The Journal: Raging Tide: (The Journal Book 4) (20 page)

“Now, keep in mind they were only trying to
help me,” I said, defending my duo. “They created a file for me. A
classified file. If anyone tries to access it, they need a very
high security clearance, and even then it directs them to a file
that says I’ve been assigned to a covert operation. The files are
empty, of course, and if further search is done it just loops. I
thought it pretty clever of them.”

Jim glanced over at me in disbelief, and
then started laughing. “I told you you made a lot of friends there!
How did they find out?”

“Quite by accident. They were testing the
search engines and used me as the trial. When they found out I
didn’t exist within the Army, they didn’t question why. All they
were concerned with was that I was protected. Oh, and the files are
dated a year ago, so you’re off the hook, Colonel. How long do you
think you’ll need to complete whatever it is you need to do?”

“I’m hoping no more than two days. It will
depend on Washington,” he replied, slipping back into an
introspective mood. The road smoothed out and we arrived at Sawyer
AFB an hour later, presenting our military ID at the security
gate.

“Welcome back, Colonel, Lieutenant. We’ve
been expecting you. I have a message for you from Major Kopley,”
the young guard said, handing over a sealed envelope.

Jim parked the Humvee near the barracks
building and opened the envelope.

“He wants to see us as soon as we get
settled in,” he said after scanning the letter.

“I wonder what’s up?”

“My guess is Hogan has been in touch and he
wants to congratulate us.”

“On what?”

Jim smiled. “Point D. Our engagement.”

“Oh.”

Ah, yes, the point A to point D remark I
made a few days ago when we left the Soo. There hasn’t been time to
even discuss if we wanted to explore points B and C that we jumped
right over.

“Are you ready for a bit more role playing,
Allex?” he asked gently and with a touch of humor.

“Now that I know what’s going on, I think I
can handle it, Jim. Before, it was a surprise and caught me off
guard. How far are we going to take this?”

“As far as we need to to keep Kopley at
bay,” he said, getting out of the dusty Hummer. “Just don’t flinch
when I touch you.” We each grabbed our duffel and headed toward the
squat gray buildings that were to be our quarters for the next day
or two.

*

“Colonel Andrews! Welcome back, sir.” Major
Kopley, extended his hand to Jim.

“It’s good to be back, Steve, though we
won’t be staying long,” Jim said to his friend and fellow officer.
“I need an office with a secure computer to finish some
correspondence.”

“Certainly, Colonel. You can have my office
for as long as you need.” Kopley turned to me. “It’s good to see
you again, Lieutenant. We’ve been informed about your unfortunate
experience. How are you doing?” he asked with sincere concern.

“I’m recovering, Major, thank you. Although
there are still a few bruises and broken bones to heal, I’m going
to be fine.”

“I must say, during your last stay here you
two hid your relationship very well,” Kopley continued. “Dan told
me about that too. Congratulations.”

“Thank you. At the time, Steve, there wasn’t
much to hide,” Jim stated. “Allex and I have had a great deal of
respect and fondness for each other the entire time we’ve been
acquainted.”

“The kidnapping changed things. It was an
awakening to how we really felt toward each other,” I interjected,
which got a surprised look from Jim. “Initially I was told Jim was
dead. I hadn’t felt that much grief since my husband died. When he
rescued me, well, like I said, things changed.” I smiled up at Jim
and said, “Point B.” He looked stunned.

“If you don’t mind, gentlemen, I will leave
you to work, and I’m going to find the medic and have my bandages
changed.” I walked away with only the slightest limp.

*

The field hospital was easy to find on the
base, since it sported a large banner with a red cross on it.
Captain Josh Marley looked up from his desk.

“Yes? Can I help you, Lieutenant?”

“Good afternoon, Captain. I need some
bandages changed,” I said.

He stood and stepped closer, looking at my
face. “By the looks of it, you have a few bruises and contusions
also. What happened, Lieutenant? It looks like you’ve been in a
fight.”

“I was kidnapped and beaten by a gang of
escaped prisoners,” I replied, as matter-of-factly as I could.

“You’re Lt. Smeth? Everyone here has heard
about what happened. Please, come in the exam room and have a
seat.”

I sat in the chair opposite a rolling stool,
which I rightly assumed the medic used. After removing my shoes and
socks I sat up on the papered exam table so he could check the
healing of my feet. With gloved hands, he cut away the bandages
that held my toes together.

“What was the full extent of the injuries?”
he asked, not looking up while he turned my foot to examine the
bruised soles.

“One broken toe and three dislocated.”

“And the bruising?”

“The soles were whipped with a belt buckle,”
I said, straining to maintain my calm.

He glanced up in shock. “How long ago did
this happen, ma’am?”

I thought a moment. It seemed like forever,
yet not. “About eight days now. I’ve lost track.”

“The bruises on your soles are a fading
yellow, which is a good sign. The small toe which was taped I will
presume was the one broken. The other three are still bruised,
otherwise I’d say we don’t need to wrap those anymore.” He re-taped
the broken toe and looked at my face, pressing on the faded spots.
“That hurt?” I shook my head. “You have remarkable healing. Is
there anything else?”

“Only my ribs,” I lifted my shirt so he
could unwind the ace bandage.

“Holy shit!” he said. “Sorry, ma’am. What
happened here?”

“First, I fell in the new river and was
swept into a tree. Then while I was held captive, I was punched a
lot there because I was already injured. They were pretty
sadistic.”

“This bruising isn’t as healed as the rest.
Are you having any difficulty breathing?” Capt. Marley asked.

“Only when I try for a deep breath. One of
the ribs feels cracked,” I replied while he wrapped a new ace
around my rib cage.

He wrote something down on a prescription
pad, handed it to me, and wrote again. “I’m limiting you to very
light duty, Lieutenant, and suggest you still stay off your feet.
Here’s a prescription for some Darvocet. That should help you sleep
too.”

“I won’t need the Darvocet,” I said, handing
the slip back to him.

“Get it filled, ma’am. That’s an order.”

*

I met up with Jim outside the women’s
barracks.

“Are you ready for dinner?” he asked.

“Starving!” I said, taking his offered arm.
“I hear its spaghetti night. Too bad we can’t have some of our wine
with it.”

“It’s the officers’ mess, Allex, we can do
what we want,” he replied, “By the way, that was a convincing
speech you gave Kopley. I almost believed it myself!”

“It’s all true, Jim,” I said softly. He
stopped after a few feet and looked down at the empty hall, and
then he kissed me, briefly and thoroughly, leaving me breathless
and weak in the knees.

“Point B,” he said. “Let’s stop at the
Hummer for that wine.”

*

I sipped the remainder of my glass of wine,
which Jim and I had willingly shared with Major Kopley. The table
conversation had been lighthearted for the most part with just a
touch of business.

“Major Hogan tells me you did wonders for
his EOC and in a very short time, Allexa. I understand your AOC is
Public Affairs, however no one seems to quite get a grasp on what
your orders are,” Kopley casually commented.

I knew immediately he was fishing. “Major,”
I chastised him, “if I told you I’d have to kill you.” I added a
laugh to lighten the mood.

“Steve, you should have seen the way she
handled that scumbag that hurt her,” Jim said, deftly changing the
subject. “After I handed her service weapon back to her, she
checked it over and without so much as a word put the barrel to the
guy’s forehead and pulled the trigger. I was so proud of her.”Steve
Kopley snapped his head around to me.

“Did you really?”

“It seemed like the thing to do at the
time,” I affirmed. “He was to be executed anyway. I wanted to be
the one to do it after what he did to me.”

“Remind me to never piss you off,
Lieutenant,” Kopley laughed.

“I don’t give warnings, Major.” At that I
stood. “Thank you for a delightful evening. It’s been a long and
exhausting day and I’m done in. Good night.”

Jim caught up to me before I reached the
door. “I’ll walk you back to the barracks.”

*

Outside my room we hesitated and I laughed
nervously. “This feels awkward, doesn’t it? Things are changing
faster than I thought they would.”

“I’m not complaining, Allex.” Jim brushed my
cheek with his soft fingertips. The kiss started gently and quickly
became more demanding. Had we not been standing in the hallway of
the women’s barracks, the evening might have ended differently.

“Good night, Jim.” I slipped into my dorm
room and closed the door. I leaned against the closed door,
breathing heavily.

JOURNAL ENTRY: May 12

We’ve been here at
Sawyer for a week now. I’ve managed to rest and eat, gaining some
of my strength back. Jim is still working on this mysterious
correspondence although he says he should be finished sometime
today if he can get a stable internet connection. I’m anxious to be
on the road again. Even though they stayed frozen for the first
four days, I’ve packed ice into the cooler daily to keep those
gifted steaks fresh. Kora Goshen was most generous and I’m looking
forward to us grilling dinner tonight.

~~~

“It’s really annoying, Allex. Every time I
try to send my final report, something interferes with the
transmission. It almost feels like someone is intercepting me,” Jim
groaned in frustration as I sat across the desk from him.

“I wish we had Billy here to help,” I
lamented. “Maybe we can! I’ve got Billy and Kim’s email addresses.
Let me see if I can reach them.” I took Jim’s seat and started
typing. Soon a small window popped up on my screen: an instant
message from Billy.

IM: how’s it going, Lieutenant?

“
I’m getting some needed rest, thanks.
We’re having some trouble you might help with.” I typed in
return.

IM: I’ll try. What’s the problem?

“
The Colonel keeps getting interfered
with when he tries to send a report. Is it possible he’s being
remotely intercepted?”

IM: Sure, that would be easy. Any clues?

“
This is Major Kopley’s computer. He’s
been in touch with Major Hogan. BTW your loop has done wonders for
my reputation

”

IM: Great! And FYI, that loop has been
accessed three times, twice from here, once from there. I’ve been
monitoring it. BRB

Jim was watching over my shoulder all this
time. “What’s BTW and BRB?

“
BTW is computer shorthand for by the
way, and BRB is be right back.”

IM: I just now disabled a couple of
computers… lol … Try sending the report now.

I minimized the conversation with Billy and
Jim sat back down. He pulled up his report and was able to send it
right out.

“
Thanks Billy that worked!”

IM: anytime my lady! TTFN

The instant message conversation
disappeared.

Before Jim could ask I said, “That’s ta ta
for now, a way of saying goodbye.”

“So,” Jim leaned back in the chair, “Hogan
was tapping into my reports. I could have him court-martialed for
that. And it’s possible Kopley was involved.”

“From things Billy told me before, Kopley
might not have known. On the other hand…”

“It’s moot now, Allex. That last report was
my retirement papers,” Jim sighed. “All of my adult life has been
devoted to the Army and my country. It feels like something is
missing now.” He stood and stretched.

His announcement had me shocked. “Why,
Jim?”

“I’m tired, Allex. I joined the Army at
eighteen, went to college, and moved up in the ranks. I’m
fifty-five now; that’s thirty-seven years of my life devoted to
Uncle Sam. I deserve my own time now, and I’m ready to stay put. My
papers become effective one month from today. I say we get back on
the road right after lunch.”

“That’s the best news yet!”

I was still bewildered over his decision to
retire.

*

We didn’t get the sendoff we had leaving the
Soo, though we did get fresh ice for the cooler and a thermos of
coffee, plus a mail bag with letters destined for Marquette and
Moose Creek.

“It should take us no more than two hours to
get back to that house behind Walstroms,” I said, settling back in
the seat. After all this time it was starting to feel comfortable.
The afternoon was as cloudy and as bleak as the morning was. The
high, thick clouds kept the sun from even making a bright spot in
the all gray sky. The biggest bright spot was that we were once
again traveling, and this time toward home.

“We left a great deal of supplies at that
house to take home. I think we should look for a trailer of some
kind,” Jim said.

“Good idea.

I know many of the gas stations around here
were also Haul Your Own outlets. Maybe we can find something
suitable that was left behind when everyone left.”

*

Half an hour later we came to a main
intersection with a four-way stop. One corner was dominated by a
now vacant gas station/party store.