His Daddy's Car

Based upon JR's description of the pictures she kept, his car obviously brought back emotions related to JR's father, and now Bobby wished that he had covered the car like yesterday in order to spare her any pain.

As Katie turned to resume her walk to the house, Bobby quickly headed for the deck where Jason was relaxing and watching JR and Joey play in the pool.

"So what did Mr. Wallace have to say?" asked Jason as Bobby sat down beside him.

Bobby huffed, "You neglected to mention that our Mr. Wallace is U.S. Marshall Kirby Wallace."

Jason almost choked on the drink of beer he had just taken, "What did you say?" he asked. He continued, "I had no idea, and I definitely know that there is no knowledge of him within the department. How did you find out?"

"He made inquiries that triggered some alarms and I was notified. Jason, you know I do some sensitive work for the government, so when someone starts checking me out, it gets noticed real quick."

"So what happened at the practice field lot after we left?" asked Jason.

Bobby told him about handing Kirby his business card and about the call he needed to make.

"He was told that he wasn't even authorized to talk to you?" Jason asked with an amused smile.

"Yeah, but I took things off the record and tried to alleviate his concerns. Otherwise the poor guy would be digging his own career grave and likely impacting the situation concerning the Freemans in the long term."

"So what exactly is the situation with the Freemans?"

"I'm not sure," said Bobby. "They are obviously under some degree of protection from the Department of Justice, but the reasons are none of my business, so I decided not to inquire further. I also insist, Jason, that you do not make any inquires as well. My queries would outrank the Justice Department; SAPD inquires won't. All you'll do is make matters very complicated for everyone. If you have legitimate concerns and need to know something, run it through me. Okay?"

"No problem," said Jason as he saw Francis and Katie coming out to join them and dropped the subject.

Francis took the seat on the left of Jason, which left the seat on the right of Bobby as the only one available for Katie.

"Hi," Bobby said as she approached. "Would you like me to move the chair over to the other side so you can sit next to Franc...? I mean Francis. Sorry." He said as he gave his sister an apologetic grin.

"That's okay, Bobby. You're the only one that calls me Franc anymore."

Jason said, "You'll never hear me call her that. I don't want people thinking I'm married to a guy."

"So is Bobby the one who gave you the nickname 'Franc'," asked Katie, although she remembered the story from years before.

"No, it was my Dad. My oldest sister was named Theresa, but he called her 'Terri', my next sister was Linda, but my dad called her 'Lindi'. After three girls and no boys, I guess he had enough, so while my name is Francis, he immediately started calling me 'Franc'. My mom said he wouldn't let me wear hand-me-down clothes from my sisters because he didn't want me in pink. Greens and yellows were okay, but he wanted at least the illusion of having a boy even if it wasn't a reality until Bobby was born three years later. I'm convinced that if Bobby hadn't been born, I never would have owned a dress."

Everyone chuckled at Francis' recollection as Katie settled down in the seat next to Bobby.

Her movements as she sat down triggered something in Bobby's mind, but it was still like a fog that he couldn't see through. As Katie leaned over to position the chair facing the others, something fell out of her blouse hanging from a chain. She quickly grabbed it and pushed it back under her blouse as she sat down. What was it?

"How was your first practice coach Bobby?" asked Francis.

"Good," Bobby said.

"I gave JR permission to ride in your car," said Katie.

Bobby turned to her and said, "What did you say?"

"I said that I gave permission for JR to ride in your car. He said you wouldn't allow him unless I said it was okay."

Bobby now felt like he was going to faint sitting down. He just stared at Katie as everything clicked. It was her eyes. It was her voice. He now knew, and he also knew that she had realized the same truth yesterday. He stared at her until a concerned expression from her over his silence brought him back into focus.

He then smiled at her and said, "Hello PattyKat".

Francis heard Bobby and gasped. Jason turned to her and said, "Huh?"

Katie broke into uncontrollable sobs crying, "Hi Bobby".

Without saying anything else, Katie ran into the house. Francis jumped up and chased Katie into the house as Jason and Bobby just stared at each other.

"What the hell was that all about?" asked Jason.

Bobby shrugged his shoulders and suddenly had another revelation. He turned to see the two boys in the pool, got up and approached JR where he sat on the steps as Joey dove for coins on the bottom.

"Hey JR, how's the water?" asked Bobby.

"Great," JR said, "You should come in and join us."

"Maybe later. So I've been meaning to ask you what JR stood for"

JR replied, "Two things"

"What are those?"

"Well, because I am named after my father, the JR can stand for 'junior', but those are also the initials of my first and middle names, James Robert."

"Looks like going by JR has all the bases covered for you then doesn't it," said Bobby. "Enjoy your swim and I'll catch you later."

Then Bobby returned to sit next to Jason. "I'll be a son of a bitch," Bobby said as he sat down. Jason was more confused than ever.

As Francis entered the kitchen, she saw Katie standing at the kitchen sink watching Bobby talk to JR at the pool.

"He was always so perceptive of me," said Katie as Francis came to stand beside her.

Katie continued, "I assumed the change in my appearance would fool him indefinitely, but I should have remembered how he always knew me so well. He knew my feelings better than I did. He sensed my emotions before I felt them. Changing my eye color could not disguise my love from showing through to him. Trying to speak with an accent could not hide my feelings from his ears."

Katie turned to Francis, "Now he knows about JR as well. I can't delay explanations any longer. Franc, can you watch JR for the night?"

"Of course. We'll get him and Joey to school tomorrow and wait to hear from you on what else you may need from us."

"Thank you," Katie said as she hugged Franc and headed back outside.

Katie walked out to the pool and stooped to speak with JR.

"JR, you're going to spend the night with Joey and go to school with him in the morning. Bobby is going to take me for a ride in his car for a while, so be good and here's your good night kiss a little bit early."

She bent down, kissed him, and quickly walked up to Bobby where he sat next to Jason. His gaze hadn't left her since she had come out of the house, and as he focused on her approach, he concentrated on her eyes. The color had changed, but they remained his window to her, and it was wide open and beckoning to him.

As she stepped beside him, she looked down and simply said, "Get your keys and let's go."

As Bobby rose, Katie took his hand and led him out to his Corvair. Bobby opened the door for her and she quickly slid into the seat that she had always known as hers. As Bobby climbed in behind the wheel, he reached over and opened the glove compartment. He reached in and pulled out a red "scrunchie" for Katie's hair that matched the color of his car exactly. Katie smiled, and as she had always done, she kissed his hand as she took the scrunchie and tied her hair back into a ponytail.

"Where to?" asked Bobby.

"Your place," replied Katie, and Bobby needed no further direction. He knew that talking could wait. All urgency in his life had vanished.

As they drove, Bobby took his sunglasses from the visor and put them on, amazed at how bright the world had become in just a few minutes. Katie kept her left hand on his right as he drove, never taking her eyes off his face, yet she didn't say anything until they were exiting the I-410 loop at Bandera Road.

Katie noticed an HEB supermarket along the frontage road and asked Bobby to stop there. After they parked in the lot, Katie tugged on Bobby's hand and said, "I just need to pick up something real quick, but I don't want to be away from you. Will you come with me?"

Bobby jumped out of the car without opening his door -- something he hadn't done for over 10 years- and hurried around to open Katie's door for her. They held hands as they walked into the store, where Katie made quick work of locating what she wanted and then directing them to the self-checkout lanes. She paid using her debit card and they were back to the Corvair within 5 minutes.

The store was convenient to Bobby's rental house, and they were able to get to it after just a few turns off the same frontage road. Bobby pulled into the driveway behind his white Dodge Ram pickup and turned off the car. Katie continued just to smile at him as he led her from the car and through the front door of the house.

Bobby was certain that she wouldn't be able to retrace the route they had taken to get to his house, the name of the store they had just been to, or be able to describe the exterior of his house. Her eyes had been on him the whole time. Even now, as they stood in the entry of the house, she was obviously looking without seeing -- everything except Bobby. Bobby she saw clearly. Her eyes not only pulled him into her consciousness, but they also pushed her into his.

Gazing down at her, Bobby instinctively led her down the hall to the master bedroom. Katie acknowledged his destination with a squeeze of his hand. Once in the room, Bobby simply indicated the door to the bathroom, sensing again that Katie would be interested in knowing. Katie turned to face him and slowly pushed him to the edge of the bed, encouraging him to sit.

She set her purse on the dresser and took her store purchase into the bathroom and closed the door. Without being told, Bobby knew what Katie expected and he began getting undressed. By the time the bathroom door opened just a few minutes later, Bobby was naked in the bed under a single sheet. Katie had disrobed while in the bathroom.

As beautiful as she was, Bobby's eyes were immediately drawn to hers. The ice blue eyes he had longed to see again in his life had returned. The contacts that hid them were now sitting in solution on the bathroom counter. He didn't know or care where the glasses were. Katie knew that Bobby wasn't focused on the sight of her body as she hurried to join him in the bed. She knew -- as he knew about her -- that the feel of their bodies together was what they both craved.

Bobby pulled her to him as Katie climbed under the sheet and held her facing him, both on their sides. He played with the chain holding his class ring between her breasts. For what seemed like hours, they just held each other and breathed. Breathed for the first time in 10 years.

"They lied to me Bobby," was the first statement that Katie made. She had her head snuggled against his chest as he held her. Bobby didn't respond, sensing that this was her story to be told at her pace and she just needed him to hear it.

After a few minutes, Katie continued, "After we spoke on the morning of the prom, I walked to the store to buy some shampoo. My dad was supposed to bring some home on Friday night, but he got stuck in some late meeting and forgot. In fact, it wasn't until later that I learned he hadn't come home at all Friday night. My mom was off showing a house to someone, and it was hours before you were supposed to pick me up, so I thought a trip to the store would kill some time.

When I was walking through the parking lot to the store, a big SUV pulled beside me. The windows were tinted and I started moving as far from it as I could. Then the back window on the driver's side came down and my mom called to me from the back seat. There were two men in the front seat, but they didn't look at me. I walked over and my mom urged me to quickly get in. I could tell from the look on her face that she was upset, so I did as she asked.

Once in the SUV, the window rolled back up and we immediately started moving. I was focused on my mom, so I didn't pay much attention to where we were headed. My mom told me that my dad needed us, and that the men in front were U.S. Marshals. She said that was all she could tell me until we met up with my dad.

We drove for about an hour, heading towards Riverside. We finally arrived at some air force base and passed through a guarded gate. Once on the base we were taken to one of the buildings and led into an office where my dad and two other men waited for us. My dad hugged my mom and me, and then introduced us to the other men.

One was another U.S. Marshal named Michaelson, and seemed to be the leader of the ones who had brought mom and me there. The other man was a federal prosecutor named 'Alexander'. I don't remember his first name. Mr. Alexander apologized for surprising me and my mom, and explained that it was for our own protection. He went on to explain that in the course of my dad's business, he had inadvertently stumbled upon some criminal activity by one of his clients.

My dad tried to report what he had learned anonymously through a tip hotline, but once his information was investigated, it was determined that the situation was much more serious than anyone had expected, because it identified a major organized crime operation insinuating itself into the local pornography industry through drugs, prostitution, extortion, money laundering, and bribing of local politicians.

Obviously the anonymous tip wasn't really anonymous, so my dad was contacted and asked to work with the Department of Justice to help them build their case and break up the criminal operations. My dad had been secretly gathering more information, including names of individuals and their roles in the organization.

Mr. Alexander said that indictments were currently being prepared and several arrests were expected on Sunday. He further explained that due to my dad's cooperation with the case, there would likely be some attempt by these criminals to prevent him from testifying against them. Mr. Alexander then asked U.S. Marshal Michaelson to explain his plans for our protection.

We were told that we had been approved for the federal witness protection program and would receive round-the-clock protection from the U.S. Marshal Service until any risk associated with these cases was over. He implied that once my dad had testified that the threat against us would go away.

My mom asked how long it would take before the cases all came to trial and Mr. Alexander told her that the indictments were being expedited, and if they were able to get some of the people involved to take plea bargains and also testify against others, things should move very quickly. He anticipated just a couple of months.

My mom then asked Marshal Michaelson when we would start into the witness protection program, and he told her that we already were in it. He explained that we would not be returning to our house, and in fact, we would be leaving in about 30 minutes on a flight to a new location.

While my mom and dad seemed to accept this, I went ballistic. I said I had a prom to go to that night, I had graduation in a couple of weeks, and I had to let you know what was going on.

Marshal Michaelson apologized and said that we had to start now or we risked someone finding out about our participation on the program and compromising not only our relocation, but our new identities as well.

I screamed that I was 18, an adult, and would not agree to just disappear. My mom said that she wouldn't go without me, and my dad said that he wouldn't testify unless my mom and I were protected.

Marshals Michaelson and Mr. Alexander talked quietly amongst themselves for a few minutes, and then Marshal Michaelson told us to make a list of any personal items we wanted from our house and they would have someone sneak in tonight and get them for us. He said that photos that had identifiable faces, whether ours or someone who could be tied to us would not be permitted. He also said that clothes would be provided, so we should not ask for any of those.

Then he looked at me and said that he really was sorry about my prom, but he would make sure that you were told what was going on. While I probably would not be able to attend my graduation, that was just a ceremonial formality he said, and I had already earned the grades required for the diploma.

I raised my hand and counted on my fingers to them all; "One, we hide for no more than six months. Two, Bobby is immediately informed of why I am going away and kept informed of when I will be able to return. Three, there is only one thing I demand to have from our house, and that is a framed picture of Bobby's red Corvair from next to my bed. Agree to these and I'll go. Otherwise, no deal."

Mr. Alexander and Marshal Michaelson agreed, but as we both now know, they only kept one of their promises. JR has told you about the picture.

We were put on a small Air Force plane and flown directly from that base to Randolph Air Force Base here in San Antonio. We were placed in a house on the base and provided all the necessities we had left behind.

About two weeks after arriving, I realized that my period hadn't come. At first I suspected the stress of being basically kidnapped by our government was the cause, but after a couple more weeks passed, I knew that wasn't the case. I talked to my mom about my suspicions, and she immediately went to the base commissary to get a home pregnancy test. Once that indicated positive, she arranged for me to see one of the doctors on the base. Well, it was a certainty after that. I was pregnant with your baby.

When I insisted that the Marshals get word to you about my pregnancy is when I learned that they had never told you anything about why I had disappeared. The Marshals had to physically restrain me to keep me from leaving the base right then. I was livid and verbally lashed out at anyone around me. I felt betrayed by my parents when they wouldn't support my need to let you know, I was incensed when they asked me to consider having an abortion, and I was frustrated with myself for trusting any of them.

We didn't have a phone, computer or any other means of contacting anyone off the base. I wrote you letters and tried to get some of the airmen on the base to mail them for me, but the Marshals were always able to circumvent my plans.

Then something happened that changed my attitude completely. You probably remember meeting my best friend Keri the time you drove me to her birthday party in Van Nuys? She and I were closer than sisters, and I felt almost as bad about her being in the dark about my disappearance as I did about you.

One day Marshall Michaelson came to see us, and we could tell by his expression that something was wrong. He asked all of us if we knew a family named "Gordon", and of course we all nodded. He went on to tell us that the Gordon family was discovered in their home yesterday, and that there was clear evidence that they were killed to send a message. He asked again if we had tried to contact anyone since we entered the program, and we told him that other than my attempts to contact you -- which were all unsuccessful - we hadn't.

That's when it dawned on me that Keri and her family were killed simply because they knew us. What would happen if the criminals knew about you and me? Would they try to come after you and your family like they had the Gordons? I couldn't take that chance, so I accepted the reality of you not knowing anything about what had happened to me as the best way to keep you safe.