The Exodus Strategy

by Barbara Winkes

  “Jay Fuller wasn’t a witness, he sent a woman rape threats. All I did was tell him to be careful. Which, I think, is good advice.”

  “Probably. This isn’t the biggest problem though. I think it’s the best if you took a leave of absence.”

  Kerry was on her feet a second later, but one look from her boss made her sit again. She waited, silent.

  “I know you’re disappointed that the Hate Crimes unit didn’t work out, well, so are we, but that’s the way it is. We might not always like the law, but we are here to enforce it, and we’re not supposed to overstep certain boundaries. What you did with Fuller was borderline, but I wonder, with your association with the Greene project, if you’re still ready to follow the laws here in our state.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Your significant other’s employer stands in direct conflict with some of the laws introduced by the Governor.”

  “Yes, I got that impression. Most of them criminalize women.”

  “Whatever we think of them personally…”

  “That’s fine. My partner and I will go to California. I was going to ask for a transfer for the end of March.”

  He considered that for a moment. “So it’s true.”

  “It’s not because of disappointment or anything. Part of the concept is mine,” Kerry told him. “I want to see it come to life.”

  “We’re getting a lot of calls from concerned people these days. Some are worried about how you can safely move what might be thousands of people and more, and what’s going to happen to the ones left behind? I even had a call from the lieutenant governor.”

  That made Kerry wince. The man was a carbon copy of his boss.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Greene didn’t come up with this on a whim, there are years of planning involved. They started asking people to join only when they knew they could do it.”

  “Maybe we can find some sort of compromise here,” Jepsen said. “Any safety issues and information that is relevant to the department, you come to me. I’ll look into possibilities for a transfer…but you don’t go anywhere near Brenner.”

  “Got it.” She would have added a thank you up until the last sentence. The more she thought about it, the more Kerry wondered if she really got any good deal out of this—and about the nature of the information they wanted her to get. At least he hadn’t come out and fired her, something which was well within his rights, unfortunately. She hadn’t helped her situation by threatening Fuller, but still, Kerry couldn’t bring herself to feel sorry.

  “One more thing, Rivers. It struck me as odd that the lieutenant governor mentioned Susan Wells. Can you think of any reason? She left the department what, five, six years ago?”

  “About,” Kerry said curtly, trying not to show how much the question winded her. Not now.

  “All right. If you think of something, let me know. Catch up with your paperwork today, and we’ll go from there.”

  “Thanks,” Kerry mumbled, before she got up and walked out, feeling numb and cold. The Joanie Vincent case wasn’t the only demon she’d take with her to sunnier pastures. She decided the files could wait a few minutes longer. She needed something hot and sweet to ward off the chill.

  * * * *

  Tasha couldn’t breathe. Technically, she knew it all started in her mind, but it never took long for her fears to translate into real physical sensations. They, in return, enhanced her anxiety to the point she wanted to scream at people to get out of the way. Instead, she clutched Bobby’s hand—ironic that her child had to be her lifeline, her connection to sanity. She hadn’t always been this close to a meltdown. In the beginning, yes, before she found a doctor who could prescribe the right medication. That was almost in another lifetime, before she met Ethan. During her first pregnancy, she had hated to be separated from him, missed him badly, but she’d been more confident and capable of handling the everyday life.

  The only friends Tasha had in town were Vivien and Kerry, but not for much longer. They’d leave. Everyone was leaving her alone, the tasks of everyday life mounting up, the walls closing in on her. She gasped, struggling to get air into her lungs while her mind signaled a danger that might not be real, but felt that way in every sense.

  A second later the only reassuring thing left, the warmth of Bobby’s tiny hand clutching hers, was gone. “Bobby!”

  Before she knew it, Tasha was screaming for real, the looks of people around her indifferent, annoyed, some concerned.

  The world went dark.

  * * * *

  “Working for Greene Industries was a nightmare. I’m not surprised at what they are doing, but I’m grateful they’re leaving town and the state altogether.”

  “I imagine your time there was difficult for you and your family,” the interviewer said softly.

  “We don’t want to bother anyone,” the man in his late forties claimed. “They have a women quota there, and the management is infested with those radical feminist tactics. You can’t so much as look at a woman there, and they slap a harassment suit on you—just because you disagree on a matter in which you might be more qualified! They bring their children to work, and no one is allowed to say anything. Their insurance packages are atrocious, making you pay for the bad choices they make. I knew some women who used abortion for birth control. My conscience…I couldn’t take it anymore.”

  “Why did you decide to come forward?”

  “Everyone should know what they are doing, and what it will be like if they have any say in politics. They encourage women to get a divorce, so they can influence them more easily. They are also lobbying behind the scenes, so every single law-abiding gun owner has to sign up for a registry, and the government can come to your house for inspections at any time.”

  “That is terrible,” the host said, looking disturbed. “I wish the best to you and your family.”

  The way Marc slammed the folder onto the desk was enough of a statement of how he felt about the interview.

  “I agree,” Hilary said dryly. “Are you feeling better? I might try that too.”

  “Sorry. If we ever employed that guy for a day, and that’s not proven yet, I bet you someone planted him.”

  “You’re sure? Nobody even knew about Exodus until—”

  “Albert,” Marc finished with a grim expression. “We have no way of knowing for how long he’s been feeding information to the press or Miller’s people. They might not have known what to make of it at the time, but clearly, now they do. I hate to argue with lies and innuendo, but I guess we have to put out a statement on this one.”

  “Yeah. Let’s just wait until we know more. What about Melodie?”

  “What about her?”

  “She likes you. Give her a call and tell her she might break a story if she’s quick,” Hilary advised. “We do our own investigation in the meantime.”

  “Let’s do that. Where are we on transport?”

  “I’ll see Aimee later…and don’t forget I have to go visit Dana Martin.” She frowned. “With congresswoman Camden. I couldn’t care less about meeting her…but maybe we can find out something about where this fellow came from. I wouldn’t hold my breath, but—”

  She stopped when Marc came around his desk, embracing her. Hilary leaned into him, grateful for a moment of quiet in the hectic pace that had always reigned in their lives, even before Exodus.

  “Can we have dinner tonight? I need to talk to you about something.”

  He pulled back, regarding her with concern. “I can make time right now. That idiot is not that important.”

  “No, later is fine. Don’t worry. I’m okay.”

  Now, she added in her mind. Now, I’m okay, and you have no idea how much you had to do with that.

  “Good. I guess I have to call Melodie.” He made a face, and Hilary laughed. “Bring on the charm. More than that, she likes a good story. The sooner we can put an end to those lies, the better.”

  * * * *

  Kerry was on the third coffee while makin
g miniscule progress with her paperwork, but she felt like she couldn’t get warm. Maybe she was coming down with something—a bad case of memory. She didn’t think it was a coincidence that the lieutenant governor asked about Susan. It was more of a warning shot before moving in for the kill.

  What could she tell anyone—especially Vivien who was the most loyal and decent person she’d ever known?

  People made mistakes all the time, and it had been a long time ago, but the timing troubled her. She needed the captain to back her up. She wondered what Susan was doing these days, if she was still with the police…then she realized she didn’t want to know. She and Hilary had always known that the Exodus project would cause some severe backlash from those who believed that feminism and equal marriage were destroying society, or simply made money off the theory. It didn’t matter that neither of them was running for office—they were in it with everything, their private lives dissected and bared.

  They would have to live with that, because above all, Kerry still believed it was for the greater good.

  The phone on her desk rang, startling her.

  “Detective Rivers? Here’s a woman who just got arrested at the mall, Tasha Marks. She says she knows you.”

  Kerry barely held back the expletive. “That’s right. Put her through please.”

  For the next two minutes or so, she had a hard time figuring out what Tasha was saying. Her friend sounded manic. “…at the mall, and I lost him, but fortunately they found him but now they say they’re going to take Bobby away and Kerry, I can’t lose him!”

  “Of course not. Slow down. What happened?”

  “They said I should call a lawyer, but I couldn’t find the number and…I need you here!”

  Kerry gave the pile of files and papers on her desk a dubious look. Jepsen wanted her to stay under the radar. Meddling with something that was probably well within the tons of new regulations and laws Miller was burying the state under, would not help, but this was her friend.

  “I’ll be there,” she said. “Don’t talk to anyone until you’ve seen a lawyer. If you can’t get one, they have to provide a public defender for you. I’ll take it from there. I promise you’ll be okay.”

  On the other end of the line, Tasha was sobbing. “I am not a bad mother. I am not.”

  “That’s right, you’re not. Don’t let anybody tell you that crap. I am hanging up, okay, Tash? I’ll come and find you.”

  “Yes, please.”

  Kerry hung up the phone and picked up her keys and jacket. Dealing with the past had to wait with the present this urgent.

  * * * *

  Vivien asked herself for the umpteenth time why they were doing this to themselves. If Dana or Hilary hoped to get Congresswoman Camden on their side, the meeting was clearly a waste of time. Amid Camden’s attempt to make amends, honest or not, there had been rumors about illegal searches of pro-choice activists’ homes. This had Miller’s signature written all over it, and Camden was suspiciously close to him.

  “We want the same thing, don’t we?” Camden said, making conversation as if she was talking cookie recipes, not the fates of millions of women. Make no mistake, Miller’s extreme policies were meant to be applied country-wide at some point, if they had a say. Camden stood behind all of them. “Improve women’s health. We all know that abortion has a deep and devastating impact on women’s lives, so we want to offer a variety of alternative choices.”

  “What choices?” Vivien asked sharply. “You are cutting programs for child care and elementary school, support for poor families.”

  “There’s always adoption. Studies show that—”

  “Enough!” Both Hilary and Dana gave her startled looks, but after over an hour with Camden’s pseudo-arguments, Vivien couldn’t take it any longer. “I’m so sick and tired of your bogus ‘science.’ You take one or two studies out of your hat that a first year student could easily take apart, and you use it to discredit years of respectable research. Although, it doesn’t really matter, does it? As long as you keep the people you want to vote for you riled up. While we’re talking about choices here, you and your folks give a damn about women’s health or choices, and it makes me sick whenever I see a woman side with this ideology. What’s in it for you?”

  “Vivien, maybe you should take a break,” Dana said.

  “No, please, let me answer Ms. Collins’ question.” Camden’s tone was calm and cordial. “For me, the subject isn’t quite so emotional. This is my career, this is what I do, and I want to do what I believe is in the best interest of all my constituents.”

  “How can you do that? How can you turn your back on those women? You’re a traitor.”

  “Vivien, that’s enough.”

  “I’m sorry, Dana. It’s what I believe. It’s what we all believe, and please, Congresswoman, you didn’t come here because you want to help us in any way. You’re one of the people who make our work harder day by day.”

  “I’m sorry you see it that way. I wish we could find a way to compromise. That was always my intention. Tolerance has to go both ways.” With that, Camden had given her a trigger. Vivien saw no reason to spare her.

  “I don’t have to tolerate men who have never met me, but demand complete control over my body. I don’t have to tolerate people who treat me like a second-class human, because I don’t fall into their narrow little definition of family, and for sure, I don’t have to tolerate women who hate their own gender. Behind your back, they are laughing about you. You and your friends in the senate have to understand one thing—your power ends right here.” She placed her hand a few inches from her belly. “This is my body. You don’t get to decide, for me or anyone. You come no farther than this.”

  The congresswoman’s face was impassive.

  “Um, Viv…” Hilary intervened carefully. “Maybe you could help me with something while Dana and Congresswoman Camden wrap this up? Thank you.”

  * * * *

  Tasha was in a worse state than Kerry could have guessed from their short phone call. She thought of Vivien, hurting and defeated in that holding cell, and then Joanie Vincent—no. She interrupted the thought abruptly, not wanting to imagine the two of them in the same context. Yet, it was disturbing how little regard public servants showed for the health of women under Miller’s reign.

  Reign of terror was more like it.

  Tasha had a child, with another one on the way. How could this amount of stress possibly help her unborn baby?

  “Where is Bobby?” she asked.

  “With someone from child services.” Tasha looked terrified, her tear-streaked face testimony to what she’d been through in the past hours. “They can’t take him away, right? He’s got parents who love him. They can’t do that!”

  “No, I don’t think they can,” Kerry said, meaning to assure her, but uneasy about her promise. Nothing was for certain anymore. “You need to see a doctor before all else, but let’s just wait for the lawyer. He’ll advise you what’s best from here.”

  “The pharmacist told the police I was trying to illegally obtain drugs. That’s a lie! I was just asking, no, actually begging him to give me the same dose I’ve always taken, and my psychiatrist actually recommends it. The word of a professional doesn’t even count anymore!”

  Politicians playing doctors, psychiatrists, law enforcement officials. Kerry knew it came from a certain mindset that wasn’t so new, but Miller had taken it to a new outrageous level endangering women every day. She couldn’t wait to get out--and when they did, they would expose every bit of what he and his people had done to their home.

  “It can’t go on like that forever,” she offered.

  “That doesn’t help me. This is happening right now. Oh God.” Tasha covered her face with her hands. “What is Ethan going to say?”

  “Well, I think—”

  “He’s going to get you the hell out of here and back to your family, and make sure the bums who put you here will be held accountable,” a voice behind them sai
d. Tasha was on her feet and in her husband’s arms the next moment.

  “How…?” She started to cry once more. Ethan cast Kerry a grateful look over her shoulder.

  “Thank you for helping us out,” he said. “Imagine my surprise coming home, and the first message I find is from child protective services. Has everyone gone crazy here?”

  “That’s our new governor unleashed for you,” Kerry said. She stood too, feeling like she was intruding on a private moment in which she clearly wasn’t needed anymore. She’d had her moment of stalling. It was time to face the music. Vivien might not be home yet. She’d have the chance to cook something, ease themselves into the subject. She suppressed a sigh. Maybe that would look too much like bribery and guilty conscience, but with what their plans were, she had to soften the blow some.

  “Kerry, wait a second,” Ethan said when she was about to leave. “What is this Exodus project I keep hearing about? It’s for everyone who can contribute something, isn’t it—and it’s supposed to help women who are treated unfairly here?”

  “You can check out the website, but I can get you some information as well. It’s the goal that no one has to deal with BS like this. I’m sure your lawyer will throw out any charges easily, but Tasha shouldn’t be here in the first place.”

  “I agree. I’d appreciate it if you got me that info.”

  “Do you really think we can do that, leave in the middle of this?” Tasha asked anxiously. She sighed. “I guess moving can’t be half as stressful as this.”

  “We’ll look into it, okay? Let’s get you home.”

  “That’s my cue. I need to go back to work too.” Kerry embraced both Tasha and Ethan. “You need to do what’s best for your family, but Exodus could be a good option. We’d love to see you there.”

  Running towards a new future, running away from the baggage of the past, sometimes it was hard to tell where to draw the line.

  * * * *

  “There’s brave, and then there’s foolish. I’m still trying to figure out into which category you just fell,” Hilary surmised after closing the door behind the two of them.