The Rescue Mission
Chapter 8
Written by rachel76m
Edited by Don Kaufman

Thursday afternoon, 1:00 P.M. in Brussels, Belgium, a man is seen walking down the sidewalk in a crowd of people already there. He stops at an intersection and waits for the light to change colors. Once it becomes green and the traffic has stopped, he crosses the street. He enters an internet café about four doors from the intersection.

Once he steps into the café, he looks around to find his contact. He sees him sitting by the window. He walks over to the table and sits down in front of him.

“Hello, my patriot.”

“Hello, my friend. Is there any word from our Pirate in J-ville?”

“Yes, I just received the news. The Pirate writes that our ‘stick in the mud’ is in the hospital. His jaw is wired shut. The hands are bandaged up along with the arm and leg casts. He won’t be going anywhere or be able to stop our plans now.”

“That’s good my friend. We’ll need to send an ‘op’ to confirm that. We are fortunate this upstart showed up at our pirate’s fortress. We must keep our hands in the pockets of our friends.”

“I just sent the request to one of our agents in the area. We’ll know soon. Our pirate has proven himself very much. He has sent the treasure we requested without having the locals notified.”

“Yes, it is a good thing we nipped this before our plans got ruined again.”

“I know, my patriot. We didn’t have the expertise back then despite our best efforts during the Judgement Years. It is fortunate in some ways the children of the Immigrants stood up to depose their parent’s plans for world domination.”

“I agree, my friend. I’m glad to see Europe returning back to its roots.”

“So am I, so am I. I should have word by this evening for our confirmation.”

“Good, I’ll inform our leaders that this part is taken care of. To think, by the end of the week, our New Dawn will be shining brightly throughout the world.”

“Yes, it will be a glorious day.”

They both get up from the table. They exit from the internet café and go their separate ways.

~~~000~~~

Thursday morning at Secure-Sys

Mr. Bryson walks straight to R&D first thing in morning at 7 AM. Opening the door after he swipes his card on the lock reader, he sees Doug and Beth there doing some equipment arranging to set up the private server.

“Good morning, sir. What can we do for you?”

“Can you both come with me down with me to see Ben? It is very important.”

“This must be very serious. Give us just a moment to lock up here.”

Once the projects are locked down, all three walk to Central Security. Mr. Bryson opens the door and motions to everybody to gather around at the work station nearby.

“I want to play a DVD from late yesterday. It was copied from the hospital recording after the four men in question left when they visited Richard. I want to know what they were talking about. I have an idea, but I want to hear it from you, okay?”

“Okay, let’s play the DVD.”

Mr. Bryson puts the DVD in and pushes a button to play the recording. As the conversation is replayed, Doug becomes very uneasy, especially astonished when he hears the phrase ‘New Dawn’. The rest of them are all distressed how they berated and humiliated Richard. They all calm down and gather their thoughts.

“I take it that your reaction to this outburst that this conspiracy must be stopped somehow. I heard rumors of this New Dawn when I was in DC last week. It was brought up in the sessions, but we were not sure how to react to it. Doug, you seemed upset the most when you heard that mentioned. What have you heard about this New Dawn?”

“As you know, I am a member of several chat groups on line. In one of the chat groups there is often mention of this New Dawn. It is not just a computer virus, it is more than that. It is also a social upheaval. Our generation is at a crossroad. There is a push by some governments to eliminate money because of the problems it brings. This idea of debt is really putting a damper on the psyche of everyone on this planet.”

“I agree, Doug. As much as we like to make a profit for the company, debt is always a problem. Fortunately we are in the black at this time. This world wide debt is a huge problem. Countries have spent more than what they bring in for income. They print paper money as if it is normal to do. Are you ready for the morning meeting with the AG?”

“I am, Robert. I have made copies of the recordings from the chat rooms. I’ll present them at the meeting.”

“That’s good, Doug.”

“So am I, Robert. I have verified what is happening with our network. It has Brent’s fingerprints all over the place. I can’t wait to plug those holes and see those four men arrested. We’ll have to advertise to replace those four.”

“Yes, let’s hope our background checks will be more thorough the next time. Go ahead and load Richard’s program in its null state when we get back this afternoon. I doubt the trigger will be pulled by then.”

“Yes, Robert. Are you ready to do that, David?”

“I’ll be ready, Ben.”

“Okay, let’s act normal and leave during our agreed staggered times.”

“Yes sir, Mr. Bryson.”

The morning went smoothly in the morning. One by one, Ben, Doug, Mr. Bryson leave every five minutes apart. Their company’s attorney leaves at 9 AM.

No one notices these four men are missing until it is noticed by Brent by 11 AM. Hmmphh . . . so they aren’t here. All the more reason I should be the new CEO here.

Everyone arrives at the AG’s office in downtown Jacksonville to have their meeting. They await word when Richard is brought around to join in the meeting.

~~~000~~

When the door opens to Richard’s room, the butterflies take off from Richard and return to the flowers. Sarah Mitchell walks into the room and whispers to them.

“We are going to wake up Richard now in another room for a meeting. He’ll back here in a few hours by noon time.”

She hears a word whispered. “Okay.”

She turns around to look at the monitors and sees everything is okay. The doors open and two orderlies walk in with a wheeled bed. They carefully lift Richard and place him on the bed. The monitors and intravenous bags are disconnected and are attached to the portable ones mounted on the portable bed. They take Richard out and down the halls. They enter the elevator and push the button for the second level. The doors close, the elevator moves down two floors. The doors open. They push Richard out and move him down the hallway until they arrive at another pair of double doors.

One of the orderlies pushes a button on the wall, and the doors open. They push Richard into the operating room. Sarah Mitchell gets herself ready in the anteroom like the last time. The assistants gather around the bed along with Dr. Thornton. Soon, Dr. Mitchell comes in and joins them around the bed.

“Okay, let’s take it slow, people. Watch the monitors carefully. A syringe please.”

A clean syringe is handed to Dr. Thornton. He draws three milliliters out from a vial. He makes sure there is no air in the syringe. He carefully inserts the needle into the port of the tube from the intravenous bag hanging on a support rod.

They see the heart rate increase slightly. Then see the eyelids flutter a bit.

“Unnnh . . . Where am . . . I?”

Sarah bends down and puts her face above Richard’s. “You are in a theater room in Jacksonville Memorial. You are about to have a conference with the people you contacted before you got beaten up.”

I mumble slowly. “Okay. My jaw . . . is . . . hard . . . to move.”

“Can you whisper? It will be easier. There is a mouth piece there to help keep your mouth open for fluids and speaking. We have it wired so it won’t move. Your jaw was kicked only once.”

I whisper to her. “How’s that.”

She smiles, “That’s great, Richard. We’ll be here monitoring you while you have your meeting.”

“Okay.”

The cameras are brought in closer to the operating table so it will be focused on Richard’s face. A microphone is clipped to a bandage on Richard’s jaw. There is a TV monitor brought near by and positioned on Richard’s right side so that he can see them. The connections are made, soon Richard sees everyone has gathered in the AG office.

“Good morning, Richard.”

I whisper to them, “Good morning, Mr. Bryson and AG Stephen Russell. I see the others are there.”

“Yes, we are. We followed the clues you gave us. Doug tells me, it seems to be pointing to a major social upheaval is about to happen.”

“Do you have any idea what they are after, Richard?”

“The best I can figure out, is that one part of it is to eliminate all money in the other countries and put the Euro as the world currency instead of the US dollar, sirs.”

“Hmm . . . is there a way to protect ourselves?”

“There is, sirs. Once my program gets installed at the banks especially, the virus will encounter a hidden subroutine that will change the destructive nature of the virus and eliminate only the current debt. It will then spread throughout the world.” I give a smile as best I can.

Everyone laughs out loud.

“That is great, Richard. I will push the banks to get their computers upgraded with your anti-virus program as soon as possible. I will also tell them that we must have our paper money backed by gold again or some other self-correcting measure, so this won’t happen again.”

“Don’t forget the agencies and government bodies, sirs.”

“We won’t, Richard. If they try to commandeer the data cores, we’ll be ready to unleash your Rabbit Trails program to track them down.”

“That is a must, sirs. Mr. Bryson told me that Interpol, the CIA and other large security agencies want my 3D System to ramp up to large scale.”

They look at Mr. Bryson. “That is right, Richard. This incident will prove that the current network is too easy to hack. They want to plug up their holes as well.”

“How can I do that now, Mr. Bryson?”

“You will be staying at the Rescue Mission in Charleston, SC. Surprisingly, Brianna Wilson works there now. Hopefully you will be up and about in two months.”

“I see, Mr. Bryson.”

“You’ll be meeting them this afternoon at 2 P.M..”

“Thank you for the warning, sirs.” I smile at them again.

They smile at that remark.

“The other item we need to know, Richard, is this. Why didn’t you defend yourself?”

“On the first day I was hired by Mr. Bryson, I worked in the Charleston office for about a month. Then when I moved to the Jacksonville office, I met Brent Morgan for the first time. We shook hands for a brief moment. He tried to test my strength and intimidate me by out squeezing my hand. Once I felt it, I relaxed my hand. I then knew Brent would be a problem, sirs. I could have taken them down easily, but from what I discovered in the programs we published. I found my subroutines constantly being circumvented. I then knew there is something really big brewing.”

“So you started your investigation into Brent.”

“Yes, Mr. Russell. Once I saw the connections to Europe with my Rabbit Trails program, I talked with Doug about it one day just before I supposedly got fired.”

“Richard told me he found some names on Interpol. I then checked the transcripts I had made when I sat in the chat rooms and his report. I found three names mentioned in those chat rooms. No way, Richard would have known about it.”

“Do you still have that list, Doug?”

“I have it with me, Mr. Bryson.”

Doug opens his notebook. He finds the transcript report I printed out. He hands it to Mr. Bryson. Then he hands it to Mr. Russell. They see the time stamp on the bottom of the page and the PC source with my name on it.

“This is an excellent piece of evidence. We’ll need to keep this and submit it for the up and coming trial.”

We continue talking about the evidence that we uncovered. Doug replays some of his DVD copies and passes around copies of the transcripts from the chat rooms. Everyone begins to see a pattern emerging. Ben shows a more thorough detail of what Brent did in sending the email and have it appear that it came from Mr. Bryson’s PC. It even includes his own digital ID for authentication. They also see how much money was taken out of Secure-Sys and pocketed by Brent and what Brent sent overseas to several European people.

They agree the banks, police, government centers need to have the program downloaded immediately. They get done with their plans by noon time. Richard is then taken out of the theater room and returned to his room. Then Mr. Bryson, Dave Parker, Detective Torres and AG Russell drive to the hospital while the others return to Secure-Sys.

Once Richard is alone in his room the butterflies emerge from the flower pots. They continue to help Richard heal faster.

I whisper to them. “You’re here, my fairies.”

“Yes we are, father.”

“How did this happen, Tiger?”

“Anna made inquiries. She found a way for butterflies to be here.”

“We are not cats and dogs, mother.”

I crack a smile, “I see. Thank you, Ruby.”

“Hold still, we are not finished yet.”

“Don’t spend your energy on me.”

“We came prepared, mother. We have two of our potted flowers here with bags of fruit and a bottle of water to drink within the flowers.”

“Okay. How long will I be here?”

“We don’t know, father. We’ll take it a week at a time.” Lavan touches his jaw.

“Okay. . . . Oooh . . . that . . . felt nice.”

Lavan and the other fairies smile in their butterfly mode form.

“Breathe easy, mother. Your finger bones have been realigned by the doctors.”

“Okay, Bianca.”

They continue to administer to me. I ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ a few times while they touch me. Slowly the pain is easing from my body.

At noon time, a nurse comes in with a tray. The butterflies fly back to the flowers to get their rest and restore their energy.

“Here you go, Richard. I brought you some liquid soup and juice.”

“Okay.”

“I’m going have to elevate your upper body slowly. I’ll be watching your eyelids. If you blink them many times, that tells me you are experiencing some pain and I will stop. If I see them blink normally, you’re okay.”

“Okay.”

The nurse takes the control and slowly elevates my upper body. I don’t experience any pain at all. Soon my upper body is at thirty degrees and she stops.

“That should do it. I’m going to insert the straw into your mouth. Try to close your lips around it and suck up the juice first.”

“Okay.”

She inserts the straw from the apple juice cup into my mouth. I close my lips around it and try to suck up the juice. I slowly bring it to my mouth a little bit. It soon wets my mouth and tongue. I open my lips to stop the sucking and breathe some air.

“Yes, not too fast at first.”

I do it again and drink in some more juice. After two sips, she removes the straw and places the cup on the tray. “Let’s try the soup. Don’t worry, it is warm. It is a chicken and vegetable broth.”

“Okay.”

I do that three times and catch my breath between each sip.

“That’s good. How about some juice?”

“Yes.”

I sip some apple juice three times. This time with a little more confidence. I take some longer sips. I catch my breath after the last one.

“That’s good, Richard. We need to finish these two cups and your lunch is done.”

“Okay.”

For the next fifteen minutes I continue to sip and drink the apple juice and the soup. Once in awhile, she takes a napkin and dabs the sides of my mouth to keep it dry.

“That’s good, Richard. I need to leave the bed up like this for the next hour, then I will lower you back down half way.”

“Okay.”

“There is a pitcher of water here when your 2 PM friends arrive.”

“Okay.”

Once she leaves the room. The butterflies continue their healing touch on me. I sense them they had their noon meal as well while I had mine.

In an hour, the nurse returns to lower my bed down half way. My stomach feels okay at this level. I doze off and get some sleep until 2 PM. A nurse comes back in the room to wake me up. My fairies return to the potted flowers. “How was your nap?”

“It felt good.”

“I’m sure it did. You’re friends are here now. Are you up for some talking?”

“I’ll try.”

“We’ll have a nurse here to keep an eye on you just in case.”

“That’s fine.”

The head nurse leaves, the other nurse stays behind. My butterflies have retreated into the flowers and cannot be seen directly unless you look really close at them.

Anna and Brianna walk in first.

Anna steps to my left side. Brianna steps to my right side. She is smiling at me with a beautiful smile. Her brunette hair is in large curls. The length is just past her shoulder blades. Her figure is beautiful. I guess a C-cup for her. She is wearing a sun dress to the knees.

“Hi there, Richard. It has been a long time.”

“Brianna? You found me. You’re beautiful and grown up now.”

“Yes, I found you, Richard. Thank you for the compliment.” Brianna touches my arm as she smiles at me. She sees the heart rate increase a bit. “You still look the same. I can sense you have put on some muscle now.”

“Well, I had to grow up as well, Brianna.”

“I’m sure you did. I saw the video of your graduation at NC State.”

“Hmm . . . What do you think of it? Will you still like me if I get in a fight again?”

“There is a lot I don’t know about you since we left twelve years ago.”

“I can say the same about you as well.”

“That’s true, Richard. But first, there is something that must be done now.”

“What is it, Brianna?”

“You need to meet my parents.”

“Your . . . your . . . parents?”

“Yes, Richard. You need to hear them out.”

My heart rate starts to increase some now. Anna walks to the door and opens it. In come Brianna’s parents. I start to breathe a little more rapidly now. My heart rate increases some, too. The nurse comes over to watch the monitors more closely.

“Easy, Richard. Breathe in and out. They said this might happen if you saw them.”

I look at the nurse really quickly without moving my head, “Easy?! They rejected me . . . twelve years ago!! Pant . . . pant . . . pant . . . ”

Helen, Larry and Brianna are holding onto each other now. Tears are coming down their faces.

“We are sorry to put you and Brianna through that night. Please forgive us now, Richard.”

“Please, Richard. I was finally told myself not too long ago. They kept it a secret from me as well.”

“How much do you know, Brianna?”

“I know you are dual gender now. You are still a functional man and yet have a female womb.”

“What else, Brianna?”

“I explained to them why you were dressed up as a girl. It is because I wanted to know what it was like to have a sister.”

“We finally had to come to terms with you, Richard. That is why your parents and we met at the cabin during those times.”

“Please forgive us, Richard. Please,” pleads Helen.

I see their faces seeking an answer from me.

“I . . . I . . . remember forgiving . . . my parents at the house after the funeral . . . and when I met them in a dream . . . ” Tears come down my eyes. The nurse tries to catch them with a tissue. Once it becomes soaked, she uses another one. “I . . .must do the same now. I . . . forgive you both.”

My tears come down in a torrent. I moan the best I can. “Unnnh . . . Why me?” The next instant, the butterflies leave the flowers and come fluttering around. They land on the pillow, my chest and my forehead. The nurse steps away to see this marvel. A tear comes down her eye. Anna has a tear as well. Dr. Sarah Mitchell shows up as well. She has a tear running down her face as well. So do the Wilsons as well.

Soon everyone hears a soft melody being hummed in the air. Slowly my tears come to a stop. I’m gently soothed by the melody. My breathing becomes slower and it is soon reflected on the monitors. The Wilsons steps forward to get closer. They want to soak up my tears with tissue, but the butterflies are in the way. Slowly the butterflies flutter off of me and stop the melody. They flutter back to the flowers. The Wilsons take some tissue to dry my face. I still feel a wet pillow around my ears.

I look at Helen and Larry. “I found the two old books.”

“Save that for later, Richard.”

“Okay . . . sniff . . . sniffs . . .”

“Richard, you need to talk to them.”

“Where and when do I start, Anna?”

“Start with when you moved to Charlottesville.”

“Okay.”

I begin telling my story since we moved apart. I told them my dad enrolled me in the local Shaolin Dojo and I started earning their sashes. I earned the purple sash with the third degree by the time I finished high school. I also told them, I graduated as one of the top five students in the class.

The nurse pours some water into a cup with a straw. She raises the bed like when I had my lunch. Brianna takes it and brings it near to me. She inserts the straw into my mouth. I close my lips around it and suck up some water. After taking two sips and swallowing it, I nod my head up and down. She takes it out and refills it. I then continue telling my story.

I tell them I decided to go to NC State to get a BS degree in Computer Engineering. But then I come to a stop before that fateful Spring Semester for my junior year.

“Why did you stop, Richard?”

“That Spring Semester is the most life changing experience of my life to this date, Brianna. Anna, who is here from Secure-Sys?”

“Dr. Thornton, Mr. Bryson, Dave Parker, Detective Torres and AG Russell. They are watching from the monitors at the nurses station.”

“Please invite them in here, Anna.”

“Are you sure, Richard?”

“I’m sure, Anna. Anna and Sarah, you will need to shake hands with everyone in this room.”

Anna and Sarah look at each other and nod their heads up and down. Anna opens the door, then AG Russell, Dr. Thornton, Mr. Bryson, Mr. Parker and Detective Torres walk into the room.

“Richard has requested that Sarah and I need to shake your hands.”

“Why, Anna?”

Mr. Bryson smiles at me and knows what is about to happen.

“We need to share an experience with you. You will know if Richard is telling the truth or not. There were several events that happened to Richard during that Spring Semester.”

“Yes, Anna. Before that Spring Semester, Richard’s womb was sealed and closed. Then for some reason it became open and fully functional.”

“What are you saying, Sarah?”

“What I’m saying, Dr. Thornton, there are some things that can only be explained by the Creator of the Universe.”

Immediately, Anna and Sarah start shaking hands with everyone there. Then one by one, their ears are opened up to hearing the Creator’s Voice.

“What or who is speaking to me in my head, Anna?”

“That is the Creator’s Voice. Or in other words, you are hearing G-d’s voice. What is He telling you now, Mr. Torres?”

“He is telling me that we need to listen to Richard now and accept it as truth.”

Brianna looks at me with a great smile. “So, you mean to tell me this is a true story?”

“It is, Brianna. It really did happen to me.”

Larry and Helen look at me with wonderment and awe.

I then begin with that fateful day of receiving Renard’s email on my PC laptop. I then recount my times on Twainor and when I came back. That takes about forty-five minutes to tell.

Brianna gives me some more water to sip before I continue with the story. I continue to tell the story when I received the news my family is killed in the car and plane crash on the mountain road.

The Wilsons are hugging each other closely now. I see them mourning for their dear friends. The others have long sad faces on themselves when I tell the whole story.

I then continue with the story when I finished my Spring Semester and drove to Mt. Blanc to get my thoughts together. But then I get a surprise contact from Renard again. I then fly to Twainor again to confront an ancient enemy from Earth.

I then take the next hour summarizing and explaining those three months I was gone and how I was changed. Then I arrived back here as if no time has elapsed. I then stop to catch my breath.

Brianna gives me some water to drink after telling that part of the story.

“That is some story you told, Richard. Is there any proof that any of it is true?”

“There is, AG Russell. All I ask you that you stand back from the bed and turn off the monitors to this room.”

“Why turn them off, Richard?”

“If news gets out of this miracle you are about to see, I would be a caged man and locked away. I have been given a task by the Creator to do something no one has done before.”

“Okay, we’ll turn off the monitors.”

The nurse and Dr. Thornton turn off the video cameras in the room and the 3D cameras as well.

“Okay, what is this about, Richard?”

“Butterflies, please come here.” Then eight butterflies come fluttering from the flower pots and come to me. They land on the pillow and my forehead. “This is my proof that I’m the Omega Unicorn. You come up as well, Croin.” I then concentrate and try to stretch my fingers out from my hands. Then the twelve unicorn images appear, six on either side of me. Croin appears above me with his wings spread out. He resizes himself to fit inside the room. The butterflies all change into fairies in little flashes of light.

“Gasp, it is true. Fairies, unicorns and dragons really do exist.”

Then the fairies fly around and hover in front of their faces. Each one giggles or gives a little laugh when they see them. Then they fly back to me and land near my head. Then I let the images return to me and Croin flies back into me.

“We’ll have to trust more people, father.”

“I know, Tiger.”

“I really like Brianna. She has a good heart, mother.”

“I really like her too, Bianca. I loved her always.”

Brianna gives a wide smile when she hears the compliments and assessment by the fairies.

“Well, this explains a lot, Richard.”

“It certainly does, Dr. Thornton. Amber and Cobalt are not from me. They are from Avel the Unicorn. These two fairies have become attached to me through their hearts. The other fairies I have given birth to myself.”

“How often are you birthing fairies, Richard?”

“I will be living for about a thousand years and giving birth to a pair of fairies every year. Nine months gestation with a six month rest in between. It is an automatic birthing cycle from the Creator.”

“That is too much to take in.”

I see Brianna’s face become crestfallen when she hears how long I will live.

“Brianna, please hold my hand.”

Brianna steps forward and holds my hand carefully.

“Brianna, I want you to know, that I loved you always. On this day, I ask this question. Will you please marry me?”

“I will have to think about that really hard, Richard. You will live longer than me.”

“I know of a way that your life will change like mine and be with me for all eternity.”

“How, Richard?”

“By coming to Twainor with me and be changed there. They have the magic to do it. However, the people there only live to about 175 years, maximum.”

She turns around to face her parents. They nod their heads up and down with a smile on their faces.

“I want to take this slowly, Richard. I want to know some more about you.”

“What has happened in your life since you left me twelve years ago?”

“A lot has happened, Richard. I too, had a traumatic experience as well.”

I move my fingers tips in her hands. She smiles that I’m trying to reach out to her. I look at her face with the best compassionate face I can give her.

“Maybe this will help, Brianna. One day while I was in my apartment here in Jacksonville, I was napping on the couch on a Monday before Christmas.”

Her eyes become a little more open. Her mouth hangs open a little bit. She breaths in a ‘gasp’, her lips start to quiver.

“All of a sudden I awoke from my nap with a start. I could have sworn I heard you scream my name. It was then I got down on my knees and started to pray. Amber, Cobalt and my fairies prayed with me as well.”

“What . . . what . . . did you see?” A tear comes down her eye.

“I sensed you were hurt very badly on a college campus somewhere. We prayed to the Creator that help would come to you and save your life.”

She collapses onto her knees. Her mom comes forward to help her. So does the nurse as well. Soon she begins crying onto my arm. “You d . . . did hear my cry . . . for help, Richard.”

She cries some more.

“What happened, Brianna?”

“I . . . I . . .was . . . raped by . . . four . . . “ She continues crying some more before she finishes the sentence.

Everyone else has their heads hung low when they hear what happened.

Helen looks at me, “Four students had oral sex with her after she fainted. This was on her day of graduation. Your 3D Video System recorded it all. She has been collecting news clippings about you whenever you made the news. She sees you as protecting her again with your invention like you did when we were back in Columbia, SC.”

“What prevented them from going all the way, Mrs. Wilson?”

“She had unlatched the window to her room just before they came in. After the oral sex, Craig pulled her pants and panties down. A little bit later, the window ‘creaked’ open and a bunch of birds, wasps, gnats and butterflies came in and stopped their attack.”

“Oh my.” My fairies look at me with a slight smile. I crack a smile at them as well.

Brianna continues to cry on my arm. A little bit later she slows down to sniffles. She gets up and bends down to me. My fairies move out of the way. She kisses me on the lips with affection several times. She whispers to me. “You are my hero. I do want to marry you, Richard.”

“If you come with me, it will be the most fantastic journey of a lifetime. I only know a little bit what will happen tomorrow. But there are some places that will be new to both of us at the same time.”

“I will go where you will go, my Richard, my knight in shining armor.”

She lets her hand come down my chest and abdomen. “Ooh . . . six pack abs. I’ll have to wait and see them later.” She smiles at me. “Oops . . . you have some of my lipstick on your lips.”

“Does it look decent? You do need to redo your face.” I try to smile back at her.

“Nope, it is a mess just like my face.”

“It does have a nice flavor to it, I think.”

She giggles, “You silly boy.” She takes a tissue a carefully removes the lipstick from my lips while she smiles at me.

Mr. Bryson speaks up, “Well, we should leave two love birds alone.”

“Before everyone leaves, sir. Brianna, I have a question.”

“What is it, Richard?”

“Where do you work now?”

“Oh, that. I work at a former resort near Charleston. It is called the Rescue Mission. It mostly caters to women who have been abused. Some of their children are there as well while they recover.”

Mr. Parker speaks up, “Remember Richard, it has been suggested that you stay there while you recover for about two months.”

“Yes, sir. Will I be accepted there, Brianna?”

“We can only ask, Richard. Karen works there as well. We work with the children there. I know we can’t accept you now, because you are not mobile enough. You need to be in a wheelchair and be able to get around by yourself at least.”

“I see.” I look at the nurse. “I take it, I will be doing some physical therapy to do that, nurse?”

“Yes, you will, Richard. We need to do another set of X-rays before that starts. Your jaw must be healed before eating any solid food. Even though you are in very good health, putting the weight back onto your legs, hands and arms will be the toughest test for you.”

“Okay.”

“We’ll let you know about the banks tomorrow, Richard.”

“I hope to hear some good news.”

“We hope as well. You get well now and get back to your feet as soon as you can.”

“I’ll try, Mr. Bryson. Don’t forget what I said in my video about seeing Brent being taken away.”

The men all smile when they remembered my comment.

“We’ll get a live feed in there when that happens. It will take a little more time for the players get arrested elsewhere in the world, Richard. We’ll have to be patient there.”

“Yes we will, Mr. Russell.”

“There will be a guard posted at the nurse’s station, Richard.”

“I understand the caution, Mr. Torres.”

The nurse speaks up now. “Richard needs his rest now after all that talking now.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“I’ll see you later this evening, Richard.”

“Okay, Brianna. Change back into butterflies, my fairies.” My fairies all turn back into their butterfly modes quickly.

The monitors and cameras are turned back on before they leave. Once everyone leaves and it gets quiet. The butterflies continue to minister to me.

About an hour later a man enters the hospital. He follows an orderly carefully and sees what he does. He sees nothing happening that will provide an opportunity for him. He gets in the elevator and goes up to the fifth floor. He walks around casually and sees an orderly open a closet, he walks in his direction.

When the orderly goes inside the closet, he follows him inside.

“No one is allowed in here, sir.”

He speaks with a slight French accent, “I won’t take long.” He immediately takes a syringe from his shirt pocket. When the orderly turns around, he injects the syringe into his neck. He collapses to the floor. The man quickly looks for the right size clothing he needs for his subterfuge. He finds some spare white pants and shirt that are his size. He puts them over his own clothes. He then takes out a badge in his pocket and pins it to his shirt like the unconscious orderly on the floor. He straightens himself up. He bends down and takes the orderly’s keys. He exits the closet and closes the door. He walks down the hallway.

He enters the elevator and pushes the button for the fourth floor. He exits the elevator when it opens. He walks quietly to another closet on the floor and opens it with the key. He finds a mop and bucket in there. He takes it out and wheels it down the hallway. He finds the room where Richard is located.

The butterflies take off from Richard and flutter back to the flowers. He does some mopping of the floor for about two minutes. He stops and removes his cell phone. He turns on the feature for the video camera. He takes several pictures of me lying there quietly.

I hear pictures are being taken, Creator.

They are from the European group. They want proof you are no threat to them.

They are too late, Creator.

Yes they are, Richard.

As soon as he took about five photos and a short video clip of me. He immediately leaves the room with the mop and bucket. He wheels it back to the closet and put it back in. He walks to the elevator and pushes a button to open it. The doors open and he gets inside. He quickly takes off the white clothes and puts them behind the ceiling tile inside the elevator. The doors open and he exits the hospital quickly.

~~~000~~~

The guard back at the nurse’s station on the fourth floor notices his movements. He carefully watches him as he leaves the hallway and enters the elevator.

“Isn’t he too early to be here, head nurse?”

“You’re right, corporal. That is usually done at night.”

They replay the video sequence. They see him taking pictures of Richard.

“It looks like he is taking photos of Richard.”

“It certainly does, ma’am.” The corporal gets on his radio to report in. “Captain, I think someone is taking photos of Richard. He has blond hair and is about 5'11."

“Thank you for the tip, Corporal. We have an unmarked chase car out here in the parking lot.” A little bit later, “We have him in sight now, corporal. We’ll follow him and see where he leads us to.”

“Yes, sir.”

~~~000~~~

The police chase car follows the car the man gets into. The unknown suspect leads them to the interstate. Eventually he takes an exit ramp.

All during this time, the chase car communicates with the Captain and gives an update.

The road leads to the north side of the St. John’s River. He drives to a set of boat docks. He gets out and walks to board a large boat. He enters in the boat and doesn’t come back out until five minutes later.

Several squad cars come into area. A police boat comes in as well.

Then the man steps back out and waves his hand at everyone.

“What is this?”

“He’s waving at us. I think he knew he was being followed.”

He steps back into the boat and doesn’t come back out this time.

The captain gets on the radio. “Everyone move in and apprehend him!”

Everyone gets out from the cars. They board the boat. They come out with puzzled looks. They get on the radio.

“He’s not here, Captain.”

“What?”

Another voice comes in, “Sir, there is a berth underneath the boat. I think it is for a small jet-sub.”

“Quickly, use the sonars!”

They check the sonars. They see a fast-moving blip on the screen. It is heading out to the Atlantic Ocean. “We are too late, Captain. It is heading out to sea at a very high rate of speed.”

“Sigh . . . all right. Commandeer the boat. Let’s get what we can from that.”

“Yes, sir.”

~~~000~~~

Ben is back at the main computer at Secure-Sys.

“Okay, David. Let’s load that new software from Richard.”

“Yes, sir.”

David inserts the disk onto a disk tray. It slides in. The computer accesses the information quickly. It asks the usual questions before proceeding to the next phase of a software update.

David then hits the ‘enter’ key once the information is verified. It loads the software in its null state. Then a pop up screen comes on.

Ready for unauthorized use of hard drive. Will activate 3D program and all subroutines if directories are commandeered.

The pop up screen then disappears.

“Well, that’s it, sir. Brent will be surprised with this from Richard.”

“He certainly will, David. Let’s hope Mr. Russell and the police department are doing their part.”

“I hope so too, sir.”

~~~000~~~

Mr. Russell and Detective Torres arrive at several banks unannounced. He get’s the same response from each one. He talks to Detective Torres as they exit a bank together.

“Mr. Torres, I can’t believe these people. They said their networks are just fine with the latest update from Secure-Sys two months ago. They said they can’t be hacked. At least the bank where Secure-Sys have their accounts has it downloaded.”

“I can’t believe it either, Mr. Russell. They refuse to download Richard’s program. Well, let’s get to the police station. Let’s hope we’ve got it done there.”

They drive to the police station. They are informed they did download Richard’s program. Especially with the lines that connect to several servers at Interpol, FBI and the CIA. They also contact the local governments and court house as well. They also get the good news they downloaded the program as well.

“Well, I guess that is better than none at all, Mr. Torres.”

“Yes, Mr. Russell. We’ll have plain clothes men in unmarked cars in Secure-Sys’ parking lot tomorrow morning. I’m thinking it would be a good time for them to pull the trigger just before the weekend.”

“Yes, everybody’s guard will be down. There will be fewer people on the 24-7 financial networks. Well, I’ll be at my office bright and early as well. Good night, Detective Torres.”

“The same to you, Mr. Russell.”

Mr. Russell and Detective Torres get into their cars and go back to their respective offices to finish off their last bit of paperwork.

~~~000~~~

Back in Belgium, several people are looking at the photos and video from their USA contact. They are gathered in a business office in down town Brussels.

“Well, this is hopeful, gentlemen. It looks like our biggest threat is no longer a threat to us.”

“I agree, Mr. Grangor. When should we strike?”

“It has to be simultaneous to be most effective. That means your pirate and you must attack at the same time.”

“I see, we attack at 2 PM and the Pirate attacks at 8 AM over there.”

“That’s right, CEO Brachman. I suggest you do it at 4 PM and 10AM.”

“Okay, we’ll set it for that time.”

All five members get up and shake hands with each other while smiling at each other. Four of them leave the office and go their own ways.

Mr. Grangor gets into an elevator by himself. He pushes a button for the ground floor. “This is great, we are able to get the Omega Unicorn out of the way. There is no way he can defeat this operation now. This New Dawn will travel around the world so fast, that come Monday it will be a done deal. Hah, hah, hah. . . .” He puts his hands out and recites some words. He disappears in a blink of an eye before the elevator doors open on the ground floor.

~~~000~~~

Around 6 PM, the Wilson family shows up for the evening session. They show up just before I’m served my dinner of the same thing I had for lunch earlier in the day. Brianna is very happy to help serve my dinner to me. The parents are sitting on chairs inside the room watching and listening to just us talk to each other.

She carefully puts the straw from the cup of apple juice into my mouth. I sip up some and take a breath.

“So, have you given it some thought to my proposal, Brianna?”

“Well, mom, dad and I are flattered that you asked me, Richard.” She smiles at me widely. “You will have to do it again so you can bend your knee before me.”

I smile back the best I can, “I see, the traditional proposal. Okay, I’ll do it again.”

She puts the straw into my mouth again and I sip from the apple juice cup again.

“That’s good. Now what are the names of the butterflies, Richard?”

The butterflies come fluttering from the flowers and land on the pillow around my head.

“The two butterflies with orange, black and yellow markings are tiger swallowtail butterflies, they are my first ones. Their names are Tiger and Tigress.” They each flap their wings when I mention their names.

“Hello, Tiger and Tigress.”

She hears whispered back, “Hello, Brianna.”

“The next pair are the white morpho butterflies. Their names are Bianca and Lavan.” They flap their wings as well when I mention their names.

“Hello, Bianca and Lavan.”

She hears whisper back, “Hello, Brianna.”

“The third pair are the red winged butterflies. Their names are Ruby and Rubio.” They flap their wings when I mention their names.

“Hello, Ruby and Rubio.”

She hears whispered back, “Hello, Brianna.”

“The last pair are from Avel. They are my first friends from that trip. Their names are based on the color of their eyes. Their names are Cobalt and Amber.” They flap their wings when I mention their names.

“Hello, Amber and Cobalt.”

She hears whispered back, “Hello, Brianna.”

“There is another pair as well. I will tell you about them later.”

“Are they still alive?”

“Yes, they are. Brianna. They are with another group of butterflies.”

“Well you certainly gave them appropriate names, Richard. Who was that dragon that I saw earlier?”

“His name is Croin. He is the first dragon I met there. We became good friends during my time there. He and the rest of the dragons there are at peace with the people there.”

“I still find it hard to believe you are part of them. What does that mean for us here?”

“We’ll take it day by day, Brianna.”

“Sigh . . . I suppose you are right on that point.”

She switches cups to the soup cup. I take several sips from the warm chicken and vegetable broth before she switches back to the apple juice cup. It takes another fifteen minutes to finish the cups.

“So, what are they doing to you, Richard? I see them touching various parts of your body.”

“I really don’t want to say what they are doing, Brianna. My words are being recorded now.”

“I see, that makes sense concerning your situation. It can wait for later.”

“What is it like at the Rescue Mission?”

“Well, Karen and I are part of the pediatrics group on the island. There are four of us there tending to the children’s needs. We help them cope with the pain their mothers went through and for themselves. Some of them did get beaten up very badly by the men in their lives.”

“I see, well I hope I don’t cause problems when I show up.”

She smiles at me, “Oh, I don’t think so, Richard. I did talk about the times we had.”

“Ohhh .. . .?” I smile back the best I can.

She smiles back, “I only told them the good times we had.”

“I hope so, Brianna.”

“Besides we never had any bad times until that breakup night.”

“That’s true, Brianna.”

She touches my arm carefully to reassure me as she smiles at me.

“I graduated tops in high school as well, Richard. I then went to the University of Tennessee, in Knoxville to get a BS and MS in Pediatric Medicine. I don’t have plans in being a doctor right now. I like the teaching atmosphere in helping kids to get through their tough times.”

“Kind of like when you tried to teach me to be your sister.”

“Something like that, Richard. We do get boys there who do have emotional problems. Some have become violent and don’t kick their aggressiveness. We caught two teen boys stealing and doing drugs. They were sent to an adult prison when they used up their chances.”

“Do the teen boys stay on the island? I think they would be problems there with the women and girls.”

“You’re right about that, Richard. We have the teens staying at an academy on the mainland. They still keep contact with their mothers if they want to. The ones who are eleven and under can stay on the island. We tried some petticoat punishment with the unruly boys.”

“Did it work?”

“There were some nine, ten and eleven year olds who hated it. Then we told them what their fathers did to their mother. That got their attention; their attitudes need to change or they will end up in prison like their dad. We even did some trips to the local prison for some sessions of ‘Scared Straight’.”

“Did it work?”

“It did for about eighty percent of the boys. The rest were more defiant. Slowly, the peer pressure from the other boys got their attention. There are about two each year who don’t change their attitude.”

“It sounds like they need some lessons in self control, Brianna. Have the ladies been taught some self defense moves?”

“We have some ladies who can do it. But most of them shy away from it because it reminds them of the violence they endured.”

“Hmm . . . I can teach them what I learned in my Shaolin classes. A lot of it deals with controlling your emotions when in a fight. A balance must be sought when in the heat of the battle. I can teach them some moves that will turn the tables quickly like a nerve pinch or two.”

“You would be just be the one to give our ladies an upper hand in regaining their confidence. It would be great to see that happen for them.”
Helen and Larry are smiling while we are talking with each other. Then the doors open and a nurse comes in.

“It is time for you to leave. It is 7 PM now.”

“See you tomorrow, Richard.”

“See you tomorrow, Brianna.”

Brianna bends down and kisses my forehead then my lips carefully. She sees a lipstick smudge on the forehead. She giggles while she wipes off the lipstick from my forehead and lips with some tissue.

I mutter to myself with a smile. “Crazy girl.”

“Crazy about you, Richard.”

They all exit the room giggling and laughing. The nurse stays behind. “Well, it is time for some sleep.”

“Can I watch the news?”

“Only for a half hour. Then get your sleep.”

“I feel bed ridden in this bed. I need to get up and walk around.”

“You can’t do that yet, Richard.”

“Sigh . . . I know. I need the physical therapy first and be able to stand up first with no pain.”

“That’s right, Richard.” She turns around and turns on the TV in the room. She changes it to one of the cable news networks. “I’ll turn on the TV tomorrow when the bad stuff happens.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

She sets the timer for the TV and then leaves the room.

I watch the news for the next half hour. I see it is the same old news as before. Everyone is complaining about the world wide debt. They don’t know what to do about it. Then they have nice stories that are happening in the world. When the half hour is up, the TV turns itself off.

“Sigh . . .”

I hear them whisper to me. “It will get better.”

“I know. I just hope no one gets hurt over the weekend.”

My fairies all start to hum a melody to quiet me down and to fall asleep. They also fall asleep on me as well a little bit later. The night proved to be very restful. It is what I really need after this turmoil of a week.

I try not to think what will happen tomorrow. Soon, that will get the world’s attention very fast.