by Sweth Water
“Who were they?”
“I don’t know. They were sent by the same person who called us.”
“How much money?”
“Fifty thousand Euros.”
“Wireless transfer?”
“No. Cash. The man said it was easy to get the account number through the banks. He didn’t want to risk it. Please ... please don’t kill me.” Alex pleaded. Tears rolled down on his cheeks.
Tom had seen fear on many faces. This one was different. “Who handed the cash to you?”
“It was left ... left near Book Store in the downtown. At night, I got a call and took the money.”
“Mobile number?”
“I don’t have that. They gave me a cell phone and took it back last night, told me to drop it near the bus stop on the 23rd Long Street.”
“When you got the money?”
“1st Nov.”
“Time?”
“It was after 11 p.m. I don’t remember the exact time, I swear. Please.”
“The world will remember that your actions on 1st Nov changed the course of the future. Gothar,” Tom believed whatever he said. If he was still lying after seeing what he did to his buddy, then torturing him wouldn’t give them the details. “Take this man into custody. Send him to the local PD. Give me Agent Gin on the phone. Let’s hunt whoever is behind the curtains.”
Chapter
9
It was 10 a.m. How long Fog was going to sit at the Headquarters Coal couldn’t have said. He had waited patiently for his departure. It didn’t happen. Maybe he’d known what Coal would be doing behind his back. He let the thought go and sat on the chair, near the balcony.
For the whole night they waited for Gin, talked with Taking over the phone. He’d said he didn’t know about her whereabouts. Nobody knew where this woman was. Coal had this feeling of something not good happening around them. Top One would directly report to the President. Even the Headquarters was not looped in for any ongoing searches and collaborations with other agencies. And he was not in any position to call the President directly.
He was hopeless.
The burden of his wife’s death was unbearable for him. He tried to concentrate on the work. The incident was not helping him.
On that day, he’d gone to the pharmaceutical. Not for five minutes he’d left his wife and the truck banged the car so hard that it pushed the car for few meters. The ambulance was called, and in the hospital she was declared dead; she’d died before reaching the hospital. The driver was caught and charged with so many sections of the law.
What they were going to do with him didn’t concern him. His wife was dead, and he wouldn’t be able to do anything to bring her back.
“Coal.” Baldwin said. He was working on the laptop that he brought with him.
They were in the room given to them by Chase. Coal had been trying to get some sleep since he came in the room. Chase had told the officers and agents with her to look into the hacked satellite. Coal was sure it was work of someone who hacked the secured ports of the Office. Headquarters was informed about it just after they found out.
Baldwin’s voice shook him from the slumber he was going into.
“Yes?”
“You should take some rest. We have a long day ahead.”
“I can’t stop thinking that my wife was a traitor.” Tears fell from his eyes.
“We don’t have solid proof yet, Coal. I have told you several times.”
“I saw her name on the disk.”
“Which can be put for a reason. It can be a deceit.”
Coal wiped his tears without letting him see them. “You got anything for me?”
“Getting closer.”
“What are you working on?”
“Just got the words from the Headquarters. RAAD had some men near the house, working on the assault. If my guess is not wrong then the firing at us could be from them.”
“When it happened?”
“Fifteen minutes ago. The local PD got the man in custody. Fog is emphasising to have the man at the Headquarters. He says ... wait. Let me put him on the speaker.” Baldwin removed the earpiece. “Fog, you are with Coal and me. Go on.”
“As I was saying, these two cases are connected. The men breaking into the Department and a team ready to assault on an officer, which can be you, Coal.” Fog said over the phone.
“You sure of it?” Coal asked.
“I am getting the live feed from RAAD. The director of RAAD wants to brief us on the situation. Can use our database and servers to get into the matters. The man arrested by the police said some information was passed to the officer. Your wife’s involvement I can see somewhat, don’t mind. Anything that your wife told you and these people think it was going to change the course of the defence of the country led them to attack you. You remember something vital, Coal?”
It was like the nightmare was going to come true. He didn’t say anything for some time.
“Coal, you there?”
“Yes, sorry. Can you repeat the question?”
“Did your wife talk about some defence system or schematics that led the person to attack you?”
“No, Fog. She was an innocent woman,” his voice was sharp, filled with contempt for the words Fog was using. “The man told the name of the officer?”
“No,” Fog said.
“I want to talk to the man. And the people who were arrested in the Department. Now.”
“You are in Venhoa.”
“I can drive to the Headquarters. Give me your approval. Things will get settled once these people start talking.”
“Top One is handling the operation, Coal. I don’t have the rights to make the call now. Though I can talk with some officials to spare a few hours for you to get here.”
“Thank you, Fog.”
And the line went dead.
“You really want to go there?” Baldwin asked.
“I can’t do anything by sitting here. Gin is gone somewhere far from our reach. We have been trying to have a crystal clear view of our objectives since yesterday. What we got? Nothing. Just instructions to follow.”
“I should go with you.”
“No. Chase might need some help from the Headquarters. Your presence should be required. They have the live feed from there. You can utilize that too.”
“Okay. I will let you know once I have the whereabouts of Gin.”
“Good.”
“When are you leaving?”
“Now.”
“Now?”
“Before Fog says he doesn’t get the approvals, I want to be in the city to have my hands on those people. Fog will leave the office before I get there; he has been working for hours.”
“You are driving?”
“Yes.”
Baldwin raised his brows.
“I am feeling good. I know I didn’t sleep. Will go now.”
“I can drive you to the office and come back here. We shouldn’t ignore the possibility of another attack.”
“The assailant died, and other members are either dead or captured.”
“One can be still out there that you happened to see.”
“I will be okay. Don’t worry.”
Coal was very stubborn, so Baldwin didn’t push any further.
He packed his things in fifteen minutes, looked in the mirror one last time and went outside the building without telling Chase. She would have a number of questions and some paperwork to do. He shrugged the thought while leaving; he had other vital things to do. This paperwork could be handled by Baldwin.
He drove the car to Earling.
Two times he was stopped by the police officers and asked to show the credentials. He was not going to the Office, though they asked to be sure he should not be a criminal leaving the city. The traffic was normal. Only countable cars were on the road.
He was outside the city in thirty minutes.
On the highway, he stopped to buy some sandwiches.
It was noon and he’
d not eaten since morning. He ate sandwiches in his car and stared at the people getting out of the shop. It was not because of any suspicion but sleep. His eyes were closing. He should not have left the city. Though he didn’t regret it. It is very cheap to regret the things now that you wanted in your life at a certain point of time.
He drove for thirty miles and didn’t find another car. Did he take the right path?
He blinked and checked the GPS.
Sleepless night was showing its effect.
They didn’t have the control of the satellite.
He parked his car near a motel.
Five more cars were there, and two bikes. It was open and laughter he heard from inside.
At the reception, he saw a young woman in a white shirt and blue pants. Her black hair braided to a bun and had a broad smile on her face. He asked for a room for few hours. Three to five hours would be enough to take some rest. The woman asked his ID and gave him the keys.
The room was in the backyard of the motel. Only three rooms were there. It was not a big motel like the ones he’d been into during different operations. It was built just a few months ago – its cleanness and colour and the structure showed the truth. The door of the room was of brown colour, wood was as solid as iron. He put the key and opened the door.
One small bed was lying near the corner of the window. Two tables and one big chair in the middle of the room. Only one shelf was there to keep the belongings. He’d only one bag, mainly weapons and some clothes that they ordered online on amazon. He locked the door behind, kept his gun on the table and opened the window to let the air come inside. The cool breeze made him feel alive again. He took few deep breaths and started removing his clothes.
His head hit the bed and eyes were closed.
Only darkness was there.
Buzzing of his cell phone awakened him. His eyes reluctant to open even with the force. Blurring number was on the screen. Using his elbows, he backed himself. Sunlight was falling over his face. His throat was raw. He needed some water.
Was it the ringing of someone calling him or alarm? He’d set an alarm last week. He had the talk with himself to go out and talk with people. It was time to move on. Each day he tried and failed. Maybe it was easy to say and hard to live on that.
Struggling with the body, he realized his phone was still ringing.
He swiped right to answer the call.
“Coal?” Someone spoke over the phone.
“Who is this?” He settled himself on the bed and coughed hard.
There was some network problem there. He didn’t realize what was said to him. He didn’t even know if it’s a woman or man.
“Hello?” he said.
“Coal?”
The voice was a little louder than before. His eyes shut, trying to get the name of the voice. He had heard the same voice somewhere. He coughed again, and his eyes opened more than before.
“Rose?” he said, finally.
It was his wife.
His dead wife.
Chapter
10
He was back at home. They were happy to see him in the evening. He wished they could spend more time together on weekdays too. His handsome son, Park, was playing with the football; and his daughter, Penny, was talking to her teddy-bear. Happy family.
His wife was sitting next to him on the couch, watching the news. Tom’s name appeared on the news channel and Jill smiled.
“I am proud of you, Tom.”
He kissed on her forehead.
“You are a man, so you will never realize how lucky I am to have a person like you in my life. I don’t know if I did some good things in the past that led us cross each other’s paths.”
Jill was a little philosophical about everything. Had the credence of omens and karma. She was a good woman. He was blessed to have her in his life. But he never told her this. He didn’t know the reason; and he wanted to keep that in this way.
“Honey, don’t you start it again,” he pulled her closer. She put her head on his shoulder. “You know I hate philosophers. They talk too much. You should read some other books.”
“Mr. Tom, now you are enraging me. Two things I can’t leave: first, my family, and second, philosophy. So don’t say that again.”
He smiled.
He had said it many times. She never got aggravated by that. In his own mind they were the perfect couple.
Jill got up and took Penny in her arms when she called her. Penny would get bored very quickly with her toys; on the other hand, Park could play with his football for hours. His son smiled after bouncing the ball. They were in a small room. Tom had told them not to play in the bedrooms and hall. Last month they broke a vessel given to them on their marriage anniversary. He didn’t scold Park. Anger is not the emotion that children should see, it stays with them for years.
Tom changed the news channel.
The reporter was at the location which they stormed in the very morning. Police officers secured the parameter and didn’t allow the reporters to go inside. Few meters away they stood, telling the story in their own ways. People were concerned for their loved ones now. They had run out of their houses after few minutes of the firing.
Much part of the work was over.
The guy they had was transferred to the Headquarters in Earling. Two cases they were handling. One was the breach inside the Department, and other was an attack on the officer. He’s confirmed that an officer named Coal was attacked yesterday. An assailant died, and another escaped. The local PD was still pursuing the man.
Tom wondered what information was shared with Coal.
His file he’d downloaded from the server before leaving the office. He switched off the TV and took his laptop out. He sat in the balcony.
The first page showed the picture of Coal and the operations he’d handled. It was impressive. He could have been in RAAD if he’d applied. It made Tom proud to work with amazing people, people who were ready to do anything to save the country. And his agency, RAAD, was filled with those people who laid their lives to protect the nation.
RAAD came into existence after the election was won by Madam President. She had been in the army before she swore into the Office. She knew what would be at stake if she was in the Office, and then making the decisions for all the people of her country. So she decided to have a new agency which would be directly handled by her.
RAAD was a different agency. It didn’t need to follow the protocols. That’s why he killed the man there and had a coverup story for that. And the man they arrested wouldn’t be believed if he said Bran was killed in cold blood. Before joining the agency, he worked as a police officer. What Madam President saw in him he didn’t know, but he was happy that he was chosen for this.
All the bad people can’t be entertained with the rights given to them. That’s where bullets work.
He clicked on the arrow and second page flipped up.
Coal didn’t have any children, his wife died two months ago. He was not in office for weeks, his logging information showed that. Tom understood the situation he was passing through. It is not easy to lose someone you love. But it is the law that people go away from our lives, naturally or unnaturally; we can’t change it.
Coal was a good officer. His link with anyone to harm the nation was not making any sense. Legal steps would have been taken had he been connected to any of this. No record he found in the database of RAAD. He spent few more minutes and then gave up. He called Gin to ask about it, but she didn’t pick.
Jill showed up with two mugs of coffee.
She handed him one. “Still working on something?”
“You can’t take rest in RAAD.” He sipped the coffee. It was wonderful. Whatever Jill cooked he liked most. He preferred food at home, especially if made by Jill.
“No interview today? I was guessing you would be at the talk shows to tell about the operation.”
Tom smiled. “They actually called me. I had no intention to go there and waste some ti
me. They are getting good ratings of what they are doing at the crime scene. So thought of spending some time with you all as I promised.” He sighed and sipped the coffee again. “Sorry, we couldn’t go there.”
“Don’t be. Your work was important. I understand, Tom. I was angry with you when you left in the morning. Then I realized I was so wrong. People outside our family need you as much as we need you.”
“We will go there next week. This whole operation would be over by then.”
“Is it not over yet?” Jill looked at his face. “You found the guy, right? That’s what the news channels are saying.”
“We did actually. The real people behind the attack on the officer and their plan are still at large. The local PD will send the information soon.”
“You will be leaving then?” She was sad.
He put his laptop on the table and stood up. He kissed on her forehead. “Don’t worry. Nothing comes up right now. They will call me if needed. Until then I am here with you.”
“Park was asking of you. He said you would go with him for shopping?”
“Yes, I almost forgot. I will take him outside. You need anything?”
“No, we women, Penny and me, would go tomorrow.” She smiled.
He gulped the coffee and took a bath, collected his car keys and drove the car to the market. Streets were full of people. Not all the people were same; some had the courage to stay strong in the bad times, some didn’t. His neighbours were the strong people he ever lived with. Not all the names he knew but met tens of them and remembered their names and working locations as they discussed over the dinners.
The first stop was a deli. He parked the car in the parking lot. Richer’s Deli was a famous shop in the city. Most of the daily useable products he would buy from here. Park hopped out of the car and walked with Tom.
Richer was talking with a customer over the phone. His business was not very big, but he would get decent money. And that money was more than what Tom was earning. In that case, Richer was lucky. He saw them and raised two fingers. His smart face and deep pitch voice were unique in his family. He was still a bachelor and would spend much of his time at the shop.
