When Rome Stumbles

by David Kershner

  “You were planning on jumping the whole time?” Josh asked.

  “Of course, silly. It’s what I do... or did anyway. Never mind that. Everything I heard was recorded, but a laptop is a bit unwieldy. You’d be amazed what’s out there from a technology stand point.”

  “So what’s on the drive,” James asked.

  “Do you have a PC I can use, James?” Samantha asked.

  James stood up from his chair and walked to a cluttered desk. He moved some stacks of papers, dug his notebook from the pile, and returned to the table. Samantha opened the device and waited for it to boot up while everyone stared at her in anticipation.

  The group continued to pick at their food as they sat huddled around the machines tiny speakers. Everyone was listening intently as Edward and his guests discussed breaking into the USDA. Samantha provided the narration, occasionally clicking pause to explain who was speaking or provide context.

  “You didn’t really have people break in and steal the report did you?” Layla asked.

  “No, I just said that to carry favor,” Samantha answered.

  There were a few minutes of muffled sounds and then Edward’s voice could clearly be heard.

  Samantha clicked pause again and said, “We’re in Edward’s office now. This is where it gets really good. My father told me a great deal about these three, but he left a few parts out. I think he did it on purpose. I am pretty sure he needed me to hear it for myself or else he knew I wouldn’t take over the company.”

  Josh’s mind was racing. He was beginning to formulate an idea on how to best use this information. If Secretary McInerney is serious about providing a report to a Congressional body, they’d have to convene a hearing if a transcript of some of this were in there. A crime committed by sitting House Members is a huge deal. He’s got to be planning something else to force their hand. Maybe this is what he’s been waiting for.

  Samantha clicked play and the group began to hear about Congressman Davies and her father’s role in the downing of his aircraft in the everglades.

  “Oh my God,” Dallas exclaimed. “I remember when that dude was shot down. Is there anything these bastards won’t do?”

  “Just wait,” Samantha said. “There’s more.”

  * * *

  At precisely 9:00 PM, Josh dialed Secretary McInerney’s office line. He and Samantha sat on his bed waiting for the line to connect and for him to answer. All he wanted was for this nightmare to be one step closer to completion so he could return to his farm and live in peace and quiet. He didn’t know what was coming, but whatever it was it wasn’t going to be good. He didn’t like being this far from home. At least there he had some resemblance of control. Out here, there were too many variables.

  “Mother Hubbard! Is that you?” came the frantic voice over the line.

  “Yes, Bo Peep. This is Mother Hubbard.”

  Josh had explained to Samantha that while she lay unconscious in her bed at the cabin, someone had tried to assassinate Elias. When Samantha asked him about the odd code names, Josh replied that he had wished that he had come up with something better, but all he could think of were nursery rhymes.

  “Bo Peep, our line is secure. Has yours been swept?”

  “Yes, Mother Hubbard. We have a clean bill of health.”

  By employing this phrase, Elias had invoked a preset term from Josh’s letter. This assured Josh that a sterile line had been installed in Elias’s office.

  “I have someone that would very much like to speak with you. Hold the line,” Josh said as he covered the mouth piece and turned to Samantha.

  “You sure you want to do this?” he asked.

  “Now or never,” she answered with a shrug of her shoulders.

  Samantha took the phone and said, “Hello, Bo Peep. This is your lost sheep.”

  “Oh, thank God, “ Elias replied jubilantly. “I didn’t know if Mother Hubbard was a crack pot and this was all too good to be true, or if he was on the level.”

  “I had to do some healing. I had a bit of a fall I’m afraid.”

  “Is everything safe and sound?” Elias asked in reference to the audio recordings.

  “Yes, Bo Peep,” she replied. “I’d like to send you some of the story.”

  “Will you be utilizing the same delivery method as before?” he said referring to Josh’s initial letter.

  Samantha related the question to Josh and he nodded.

  “That’s an affirmative, Bo Peep. Mother Hubbard and your lost sheep, out.”

  * * *

  As the sun rose in the east, it slowly began illuminating the river valley below. Josh stood on the balcony of James’ cabin soaking in what little warmth was provided by the glowing orb on the early March morning. He contemplated heading back to his room for his pipe. No sooner had he closed his eyes and turned his face toward the light as his daughters passed by him with fishing poles in hand.

  “And where are you two headed?” Josh asked inquisitively.

  Stopping abruptly, Katherine answered for the pair, “Uncle Dallas said that the river was restocked in the fall with a new crop of Rainbow Trout. We wanted to see if there were any left.”

  “And where are he and James?”

  “They’re already down there getting the gear. We won’t be long. Please?”

  Pausing to think for a moment, Josh reluctantly answered, “Tell them that they need to carry their side arms.”

  “Okay,” they said in unison as they bound down the balcony stairs and began making their way towards Dallas’ riverside cabin.

  Samantha emerged from the house with two cups of black coffee and placed one on the banister in front of Josh.

  “You sure know how to pick the spots,” she said as she took a sip and began admiring the view.

  “When I was a kid, my dad used to bring me up to the area in the summer time to fish in the rivers for trout. In the winter, we’d stick to the swamps around Badin Lake or head east to Ft. Bragg for Wood Duck. He always liked the fishing up here though.”

  “You haven’t told me about him. What was he like?” Samantha asked

  “Oh, I imagine he was no different than any other military dad, I guess.”

  “He was Navy, right?”

  “Yeah, retired Commander. He’d spend his land duty time instructing or training and dreaming of being back on the open ocean. It was just the three of us, so when he was home on leave we’d go camping and what not. Mom’s family was there, so it made it easier to raise me when dad was at sea. When he was home, he was very involved though. He attended all of my games and banquets. As the XO (Executive Officer) of the ship he even managed to get one of the flyboys to give him a ride in an F-14 so he could be there before I left for my senior prom.”

  “Sounds like dedication runs in the family,” she offered.

  Josh smiled at the remark. “What I remember most were the fishing trips. We fished a lot when he was home. His favorite river was the Green River, just south of Asheville. The water down there is crystal clear, but gave off this brilliant emerald color.” Thinking for a moment, he continued with, “You know, I never did learn why it was that color. Maybe it was the algae or moss on the rocks. I’ve no idea,” he concluded more to himself than to Sam.

  “Oh my, deep thoughts with Josh Simmons,” Samantha said, playfully poking fun at him.

  He wrapped his arm around her waist and gave a gentle squeeze.

  “What’s this? Affection too?” she said slyly.

  Josh hadn’t realized what he had done. He quickly removed his hand from her hip and stepped away. “Sorry. Habit.”

  As he released her, she began, “I’m curious about something. What did you mean when you said ‘I thought I lost you’? Was that only for Layla or for both of us?”

  “Both, of course,” he answered. “I didn’t spend two months tending to you and treating you like a toddler just to have some shady ‘merc’ put a hole in you,” he replied, not realizing she might be looking for something more.<
br />
  “Oh,” she said as she tried to nonchalantly slide further away.

  Josh noticed the slight shift in her body and demeanor and realized he screwed up. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just that the last time I let emotion and feelings cloud a mission, I had to stuff a girl in a locker and it didn’t end well for me. If I don’t detach myself from that piece of it, I’ll lose focus. If I don’t stay alert and vigilant, people get hurt.”

  Forlornly she said, “That’s a hard way to go through life, Josh. I just thought that maybe after being inseparable for so long that maybe you had developed something more than a mission oriented mindset toward me. A girl can dream right?”

  “You’re a direct one, aren’t you?” he replied with a smile. “Look, I’m flattered that you’d be interested, but I’m damaged goods. You don’t need or deserve all of this baggage. You’re an attractive, intelligent woman. You should aim a little higher than me.”

  Josh shifted to face her and saw that she was quietly weeping. Crap. Changing the subject he asked, “Do you think you can finish transcribing that audio? I’d like to get it into Bo Peep’s hands as soon as possible.”

  Samantha sniffed loudly and nodded. As she turned to head back inside she said, “Ya know, for a man that supposed to be alert and vigilant, you sure are blind to the things sitting right in front of you. You can be a real jerk sometimes.”

  * * *

  Charles Javier “Javy” Dolbrow slyly slipped the bouncer a fifty and a dime bag. The large man glanced down at his payment and prompted lifted the velvet rope to allow Javy and his ‘guest’ to enter. The trendy West Hollywood club had only been open a short time, but it was already the next latest and greatest thing. Javy’s shadow was one of his many strung out customers and he owed Javy a favor.

  As with all new establishments in Tinsel Town, calls were made to agents and promoters to enlist the attendance of as many A-list actors and musicians as possible. One of those requests went to Anna Prescott. She handled only two actors, Jessica White and her daughter, Heather. The demand for interviews, script proposals, and product endorsements for the mother-daughter pair was overwhelming and practically a full time job by itself. The harried manager barely had enough hours in the day to service their careers let alone the calls for appearances. The thought of a third client would be too much without hiring an assistant.

  She had presented the promoters offer to both her clients as requested. Jessica declined as she was on location with her latest movie. Heather was in between gigs and replied to the request with, ‘What the hell, why not. But only if you come with me.’

  Javy spotted Heather the minute she walked in the door. She never travelled with an entourage. It was always just her mother, or her agent and a couple friends. He had to have her. Heather was his white rabbit.

  The predator leaned toward his junky client and slipped him the vial of rohypnol. If Heather wouldn’t come willingly, Javy would see to it that she didn’t have a choice in the matter.

  “When I give you the signal, dump this in her drink,” he said to the lackey over the sound of thumping club music.

  “Are you sure she won’t remember a thing?” he replied.

  “Absolutely!” Javy yelled back. “I’ve done this hundreds of times. She’ll just think she has a hangover. Now do what I tell you or go get your smack somewhere else!”

  What the needle tracked junky didn’t realize was that Javy wasn’t bragging or exaggerating. The trail of destruction from Javy Dolbrow and his late step-brother stretched from coast to coast following the celebrity club scene.

  The two men angled closer to the private seats that Heather and her manager were occupying. Javy circled around the back of the booth and then slowly loitered his way up to within ear shot and eavesdropped.

  “You really want to do a remake of some 80’s action movie?” Anna asked. “I mean come on! It’s being filmed in Pittsburgh and some backwater in Ohio. Why can’t you ever choose the ones with the exotic locales like Tuscany, or the south of France?”

  Heather didn’t answer her friend and agent. She just shrugged.

  Then it dawned on her manager.

  “Seriously?” she said incredulously. “The man is dead. His wife told you he was dead. What are you looking for?”

  “I don’t know. Closure, maybe. Something. There’s gotta be someone out there that can give me some answers. Perhaps a neighbor,” Heather replied annoyed at having to rehash the same discussion with her manager.

  “How about a death certificate! We don’t have one of those yet!” Anna replied indignantly.

  Heather jerked her head up quickly and scornfully stared at her agent.

  “Oh, sweetie. I’m so sorry. I don’t know why I said that. I just want you to be happy. Pouring over dusty records in between each movie is no way to spend your free time,” she clarified.

  “What would you have me do? You’ve seen mom. She never got over that guy. I’ve got a giant hole in me where a father should have been. I need something. A few answers aren’t too much to ask,” Heather replied to her friend.

  “I know, but you should be out on the town living it up. You’re twenty six years old for Pete’s sake! The man’s been dead for over a decade. You shouldn’t be wasting your time looking for a man who might have been your father.”

  Before Heather realized what she was saying, she revealed the family secret that she had been entrusted with by her late grandmother. Over the thumping beats of the DJ’s playlist, Heather shot back, “He’s not dead, Anna! Nana told me that he’s alive and that he is my father! Josh Simmons is my father!”

  Son of a bitch! Javy hadn’t heard that name since the conclusion of Josh’s murder trial. He had attended the proceedings every day and didn’t miss a single word of either attorney’s argument. The man with the PTSD diagnosis was to blame for the death of his brother, Emil. For a time he planned to exact his revenge, but just as quickly as the trial ended, Josh and his daughters disappeared.

  I’ve already had one of his daughters, might as well get a piece of the one he didn’t know about.

  Javy turned the corner and said, “Hello, ladies.”

  Anna quickly looked him up and down and immediately blocked his advances. “We’re in the middle of something right now.” She would have continued further, but for the vibrating phone on the table. She was content to ignore it except the caller ID came up as ‘LAPD’.

  “Ouch-ie,” he replied looking directly at Heather. “You always bring your pit bull with you to the club?”

  “Look, I don’t know what you think you’re doing,” Heather said confidently. “But whatever this is,” she began, as she gestured toward Javy. “It’s not happening. The tattoos covering up the needle marks on your arms tells me all I need to know. I’m not interested nor will I ever be. Now, do yourself a favor and get some help before that crap kills you.”

  Anna hung up the phone and practically screamed at Heather, “Your mom’s been in an accident! Tell this loser to kiss off already! We gotta go!”

  Chapter 15

  March 5th, 2022 – March 8th, 2022

  “Sir, the last of the Ambassadors has arrived.”

  “Thank you, Winston,” Prime Minister Goodspeed responded.

  A month prior, the Prime Minister had made his clandestine trip to the United States. When he relayed President Rayburn’s response, which was not favorable, the King lost all of the composure normally associated with a monarch.

  Under the King’s direction, the Prime Minister was instructed to fly to the Netherlands and convene a meeting in the United Nations wing of The Hague. He had been charged with convincing several Western European countries, and the former Oil Exporting Nations, to join England in the collection of U.S. debt. Combined, they were owed over a trillion dollars.

  In the King’s words, “If the colony doesn’t want to assist its mother country in its time of need, then they should be taught a lesson in diplomacy. Mr. Goodspeed, bring
it to its knees!”

  Before the outbreak of war in the Middle East, the Oil Exporting nations owned a little over $250B of the U.S. debt. When President Sarkes authorized the Keystone pipeline, these same nations hedged their bets. By 2020, the amount owed was approaching one trillion. Both the former and current POTUS had used the financial windfall from the export revenue to begin paying off the country’s biggest debtor, itself.

  Most nations buy and sell debt on a yearly, semi-annually, or quarterly basis depending on their monetary obligations and political needs. In the case of the United States, Treasury Bills, Bonds, and Notes were issued and each has its own maturation date. If redeemed before maturity, the nation trying to collect will take a thirty percent hit on the value. The United Kingdom, even with relations strained was long considered a trusted friend and ally, wanted to avoid this penalty. The Prime Ministers trip to D.C., under the cloak of night, had been an attempt to circumvent international finance laws. If they had been successful in brokering a backdoor deal, the monarchy would have managed a financial coup and an instant cash infusion to the tune of three hundred billion pounds. This was more than enough to keep the wolves at the door of the English economy at bay.

  Unfortunately for the Prime Minister, he was met by a stinging diatribe on Anglo-American relations over the last decade.

  President Rayburn had admonished the Prime Minister by stating, “Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t it the United Kingdom that blocked us from returning as a permanent member of the Security Council? I believe you sided with Germany, of all countries. And, wasn’t it the English that allowed reporters to video scenes of collateral damage throughout the Middle East? Then your government had the audacity to point the finger at U.S. military leadership, intel, and weapons manufacturers. Now you want the United States to assist you in avoiding costly early withdrawal penalties to save your economy and credit rating? You know what, Goodspeed? You can tell your blue blooded, inbred, hemophiliac monarch to go spit!”