Guardian Program Ch. 29

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Guardian Program Ch. 29

A novel by R.C.PeterGabriel, all rights reserved.

We refueled in Barbados, just so that Sam could see some of the island, then again in Senegal before reaching our destination of Kisumu, Kenya.

I had a cab take us directly to the Kisumu Yacht Club, where I had chartered a cabin cruiser. We were staying on the yacht for the night, which would be the duration of our time in Kenya.

I had chosen Kenya because it is one of the few free-world countries that are at least partially English-speaking and allow polygamy.

A man can have up to three wives as long as there are mitigating circumstances, like my first wife being unable to have children, which is the case with Toni.

We waited about thirty minutes for the minister to arrive. Then after a brief call to Toni, so that the minister could be assured that Sam and I were marrying with Toni's knowledge and consent, we exchanged vows on the jetty.

It was a brief and carefully worded ceremony, in which somehow only Sam's vows included the words requiring her to obey.

Immediately afterward we boarded the yacht and cruised about one hundred miles or so from the club out into Lake Victoria. Once the crew had chosen what they felt was a good location, they engaged the satellite anchor. Then they made sure we had everything we needed before two of the crew took the launch back to Mfangano Island about thirty-five miles to the East-South-East. They lived on the island, and since the yacht usually carried more passengers and they weren't necessary, I didn't care that they left.

Sam and I fished for several hours, and even though we were competing for the largest fish, it was very pleasant to just sit next to her, and hold hands. We had wagered that whoever won the bet, got to pick the next role-play scenario.

I thought I was in good shape when I pulled in a Nile Perch at just over nine Kilos, not bad for a computer geek. It was small for a Nile Perch, but one of my biggest catches ever, so I named it my contest fish.

Sam just giggled at me and pulled in her line. It was then I realized she hadn't even had bait on her hook. She excused herself for only a few moments and returned with a flaying knife from the galley. She smiled sweetly at me and asked if she could borrow my fish. I reluctantly handed over my twenty-pounder and watched as she took her hook, reached right down the fish's gullet, and worked the hook through its back. After calmly retrieving her arm from the monster, she used the knife to make two long but shallow cuts along its gills. Then after rinsing off her arm she strapped herself and her pole into her chair and cast my bleeding fish overboard. Without a word, she leaned back and closed her eyes.

I sat and admired her profile, and smiled at her slightly smug expression. I could tell she felt that she had already beaten me, and it didn't take long for her to prove it. About five minutes later something was on her line, and less than ten minutes after that she was pulling in a perch weighing forty-three kilos.

Granted, I gaffed the beast and helped pull it onto the deck, but she had done all the real work and made it look easy. I no longer doubted her father's story.

Sam grinned at me as she unstrapped herself from her fishing gear, asked my permission to head to the cabin, and then sauntered off in that direction. I, of course, followed not understanding how someone could pull in a fish that weighed almost as much as they do and not be phased in the least.

I spent the remaining time before dinner, spanking Sam with my makeshift pirate sword before impaling her on my broadsword.

After eating we had the crew shut down all the lights and we laid out under the stars. It always amazes me how many you can see once you're away from other lights.

We fell asleep holding each other on deck.

Thursday morning, I had planned a leisurely cruise back to port, followed by a flight to France where I could present Sam with her wedding gift. However, I was startled awake at 03:37 local time, when Hal sent a security alert tone.

I was on my feet shouting for the crew to get the engines running before the tone stopped. It was then that I noticed the wind had picked up considerably.

The first mate called down from the railing outside the bridge about ten seconds later, wanting to know what was wrong. By then, I was sending Sam to our cabin and had been told that both, Toni's and Jessie's phones had gone offline within two seconds of each other. Something was definitely wrong. One phone failing was unlikely in itself, but both at the same time was a statistical impossibility.

"Get this boat back to port now! All possible speed!" I shouted, then told Hal to send a response team to the house.

I put a call through to Gregory Scott, my head of security in Montana. "Tell me you know something Greg." I implored when he answered the phone.

"Nothing yet, Sir. I was off duty in Missoula. I'm getting in my car and heading that way, but won't get there for about forty-five minutes. I sent a response team the moment the alert went out, and they should be at your home in less than four minutes. I was ringing the house when you called. So far, no answer. I understand you're on Lake Victoria, and Samantha Smith is with you, is that correct?"

"That's correct. Toni and Jessie are the concern. Who's heading up the response team?"

"Donald Shepherd, with team Bravo. Team Charlie is also responding but will be in personal vehicles for the most part. ETA averaging between fifteen and twenty-five minutes. They'll be covering land egress. The chopper will be covering the lake, but is ... eight minutes out."

I vaguely felt the boat's motor start but was listening to Scott's briefing. "Stop every person and vehicle attempting to leave the area," I ordered. "Even if it's a cop. I want each one scanned for DNA. I'm disconnecting. I'll monitor Shepherd's Com. You keep calling the house."

I disconnected the call and had Hal patch me into the response team's com channel.

"... mistakes on this one. Fast and by the book," Shepherd was saying. "One minute ten."

An eternity went by, while I waited, and then a second one before they arrived at my house.

One minute and a few seconds later he continued. "No life signs in the house. Move out now and sweep it anyway. We need answers."

I didn't hear as the team cleared room after room, even though the voices were being pumped straight into my head. I didn't hear the cook shouting as I fell to the deck, or feel her shaking me.

Every moment that I had ever spent with Toni and Jessie both, was flashing before my eyes at the same time. A few moments, or maybe minutes later, I became aware that Sam was near. She was holding my face trying to get me to respond. I couldn't seem to get my eyes to work well enough to see her concerned face, a mere foot from mine.

"Robert! ... Robert, you promised you wouldn't leave me! ... I know you don't want to be a liar ... Robert please talk to me!"

I could hear her, but I couldn't separate her voice from all the flashbacks. Then I heard a Bravo Team member announce that he had found the phones. That was something I could focus on. I returned to the present, listening while the team finished clearing the house. I also heard several members of Charley Team announce that they had achieved position along the main escape routes.

Scott came on and continued to direct Charley Team into strategic locations. Once confirmation was given, he requested a report on the phones.

Shepherd reported that it would seem someone had put a pot of water on the stove and built a platform of spaghetti noodles over the pot. Once the pot came to a boil, it slowly steamed the noodles until the phones dropped into the boiling water. It seemed to be a makeshift timer to allow extra time to escape.

I sat up, much to Sam's relief, then cut into the conversation. "Shepherd, look at the stove, upper left from the burner controls. Is there a time on the small display?"

"Yes, Sir. 17:30," responded Shepherd.

"Scott, have Charley Team stand down. You won't find anyone. Whoever it was is long gone probably hours ago. Since there aren't any bodies or signs of struggle, we can assume the phones were a message. Whoever is sending the message didn't realize the phones are waterproof or they wouldn't have used the spaghetti.

"Shepherd, continue to guard the property, make sure you check the boat house, and the Program facilities. Have the chopper RTB.

"Scott, when you get there have half of the team change out of their tactical gear, and canvas the neighborhood with tactical members as backup. Question everyone about suspicious persons or vehicles. I'm about three hours from my plane. Once I'm there I can start using Hal to search for anything unusual."

Scott broke in saying. "Sir, I'm not sure I agree with your assessment of a message. We don't know what the situation is yet. The perpetrator could simply have been destroying the phones because they realized any smartphone could be tracked.

Or, they may have done it as a means of showing Toni and Jessie that they were being cut off from communication. You know, in hopes of demoralizing them."

"Greg, if that was true you would have caught them red-handed because they wouldn't have set the stove to come on at a later time, and certainly wouldn't have used spaghetti. Both suggest the perpetrator knew the phones being destroyed would alert us. Setting the timer may not have been noticed so they used the spaghetti to ensure that we knew they wanted a head start. Otherwise, why not just leave them sitting on the counter to be discovered after I returned?"

"So, you believe this is a kidnapping?" asked Shepherd.

"Kidnapping is the only straw I can grasp at. I have to believe they're still alive," I replied. "Continue to gather what clues you can. I'll be flying straight home as soon as I reach the plane. Call me if you get any information, no matter what time of day or night." After thanking them, I disconnected.

My mind returned to the boat. Sam was more concerned than I had ever seen her.

I glanced at several of the crew who were also standing by, not understanding what was going on. They didn't know I had a transceiver embedded in my head, and I'm sure they thought was insane.

"Did I hear you say 'kidnapping'?" asked Sam.

"Yes," I confirmed, returning my eyes to her. "I don't know any details yet, but both Toni's and Jessie's phones were disabled at the house, and there isn't any sign of them. Security is looking for clues, but I have to get to the plane as fast as possible. The house is privacy protected, so I can't look at it, using the Guardian Program. All I can do is hope to find something unusual in the neighborhood."

I looked at the crew. "Can you contact the men that took the launch? Maybe have them intercept us so that we can get to shore faster?"

Several of the crew stood by, shaking their heads and mumbling in Kiswahili. Captain Ofori approached and asked in heavily accented English. "Mr. Smith, we are not sure why you are upset. We are headed back to the dock as you have requested, but why so much hurry? You have paid for the boat until noon."

I was standing by this time but was leaning on Sam. "My family has gone missing back home! Kidnapped or worse! I'll pay you double for getting us to my plane in under two hours!"

"I am very sorry to hear this news! My friend, I would gladly send my people to help you if you lived in my country. I will call for the launch to meet us, and do not think to pay me extra." With that, he turned and headed back to the bridge.

I turned my attention back to Sam and told her to get back to the cabin as I told her to do earlier. She looked horrified upon realizing that she had disobeyed me and rushed off to rectify her mistake.

Once I reached the cabin several minutes later, I found Sam kneeling in front of the door. She was in the same posture she was in when she realized she had hurt me in the Underdark. Complete supplication, visibly trembling and begging forgiveness. "I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!" she repeated continuously.

"Forgive you for what Sam? I assume you were summoned by the crew to come back to the deck. There isn't anything to forgive."

My words didn't seem to provide the pardon I had intended, so I tried again. I knelt and took her hands, then raised them to force her forehead off the floor.

Once she was mostly kneeling I told her to look at me.

She complied but burst into tears the moment her eyes met mine. "I didn't mean to Robert, I didn't! Please forgive me! I'm so, so sorry!"

"What are you talking about?"

"It's my fault for Toni and Jessie! I swear I didn't mean for them to get hurt! Please forgive me, you can punish me any way you want. I'll renounce my fam..."

I cut her off by almost shouting. "Stop! You think the government is behind this? Maybe, but we don't know what's happened yet, and I need you to help me hold it together!"

"I don't want to punish you at the moment. I want to get on the plane and start home. I don't want you to accept blame for something you don't even know if you had anything to do with. I order you to hold the guilt until we know what's happening. Do you understand?"

She choked on her last sob, but quickly recovered, took a cleansing breath and squared her shoulders, then said, "Yes, Sir." The tears took a few moments longer to stop, but when she asked if she could be excused to clean up, I knew she would be herself again when she returned, so I allowed it.

I put my deck shoes on but didn't change. Then started packing. It didn't take very long considering we only had one overnight bag between us. I set out Sam's shoes and waited for her to come out of the restroom. It took her several minutes to emerge, but when she did she seemed to be her normal, jovial self.

"How can I serve you my husband?" she asked with a smile.

"By putting on your shoes," Which she started doing immediately. "Do you have anything of yours in the restroom?" I asked as I stuck my head in the door to look for myself.

"No, Sir," I was told, while she put on her second shoe. "I didn't even bring makeup." Then a moment later she added, "I figured you didn't want my skin covered on our honeymoon."

"I'm sorry we'll have to call last night our wedding night and postpone our honeymoon. I don't want our memories of it tainted in any way. We can take one when we find Toni and Jessie. Okay?"

"Sounds great to me. You didn't have reservations, somewhere did you?"

I laughed despite myself. Even if I were to forfeit a deposit, it's not like I couldn't afford to. "No. No reservations, but I did have a very special place picked out. I hope you'll like it."

"I'm sure it will be great no matter where it is," she replied with a smile.

"Good, now check under the bed to make sure nothing got kicked under it."

Frankly, I didn't care, I was just trying to distract myself by watching Sam bend over that way. Once she confirmed we wouldn't be leaving anything, I grabbed our bag and her hand, then headed out on deck to wait for the launch.

About a half-hour later, a shout from the bridge turned my head, to see the first mate pointing about thirty degrees off the starboard rail, I of course looked in the indicated direction, to see a tiny speck, barely visible in the early morning light.

The craft was kicking up a lot of spray from cutting the waves. I knew the boat was about four miles off and running at full speed. I also knew the pilot was taking a beating. As it got closer we could see it occasionally leave the water altogether, then slam back down with a huge splash.

I felt gratitude for the efforts being shown to me. Somehow, I would repay them. Not with cash, because I didn't want to insult them, but I would find a way.

We came to a stop, allowing the smaller more agile vessel to align itself along our port side. I tossed our bag and climbed down the six-foot ladder to board the launch. Sam followed while I steadied her, then I made sure she had a life jacket and was strapped in. As soon as I knew she was secured, I ordered the craft away and shouted thanks to the Captain as we moved off.

"I am sorry Mr. Smith," our pilot yelled over the engine noise. "The lake is very rough now. I cannot go very fast without risking injury to you."

I looked him in the eye while finishing latching the fasteners on my life jacket and seat belt. "Please, rough water will not hurt me nearly as much as delay might! Please use all she has to give!"

He gave me a solemn look of understanding, turned to the controls, and accelerated to the craft's maximum of forty-five knots.

End of chapter 29. I hope you enjoyed it and all my work.

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