Unraveling a Cover-Up

"Wait just a damn minute. You wrote two books about presidents whose legacy was dictated by events beyond their control rather than the agenda they got elected on. Dr. Robert F. Jensen. I have two of your books at home."

"I know; I saw them. You need to read the third one. I like it better than either of those two. Now why aren't you teaching somewhere?"

"You're changing the subject again. I did teach and got bored to tears for the same reasons you said. So I got a job as a US Marshal and some other things. I like that much better."

"What other things? You are about as opaque as I am."

"We are going to talk about that too. The only one I am going to tell you about is that I was assigned to Congress for two years to assist on several investigative hearings."

"Let me guess, you were assigned because you are with the Army Investigative Service or whatever they are called today."

She grinned and replied, "No comment."

"Another goddamn feather merchant."

She swatted his ass. "That is for the feather merchant. I'll dole out the one for the language later."

"I hope that later never comes. My ass will be black and blue between you and Ellen. So are you investigating me?"

She swatted his ass again. "I most am assuredly not! I am investigating why a fairly simple mission went bad. I want to know why four men died and five were maimed for life and there is no report about this anywhere. And I want to know what happened to all of those boxes of truck parts. That is the thing that got this started. We have the requisition and the first three transfers but after that, it is a total blank. Everything else just came to light when you talked the other day."

"You won't find the answers."

"Why not?"

"Spooks."

"Spooks as in Black Ops?"

"That or their cousins in Intelligence, State Department, CIA or one of those off-budget groups that exist."

"We'll see. There is some significant muscle behind this now."

"That means that this will significantly embarrass a lot of important people. It also means a whole lot of roadblocks and missing reports. I studied that for my last book. For me, I would be quite pleased if my guys at least got some recognition. All any of us ever got was a discharge. We didn't even get a Purple Heart to hang on our wall or to justify getting a handicapped sticker for our cars."

"You're kidding!"

"I thought you figured out by now that I don't lie about things like this. I don't tell the whole truth about a lot of things close to me but I never lie about those around me."

"I figured that out. It is just that you keep coming up with surprises that are shocking."

"I'll accept that. Let's look at the pictures."

They were still looking when Becky came to get them for supper. As they walked to the kitchen, Penny asked, "How many more pictures do you have?"

"A few more but not many. The rest of the stuff is what you probably want. I have all of our orders and transfer papers."

"You're kidding! No, I mean I know that you aren't kidding. It is just that you have almost everything that is missing that shouldn't be missing."

"Maybe. I'll let you look at them and then you can tell me."

After dinner, they went back into his study and he just handed Penny the file folder with the paperwork in it. He sat down and booted up his computer and began writing. She sat down and read through each and every piece of paper making sure that they were in date sequence.

When she finished, she asked, "Can I copy these tomorrow. I don't want these originals to leave your hands until we get to the hearing."

"Sure. Bring them to market in the morning. There is a self copy place across the street. You can do it there."

"Thanks. Now let's talk about this thing you have about keeping secrets from me."

"I don't keep secrets from you; I trust you. Just ask me what you want to know and I'll tell you."

"How am I supposed to know what to ask when I don't know what you are keeping from me?"

"You are a woman; don't all women know what a man is thinking."

"Not for someone like you. For any man you meet in a bar, you know exactly what he is thinking. So, what do you think about me?"

"Ah, that is what you really want to know."

"Yes it is. I am asking and you said that you would answer me."

"That's right; I did, didn't I? Well the answer is classified and I will be shot if I reveal that sensitive information to anyone."

"You might just get shot if you don't. You are just about the most frustrating man I have ever met."

"Good, let's keep it that way. Now, what do you think about me?"

"That is classified and only available to those with a need to know."

"That's all right; I already know. You are falling in love with me."

Penny sucked in her breath before asking, "And how do you know this?"

"Because Becky told me and I have taught her to never tell a lie."

"I am going to get a glass of wine and talk to Ellen. She may not know as much about you as I want but she is a lot less frustrating."

From the door they both heard, "I certainly hope so. Bob, your children want their story and Penny, I have a full bottle of wine and I'll tell you about when Bob was in high school. I definitely know about that. And both of you are so funny together. One of these days, one of you is going to crack and you are going to end up on the floor screwing each other's brains out."

A very red faced Bob went to read his children a story while a red faced Penny went to the kitchen to hear what else Ellen had to say.

As soon as they got the wine opened, Penny said, "I found out about the doctorate and then about the books."

"Great! That is two down and two to go."

"There is more?"

"With Bob, you never know for sure. He is very, very deep. I know of two that he has told me about. There maybe more. I'll tell you about one because it is easy and so obvious; you'll see it tomorrow anyway."

"Tell me."

"At the market, he posts the same prices as everyone else just to look like he isn't undercutting the others. But just about everyone who buys something gets more than the price says they should get. When a senior citizen comes by, they will go home with twice as much for half the price. The only reason he charges them at all is that most of them are too proud to take something for nothing."

"When he was in Washington, he made it sound like he was almost broke and was surviving from one market to the next. But now that I see and hear this, it appears that he isn't that tight at all."

"That is the way he is. He genuinely doesn't care much about money. All he cares about is doing the right thing and treating people fairly. That is the secret. I probably shouldn't tell you this but his first two books are required textbooks in about half the universities in the country. He earns over a quarter of a million dollars a year from them alone. His new book has already earned a half a million just this year. He comes to me and asks if he can afford to buy a new tool for his shop. That is why I am his keeper. I keep track of his money and pay all of his bills. They just aren't important to him. He would probably just give it away if left alone. That is also one of the selfish reasons I wouldn't mind meeting your brother. He has almost two million dollars sitting in very safe things. I don't know enough about investing to do anything with it but the safest things."

"I'll call my brother in the morning."

Bob came out and said, "They are asleep. Are you two still conspiring against me or am I safe?"

Ellen said, "You are never safe. I now have a co-conspirator."

"Crap. That means I won't have any secrets from either of you."

Penny responded, "He's right of course but I did learn about the one thing he fears most."

"What is that?" Ellen asked.

"He is terrified of the day when you are going to start punishing him for all of his language lapses."

They both laughed but then Ellen said, "I already figured out how I am going to punish him. I am going to set him up with a woman who nags him all of the time. That will be severe punishment for him. Of course, that will keep you out of the mix."

Penny started to do an imitation of a nagging woman when they heard the distinct sound of gunshots fairly close the house. Bob ran to a closet and came out with a semi-automatic rifle and a large flashlight. "Penny, get your gun and stay with Ellen and the kids."

"Like hell! I am going to cover your ass again. Let's go."

They ran out of the door and down the driveway. Not far from the trailer, they found four beer cans, a bunch of empty shell casings, and some tire tracks. Further inspection showed that there were about a dozen holes in the door and side of the trailer. Bob went back to the beer cans and took a close look at them and said, "shit" before he took out his cell phone.

"Hi Ron, this it Bob. Listen, someone just shot up my trailer. They left four beer cans and a bunch of empty shell casings. If I had to guess, it was John and Freddy. We had a confrontation with John earlier today and Ellen says that he has been hanging around Freddy since he got back in town. Fine. Thanks. We won't touch anything until morning. I appreciate it."

"Who was that?"

"The sheriff. He will be out in the morning to look things over but he saw them driving around earlier and thinks that he know where they might hang out. He is going to check them out tonight. Let's get back inside the house."

"That settles that issue; you are staying in the house tonight and will continue to do so until we go to Washington. That is final."

"Penny, that isn't practical. There isn't a room..."

"Bullshit. I am sleeping in a room with a king size bed. You can sleep on the other half and wear a chastity belt if you want to."

"I don't have a chastity belt."

"But you are worried that you might accidentally touch me or something during the night."

Bob just muttered under his breath, "It wouldn't be accidental."

"I heard that and I could care less if you accidental touch me but I would appreciate it a lot if you did it intentionally, dammit."

Bob didn't say anything. She suddenly grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him to her and kissed him boldly on his lips. When she felt him begin to respond, she released him. "There; that is settled. No more of your bullshit on the subject."

"I'm going to have to punish you for your language later."

"Fine. Do it after we are in bed tonight and I might take care of some IOUs with you too."

They went back inside to find a concerned Ellen waiting. "So what happened?"

Bob said, "Some guys were probably drunk and shot at some cans or something."

Penny took his hand and said, "Bob, you need to stop treating Ellen like a little girl. She needs to know what is going on. Ellen, someone shot up Bob's trailer and left some beer cans. He called the sheriff and told him that he thought that it was John and Freddy. The sheriff is going to check them out and come out in the morning."

Ellen looked at Penny and then at Bob. "Bob, Penny is right. I am a big girl and I need to know these things because it affects us all. You have always tried to protect me and I love you for it but you need to include me in what affects you and us. I don't want to find things out and feel stupid doing it. Please?"

Bob lowered his head and said, "I'm sorry, Ellen; I just want to make your life easier and simpler especially for the girls. They don't need to know this crap about their father." He sighed, "I will try to include you in important things but I will need you to help me get used to doing that."

"Bob, I am always ready to help you in any way I can and you know that. Right now you are like having a great husband who sleeps somewhere else. I can't ask for anything more. What are you going to do about the trailer?"

Bob started to speak but Penny cut him off. "He isn't going to do a damn thing about the trailer except to put a patch on the holes. Starting tonight and until we go to Washington next week, he is sleeping with me. So you might want to think about what to tell the girls if they find out."

"Becky will be thrilled. She has already asked me how you plan a wedding." Bob turned very red. "So she and I have already started making plans. It would help a lot if you two would cooperate. Now, it is time for a glass of brandy and then bed time although I am quite sure that Penny would rather skip the brandy."

"No; Bob needs his courage. Make his a double." She wasn't prepared for the swat on her ass that he gave her but her payback was quick and just as firm.

Thirty minutes later, Bob and Penny looked hard at each other from three feet apart. Penny finally said, "Ok, here are the rules. One, don't do anything you don't want to do and don't do anything just because you think I might want something. Only do something if you really want it. Two, I don't break. I am a woman and you are a man and both of us are strong and tough. Three, if something happens between us, it happens and tomorrow we both wake up and do what we need to do. We can discuss repercussions after that. Now, what do you want to say?"

"Shut the fuck up and get in bed."

"You say the sweetest things." She came to him and kissed him tenderly.

Before dawn, Bob had discovered that rule two was very true and that they followed rule one to the letter. They also made certain that something happened several times that night and that neither of them gave a damn about the repercussions. The closest thing to a repercussion came up just before they fell asleep.

Penny was lying on his chest when she asked, "Bob, why do you let Ellen take care of all of your business things? I know that you are smart enough and capable enough to take care of it yourself."

He was stroking her back when he replied. "Yeah, I know what is going on and can take care of it. About three years ago, John beat her up one night when he was drunk. I found him and beat the crap out of him. Then I picked her and the girls up and brought them back here. She was really scared and hurt and didn't know what to do. It took her a couple of weeks for her to settle down and then she started talking about looking for a job to support them. I didn't want that at all. I mean I wouldn't mind if she could get a good job but there aren't that many around here and I didn't want her to put the girls in day care. So I kind of told her that I had screwed up my check book and was late paying some bills and would she mind straightening it out. It only took a couple of days for her to clean it up and she seemed to like doing it. So I just played dumb and let her handle all of the detail stuff. The royalties for the first two books were coming in and I told her I didn't understand all of the details. She took that over. So, in short, I let her take care of the financial and business stuff and I took care of the work stuff. I actually like it that way now. She is really very good."

"But you can't keep that up for the long haul?"

"I know. She has told me about investing the book royalties and how she didn't know much about investing. So I got her to agree to go back to school when Donna starts school next year and get her degree. When she starts that, I will begin taking back more of that responsibility. I want her to start dating and thinking about a life of her own. Right now she feels comfortable doing what we are doing, so I don't push it."

His hand moved to a different area of her back and suddenly stopped. "What's that, honey?"

She was thrilled that he called her honey but now she had to bare one of her secrets. "Bob, that was where I was shot."

"Tell me."

"It was pretty simple really; I was stationed in Iraq as an MP. After one of those regular market bombing, I was directing traffic and keeping people away from the area. One guy took offense that a woman was telling him what to do and he shot me in the back twice. This was about twelve years ago and I was sent back here for recovery and that is when I started going back to school."

"We make a fine pair don't we?"

"Bob, do you think that we might have a future together?" She asked very seriously and very quietly.

"I would like to think so except for a couple of minor problems like the fact that you live fifteen hundred miles away and I am grounded here. And then you want to know all of my secrets and don't want to tell me yours. Little things like that."

She smiled and said, "Think about this while we sleep. I am almost vested in my retirement and I have been thinking about retiring if I can find something that will keep me fresh and busy. Right now, I love what I am doing but this gig will be over in six months. After that my slate is blank. As for secrets, there is nothing that I won't tell you except a few things that I can't tell you right now. When this is over, I can tell you everything. Let that simmer for awhile and we will talk some more."

"Turn over so I can spoon you. I like that and want to do that every time we sleep together." That is how they fell asleep.

Chapter 3

They were each roused in the morning by a kiss. Bob's came from Becky and Penny's came from Donna. Penny just pulled Donna into her arms and held her close. Becky looked hard at Penny and asked, "Are you going to be our aunt, Penny?"

"That's a possibility but you might need to put some pressure on your uncle; he is kind of slow about things like that."

Becky "Take that, you shit." She pinched him on his arm.

Donna said, "I'm gonna tell momma wha you thaid."

Bob finally lifted his head and said, "Don't worry Donna, I'll punish her later. Now why are you two in here waking us up?"

Becky replied, "Oh, momma said to get up; the sheriff wants to talk to you and you have to get ready to go to the market."

"Tell your momma that I am up and I am going to paddle her little bottom for this." Both girls giggled as Becky ran towards the kitchen. Donna made no effort to move from her comfortable place.

Penny said, "Go talk to the sheriff; I want to talk to Donna some more. I'll be ready to go to market when you are."

"Donna, don't you dare tell her any of my secrets." Bob pulled on a pair of shorts as Donna giggled.

He came back thirty minutes later with a serious look on his face. The girls and the two women were eating breakfast.

Penny looked up and said, "Well?"

Both women understood when he spoke carefully. "The sheriff found them at a bar. The people they were with swore that they had been there for at least two hours. He checked the truck engine and it was still hot but there weren't any guns or ammunition in the truck to trace. So he couldn't do anything, but warn them. He did make two suggestions that I am going to do. He said to hang a game camera in a tree. If they tried to do it again, a picture would be enough to put them away for awhile. He also gave me the name of a man who can put up a solid steel gate across the drive and he can do it before we need to leave for Washington. I also got to thinking; Ellen, I know that we talked about you going with us to Washington but..."

"We already worked that out, Bob. John's folks are taking the girls to Disneyworld and will be gone the whole time that we will be gone. Now quit worrying; Penny and I have your back. Don't we girl?"

"Yep; you have his back and I have his front covered." They laughed and the girls giggled although they had no idea what had just been said. Bob ate a quick breakfast and cleaned up to go to the market.

He and Penny were only a little late setting things up. Then she watched as he treated people exactly as Ellen had described. She could tell that a lot of the people came to see him first before they went on and that the seniors especially liked talking to him. At 9:30, her cell phone rang and she answered it happily.