The Protector (6 page)

I could feel the heat rise in my face as I grabbed my bag and reached for anything in it. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for but I didn’t want her to know how that slight touch had affected me.  How did it affect me, I questioned.  I had never experienced anything quite like that before. The jolt, was short and intense.  I wondered if she had felt the same thing when I touched her.  “No, she didn’t,” I mumbled to myself aloud.

6 Dulles

My heart was pounding so hard I was sure Jack heard it. I was sure every passenger on the plane heard it. I knew my face was red and I briefly glanced at him, but he showed no emotion or acknowledgement to the jolt that had pulsed through me. I wasn’t sure if he had felt the same thing but by looking at him I had to believe he hadn’t.

I had only wanted to get my hair out of my face and I hadn’t succeeded in doing that. He had reached up and brushed the stray strand back behind my ear, briefly touching my skin. His hand had felt like it was on fire, but his fingers were soft, not rough like I had expected.  I quickly shoved my brush back into my back pack and put it back under my seat. I didn’t know what to do after that. I watched as he rummaged through his bag looking for something. I wasn’t even sure he knew what he was looking for.

“No,” he mumbled. I thought I heard him say something else but I wasn’t sure.  I figured if he wanted me to know he would repeat it. I laid back in my seat and thought about what the future held. At this point in time, I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. I didn’t know if we were going to stay in DC or if they were going to let me go home.  I hoped desperately that whoever was the higher power would let me go home. I wanted the warmth of my own bed and the comfort of my friends, family and my job. Most of all I wanted a resolution to this whole ordeal.

I took a deep breath and looked over at Jack. He sat there with an intense look on his face. He looked so distant and in deep thought. He was so far away at that moment I didn’t want to interrupt him, but I wanted to know what to expect.  

Minutes later as if he could read my mind, he answered without looking at me. “I want you to stay close to me when we get off the plane. Follow me and don’t leave my side no matter what you are told to do. Ok?”

He still didn’t look at me and he didn’t move. I sat puzzled. What did he expect to happen? I nodded at him and thought cautiously about what to ask and how to ask it.  “I take it we are not staying at the airport?”

“Probably not. We will come back to get the flight to Albuquerque. I am not sure if it will be later today or tomorrow.”

My stomach flip flopped as the words rung in my ears. “Tomorrow?” I stuttered.  “Why tomorrow?”

“They are probably going to want to ask you some questions and I am not sure how long that will take.” Fear over took me as images of a lengthy interrogation played in my mind. I pictured the bright light, and gray metal table and chairs.  There was a mirror like window on one side of the room but I couldn’t see through the window. I was sure someone was on the other side watching me. It was something straight out of some crime show on television.

My body shook as I then realized that it wasn’t the police who were going to be questioning me but instead some government agency.  I could feel a lump form in my throat and tears well up in the corner of my eyes. My breathing grew rapid and my heart was pounding even harder now as I thought about all the possibilities. My imagination went wild as I thought of the man sitting next to me turning me over to some men in dark suits and wearing sunglasses, even though it was dark outside.

I hadn’t noticed him staring at me as I was envisioning everything that might happen.  It wasn’t until I felt his hand on my shoulder and felt the jolt of electricity run through my body that the images playing in my head came to a screeching halt.   I looked up at him and into his soft golden eyes. “Relax, no one is going to hurt you. I won’t let it happen.”  My shoulders were still tense and he did not remove his hand.  I tried to relax with his words but the fear did not go away. He moved his hand from my shoulder and gently put it on my hand and squeezed it in reassurance. He didn’t move his hand nor did he look back at me.

I hardly noticed as the plane began its direct descent into Dulles. I looked out the window and saw only darkness and twinkling lights around me.  Any other time the lights and visions of Washington would have excited me beyond belief. It was a city that gave me an adrenaline rush every time I visited. When I was attending Georgetown it was probably one of the best times of my life. I enjoyed every bit of my time there and regretted not staying there to work. The regret was more intense now. 

Now I cringed at the fate that awaited me down on the ground. Jack still had not moved his hand and he squeezed mine as he felt my body tense once again.  I turned to look at him and he looked at me.

“Why?” I mouthed to him.

“I promise it will be ok Sonny.” His eyes were dark but the tone of his voice was sincere.   It all had an amazing calming effect on me. I wanted desperately to believe him and I needed to believe in him. But this whole incident, it was so unbelievable.  Fear crept through my body and my chest tightened. I ignored the feeling as there really was nothing I could do about it. 

Our plane touched down and I did as he asked and waited as all the other passengers deplaned.  It took close to 20 minutes to get everyone off the large plane. Jack gathered his backpack and I followed suit. Only the flight attendants were left as we slowly descended the stairs to the coach deck.  Everyone smiled and told us to have a good night as we walked off the plane onto the gangway that led to the concourse.

My heart continued to race as I slowly followed Jack to the concourse. I didn’t know what waited for me at the gate and I wasn’t sure I really wanted to find out. If I could have made my legs run, I would have. I would have bolted past the man I now trusted and ran as fast as I could screaming at the top of my lungs I had been kidnapped. I was sure if I made a large enough scene at the gate, then this group of people who wanted to question me would leave me alone. But then my thoughts returned to reality as I realized they weren’t going to give up on finding out what happened in Tel Aviv.  The cold hard realization made the intense burning in my chest intensify. I could feel my airways constrict as the panic of the situation filled me.

I stopped walking and let my backpack fall to the ground. I couldn’t fill my lungs with the air I needed and the walls began to move. I knew what was coming and I sat myself on the ground grasping desperately for my inhaler. Jack was by my side instantly.

“Sonny?”  He put his backpack down and took mine from me, turning it upside down. He shook all the contents out of it, and if I hadn’t been trying so hard to get as much air as I could into my lungs, I would have been extremely embarrassed. Everything came flying out, my makeup, my hair brush, a change of underwear, and finally my inhaler.  Both Jack and I grasped at it, but it was he who grabbed it first and brought it to my lips.  I took a deep breath in as he pushed on it sending a soothing mist into my lungs.  He pushed it a second time and breathing became easier.

7 Barely Breathing

A sigh of relief washed over me as I realized she was finally getting a full breath of air. I had not even considered how the stress of the situation would affect her asthma. I had read she was asthmatic, but she had managed to keep it under control over the years. This wasn’t something I had anticipated dealing with.

Sonny sat on the floor taking in deeper and deeper gasps of air.  I sat next to her and pulled her tight against my chest.   I needed to feel her breathing in and out and I had learned that physically feeling her would be the best way to accomplish that. But I knew that if I had attempted to put my hand on her chest she probably would have decked me, air full of lungs or not.

But that was the least of my worries, as a man in his fifties came running down the dimly lit hallway with radio in hand. I could feel her breathing grow slower and there was less of a wheeze coming off of her chest.  She leaned completely back against me and I wrapped my arms around her. 

I could smell the sweetness of the shampoo she had used earlier in the morning. The smell was overwhelming and I could feel my heart begin to race a little faster as she put all her weight against me.  The electric shock I had felt earlier when I had brushed her hair back was still there, but my worry over her breathing had toned it down to a dull ache.

“You ok?” I whispered into her ear.  She still held the inhaler in her hand but did not bring it up to her lips again. She only nodded.

“Is there a problem,” the older man asked as he reached us. .

“Asthma attack,” I answered back with authority in my voice. I need this guy to know that this was not your ordinary security situation.  Alison’s body tensed, and she turned her head to look into my eyes. Her eyes were a deep green now and I could read the panic in them.

“I am ok,” She managed to whisper. “Or at least I will be in a minute.”

“You are going to have to move,” the TSA officer said almost in an annoyed fashion. I could feel the anger rise in me as I watched him stand up straight. “You’re going to have to take your love fest elsewhere. You can’t block the concourse, it’s a security risk.”

“She’s having an asthma attack. You are going to have to wait until she catches her breath,” I seethed. I held Alison tighter to me and glared at the man for a second. I knew I needed to get my badge out and reached into my back pocket. I didn’t give him enough time to read it before I shoved it back into my pocket.  “Federal Agent, you will back away and let us sit here until she is able to get up and walk on her own.”
             

The man just stared at me not daring to step closer to me or her. I could read the look in his eyes and he knew I would stop at nothing to keep her where she was and I knew he was deciding whether to believe me or call for back up. I could hear footsteps coming down the hallway and knew instantly it was most likely Conway coming to see what the
holdup
was. He was no doubt being followed by multiple TSA agents. But knowing Conway he probably had the situation well under control. 

I could hear him barking orders before I could see him and I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw him walking swiftly down the hallway toward Alison and I. 

“Problem?” The tall dark haired man asked once he reached our side.  He was menacing to look at with his 6 foot 7 frame. He had played offensive lineman at the University of Oklahoma and even went on to play for a short time in the NFL before he blew out his knee and hurt his back. But that is where the federal government gained one of its best employees. He had served as a secret service agent for a short time, but was bored quickly with protecting people and dealing with forgers and money launderers. He had been approached by Langley, but turned them down to take his current position.

“Asthma attack,” I said quietly.  “Give us just a minute? Car here?”

Conway nodded. “Can she walk?”  He did not look as concerned for Alison as maybe I thought he should. Instead, he focused his concern on the TSA officers who had grown in number over the last two minutes.  “Gentlemen, I think we have this under control. There is no need for you all to be here. You are just upsetting the young lady.”

Conway had a point as Alison’s breathing grew heavy and labored again. I reached for her hand and as I did she quickly brought her inhaler up to her lips and took another deep breath in.

Conway looked at her and then back at me with concern this time. “We really need to get out of here.” I knew he didn’t want any more tension or suspicion than was necessary. Normally things didn’t happen like this and we were not swarmed by TSA personnel.

A thin tall man dressed in a TSA uniform walked up behind Conway and assessed the situation. Conway turned and to talk to the man and I focused my attention on Alison.

“Sonny,” I whispered into her ear.  “I don’t care if you can walk or not. I am going to hand your bag and mine to Conway and I am going to carry you to the car. Don’t say a word, and don’t under any circumstances ask me to put you down.”  Even if she did, it wasn’t going to happen. 

She nodded her head and did as she was told. She held her inhaler tight in her hand. I shifted my weight and was instantly on my feet. I picked everything that I had dumped out of her backpack, including the pair of thong underwear.  I wanted desperately to say something about the redness that came across her flushed face as I shoved them back in her backpack, but I didn’t.