn, aggressive, manic, depressed, and even potentially violent. But look at her now. I still can’t get over how well she’s responding. And Lilly. Lilly was sent to us because she had tried to commit suicide several times. She was suffering from terrible extended bouts of depression. Short of keeping her constantly sedated there was little or nothing we could do for her, and most of time even sedation didn’t help. I’ve been meaning to ask…Ike, how did you do it?”
“Lilly asked me to take her pain away. I was hesitant to try at first because I thought that if I took the pain, the memories of her children might be lost along with the emotions and I didn’t want to risk taking them from her as well. She decided she was willing to take the chance, so on the bus ride downtown to D.C. I had her concentrate on her memories, isolated the negative emotions that went with them as best I could and tore them out. Fortunately her memories were unaffected. I was lucky, pure and simple.”
“Amazing. I still think you should concentrate on your studies and become a psychologist. You could help cure more people in a week than I’ve been able to in thirty years.” the Colonel said.
“I’d like that, Colonel. But I gave Dr. Wills my word, and I don’t break my promises. But I’d still like to stop by the ward from time to time and help out, if you don’t mind a little amateur assistance.”
“Son, I’m more than willing to go into private practice with you anytime you’re ready.”
“Thanks Colonel…that means a lot.”
“And while it’s a very touching testimonial, it still
doesn’t solve my problem.”
“Mr. Davenport, what exactly is your problem? Can you define it for me?” Izzy asked.
“My problem is the threat young mister Blacktower represents to this country.”
“How, exactly, is he a threat to the country?” she pushed him
“He could, if he chose to, take over and become king or dictator.”
“I see. And is that the real threat, as you see it?”
“Yes it is.”
“He could, if he chose to. Couldn’t some nut-job General do the same thing? Or a billionaire industrialist or an extremely popular celebrity? Couldn’t you, if you chose to?”
“The one point you keep ignoring Mr. Davenport, is that Ike doesn’t want the things you seem to think he does. There are people with no desire to rule or control. They don’t want power and responsibility. Granted, Ike has power, but not because he pursued it. And he has no desire or intention of applying that power the way you would if it were yours. I’m afraid that the only threat you’re seeing is a reflection of your own inner desires, not from our boy.” Peggy stated firmly.
Izzy and Lilly stared at her. Then they burst into applause and laughter. Peggy looked miffed and offended for a moment or two and then burst into giggles. She stood up quickly, took a little bow and sat back down. Colonel DeBerg applauded enthusiastically.
“We’d better go check on dinner; it should be nearly ready
by now.” Lilly said, getting up. Izzy and Peggy followed her out, leaving me
to face
“Damn, I love those girls. They put up with me, love me, take care of me, make me feel good when nothing else does and accept me for who and what I am. No man could ask for more or be less entitled to it. I’ll tell you a little secret, just between us here…the only thing anyone could ever do that would piss me off more than trying to kill me would be to try and hurt one or more of my girls. Now that would be a monumentally stupid thing to do.”
Mr. Jones turned in his seat and looked me up and down. “You know, I’ve been wondering what it is they see in you. Three obviously intelligent, beautiful young women, you’d think they could do better.”
“Mr. Jones, you and I are in complete agreement. I don’t get it either and I probably never will.”
“I understand it.” Anya said quietly. Mr. Jones seemed to have forgotten that she was nearby and his head snapped around quickly. Dr. Wills and Colonel DeBerg watched her with interest.
“Sir?” she asked, looking to me for permission.
“Go ahead Anya. Say what you think.”
“I’ve been watching the four of them together for less than a day and talked with the three women for less than an hour last night, but it seems obvious to me that the reason they love Mr. Blacktower is because they know, absolutely and without a doubt, that he loves them and that he would do anything to keep them happy and safe. He is physically attractive, if you look past his pale skin; is generally agreeable and pleasant and has the added benefit of being quite young and vigorous. There are very few women who wouldn’t find him desirable.”
I smiled slightly.
“Thank you Anya. I would, if I were a woman, have to agree with you.” Colonel DeBerg said.
Peggy appeared in the doorway and announced, “Dinner is now being served in the dining room.”
We all got up and followed her, and Lilly seated everyone according to some plan. I ended up between Izzy and Colonel DeBerg; Dr. Wills was sitting where I usually did during the mornings. He sniffed suddenly.
“Excuse me for asking, but does anyone else smell burning wood?”
Peggy started laughing, quickly followed by Izzy and Lilly. Even Anya smiled.
“There was a little accident last night. I had a slight temper tantrum and burnt the table. If you lift the table cloth you’ll see what I mean.”
The Doctor shifted his plates and silverware and looked beneath the cloth. He looked back across the table at me.
“A slight temper tantrum?” he asked quizzically.
“He burnt his clothes off too.” Peggy offered, wiggling her eyebrows. “He was out running with the horses stark naked at two in the morning. They think he’s a little weird.”
“I can’t imagine why they’d think that.” Mr. Jones said to Anya, who was seated next to him.
She smiled and shrugged.
Lilly and Izzy wheeled out a serving trolley loaded with platters and bowls and were met with murmurs of appreciation, followed shortly by moans and groans of admiration as food began moving from plates to mouths.
I opened the table wine and poured glasses for
everyone. Izzy talked about wanting to
find a teaching position, which led to discussions on teaching methods,
subjects worth teaching, elective courses and the arts. Arts led to literature, which was something I
could talk about and not sound stupid, but that led, somehow, to a discussion
of politics, which both Izzy and Lilly had some very strong opinions
about. Peggy and I sat back and watched
the two of them engage Wills,
“What is your opinion of the current political administration?”
I looked into my wine glass, set it down and poured the remains of the bottle in front of me into it. I looked up into his eyes.
“I am nearly twenty three years old, Mr. Davenport. I find that most politicians are much older
than I and have little or no regard for my opinion one way or another. I think that most of them, regardless of
party affiliation, have the same priorities; specifically, getting elected or
re-elected and raising money so they or someone else can get elected or
re-elected. They say what they think most
people want to hear and are willing to sell their grandmothers for the chance
to keep doing it. I think the closest
thing there is to a good politician
might be found at the local level and by local I don’t mean a city like
Something in Mr. Davenports eyes, I’m not sure what it was, a flicker, a flash of light, a muscle twitch, but something made me link with the man and I caught the tail end of an emotional outburst.
“Don’t you think that they should be dealt with in some practical fashion? I mean, without a full public confession and a mountain of supporting paperwork we’ll never be able to touch them.” I said.
His emotions were under tight control, but there was still that brief burst, quickly suppressed.
“You’re correct that there is little likelihood of any legal action ever being taken against them unless you have incontrovertible evidence.” he agreed.
“But you don’t agree that they should be dealt with?”
“If you mean elimination, no I would have to disagree with that. Once you start down that path where does it stop? And who would make the final determination of which individuals should be eliminated? Me, Dr. Wills, the President…you?”
I nodded absently. I felt that burst of suppressed emotions again and it was beginning to bother me a lot. Was I being paranoid?
Dinner was winding down and more and more alcohol was being consumed. I brought out the chilled bottles and opened them, as well as the brandy with snifters for everyone who wanted some of the potent liquor.
The conversation shifted and Peggy talked about her horses
and how she’d like to raise some of her own.
I excused myself and went upstairs to check on
Lilly and Anya were clearing the table and Izzy was moving the trolley back out into the kitchen and bringing desert in when I returned. They’d made glazed fruit and a cheesecake which was quickly served up and devoured.
“Ladies, if you ever have trouble finding work I’d be more than happy to hire you as chefs.”
The girls beamed happily at the compliment and hurried to finish clearing the table.
I linked with
When the girls returned we all adjourned to the rec room where
I pulled the girls aside. “What do you think of our Mr. Davenport?” I asked them.
“I don’t trust him.” Izzy said. “He’s got something against you.”
“I agree. He pretends to listen to what everyone says, but he’s already made up his mind.” Lilly added.
“He’s creepy. It’s like he’s saying one thing, but thinking something totally different at the same time. I don’t like him.” Peggy hissed.
I nodded my understanding. “I thought it might just be me, but I agree with all of you. Mr. Davenport is trouble. By the way, you all did a terrific job with the dinner party. You should be very proud of yourselves.”
I gave each of them a hug and kiss. They dispersed to mingle with our guests
while I re-linked with
When Mr. Jones was shooting,
I set the bottle of brandy down on the fireplace mantle and watched the man struggle to keep his balance. Three times he aimed the cue and tried to hit the cue ball and three times he missed in awkward fashion.
“I think,” he announced in slurred tones, “that I had better sit down for a few minutes.”
Mr. Jones took the cue from his hands, and I took his arm and led him to one of the recliners which he dropped heavily into and immediately fell into a deep sleep. I reached inside him and poured huge amounts of exhaustion into the loop I’d created, amped the feelings up to a higher level than I’d ever used on anyone else and locked the loop tight.
Mr. Davenport, the acting Director of the CIA, was never going to wake up from his nap.
I walked over to Mr. Jones and suggested that it might be a good time to call for the helicopters. He agreed and went off to the study to call headquarters.
Anya and the girls were sitting with the Doctor and Colonel, engaged in a lively discussion about current Broadway productions when Mr. Jones returned and announced that the helicopters were on their way.
The two bodyguards were a tad embarrassed about having collapsed and slept thru the evening. I told them not to be too concerned about it as their boss had slightly gone overboard with his drinking and was at that very moment sound asleep downstairs.
They followed me down to the rec room and our arrival coincided with Anya’s return.
“Two helicopters are on the front lawn.” she told us.
Colonel DeBerg and Dr. Wills thanked the girls for the lovely evening and complimented them again on the dinner. Colonel DeBerg was effusive in his praise for the progress Lilly and Peggy were making and was quite gallant with his goodbyes.
“Ladies, you will, each of you, be a delightful addition to
The girls blushed and thanked them both for coming.
The two bodyguards lifted Mr. Davenport between them and carried him out, followed by Dr. Wills, Colonel DeBerg and Mr. Jones, with the girls, Anya and me bringing up the rear of the parade.
We watched from the porch as they got into the helicopters, the bodyguards had obviously had some experience with unconscious individuals because they had him loaded in less time than it took for Dr. Wills and the Colonel to get into their ride.
As they lifted off, we waved and watched as the performed a
half circle and swooped off into the night sky towards
I wondered who was next in line for the acting Director’s job and whether or not that person was going to be a pain in the ass.