“Why, thank you for your concern, Agent Sykes,” Sotello intoned. “You could run with us, and watch out for me.”
“I don’t care that much.”
Sotello laughed in appreciation. They both heard the motion detector go off. Sykes put her hand inside her robe, and around the handle of her Ruger 9mm. Sotello checked the monitor, and gestured everything was okay.
“It’s Adrian,” Sotello said. “He told me he was going to check his sources since the second debate, and meet me here to go over them. He stayed down in LA to gauge the reactions in our Southern part of the state.”
Sotello met Phillips at the door, and gave him a suave gesture, beckoning him inside. Phillips walked into the kitchen, rubbing his hands together.
“Hi Jan, you’re up early.”
“I have to make sure Bullseye gets back from his dog run. I can’t sleep since the shoot at the Capital, once he goes out,” Sykes explained.
“It would be easier if he would just follow orders until the election, wouldn’t it?” Phillips agreed.
“And a heck of a lot safer,” Sykes added.
“Hello,” Sotello broke in. “I’m here. Can you stop talking about me in the third person?”
Phillips laughed, and sat down with his briefcase on the table, sipping from the coffee he had poured. “Your numbers are holding Jim. The environmental stand did not affect you as much as we thought.”
“What about the set to, Davidson and I had on Immigration in the second debate?” Sotello asked. “It looked good on TV, but they’ve already began to take sound bytes, out of context, to mangle.”
“Most everyone, other than the people here illegally, are with you on immigration,” Phillips replied, looking at his charts. “The usual suspects are demonstrating, and the Teachers’ Union has made defeating you its number one goal. They spent millions in the last couple of days on advertisements, excoriating you in Southern California on breaks for illegal immigrants in our colleges. They call you xenophobic as if it were your name, but most of what they’ve done so far has backfired, even among Latinos. The assassination attempt lionized you, Jim.”
“Your quip about downgrading the attacks from bullets to vegetables was the funniest off the cuff remark I ever heard,” Sykes remarked, chuckling at the memory. “They play that one all the time up here.”
“What made it so funny,” Phillips added, “was the way Denton and Stevens cracked up too. Thank God it was on live mike. We could not buy the publicity we received from that line. The people liked the fact you went on with the debate after an assassination attempt, and never even made mention of it. Davidson hated the fact he could not debate you away from an audience like he did the first time.”
“He had enough backers planted in there to be heard,” Sotello said.
“Yea, but we never had to plant anyone. Your supporters drowned out his crowd when ever they had the opportunity.”
“Red will be on his own turf for the last one though,” Sotello reminded Phillips. “I wonder what he’ll have to surprise me with this time. We had to cover immigration last time, whether he wanted to or not. At least we gave them a clear choice.”
“That’s another thing I wanted to talk to you about Jim,” Phillips replied. “The Governor canceled the last debate.”
“What?” Sotello exclaimed, straightening up in his chair. The quick move caused him to regret it, as his bruised chest reminded him of the fact he had shed his chest wrap, when he took off his armored vest, after the run.
“I see you have a ways to go on the recovery trail,” Phillips noted.
“He forgets the black and blue canvas under his shirt once in a while,” Sykes remarked.
“Not likely,” Sotello said, as he shifted slowly into a more comfortable position.
“Did you have any aspirin yet, Bullseye?” Sykes asked, getting up when Sotello shook his head negatively. She went to the cupboard and retrieved the aspirin. She brought over a glass of orange juice for Sotello to wash the pills down with.
Sotello threw down three aspirin, and gulped his orange juice. “Thanks Jan. Now what about the debate?”
“Red says he has the flu,” Phillips answered. “What he really has is a case of the no chance in hell blues. He knows another debate will not make up the double-digit lead you have. He’s decided to let the smear campaign do its work, rather than dig himself an even deeper hole.”
“I could use the rest. Our campaign swing through Southern California took a little more out of me than I had anticipated.”
“Hey, at least we didn’t get shot at,” Sykes remarked. “What are we doing for Halloween? Do you actually give out candy?”
“Every year,” Sotello replied, “but usually I only get about ten kids. Maybe this year, there will be a slew of them. Craig and Ellen sometimes come over if they aren’t doing anything, because I decorate the house pretty well. I guess Craig will be over here anyway, considering.”
“Considering what?” Sykes asked, as Phillips chuckled.
“Ah… nothing,” Sotello said, smiling. “It just seems I have seen a lot more of Craig lately than I have since he lived here.”
“I thought perhaps you were casting aspersions onto our discretion as a couple,” Sykes retorted. “We have been very discreet.”
“If you say so,” Sotello replied, “but that cover story I saw on the Enquirer front page yesterday says different.”
“What!” Sykes exclaimed, jumping from her chair. “How could… I… oh, I see, its pin the tail on the FBI agent again this morning,” Sykes sighed, looking at Sotello and Phillips’ faces, as they burst into laughter.
“Anyway,” Sotello continued, “we’ll just kick back and give out candy. If anyone drops by, we’ll entertain.”
“Did you hear about the Sotello masks?” Sykes asked.
Sotello laughed. “Yep, if you put one on, a bullseye appears on your chest, right?”
“I’m not kidding, Jim. Tell him Adrian.”
“She’s right,” Phillips said. “We sell them in our campaign offices, along with the t-shirts.”
Sotello had begun laughing so hard, he had to hold his chest against the pain. Sykes and Phillips looked at him in puzzlement. Finally, he regained control, and wiped his eyes.
“Well, do you think I’ll be as big as Freddy Kruger, or the guy in the hockey mask?” He asked good-naturedly.
“No,” Sykes answered quickly, “but I heard you’re gaining on the Clinton and Nixon masks.”
__
Sotello answered the door with a bowl of candy, after hearing his electronic witch get triggered at the doorway by its motion detector. It had started to cackle, and go through its Halloween rhyme. A blonde haired woman stood at his door. Sotello could see she was immaculately dressed in a black low-cut dress, and matching high heels. She had her arms crossed across her chest, because of the chill. Her face crinkled into a smile in the red glow of Sotello’s Halloween porch light.
Puzzled, Sotello looked beyond her at the security detail, stationed in front of his house since the attempted assassination at the Capital debate. He saw a hand wave an okay from the window of the Ford, parked in front. Sotello returned his attention to the woman.
“Hi, can I help you?”
The woman stepped a little nearer, so Sotello could see her a bit better through the screen door on his entrance. Her voice, a soft, light yet husky tone, stunned Sotello. He handed the bowl of candy to a confused Sykes, and stepped out through the screen door.
“Hi Jim,” she said softly. “Remember me?”
He enfolded her into his arms. “Kathy, what in the world brings you here to my door on Halloween night?”
They stood motionless together, as Craig, Ellen, and Sykes crowded in the doorway.
“I kept hearing about you trying to get yourself killed out here, and I just had to come and see for myself,” Kathy said, her voice muffled a bit as she clung to Sotello with her face on his chest.
Sotello held her o
ut at arms’ length. Her light blue eyes shone in the eerie light of the porch. They glistened wetly, as she held back tears. Sotello kissed her. Not a ‘hi, hello’, how are you kiss, but a kiss from the depths of his soul. He had not realized how much he had missed her until this moment. She responded with abandon, and her feet left the porch in his fevered embrace, as she threw her arms up around his neck, molding her body to his.
“Get a room,” Craig said, as Ellen elbowed him in the ribs. Sykes watched the couple on the porch with interest, a smile coming to her lips.
Sotello let Kathy go reluctantly, and reached back to reopen the screen door to pull her inside. Kathy immediately hugged Craig and Ellen.
“Oh my God, you two,” Kathy said breathlessly. “It’s been so long.”
“Kathy,” Craig said, pulling Sykes over next to him, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “This is Special Agent Jan Sykes, FBI. She has been assigned to guard my Father. Jan, this is Kathy Reynolds.”
Kathy shook Sykes’ hand, “I’m so happy to meet you. Jim and I are old friends.”
“I see that,” Sykes said, grinning.
Sotello stood motionless, and suddenly he realized they were all waiting for him to say something.
“Just stand there like a big goof, Dad,” Ellen laughed.
“I… I don’t know what to say,” Sotello said hesitantly.
“Well, that’s a first,” Craig needled him. “Come on in, and sit down Kathy. Maybe the Governor will find his voice later.”
They all laughed, and Craig led them into the living room, where the four of them had been watching Jeepers Creepers on DVD. “We were just watching a movie while we waited for Trick or Treaters,” Craig explained.
Sotello found it impossible to look away from his friend. Everything she did, from her shoulder length blonde hair tossing lightly as she walked, to the way she glanced up at him almost shyly, fired a longing within him he had buried in the events of the last few months. She took his hand, drawing him down next to her on the couch, as the others pulled up chairs around them.
“It seems like years since I saw you last,” Sotello whispered, ignoring the looks Sykes and his two offspring were sharing at his expense.
“Don’t play so hard to get Dad,” Craig said, as he parried another blow from his sister, only to get a slap at the back of his head from Sykes.
The witch began her cackling outside the door again, and the three young people went to answer the door. This time, a group of eight young children were on the porch, and three of them had Sotello masks and t-shirts on. Even the laughter at the door, and commotion from Craig, doing a first class Donald Duck imitation, could not distract Sotello.
“I missed you Jim,” Kathy told him, holding onto his right hand with both of hers.
“You didn’t even send me a card,” Sotello replied hesitantly. “I figured you had decided to move on, and not look back.”
“I tried,” Kathy admitted. “When the news of the California campaign, and the assassination attempts started making news, I began following every scrap of information. I… I wanted to come weeks ago, but I figured you probably didn’t want to get involved with me again.”
“Did you have getting involved again on the agenda?” Sotello asked. “What about your job?”
“I want to be back in your life, even if we have to work in different states,” Kathy replied earnestly. “We’re grown ups. We don’t have to be with each other every second. You told me that before I left, and I wasn’t listening. Well, I’m listening now. I don’t know what I would have done if you had been killed. I know if you become Governor, the time you will be able to spend with me will be limited, but I don’t care.”
Sotello saw Craig wave at the kids on the porch, and then shut the door. “Stick around Kath, we’ll get some time to talk eventually. Right now, we will have to put up with the three musketeers.”
Kathy laughed, and released his hand. “Just so you’re thinking about what I said.”
“You can count on that,” Sotello said, as he leaned over and kissed her.
“I can’t walk away for five seconds,” Craig said, tapping his foot on the carpet with his arms folded across his chest. “I think you both need a time out.”
“Maybe you’re right Number One,” Sotello agreed. “I could tell Kathy about the funny incident outside Agent Sykes room the other night. I bet…”
“See,” Sykes said, cutting in, and slapping Craig on the back of the head again. “I told you not to bother him. Jim, why don’t you and Ms. Reynolds here go have some coffee, and catch up on old times. The mime here, with Ellen and I, will watch the rest of this movie. We’ll take care of the Trick or Treaters too.”
“Fair enough,” Sotello agreed. “Come on Kathy. I have a pot of coffee made.”
As Kathy stood up, Ellen came over and gave her another hug. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Thanks El. I’m working on seeing you all more often,” Kathy replied, looking at Sotello. “We’ll talk again, after I convince your Father not to throw me out.”
“Oh yeah,” Craig quipped. “Now there’s the real danger. More likely, they’ll have special ops troops breaking in here to get him to release you.”
Kathy laughed, as she latched onto Sotello’s arm to keep him from getting his hands on a retreating Craig. Sotello stopped, but he waved a warning finger at Craig, who covered his face in mock horror. Sotello sighed, and threw his hands up in the air, taking on the longsuffering Father role instantly, with a shake of his head.
“Oh please,” Ellen laughed. “Go in the kitchen before you two start a riot.”
Kathy stopped, and turned back around. “El, are you still seeing Jason?”
The blood drained out of Ellen’s face, as she shook her head in a slight negative way. Instantly, she knew by the look on her Father’s face he would not let the question go unanswered, and Craig had come over to put a protective arm around her shoulders. Craig leaned over closer to her ear.
“Bambi, the car stopped, and they’ve turned out the headlights. It’s okay to blink those big eyes again.”
Ellen joined in the laughter self-consciously. Kathy came over with a look of concern. “I’m sorry, Honey. I forgot about keeping that one to myself. Maybe I should have left already.”
Ellen shook her head. “It’s okay Kathy. I was looking for a time to tell them, but I was in an accident on a case, and I didn’t see him for a while. We went out last week. I almost brought him with me tonight. That’s why you surprised me, when you asked me that out of the blue.”
“So, you’ve been keeping secrets young lady,” Sotello accused her. “On top of that, you told Kathy about it a long time ago. So, what’s the big deal? I’ve met other guys you’ve dated.”
“Yea,” Craig added. “We’ve seen what bad taste you have, Sis. You didn’t have to hide this guy from us. Has he done hard time? C’mon, spill it.”
“It’s nothing like that, you dweeb,” Ellen said, pushing her brother away. “I told Kathy about him, because I liked him, but we just didn’t have much in common. I asked her advice on whether to continue seeing him. We are on opposite sides on almost every issue, and he hates everything about Dad’s campaign platform.”
“So,” Sotello commented. “He doesn’t have to like us at all. I can’t believe you have been dating someone this long without even Craig knowing about it. You have gotten awfully good at this private detective stuff. She used my teachings against us, Number One.”
“We find out things when people request it specifically,” Craig said defensively, rubbing his chin as if in deep concentration. “We should have noticed some clues though. She’s good Dad. No faraway looks, no heavy sighs at inappropriate times, no…”
“Shut up,” Ellen said threateningly. “You just think you are so funny.”
“We wouldn’t hurt your liberal boyfriend, El,” Craig assured her. “I’ve been getting close to Sykes here, and she’s just left of Mao. I…”
&nb
sp; Sykes attacked from behind, jumping up on Craig’s back, wrapping her arms around his neck to play as if she were shutting off his air. Craig pantomimed silent, gasping screams, as he waved his arms in terror.
“I warned you,” Sykes hissed, as she throttled him harder. “Will you shut up, or do I have to really hurt you?”
“I’ll be good,” Craig rasped, as the others laughed at his antics.
Sotello turned to Kathy after Sykes had jumped down. “You see what kind of a bad influence Craig has been on my security detail. I guess this explains why El won’t bring her boyfriends home.”
“I’ll bring him,” Ellen relented. “He heard your last debate on immigration, and I thought the phone would melt when he called me. We don’t discuss politics, but you pushed his buttons so well, he couldn’t help himself. It made me think maybe it would not be such a good idea to bring him around yet.”
Sotello sat back down, pulling Kathy next to him again on the coach. “When did you meet him, and how is it you talked to Kathy about him first?”
Ellen sat back down with a sigh. “It’s no big deal. He’s here on a student visa. I met him for the first time about eight months ago. He was in a political science class with me, and he was so far left, he was kind of funny. Jason asked me to dinner a couple of times, and we got along pretty well. That was when I talked to Kathy.”
“Have you been seeing him steady since then, Sis?” Craig asked, as he and Sykes sat down too.
“Not really,” Ellen replied. “Right after I talked to Kathy, Jason and I only saw each other in class, and had lunch a few times. When our class together ended, he said he would be calling me, but he never did.”
“So, when did you get back together with him, and how could you keep this from me?” Craig kidded her.
“Not everything’s about you, butthead,” Ellen retorted with a laugh. “We didn’t go out again until just after we returned from overseas, and Dad’s campaign had begun. I had stopped to get a coffee on campus, and he came to my table to say hi. Jason asked me out to dinner. He told me he had gone back home to China for a while. We…”
Sotello: Detective, ex-FBI, ex-Secret Service (DeLeo's Action Thriller Singles Book 1) Page 53
