Honor Thy Mother & Thy Father Ch. 28

When the chess match between Doctor George and Patricia Valentino was announced over the hospital's Internet system, the hospital's seven hundred-seat auditorium filled up quickly. Technicians set up three cameras: one looking over each players shoulder and one was looking directly down over the chessboard. The rules were simple: the match would continue until one of the contestants won a match. If the match ended in a tie, a new game would start, if time permitted; or it would begin at 4 PM the next day.

Doctor George won the right to open and after the first two moves Patty said, "You have to be kidding Doctor, 'The Kings Indian?' How old fashion can you be?"

"I have won four Masters Championships with this opening. I still haven't figured out yours."

"Mine was named after two chess masters in 1886. The game was first played, and won the world championship in Austria, in 1885. It is called, "The Caro-Kahn." I have added a few wrinkles of my own, to bring it up to date."

"I remember it now. You leave one side of the board totally unprotected. I will make my pawns into queens in very short order."

"Are you a very wealthy man Doctor's?"

"Yes, I come from an extremely wealthy family."

"If you win, I will give you my ranch in Glens Falls, including the new home that is being built on the property. It should be worth in the neighborhood of $80 million. Unfortunately, it's paid for. However, my father's townhome here in the city, has a very large mortgage on it. If you lose you will pay off his mortgage which is approximately $20 million.

"You are giving me over 4 to 1 odds that you are going to win?"

"Yes Doctor, is it too rich for your blood?"

"You are going to eat those words Mrs. Valentino."

"Shall we continue to play Doctor, or continue to talk?"

The audience was as quiet as, or quieter than a church mouse. They watched the contestants on a big overhead screen, and after 2 ½ hours, it appeared Patty made a blunder. There was a collective gasp in the room as Doctor George took her Bishop with a pawn. Her rook took the pawn, and the game continued evenly for the next twenty minutes. A short time later Patty stuck out her hand to Doctor George.

He looked at her and smiled. "Are you conceding Mrs. Valentino?"

"No Doctor, I'm giving you the opportunity to concede. Take a close look at the board, and see what is about to happen to you in eight moves."

Doctor George studied the board from every angle imaginable. He looked at it for five minutes and then he shouted, "You didn't blunder. You gave me that Bishop on purpose. You hockey puck. I walked right into your trap. Now I know why Doctor Nall hates you. I hate you too Mrs. Valentino. Congratulations. He put his finger on top of his king and put it down on the board."

The moderator asked the contestants, "What had happened? We would like to see the next eight moves, because we don't see the end game."

"Doctor George would you like to do the honors?"

"Are you trying to twist the knife you just shoved into my heart?"

"Always Doctor; ask my husband, he will tell you."

Doctor George took the microphone and showed the audience Patty's next eight decisive moves. Every time she moved a piece, he had to defend his king. Every time he defended his king, his position became more untenable. On the sixth move she put him in check, with a knight. On the seventh move, her remaining Bishop took his Queen and his King was in check by her Queen. She mated on the eighth move by moving a pawn.

The audience stood up and applauded. Doctor George extended his hand to Patricia. "You learned all this by reading books on chess, when you were six years old?"

"Yes Doctor; chess is math, and I love math. I am more at home with it, than I am with the English language."

"Unbelievable; if you introduce me to your father, I will make arrangements with him to pay off his mortgage."

***********

119. A Parting of the Ways

"As they entered the flight operations building, tired and hungry after their long flight from Antarctica, Colonel Canyon said to Special Agent Brodner, "My ass is safe again. Now I have to call in and find out what other torments she has in store for me now."

Brodner replied, "Colonel, I can't thank you enough for getting us out of there. My ass would've been hanging, just like yours, just in a different building."

"You and your guys did great work. When you speak to Director Free, make sure to tell him this and he will understand why we got out of McMurdo so quickly. Use these words exactly, because it is in code. 'William says you are welcome.' Do you have that?"

"I believe I can remember that Colonel. You stay safe, wherever your boss sends you."

"If she sends us there, it's never safe. Take care of yourself, and I hope we never meet under the circumstances, again." The Colonel saluted sharply, turned on his heel, and nodded at his sergeant. They walked out of the building into the bright late afternoon sunshine. They boarded a private jet that was waiting for them on the civilian side of the airport, never to be seen by anyone in Christchurch, New Zealand, again."

***********

As the sun was setting into the western horizon, a pink jet landed. It taxied to the military portion of the airport to pick up six special guests. They would not leave until the next morning, but Payne could not wait to see her two friends. She and her co-pilot put the aircraft the bed, and ordered it to be fully serviced for a departure at 9 AM the following morning.

She deplaned with her bodyguards, Alexis, and Willie beside her. They walked into the operations building and asked where the FBI had Harold and Callie Chase.

After a few phone calls and identification check, an FBI agent came out and escorted them to a private dining area. Callie saw Payne, ran over to her, and asked, "Are we going to Paris again?"

"Ask your husband, because it's okay with me."

Brodner said, "Well, it's not okay with me. We are going back to the United States. Once I have you safely at home, you can do whatever you please."

Callie looked at him. "Party pooper! You have no idea how much money we spent in Paris the last time we were there."

Payne laughed. "Yes, we did increase their gross national product, didn't we?"

Harold said, "I didn't mind. It was your husband's money."

"He didn't mind either, Harold. He sold you an apartment, and told me about the personal trainer he has lined up for you if you don't lose weight. He hasn't stopped smiling since he made those arrangements with you."

"He doesn't think I can do it, does he?"

"No Harold, he knows you better than that. He bet everyone in the office, $1000 to $1 that you won't lose the weight. He says you don't have the willpower to do it."

"I am going to prove to that deviant husband of yours that I do have the willpower to lose this extra weight I'm carrying around."

"That reminds me; I received a gift from a communications billionaire as he got off the aircraft in Mexico City. I'd like to share it with you. She opened her travel suitcase and took out the most expensive Austrian chocolates made. She opened the box, turned, and put it underneath Harold's chin. Would you like a piece Harold?"

"Yes, thank you, they look delicious." He popped one into his mouth, and could not understand why everyone was grinning at him.

As he swallowed the delicious piece of chocolate, he realized what he had done.

"You louse. Did your husband put you up to this? Are you in league with that bum?"

"Harold, I'm surprised at you. I am one of the people that took his bet. If you lose the weight, I win one thousand dollars."

Harold choked. "Payne, you need a thousand dollars like the Mississippi River needs mud."

"Harold, when are you going to understand that I have never beaten Dycke at anything? He has never lost a bet, ever. He predicted I was pregnant after we were married only two weeks. Every time he asked me a question regarding men and women, I had to answer, "Men are superior to women." He did that to me for one year. Do you know how humiliating that was for me? Do you know how badly I wanted to kill him? Now I have the opportunity to beat him at the one thing I have always wanted. I want to beat him at this bet. If you don't lose that weight Harold, I'm coming after you with a whip. That piece of chocolate is the last piece you are going to eat until you are at your optimum weight. If you aren't, I'm going to throw you out of my airplane and watch you bounce."

Callie laughed. "Do you know what that means, Payne? We can go shopping any time we want. I will be a rich widow, and you have your own airplane. We can go anywhere we want to vacation and shop, and no one can stop us."

"There are going to be four little problems Callie. Three are at my home, and one will shortly be yours."

"Oh, the children; we can get them nannies like the really rich people do. We can send them off to a boarding school, and make them like the kids on 90210. As long as they don't drink, or use drugs, and I see them at Christmas, and one week during the summer, I'm fine with that."

Harold yelled, "Callie, that's awful."

"Harold, you are impossible. Don't you have any sense of humor at all?"

"Just think about the way you've been acting lately, and then ask about my sense of humor."

Callie flashed her heated eyes at the four members of the FBI contingent, and asked, "Have I been acting irrationally lately?"

All four men looked at her, then at Harold, and back at Callie. Unanimously, they shook their head 'NO!'

Harold looked at them, shook his head, and called them 'PUSSIES!'

They all nodded their heads.

***********

Christchurch and Washington DC are almost 17 hours apart. Agent Brodner called the FBI main office. He was patched in to Director Free. He nearly had his head cut off.

Michael yelled, "Why aren't you in Antarctica?"

"We ran into a problem sir."

"You ran into a problem at the bottom of the world?"

"Yes sir, Russians."

"Russians, what the hell were they doing down there?"

"According to the two men from the DIA that helped us get out of there, four Russian nationals were missing from the Russian vessel 'Vavilov' which was moored 40 miles from McMurdo. That is 120 miles closer than they are allowed to be by treaty. The men from the DIA said intelligence sources believed they were after Howard Chase. They contacted us and helped us get them back to Christchurch safely.

Dycke Schneider's wife is here to fly us back to the states tomorrow morning. We leave at 9 AM."

"How did all this happen and no one coordinated it with me?"

The Colonel said to give you this message sir. He said you would understand immediately. "William says you're welcome."

Michael shouted into the phone, "William says you're welcome. That was the entire message?"

"Yes sir, the Colonel said it was in code. I have no idea what it means."

"Get back here Brodner. I'm going to kill someone, and your name is on that list. What was this Colonel's name?"

"It is Colonel Lucius Canyon, sir. I wouldn't cross him sir, he knows his job, and he took care of us like a mother hen."

"I bet he did. I'm going to kill 'The Rooster' he works for."

***********

Michael hit speed dial and William answered his cell phone.

"Good morning Michael, to what do I owe the honor of this phone call?"

"Before I shoot you between the eyes, how are Junior, Jemma, and Patty?"

"Junior is beginning to look like a bowling ball with eyes. Jemma is losing weight exponentially, and she Patty is talking a blue streak. The Doctor she beat playing chess the other day has paid off the mortgage on my Brownstone. Things here could not be better, unless I die when you shoot me between the eyes. "

"I received a message from a friend of yours. A Colonel Lucius Canyon, do you know him?"

"I most certainly do. I sent him to take care of the little problem you had brewing down south. From the sound of your voice, I take it his trip was successful."

"William you cannot do these things without informing the government what is happening."

"Michael, did you ever find the leak in your organization?"

"No, we did not."

"I think you should look very close to your desk; extremely close to your desk. How many people have access to your office; to the words you say, to the letters you type, to the orders you give. I can't tell you many things that I am doing, because there is a traitor high up in the echelons of the FBI. I would love to tell you these things, my friend, because of what you have done for my daughter, and my family. However, until this person is ferreted out, there are times I have to keep you in the dark."

"Do you know who this person is William?"

"No Michael, I don't. Are you asking me to get involved? You asked me not to and I have obeyed your wishes. I could find this person within one week if you want me to do it. This person is compromising many important FBI operations. People are being informed of your activities before they start. It is like what happened in New York, before you caught the man in the Attorney General's office."

"William, I am officially asking you to get involved. I am also asking you to try to keep it legal, or as legal as is humanly possible. I would like to take this or these people, interrogate them, find out there sources, take them all to court, and send them away for a very long time."

"I will put Patricia and several friends I have in Washington to work on it instantly."

Michael laughed. "Does she charge you $1.4 million a day also?"

"No Michael, she charges me in heartache. She gets lost in a helicopter. She breaks her head open, and she has brain cancer. She does all this to me in a period of two months. I threatened to tie her up in chains, and never let her out of my sight again."

"You would be punishing yourself, William. You would never hear the end of it, with that mouth of hers."

"Michael, when I thought I would never hear her speak again I was crushed. When we were at Central Park and her first words were, "So does mine," Stephano said to me, "Oh God, she's back."

"She is a double edged sword Michael. You have to take the good with the bad. However, you must admit, when she is good, she takes your breath away."

"Amen to that William. Laura and you put together a child that is a marvelous human being."

"Do you know what scares me Michael?"

"Honestly William, I would think not very much."

"This does, Michael. The thought of Laura and my genes, combining with Bruno and Victoria Valentino's genes. Laura and I produced Patricia. Victoria and Bruno produced Stephano. What are Patricia and Stephano going to produce?"

Michael said, "Nuclear Fusion?"

"Michael that is exactly what I'm worried about."

"Who is Colonel Canyon?"

"You met four of his trainees at my daughter's farm. They are stationed at Fort Polk Louisiana, as a dark cover team. One of the first men to reach Bruno was ours."

"My God William, you are everywhere."

"No Michael, I am just near people I am responsible for or to. I didn't want anything to happen to Victoria or Bruno. You would not believe how close some of the families were to getting to them."

"Don't tell me, it will ruin my entire day."

"I will fly Patty and Stephano to Washington. She wants to see Melody and Harmony anyhow. It will be great for the three of them to be together."

"Very good William, I'll be expecting them."

*********

As they were walking out to the Gulfstream at 8:15AM, to preflight the aircraft, Payne found an Air Force Major looking it over.

"It's not for sale Major."

"I've never seen one in pink before ma'am. I fly these out of DC for the bigwigs, when they go on their junkets to see the troops."

"Would you like to go inside and take a peek?"

"I'm always interested in seeing how the other half lives."

"Enjoy yourself major, I am Payne Schneider. My husband, Dycke, owns Schneider industries."

"Okay, one of the 30 wealthiest people in the world, and he has you working?"

"Not really, this is my toy. I enjoy flying as much as I enjoy breathing. He lets me fly whenever the spirit moves me. I'm here to pick up some friends and bring them home to South Carolina."

"It's nice work if you can get it."

"Looking for a different line of work Major? We are always looking for experienced pilots."

"I have nine months before my enlistment is up. They are promising me a silver leaf if I stay in."

"What would you say your gross pay is including housing and benefits?"

"It's in the area of one hundred and sixty thousand dollars."

"How much of a bump will you get with the Silver Oak leaf?"

"It's in the area of thirty-five thousand dollars."

"I'll have finance fax me a resume package. Fill it out when you can and mail it to us. Starting salary for a second officer is two hundred and forty thousand dollars, plus per diem, while they are away from home. You said you are already qualified on the 650 is that correct?"

"Yes ma'am it is."

"We have ten of them, and they are always in use. It would be nice to give our pilots a little more rest between their flights. I have to start checking this out, we leave at 9 AM. We are heading to South Carolina this morning."

"Do you have room for one more passenger?"

"Yes, where are you going?"

"Washington, D.C. by way of Tulsa Oklahoma. I'm on a C-5 Galaxy that's leaving at 11:30 this morning. It will not be as comfortable as riding in this."

"See if you can get your orders changed. Meet me here before we button up; we will even give you your check ride on the way home. What's your name?"

"Zink ma'am; Charles Zink."

"Well Major Zink, get a move on it. You don't have much time."

The Major was off like a sprinter into the base operations building to have is orders changed and approved. He had to find the loadmaster of the C-5 Galaxy, and have his name removed from the manifest. The loadmaster had to find his luggage, which was packed in a huge crate. It had to be dismantled. Inside, the major had one piece of roll-on luggage, a carry-on case, and a hard case carrying a computer. All of these items took up less than 2 cubic feet. The loadmaster was very unhappy, until the major handed him a $50 bill. It eased the tension between them.

The Major sprinted back towards the pink Gulfstream 650, in time to put his luggage into the cargo bay, watched it be netted and sealed by the ground crew.

Alexis and Willie asked him to remove his jacket, and searched him for weapons. They did an extremely thorough job. When they were finished the Major smiled. He winked at them and said, "Thank You, ladies."

Alexis and Willie pushed him up the stairs, and smiled at each other.

He stuck his head into the flight deck to thank Payne for taking him along.

She said, "Sit down Major; you can't take your test flight from the back of the aircraft."

"You weren't kidding me. You are actually going to give me a Check Ride?"

"Why not, I am a certified flight instructor."

"I am going to love this job." He grabbed the handholds, lifted himself over the center console, and slid into the left seat.

"We have our clearance to taxi to runway 01. Our GPS is loaded for Charleston, South Carolina. The Flight Damper System and Satellite Reporting Systems are loaded. This aircraft is ready to fly. How many hours do you have in this type of aircraft?"

"2671 hours, not that I keep close track."

"How many total flight hours?"

"23,056 hours. I've been flying since I was a little kid. Ultralights, crop dusters; bi-wing, anything anyone would allow me to fly, before I was old enough to apply for a license."

"Okay, start your checklist."

He put the book on his lap and began reading off everything he was supposed to do in order. He flipped switches, read off gauges, and checked her movements, when she was supposed to do something from her side of the aircraft. Several moments later, the list was completed and he said, "Systems check complete."