Eye in the Sky

He wiped her eyes with a tissue. "Don't cry, Sawyer. It won't come to that."

"How can you be sure? Don't make promises you can't keep Rawlins. I know how bad your heart is. I've been inside your head, remember?"

"Yes honey, how could I forget?"

"Well, I do intend to spend the rest of my life with him. He feels the same way about me. I think you know that. The third reason you don't know and I don't want to tell you."

He stood and pulled her up. He moved her to one side and put his feet in her chair. He pulled her down on his lap and held her tight. "Okay," he asked, "feel safe now?"

She snuggled down into his chest. "Very safe. I haven't told you this, but you probably suspected. From the time I was thirteen and refused to cooperate with Dr. Watts, they started doing things to me." Her small form was wracked with spasm of sobs.

"They did awful things. They shocked me with electricity and put things into me. Not raping me really but things like pens and markers and electric rods. They touched me with their hands, trying to humiliate me. They made me feel dirty and ashamed. I still feel like that except when I'm with Lawson. He makes me feel clean and sexy and desirable. I don't think I'll ever feel clean until I know how it feels to be normal with the boy I love."

She was unable to continue and he held her and stroked her hair. "Don't cry, baby." He continued to comfort her for long minutes. Finally she was able to master her emotions. He handed her the box of tissues and she blew her nose and wiped her eyes. He leaned her back and tilted her head up with one finger. She looked into his eyes.

He nodded. "Yes Sawyer. The answer is yes. How could I say no? Do what your heart tells you to do."

She threw her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "Thank you Rawlins. I don't know what I'm going to do but I promise to think about the things you said. I know you're wiser than I am. I know that I'm still very young. But when I get out of high school I'm going to go to USC so I can be with Sawyer and he wants us to live together. We talked about it and we don't want to get married until we both graduate from college. And I don't want to get pregnant either. Do you think you could take me to a doctor? I'm embarrassed to ask Mike."

"I'll make the appointment tomorrow," he told her. "I'll pick you up from school and we'll go to the company doctor."

On prom night Lawson sent a limousine to pick Sawyer up. She had often ridden in the RLK limousines before and it didn't seem like such a big deal until they pulled up at the dance. There was a line of them waiting to unload. The driver opened her door and Lawson was waiting with her prom corsage. It was pale yellow roses and matched her pale yellow dress. The dress was a mermaid style with a one shoulder sweep with a silver ribbon wrapped from one shoulder to her hips.

Lawson was resplendent in a white tuxedo with a boutonniere of the same yellow roses. He walked her in and she lit up the room. They danced the night away and Sawyer refused to dance with anyone but Lawson. When the dance was over the limousine took them to the Delhi Palace.

Sawyer had never eaten Indian cuisine and found the spicy food delicious. Lawson ordered for her and she had the Tandoori Shrimp, and the Bombay Aloo. They cuddled together in the back of the limousine and when they arrived at Sawyer's house, she got out and held out her hand for Lawson. "Would you care to come in?" she asked.

"Yes, I think I would," he replied seriously. She put music on and held out her hand again. She led him up the stairs and sat him on the bed. She turned her back and bowed her head. "Undo me Lawson."

He opened a hook and slid the zipper to her waist. She turned to face him, holding up the top of her dress with her hands. His face was flushed with excitement and he licked his dry lips.

She slid her hands to her hips and the dress followed. Her breasts were perfect, the yellow fabric around her hips made paler by her golden skin. They were full and round and she tested their weight in her hands. She allowed the dress to slip to the floor and stood before him in yellow lace panties. A few wisps of darker gold escaped and she walked around the bed, hips tilting with every step. She bent to take off her heels and he caught his breath in a gasp. She slid between the silk sheets and said, "You're overdressed, Lawson."

He stripped in record time and slipped between the sheets. He rested; one arm across and under her head and their lips met. She rolled him onto his back and mounted him and the night became a thing of whispers, darkness and sliding flesh.

They slept, wrapped in each other's arms. Twice he woke her and passion, interrupted by exhaustion, renewed itself.

They slept until noon and when Lawson woke there was a note pinned to his tuxedo. "Your lover has gone to the hot tub. Wear trunks, Mike is swimming."

He found coffee made and took a cup to the pool house. Mike was doing laps and had no attention for anything else. Sawyer was in the tub, head reclining back on the cushioned rim. She was smiling, her eyes were closed and she looked like a cherub. He caused the water level to rise when he got in and she opened her eyes and held up one hand. He took it and kissed her; sitting beside her in the tub.

"I needed this," she whispered in his ear as she snuggled against him. "You wore me out."

He smiled and squeezed one full breast under the water. She moaned softly and he said, "No longer Minerva. You are now officially Aphrodite."

She giggled and they soaked in the bubbling water for 10 minutes. Then she stood and wrapped up in a towel. "Mike," she called. He stopped swimming and raised his head. "Cook for us, please? I'm starving!"

He held up two fingers and forged ahead again. By the time they dressed and returned he had chicken, onions and peppers sending up a delightful aroma and Sawyer heated refried beans and shredded lettuce while Lawson grilled tortillas and made Pico. They ate fajitas and drank apple cider, and watched Attack on Titan on Netflix. Mike hated it but sitting between Sawyer and Lawson, they refused to allow him to escape.

"I can't believe the crap you kids watch," he groused. "Cartoons," he snorted, " and not even funny ones. It's gory and it's in Japanese. I'd think you were both 10 years old if I didn't know better."

"Yeah, it's wicked awesome," Lawson said.

"It's wicked all right, but the awesome is down the tubes."

"I'm awesome, and you get to sit by me," Sawyer pointed out.

"I'm consoling myself with that thought."

They all laughed hysterically at Mike's joke and he put his arms around them both.

Sawyer put her plate on the coffee table and curled up with a sigh. "What will we do today Mike?"

"You kids want to go for a ride up to the Lowell Observatory?"

"We'd love to Mike. What's the Lowell Observatory?"

"It's a big telescope and a museum,"

"Yes, let's do that. Does that sound like fun Lawson?"

"I've never been there. Let's go."

"I'm driving," Mike told them. He led them out to a barn that Sawyer had never explored, punched in a code and the door went up. Sawyer squealed with delight at what she saw.

Inside was a red and white Skyline GTR. It had a tall spoiler on the rear and a redesigned grill in front.

"What you got there Mike?" Lawson asked.

"It's a JUN built GTR. It's got the in-line 2.7 liter dual overhead cam motor with twin Trust designed, Mitsubishi turbos with a max boost of 37 pounds. She makes 1100 horsepower and 610 foot pounds of torque at 9500 rpm. Try winding one of your dinosaurs that high."

"Jesus Mike, how long you had this?"

"Two years, kid. I've driven it eight times. You're the first people that have ever ridden in it. What do you say?"

"Can I drive?" Sawyer begged.

"No you can't. You get to sit in the back. You're the only one little enough to get back there."

He saw her disappointment. "You can drive it any time you want, Sawyer, but me and Lawson are too fat to get back there. Peek in and see."

She looked and confirmed that it was impossible. She climbed in and Mike and Sawyer got in and Mike started it up. "It's got a nitrous dump to start the turbos." He drove to the highway, hit the nitrous and the little import squirted forward as if shot out of a gun. He hit the first curve at 110 and rubber protested as the suspension made easy work of the twist in the road. "If the Trans Am can take that at 85 I'll eat my hat," he shouted over the whine of the engine."

"What's the top end on this thing Mike?"

"Somewhere around 230. I've had it to 150 and it scared the hell out of me. Maybe out on the Salt Flats or something. We don't have the roads for it around here."

Sawyer was drunk with exhilaration as Mike negotiated the curves up Mars Hill Road to the observatory and the GTR howled through the gears. Her face was flushed and her eyes shining when they pulled up.

"What about that?" he put an arm around her shoulders.

"It was way cool, Mike. It's the fasted thing I've ever been in. The GSX looks and sounds better though. I don't like that big spoiler either. It's very cool car though. If I didn't know better I'd think you were a twenty-year-old kid."

The three walked into the observatory laughing and Mike was wiping his eyes.

Chapter 16

Graduation was nearing and Mike was arranging logistics for the trip to Ft. Meade. They would land in Washington DC and drive from there. It was midway between DC and Annapolis, MD. Once there they didn't know how long it would take to locate Alvin Walker or how he could be approached. Both Sawyer and Lawson had qualified for state competition and the meet would take place two days following graduation. Lawson had been holding off on committing to USC, trying to get the best deal he could. That now included off campus housing during year two through four so that Sawyer could join him, and a guarantee that he would have the option to play defense if he chose. The deal included tickets for all three of them at every game. He signed his letter of intent and he was an official Trojan, at the University of Southern California. Calston had used his influence as promised and had been posted back to Maryland. The investigation was in new hands and its status was uncertain.

Calston had heard of no new activity, though the FBI had placed Sawyer on its fugitive list. The two young people went with the school contingent to the State Track meet and Mike and Rawlins attended. Neither competed until the second day and it was raining in the morning. The sun came out at noon and the weather improved. Sawyer's 4X200 team ran out of its lane and was disqualified. She won the class 4 women's open 200, but slipped in on a wet spot out of the blocks and finished second in the open 100. She was very proud of her medals and couldn't resist wearing them as she watched Lawson compete. He scratched twice in the hammer in the preliminaries due to a wet ring, but got off a good enough throw to reach the finals on his third throw. His second throw in the finals was 248 feet and was 50 feet further than second place. He threw 172-feet in the discus but another competitor had the throw of a lifetime and won with a 174-foot heave. He also took second in shot and got to stand on the podium 3 times.

The following Tuesday, the four of them left for DC under assumed names and checked into their Hotel under those same identities. They traveled in two groups, Rawlins and Lawson on one flight and Sawyer and Mike on another. When they all had arrived, Calston joined them and they began the search for Alvin Walker. Calston was the only one who would recognize him by sight and he and Sawyer spent three days outside Ft. Meade in a succession of rented cars before they spotted him.

"That's him in the grey sedan Sawyer. Quick, get a feel so that you can find him again while he's at work. Sawyer reached out and quickly scanned Walker so that she could recognize his pattern again. She was disgusted and horrified with what she found.

"Do you know that they record people's phone calls and scan their emails?" she asked Calston.

"Yes; nothing new there Sawyer. They've been doing it for years."

"There is with this guy. He has been compiling a database of important people that view pornography. He is planning to blackmail them. He also flags and downloads pictures of naked little boys. He has tentacles into all kinds of picture storage sites. He's only interested in little boys. He's a monster Dave! He is planning to coerce people into letting him meet the boys they take nasty pictures of so he can do disgusting things with them."

"Don't look at it, Sawyer. I know it's awful, but that's not why we're here. If we take him down for Wormwood all the other stuff goes away too. Just make sure you can recognize him again when you look."

"I've got it. Take me away from here Dave. It's like being around a nest of poisonous snakes. There's like a smell coming from over there and it's contaminating my mind." She indicated the direction of Ft. Meade and Calston nodded.

He started the van they were using and drove back to the Hotel.

The five of them made their final preparations and the next morning they were parked outside Ft. Meade when Walker arrived. Sawyer followed him as he began work and he suddenly became very interested in the Wormwood case. He copied all the files onto the flash drive concealed in the bottom of his coffee cup where he kept his database and left early. He drove to a ice cream shop and purchased a shake. He knew he was lactose intolerant but he decided to buy one anyway. He left the flash drive on the table and drove away. Mike rose from the next booth and picked up the flash drive and they returned to their hotel and checked out.

*****

The secretary of defense, Alexander McFarland, was talking on the phone to his daughter when an amber button began blinking. He was looking for an excuse to hang up. Another of her imbecilic string of boyfriends needed a job. "Darlene, the Director of the NSA is on the other line, I'll see what I can do but I've got to take this call. He pushed the blinking button. "Armstrong? What is it?"

"I'm afraid there has been an unpleasant incident with the Wormwood program, Mr. Secretary."

"How unpleasant? Is she dead?"

"No, I'm afraid we haven't been able to locate her. It's like she disappeared into thin air. We've got the FBI looking for her now."

"How much did you tell them?"

"Only that she was a national security risk and very dangerous. They were only to attempt to engage her if she could be sedated or Tasered."

"Good, now what's the problem?"

"Someone has accessed and copied the Wormwood files."

"How? Why didn't you destroy those files?"

"You specifically told me not to, sir. You said we might still find the girl and we needed the files to begin the new tests on the candidates Watts has chosen."

"You don't listen to anything else I say, why did you listen to that? Never mind that, who was it?"

"A computer genius named Alvin Walker. We questioned him and he was behaving very strangely. He stopped at an ice cream shop and left a flash drive containing the files on a table."

"Why is stopping at an ice cream shop strange?"

"The man is allergic to milk, sir. He's in the hospital."

"What happened to the flash drive?"

"We have no idea, sir. We've checked all flights into the area and identified four people flying under assumed names. They flew out this morning for Albuquerque. We're checking flights from there."

"Isn't that where the girl disappeared?"

"It is sir. She must have accomplices in the area."

"Who's working on it?"

"Agent Brown has been on the assignment from the beginning. He has a team of five good men."

"What about Calston? Bring him back in."

"We haven't been able to locate him, sir. He's missing."

"Could he have been the one that took the files from the milk idiot?"

"It's possible, sir. He dragged his feet on the whole affair and accessed some things he shouldn't have known about while he was working on Wormwood. It's possible that he was working with the girl. We know he flew to Boston and boarded a private plane bound for London. We can't identify the plane. It landed, refueled and paid for the fuel using a card belonging to a dummy corporation. Whoever it is is covering their tracks well. We'll find them sir."

McFarland sighed. "I don't have to tell you what would happen if this should leak out? It would be the biggest diplomatic and public relations disaster this country has ever faced. Get ahead of this, Armstrong. Our heads are on the block here."

The Sloan's, Mike and Sawyer boarded flights to Albuquerque, picked up the Lear jet and flew back to Boston. They picked up Calston, refueled and landed in London that night. They spent the night in London and caught the train to Birmingham the next morning. Rawlins and Sawyer met with Robinson and turned the flash drive over to him.

He plugged it in to his computer and checked the files. "This is exactly what we need Mr. C. Buy a paper day after tomorrow and check out the headlines. I'm going to copy these files and hide them away where no one will ever find them. I'm going to send copies to some editors and reporters around the world. By day after tomorrow the shit is going to hit the fan. I'm going to hide; deep, deep down in a hole where no one can find me and email in follow up stories. I suggest you do the same."

"May I make a suggestion, Mr. Robinson?"

"By all means. You come to me with a story like this and you can make all the suggestions you want to."

"We are going to Varadero, Cuba after we leave here. We are going to stay there as long as it takes to ride out the storm. I was going to suggest that you accompany us there."

"How will you get there?"

"I have a Learjet 45XR waiting in London. You would be welcome on board."

"But that means I'd see your faces. I'd know who you are."

"That won't matter after, to use your words, 'the shit hits the fan.'"

"No, I guess it won't. Okay I'll do it. I'll meet you at Heathrow at 7AM. Is that acceptable?"

"It is, good day Mr. Robinson."

Sawyer woke in the night and went to the refrigerator to get a bottle of water. Something was nagging at her. Fear was clawing at her mind and she didn't know why. She lay awake in bed and expanded her consciousness over the city. She felt a familiar touch and sprang out of bed. She shouted in Lawson's mind. "Lawson, wake up. He's here."

"Sawyer? Is that you? What time is it? Who's here?"

"Agent Brown, he's here in Birmingham. Wake up your dad and Calston. I'll get Mike."

The five sleepy people gathered in Sawyer's room. "What's this about Brown being in Birmingham?" Calston asked. "How do you know Sawyer?"

"I felt his mind. He's looking for us and he has five people with him."

"Does he know where we are?"

She closed her eyes. "No, not yet. He doesn't know why we're here but he knows you're here Dave. He traced you to Boston. He knows you're helping me and that we have the files."

"Does he have any leads Sawyer?" Rawlins asked her.

"No. He's checking hotel's but he won't find this one until after we're gone."

"Well, I don't like it that he's this close," Mike growled, "but to hell with him. If we're gone when he gets here he hits a dead end and we leave him here."

"He might be able to track us," Calston told them. "They can get satellite data anywhere in the world."

"That's why we're going to Cuba," Rawlins said. "They can't reach us there and by the time they figure anything out, they will be on the run, not us. It's okay Sawyer. We're okay. Let's try to get some sleep."

"Can Lawson stay with me?" her big brown eyes begged Rawlins.

"Yes, honey. He can stay here. Just get some sleep."