There Must Be A Mistake Ch. 30

"You never call me with good news. All you do is call with work that you want done yesterday."

"Do you remember the work I said you would have 3 or 4 days to do?"

"Yes I do. What do you want me to do now? Do you want me to get it done in one day, or do you need it today."

"Do you see how wrong you are about me? I called to tell you that you have nearly 6 weeks to get it done. Newton and his staff have broken the code. He now knows how to make light move faster than light. What do you think of my son now?"

There was no reply.

"Get up off the damn floor Dycke. I'm tired of you sleeping on the job."

"Doctor Luck, you are the only one that can do that to him. I'll get some water, and throw it on his face."

"Get a gallon Cheryl, he deserves it."

*****

"Darn it Cheryl that was the best sleep I've had in weeks."

"Maybe you should have the good doctor call you more often sir."

"Every time he calls me it's bad news."

"I resent that, I called with good news this time."

"I know something bad is coming. What is it, Even? You are too happy. Where is the knife?"

"Well, my grandson did tell me there is one small problem."

"Whose small problem is it, Even? Is it your small problem, or my huge problem?"

"You are such a pessimist Dycke. How much of a problem could it possibly be for you to pick up 20 pounds of Vanadium?"

Cheryl yelled, "Doctor Luck if I were you I would leave the country. He's in the bathroom throwing up."

"Dycke always did have a weak stomach. Start making calls around to all his sources Cheryl. Beg borrow, or steal every ounce of Vanadium you can get your hands on. Price is not an object, getting your hands on it is. You will get a bonus from me if you can get 20 pounds of it. Start with Svartliden Mining; they are the 2nd largest mining operation in Sweden. They are in Uppsala. If I remember correctly their phone number is 011-358-222-199-0003."

"Why don't you give me the name of the largest company in Sweden?"

"Cheryl, number 2 always tries harder to please their customers, especially when you tell them price is no object."

"Mister Schneider always said you were a sneaky bastard."

"That I am Cheryl. Is he out of the bathroom yet?"

"No he's not; I think he's locked himself in there for the rest of the day."

"Once you get 20 pounds, tell him, and maybe he'll come out. Send him home, he needs some sleep, better still, and let me speak to one of his agents."

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

"Hello Doctor Luck, this is Tom Brady, how can I help you?"

"Hello Tom, a long time ago Dick had an agent by the name of Fiona, I don't remember her last name, because she got married to one of your agents. I believe she was his head nursemaid, while he was growing up. Then he got even by taking her gun away, and sent her to school for finance. Do you know who she is or where she is?"

"Absolutely sir, her name is Fiona Short. She is the head of our Western Hemisphere Operations Center."

"Do you know how I can get in touch with her?"

"If you were here sir she's 2 floors up."

"Could you ask Cheryl for her phone number please?"

"Doctor, Cheryl is transferring you to her private line."

"Thank you very much Tom."

"Hello."

"Hello Fiona, this is Doctor Even Luck. We have a mutual friend by the name of Dycke Schneider. At this moment, he is in his bathroom throwing up, and hiding, because of a job I gave him to do. Things are a little stressful around the Schneider household. I'll fill you in if you have time, before your boss has a nervous breakdown."

"How bad is he, and how bad are things at his home?"

"I'm ready to send him to a hotel so he can sleep and not be near Payne."

"Oh shit, I'll send Bob; he will take care of it. Come up to my office, we will have coffee. I'm on the 6th floor; you can't miss me."

"That would be a little difficult, since I'm in Texas."

"I'm sorry Doctor I thought you were downstairs."

"It's a perfectly natural assumption. Do you remember when Dycke and Payne were nearly torn apart by her parents?"

"Yes I remember quite well."

"Well Payne just did it between Zoey and my son, Gordon. Dycke is going berserk over this, and he is furious with Payne. My son is quite like Dycke was back then. He compartmentalizes everything, because as he said to Zoie, "Everyone loses in a fight like this."

There is another problem. We have a little, 2 year old, redheaded girl that is very good at predicting things. She has never been wrong so far. She told Payne not to go home on the day she planned to leave, because there was something wrong with one of the aircraft's engines. We begged her to have the engines checked and sure enough, one of the engines blew apart while they were testing it. It had just been overhauled, and wasn't due for any maintenance for another 27,000 hours.

Teddy said if Zoie stays with Payne, she is not going to live very long. She will die in an accident of some kind.

Payne will be in hospital for many years, and she will never be the same. A few years after she comes home, Dycke will walk out on her.

You can believe me or not, but this child has never been wrong, and I don't want to see my friend hurt.

Dycke is starting to crack now, and the real pressure won't start until December. If there's anything you can do to help, please do it now before it's too late."

"Do the parents know?"

"I told Dycke to tell them."

"I'll call them, and make sure they know."

"He needs sleep; real uninterrupted sleep, and a lot of it. A trip to Sweden would be just what the Doctor ordered."

"Why Sweden Doctor?"

"We are trying to buy 20 pounds of Vanadium. Sweden is the only place in the world that has an established supply. A sudden trip, by a world famous CEO, and some members of his senior staff would not raise the suspicions of a skittish wife, especially if his chief financial officer and members of his senior staff went with him.

"Trust me Doctor, he will sleep, or Bob will make sure he wakes up with a headache."

"I think Bob and Gordon should meet. What are you doing the week before Christmas?"

"We had not planned anything for the week before Christmas. We are going to Mallorca for 2 weeks, after New Year's."

"Why don't you fly here to Austin? You can watch us take off on Christmas Day, and you can fly back to Charleston on the 26th."

"We'd love to come out for Christmas."

"Great, we will rent you a suite at the Hyatt; next to the one we will have Dycke, Payne, and Zoie being held captive in."

"Thank you Doctor, that's very kind of you. I have a little expertise in keeping people quiet."

"Take care of Dycke; he's very important to me. He is my best friend."

"You can rest easy Doctor, he's in good hands."

"I'm beginning to remember some of the stories he told me about you. I believe it began while Payne was in the hospital, recuperating from her operation. He went to visit the hospital administrator, and did not take a protection detail with him. When you returned with him several hours later, he was severely bruised, and monosyllabic. I would love to know the rest of that story."

"I will tell you the remainder of the story over the Christmas holiday Doctor. I believe you will love it."

"Is it going to embarrass him?"

"I wouldn't tell it to you, if it didn't."

"Wonderful!"

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

145. Strange Happenings

"How is he Bob?"

"He's unconscious, and he is totally drained. If we put him into a hospital, he won't stay there, because he's too proud. Do you know what's going on?"

"Yes, I just found out what's going on, from Doctor Even Luck, no less. Payne just pulled the same thing her mother did on Dycke and her, on Zoey, and Gordon Luck. The wedding is off and she hasn't told anyone yet?"

"There is less than a month to go, what the hell is she waiting for?"

"That's not the point Bob. She pulled Zoey away from Gordon, just as Alletta pulled Payne away from Dycke. Dycke is so furious with her, he's not communicating with her. He may be speaking to her, but neither one is listening to the other. Payne will not give up Zoey, and she does not see anything wrong with it. She sees no comparison between what her mother did to her, and what she's doing with Zoey."

"I think it's time for our boss to take a road trip, a really long road trip."

"I hear Sweden's really nice at this time of the year."

"Could you pick someplace a little bit warmer?"

"I could, but Sweden is where the Vanadium is, and our boss needs 20 pounds of it, within 4 weeks."

"I used to know some people, who knew some people, who knew some people, but we are all dead now."

"You were not dead last night dear."

"I thought I felt something."

"Do we put him in a hyperbaric chamber, or deep immersion?"

"Fiona, if he wakes up in deep immersion, he'll go loony. He has to be able to see where he is, and have friendly faces around him. I'll have George grab Jason from the golf course. We will take the big bird; we can get a hyperbaric chamber in there. We will depart in 4 hours. Call Payne in two and half, and tell her this is a high profile mission. He's going, you're going, Suzette, from diplomatic resources, me, and a few other people you can think up are going. I'll take care of the medical stuff, and the agents."

"Bob, what was the name of that big psychiatrist from Boston, who gave a speech last night at the Hilton. Offer him $20,000 a day and a trip to Sweden to take care of a special patient."

"Oh I know who it is; Doctor William Russell, I'll call the hotel to see if he is still there."

"Tell him if he doesn't have any warm clothing, we will buy it for him."

"He's rich and famous, and for what were paying him, he can buy his own clothes."

"You make it sound like it's your money."

"It is our money, isn't it?"

"No, it's Even Luck's money."

"Okay, we can buy him a jacket."

"My mother spends more of our money than we do."

"How can an 85-year-old woman shop like she does? I will never understand it. I'm going to have to give her a four-bedroom apartment just for her clothes."

"We can always give her our loft and move into her apartment."

"Over my dead body. We had enough room for our family in the loft. We raised 2 children in there She doesn't have enough room for herself, and her things, in a three-bedroom apartment. It's not humanly possible."

"You must remember Bob; she has her gentleman friend over every now and again."

"Please don't remind me, my head spins just at the thought of it."

"Why, we are not going to have sex, when we are 85?"

"My dear, when you are 85, I will be 94, and probably in a little urn on the mantle."

"Don't say that Mister Short, or you will piss me off. You know what happens when you piss me off. Get to work I meet you at the airport."

"Just remember, you have to put the mats away after you lose."

"I tripped."

"That's what they all say."

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

"Tom."

"Yes Mister Short."

"Give these to Mister Schneider when he wakes up. Tell him they are Zofran. They will settle his stomach. Doctor Tebow wants to see him in his office now. He wants to make sure he did not throw up blood, or rupture any blood vessels in his throat. Stall him for about 30 seconds, asking if he needs his wallet or his glasses or anything else. Then catch him as he begins to fall. Take four men with you, and bring him to the 767. Do you have your passport with you?"

"It's in my locker downstairs sir."

"Make sure everyone you pick has theirs. Bring your full arsenal, automatic weapons, and full protective gear, anything you can think of Tom. Everything else will be taken care of on the fly."

"Are we expecting trouble sir?"

"Smuggling 20 pounds of a restricted product out of the host country could be a little hairy. We will try to do it legally. We will try to pay off the appropriate people. Then we may have to do it a different way."

"Interesting options sir."

"Yes, but at least there are options. Let's get the ball rolling."

"Yes sir."

Dycke woke up on his office floor, with a pillow underneath his head, and covered by a blanket. The door to his office was closed, and a guard was posted outside it. Inwardly he smiled. Cheryl made sure no one was getting to him, while he slept.

He grabbed his chair, and the rollers made a noise.

The guard turned, opened the door, and rushed to assist him.

"Mister Schneider, please do not try to move. I will be right back."

Tom was back in an instant.

"Mister Schneider, we called Doctor Tebow, and he wants you at his office as soon as we can get you there. These are Zofran. The pharmacy rushed these over for you. They will settle your stomach if you had any bleeding inside. He also wants to check if you burst any blood vessels in your throat. This is lukewarm water. Please drink it slowly."

Listening to Tom's slow measured tones, Dycke was at ease when he swallowed the 2 pills, with the warm water.

"Do you need your wallet, keys, or anything else to take with you sir?"

"My jacket is behind the door Tom."

"Considering the circumstances sir, I think we can forgo the jacket for this morning."

"Okay Tom, Cheryl close up, I'll be going..."

Tom caught him on his way down to the floor. "I thought Mister Short said 30 seconds?"

"As weak as he is Tom, I'm amazed it took that long."

Cheryl walked into Dycke's office, and put all of Dycke's traveling necessities into his messenger bag. She followed him out of his office, while he was in Tom's arms. When he was safely on the gurney, she put the pillow under his head, covered him with the blanket, and put the messenger bag by his feet.

She grabbed Tom's jacket by the lapels. "If anything happens to him while you are in charge of his safety, your life is not worth a plug nickel."

"If he gets hurt while we are away, I guarantee you I will be dead Cheryl."

"Don't be dead; I want you both back here safely."

Tom pushed Dick through the executive offices, and into the elevator. They went down to the basement, and out the rear exit. Four men pushed Dycke into the big transport, hopped in after him, closed the back doors, and headed to the airport.

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

Fiona was on the phone with a friend at the State Department trying to smooth the way for the purchase of the Vanadium. One question kept popping up, "Why such a large amount of this low radioactive substance in one purchase."

Fiona replied, "It's a proprietary purchase for Doctor Even Luck. He assures me that the total amount of this purchase will leave the planet on 25 December. It is for a new invention. He will not allow anyone to know what it is at this time, until it is patented. He will give us all the information we need, when we have the product in hand.

We will be building it, on our site, at the Charleston, South Carolina plant. We will fly the finished product, by via circuitous route, over water, until we reach Texas and land at Austin.

At that time, all lanes of the interstate will be blocked front and rear, by the Texas Rangers. Our trucks will be moving at highway speed, until they get off the highway at Temple. The trucks will go directly to the spacecraft, where this new invention will be put on board the spacecraft immediately, and secured. Doctor Luck will give you more information on this new invention, after the patent is filed."

"Fiona, I will try to get this approved, but it will take time."

"Time is a luxury I don't have Judy. The spacecraft takes off on December 25. That is not negotiable. At this moment, we have a 7-week window. They have the design. We have to come up with a prototype. If the first prototype doesn't work, we have to design, and build another one. If that one works then we have to build a minimum of 6, and make parts for 10 more. We are going to be working 24/7, with the best people we have.

We have canceled all Christmas vacations. Our senior engineers, technicians, designers, draftsmen, and tool and die maker's, are screaming bloody murder. They don't know what they're going to be working on, no one does. I don't know. The only thing that's keeping everyone in line are two words 'EVEN LUCK!' If he is doing something last minute, and he is begging Dycke to get it done, this thing is huge. This is going to be water cooler conversation for generations. Please Judy get me these permits."

"Okay Fiona, I'll call in everything I have. I'll twist every arm I can, but I can't promise you anything on such short notice."

"Thank you Judy that is all I can ask."

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

She looked at the clock, and it stared back at her. It was 2:45 PM, and she couldn't stall it any longer

"Okay girl, put on your happy face, smile inside, and lie like a bitch."

"Hello."

"Is this the normal Zoey Schneider your dad is talking about?"

"Tell me who you are and I'll tell you who I am?"

"I used to beat your dad up regularly when he was a kid."

"Marty?"

"No, the pretty one."

"Fiona, how are you?"

"I'm still recovering from a few of the barbs you gave me, the last time I saw you."

"I'm so sorry. I did a lot of terrible things I'm sorry for, but I am different now. Do you want to know what did it?"

"Your father hit you over the head with a bowling pin, and scrambled your brains like eggs."

"I know I deserved it, but my dad never touched me. Doctor Luck told him to put me on birth control pills, and I was a changed person within a few days."

"Zoie, I want to hear more about this, but I can't do it now. May I speak to your mother please?"

"Sure, let me get her."

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

"Hello Fiona, what's going on?"

"Hello Payne, Dycke, and I are leading a whole team of specialists to Sweden. We will be gone for 7 to 9 days, possibly more. We have to convince the Swedish government to allow us to take 20 pounds of Vanadium out of their country without appropriate U.S. permits. If they say okay, then we have to get a company to sell it to us, without those permits.

I just got off the phone with the State Department, and my friend said she would try to get it done, but she wasn't hopeful.

There are people in Uppsala who may be willing to look the other way for the right amount of money, and Doctor Luck has given us an open checkbook.

Dycke is running around getting things organized, otherwise he would have called you himself. We are taking 3 each of our best engineers and scientists with us to make sure we don't get stiffed with low-grade ore. I would not know what Vanadium looks like, from beach sand, if they showed it to me.

Sweden is 10 hours ahead of us, so this is going to be a bitch of the trip. We will see you when we get back. Take care, Payne."

"Stay well Fiona; tell Dycke I love him."

"I have to run. Goodbye." Fiona purposely did not respond to the part of the conversation where Payne said, 'Tell Dycke I Love Him.' She did not think it was appropriate."

As she was telling her assistants, what the priorities were for the next week, Fiona cell phone rang. She knew it was Bob, because of the ring.

"What's up Shorty?"

"You know I'm going to bite your clit, because of that remark."

"Do you want me to say it again?"

"No, I know my way around there very well."

"You called?"

"Yes, Doctor Russell will meet us at the aircraft. He will be honored to take $20,000 a day, plus a very warm coat to treat a patient."

"Did you tell him who is patient is?"

"When I told him it was $20,000 a day, he didn't ask."

"Did you tell him to show up at the Schneider Industries terminal?"

"How else would he know where to meet us? Oh shit, I am getting old."