Chapter 37
As Righty stepped out onto the street, he could not be entirely sure a set of curious eyes belonging to Dr. Ridemern were not following his curious guest’s movements, so Righty waited until he had walked several blocks before seeking a dark place where he might try to summon Harold.
Family matters or not, he had some major business to attend to.
It was only about 8 p.m., but the streets were dark in this residential area, and the occasional lamp light trickling out of a nearby window did little to rob the darkness of its dominion. Urgency conquered patience, and Righty said in a voice just above a whisper.
“If you can hear me, Harold, come in quiet and land.”
The fluttering of wings from a nearby tree made him wonder if a konulan was not preparing to deliver the message to Harold in case he had not properly heard the request.
About thirty seconds later, Righty felt a breeze softly lift the hairs on the back of his head, and just moments later a stealthy body glided silently down several yards before him.
Rather than breaking into a run, Righty continued to walk calmly, right next to Harold’s prostrated body, which he then calmly mounted.
“Get me out of here, buddy,” Righty said.
Harold took off gently, something until then Righty was unaware Harold could do, given his usual high-velocity takeoffs. Harold’s arms cut the air so gently that Righty barely noticed he was moving until he noticed that the faintly lit street below now featured miniature homes, any dozen of which could fit in the palm of his left hand.
“I’m a father!!” Righty proclaimed triumphantly.
“Congratulations!” Harold said, not wishing to sour Righty’s jubilee by reminding him of his extraordinarily acute hearing, which prevented the comment from being news.
“And still a husband!” Righty added joyously.
“We know!!” a less-tactful creature exclaimed happily, seconded by another, who shouted, “We were right next to the window!”
Righty looked down at the rascally konulans lovingly, a couple dozen of which now resided on Harold’s back. He stroked their heads affectionately.
Righty’s head quickly turned back to business, however. He needed to pick up a little extra cash for tomorrow, but that was the least of his problems.
“Harold, can you do a solo mission tomorrow?”
“You name it.”
“I’ve got a large drop-off due tomorrow in Sodorf, and I’d like to spend tomorrow with my wife and newborn.”
“You’ve got it. Just take me to the ranch tonight.”
Righty did so, and under the cover of darkness of this nearly moonless night he landed right next to the storage facility and secured a hundred pounds. Then, he thought of Tats.
The convenience of Tats knowing Harold was invaluable, and he now thought of this storage facility, unguarded at his own request due his foresight that he might occasionally need to access this location at night. If a few ranch hands—the most trusted—could be introduced Harold also, that would save him the problem of a lot of tiptoeing around his own property and could also enable him to have the storage facility itself guarded, rather than just the perimeter of the ranch.
I’ll deal with that later, he thought. There were priorities.
He then asked Harold if he could do a solo mission with Tats.
“Without question,” Harold replied.
Righty struggled greatly with the trade-off between the convenience of allowing his secret weapon to be exposed out of the sight of Righty’s watchful eye versus the potential danger this could mean for Righty and, ultimately, his family. The near invincibility afforded to him by Harold and the konulans’ protection and surveillance would become greatly weakened if his enemies were to discover these secrets.
But if he didn’t yield to expediency during the next couple of days, he would have to choose between ignoring his wife and newborn or infuriating Rucifus and losing face with Tats, two things that could sow the poisonous seeds of discontent, which could ultimately flower into rebellion.
“Take eighty pounds to Tats tomorrow. You know the house, right?”
Harold nodded; he had become familiar with Tats’ pattern by which he moved amongst his various mansions as a means of staying a step ahead of potential enemies or police surveillance.
“He knows how much money to give you. I’ll count it later.”
Harold nodded.
“Don’t talk to him under any circumstances, but don’t hesitate to give him that shrewd stare you give to me all the time,” Righty said laughing, yet with a seriousness behind his words.
Harold smiled and nodded.
“Take a hundred pounds to Sodorf and pick up the bag of money that should be there. If there’s no money, take this bag back,” Righty said pointing to the larger bag.
Harold nodded.
“You’re the best!” Right exclaimed sincerely and hugged him, yet keeping his voice low enough to not attract any undue attention.
Righty then mounted Harold, who picked up the two bags as easily as if they were newborn chicks, but per Righty’s request they made a quick detour in one of the nearby hills. Righty kept a barrel of cash at all times that could be accessed with minimal digging.
Harold knew its exact spot, and Righty alighted quickly upon Harold’s landing. He removed a heavy stone to the side and took several bundles of cash and inserted them into his large coat. He now had $3,000,000 on his person, which he presumed ought to be adequate for the upcoming transactions.
Righty instructed Harold to fly back to Ringsetter, and in the tops of one of the largest trees, they picked a couple of snug spots for the Smokeless Green to be hidden until tomorrow.
Harold then brought Righty back to Sivingdel. It was even darker now, but Righty had the konulans go out and patrol just to make sure Righty could be safely deposited into the darkness about fifteen minutes’ walking distance from the house.
At 10 p.m., Righty used the spare key to let himself inside. He kissed Janie on her forehead, but she did not awake. Well-deserved sleep did not, however, prevent the loving gesture from going completely unheeded, as it appeared a small smile momentarily flashed at the edges of her beautiful lips. Righty then approached Heather and lifted her into his arms. He gently held her and rocked her back and forth for two hours, while thinking of the hurdles he would have to overcome to fulfill his promise, to achieve his destiny, and to protect his family at all costs.
He felt a pang of guilt at having never shown or felt similar love towards Eddie, and he wondered about him now more than ever, but his mind assured him that Eddie’s steady arrival of letters (about one every two or three months) and the growing maturity and eloquence therein were sufficient evidence that he was in good care. And he was still more certain that Eddie was far safer outside the country with the erudite professor than with a father engaged in a dangerous business.
The sweet tranquility of the present scene was offset by a dark premonition that the most arduous, and most violent, challenges of his career had not yet even shown the whites of their eyes.
The End of The International Businessman
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