There Must Be A Mistake Ch. 25

"Okay, I'll tell Zoie what's going on."

Zoie realized the part she played in this debacle, and started to cry.

"Mom, it's my fault. I badgered him into it. I told him it was the only way dad would let us go. I really fucked things up. How am I going to fix this?"

"I think you should tell Even what you did. Then we still have the problem of finding Gordon. We know he's on foot, so we can only cover so much ground per hour. Our people will find him. He will have to use a credit card, or debit to get money. He will leave a trail, and we will follow him, until we catch him, and bring him home."

"Can I beat the shit out of him for leaving me when he gets here?"

"Zoie there is going to be a long line ahead of you, and you must remember, you are the one that started this nightmare."

"Yeah, I did."

****************

Monty arrived back at the house first to set up the command post. There was only one car there with four agents to cover both houses. The other car went with Jennifer to pick up Holden at school.

When the four agents were asked if they saw Gordon leave the Luck household, none of them was positive, but each of them said it was possible. When Monty checked the front door, it was unlocked, which was a breach of protocol. Jennifer would never have left the house with out locking the door and setting the alarm.

Someone trying to leave the house undetected would. She was going to break his eight fingers, and both of his thumbs for doing it.

She walked into the house with one of the guards from Delicious squad as her back up. They both had their guns drawn, as they moved from room to room making sure the house was secure.

They were walking down the stairwell with a perfect view of the area and there was no movement, when they heard the front door being jostled. They ran upstairs and took defensive positions, only to have Holden run into the house, followed by Jennifer and Zoie.

Jennifer looked at the guns, which were now pointed down at the ground, and said, "Honest, we lived here."

Monty said, "You almost lived here permanently, six feet under the ground. Did you forget to lock the front door, and set the alarm?"

"I most certainly did not. You can ask Zoie. When we go out, I set the alarm, when we come back she disarms it."

"Zoie when I catch your fiancé, he's going to be out of commission for 100 years."

Zoie's head was down, and her mouth was closed, until Jennifer kicked her shoe.

"Don't you have something to say to Monty?"

"It's a beautiful day, isn't it?"

"Zoie, either I'm going to kill you, or Monty is. Either way, you are going to be dead if you don't tell the truth."

"Monty, all of this is my fault. I forced Gordon to tell a lie. Worse than that, I set it up for him to be caught."

"Why would you do such a thing?"

"I wanted to know if he loved me as much as he said he did. I think I should go back to Charleston. I don't think he'll ever want to speak to me again."

Gordon said, "I think that's an excellent idea. I'll live at my sister's house until you're gone."

Monty turned and looked at him, "Little turd, before you go anywhere, where we you today?"

"I was following your advice Monty. You told me over and over again, when you make a mistake, and you are angry with yourself, take it out on yourself. That's exactly what I've been doing. I've been downstairs using every machine, and weight we have. I finally learned how to jump rope properly. I can now do 70 crunches on the anti-gravity machine. I was in the ice bath when the two of you came down, but I had 5 minutes more to go. I waited until my time was up. I'm very glad I did, otherwise I never would have heard what my fiancé said about setting me up to lie to my dad. I hope she's very happy with what she's accomplished, and with her future."

"Zoie, if you give me five minutes, I will throw some clothes in a bag, and move next-door with my sister."

Tears were pouring from her eyes, "Can we talk for one moment please?"

"Sure, you can talk, while I pack my clothes."

************

Zoie sat by the headboard, next to the wall, looking for the right words to say. Unfortunately, she could not think of any. He packed his clothes just as he packed hers. He pulled the drawers out of the slots, dumped the clothes into the suitcase, and put the drawer to the side. He added one pair of shoes one pair of sneakers, and one pair of workout sweats before he put in his work shirts. He had plenty of room remaining in the suitcase, because he did not think he would be gone that long.

He looked at her sitting in the corner of the bed and said, "I thought you wanted to talk, and yet I haven't heard a word leave your mouth. Just in case you are wondering, I will always love you. However, after what you did to the relationship between my father and me today, I will never be able to forgive you."

"I've been sitting here trying to find the right words to say to you about what I did, and why I did them. The only answer I came up with so far is, "I don't know." We both loved each other from the second we met. Why would I have to test you by having you lie to your father, and then tell him that you were going to do it. I don't know.

I walked into their room and said, "That's what we're going to sit down and find out. No one's leaving this room until I know what happened today."

"Dad, don't get into the middle of our argument. I hurt you too much today, and it would kill me to hurt you again."

"Gordon when you hung up the phone today I was sure you were going to run. I wasn't sure if I was ever going to see you again. Knowing that you are home, and safe, means more to me than 'The Best Luck.' If you think I am mad, you should have heard Monty. I don't know how you're still breathing. I didn't think she'd give you a chance to explain what you did. Working out was a stroke of genius. If you did anything else, I think she would have ripped your lungs out.

Gordon, are you going to be able to be quiet or should I get tape, because while Zoie is talking you are not allowed to utter a sound, not one sound."

"I will need tape and rope dad."

"Monty, bring in the kit please."

Monty brought in a bag filled with stuff.

Zoie stay where you are. Get on that chair Gordon.

As soon as he was sitting, Monty took a double length of rope, wrapped it around his chest, under and over the steel beam supports of the rear of the office type chair, under the seat and around his lap in the front. She took another length of rope and called for a bucket of hot water. She let the knot sit in the water for a moment and then continued tying Gordon in the chair using more rope. Then she moved him aside, and called for Steve.

Steve walked in with a small ladder, a stud finder, and a power drill. He looked at me and said, "It's right here Doctor Luck."

"Do it."

Steve got on the second step of the ladder, push the drill against the ceiling, and hit the switch. The drill went through the wallboard, and wood almost as easily as a group of termites would have done. When he was finished, he took a huge hook out of his back pocket and screwed it into the ceiling.

I looked at Gordon and said, "Steve would like nothing more than to get even with you for what you did to him the other day. Show him Steve."

"Your dad promised me if you opened your mouth I can hang you from that hook."

"I know that's why I asked for tape."

"You'll never guess what I forgot to buy?"

"You bastard, I will kill you for this."

"No you won't, you tricked me the last time, and it won't happen again. I'm going to take you apart piece by piece. You will never know where you are, and where I'm hitting you from, because I'm going to spin you around in circles until you are so dizzy you won't know where I am."

"Are you going to take a shower?"

Steve made a move towards Gordon, but Monty stepped between them.

"Get out of here Steve, before he beats you up again."

"He hasn't got a prayer."

"He has a brain, do you? Now get out of here."

"Come on little miss, it's time to tie you up."

Monty bound her hands and feet together and left her lying on the bed.

"She's all done Doctor. I give him 15 seconds maybe 18 seconds before he opens his big mouth. Then we can laugh as we hang him from the ceiling. Should I stay, or should I walk outside?"

"Given him a moral victory Monty. Go outside and close the door, then walk back as soon as he loses."

"Like Monty said dad, I have a brain, I have the ability to control myself, most of the time."

"There is the catch my son, 'Most Of The Time.' Will you be able to control your mouth against the person you love?"

"If she loved me as much as I love her, she wouldn't have done what she did to me today."

"Zoie, why don't you tell me what happened today?"

"Dad, what I told Gordon outside is the truth; I don't know why I did it."

"Bulls... Oh fuck."

Monty walked into the room. "I'm sorry Doctor Luck that was only three seconds."

"Hang him high Monty. He said he had the ability to control his mouth, because he had a brain. His brain doesn't work at all when it comes to Zoie. Steve get in here."

"It's my pleasure Doctor."

Steve angled himself on the second and third steps of the ladder, as Monty handed him the looped end of the rope. Then she waited.

"Now Monty."

Monty squatted and in a dead lift, picked up Gordon and the chair nearly four feet above the floor. Steve used his bulk to lift Gordon up two more feet and hung the rope onto the hook. You could hear the beam creak as it took on the additional weight.

Gordon said, "Monty, I will never fight you. I will fall down on the floor and play dead before I fight you. You just lifted 162 pounds of me, plus the chair, straight up. I nearly had a heart attack while you did it. Steve, you are a wuss."

Monty started spinning Gordon. "What you didn't see young man, was Steve lifting you straight up two feet, with one arm, and no real balance at all. His feet were on two separate levels of the ladder, so he couldn't use his back or legs to increase the force needed in his arms to add momentum to his lift. No one else in our company could have done what he just accomplished. Say you're sorry, or I'll let him hit you."

Steve said, "Please don't say you're sorry, I'd love to hit you."

"Do I get to hit you back later?"

"Yes."

"Go for it Steve."

I said to my son, "Gordon you're out of your mind."

Monty said "Let him go Doctor, he's getting too big for his britches."

"You are probably both right, but today has been one of those extraordinary days in my life. I lied to my father, because my fiancé talked me into it. My fiancé sets me up to get caught in that lie. I am no longer getting married, because of that lie. I lied to my father, the one person in my life I should never have told a lie. Dad you taught me everything I know, and that's how I returned your kindness. I'm sorry. I have half of the people that are supposed to be guarding the NEST, running all over the place looking for me, while I'm downstairs in my own home training, because I didn't have the common sense to tell you that's what I was going to do. I was not going to react like a baby and run away. I was going to take my punishment like a man, because that's what I want to be looked upon as, not only as your son, but as someone who can be relied upon in a pinch. What else could I possibly do wrong for me today? If there is anything else, it might as well be Steve hitting me."

Steve smiled. "Thank you you asshole."

"You're welcome Steve."

Steve angled the ladder, placed his feet on the second and third steps, and lined Gordon's jaw at the correct height for his fist.

"Do you have any last words little pigeon?"

"Yes, can I close my eyes?"

"You can do anything you want."

"Enjoy yourself Steve, happy hunting."

Steve looked at everyone in the room and said, "Watch out for flying blood."

"Yours or mine?"

"You insolent little prick, I'm going to make you eat those words."

As Steve reared back, Gordon pushed his feet against Steve's muscular thighs, and pushed himself away from him. Off-balance Steve grabbed for the ladder to steady himself.

Gordon bent his body forward, as much as he could, and his legs rearward to gain as much potential energy as he could out of his rearward movement. As he reached apogee, he extended his legs forward to pick up momentum and his body back reducing drag, like the fuselage of an aircraft, without a tail. It wasn't much, but it was just enough.

As Steve regained his balance, he looked straight ahead and saw Gordon's feet heading straight for him. It was too late for him to do anything about it.

Gordon connected with Steve's hips, knocking him, and the ladder off kilter. They both swayed and finally hit the ground. Steve rolled into a standing position, and charged at Gordon. He only ran in to Monty.

"You had your chance Steve. Now he gets his when we're finished with him."

Steve dropped his head, and broke out into a laugh. "If he is not the sneakiest son of a bitch I've ever met, no one is."

"I know Steve, and you'd like to take him home with you."

"No he's not big enough; I'd need two of him."

"Picky aren't you?"

"Hell, we're even legal in Texas now."

"What is this world coming to?"

Monty looked up at Gordon, who had a big smile on his face.

"Little turd, you have a choice for your next match. Will it be Logan or Jayden?"

"Didn't you get my email Monty?"

"What did it say?"

"Due to pressing scientific matters, I hereby retire from all physical activity, forever, and ever, amen."

"Yes I did get that one. I thought it was so funny, I used it to wipe my ass."

"I meant every word of it."

"I'm sure you did. However, who did you get permission from to make that decision? There are only four people who were allowed to make those decisions at this facility for you. Your father, Mister Valentino, Mister Zabo, and me, which one of us gave you written permission to stop training?"

"You left one person out Monty; God."

"You are absolutely correct. How could I ever forget Her? Just give me her written permission slip, cosigned by one of the members of the "Deep Space Science Project" and you will never have to do physical training again."

"You would want God to have a cosigner?"

"You must remember little turd this is a private entity and only the 20 members of this entity are allowed to make decisions for it. According to the by-laws, there are no exceptions, not even for the 'Almighty Herself.'

"Can I say one more thing before this inquisition continues?"

"Always, you are the one that's hanging up there. You are the one with the brain that managed to sneak a quick blow in and knock Steve on his ass. What do you have to say now?"

"I want you to come with us. You are by far the smartest nonscientific person I have ever met."

"I'm sorry little turd, but I don't fit the profile."

"Dad, please."

"I'm sorry son. We set the profile up for specific reasons."

"I know, but sometimes there has to be an exception."

"Let's continue where we were, and someone put a sock in his mouth."

Steve said, "It will be my pleasure."

"A cloth sock Steve."

"Dammit."

************* (Hello readers, I have just returned from another four weeks stay at Anderson, What Fun! I will tell you more at the end of Chapter 25. Thank God for notes.)

As Steve climbed the ladder one more time Gordon yelled, "Not those socks you idiot, I just finished using them. They are filthy."

As he stuffed the socks into Gordon's mouth Steve said, "I'm sorry Gordon my hearing is a little bit off, because my head hit the ground when I fell. Did you say something about getting your rocks off?"

"Ymdm mpho bsom fsjd..."

"I'm going to have to get my hearing checked. I didn't understand a word you said."

"Thank you Steve, would you please leave us alone now. Monty please stay, I think I'm going to need a woman's point of view on this situation."

"With all due respect Doctor, I think Jennifer would be able to give you better advice on this then I would. At this moment, I would kill both of them for being so stupid, and acting like children."

"You've hit the point right on the head already Monty. They are acting like children, and that is exactly what they are 'teenage children.' They are no longer babies, or youngsters. They are not yet equipped to take on the world as full-fledged adults. Their minds are not prepared for that yet. They are not socially ready to take on the world. Where you ready to take on the world when you were 16 years old?"

"I am not a good one to use as an example for them. I was an Army brat. Every few years we were transferred to a new base. When I was 16, I was on Guam. Before that, it was Anchorage, Washington State, and Japan. I never developed good friendships, because my father was in a small communications detachment that went where it was needed, and not with the rest of the division. That's where I learned to develop my mind and my body into a machine. I could take care of myself in any situation, and didn't have to depend on anyone else."

"You still didn't answer my question Monty. Were you mentally ready to take on the world when you were 16 years old?"

"No I was not. I could have survived, but I was not ready for what was outside the gates of the Army base."

"Thank you Monty. Thank you for being so honest with me."

"Okay Zoie, you will no longer be interrupted while you are talking. I know the position you are in is not comfortable, but if I think you're lying to me, we will make the ropes tighter, and let you know what pain really feels like. Your fiancé already knows what it feels like, because you cut his heart out when you made him lie to me. He knew he could've asked me for anything, and I would have given it to him without a second thought. Why did you feel it was necessary to do it your way?"

"Dad, I have gone over this in my mind hundreds of times. The first thing I think of is how stupid I was to ask him to do it my way. The second thing I think of is why I would tell you he was going to lie to you in advance. Why would I do those things to the person I love most in this world and I come up with the only answer I can think of, 'I don't know, I just don't know."

Gordon went wild as he was hanging from the ceiling. He twisted his body, and yelled through the socks in his mouth.

I got up from my chair, walked over to him, and for the first time in my life, I smacked my son. He looked at me as if I had shot him but he stopped moving instantly.

"One more outburst like that Gordon and you will not be allowed in the lab again. Two more and I will train people to work on the engines in our spacecraft. I will leave you here on earth. You said you lied to the only person you should never lie to, and at this moment I am not lying to you. Control yourself, or you are out of our program. Do you understand me?"

All muscle movement in his body ceased, I don't believe he blinked.

I stood in front of him for a moment, and finally I said, "That is much better. Make sure you stay that way or you will be back in Denver, before you know what happened to you."

I saw a tear form in his eye as I turned away from him. I did not know if it was because I hit him, or because of the threat of leaving him here on earth. Both were an anathema to him, and he knew he deserved both, because of his transgressions. He would have preferred being beaten up and dragged along the floor by Steve, then be slapped, and threatened by me.

I turned and walked back to him. I pulled the socks out of his mouth. "I don't think we will need these to keep you quiet anymore, will we?"

"No sir, I will not say a word."

"Don't make me regret this decision."