The flight west was long and boring. I read the report on my sisters at least three times. It seemed incredible that Ruby and Emerald had not only admitted their crimes but engaged in therapy relating to anger management.

Sapphire on the other hand was totally unrepentant. The report contained copies of letters that had been smuggled out of her prison by other inmates. She was vehement in her goal of making sure that I didn’t enjoy what she considered were ill gotten gains that were in her warped view of the world, rightly hers.

Ruby and Emerald had not only repented but had been working under supervision outside the prison helping homeless veterans. It all sounded too good to be true.

Their different stories presented me with a problem. Do I reject them all or do I accept Ruby and Emerald back into my life?

I was no nearer to solving the problem when we landed at Sonoma County Airport.

Henry was a star and had arranged a car for us at the airport. My mind was just not properly engaged to do anything very well.

Getting home was my first priority. It wasn’t really far from the Airport to Bodega Bay but the journey seemed to take an age.

Once I was home, I literally ran into my bedroom and began to cry. All the emotional ups and downs of the previous days had caught up with me big time.

Henry was a star. He opened up the house and even went out for groceries all while I was feeling sorry for myself.

Things settled down after a few days. Henry made like both easier and more awkward. He insisted in knowing everywhere I went before I went there. I resisted at first but with the ever looming, parole hearings, he made it seem that it was essential for my security.

It wasn’t until one day when we went out for lunch and something we ate disagreed with Henry that I even suspected that he wasn’t exactly ‘kosher’.

Henry became pretty ill so in the end, I called 911 and he ended up in Hospital. Naturally, they needed to know his insurance details. As I didn’t have them, I called Angie Marquez, John Mason’s Secretary. As I was in a bit of a panic, I used the first phone that I found in Henry’s jacket. I had my own phone but had forgotten all about it.

“Oh, hello Opal. I didn’t recognise the phone you are calling from. What is the matter?”

“Henry has very severe food poisoning. He’s in Hospital and they need his insurance details.”

“Oh yes. Which Hospital?”

“We are at Santa Rosa Memoria.”

“Leave it with me. I’ll get the details to them.”

---

Henry made a good recovery and was home a few days later.

I was not aware of the events that were happening on the other side of the continent until almost a week after Henry’s illness when I received a phone call from Angie Marquez early one morning.

“Opal, are you alone?” she asked urgently.

“Yes, I’m in bed. I was just about to get up.”

“Stay where you are and I’ll put the President on the line. Just listen to what he has to say. Don’t ask questions. Just listen and when he’s finished, just hang up.”

“What?”

“Here is the President,” said Angie.

“Hello Opal. Please just listen to what I and my security chief, Matthew Simmonds has to say.”

“Hello Opal,” came another voice. I remembered it from my visit.

“Opal, we have firm evidence that Henry had been in contact with your Sisters. The phone you used to call here when he was ill was not his assigned phone. As a matter of course, we ran some checks on the phone. We were surprised to find that all of your sisters have called that number in the past few months. We keep records of what phone numbers inmates call from prison. We have to assume that Henry is in cohorts with them.”

I let out a breath and found that I was shaking.

Mr Simmonds carried on,
“Please try to keep things as normal. The President will be speaking to Henry in a few hours and arranging for both of you to travel here in a few days. It is James’s Birthday next Thursday so we have a good reason for you to be here.”

Then the President came back on the line.
“Opal, please try to keep things as normal as possible until I call you later this morning.”

Then he added,
“You are a special person to all of us so stay safe.”

When the call had ended I just stayed still in bed. I was struggling to get my head around the fact that Henry had been in contact with my Sisters. How could he betray us like that?

In the end, I had to get out of bed and after a shower, I went downstairs. The place was silent. There was no sign of Henry. I looked out of the front window and my car was gone.

I was about to call Mr Simmonds when I stopped and went upstairs. Henry’s room was a mess. This was not typical of him. He was a neat freak.

I had to think that he found out about my conversation with the people in Maine.

I called them and was put through to Mr Simmonds.

“I think Henry has gone. His room is a total mess and my car has gone.”

“Opal, stay right where you are. I will get the FBI to come to you.”

“Will he come back?”

“We don’t know but I will get onto the local Police Department as soon as we are finished with this call. May I suggest that you pack a small bag and get ready to leave. I’ll arrange for a security company to come in and secure the house.”

When I’d finished speaking, I sat wondering what the hell was happening to me. Everything seemed to point back to my Sisters. I wanted to see the back of them but as time went by, it seemed that like a bad penny, they would keep on coming back into my life. Families were not top of my favourite things in this world at the moment.

I’d not long finished packing a bag when a Police Cruiser pulled up outside. Two officers got out and came up to the house. One of them rang the bell.

“Hello Officers. Please come in, I have been expecting you.”

They looked at each other slightly puzzled.

“We had a report of a disturbance here. Why would you be expecting us?”

I sighed.

“Please come in and I’m sure we can clear this up in a few minutes.”

They came inside my home. I led them into the kitchen.

“Officers, I was expecting a visit from you because of another matter. Nothing to do with a disturbance at all. If I may, I’d like to make a call to someone you may know. He will help clear things up. Is that ok?”

“Who are you calling?”

“Former President Mason,” I said calmly.

“You are kidding me?” said the younger officer.

I smiled.

“It is true. I am a friend of the President. I was speaking to him earlier today.”

“How do we know if it is him?”

“What if I made it a video call?”

Neither of them argued with that.

Two minutes later, the President appeared on the screen of my Laptop.

“Mr President, we are sorry to bother you.”

“Officers, think nothing of it. My Security Chief is talking to your chief as we speak. The young lady you are with is a personal friend of mine. We have information that her life is in danger. A team of FBI Agents from the Sacramento Office are on their way to your location. Does this clear up and concerns you might have?”

“Mr President, we understand. I guess the call that alerted us was a hoax?”

“It may well turn out that way.”

Then he added,
“When all this is over and I’m next out on the West Coast, I’ll make sure that I’ll drop by your lovely little town. I was there many, many years ago when I drove Highway 1 up from San Diego with my dear wife on our Honeymoon. I hope to see you guys soon.”

I cleared the call and looked at the officers.

“Did that answer all your questions?”

“Ms De Vries, I thought you were trying to pull a fast one when you mentioned President Mason. I am sorry for doubting you,” said the older Officer.

Before anyone could speak, their Police Radios went off.

The older officer went outside to take the call. He returned a couple of minutes later.

“That was the Sheriff. We are to stay here until the Feds arrive to escort this young lady to the Airport. Her story obviously checks out.”

I breathed a sigh of relief.

“Shall I make us all some coffee?”

---

The FBI arrived almost two hours later and took over from the local Police. Sadly, the three FBI Officers were not best pleased to be order to this neck of the woods. They made it clear that they would rather be back at base because there was an inter-departmental Softball game taking place that afternoon. These were apparently the three top players for one of the teams.

In the end, I’d had enough of their bickering.
“Officers, the sooner we get out of here, the sooner you can get to your Softball game.”

There was no argument from the officers. As a result, we left my home less than five minutes later.

Our little convoy headed south towards San Francisco. I was a little confused so I asked the agent in charge.

“Agent Conroy, why are we heading towards San Francisco?”

He turned around in his seat and said,
“That’s what our orders are to do.”

“Then why have I been told differently?” I replied digging my phone out of my bag.

I showed him a series of messages that came from President Masons Chief of Security.

Slowly a smile formed over Agent Conroy’s face.

“I think I understand. Let me make a call to someone I know in the Tower at SFO.”

He turned back to face the front and spoke quietly into his phone for several minutes. Then he turned back to me grinning.

“I think we are being sent to SFO to make sure that we can’t get back to Sacramento in time for the Softball Game. The Tower at SFO has no record of a flight coming from Lincoln, Nebraska using that Aircraft Tail Number.”

His smile became even broader. There is a flight plan flied that takes that aircraft into Sacramento Airport at seven this evening.

“Someone is playing games with us.”

I started to understand.
“Well then Agent Conroy, should we not be heading for Sacramento and your Softball Game?”

“Ms De-Vries, our job is to protect you until you are safely on that aircraft. I’d probably be sacked from the service if I took you to a Softball game.”

“Agent Conroy, as I understand it, the game is between two FBI departments? If that is correct then what safer place is there? How many people will there be in attendance?”

“Oh!” he exclaimed.

“Yes Oh! So, you take part in your game and then deliver me to the airport in time for the flight to arrive. If we headed straight to the airport then we would have several hours to kill while we wait for the incoming flight to land. I’d far rather watch you guys play silly games than look at the inside of a terminal building.”

He looked sternly at me for a second then he realised what I’d said.

“I’m giving you an out here. Let me talk to your supervisor and I’ll make sure that it is ok. After all, he does not want to be transferred to somewhere like Iceland or even worse, Greenland, now does he?”

Agent Conroy had a hard time stopping himself from laughing.

He stopped our convoy and discussed the events with his fellow agents. I sat and watched then. Then I sent an update to Maine as I’d been instructed. I was getting to like having powerful people on my side.

At exactly 7pm the plane that was coming to pick me up arrived at Sacramento. Agent Conroy was happy for two reasons. Firstly, he was handing me over as ordered and secondly, his team had thrashed the other team at Softball.

I made sure that I thanked all of the agents personally before I boarded the plane. As I climbed the steps, I was thinking that it had been quite a day and a nice long flight east would allow me to relax before the inevitable questions about Henry that would come tomorrow.

---

When we arrived in Maine, two black SUV’s were waiting for me. I was beginning to hate SUV’s especially when they are black and have blacked out windows. James laughed when I mentioned it to him later.

“The Secret Service insist on them. I have a Mustang at home. If I go out in it, they insist on at least one of these things following me.”

His words hit home. They actually reinforced a feeling I’d had for some considerable time.

I didn’t get even a chance to say hello to John when we arrived at his home. I was whisked away to meet with the head of security.

“We found your car about an hour ago. It was in Bend, Oregon. We think that Henry is heading for Canada.”

I was stunned by the directness and little thought for me. No “Hello, how was your flight?” or anything. Not even an offer of Coffee or breakfast. I was going off these people at a great rate of knots.

I sighed. I needed to get out of here ASAP.

“Make arrangements to sell the car and I’ll get my lawyer to list my home.”

“I’m sorry, did you just say that you want to sell up in California?”

“Yep. That’s what I said. I can’t go back there as my Sisters obviously know about it. The car isn’t worth very much and the cost of trucking it home from Bend would probably be more than the car is worth. My lawyer can sign the sale documents. He has power of attorney for me.”

“I don’t think Henry is a bad man. He could have done serious damage to me before he left. He could have even taken me with him. Instead, he just left. That is not like him at all.”

“I don’t think you are in a position to judge Ms De Vries,” came his curt reply.

“Oh, but I am. Henry is a nice guy. Before you ask, no, he didn’t come on to me. He was the perfect Gentleman at all times. No, it was just the impression I got from being with him twenty-four hours a day.”

Then I added,
“My feeling is that my Sisters may have had something on him and after he met me, he decided that they were wrong. As I said, it is just a feeling but it might be better to investigate him with an open mind and not to jump to conclusions.”

He glared at me.
“Are you trying to tell me my job?”

“No, I’m not but, there is a world of difference in the skills needed to be head of security and to investigate a situation like this. I’d hand this over to the FBI as obviously it is no longer a security issue and none of the Presidents family or staff are in danger.”

Again, he stared at me.

I smiled at him and left him glaring at me. I felt good.

I found John and James in John’s study.

“Ah Opal, how was the ‘SS’ grilling?”

After a second or so I realised he meant that Secret Service.

“He does not like Henry but I told him that I think that my Sisters may have something on him and after meeting me, he realised that they are wrong so he just upped and left.”

John smiled.

“I’ll bet that went down well?”

“He does not like me now.”

John laughed.

“No one likes him but as far as security issues go, he’s about the best there is.”

I felt relieved.

It was John who spoke.

“Do you have any idea where you want to go and do now?”

“I want my sisters to serve the whole of their sentence. That means I will be at their Parole hearings. After that? I just want to settle down and live a normal life free from the threat of them. I am sort of getting the feeling that I can’t do that in this country.”

There was a stony silence in the room.

“Where will you go?” asked James.

“I don’t know at the moment.”

James looked at his father before saying,

“You are welcome to stay here until you are sure where you want to go.”

I looked at James torn in two. I wanted to stay but I needed to find somewhere I could go ‘off grid’ so to speak until the hearings.

“Thanks James but I think I’ll pass on that. I’ll get myself a new car and head off into the sunset until the hearings. What happens then will dictate what I do next.”

James looked disappointed. I needed to have a quiet word with him before I left Maine.

I took James aside later in the day.

“James, I know you like having me around but at this point in time, I need to lie low and be invisible to everyone until it is time for the Parole Hearings. We don’t know if my sisters have dirt of other people who might be looking for me now that Henry is out of the picture.”

He thought for a bit before responding.

“We worry about you. Well Dad is the worst. I’ve seen how his whole demeanour changes when you are around. You remind him of Mom at your age.”

It was then that I knew that I could never be with James. I didn’t want to be a substitute wife/mother even for people as nice as John and James.

I smiled as best I could.

“Don’t worry James, you don’t get rid of me that easily. I’ll still be around from time to time.”

Then I took hold of his hands and looked him right in the eye.

“James, you must not wait for me. I have far too much baggage for an upstanding sort of guy like you. If we became an item then the media would be all over me and my somewhat chequered past.”

Before he could respond I added,
“Look James, I am sorry that I did not turn out to be your Cinderella. If we didn’t have all this baggage then perhaps it might have worked but there again, without this baggage we would never have met in the first place. Meeting you helped me get free of my ugly sisters so that part of the Fairy Tale did come true but I’m really not a Cinderella type, am I? I’m not a dumb blonde and that alone spoils the plot a bit.”

Then I gave him what I hoped was a goodbye kiss.

I stayed in Maine for one more day before I left. I had a long private conversation with John that went into the early hours of the morning. I told him my plans about going off grid. He laughed and said that he was thinking those very same thoughts. We also did a little business regarding money. I gave him a check and he gave me some cash. I knew that he’d never cash the check but it was one way of making me promise to come back and see him again.

One of the Secret Service team took me to Bangor Airport. I wasn’t sure where I was going but neither Maine nor California seemed to be very attractive at the moment.

The first flight out was going to Chicago which seemed like a good place to start. I used my Credit Card to pay for the ticket. People knew where I was so I wanted to leave at least a partial trail for my journey.

The Weather had closed in by the time my flight landed at O’Hare. Perhaps I’d gotten soft living on the Pacific Coast in California but the weather had made me turn my attention towards somewhat warmer climes. Las Vegas seemed awfully attractive and a single woman travelling there would not be out of the ordinary.

It was getting dark by the time I arrived in Vegas. I took a Hotel shuttle and stayed a night at one of the bigger Casino’s. A half decent meal and a very good sleep made my mind a lot clearer about where I should go next.

I left the hotel the next morning and walked onto the ‘strip’ where I hailed a Taxi.

“Can you take me to somewhere I can get a car off the books so to speak?” I asked the oriental looking driver.

At the next stop light he turned to me and smiled.

“How much you gotta to spend?”

I sensed a bit of a trap here but needs must and all that.

“A couple of grand. It is back at the hotel so don’t get any ideas ok?”

He laughed.

“You, wise lady. I know place.”

The driver headed for North Vegas and a lot next to a huge Walmart.

“Here you are lady. You get car here no problem.”

I gave him a fairly decent tip and got out of the cab.

Feeling slightly nervous, I wandered into the fairly decrepit trailer that was the office.

“Yes?” asked a man who seemed more intent on the racing pages of a newspaper than selling a car.

“I’m looking for a car off the books.”

He raised an eyebrow before saying,
“You wanted by the cops?”

I smiled.

“Not the cops. An ex who would not take no for an answer.”

“As long as you aren’t wanted by the cops then I can help you.”

Half an hour later I’d agreed to sort of rent an eight year old Honda Accord that had just arrived on the lot. It still had its Nevada license plates.

I paid him the sticker value of the car.

“I won’t put this into the DMV for three months. Bring her back undamaged and I’ll buy her back from you. Any tickets and I’ll say that you stole her from the lot. Understand?”

‘I understand.”

I was reluctant to part with more than half the cash I’d received from John so I went back to my Hotel and after checking out, I withdrew $10,000 from a branch of my bank. I used the bank just to make sure that there was a record of me being in Vegas.

Another Taxi ride back to the lot and I had my wheels. After buying a cheap phone and a PAYG Sim Card, I was done with Vegas. From now on, it was cash only.

Before I’d left Maine, I’d spoken at some length with Mr Travers, my lawyer. He’d given me the details a few people to contact in a number of places around the country. He’d laughed when I said ‘all over the place please. I don’t know where I will end up.’ But, he’d come up with around 20 contacts. The nearest one to me that wasn’t in California was in Reno, a good way to the north of where I was now.

There was nothing for it but to drive to Reno up Highway 95.

I made it to Tonopah before nightfall. A couple of Motels insisted on credit cards for ‘ancilliaries’. Quite what they were for was always a puzzle to me. The third and most basic place took cash so I was set for the night.

After breakfast the next morning in a Diner across the road from the Motel, I carried on towards Reno.

When I reached the town of Sparks, I pulled into a strip mall and parked. Then I made the call.

“Moira James please,” I said when the phone was answered.

“Ah Ms James, I was given your number by a lawyer in DC. I need somewhere to go off the grid for a couple of months.”

“No, I’m not a Mother and I don’t have an ‘ex’ but I do have some family members who would like to carry on their campaign of beating me up at regular intervals.”

“Why two months? That is easy. They come up for parole then. They have already threatened me not to appear at the hearings,” I replied telling a little lie.

“No, I’m in Sparks. I should say that I am able to support myself financially, but I just need to lie very, very low for a while.

“Stevenson St Bus Depot? I should be able to find that. What time?”

“Three pm is fine by me. I’m driving a grey Accord with Nevada plates.”

“I look forward to seeing you then.”

I spent the time before my meeting at a Mall not far from I-80. I needed a few more changes of clothes. I wasn’t going for a classy look but the ability to blend in with everyone else.

That night I was led to a home in Carson City, the state Capitol. My hosts, Brad and Sue were kind and sympathetic. They were led to believe that I’d been beaten up by my Family. I soon put them right and we became friends. I helped out about the house during my stay. IT was perfect for keeping out of sight.

[Two Months Later]

When it came time for me to leave, I left them a parting gift of two thousand dollars. They tried to refuse it but I insisted. I also left a check to the Women’s refuge in Reno. The organiser, Mary Sanchez cried when she saw the amount. I took her hands in mine and said,

“Fifty Thousand dollars is cheap for what you have done to me. Lying low all this time has given me plenty of time to decide how I am going to fight my Sisters in court.”

I was becoming a bit emotional.

“Mary. I can afford it. I came here needing to go off grid for a while. I have done that thanks to people like you. Consider it as payment for services rendered to someone in their time of need.”

I drove back to Vegas and returned the car to the lot where I’d got it. The dealer was surprised to see me again. He was even more surprised when I told him that I didn’t want any money back for the car apart from him stumping up for a Taxi to the Strip. I left him a happy man.

[One day later in Delaware]

Baylor Women's Correctional Institution was not as formidable as I’d imagined. My Lawyer, Mr Travers was driving. He’d met me earlier at Philadelphia Airport a little earlier after I’d flown in from Las Vegas.

I was fairly nervous about what was going to happen. My only desire was to stop them getting parole. I wanted them to serve their full sentence.

Ruby was first to appear. She came into the room smiling broadly. When she saw me, the smile disappeared in a flash. The smile was replaced by anger.

Once the formalities were over, it was my turn to speak.

“Please state your relationship to the Prisoner,” asked the head of the Parole Board.
“Ruby De Vries is my Sister.”

“Why are you here today?”

“I want her to serve the full term of her sentence. She and her sisters spent six years making me their virtual slave denying me an education and giving me regular beatings if I made the slightest mistake. They were sentenced to eleven years and I want them to properly pay for their crimes against me.”

My statement caused the panel to look rather awkward.

“How do you feel now that Ruby has admitted her crimes and has received treatment for her problems.”

“Mr Chairman, I happen to know that Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald have been in contact with some people on the outside who were tasked with finding out where I live. I have records of phone calls made to that person.”

There was more discussion amongst the panel.

“Where did you get these records from? We have received no request for the records.”

“Mr Chairman, the number they called was that of a phone that was operated by the Secret Service. As the bill payer, they gave me the details of the calls. I have an affidavit from one of the senior members of President Mason’s security staff to this effect.”

“Liar!” cried Ruby as she leapt to her feet.

The guards made her sit down again.

Mr Travers handed over the documents he’d received from Maine the previous day. There were copies for each of the members of the panel.

A few minutes later, the Chairman asked me,

“Ms De Vries, Do, you consider that these calls represent a threat to your life?”

I’d been prepared for this question.

“To be honest Mr Chairman, I don’t know. The person that they called is missing so we can only guess the purpose of the call.”

“Do you know how they got the phone number?”

“Again, Mr Chairman, I do not know. All I know is that when I was told of the calls, the person who’d received them went missing.”

Then I went in for the kill.
“Mr Chairman, I have also come into possession of a number of letters that were smuggled out of this prison. They make it clear that they have unfinished business with me.”

My lawyer handed them to the panel. They took their time and read the letters. They had been sent to someone they thought was a friend in DC. They were actually loyal to President Mason.

The chairman looked at the other members of the panel.

“One final question Ms De Vries. Would we be correct, in assuming that the objections you have raised here would also apply to your sisters, Sapphire De Vries and Emerald De Vries?”

“Yes, they do Mr Chairman.”

I looked at Ruby who glared back at me. The look was pure hatred. I smiled. This was enough to set her off.

“She’s not really a she. Underneath there is a man. It is not my Sister but my Brother Trevor.”

“The prisoner will be quiet!” said the Chairman sternly.

He looked at me before asking,
“Is there any truth in this claim?”

I smiled. I was prepared for this.

“To put it bluntly. I was born with two sets of kit. That is why I was named Trevor. However, my mother knew that she’d given birth to a girl. According to the medical records, it was found that I had a full set of Ovaries and the rest. My Birth Certificate was changed shortly before my mother died. My sisters never accepted this and made me grow up as a boy. I never knew any of this until I turned eighteen. It might be that their refusal to accept me as a sister might have contributed to the way they treated me year after year.”

The chairman thought for a moment before saying,

“Thank you for your candour Ms De Vries.”

“Are you just going to accept his lies?” shouted Ruby.

There was silence in the room. Everyone was looking at me.

“Mr Chairman, I will gladly let a suitably qualified doctor examine me if you feel it is required. It should only take a few minutes as it is that time of the month. That should be evidence enough as to who I am. I am not their apology of a brother any longer.”

There was some discussion amongst the members of the panel. Finally, the chairman spoke.

“We do not think that will be needed Ms De Vries. We have also come to a decision on the matter of the Parole for Ruby De Vries.”

He turned to Ruby.

“Ruby De Vries, your application for parole is denied.”

---

“What are you going to do now?” asked my Lawyer when we’d left the prison.

“I don’t know. For the first time in a long time, I don’t have a plan.”

Mr Travers smiled.

“I know of someone who would like to talk with you. One to one.”

“Who?” I asked thinking it was James.

“Please don’t fly off the handle. It is Henry. He has some information that might make you decide what to do next.”

“Henry? Isn’t he in Canada or Cuba or something?”

“No, he laid a very good false trail. Like you he’s been lying low and doing some research. He sent me a file which had a lot of very useful information in it. This was a couple of weeks ago. I have verified most of it and what he is saying is true.”

This stunned me.

“But he took my car and fled?”

“Yes, he did. He is sorry about the car by the way. He thought that you had seen the call history on one of his two phones. The phone you saw was the one issued to him by the Chief of Security at the President’s Home. It came from a pool of phones. When those calls from the prison were made, Henry was not even in the country. He was with James in France or when they were flying back to the US from Europe. It is a little difficult to make a collect call to a cell phone when the recipient is flying at thirty thousand feet over the Atlantic.”

“So, he’s not to blame then?”

Mr Travers shook his head.

“He is innocent. However, finding out this has brought a whole nest of snakes to light. That was why he sent the file to me to validate certain facts that he did not have access to.”

“What sort of facts?”

“It all relates to your Sisters Reality business. When it was closed down, all the files were put in storage. You gave me access to the files if you remember?”

I sort of vaguely did remember.

“What were they doing then?”

“You won’t like this but from the evidence we have gathered, they were running a high-class prostitution ring.”

“Now you are joking? My Sisters? My frigid ice maiden Sisters?”

He smiled at me.

“It is perfectly true. Think about it for a moment. Encounters such as this, need places for the two parties to meet. Most of this business is done using hotels but in DC, the Feds and the media monitor the comings and goings on an ongoing basis. However, with the Realty Business, you have houses where the agent meets the client, shows them around and then they depart. Many of the houses are empty and have been ‘dressed’ to help the sale. A bed in a bedroom is perfect.”

My mouth was wide open by now.

“With a ‘For Sale’ or ‘For Rent’ board up outside no one takes any notice of two people meeting and supposedly viewing the property. With a constantly changing set of properties, the Police and the media were oblivious to what was going on under their noses.”

“How long…. How long were they doing it?”

“At least 10 years. That puts it around the time your mother died that it began according to the company records.”

Suddenly something came into my mind.

“That must be how they were able to afford those expensive lawyers for their trial? We had all their assets frozen to stop them skipping the country. There must be some bank accounts somewhere that were never revealed.”

Mr Travers grinned back at me.

“It gets better than that.”

“How?”

“They had a partner in the business. It is none other than the pretend wife of President Mason’s Chief of Security, Matthew Simmonds. She has carried on the business ever since they were convicted.”

“Eh? Aren’t they married?”

“In name only. Actually, she never was divorced from her first husband.”

“But? The phone calls?”

“They were made when the phone was temporarily hers. She has also visited your Sisters five times in Baylor in the past year.”

“Does Mr Simmonds or the President know about this?”

Mr Travers shook his head.

“That’s where you come in.”

It all started to make sense… a bit.

---

I met up with Henry in Worcester, Mass a couple of days later. It was nice seeing him again now that he wasn’t under suspicion in my eyes at least. He had some new items for the growing body of evidence. These were photographs of four fairly senior officials in the Government visiting the same house in Georgetown over a period of two days. Each time, a different woman would be there to meet them. These women were all dressed to the nines. Selling houses is a very profitable business but these women were all wearing shoes that cost at least $500 a pair. None of them were actually employed by the Realtors. Also, there seemed little doubt that their husbands, income could not fund their clothing budget.

“You need to take this to the president,” said Henry when he’d finished showing me all the latest goodies.
“If something was to happen to me, all of this must go public. Can you promise me that?”

I looked at Henry. There was clear concern in his eyes.

I reached over and took his hand.
“You have my word on that.”

He smiled. I felt something inside me stir.

Then he changed the subject.

“When I get my name cleared, I will be out of a job. I will be regarded as too high a security risk. One of the places I took James to when we were in Europe was the home of my family.”

I looked at him still feeling something.

“I am a second generation American. My grandmother married a Navy Captain in 1944. My mother was born just down the road in Boston. She and my father split up before I was born. She took her mother’s family name. That’s why I’m a MacLeod.”

“What are you trying to say Henry?”

He looked me right in the eyes. His eyes were rather sad.

“Opal… What I’m trying to say is… come with me when this is over. Come with me to Scotland and we can start a new life, together.”

Once again, I was stunned.

“Henry… I don’t know what to say.”

He smiled.

“Don’t say anything. Don’t say anything until this is all over. I will be leaving and I’d very much like for you to come with me.”

My insides were churning like a tumble dryer.

After more than a little dreaming, I returned to normality.

“Henry….”

I was lost for words.

“Don’t say anything. I left you in California because I knew that I was innocent and there was a lot more behind this than just a few phone calls. I didn’t want to hurt you. That’s why I ran. I care deeply about you. That’s why I called 911 and those local officers turned up at your home. I didn’t want you to be without protection.”

I was speechless.
“Go and get this lot in front of the President and the can see what transpires when everything settles down.”

I still didn’t know what to say.

“Just promise me that whatever decision you take, you will tell me to my face?”

Henry deserved that much at least.

I managed to force a smile.
“I will tell you face to face. I don’t do things like that on the phone or even worse by Text.”

Henry looked a little lost. I didn’t know if it was deliberate or not, but I took hold of his hand and gave it a squeeze. I followed it up by giving him a smile. I felt that he deserved it as after all, he had laid all his cards out on the table in front of me.

That night, I read his dossier. I almost went to his room and hit him when I saw the last report. It was dated just two days before the Parole Hearings. It was as they say, the ‘smoking gun’.

---

I tried to call John several times in the following two days. For some reason, all I got was the brush off. In the end, I called James.

After we’d exchanged pleasantries, I said,

“James, I been trying to call your father but I’m getting the brush off from security. I’m a bit loathe to just turn up at his Residence if they are giving me the run around.”

“Why? I need to show him something. Well, quite a lot really.”

“Dynamite cake with added C4 frosting.”

James laughed at my description.

“Yes, that explosive. If this stuff gets into the wrong hands then… well, a lot of people are going to have to find new places to hide. No, skip that, new planets to live on.”

“You are? I’m not far from Boston.”

“Tomorrow is fine.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll find it. See you tomorrow at ten.”

It was only after I’d hung up did I think that I might have said too much. If someone was listening in on our phone call then… what could happen didn’t even cross my mind. I had to put those thoughts out of my mind.

I met James at a Café off I-95 just north of the New Hampshire-Maine State line.

“You are really looking well Opal.”

I smiled.

“I think the fact that my sisters are going to serve out the rest of their sentence might have something to do with it.”

“I heard about that. Well done. That must be a great weight off of your shoulders?”

“It is, well for the next five years.”

“So, what’s this Dynamite with a C4 frosting?”

I pushed the folder across the table to him.

“Take a look for yourself especially the last report.”

Five minutes later her looked up at me smiling.

“Wow!”

I smiled.

“Wow! Is that all you have to say?”

“This is dynamite all right. You are right to want to show this to Dad.”

“Will you help me?”

“Does a Duck Quack? Of course, I will. Today is actually perfect. He’s doing some painting on the coast not far from here.”

“Will his head of security be around?”

“Probably not. He prefers to run things from his office.”

I smiled.

“What are we waiting for then?”

“I thought that you would never ask…”

---

An hour later, we joined the former President as he sat working at an easel a few miles north of Portland.

“Hello son. Nice to see you Opal as always,” he said smiling when we arrived.

I stood there straight faced.

“I take it that from your expression that this isn’t a social call?”

“It isn’t. There are some documents you need to see.”

As befitting a former President of the USA, he read every document at least twice before turning to us.

“This is dam good work. Who did it?”

“It was mostly Henry Macleod with some help from my lawyer.”

“He did good, very good.”

Then he smiled.

“I have to applaud your Sisters. Their business provided the perfect cover for this other activity. I am saddened to see that Matthew is involved in this. Still, we must act. I can’t be seen to be condoning this sort of thing.”

Then he looked at me straight in the eye.

“Why didn’t you call me and arrange to visit? You know you are always welcome.”

“I did try. Four times to be precise. Every time your security people told me that you were unavailable. That’s why I involved James.”

“Perhaps my Security Chief has gotten wind of this?”

Before either of us could react, he stood up and began to gather his paints.

“We must act on this without delay. Opal, James would you please ride back with me. One of my security people will drive your car.”

---

When we reached the President’s home, he got out of the car and after helping me out, we walked into the house.

I followed the former President to the office of his Chief of Security.

“Mr President? We were not expecting you back so soon.”

“Matthew, as you can see, I have Opal with me. I understand that she was given the run around when she tried to call me in the last few days. Care to explain?”

“Mr President, we received information that she had been communicating with Henry MacLeod.”

“So? Is there a warrant out for his arrest?”

“Sir, I was in the process of making him a wanted man.”

John smiled.

“Don’t do anything on that. That is a direct order understand?”

“Sir? Buy why?”

“This is why.”

He slammed the dossier down on the table.

“Your pretend wife is running a call girl ring and you know all about it. This is why she never moved up here.”

Matthew’s face dropped.

“I see you knew all about it?”

“Sir, I only found out a short while ago.”

“Cut the crap Matthew, you have known and probably for years. I will expect your resignation on my desk within the hour.”

He nodded his head in shame.

“Now, what are we going to do about your wife?”

“What do you mean?”

“From the evidence I see here, she is a high-class madam. She took over the position from Opal’s three sisters who are as you know doing a eleven stretch in Delaware. She obviously has a little black book full with the names of people who rather this all was not made public. Good so far?”

I stepped back and watched the former President come alive. Doing deals was obviously his thing.

Matthew nodded.

“She stops this today, right now. You call your wife and lay out the facts. Then she turns over the details of her bank account to you who will give it to me along with authority to access the account. Opal here will empty that account and give the money to a good cause of her choice. Good so far?”

“I don’t like it. Miranda has her own mind especially about money.”

“The I make a call to the FBI. I say the FBI because some of the properties used and well documented here were outside the DC City limits so the crimes have crossed state lines. That makes it Federal. That also means that when the contents of her little black book are made public, it will send shockwaves from here to planet Zog. Oh, I think that hers and indeed your tax returns will need some… editing don’t you think? All that untaxed income. Tut-tut.”

Then John surprised me and from the look on the face of the President as well.

“Do you know what? I don’t care. Since I came up here I have realised what a snake pit DC is. It is so corrupt that a bent stick is straighter than what goes on down there. I was part of it for far too long. We all knew it was corrupt but we did nothing about it. Now is my chance to get rid of at least some of that corruption. One phone call to say, Fox News and DC will explode.”

He paused for thought.

“Matthew, you have no choice really. You allowed a phone supplied by the secret service to be used for illegal activities. You are done whatever happens. No one will give you a job with any responsibility. You betrayed me and the trust I put in you over the years.”

John was alive. It was as if he had been reborn.

“Time to make that call don’t you think?”

A sad faced Matthew opened his phone and made the call to his wife. Her reaction was eerily reminiscent to that of my Sisters. At first, she flatly refused to believed that we had evidence to incriminate her.

I knew how I could end this.

“Mr Simmonds. This is the approximate balance of her business bank account.”

I wrote down a figure.

Everyone around the table went wide eyed when they saw the figure.

“Darling,” said Mr Simmonds.
“Someone here has just given me a figure for the money in your business bank account.”

“Five Hundred and Sixty-Seven Thousand Dollars,” said Matthew.

There was silence from the other end of the phone.

Then we all heard,
“It is that bastard Opal, isn’t it? You do know that it really isn’t a she? It was born with a dick just like you. Just wait. I’ll dish the dirt on him and that idiot son of his. They won’t be able to set foot in DC ever again.”

I picked up my phone and sent a message to DC.

I nodded to James.

“That idiot James is here,” said James.
“Your bank account is being emptied as we speak.”

“You can’t do that!” came an indignant voice down the phone.

“Yes, we can,” I said.
“You neglected to take my sisters off the list of signatories to the account. Five and a bit years ago I obtained a court order to seize all their assets. That order is still in force. The money as it is from a series of crimes will be donated to charity. I think the homeless of Washington could do with a generous donation?”

A whole stream of insults came down the phone line.

It was Matthew who put a stop to it.

“Please stop. It isn’t helping,” he said in a loud voice.

“Well, do something to stop them. Isn’t that your job?”

“Stop right there. They have all the proof they need of what you have been doing. I will be filing for divorce by the end of the day. I want nothing to do with you and I will make it clear that you are not to get a penny from me. If you challenge it, I will have no choice but to make what you have been doing public. I’m sure that you don’t want that. An awful lot of very powerful people will get very pissed off with you.”

There was no response from the other end.

“I will be flying down to DC within the hour. We will settle this face to face.”

Then he cut off the call.

“I want nothing more to do with her. She can rot in hell along with your sisters.”

I couldn’t disagree with that.

---

I had dinner with John and James that night. I’d spoken with Henry and told him that as far as the Secret Service was concerned he’d been doing a special investigation for the President. I arranged to meet him near Boston the following day.

We met in a Coffee shop not far from MIT.

“I’m done here,” I said.

“Do you really mean it?”

I nodded.

“I told John and James last night.”

“How did James take the news?”

I smiled.

“I think that he was relieved. As you know, he’s been working in a Legal Practice in Portland. One of the partners and he have been sort of dating.”

“How do you sort of date?” asked Henry.

“By going out as friends and going Dutch.”

Henry looked a bit afraid.

I smiled and leaned over the table and took his hand.”
“You are paying for this right…?”

He laughed.

When he did so, I had that feeling again. I hadn’t had it with James apart from when we first danced at the ball.

There was a silence between us. It was as if neither of us wanted to make the first move.

In the end, I spoke first.

“I owe you an answer.”

“Only if you are ready to give it.”

“Oh, I am ready. As I said, I’m done here. That means done with this country and especially people with any connection to that rat-infested swamp that is DC.”

Henry laughed.

“Me too,” he said.
“I sent off my resignation last night.”

After a few seconds, I said,

“If the offer of going with you to Scotland is still open then I’m in.”

Henry grinned.

“I’m not making any promises but I’d like to find out what a proper relationship is all about.”

“You don’t know how this makes me feel.”

“Happy I hope.”

“I think so. Nervous but hey, life is full of challenges.”

[one month later]

“Is it all as flat as this?” I asked as Henry drove our rental car across the wilds of Sutherland.

“Most of the taller mountains are to the south. We flew in over them.”

I remembered seeing a snow topped mountain landscape below from the aircraft that we’d flown up from Glasgow to Inverness in.

“Don’t worry, you are in for a surprise. Well several surprises,” was all he’d say to my questions about where we were going.

The first surprise was a real honest to goodness stone Castle that hugged the shore of what the locals called a ‘Loch’. The next surprise, were the sheer number of Palm Trees that were growing in the garden. I thought that we were too far north for that. I knew then that I had a lot to learn. We both had a lot to learn.

We were welcomed at the Castle by Henry’s Great Aunt Siobhan. An elegant lady in her early 60’s.

“Come in my dears. You must be exhausted by all that travelling. I’ll put the kettle on.”

Everyone in the family were as welcoming as Siobhan. Henry was treated as if he was long lost royalty or the prodigal son returning home, I could not decide which.

I was treated like a goddess. Siobhan’s daughter Anna, took me to one side and said,
“You are that mystery woman from that ball aren’t you?”

“Eh?”

“I was in Washington covering the event for Der Spiegel. I saw you arrive. Your smile gave you away.”

I was cornered.

“Yes, that was me. It was a long time ago. I’ve changed a lot since then.”

She grinned.

“I know. Those sisters of yours were something else entirely.”

I felt totally exposed.

“I saw you give evidence at their trial. I felt that there was something odd about you. It was only later that I saw you as your real self again that I twigged.”

“But… But… you didn’t get the scoop of the century?”

She hugged me tight.
“You had obviously been through hell with them. The last thing that you needed was more hurt. Besides, I felt so envious of you, having two dances with ‘him’!”

“But I’m not Cinderella?” I protested.

“You were that night. You danced beautifully by the way.”

Then she added,
“And here you are with Henry. You make a great couple you know. I hope you stay and make a life together here.”

“Why did you stop being a reporter?”

She laughed.
“I… I missed this place.”

I was going to learn that the ‘place’ and especially the surrounding area grew on you.

That night a traditional highland dinner was held in our honour. I didn’t like the taste of the Islay Malts but some of the lowland ones were more to my liking. I could not believe that the bar had more than 100 different brands of Scotch available.

The final surprise came a week later as we walked along the shore near the castle and were watching the Sea Otters fishing. Henry suddenly went down on one knee and said,

“I know that we haven’t even been on a date or kissed but will you Opal De Vries give me the honour of becoming my wife?”

Then a passing seagull tried to ruin the moment by dropping some poo right onto Henry’s head.

It didn’t. I even managed to supress a snigger.

“Yes Henry. I will marry you. Ever since you floated the idea of coming here I was intrigued. We’d been here just one day when I knew that this is where I want to be. To be here with you. You stood by me when many would not have done. That’s why I said yes to coming here and I’m saying yes again.”

He put a small but classy ring on my finger.

Then we kissed for the first time.

After a couple of months of searching, we purchased a small (by American standards) home a few miles up the coast from his family home. I nearly bolted back to the US after a three-day storm where the rain hit the windows horizontally that arrived the day after we’d moved in, but the totally gobsmacking sunset the next day told me that all was well with the world.

[eighteen months later]

Henry and I returned to Maine along with our son John James Monroe Macleod. The President had agreed to be the godfather. That gave us reason to visit him whenever we were on that side of the Atlantic.

He took one look at us when we arrived and pronounced,

“Scotland seems to agree with you. Opal, you look happier than I’ve ever seen you. Well done Henry.”

Then he added,
"It is nice of you to name your son after me and the fifth President."

Henry and I failed to stop ourselves from laughing.

"Sorry James, the Monroe part is a reference to peaks over three thousand feet in Scotland. They are called 'Monroe's'. We've climbed or 'bagged' ten of them. James was ... well you know what after we'd climbed two of them in one day."

Part of that ‘look’ we both had was that we’d left all the city grooming and clothes a long way behind us. We’d gone native. If you don’t, then you don’t survive especially in the summer with the midges that appear in their billions once you get away from the coast. We did dress up a bit for the Christening and hated every minute of it but there was no way in hell that I was going to play Cinderella again. Once was more than enough for anyone.

[the end]

[Authors Note]
I hope you enjoyed my slightly warped take on the classic ‘Cinderella’ story. I say warped in that the ‘Prince Charming’ from the ball did not get to live happily ever after with Cinders.