The Choice

Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

PARKER’S DRIVER STOPS at the main gate of Begert. Donna pulls up behind. The driver asks the guard in charge to come around the car and speak to the admiral.

The admiral says, “Airman, I need you to give the general a call and tell him I have arrived with the guest that he and I spoke about.”

“Sir, the base is on high alert. I’m sure the general will not authorize an unknown party to enter.”

“Airman, I take personal responsibility for this person, and I would appreciate you making the call.”

The airman pauses for a moment and comes to the realization that to argue with a person with the rank of admiral might mean a very short career. “Yes, sir. Please wait here, sir.” The airman walks back to the guardhouse and talks on the phone. After a few minutes, he hangs up and comes back into the sunlight. He confers with the other guard, and both give the admiral a smart salute and wave the vehicles through.

The admiral tells the driver, “Stop here for just a minute. I need to talk with the staff.” When the car stops, Parker gets out and directs Donna into a parking space in front of the Public Relations building. She exits her vehicle, and the admiral motions for her to walk beside him. Parker says, “Probably, you’ll spend the day here, but there’s a possibility they’ll give you a tour. Let me do the talking when we go inside.”

“Yes, sir.”

They walk into the office, and the staff responds to the admiral at once. He introduces Donna, “The general has arranged for her to speak with PR about her friend, Sarah O’Brien. If time permits, a tour of common areas would be helpful.”

A staff member using forearm crutches moves to the front. “Jim Anderson, sir.”

“Yes, Anderson.”

“I will help her, sir. The general assigned me as her liaison.”

“Very good, Anderson. You’re active military?”

“No, sir. I was but am now a civilian employee.”

“I see a story here. If it’s not too personal, are the crutches because of service?”

“Yes, sir. Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, 2017. My F-16 came under attack, and I limped back to the base but got forced to crash land. Sadly, I couldn’t save my craft, sir.”

“My goodness, son. I’m sure you did your best. You were fortunate to make it out with your injury. Do you have all the support you need?’

“Yes, sir. People have been wonderful, and I think I’ve made a super recovery.”

“Did you get a chance to meet Brad Channing while he was stationed in Afghanistan?”

“I wish I could say that I met that man in the field, sir. But I didn’t have the pleasure. I did meet him here, though.”

Donna says, “I’m so sorry you got injured.”

“Nothing to feel sorry about, ma’am. With this new C-Leg, I’ll be running soon. If the Air Force would let me, I’d return to active duty. The way I look at it, the loss of a leg is so much less of a big deal than losing your life. Also, I’ve known some who lost neither, but through fear, seemed to have lost much more.”

The admiral nods and responds, “Well said, son. I’m proud to have met you, and I want to thank you for your service and sacrifice.”

“I appreciate that, sir.”

“I’ve got to go and meet with the general. I’ll leave Ms. Tucker with you. Here’s my business card with my cell phone number. If you need to reach me, I’ll be with the general all day.”

* * *

Donna accepts the admiral’s handshake and well wishes, and then he leaves the room. Jim invites her to follow him. They move to a back office, where he offers her a seat in front of a large oak desk. Jim sits behind the expanse and gazes into her eyes. For a minute, he says nothing, and Donna grows uncomfortable. Although she would like to, she doesn’t look away. Instead, she waits for him to speak.

“I’m sorry for seeming to stare but my mind went back to the time I met Sarah, and I’m not sure why, but I must say, you remind me of her, Ms. Tucker. It’s my pleasure to be assigned to talk with you today. From what I understand, you knew Sarah well.”

Grateful that Jim refrained from opening the conversation with a lot of personal questions, Donna avoids explaining her motivation for wanting to see where Sarah died. More at ease, she says, “Oh, please, call me Donna.” She pauses to catch her breath and then continues, “Yes, Sarah and I were close friends. We lived next door to each other in Maryland before she moved to California.” Tears rim her eyes. Not wanting to appear too emotional in front of this good-looking man, she stares down at the floor. Her next words come out quieter than she intended, “I came here hoping to see where she passed away.”

Donna glances back up at Jim, who gives her a reassuring smile. “I’ll try to help you with everything I can. The exact site where Sarah and Brad died remains off-limits. Even I don’t have clearance to go there. So, you may have to prepare yourself for disappointment.”

His words make Donna more confident, and she gains more control of her emotions. The site not being available brings relief, which surprises her. Maybe she doesn’t want to see the spot where her friend met her death. Perhaps she just needs to understand what happened so she can bring closure. Without thinking, and in an attempt to fill the long silence, Donna says, “I can’t tell you how much your help means to me. I wish I could show you how grateful I feel.” The words hang in the air, and Donna realizes that Jim might misconstrue her meaning.

“You’re most welcome. I’m happy to help you in any way I can, and you don’t need to thank me.”

Phew, he took her words as intended.

He says, “Excuse me if I go a little off the subject, but they tell me you have some details about Sarah and her husband when they lived in Maryland.”

Jim’s businesslike tone sets her further at ease. “Yes. Sarah’s husband entertained Russian spies in their home.”

“Whoa. I didn’t realize we would get into matters of national security. It would be a good idea to record the conversation so that I get your words verbatim when I report your story to the general.”

“Certainly. I want to make sure the authorities understand what happened in Maryland.”

Jim goes to his desk and pulls out a miniature recorder, which looks like a cell phone. He pushes a button and retakes his seat. For the tape, he says, “I’m speaking with Donna Tucker, who wishes to share information about Sarah O’Brien.” He nods in Donna’s direction. “So, please tell me, with as much detail as you can, why you came here and what it is you believe we need to know.”

Donna smiles and clears her throat. “Sarah and I were next-door neighbors in Silver Spring, Maryland. We taught at the same college. Her ex-husband worked in an international organization.”

“He’s not there now?”

She shrugs. “No one knows where he is, so I don’t know if he still works there or not.”

“Okay, thank you. Please, continue.”

“Strange people would often visit their house.”

“Define ‘strange people.’”

“Foreigners. Suspicious-looking folks like the Russians.”

“Let’s talk about them.”

“Well, none of us liked them.”

“Us?”

“Those of us living on the cul-de-sac.”

“Okay. Names?”

“Abram and Nika Ivonov. They behaved rudely and liked to sunbathe naked on the Peterson’s deck, which ticked off the parents among us. After all, the sight of two nude people was tough to explain to the children.”

“Interesting.” Jim smiles. “Who are the Petersons?”

“Sarah’s married name was Peterson. She reverted to her maiden name after the divorce.”

“Okay, thank you. Returning to the Russians, did you ever talk to them?”

“Not much. They lived with Sarah for a month or more, but they didn’t converse with anyone. Sarah would tell me stories of how Sam, her ex, and this couple would work late at night. It all seemed rather secretive.”

“And why did you want to share this with us?”

“Because you’re investigating the incident, and shortly after Sarah moved to California, newspapers carried the story that the Ivonovs were spies. Here, I’ve brought newspaper clippings from the Gazette and the Washington Post.”

She hands the clippings to Jim, who scans the articles and then excuses himself for a moment. Confused by his actions, Donna doesn’t know what to think. Isn’t her information meaningful? Jim reacted as if it were no big deal.

* * *

Jim goes to the next office and phones the general, whose aide takes the call. Jim explains that he needs to speak with the general. After a slight delay, the general connects.

“Hello, General.”

“Hello, Jim. You and Ms. Tucker having a pleasant chat?”

“Yes, sir. I wanted to bring you up to speed.”

“Yeah, I appreciate anything you can tell me. Does she have any useful information?”

“Yes, sir. She knows a lot about Sarah’s life in Maryland and mentioned Russians and other foreigners who would visit the Petersons.”

“That all sounds good. One other thing. Ask her if she has any knowledge about the journals. Maybe she would be willing to spend a few days going through them.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Okay, stay on it. Keep me in the loop, will you?”

“Yes, sir.” Jim replaces the handset and thinks about how he will broach the subject of the journals with Ms. Tucker.

When Jim walks back into the room, Donna sits going through a PR magazine.

“You can take that with you if you like. The department created it for guests like yourself.”

“Thank you, I think I will.”

Jim sits and studies her. “You should know your information pleased the general.”

“And what do you think?”

“Incredibly useful.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

He raises his brows in question.

Donna flushes. “I don’t know. I get the impression you thought the information was pretty ho-hum.”

“I should apologize for my demeanor. Sometimes, I take myself too seriously. I must have had my investigator hat on. Also, I felt somewhat nervous about having to call the general.”

“Makes perfect sense. Should we start again?”

“If you’re ready, I’ll start the recorder.”

Donna nods.

Jim holds up his hand and provides an intro. He then asks Donna about the journals.

“Journaling was how Sarah dealt with her problems. Once she got divorced, she used them to write her memoir. Have you read it?”

“No.”

“I brought a copy for whoever might need or want to read it.” She pulls the book from her bag and offers it to Jim.

“Much appreciated. I’ll try to start reading it tonight. It may help explain who Sarah was and how she came to be such an admirable person.

“Let’s return to the journals. I asked you about them because we have quite a stack stored in our evidence room. After Sarah and Brad died, we took the lead on the case and went to each of their dwellings to search for anything that might help us. We found the notebooks packed in a box stored in a closet at Sarah’s house. To my knowledge, no one has read them.”

“She had a lot,” Donna responded. “They go back to when Sam and she first met. Perhaps even further back.”

Jim nods. “I will go through the journals page by page. And, to be frank, I need help. Would you have the interest and time to work with me in deciphering them for clues that might help us with this case?”

“Wow, I’d love to. I took vacation time to come out here and have six more days available.”

He sits up straighter and then leans forward. “We could cover a lot in that time. Let me step out again.” Jim turns off the recorder. “I need to find out if this is something we can do.”

Jim walks back into the next office and calls the general again to relay this latest development.

The general says, “Excellent. We need to get her on-base housing. Quarters 27 is available. Find out if that’s acceptable and make sure you cover on-base regulations with her.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Nice work, Jim.”

The general hangs up.

Jim looks forward to spending more time with Donna.

He walks into his office with a smile on his face. “You’re hired. Let’s take a walk to what could become your home for the next few days. It’s located near Sarah and Brad’s previous accommodation.”

“Gosh, I can’t believe it.” Her voice falters, but she catches it quickly. “Thank you. It means a lot to me to stay near Sarah’s last home. To help with the case even in a small way brings me honor.”

“I’m glad you feel that way. As we walk, I’ll explain the regulations we’re required to follow, especially now. Before we start, though, here’s a lanyard with a guest pass attached. You must wear it at all times. It identifies you as a guest with limited privileges.”

“I can’t begin to tell you what this means. I didn’t think I would ever get on the base, let alone participate in the investigation.” Donna puts the lanyard over her head, beaming as if she’s just received an Olympic gold medal.”

“The admiral took a chance on you. Now you’ve earned the right to be here.”

“You know the perfect words to a girl’s heart.”

Jim blushes, and before he can try to explain his intentions, Donna places her finger on his lips.

“You’ve made my day, Jim Anderson. Thank you.”

Jim smiles, and for the first time, wants to give Donna a hug. He doesn’t act on his impulse, and settles for, “My pleasure.”

She smiles and heads for the exit. Relieved, Jim follows.