Coming out of the shower Agent Lauren is back to work. She packs enough clothing for three days, including one suit and one formal dress for the wedding. Her reconnaissance work has set her in an apartment just off the University of Maryland, College Park Campus, for the last three months. It is her center of operations and every wall in sight has something pinned up from this case. Moving swiftly, she polishes off a cup of coffee and a donut, and after a quick review, she gathers her key notations and pages into a file folder. She grabs her cell phone and quickly text messages Al Hinton a note that says, “Coming to Middletown with older son, ETA 5:30pm, will forward any info gathered in route.” She then packs her official University ID, her new Secret Service ID and a firearm, and appropriately conceals them in a gym zipper bag. Looking at the clock it is already approaching 9:30 a.m.. Locking the room, she puts a do not disturb hanger on the doorknob and heads for her car.
Arriving early at James’ dorm, Agent, turned-Maryland-University-student, Lauren Coles, sees James already sitting on the steps of the dorm, bags packed neat and ready to go. She thinks to herself, “Hmm, prompt man of his word. These Markets have raised a very nice boy.” As she approaches she toots the horn.
James is all smiles as he runs over to the car and meets the late model Mustang convertible as it arrives directly in front of his building. He opens the door and says jokingly, “Good morning, and I’m glad you didn’t run into me again.” She laughs. He then adds, “Nice wheels,” and referencing his bag says, “where would you like me to store this?”
“Thanks. Place it in the back or on in the trunk; either would be fine.” Her openness demonstrates that she’s not hiding anything; her bag is on the floor behind her seat. He places his bag on the floor behind his seat; sits, buckles up, and off they go.
For Lauren this is in uncharted territory. It is her first real-life field interview, and her mind races as to where to start. She is dying to know all that she can about James’ brother Joseph, and how he’s making these predictions, but she is also quite intrigued with James himself, and would like to know some more about him. All the while, she needs to find a way to report her discoveries to her teammate, Hinton, who awaits her arrival in Middletown. She’s quite nervous, but manages to hide it well … with the exception of a rapidly bouncing left leg. She opens the conversation with, “How ’bout we grab some breakfast, my treat!”
Turning in her direction, he answers warmly, “You don’t have to do that.” If Lauren is nervous, James is super nervous; this is pretty much the first time he’s ever been alone in a car with a woman that wasn’t a family relation or that he hadn’t known for years and years. He’s lived a somewhat sheltered life. There were girls he liked in high school, and those who liked him, but a gentlemen in the strictest sense, he made a point to never be alone with them in a situation so unpredictable. Certainly this was the first time he was in such a situation with someone to whom he felt so attracted! It is that attraction that makes him worry about staring at her, or even glancing in the wrong areas. He overcompensates and instead looks out his passenger side window, which is just plain awkward.
Lauren, however, is determined to keep the conversation going. She counters his last remark with, “Oh, come on, with you paying the gas, I’d feel like I was really taking advantage if you didn’t let me treat you to breakfast. Heck I insist on covering all meals, snacks, and pay tolls, deal?”
James laughs and looks her way a little. Seeing her beautiful smile his heart sinks. He thinks, “Wow, what a face! Lord I’m not gonna make it!” He gets a grip and then says, “Okay, um, you’ve got a deal.”
A minute goes by in silence so Lauren makes her next attempt to connect to James and get him talking! Referencing his flyers with an air of playfulness she says, “So, I’m guessing you have some kind of tremendous phobia about women drivers.”
This gets James’ attention. Picking up on her playful disposition he looks up to the heavens and takes an exaggeratedly deep sigh. Then, repositioning himself to talk to her he says, “Noooooo, not at all, you completely misunderstood what I was saying.”
Lauren, still enjoying herself at his expense and thrilled that he’s turned to talk, says, “Oh, I did, did I? Let’s see, it said, Prefer not to drive with a woman.”
James jumps in laughing, “Nooooo, no. It said, Prefer to ride with a guy.”
She counters, “Potato, potaaato!”
He raises his voice to talk over her heckling, “As in expressing a preference and nothing more.”
“So, am I hearing you say that you prefer men to women?”
“Oh, Lord, help me! You know, perhaps if you let me off here I can still walk back to campus and get a ride from a sane person!”
Lauren is completely amused, and let’s go with a full-throated cackle of a laugh! James, also quite impressed with her wit cannot help but join her in this moment of pure comedy.
He sobers up and tries to explain himself. “Okay, listen. I truly enjoy driving with women as much or more than with men. Men tend to be either speeders or risk takers, women, not so much. So I don’t prefer men, ew; but at the risk of yet more ridicule, and if you promise to hear me out without interruption–”
“I promise.” Lauren gleefully interrupts.
He gives her a stern look and says, “Here’s the reason why I wrote that. You see, I was brought up to believe that—well, that a woman’s reputation is no less brittle than it is beautiful.
Lauren, unable to contain herself says, “Oh, my God, that’s a line from my favorite book!”
James, with a monotone and stern expression, “Mental note, never accept a promise from Lauren … Say, what’s your last name?”
“Coles.”
“Never accept a promise form Lauren Coles.”
Lauren laughing says, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, really. It’s just that I love that book. Please continue.”
James, smiling says, “Okay, okay. No foul, no harm. My mom reads that book every year! I know how you Pride & Prejudicers are! So, to finish my point; where was I? Oh, that’s right, a women’s virtue; which is how we got onto the Jane Austen thing. Anyway, since my mom has drilled into me how important it is that it doesn’t appear that a woman—a lady—is doing anything improper, I didn’t want to ask any lady, certainly not a stranger, to drive off with me for the weekend. You know, it doesn’t look good”
Lauren, tempted mightily to continue her fun, gets a hold of herself and returns her focus to her assignment. She simply says with sincerity, “Wow, that’s very … um, gentlemanly. Hmm”
“Thanks. And, besides that, I am a guy, and with another guy there’s no chance of any funny business, whereas with a woman, there’s always that temptation.” James catches himself. He immediately felt he had crossed a line. He feels his uneasiness returning. He didn’t say it, but he certainly implied the concept of sex! He could just hear her next question, Are you saying you wouldn’t want to have sex with me? He thinks, “Lord please, somehow get me out of this.”
Lauren certainly caught the inference, and James as a possible love interest is certainly an interesting topic to explore, but as an agent of the Secret Service, she would simply have to let it go. Side-stepping the matter entirely, and an answer to James’ prayers, she says, “Your mom seems to have taught you well. Are there any more at home like you?”
James smiles broadly and bordering on a laugh says, “Yes, one nutty little brother.”
Lauren notices his smile and with an intrigued smile of her own asks, “Why the big smile when you mentioned your brother?”
James was of course thinking about what Joseph asks him every single time they talk, “Have you met the Rachel twenty-nine, eleven girl?” a reference from the book of Genesis, chapter 29, verse 11. They are very close, and talk about everything! They have been brought up as good little Christian boys, and a byproduct of that has been a somewhat sheltered lives. They know lots of girls and are very close friends with some of them, but even though the
y are both attractive and have terrific personalities, neither has thus far ever fallen in love, and they are eager to see if it will be something like this reference from Genesis! James, of course, eludes explaining all of that and simply says, “Joe and I are very close, and I can hardly think of him without thinking about one of our many inside jokes. He’s a nut!”
Trying to keep the conversation light, Lauren adds, “It must be fun to have a brother like that. So you guys are close huh?”
“Yeah, we talk about everything.”
Lauren, on task asks, “And what’s the age difference?”
“We’re actually five years apart.
“Really? He must be a neat kid brother rather than a bratty pain in the butt-type brother.”
“Yeah, he’s great. So what about you, any siblings?”
“Nope, just my mom and me.”
James ventures a little further, “Do you guys get along well?”
“Oh, my, yes. She is … pretty much my best friend.”
James, very impressed, “That’s nice! It’s great when you can connect with your parents. My folks are great.”
Lauren continues her research, “Are you more like your mom or your dad?”
“Oh, my dad! It seems like I’m more and more like him everyday! He’s really a great dad, he works too much, but other than that, he’s pretty much the best dad in the world!”
“Wow! Really? I don’t know, my dad was pretty keen.”
James, picking up on the slightest hint of sadness in her voice and the fact that she said was, asks, “Your dad no longer around?”
Lauren, visibly less vibrant says, “No. We lost him in 2001. He was killed in the line of duty.”
“I’m so sorry.” After a moment he adds, “Well, he’s still your dad, only now perhaps he’s looking down on you from heaven, cheering you on. What’s your major?”
Lauren, briefly distracted from her cover says, “What?”
“What are you majoring in?”
“I’m criminology major.” Back on task she adds, “I’ve seen you in a couple of lectures, you tend to sit up front … and I guess my feelings should be hurt that you didn’t notice me.”
James counters with, “As you said, I’m sitting up front, so I don’t see who’s seated behind me.”
“Nice recovery.”
“I know, right?” They both crack up laughing.
Lauren looking to explain herself a little adds, “Actually I sit in back to practice my scene evaluation skills.”
“What’s that?”
“Oh, that’s right, you haven’t had that yet. Well, in one of your classes you’ll be asked to practice evaluating a scene in shorter and shorter amounts of time. Things like, who’s in charge, who looks like they are trained, exit routes and where they lead, and on and on.”
“Cool, I love it!” He adds jokingly, “No wonder you noticed me. You probably had me pegged as the most dangerous person in the room.”
Lauren, following his lead, “Yes, that’s it, most dangerous.”
Wait Stop Think
Spotting a McDonald’s up ahead she begins plotting how she might use their breakfast stop to get a message to Hinton. She figures there’s no excuse better than the potty break. She says, “Here’s our first meal of the day, Mc-A-Dees, if you don’t mind. Besides, I need to make a, um, ladies room run before we get on the highway.”
“Sounds good to me, I love McDonalds.”
Once inside, Lauren gives James a $10 bill, and telling him what she’d like, asks him to order for her. She then slips into the ladies room and text messages Hinton. She tells him their current location, what road they plan to be taking, and her next planned stop. She goes on to tell that James’ brother and he are very close and that she thinks she may be able to get solid intel from him.
Hinton is pleased with that news and after about a minute texts back, “Great, wht excuz did u giv 2 get him 2 NY?”
She texts back, “Didn’t, HE wanted 2 come hme 4 the fire.”
Hinton replies, “R U clear?”
Lauren isn’t quite sure what he means, but assuming he’s asking if she’s clear to take a phone call replies, “Yes.”
Instantly, her phone rings. It’s Agent Hinton, who says, “Phew, that text messaging was killing me! From now on, please let’s start with, can you talk.”
Amused, Lauren says, “It’s a deal.”
Hinton asks, “Did you say he wanted to come home because of the fire?”
“Yes!”
“What did he say about the fire? Does he remember the prophecy?”
“Well, he hasn’t actually said anything about the fire.”
“What? Then how do you know that’s why he’s going, Agent Lauren, don’t tell me you’ve forgotten the basics of your undercover training already. You can’t assume anything. You’ve got to ask him what’s the emergency, and why he’s headed home, and I mean right away!”
“Oh, shoot, you’re right. God what a rookie mistake! It should have been the first thing I asked, Ugh! Okay, any other quick tips? I might be outta touch for about two hours.”
“Don’t sweat it; just remember that you’re a college student, not a well informed analyst or agent. Keep the conversation on family and family relationships.”
“I’ve done that.”
“Good. And when he’s comfortable, start introducing topics like, weird phenomenon, or unbelievable-but-true type things. Act like you love to hear about such stuff. And don’t ask too many questions! Be patient and wait. Remember, people want to be interesting. Especially guys talking to girls.”
“Okay, I think I’ve got it. Anything else?”
“I’ve got little something to add on my end. You already know about the fire and the journal, if it still exists. We should be in the house fully by noon. They seem like a normal family in a normal neighborhood. When this prophecy thing was going eight-nine years ago, they were kind of new to the area. The church they were attending, or perhaps still attending was actually considering asking them to leave because of some of the freaky stuff that went down. Dad’s a hard worker and has been moving up the success ladder. Mom volunteers part time for their church, and is well liked, at least now she is. Apparently there was a church fire of some sort that really got them on the excommunication list; perhaps the kid is setting these fires, I dunno. If they’re as close as you say, maybe big brother knows if his kid brother has pyro issues. I dunno, you may wanna check that. I’ll have more on that in about an hour, so let’s plan to touch base in two.”
• • •
At precisely 9:30 a.m., and William Jesus Ramirez strides into Deputy Director, Harold Danning’s office. “Mornin’ Harry.”
Danning looks at him and says, “Bill, glad you could make it.”
It’s a perfectly amiable greeting, yet Bill Ramirez looks at his old friend suspiciously and asks, “What’s with the tone?”
“I guess you couldn’t get here any sooner?”
Ramirez tosses his coat onto the coat rack and as he sits down says, “Do not look at the teeth of a horse you are given, old friend!”
Danning, quite confused asks, “What?”
“You have it as, don’t look a gift-horse in the mouth. When someone is doing you a favor, don’t scrutinize it! You send me an email at, like, ten past two in the mornin’, and expect me to meet you at nine a.m.! You don’t even say where, so I’m guessing it must be your office—which, quite frankly, is a pain in the royal behind to get to! Like I don’t have a desk full of cases of my own, you know? If I have to work on a Saturday, you better bet it’s on my own stuff! I’m not officially assigned this cockamamie case, right? So the fact that I’m here at– What is it?” Looking at his watch, he adds, “It’s only nine thirty for pity’s sake! The fact that I’m over here at all is a miracle. So, hermano, don’t look a gift-horse in the mouth!”
“I know, I know. I’m sorry. I’m really losing it, aren’t I? Wow, you’re right. Look, Bill you’ve known me
for what, fifteen years, right? This is not me. I can hardly sleep over this thing. I mean, does any of this make sense?”
Ramirez, shaking his head in agreement, smiles and takes a deep breath.
Danning continues, “I mean, I’m reading the Bible like there’s no tomorrow! Outside of church, I gotta be honest, I don’t crack the thing open. And did you see Hinton’s email?”
Ramirez cuts in, “Yeah, well, there’s two ways to look at that.”
“What do you mean?”
Ramirez continues, “The part he’s lookin’ into now, the old fire. Maybe the kid’s a pyromaniac, and all this is just a cover.”
Danning looks at him incredulously, “What five-year-old kid can concoct this level of a complicated cover? Come on! And what about the Jennings woman prediction?”
“Then maybe he has an accomplice. Uh, or rather, he IS an accomplice.”
Danning takes a huge sigh and leans back in his chair, “I thought about that. I suppose that’s why I’m not sleeping. If all of this is just an incredible red herring, something to distract us … But how? I’ve not moved anyone off his or her position. It would have to be an unbelievably elaborate conspiracy. We don’t have time to play catch-up here!”
“I know. Hey I know somebody; I think you know her, Alice Wheaton? She’s over at National Security.”
Intrigued, Danning, says, “The name sounds familiar. Yeah, I think I’ve seen her in some high level briefings.”
“Well, she owes me a favor, and she has a crazy whacked out conspiracy-type mind, perfect for NSA—and just what you need!”
Danning hands him the phone, but Ramirez declines the offer with, “I better call from my cell phone. She too has her own full-time job, with her own cases and responsibilities. If I’m gonna call in a favor on a Saturday morning, I better make it personal.”
Danning can only hear Ramirez’s half of the conversation.
“Hey Al, how’s it going? … What do you mean? … Oh, c’mon, it has not. … No that’s n– … No … Noooo. Absolutamente no! Well … Well, Yeah … YEAH. Marcy told me you’d take it that way, but–”
The Journal: A Prophecy, A President & Death Page 8
