Blood Money (4 page)

*

Mark arrived at her apartment promptly at seven. Sue answered the door in jeans. She had a light turquoise sweater on. He looked into her reddened eyes and saw the turmoil that she was probably seeing in his. They hugged, but she pulled herself away and sat down on an overstuffed chair. She gestured for him to sit on the couch. She was already sending the message that she had made up her mind to end the affair. She just had to verbalize it.

Mark decided to let her off the hook by speaking first, “I'm sensing that you have made your mind up about what we have to do.”

Tears came to her eyes. “Yes, Mark, I have. I spent the whole miserable day trying to find a way out of this. What happened last weekend was the most beautiful experience that I have ever had. I never knew I could have those feelings. But I just can't give up the successes I have had here in D.C. This job is the dream of a lifetime for me. I don't want to hurt you, Mark. That's the last thing in the world I would want to do. I care about you more than I can express, but this just has to end.” Tears were flowing from her eyes. She kept wiping them away, but more kept coming.

He felt so badly that she was hurting, especially since he was the cause. He just wanted to go over and hold her in his arms. He started to get up, but she gestured for him to stay seated. That was probably best under the circumstances.

“Of course it hurts me, but mostly because I came to the same decision. This has been the most beautiful experience in my life, too. I wish there could be another way, but we both know there isn't.” Mark finally stood up and went over to her. She got up and they embraced for the longest time; for the last time. He kissed her on her cheek, getting a taste of her bittersweet tears, then turned away and left the apartment. As he got into his car he thought to himself,
so much for the
“lifetime offer.”

*

The next morning they appeared before Colonel Carter and reported their decision. He was pleased that they had made the right decision. “Sometimes the service we are performing for the country requires great personal sacrifices,” he assured them. “What happened is behind us now. It will not be reflected on your records. Continue to do the outstanding work you have been doing so far. I'm very proud of you both for sticking with us. What we‘re doing here is vital to our national security.” Once again, they were dismissed.

*

Over time, the hurt lessened. Sue and Mark saw each other at social functions over the next three years, but they always made sure that other people were present to avoid any question of impropriety. Since leaving Washington, they communicated by phone and e-mail, strictly as good friends. Years later, Mark found out that it was Susan who had tipped-off Colonel Carter. She had considered it a lapse in her personal discipline. Something that she had let go too far.

* * *

2001

Hide & Seek disbanded several weeks after George W. Bush was inaugurated as our forty-third President. The track record of the team over four years was exceptional, an acknowledgement of the value of forming special teams under the auspices of the Defense Department. Of course, in reality, they worked on many diverse projects that would not fall under the umbrella of their “mission.” Most of these came directly from the White House. No one ever questioned the rationale behind these assignments. The objective was always to find solutions, and not look for any justification for the requests. Since “Hide & Seek”'s departure, twenty-three teams formed to work on the Defense Department's special projects needed to keep America safe.

CHAPTER 5

Saturday morning, Mark hit the road at nine. It was only a two hour ride to Mansfield, but he wanted to get there early, to be at the table when she arrived. He was really looking forward to this meeting, beyond the need for help on his current assignment. He had a special feeling about seeing Sue again that was impossible to describe.

When you've been to one Denny's, you've been to them all. Maybe that's what he liked so much about them. They made him feel right at home. Mark arrived at the Mansfield Denny's around ten-thirty. He explained to the hostess that he needed to use the back room for a special meeting that could take several hours, and that they would be having lunch around noon. He had called ahead to reserve the room, so it was not going to be a problem for them. She escorted Mark to the back room and set him up at a round table in the center of the room. She made a note about the guest who would be arriving soon.

“I'll send a waitress back to set you up with coffee service. Let her know when you're ready for lunch.”

“Thank you so much, I really appreciate this.”

Mark chose a seat that faced the entranceway and set his attaché case on the chair to his right. The waitress came by with the coffee service.

At five minutes to eleven, he looked up and saw the most stunning woman he had ever set eyes upon. The time since he had seen her last only added to the great looks she had back then. Sue had long, silky, fiery red hair that fell to her shoulders. Her eyes were a soft emerald green. Her teeth were sparkling white and accented by a captivating smile. Her soft creamy skin had a light sprinkling of freckles over her nose and upper cheeks. Her height and weight were about average, with everything in just the right proportions. From the top of her head down to the long shapely legs, Susan Harrigan was all woman. She was like Miss America and Miss World put together. What more was there to say? Sue could still rock his universe. She was wearing a tailored black suit with a white silk shell. There was just enough cleavage to set his imagination in motion, or was it just a flash memory of the “lifetime offer” that still stirred in him? Her skirt stopped at the knees. The shoes had three-inch heels, accenting the shapeliness of her legs.

Mark had a quick flashback to the last time he had seen her. It was their last day in Washington. He was helping her pack. She had on a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. The shirt read “CONSIDER THE HAIR A FAIR WARNING.” As the French are known to say, “Vive la difference.” This was not the same woman he had seen on that day. Before him stood an angel.

Mark stood up, but was frozen in place. She walked up to the table and put down her briefcase and pocketbook. “Well, Mark, are you just going to stand there all day?” He came out of his stupor, walked around the table and gave her a big hug. She felt very good to him. Memories came rushing back. He held her a little longer than one customarily does when greeting someone. Of course, Sue wasn‘t just “someone.”

“God, it sure is great to see you again, Sue. You look fantastic.”

“So do you, Mark.”

He pulled out the chair for her.

“Help yourself to some coffee. I thought we would eat around noon. That should give me enough time to bring you up to speed on everything. I know that you're going to be fascinated with what I have to show you.

“I'll just need a minute to visit the ladies room, and then I'm all yours.

“I guess I better check it out too.”

*

He relieved himself, ran some cold water, splashed some on his face and grabbed a paper towel to dry off. As he did, Mark took a long look at himself in the mirror. At six-two, he weighed about one hundred ninety.
Not too bad for thirty-four.
He worked out with twenty-five pound dumbbells at home at least twice a week, and tried to play a few doubles matches of indoor tennis once a month. Though not a fitness freak, he managed to retain the weight and physique that he had when he ran cross-country in high school. He didn't stand out individually then, but his team won all-state gold ribbons for three straight years and he had the trophies at home in his father's den to prove it. Both his parents had aged well, so if genes meant anything he should have few more years of looking younger than his actual age. There were no signs of graying or thinning hair. His father kept a full head of hair until his mid-sixties, so he expected to do the same. Mark sucked in his gut, gave himself a “you still got it kid” thumbs up in the mirror and exited the men's room.

Sue had returned to the table already. She had poured herself a cup of coffee and had removed a yellow legal pad and pen from her briefcase. “I'm ready any time you are.”

“Well, I guess it's best to start off with the same ground rules that my client started me off with,” he began. “My client's name must be anonymous. I agreed to that as a condition of my employment. As far as I can see, the anonymity does not present any roadblocks to the completion of the project. I'll let you be the judge of that. Any problem thus far?”

“None that I can see right now. Let's see how things develop.”

“My client also understands that I may need to sub-contract part of this assignment,” he explained. “What's involved is hacking into the computer system of an association and extracting a list of expenditures. The client feels that there is a justification for this, and has some compelling arguments to justify skirting around the legal and moral issues.”

“You're talking about an NGO, a non-governmental organization? The only reason I ask is because many of these agencies have assumed a very protective stance since 9/11, claiming security issues for a variety of reasons. They have been pretty rough on violators.”

“That could be an issue, then. This is a private enterprise, but they operate in a public venue that could be considered part of our national security. Let's see what you think after I'm finished. I'm sorry that I need to be so vague about this.”

“Look Mark, you do what you feel right about, but you know me well enough by now to trust that whatever you tell me will be kept confidential, even if I'm not in a position to help you. But I can't make an accurate appraisal unless you are straightforward and tell me exactly what I would be dealing with. Agreed?”

He knew she was right. She had to know most of the facts sooner or later. Mark needed to tell her everything that he could if he was going to gain her support. “Of course you're right, Sue. Let me lay out the situation for you first, and then I'll fill you in on the specifics, as best I can.” He gave her the NRBA financial reports from the file. Sue was a speed reader and it took her only about five minutes to go through the stack that had taken him over a half-hour to digest. Mark wished he had that gift.

“Okay, I got the gist of it. What's the problem?”

“Now comes the tricky part. My client is on the board of the National Rare Blood Association. He has reason to believe that the reports that he receives from them cover up fraudulent activities. He has no proof, only their reluctance to make full disclosure of their grants and gifts. His feeling is that, as a director, he is entitled to this information, but they have ignored his requests. They are the central blood bank for most of the negative blood supply in the country, and they are a private, independent organization supported by large corporate donations and the sale of blood donated to them. The NRBA has a lot of political clout. At the same time, as a for-profit business they bring in close to two billion a year. Their product is perishable, but at the same time demand is high. An accident can require four to six units of blood at a price of two hundred twenty five dollars a unit. That's just for one accidental injury.”

“How cushy for them. I never thought of blood as being such a cash cow.”

“My client has a negative blood type, so he has a vested interest in the continued operation of the Association. Even more so, he feels that he is obliged, as a member of their Board of Directors, to know how their money is spent. He had his systems department try to get this information, but they ran into encryption, password and firewall barriers. That's why he came to me. Apparently ‘Hide and Seek' earned a favorable reputation with the Defense Department during the four years we were there. Anyway, I tried a few passes at their files myself, but I got nowhere. That's why I'm turning to you for help. Of course, he has the option of resigning his directorship, but he feels that doing so would violate the trust placed in him to protect the interests of the Association. He prefers to take the high ground by assuring that things are on the up and up. The integrity of the supply of rare blood is his issue.

“That's very noble, but what about you? Do you consider that what he's asked you to do is legal?”

“I questioned that too. I'll let you make your own judgment about that. My viewpoint, now, is that the NRBA has a virtual monopoly over the rare blood supply. That is a lot of concentrated power over such a vital, lifesaving resource. They have pretty much bullied the community blood banks into transferring rare blood types into their centers. They seem to have absolute control over how rare blood is distributed. Blood donations are always voluntary, but a donor has no control over how the blood is used. I consider this enough of a gray area. I'm thinking that you agree.”

“You're right, Mark. That's my first impression as well. Of course, I'll need a few days to look everything over and to make some initial passes at their files. Unless I come up with something major, I'm on-board. Incidentally, Mark, do you believe in serendipity?”

“I do to a certain extent. Why do you ask?”

“Well, it turns out that I do consulting and software development for a service bureau in this area. One of their clients is a local blood bank that uses their systems for input and output of their blood transfusions records, including transfers to the NRBA. I wrote the programs that they use to input the transactions.”

“You're not serious.”

“I wouldn't kid about something like that. I should have a complete set of the center's programs. I'm sure that somewhere in their database I'll find protocols for how they deal with the NRBA. The service bureau treats them like any other client customer. This could be our entrée into their systems. Anyway, give me a few days to check it all out and I will get back to you with my final decision.”

“That's great, Sue. I hope you decide to take it on. Like I said, I couldn't get anywhere on my own. I have access to the technical hardware for the job, but I just can't bypass their security codes. This will probably be a job for ‘LEECH.'”

“I don't think there is any doubt about that,” she concurred.

“Well then, let's order some lunch. I can recommend their club sandwich. You should save some room for dessert too.”

They devoured the sandwiches, iced tea and chocolate cake. Denny's excels in all three. They finished around one o‘clock. Mark paid the tab, leaving a generous tip, and they gathered up their stuff and left.

Outside in the parking lot, Sue said, “Give me until Tuesday and I'll let you know what the score is. Thanks for the lunch, Mark; it was sure great seeing you again.

“Same here, Sue. I'll look forward to hearing from you.”

They both left the parking lot at the same time. She turned north and he went south. Mark felt very confident that Sue would help him crack the codes, but if he had known then what the ultimate outcome would be, he would have dropped the assignment immediately.