Marc smiled, remembering Robare’s smugness when he had talked to him about the cause of the fire two months prior.
Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy.
Just then, Rebecca emerged from around a corner from the living room. Freshly showered, her hair wasn’t quite dry. She was wearing a housecoat she had left from her stay there three weeks prior.
Marc looked at her over the top of the newspaper, “Hey beautiful, you hungry?”
“Sure, as long as you have something beside the kibbles you feed those poor cats.”
“Poor cats, my eye! They probably eat better that we do.”
Rebecca smiled. “Wouldn’t know, I’ve never tried eating kibbles.”
Marc grinned, “When do you start your training with the Office of Secure Transportation?”
“Next Monday. I report to the OST training center in Fort Chaffee, Arkansas.”
“Arkansas, huh. Never been there.”
“Neither have I. It’s just for twenty weeks.”
“Twenty weeks? That’s a stretch,” Marc said.
“Yeah, I know, but I’ll be free on weekends. You could come out and see me once in a while.”
“Suppose I could, but I doubt there’s a direct flight out of Plattsburgh, although there may be a connecting flight through Columbia,” Marc said.
“Columbia? You’re flying from Plattsburgh to Columbia to see me, Marc? That would work.”
“Yeah, especially since Columbia is where I’m actually headed.”
“Okay? I’m confused,” she said.
“The United States Attorney’s Office called. Their office is in Columbia.”
“Oh?”
“According to the federal attorney who called, the terrorist who accompanied Akhtar to the Aiken Post Office after our wild chase has changed his mind and has decided to open up.”
“Wonder why?” Rebecca asked.
“Not sure, but according to the attorney, when my name came up as someone he was calling on as an eye-witness, the terrorist suddenly had a change of heart. He said he would only talk on two conditions.”
“Oh, really. So what were his conditions?” she asked.
“The first one was he didn’t want to be alone in the room with me. That his lawyer and the Federal Attorney had to be present.”
“Guess I can understand that,” she said with a smirk. “So, what was his second condition?”
“That after pleading guilty, he wanted to serve his time at the Super Max federal prison in Florence, Colorado.”
“Any idea what he wanted to talk about?”
“The Federal Attorney said the terrorist - he still hasn’t given his name - revealed that on the morning before the attack, he, along with four others, swam across the Savannah River and covered the water intake pipes leading from the river to a formerly mothballed reactor at the Site. The reactor was slated to be fired-up while the Israeli Prime Minister was visiting there. Luckily, however, due to the Prime Minister’s incapacitation from the gas attack, starting up the reactor had to be called off.”
“Any idea what happened to the other terrorists?” Rebecca asked.
“That’s what the FBI and the federal attorney’s office are trying to determine. They’ve recovered a few things from Akhtar’s residence and a camp on the Georgia side of the river where they think the terrorists had been holed up, but so far, nothing.”
“Do you really think this guy will open up on just who the other terrorists were, or where they were going after the attack?”
“I seriously doubt that. They could be anywhere by now.”
Rebecca was quiet as she took in this new revelation.
“So, we were talking about you travelling to Fort Chaffee. Classes start next Monday,” she said.
“I don’t know. Guess it depends on how long I’ll be needed in Columbia, and I doubt the feds will want to pay for my flight to Arkansas,” Marc said with a grin.
‘“Like the saying goes, ‘Life’s not about the journey, it’s what can be accomplished upon your arrival,”’ Rebecca said. She went to Marc and wrapped her arms around him.
Marc looked deep into her eyes, “Leave it to a woman’s power of persuasion to reconstruct an age-old maxim to suit her mood.”
Just then Brandy, the larger of Marc’s cats began circling his feet.
“Speaking of desire, Mr. LaRose, you should fill your cat’s bowl, while you can. I have an immediate assignment for you that can’t wait.”
“Meow,” Brandy and Rye cried in unison.
I sincerely hope you enjoyed reading Masters of Terror, my fourth book in the Marc LaRose Mystery Series. My previous works include, Borderline Terror, Southbound Terror and Placid Terror.”
As an independent author, I depend on you, the reader, to spread the word about my stories, which can be done through social media and word of mouth. I publish my books through ‘Kindle Direct Publishing.’ (KDP)
Amazon.com offers the reader the opportunity to ‘Review’ my stories. Reviews are important for readers and authors alike, whether the author is an indie, like me, or an established published author using one of the big publishing houses.
I invite you to review this book as well as other stories in my series by going to Amazon.com and typing “Masters of Terror.” Click on the book title, then the “Reviews” tab. This will bring you to the page where you can “Write a Review.”
Thanks again,
R. George Clark
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First, I thank God for bestowing me with a full life, one that has allowed me to meet so many wonderful people, endowed me with a loving family and has provided me with a multitude of diverse experiences that have helped formulate the stories for the “Marc LaRose Mystery Series.”
Early on in my writing career, I was fortunate to associate myself with Aiken Writer’s Block, a special group of talented, patient and knowledgeable people who freely shared their time and expertise to help others with their writing aspirations.
I owe a special debt of gratitude to my editors: Ms. Carolee Smith and Mr. Walter Church, my readers: Ms. Carol Morenc and Ms. Rita Malloy, Ms. Betsy Hart, and to Mr. Arthur Osborne for his technical expertise. I also received words of encouragement from a list of friends, much too long to mention on this page. You know who you are. Thank you.
Lastly, I am most grateful to have been assisted by my best friend and soul-mate for the past fifty-five years, my lovely Delena, who, without her unrelenting encouragement and reassurance, this story would have truly been impossible for me to write.
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