“Michael told me you were going to be his Head of Security. Do you think there’s much chance of anyone else trying to kidnap him?” Heather asked softly.
“There’s always a chance, Miss Sykes, but I’m going to do my best to make sure that doesn’t happen,” Richter sipped his coffee.
“Call me Heather,” she said sweetly. “If anything were to happen to him, I don’t know what I’d do. I spent a long time getting his attention, and I won’t give him up now.”
“I can’t imagine any man taking a long time to notice a woman as lovely as you,” Richter smiled. She could tell he wasn’t trying to suck up to her. She blushed, trying to hide her embarrassment with the coffee cup.
“You’re too kind, Jon, but he isn’t the sort of man to be suspicious of other people. He’s like a little puppy willing to follow anyone if they feed him the right story. Now that the world knows and understands the potential of what he’s created, I’m afraid there will be many people who want what he has.”
“Um, that’s true, but I believe the chances are fewer than you think. Don’t worry, I take my work seriously, and that’s what I’m here to do. By this time next week, he’ll need my permission to change his mind.” He smiled showing all of his teeth. She needed an extra second to catch the joke and then she laughed.
“Sounds like you two are getting along fine,” Michael said as he sat down. “I’d forgotten you were coming, but why did you come here and not the office? More important, how did you find me?”
“I left the airport, got into a cab, and told the driver to take me to the richest man in town, and he dropped me here.” There was no smile on his face.
“You’re kidding, right?” Michael demanded. “I’m not even close to the richest man in this city.” Finally, Jon laughed.
“No, I telephoned your office and told them who I was. They told me you were working at home and gave me your address.” His face quickly became serious as he leaned forward. “I’ll tell you, as your new head of security, that any personal information about you is no longer public knowledge.”
“No, I agree completely.” Michael was stunned. “I’ve never authorized my staff to give out personal information about anyone who works for me. I don’t know why they would do it this time.”
“Perhaps because they knew my name and what my job title would be, but anyone could have called using my name. By the way, the Russians told us how they knew you were coming to the Riviera. Their employer has been watching your company for some time and planted a person at the airport. They knew the instant Sam filed his flight plan where you were going. But that’s something we can deal with later.” He smiled once more. “For now, I think I need another cup of this delicious coffee.”
“Oh sure, here, let me get it.” Heather reached for his mug.
“Sit, I’m perfectly capable of getting my own. I have a sense that everyone in this country is willing to treat newcomers as friends. In my country, when that’s the case, we act as we would when we are at home. Help yourself, because nobody else will.” He stood and walked around the table to the counter.
“Right on the first try,” Michael snickered. “We do like to be relaxed around here, but from now on, I think that’s only going to apply to getting coffee.”
“Don’t worry about how you’re dressed, I’ve seen worse.” He came back to the table and sat with a sigh.
“Did you live in Monaco all your life?” Heather asked.
“All but the first few months, actually. I was born in a little town just north of the coast. Technically, I’m French, but my parents moved to the Principality when I was just six months old. My father took a job as a baker at one of the hotels, and my mother was a schoolteacher. They were killed in a car accident when I was fifteen. A drunken tourist in a rented car hit them on their way back from my uncle’s house. He raised me after that until I turned eighteen and joined the police force.” Jon stared into his coffee mug, lost in thought for a moment. “I just realized I’ve spent the greater part of my life as a policeman. This is the first time I’ve been out of the country on anything but business.”
“You must have had a social life,” she asked.
“Yes, my associates and I would go drinking or skiing sometimes, but nothing more. When I wasn’t working, I’d usually be training or reading. My uncle died two years ago, so visiting him wasn’t necessary anymore. No, Heather, my life has been very dull.” He grinned, but his eyes were sad.
“Well, I’ve got a few friends who will just die when they see you. Prepare to become a party animal, Jon, because this is a big party city.” She had the perfect girl in mind for him.
“I need to get to work down the hall, so if you two can stand to be without me for an hour or so, I need to go.” Michael left them at the table and called Wells to join him.
“He seems charming,” Dawn commented as Michael entered the room.
“I trust you’ve searched his history,” he said as he set the cup down. “Did you find anything unusual?” The dog’s tail thumped against the desk in a friendly fashion at the sound of the computer voice.
“Nothing. I heard what he said, and the stories are true. He rose through the ranks quickly and became the youngest captain on the force ten years ago at age twenty-nine. His career has stalled since, but there are six citations for bravery and two commendations for solving extremely tough cases. He’s also been wounded four times in action.”
“Why isn’t his career moving?”
“The last commendation was for a kidnapping three years ago. A billionaire’s daughter was taken. Everything was fine until the ransom exchange. One of his men was killed in the gun battle, the money lost, and the kid nearly vanished, but he managed to find her in time. They decided after the investigation that he wasn’t at fault, but somebody higher up put a note in his file. That’s all anybody sees anymore. Your offer must have seemed like a dream come true.”
Michael smiled remembering that day. Jon had seemed thrilled and decided within minutes.
“Ok, let’s get back to work. We need to come up with a plan to transport the dog. If we can send him and get him back safe, then I’ll go.”
“Plan coming on the screen now, and I’m certain I’ll be able to get the canine back intact. When are you going to send him?” Her voice had slowly changed to mechanical.
“Tomorrow.” Michael was reading the words as they appeared on the monitor. “He’s ready and so am I.”
At three o’clock, Michael returned to the living room, dressed in casual slacks and a dress shirt. He smiled at Heather and Jon.
“Ready?” he asked Richter.
“Absolutely, but after spending the afternoon here, I could really get used to living like this.”
“I’m sure the house they picked out for you is going to suit your needs. We can discuss all that next week.” He kissed Heather, and they left the house.
In the car, Michael gave Jon the short version of what he was working on at home. Richter didn’t need too many details. Time travel was self-explanatory.
“That isn’t something that would ordinarily be covered by a job description for my position, but personal curiosity makes me want to be there if you don’t mind.”
“Jesus, I don’t know if the room’s going to be big enough for everybody,” he laughed. “I guess it won’t matter. I’ll be going Sunday morning. Be at the house by nine and we can all have a last breakfast together. You’ll meet Billy at the office; he’s been my best friend since childhood. Sam, you’ve met, Heather will be there and, of course, you and me.”
Richter followed Michael to Human Resources. Alicia Morgan, the director, showed him into her office and left Michael alone. He went upstairs to his workspace and sorted through some paperwork. Billy rushed in without knocking.
“Hey, how are you doing?” he asked as he slumped into a chair.
“How do you always know I’m here?” Michael frowned. “You’re either psychic, or you have spies all over the build
ing.” Seeing the shocked expression on Billy’s face made Michael snicker. “Just kidding, but I’m fine, thanks for asking. Anything new happening around here?” Michael leaned back.
“Naw, we’re working on a few small projects at the moment, and Randal is busy down in Florida with NASA. I heard about what happened in Monaco. They didn’t hurt you, did they?”
“I’m fine and so is Sam, but they knew everything about our trip and the program we developed for the Mars probe. They correlated the program with its value for traveling through time. I’d sure like to know how they found that out. Either somebody here or someone at NASA sold the information.”
“Holy shit, Michael, somebody with that kind of technology could do anything they wanted.”
“I know, and I’ll fight to keep the secret safe. I’ve hired a personal security specialist to manage my safety and tighten the security around here. He made a call to the front desk when he landed and got my home address. If that had been a criminal, I might be held hostage again or worse.”
“Yeah, I agree. Who is this security guy?”
“Captain Jon Richter, former Monaco Royal Policeman. He’s downstairs now getting checked in, and then we’re going over to look at his house.” Michael shuffled a few papers. “I want him to find out who the person is in this company that sold their soul to those creeps. Oh, by the way, I’m making my jump on Sunday morning. Come to the house for breakfast and see me off. If everything goes according to plan, I’ll be back in less than an hour with what happened to Joe.”
“You bet I’ll be there. How’s the dog working out?”
“Wells is great and acts like he’s been with us forever. I don’t know who’s training who sometimes. Smart dog. I can’t understand why anyone would give him up.”
Billy chuckled. “You could’ve done worse, I guess. Sounds like you adopted a kid.” He stood up to leave.
“I never thought of a dog as my kid, but you could be right. Don’t forget about Sunday,” Michael called as Billy shut the door.
A few minutes later, Michael dropped off a pile of papers and folders with his secretary and went downstairs. Jon was just leaving Alicia Morgan’s office as he stepped off the elevator.
“How’d it go?”
“Great. I have a brand new ID badge and the keys to a house and car. I’ll get my carry permit on Monday, so I’m all set.”
“You don’t seem too happy.”
“Aw, I’m just overwhelmed by all of this. In my country, you need weeks to become an employee and getting a carry permit would take months.” He sighed as they rode down in the elevator. “I just hope I can live up to your expectations.”
Michael turned and smiled. “You have my fullest confidence. Take your time to get settled. I’m going to drive you out to your house right now. Alicia told me your car is there, too.”
“It’ll be good to have a place to call home. I think I’ll need to go shopping this weekend sometime. You know, for the little things like toilet paper,” he laughed.
Forty minutes later, they pulled to a stop in front of a bungalow in Edenvale. The house reminded Michael of the one where they’d been held hostage. Light blue siding under dark-brown stucco on the exterior walls. There was no landscaping to speak of, just a sidewalk and a couple of scrawny bushes on either side of the front steps. The street appeared to be a typical suburban neighborhood.
A driveway led from the street down the side of the house to a single-car garage in the back yard. Michael said the car was parked inside. Jon pulled a set of keys out of his pocket as they walked up to the front door. They were all different shapes and sizes, but he chose one that might work to open the door. He’d guessed right, and they stepped inside.
The room was dark, but they could tell there was carpeting on the floor and furniture. Jon tried the switches until a light came on. Dark-brown leather furniture, two chairs, and a long sofa filled the space. Tables, generic pictures, and a sand-colored carpet completed the decoration. They walked into the kitchen’s traditional decor—a table and two chairs, off white fridge and stove, dark mahogany cupboards and white walls. Down the hall, the main bathroom was more basic. There were two spare bedrooms with white walls, a bed, and dressers. The master bedroom held a king-sized bed with a Navajo spread in the center of one wall, plush sand-colored carpet, matching drapes, dresser, and chest of drawers. The furniture filled the room leaving only walking space. The bathroom consisted of a three-piece set-up and white walls. A box of cleaning supplies and toilet paper sat on the vanity.
Jon dropped his bag on the bed. “I guess this will do for now. Your people thought of everything, so I don’t need to go shopping.”
“Good, I’ll let you get settled, and we can catch up tomorrow.” They shook hands and Michael left.
The next day started out as every previous day during the week. After breakfast, Michael called Wells into the computer room. He strapped a camera and the cell onto the dog’s collar before making him sit in the phone booth. Wells was happy to comply and wagged his tail.
He sat at the desk and punched in the time and coordinates to send the dog back to the street next to the drainage ditch where he’d last seen Joe. “Go,” he said to Dawn.
Lights flashed on and off across the many panels on the computer. Wells barked and began to disappear. The transporter box seemed to brighten, the lights on the computer slowed and then the dog vanished. Michael’s eyes were glued on the booth, and he jumped off the chair when the dog disappeared. He looked at Heather standing in the doorway, her green eyes enormous above her hands.
“That isn’t supposed to happen,” he stammered. “Why now? Dawn, did we do something wrong?”
“Neither you nor I changed any input data, but I still have a lock on the signal from the collar. The canine is there and moving around. If you’d like, I could bring him back now.” The voice coming from the machine was dispassionate. Clinical, Michael thought. The sound helped calm the panic he knew Heather was feeling because he was feeling the same way.
“No, I think we’ll let him run for a bit.”
“He’s lost and confused. What have you done? You said he’d be okay. He won’t disappear completely, you said.” Heather was shouting from the doorway. Her face was a deep red color, her arms and legs were rigid with anger and uncertainty. “How is he going to get back here?”
Michael tried to wrap his arms around her to console her, but she pushed him away. Fire spat from her eyes and venom filled her words. “You and this whore computer get that poor dog back here safe and sound, or I’ll smash this stuff into so many pieces nobody will ever put them back together.” Her finger jabbed into his chest with each word.
His life’s work was on the line. The woman he loved was threatening to destroy his only chance of finally resolving what happened to his best friend. Wells was important and would be missed, even though the dog had started out as a test subject in Michael’s mind. She was being ridiculous, emotional, but he didn’t want to lose her.
“You’re right,” he said. “We’ll bring him back now, and then I can figure out what happened. Bring him home now, Dawn.” There was defeat in his voice. The computer revved, lights in the phone booth brightened, and a minute later, Wells appeared standing on the floor of the cube. His tongue was hanging out, and he was panting as if he’d been running, but otherwise he seemed fine. He barked when he realized where he was and who was in the room.
Michael carefully opened the door and detached the gadgets from his collar. The animal licked his hand and trotted over to Heather, who hugged his neck so tight he began to struggle to get free.
Her eyes, streaming tears of joy, blinked up at Michael as she whispered, “Thank you.”
Dread, an icy pang of fear, dropped into his stomach. He watched Heather take Wells down the hall and then turned toward Dawn.
“How come the mug didn’t dissolve and Wells did? We need to figure that out before tomorrow because the odds of something going wrong just went higher
. I won’t end up a mess of goop like in the movies.” His hands were shaking as the fingers ran through his hair.
“I’ve scanned the entire code and find nothing wrong. The logical conclusion is that inanimate objects are harder to send through time and thus do not dematerialize completely.”
Michael stared at the phone booth contraption in the corner. The icy feeling in his gut got colder. He imagined himself coming back with pieces missing or having memory loss. Then what would happen? All his efforts would be for nothing. He looked over at the camera and cell phone. Seeing what the dog did wouldn’t hurt while they tried to figure out what went wrong. Possibly the video would give them a clue.
He plugged the leads into the computer and waited as the images came up on the monitor. The first pictures were of him and Heather standing in the office as the dog waited to jump through time. As the event began, the images blurred and shifted, becoming light streaming past. The lights stopped, and the drainage ditch appeared as he remembered on that day. Wells immediately started to sniff the ground because the next half-dozen pictures showed nothing but ground.
A sound, movement perhaps, attracted his attention because his head came up and he started to run. The video was a jumble of colors as the camera jerked and bumped on the dog’s neck.
The blurred lights appeared again, and then Wells was back in the computer room. Michael rubbed his chin. Useless. There was nothing worth keeping in that mess. He couldn’t tell if he was chasing a squirrel or his own tail. He sighed.
“What do you think, Dawn? Is this worth risking my life to make the jump tomorrow?” He’d forgotten the machine wasn’t alive.
“The final decision is yours, but I can find no reason to hesitate.”
An Altered Course Page 20
