Her Last Bow Ch. 02

"Sir, isn't it supposed to be classified?" Teresa asked.

I chuckled. "Teresa, I had a Top Secret clearance when I was in the Army. Didn't really need it, only knew some things that were Secret. I don't talk about what I learned that was classified, but I can get copies of Jane's Defence Weekly that gives that same information in every detail. So yes, your father's mission that earned him the Medal is still classified, but that's the Army for you... putting the fact he earned the Medal on his tombstone."

Teresa nodded. "Our Federal Government at work. I have to wonder at times..." I nodded vigorously in agreement.

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

The family's party for Laura's retirement was underway at the Mountain Nest that same Wednesday evening. I'd secured one of those large tents with rollup (or down) sidewalls and erected it in the backyard, with an industrial air-blow heater inside to make it comfortable.

Present were: Laura (of course), myself, Carole, Jim my mom Phyllis, Cindy, Todd, Teresa, Molly, Ian, Ross, Chief Griswold and his wife, Jack Muscone, Tanya Perlman, Sandra Speer, Martin Nash, Gayle Roberts, and the Deputy Director of the FBI. A few others had been invited, including Dr. P Harvey Eckhart, Melina Allgood and her husband Daniel, and Paulina Patterson, but they had all made regrets.

"No leads at all on any of them." said Jack Muscone, as we discussed the arrests of those maintaining surveillance over my homes and Todd's home. "Then my boss called, and said he'd been instructed to stand down on the investigation and let the bastards go. I don't need to be you to know that means these guys are Government agents in some way."

"Yep." I said. "Or were Government agents. Their usefulness is ended. Their fingerprints and booking photos are on digital record with the TCPD, and have also been sent to the FBI, which never destroys anything."

"Think they were CIA?" asked Jack.

"Maybe." I said. "I'm thinking more that someone has set up a rogue cell, and maybe not just in the CIA. Someone who is a real 'power behind the throne' type."

"I think you're right." said the DepDirector, who had come up to us. "The CIA Director took some serious heat for sending your wife on that suicide mission, even though he said it had to be done. The DDI and DIA people said the same thing. Do you think they were just sending her off to die?"

"If I did," I said, "there would be some dead people in Washington right now, and crowbars sticking out of their dead asses. No, Laura says it was a legit mission, and I believe her. She'd been training for the possibility of it for months, I could see that myself... trained... for months..." No doubt about it, I was off to reverie land.

When I came out of it, I peered at the FBI Agents, who had been peering at me. "Guys, I need a favor." I said. "See if you can find out where the planning for this mission began... in exactly whose office. One of the points for sending Laura is because she alone knew about the old computer systems... but if she had months to train, then someone else could've used those months to train on the old computer systems."

"Oh wow, that's a point." said Muscone. "I'm not even going to start on the '400 years ago' thing on that one..."

"Yes, it's an excellent point." said the DepDirector, who was now frowning and thoughtful. "Yes, Commander, I will definitely be making inquiries..."

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

"Finally!" I said as Laura and I got ready for bed. "You are no longer part of that organization!" I lay down on the bed and Laura lay down next to me and snuggled up to me, as she often liked to do.

"Well," she said, "I'm not completely out. The Director asked me to stay on as a Consultant. But I can do that from here, either from my office or the Federal Building here, and I don't have to go to Langley for meetings."

"After that last mission they sent you on," I said, "they had the nerve to ask you to stay on?"

Laura said "Yes. And darling, this really isn't out of the realm of the ordinary for the Company. They have arranged accidents for some who left the CIA but knew too much... car accidents, and such."

"Motorcycle accidents, too." I said. "That motorcyclist who died, whose heart unfortunately found itself inside Robert Brownlee's corruption-eaten body... that was the Consultant of Crime at work, but the motorcyclist had ties to the Company."

"I am not going to ask how you found that out." Laura said. "And I fully understand why you refused to become part of the Company... you're too good. They never would've let you leave."

"I'm glad we never found out." I said. "And I'm more glad you made it out alive and you're back home with your family." I kissed my wife, and began feeling her up in a prelude to sex.

"So before you easily seduce me," Laura said, "do you think someone wanted me to not come back alive? One or more of the top brass?"

"Honey," I said, "As I said before, I gathered information that suggested someone at a very high level wanted me out of the way, and that was so that you could be removed with terminal prejudice, or whatever the phrase is. No, I don't think most of them wanted that... but there is someone, and in a very high place, that did."

"One of those whose name cannot be mentioned, like my old mother." Laura said. "And we may never be able to find out who it is. He's wrapped himself in too many hoops of Top Secret steel."

"Oh, I dunno." I said. "I think we'll have our shot at him. At least I'm going to try." As Laura snuggled into me some more, I whispered "It's personal..."

Part 13 - Epilogue

In the wee hours of the morning I woke up. Laura was not in bed with me, and she was not in the restroom. Idly curious, I got up and checked around the house. The door to Carole's room was cracked open, and I stuck my head inside. My daughter was in her bed, fast asleep.

But I could see by the light coming in through the window that Laura was sitting at the foot of the bed, her legs crossed 'lotus-style' in front of her, and Bowser was sitting between her legs, almost lying on her belly. She was petting his head and skritching his cheeks and under his jaw as he looked up at her with pure love in his canine eyes. That went on for some time, so I went back to bed.

My wife never again failed to pet the dogs and give them love, especially in cooperation with our daughter. And Laura never again, ever, made a joke again about me loving the dog more than her. Why she had the change of heart, I did not know.

And I never asked.

Finis.