Seeking Safety (8 page)

After Barry satisfies the Paparazzi, he and
the members of the Drake Security team get together in the great
room to decide on a plan for the future of their company. Barry has
offered to build an office and living quarters over his new barn
for the group provided they will make their permanent home at the
ranch. He has also agreed to invest a significant amount of money
in their computer systems and other equipment thus becoming a major
stockholder in Drake Security.

The members of the Drake Security team are
thrilled because up to this point they have all been living in a
two bedroom apartment in Denver and their office has been in the
living area of the same apartment. The prospect of having a real
office and real living quarters where each of them has their own
space is a fantastic opportunity. Plus, they all like the idea of
staying in continuous contact with Barry. He has always been a
close member of this band of brothers.

Over the next few days, the group designs the
office and living quarters to be constructed in the spring. Scoot
also designs a state of the art security system for protecting the
Rock Springs Ranch and keeping the Paparazzi at arm's length.

Late on the night Melanie left the ranch
Barry is lying in his bed in the master suite at the ranch where he
thinks back to that brief kiss in the driveway that morning. She
had shocked him first by kissing him, but then the kiss, as brief
as it was, was electric. He had felt it all the way to his nether
regions. Melanie is a very beautiful woman and he is sure that she
has no idea how beautiful she really is. He wishes their situation
could be different so he could get to know her better. He has
kissed some of the most beautiful women in the world, but no one
has ever affected him the way that one brief kiss did.

******

Several days have passed since Darren
Calloway last contacted him so Steve Simpson sits down at the
computer and begins searching for any mention of his boss and
friend on the internet. When he sees the stories in the tabloids
about the two members of a militia group from Idaho killed at the
ranch of movie star Barry Farrady in Wyoming, a sense of doom flows
over him. Damn! It's got to be Darren!

He spends several more minutes looking for
any other information he can find about the incident at the movie
star's ranch. In the local Cody Wyoming newspaper he finds an
obituary for one of the group's members, James Bragg. He picks up
his cell phone and calls James' close friend, Billy Newman.

"Hey Billy, This is Steve Simpson. I just
read James' obituary in the Cody paper. What happened?"

Billy is sitting in his living room in Cody
with two agents from the ATF. He is shaking with nervousness. This
is the call he has been expecting and he replies, "Oh Steve, it was
a really bad deal. Evidently Calloway asked James to help him raid
that movie star's ranch. I am not sure what they were looking for.
They were both killed Steve. All of the members from down here have
gone into hiding. We're all afraid the Feds are looking for us too.
We all stayed away from the funeral because we don't want to be
identified as members of the group."

Steve responds, "That was probably a good
idea. Are you absolutely certain that Darren is dead?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. Word around here is that a
group of mercenaries were on that ranch with Farrady and murdered
him in cold blood," answers Billy.

"Damn! All right, thanks for the information.
Keep out of sight until you hear from me. I'll handle everything
from here." Steve is heartsick. He can't believe his long time
friend and associate is dead. He must have thought that Melanie and
Eric were on that ranch. He shakes his head. Well, he has a job to
do. He has to follow Darren's last instructions.

After disconnecting, Steve retrieves the key
to the locked box from Darren's cabin and pulls the metal box out
of the safe. With shaking fingers he opens the box. Inside he finds
stacks of hundred dollar bills, a deed to the compound property,
and a folded sheet of paper.

He is completely shocked at the huge amount
of money inside the box. He quickly estimates the value to be close
to fifty thousand dollars. Wow! He had no idea Darren had that kind
of money.

Next he examines the deed and determines that
Darren Calloway was the sole owner of the compound property. He
quickly sees where the deed is free and clear of any liens. He is
relieved to know that. He doesn't have to worry about making any
payments on the compound property to some bank. He unfolds the
sheet of paper and begins to read.

Steve, if you are
reading this, I am dead. The money in the box is to be used to keep
everything running smoothly at the compound until you can secure
access to my accounts in the bank in Seattle listed below. In order
to get access to my accounts you will need to adopt Eric. As my
sole heir, Eric owns the compound property and will inherit the one
hundred ninety five million dollars in my accounts
.

Steve stops and rereads the first paragraph.
His heart is pounding with shock. Darren had one hundred ninety
five million dollars in a bank in Seattle? The bastard! He let us
live in squalor in this stinking compound and he was sitting on
that kind of money? He shakes his head in disgust and then starts
reading again.

A lawyer by the name of
Benjamin Roland in Seattle has all of the details. You will find
one of his cards in the bottom of the metal box. He will assist you
with the adoption. In order to adopt, you must get rid of Melanie.
Please understand that I want Eric to be raised to take over this
group when he turns twenty five. I trust you Steve. Don't let me
down.

Steve folds the paper and replaces it in the
metal box. He locks the box and places it back inside the safe and
locks it. He is going to have to think about this. He is absolutely
stunned. He leans back in the office chair and runs his fingers
through his hair. His heart is pounding with excitement. He can't
wait to get his hands on that money. He knows exactly what he wants
to do with it and it isn't staying in this hell hole! The first
order of business though is going to be finding Eric and the
members will be very helpful in completing that task.

Spring is in the air in Wyoming. The weather
is warming and almost all of the snow has melted. The trees are
beginning to bud and the flowers are blooming. The crew from the
construction company that Barry has contracted to build the new
barn and office for Drake Security arrived the first week of April
and work has officially begun. The security firm he engaged to beef
up security at the ranch per Scoot's recommendations has almost
completed their work.

Barry and his Mom, Virginia have settled in
nicely at the ranch. Virginia and Bob Kenner are seeing each other
regularly and Barry couldn't be happier. His Mom seems younger and
happier than he can ever remember.

But his old Hollywood life is about to
intrude. Barry is scheduled to go to New York for the premier of
his last movie. He will make appearances in New York, Boston,
Chicago, Dallas, and Los Angeles. He is dreading every minute.

******

Eric and I have settled into our new life as
Beth and Michael Mitchell. We now live in New York City and Eric
hates everything about it. He hates all the people, the constant
noise, the drugs that seem to be everywhere, the gangs hanging
around on every street corner, and even the schools. He is
disgusted because you can't even see the stars at night. He knows
he can't do anything to change their situation, but he sure wishes
he could. He longs for the wide open spaces from his early years in
Idaho.

One day while he and his Mom are shopping at
the local market he is looking through the magazines at the
checkout counter when he sees the picture. He says excitedly, "Mom,
look! That's Barry on the front of that magazine!"

It takes me a moment to realize who Eric is
referring to then when I glance at the magazine he is pointing at,
I understand completely. A picture of the famous movie star, Barry
Farrady is on the cover of one of those tabloid magazines and I
have to admit he does look a lot like the man that helped us that
long ago, snowy night in Wyoming.

I shake my head, "No Michael, that can't be
the same man. No movie star would be nice enough to help perfect
strangers that were in as much danger as we were. The Barry that
helped us must just look like Barry Farrady."

Eric has grabbed the magazine and insists,
"It's him, Mom. I'm positive. It says he is coming to New York
tomorrow. Can we go and see him, please?"

This is the happiest, most excited that I
have seen Eric since coming to New York so I agree to go to the
hotel to try and get a glimpse of the famous movie star. Eric is
beaming he is so excited.

******

Well, the dreaded publicity tour is about to
begin. Barry has just arrived in New York City for his public
appearances promoting his last movie. As the limousine weaves its
way through the bumper to bumper afternoon traffic a sense of dread
settles heavily over him. When the limousine slows to a stop in
front of his hotel, he plasters his trademark smile on his face and
takes a deep breath bracing for the first of many public
appearances.

As he slides out of the limousine in front of
his New York hotel he is greeted by a huge throng of adoring fans.
His security guards have cleared a path for him to the door. The
Paparazzi is out in force snapping his picture and calling out
questions.

As he makes his way toward the doors of the
hotel, he is waving and smiling at his fans in his usual manner
completely ignoring the Paparazzi. Then, his attention is drawn by
a young boy standing in the front row of his admiring fans and a
huge grin slides across his face. Of course, the Paparazzi are
everywhere so he winks and waves as he walks past. When he gets
inside the hotel he pulls one of his security guards to the side
and indicates the young boy. He asks the guard to bring the young
man and his group to his suite.

Eric is thrilled. He knows that this man is
the same Barry that helped them that snowy night in Wyoming. What's
more, he knows that Barry recognized him when he walked past. He
winked at him! He is so excited and he is trying to tell his Mom
about Barry winking at him when they are approached by one of the
security guards and whisked inside the building without an
explanation.

I am shocked and frightened. My heart is
pounding with trepidation as we are herded into the lobby. Why are
they making them come inside this fancy hotel? Oh dear, what am I
going to do? Are we going to be arrested? Did Eric do something
wrong?
Please God, help us!

Once we are inside the hotel, the guard
reassures me that we are not in any trouble. He explains that Mr.
Farrady has requested they be brought to his suite. Relief flows
through me and Eric begins jumping up and down with excitement.
They are going to see Barry!

Once Barry enters the suite he discards his
suit and puts on his jeans and a casual shirt. He takes a deep
breath, finally, he feels like himself. Then he begins to pace the
floors waiting for his guests to arrive. He really can't believe
that they are here and will be walking in the door of his suite at
any minute.

When the suite door opens and he sees Eric
and Melanie enter, a huge grin spreads across his face. He crosses
the room and wraps both mother and son in a warm hug. Melanie is no
longer blonde but has dark sable brown hair in a short pixie cut.
Eric appears to have grown at least a foot.

"It's so amazing to see you. Come in here so
we can have some privacy," he says indicating his private sitting
room.

Once we are settled, he asks, "So how are
you? Do you live here now?"

I smile, "I am so shocked! It really is you!
I kept seeing your picture in all of those tabloid rags and I
couldn't believe the famous Barry Farrady was the one that helped
us that night in Wyoming. I guess I was so out of touch and
isolated at the compound in Idaho that I had no idea who you were
then."

Eric grinning from ear to ear says, "I'm the
one that recognized the picture. Mom told me I was crazy. She said
someone as famous as you would never be nice enough to help perfect
strangers. When I saw you were coming to New York, I told her we
had to come see you!"

Barry laughing exclaims, "I am so glad you
did! So tell me, are you living here now? Are you still in
protection?"

"We are living here now but we are no longer
in the witness protection program. We do have new identities
though. I am Beth Mitchell and this is Michael Mitchell. Our
handlers feel like the danger to us is minimal since Darren is
dead."

"I have wondered so often over the last few
weeks about you. I wanted to know how you were doing and if you are
safe. I would love for you to come to the ranch for a visit. Do you
think that is possible? You can see from that circus outside that
spending time here or anywhere in public is impossible." says Barry
disgustedly.

"I suppose it's possible, but ..."

"I'll furnish the transportation. You don't
need to worry about a thing. You just tell me when," interrupts
Barry.

"All right, would mid June work for you?
Michael will be out of school then."

"Perfect. I'll be through with all this
publicity stuff by then too. Give me an exact date and I'll send my
private jet for you. That way it will be harder to trace if someone
is looking for you. Plan on staying at the ranch for at least a
month, all right?" says Barry. "I want a chance to get to know the
two of you."

Eric and I spend the next hour telling Barry
about our new life in New York City. He updates us on the changes
he has made at the ranch and tells us that Scoot and the other guys
that make up Drake Security are all relocating to the ranch where
he is building them an office and living space over his barn.