Claire Gulliver #06 - Carnage Goes Coastal (8 page)

“I’d like to believe that, but I’m finding it difficult. Just how are you going to do that?” I sat down again, staring at him intently.

“We’re going to go back and start checking everything about her, where she was born, where she lived and where she went to school. We’ll check out all her relatives, and all her friends. Somewhere we’re going to find the answer to where she is. No one can just walk away without help. Someone is helping her and we will find out who it is. Then we’ll find her. When we find her we will honor our contract with you. I promise you that.”

I was skeptical, but I nodded. I didn’t have another plan right now. I would have to see how serious Mr. Hampton was about honoring his commitment to me and keeping his reputation from being destroyed. Meanwhile, I would be figuring out a Plan B.

Claire was day dreaming while standing at the kitchen table folding a basket of laundry when Tuffy-Two gave a short yip of surprise and scurried, slipping and sliding across the slick hardwood floors, heading for the front door. Curious, Claire followed. She heard the key turning the lock, but it seemed too early for Karen to be returning.

“Jack! Oh, Jack.” She threw herself in his arms, hugging him tightly. It took several satisfying kisses before she was willing to let go long enough to say, Thank God you’re back. Are you all right? No new wounds?”

He shook his head before kissing her again.

“Dear God, how I’ve missed you.” Then he noticed Tuffy-Two prancing around their feet. Jack stooped to pet the dog. “How you doing, Buddy? Did you take care of Claire while I was gone?”

Claire just smiled, waiting patiently while the white fluffy dog rubbed against Jack’s ankles and writhed beneath his hand. When Jack stood again, she grabbed his arm tightly to lead him to the kitchen. “Come sit down and tell me what happened. Can I get you something to drink? Coffee? Coke? Something stronger, or what about something to eat? Are you hungry?”

He laughed. “Just some water. I managed to eat while I was gone, you know. But, I’m glad to be back. I’m glad to see you weren’t just...”

He stopped, abruptly. “What’s that?”

“Oh, baby Jack’s awake. Wait until you see him....” She laughed with excitement as she headed down the hall.

“There, there sweet baby, I’m sorry I didn’t hear you. Don’t cry, I’ve got you now. Are you hungry? Is little Jack starved?” She crooned down at the bundle she had scooped up in her arms. She laid the baby on the changing table and quickly changed his diaper, talking to him the whole time. When he was wearing a dry diaper he started responding to her voice, making little cooing sounds as he tried to smile at her. She picked up the baby and turned toward the door to find Jack was now standing there, statue-like and pale as a ghost. For a moment she thought he would keel over.

“Jack? A baby named Jack? Is that baby...?” he managed to choke out.

She realized what he was saying, what he must be thinking. “No, no, he’s not ours!” But then with a teasing smile, she held out the baby. “But he is yours. Meet your grandson, Jack David Rallins.”

“My grandson?” Jack was struggling to make sense of that claim, but accepted the wiggling bundle graciously.

“Come on, I need to fix his bottle and it’s a long story. We can talk in the kitchen while we’re feeding him.”

Claire quickly warmed a bottle in the microwave, testing it carefully to make sure the milk was just the right temperature. Meanwhile Jack sat at the table, carefully examining the child in his arms, while all the time making clicking noises at the baby with his mouth.

When Claire handed Jack the bottle, he showed his experience by promptly inserting it in the baby’s open mouth. “Where is Karen?” Jack asked abruptly after deducing who the mother had to be if this really was his grandchild.

“She’s at Gulliver’s. She’s kind of taken over the responsibility for the website business. She likes to go in Mondays to process the orders we get over the weekend as well as update the website with new items and any specials we want to run. She says it doesn’t take as long when she can work undisturbed. She’ll be home soon.”

“And the baby’s father? Is he here?”

Claire just shook her head.

“But, how did Karen get here? How long has she been here? What is this all about?”

“She’s been here since April. Be patient, Jack. When she gets here she’ll explain it all. After all it’s her story, she should have the opportunity to tell it to you. Meanwhile, I’m more interested in your story. I’m hoping you are going to say that Guiness is no longer a problem. Are you?”

He looked at her soberly and nodded.

She sat down abruptly, relief flooded through her. “And you’re sure?”

Claire and Jack had gone to San Miguel de Allende in March for a bit of vacation. They were hoping the warm climate would help Jack recover faster from the ghastly wounds he had arrived with. It had been a blissful retreat until they had gotten in the way of an old enemy, who was in the midst of a scheme to create new capital to finance his terrorist activities. Their vacation had ended abruptly with Claire returning safely to her bookstore in Bayside, while Jack had followed the fleeing villain, determined this time to stop him for good.

Claire had spent the intervening months, worrying and praying for Jack’s success, so now she felt a vast relief he had returned safe.

He nodded. “I’m sure. It turned out to be quite a chase and in the end I didn’t have to capture him, or even kill him. He was shot by his own colleague, the Columbia drug lord, who had been supplying him with the cocaine he was processing. It seems Guiness had led the Columbian drug enforcement task force troops right to his partner’s hideout in the remote Columbian jungle and that caused no end of problems. It was apparently the last straw in the increasingly deteriorating association for the drug kingpin, so he decided to cancel the partnership permanently.

“I saw Guiness’ body, so I know for sure he’s dead. And his partner is waiting for trial in a Columbian jail. His cocaine operation is in ruins.

“I wasn’t needed any longer, so I headed home via Houston. I helped the authorities establish that the three people who died in an explosion outside of Houston during a drug raid were Kathleen and two men who were Guiness’ key lieutenants. That means Guiness’ whole terrorist group has finally been eliminated. Trust me on this Claire; we don’t need to worry about running into Guiness again.”

“Jack, I’ve been so worried about you. Why didn’t you call me when you got back to the States so I’d know you were okay?”

He looked surprised, and then sheepish. “I’m sorry Claire. I guess I should have thought to do that.”

“You think?” she responded somewhat angrily.

Now Jack went on the defensive. “I had to report in, and I wasn’t sure how long the debriefing would take.” He paused for a moment, taking the now empty bottle out of the baby’s mouth and lifting him to his shoulder. Apparently he thought about what he had just said, because as he started patting little Jack’s back he admitted, “I guess I wasn’t thinking clearly. I was just anticipating how excited you’d be when I just showed up and surprised you.”

An embarrassed look spread across his face. “It didn’t even occur to me how you were waiting for word from me. Maybe I’ve been on my own too long. I was just thinking about what I was doing, what I needed to do.” He shook his head in disgust. “I’m sorry for that, Claire. I should have been thinking of how you were feeling. I promise you, I’ll shape up.”

“You’d better,” she said seriously. “It’s no fun being the one left at home, wondering and worrying. If you had contacted me I would have understood your need to fill out reports and cross all the T’s before coming back, but at least I would have known you were out of imminent danger and I could have relaxed a bit.”

“It wasn’t that I wasn’t thinking of you, or missing you. It’s more like when I’m on a mission I tend to just zero in on that task, putting everyone and every other thing out of my mind. It helps me stay alive. But, I should have considered how you were coping.” He paused, thinking a moment. “Maybe that’s part of why my first marriage failed.”

He had an earnest expression on his face as he promised, “I’ll do better. And if I don’t, please call me on it. I don’t want to take a chance of destroying our relationship. Promise me?”

She nodded. “Okay, hopefully you won’t be going on more missions so I won’t have that to worry about. Did you get the job as liaison in San Francisco?”

He nodded, smiling. “I start in a month.”

Just then little Jack let out a loud satisfying burp and they both laughed. Jack, still gently patting the baby’s back, noticed how heavy the baby’s eyelids were getting. Little Jack sighed as he went to sleep and his grandfather looked questioningly at Claire. She pointed to the back bedroom and followed him quietly, tucking a light blanket around the sleeping baby after Jack laid him in the crib.

As they walked back down the hall to the front of the bungalow, Jack whispered, “Where is Karen? I’m anxious to see her and hear her story. Should I go over to the store?”

“No, I’ll call her. If you go over there I’m afraid I won’t see either of you for hours.” She picked up the phone and poked in the number on speed dial.

“How’s it going, Karen? Will you be much longer? Well, why don’t you stop what you’re doing and come home? We have some company you’ll want to see. No, it’s a surprise. Just come home.”

She hung up with a smile. “I would guess that will get her here in about six minutes.

She was wrong. It was only five minutes later before Tuffy-Two went racing for the front door.

“Scott Ellington here.” Scott answered his phone grudgingly, irritated at the interruption.

“Have you had the radio on?”

Scott was surprised to hear his father-in-law’s voice. “No, should I?”

“Hell, yes. Grayson collapsed and was rushed to the hospital a short time ago. No wonder he was worried about his health, obviously he knew something was wrong. It hasn’t been announced yet, but he won’t be recovering any time soon. His family is arguing about when to pull the plug.

“The party guys are all over this. They’re talking to the governor as we speak. When Grayson comes off the machines the Governor will be charged with appointing another senator to finish up his term. The party is going to recommend that appointee be you.”

Scott was thinking fast. Grayson’s tragedy could be his miracle. If he got the senate appointment for the remainder of the current term, he could run in the next election as incumbent. That would make winning an almost sure thing. “What are the chances of the governor appointing me?” he asked, trying to contain the glee in his voice.

“Well, he needs our support for his next election so he’s apt to follow the party line. And I intend to have a little talk with him. He already owes me plenty, so I think there is a pretty good chance he’ll do it.” Stanford’s voice was pensive as he considered all angles.

“I think it’s safe enough for you to start shopping for a house in D.C., boy. Don’t tell anyone just yet; let’s give it a little time to play out. But you’d better let Phoebe know.”

Scott felt the smile spread across his face.

“And Scott, be prepared for an invitation to meet with the governor. He’ll want your assurance you’ll support his pet projects before he makes his final decision. Maybe I should organize a meeting with some of the party honchos so they can review the bills Grayson was sponsoring with you before that meeting with the governor. What do you think?”

“That would be helpful. The sooner the better.”

“Okay, then, it looks like our plans are moving ahead. I’ll talk to you soon.”

Scott immediately left his office to search for Phoebe. He found her in the room she used as an office, talking with the housekeeper.

“Phoebe, sorry to interrupt, but I need a moment of your time.” He smiled apologetically at the housekeeper, who waited for the nod from his wife before she hurried out of the room.

“Phoebe, your father just called and told me the most incredible news.”

“What is it? What’s happened?”

“Senator Grayson collapsed and has been rushed to the hospital.”

Phoebe’s eyes widened in surprise at this news before narrowing with a cunning look. She said, “How serious is it?”

Scott could see his wife was processing this information. She was truly her father’s daughter. She had a keen understanding of the political arena, so she already understood the implications this event could have on their plan.

He responded in a grave voice, “Very serious. Apparently it is only a question as to when he will be removed from the ventilator. I imagine his family is reluctant to take that step. They’re probably hoping for a miracle.”

“Too late,” Phoebe said with a slight smile. “The miracle has already happened, but it’s ours. The governor will be appointing a replacement soon, and we’ll need to be finding a place to live in D.C.

“I think we need a house, don’t you? After all, we’ll be there for a while and we’ll need a suitable place for entertaining. I think I’ll get someone working on that right away.” She looked at him with pride. “Congratulations darling. You’ll be one of the youngest senators seated. Our plan for your future looks like it’s right on target.” She rose from her seat and came over to give him a hug.

Scott returned to his office full of satisfaction. He ignored the draft of his book he had been working on before his father-in-law’s call. Instead he went to the bar built into the wall and poured himself a generous measure of his favorite Scotch. He took it to one of the comfortable leather chairs facing the windows and settled in before taking a sip, savoring the Scotch on his tongue while he enjoyed this moment.

Life was full of unexpected events, and this one was especially fortuitous. He knew enough to take advantage of whatever opportunity was available. He didn’t waste any sympathy for Grayson or his family. That was life. And besides, he smiled, he deserved this opportunity. He worked hard all those years toiling in that law firm. He had paid his dues by becoming an expert on the nuances of constitutional law. His efforts made the senior partners look good, and further enhanced the firm’s reputation as the premier defender of constitutional issues.