Dark as Daylight Ch. 13

"You are at the Greenbrier Hotel, in West Virginia?"

"Yes we are, but the hotel is closed for renovation. It's the 4 of us, plus a cook and a few other that take care of our needs. It's like a ghost town here. The rain never stops, so we cannot go outside. I help my father by checking to make sure everything is in position for the defense against our enemies. Thankfully it's all over now, and we can return to our normal lives. We know who the leader is now, and he will be taken care of in due course."

Gwen started to cry.

Sabrina yelled, "Run a cold bath. Jemma get the rum raisin ice cream. We have to stop this before she goes nuclear."

After bringing the ice cream, Jemma picked up the phone. "William, what did you say to her?"

"I was telling her about the rain in West Virginia."

"You idiot." She slammed down the phone.

William looked at the phone, and wondered what he did wrong this time.

************************************

When they ran out of bread, they started handing out meat to each of the men as they passed by the opening to the building site. The chef was using the largest pots he had to make soup to go along with the sandwiches they were handing out. These part frozen men were more thankful for the soup then they were for the sandwiches. It helped make them warm inside.

No one had anticipated feeding more than 600 men in one day, no less in a few hours. They began running out of meats and cheeses, with more than 100 men left to feed. The chef attacked the fresh food locker and began pulling out expensive cuts of meat that were meant for the evening meals for the agents that spent 24 hours a day on-site. The grill could only hold 8 steaks or cuts of meat that size, but with the grill turned up high, they cooked in 6 minutes, rather than the customary 14. They might taste a little different, but those who came before them would be a little jealous. Each steak was cut into approximately 6 ounce portions, wrapped in aluminum foil, and handed out to each man with something to drink. Not one of the men complained.

Pavel and Henryk were the last to be fed. They thanked Lucius for feeding their men, and keeping his promises to let them go free. Their only wish was to be able to find this 'Cowboy' and take care of him in their old ways.

Lucius said, "If it is of any comfort to you, I fought in Croatia, Bosnia, and Herzegovina. I learned many of your old ways, and I know who the 'Cowboy' is. Before he dies, he will see every man, and woman who died here. Each one of them will spit in his face. Each one will watch as his skin is removed, layer by layer. For days he will beg me to kill him, but I will not. I will do everything in my power to keep him alive. However, when it is time for him to meet his maker, I will open his chest and removed his beating heart. I will show it to him, as he screams his final scream, and dies. I will use his heart to start the fire that will burn his body, until there is nothing left on this earth for anyone to remember him by."

Henryk said, "Colonel, it is truly the old way. Thank you for my men."

Lucius looked down at the pile of munitions, and knew the amount of death they could have wreaked among the men protecting the building site. It always amazed him that enemies didn't care about blowing up the machine that was being built inside; they only wanted the 2 boys that were building it.

5 or 6 well-placed mortars could pierce the carbon fiber top that kept the interior of the building site dry, and destroy the Trillion- dollar spacecraft that was being built inside it.

He seemed mesmerized by the site, and got angrier by the minute, because of the man who caused all this death and destruction. As usual, he compartmentalized it, and showed nothing.

"Yes?"

Burkart said, "Colonel, it stopped raining; the sun is coming out."

"Don't you think I know that? It's exactly the way I timed it. If the rain stopped any sooner, they would have started fighting. It didn't, so they were amenable to a deal. Your body will tell you when the rain is going to stop, and when rain is coming. All you have to do is listen to it, feel it. Your body is a barometer. When it is going to rain, your body gets heavier. What is going to be bright, and clear it gets lighter. Every soldier has to know it. It determines how you will perform, during that day."

"Colonel, when I grow up, I want to be just like you."

He turned, and looked at her.

"Do you mean tall Burkart?"

Joe broke out laughing. He also wound up on his knees.

"Nice move Burkart, that will keep him on his toes."

"Thank you Colonel, I was aiming a little higher."

"His voice would've sounded funny."

Tom looked down at his friend, and asked, "Were you a bad boy again?"

"I have to work on Laura's sense of humor. Right now she doesn't have one."

"I do to have a sense of humor, but you always laugh at me and my height. Every time you do, from now on, you are going to be shorter than I am."

"Laura the rain has stopped. We have no more enemies to fight. I have to make out a new schedule for everyone, and set up teams to recover are dead in the field. When all that is taken care of, you and I are going to the gym, and I am going to show you which one of us is going to rule our household."

"What household?"

"The Joseph and Laura Constantine household."

"Aren't you taking something for granted?"

"I don't believe so. Are you saying you no, Laura, because if you are, I will stop pursuing you as of this moment. It will hurt, it will hurt a lot on my part, but I've hurt before. 3 times before to be exact. So say no, and put me in my misery now, so I can start suffering. Say the word Burkart and get on with your lonely FBI driven career. Climb the ladder of success, and have no one by your side to enjoy it with you. Make up your mind Laura, and make it up now. Is it YES or NO?"

After a moment she said, "I'm sorry Joe, I can't make a decision this big in my life, with only 2 days to think about it. If you want to take that as a no, go ahead. All my life I've had to think my way through things. I think I love you, but two days is just not enough time to form an opinion that will rule the rest of my life. You've been there 3 times before, and as you say you're a three-time loser. I don't want to be number 4. If I get married, I want it to stick. I don't want to be one of the 52 percent of marriages that fail."

Tom jumped in before another word was said, possibly in anger.

"So Laura, what you're saying according to Joe's list is; it's not a No, or almost no, it's a could be, or a possibly, or possibly yes. Then again it could be an almost yes, but right now we know it's not an absolutely Yes. Is that what you're saying?"

"Tom you have the worst memory in the Western Hemisphere. That's not what Joe said. What I said is I have to think about it. If that's not good enough for him, that's his tough luck. I'm going to pack, take the Attorney General by his neck, and drag him back to Washington."

Joe asked, "Exactly how do you plan on doing that Miss Burkart?"

"Mister Constantine, I work for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. I have the 4^th most important person in the Federal Government under my protection. I am commandeering the largest helicopter in the parking lot, and flying it to Washington D.C. Anyone attempting to keep me from performing my sworn duty will be arrested and detained. If they take any further action against me, my agents, or the Attorney General of the United States, they will be shot dead. Do you have any other questions?"

"No ma'am, enjoy Washington."

Tom pulled Joe aside. He looked his friend in the face, and called him an asshole.

"How stupid can you possibly be? She said she loves you. You love her, and she asked you for a little time. Are you going anywhere? You are going to be here, until this spaceship is completed.

She is going to be doing her thing, until she captures the bastard that's trying to blow up the super-rocket the U.S. is building. There is the telephone, texting, Skype, balloons, airplanes, cars, trains and other forms of transportation for you to see, and talk to each other all you want. So what happens; your brain turns to stone. Apologize to her before she leaves, or you may never see or hear from her again. She wasn't going to be number four Joe; she was going to be the last one."

"Why did you decide to get smart? Why couldn't you just leave me alone?"

"I'm tired of having 3 for dinner at my house. I'm tired of having 5 for the dinner at a restaurant. I'm tired of having you go from girl to girl to girl and not being happy. She was the one and everyone around here knew it, including you, and you fuck it up. Save it Joe, or you're going to be unhappy for the rest of your life."

(In the opposing corner)

Tim Kenshaw said, "I'm not leaving until you straighten things out with Joe. He's the best thing that ever happened to you, and you are throwing it all away. Now is not the time for you to think, Laura. For the first time in your life would you please take a leap of faith, and trust in your judgment, not as a law enforcement officer, but as a human being.

Laura, he is yours, and you are his. When are you going to realize that life is messy, and sometimes you just have to get dirty, and go with your gut."

"Sir..."

"Call me Ken, while we are discussing our private lives."

"Thank you Ken. How long did you know your wife before you married her?"

"This is my 3^rd marriage. My 1^st wife died in a car accident. My 2^nd wife caught me cheating on her, but she had been cheating on me for several years. We settled amicably out of court. My 3^rd wife and I have been married for 15 wonderful years. Does that answer your question, Laura?"

"Why did your wife cheat on you?"

"I was a brilliant young lawyer. I worked long hours, and sometimes weekends. She reaped the benefits, but was tired of being without a husband. The signs were all there that she was cheating, so I had a private investigator follow her for 6 months, and had all the ammunition I needed to divorce her.

While I was thinking about it, I met the sister of a good friend of mine, and began an affair with her. She is wife number 3."

"Why bother getting married? Why not just live together, and go as you please?"

"I guess neither one of you want children?"

"By the time I retire, I will be too old to have children."

"Women are having children into their late forties now. You have to ask yourself one question: Are you willing to take that leap of faith for Joseph Constantine to be your husband, or not? If the answer is no, walk away now, and never turn your head back.

If the answer is yes, ask him to meet you somewhere private, where you can discuss your last argument, and then move on. If you can't get by that argument, it's over."

"You don't realize how out of character this will be for me, Ken. I have never done anything without thinking about it first. If I was at bat, I always knew the odds of what pitch was coming next. I was always the best hitter on the team because of it. I was the worst fielder on the team, but the coach would not take me out of the game, because my batting average was always more than .800. I had to throw my whole body in front of a ground ball to stop it, but pitchers could not get the ball by me."

"Life is not a baseball game, Laura. If I was the opposing coach, every time you came to bat, I would have walked you. I would have told every one of my batters to hit to your field. I would have won every game because of it.

You have a choice to make, and this is the last time I'm going to say it. Do you love Joseph Constantine enough to make that leap of faith, or not? If you do not, I will be ready to leave in 2 hours. If you do I'll be ready to leave at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. Make up your mind Laura, is it yes or no?"

Laura was about to speak, when Tom yelled, "Oh, there you are. Buffalo 1 has a leaky fuel line. They are repairing it now. It will be ready to fly tomorrow morning."

"Tell the flight crew, we will take the helicopter the way it is. If we crash with the Attorney General on board, who ever made that fuel line leak will be charged with murder in the 1^st degree. I'll be sending a text to Washington, as soon as we finish this conversation. Do you understand Thomas?

"You won't get anyone to fly that bird."

"I'm a certified helicopter pilot. I'll fly it myself."

"Both of you should be put in a nuthouse. Neither one of you will listen to common sense."

"If you would have kept your mouth shut at the beginning, none of this would have happened."

"Laura for such a brilliant woman, you can't see the obvious. The first time the two of you looked at each other, a halo surrounded you. Everyone saw it, and everyone knew you were meant for one another. That was the reason I started in on you and that erstwhile friend of mine. I don't do that to him. I don't mess in his love life. He goes through women monthly. I don't mean he beds them, and lets them go. He may take them out a couple of times, to the movies or dinner, and then stop seeing them. He's never happy with any of them. I've been his friend since high school. I know that man better than anyone else alive. He would jump in front of a moving train to save your life, even if it meant losing his in exchange. He is about crazy you. He is nuts about you. He is bonkers about you. He is head over heels about you, but his brain turns to peanut butter, when he has to put together a sentence to tell you how he feels about you. He doesn't want to get hurt again, and he's all out there waiting for you to tell him what to do."

"Tom, everyone I know has dated for months. Then they stayed engaged for a long time, and then plan for their wedding. Then, they get married. Why do I have to jump into the middle of the ocean after 2 days, and be afraid that I'm going to break someone's heart if I change my mind?"

The Attorney General said, "Laura as you know I'm a very wealthy man. I will bet you $1 million to your $100 that your marriage to Joe will not fail. I will bet you that you will be happier than you have been, since you turned 30. He is the man of your dreams, even though you don't dream of men being in your life very often. Give yourself a chance, Laura, open yourself up to the world around you. Remember, even after you marry him, you can still beat the shit out of him, either here, or at any FBI gym in the nation. It will all be legal, and no one can press charges against either of you."

"Tom, Joseph and I have to talk. I mean a real serious heart-to-heart talk. Where is the gym? I don't want anyone there, except the 2 of us. Can you do that?"

"The gym is on the 4^th floor. Get changed, and be there in 15 minutes. I will have my men clear the floor, block the stairwells, and the elevators. When both of you are in the gymnasium, I will hand Joe the key so he can lock the door from the inside. When you 2 are finished talking, whichever one of you can make it to the door can open it, and yell for help."

"Thank you Tom, I'll make sure the boys don't glue you into your room tonight."

"Laura, I have one request; please don't maim him, I will be severely pissed at you if you do."

"If he doesn't listen to reason, I can't promise you anything."

"Are you really that good, Laura?"

The Attorney General answered for her.

"Tom, she was turned down by the Secret Service, for the presidential detail, for one reason; she was too short. The SSAIC smiled at her, when he told her the reason.

She broke his jaw, 3 ribs, and his leg, in under 1 minute. That was the amount of time it took other agents to get into his office and get her off him.

The only reason they could not bust her out of the service was because the room was under video surveillance. They saw him smile as he said she was too short. He was denigrating her sex, as well as her height. He was removed from his position, and allowed to retire, because of his years in service."

"If you two can work this out, and I hope you can, I truly worry about your children. They are going to be as strong as oxen, and I will pray that they have Joseph's temperament."

"What's the problem with my temperament? I've never had a problem, while I am on duty."

"Tim just picture a 7-year-old boy pushing a 5-year-old girl down, in the schoolyard, with Laura and Joe's blood running through her veins. Her pretty little dress is ripped, her pink socks have mud on them, and her patent leather shoes are scuffed. What do you think would happen to that young man?"

"It's too terrible even to speak of. However, for the rest of his life he will treat women with great respect. He will never know which one will dislocate his right arm, put his left leg up his asshole, and shove his left hand down his throat."

"I have to get changed. You two go do your jobs. I will meet Joseph in the gym; only Joseph, no one else."

"You have my word Laura. I will verify there is no one in the sauna, steam room or the showers, before you and Joseph are left alone."

"Thank you Thomas."

****************

"Zoey."

She raised her head off to bed and looked to see who called her.

"Oh, it's you Monty. What do you want?"

"You can go back to your room now. I have suspended the rest of your sentence."

"Why did you do that? Did you think Gordon was too harsh on me?"

"No, I don't think he was harsh enough. I just won't let a pregnant woman sit in a jail cell. You can leave anytime you wish. Whenever you have your divorce statement written up, you can drop it off in the meeting room, and as soon as Gordon drops his off, I'll set up a day and time for a panel hearing on your motions. We will let 16 members of our society decide who gets Payne, whether it is permanent custody, or joint custody, and what other actions are to be taken. I have already decided one thing, and that is you will have no contact with Payne, until you have had a complete psychiatric evaluation. On this one point I agree with Gordon. I believe that the medications that kept you stable have left your system, and you are now returning to the person you were earlier in your lifetime. I will not entrust the well-being of a 6-month old child, in the hands of an irrational human being. Once Doctor Daniels, and Doctor Finch have had a chance to talk to you, and have had a chance to discuss your situation, I may allow supervised visitation for short periods of time. Until otherwise stated, Gordon Luck has full custody of Payne Elizabeth Luck. If you break this rule, you'll wind up back in this room. Sign this form stating you understand, and agree to the terms of your conditional release."

"What happens if I don't sign that form?"

"You can still leave this cell, but if you approach your child, you will be restrained in the most vigorous manner. If necessary, you'll be sedated. If you continue to be a problem to our society, you will be put before the full membership, and a decision will be made as to how long you will be put into stasis."

"Stasis, that's cruel and unusual punishment by any stretch of the imagination."

"I think Gordon would disagree with you. He was in stasis for 4 months, and he suffered no ill effects. He, also, was sentenced to spend 6 months in solitary confinement, for disobeying a direct order. He did not complain about being in stasis, but after a few days in solitary confinement, he chose to kill himself, rather than spend another day in the brig. Do you still believe stasis is cruel and unusual punishment?"