Plans Change The Story Continues 3

Before I could leave Christina's I got the call to tell me not to come to Panama just yet as a large tropical storm was bearing down on the Isthmus and the meeting was postponed.  I asked if they needed anything, and was told they had everything they needed aboard the ship now anchored in the lake, I told Carlos to have fun with that.  When I hung up I sighed and told Christina breakfast was delicious.  As I gathered up my belongings she asked where I was going, I told her I would probably go home after taking care of some paperwork. She told me I could stay, I looked at the house and down at the dog and told her the sheriff had good tastes in his pets at least.  Her coffee was flying almost instantly which I caught and after looking at it I told her I remember the Christmas she was given it.  Handing it back to her I told her someone might get mad if she used it as a weapon and I was not meaning he did not have good taste in his women, which he did but the man was twisted and if I found out he had done something to one of our daughters she should let him know he had better start running.  I pointed toward the gate where I saw an unmarked police unit sitting outside.  She shook her head and asked herself why the man could not get the hint.  When I saw the woman reach to check her sidearm I told her to let it go as she had a life ahead of her, then nodded for her to take Christina inside.  Pulling out my phone I called the number of my wife's second lawyer and asked her when she answered if she still represented Christina.  She said she could not talk about her clients and I told that meant yes but before I hung up I wanted her to decide who she could talk to concerning this fellow who she had mistakenly thought could replace me because at the moment he was stalking her and sitting outside of her front gate.  When I was told I should not be there I told her that since I owned the company which owned the property if she tried to have me physically removed by force she might want a lawyer as I would be taking back all that money she stole from me but I did not want to go there as in reality I did not care she got her thirty pieces of silver for stabbing me in the back but I was hoping she would take a more personal care for the well being of her clients as I would take it personally if that man did something to harm Christina or one of my daughters.

Before she could say something I told her I had filed paperwork with the courts to both restrain him from coming around my family and also to formally complain about his insidious behavior making use of his position of authority and preying upon a woman in grief and her family.  The woman told me she was not afraid of me, so I asked what she had going on with the sheriff.  When she told me I was mistaken I told her then to do her job as Christina's lawyer and start dropping paperwork and maybe call the media first, like maybe this cute young thing who I supposed has been really busy lately doing some investigative stories and was still wanting to know who I really was.  I heard her dialing on another line and asked another woman where they were on filing a restraining order against the sheriff.  I could not here what their conversation was but when she got back on the line with me she asked how she could get in touch with me.  I told her currently she could find me at my little estate where my ex wife was currently residing.  I hung up and paused to think for a moment and then went inside and told Christina I was sorry if she thought I meant she was not a good catch for the sheriff.  She looked at her caretaker and then at me and said she overreacted.  I told her it was understandable, as I turned around she threw it again and I reached back and caught it and asked why she threw it that time.  Christina said she was just checking; I set it down on the table as I left.  Before I could get to my truck she came running out carrying a dufel and climbed into the passenger seat.  I called time out and asked what she was thinking.  Smiling she told me since I was no longer pressed to make my appointment I could take her to work and see what she did for a living.  I told her I knew she was a doctor and surgeon primarily doing reconstructive surgery.  She nodded and said since I was now a part owner I might as well start auditing while she worked.

As I climbed in I shrugged, behind me climbed the ex marine, I watched as one of the men climbed into another SUV and led the way.  As we came to the gate two men got out of the police vehicle, their dress spoke feds.the boy in the front knew his business as he pushed their vehicle back leaving me a clear exit.  Christina looked back and asked what I was doing and I told her apparently taking her to work although I had no idea where she worked.  She told me she worked by the hospital mid valley.  Smiling I told her luckily I knew where that one was.  Using my work ID I was able to drive through several country clubs, the ex marine smiled and asked if she could have one of those and I told her that depended on who actually paid her as technically I had not remembered hiring her or her partners for more than a week at the most.  She nodded and told me about that when they contacted my office to find about getting paid they were asked if they wanted this situation to be long term with a retainer up front and working under a completely separate entity.  I nodded and asked who owned that entity and was told I owned eighty five percent while they each owned five percent a piece.  I nodded and told her thanks for bringing me up to date and asked how business was doing and was told she was sad to say I would be taking a loss this coming year again as we only had one client.

I told her we would have to change that and asked if she needed to hire someone to sift through a companies books who would that be, smiling she said that during her tenure with Naval Intelligence that was her domain.  Before we were half way to the hospital I asked if she had checked out the sheriff and she had looked at Christina before she said yes they had and somewhere in the last three years he had developed close relationships with several folks back in DC.  I asked if she thought he was dirty, she told me he was definitely not clean.  My last question was to ask if one of these close relationships was with anyone in one of the smaller law enforcement agencies.  Christina who had kept her mouth shut told me his best man at the wedding said he was an old friend of mine and happened to be a director of some law agency.  I looked at her and apologized for her having to deal with the sheriff.  When we arrived at the medical facility there were a number of law men waiting including secret service along with media trucks being kept at bay, I asked Christina who her client was today and she told me it was the daughter of a presidential candidate.  I told her when it was time to actually perform whatever surgery was taking place she might want to change her venue and not tell anyone where she was performing her surgery.  Instead of driving into the parking lot I drove to the back of the hospital to the ER entrance.  There I got out and walked around and helped Christina get out as she asked what I was doing.  Walking into the ER with her I borrowed a white coat and borrowing a robe from a hook on an open door I put it on her and then put her in a wheel chair.  I told my new security companies business partner to grab a white coat and go drive to the front of the medical building and get out with purpose and head straight for Christina's offices.  Heading back the way we came, she smiled and Christina asked what I was doing and I told her I was taking her to work.  As we left the front of the hospital I asked if she remembered the last time I pushed her in a wheelchair.  Looking up she told me at that time she had been about to have a baby and all I was doing was trying to make her laugh and forget about the pain.

Using a side entrance that had a stair well next to it, I told her her ride was over and we left both the robe and the coat on the chair.  She lead me to a rear entrance to her offices which were actually on two levels of the building.  Once she made her presence known to her staff and her patient along with her family, I stepped out and headed for the main entrance where I found my ex marine being detained by secret service. Without saying a word I went and grabbed her hand and then walked her onto the elevator.  We were not stopped again until we entered the Christina's offices by way of the front door.  I put the agent with the gun in my face on the ground and told him it was not polite to point guns into the face of the man who could tell that girl in there she could not have her surgery.  Her dad came out just as other agents entered the room.  He told me he knew me and as I stood up and dragged the agent to his feet while at the same time dismantling his side arm into its individual parts I told him he probably did.  Christina was glaring at me and asked if I was done, when I nodded she told me then to sit down and wait my turn.  Of course that was not going to happen as I had just defended myself against a federal agent who had happened to forget to introduce himself.  Both of Christina's lawyers showed up right about then.  Just their presence helped cool the situation long enough for me to tell the agent I was sorry for having to deal with him harshly but having had four attempts on my life in the last two years, three of which was definitely sanctioned I was not taking chances.  The man was still trying to piece together his piece, I showed him how and he looked at me as I had reassembled it in under a minute.  The presidential contender nodded and asked how the Middle East was these days.  I shrugged and said I had retired almost three years ago but apparently someone had not liked that.

He pointed to the scars on my neck, I told him those came later when my ex let her dogs use me as a chew toy. With a nod he told me he was sorry to hear that as if he remembered correctly what kept him going were my stories of my wife and family.  Shrugging I told him I was glad I could help and I wished him well and I hoped whatever was wrong with his daughter would be fixed.  Nodding he said this was a small realignment of her nasal passage to help her sleep better.  As I headed for the door I told him to tell his daughter to take a couple of naps for me.  Nodding he told me it was good to see me among the living.  Shrugging I told him for now it was good to be seen.  Christina came out with her patient and brought her dad back into her offices. Her nurses barred the door for the Secret Service agents still in the lobby.  One of them came out and called Mr. C.  All looked around as did I, when that nurse left the doorway I left as well and in the hubbub I slipped down the hall way, made use of the lab coat and pushed the wheelchair back to the hospital.  There I found the cafeteria and sat down to enjoy a hot tea.  I answered several of my messages with the office and when I found Carlos had managed to get a flight to Miami before the storm hit, I called him and asked where he was at the moment and he told me he was in Miami but would rather some place quieter.  I picked Montana and named a dude ranch off the top of my head I had once read about in a magazine.  He called back thirty minutes later and said he had booked a hunting lodge near Yellowstone and had sent me the details and would see me in two weeks as his wife had decided she would like to drive and take the grandchildren to see their favorite mouse.  I smiled thinking of the last time the girls and I had gone just after their brother had been born.

When Christina called me she asked where I was and I asked if she was alone and she told me not yet as she just finished with her patient and the secret service was still trying to figure what went down earlier.  I told her I walked into her office and found a man pointing a gun at my face with no reason given.  She asked in a hush whisper why I did not come in when I sent my nurse out to get me.  I told her her nurse never came out to get me while I was there though she did call for a fellow by the name of Se.  Christina told me that she was calling for me.  I told Christina next time have her call my name and I would see her later.  I waited another hour before leaving the hospital by a side door.  The crowd had of reporters and law enforcement had lessened from earlier, but the Sheriff was out in front of the medical building having a heated discussion with several feds.  Christina was lead out the building by the Colonel and her body guard and they climbed into my SUV and left immediately.  I walked over toward the building and was walking up the sidewalk when the Sheriff noticed me and reached for his side arm.  I kept walking toward him and watched as a man whose life I had saved once came out with his family.  He saw me again and waved, I waved back and asked if everything had turned out well.  He looked at his daughter who looked back, up at him and said things were looking better than yesterday.  When I was up next to him I looked at the sheriff who had not moved and shooed him away.  When he did not move I told him I believe the restraining order went for public places as well as my own property but if he really wanted to pull that gun out to try shooting an unarmed man to please be my guest.  He hesitated a little too long with his hand still on his sidearm.  Secret Service immediately went into action and moved the family into vehicles and sped them off.  They disarmed the sheriff who looked relieved.  I was walking away from the scene when a car pulled up next to me a young woman asked if I needed a ride and I told her no, pointing a gun at me she told me to get in.  I went over her car just before she pulled the trigger and landed by her open window.  As she brought the gun to bear again I yanked it from her fingers and reached in a turned off the engine.  She was not through as she had pulled out a tazing device.  The silly woman used it on me as I held onto her and had to drop it to the ground.  By the time she had come to her car was surrounded.

I was told later she worked for our government; doing what no one ever told me.  Because I was by the hospital and had been given a real shock which was nothing close to either my gate incident or my two weeks in a non disclosed detention area the authorities still on the scene wanted me to be checked out. I refused to go into the hospital again and stood toe to toe with a hard nosed woman who happened to be Special Agent in charge until my ride came back.  I was driven to the airport by my own orders.  I caught a commuter to Arizona where Christopher Jr. picked me up.  He told me mom was mad at me; I told him it seemed like any more with her I could not do right by her and even when someone tried to take my life for the fifth time it was my fault.  He pulled over his Hummer and asked me to please repeat that and I told him after his mom had left her office with the colonel I had talked to fellow whose life I had once saved when he was still in the military and after he left some young thing pulled up and tried to put a bullet into me and then when she missed and I removed the gun from her care she tried tazing me accept I was holding onto her and it kind of backfired and she gave herself the shock of her life.  He called his mom and asked why she neglected to tell him someone had tried to take his dad's life.  Christina I could tell wanted to talk to me, when I was handed the phone she asked me rather loudly what I was talking about so I hung up.  Almost immediately she called back and had calmed down and told me she was coming to see me and I told her if all she was going to do was yell at me to please do me no favors as after having to deal with that crazed lunatic of hers and then another assassin I really was not up to a lecture.  When she asked what lunatic I told her the one she had dumped me for; when she asked what I was talking about I told her that sheriff fellow who was now in the custody of the Secret Service.

I could here it in her voice when she asked me what I had done, that she was close to breaking down and I told her if she needed some time away to go home and see mom and look into opening up the small health center she had wanted to.   When we pulled up to the ranch house which served as a second home and my office I realized Miriam was still there as was my ex handler.  News had traveled fast as the entire incident had been caught on camera.  My face had never been caught by the camera except from the side.  As my oldest reran the recorded newscast over again for me I told her it was not necessary.  Miriam wanted to know where I was hurt.  I was not hurt save for the burns from the tazer.  In order to keep her from stripping me I had to wrap her up in a bear hug; I was still holding her when Christina walked into my room. Christina was glaring at me and finally asked if Miriam and I; I looked at Miriam when I told her we were friends.  Miriam wiggled out and touching my face she asked if I was really okay and I nodded and told her I was really okay as I had not been shot, chewed on or stabbed and that little toy was nothing like my last two electrocutions.  After kissing me on the cheek she told me it appeared someone needed to talk to me more.  Christina glared at me after Miriam left giving her a reassuring hug.  As I went about getting a change of clothes she asked what I was going to do.  I told her at the moment I was going to shower, put on some clean clothes, grab a bight, take a nap if I could and then work on a few projects before heading up toward Yellowstone.  Christopher asked from the other side of the door what I was going to do in Yellowstone.  Walking over I slung open the door and had all three of my children fall into my room along with Steve and his children.

I pointed to the stairs and told them all to go down stairs and let me have a private conversation with the fine doctor.  Christopher told me he had never been to Yellowstone and never on a real vacation with me.  I told him to go down stairs and start making some dinner and we would talk to see if it would work in with his school schedule.  Once I was sure they were all gone, I closed the door and went about preparing for my shower.  Christina sucked in her breath; looking up I told her I was fine, thanks for asking and luckily I did not hesitate as that had been a big gun that little girl had pointed at my chest.  As I left the room she asked where I was going.  I stopped and asked why for a woman who had divorced her husband for no other reason than to shack up with tome sweet talking loser she cared and for her information where I went was no longer her concern.   As I went out the front door the two men on her security detail were waiting.  I told them they could take their assignment with them when they left.  Steven stepped in front of me and asked why I was being so uncooperative.  I stopped and shook my head and asked if he had not heard already another attempt had been made on my life and my ex thought she had a say into how I dealt with the situation I now found myself in, which to me was simple.  He asked and what was that; I told him to keep on living and go about my business.  Julie told me that was not fair to them or mom.  I called time out and told her to gather everyone as I was only going to say this once.  When we had gathered in the dining room, I told Christina I was sorry she had to go through what she was going through and by the fact she still was using a security detail meant she had been getting some threats.  She looked around the room and asked how I knew.  I told her even though I chose to not watch the news I was aware that she had been a news worthy item over the past few years which was not my fault as she had made her choices about whom she kept company with.  She told me I had also been in the news at times and I asked if they actually got my name right or if they had a good picture.  Christopher said other than pictures of me and mom from before he was born no.  I looked at Christina and said it was funny how the media seemed to come up with photos I had not been allowed to see in years and wondered how they got them, but since they were from a past life  I supposed it did not matter.

She changed the subject and asked when I had saved that man's life, I told her that too was also from a past life which had been buried a long time ago.  My ex handler asked whose life I had saved, I told her that depended on which time she was talking about but today it was mine. Christopher's girlfriend asked who she was to me and I looked at her and asked what she meant.  When she told me she had consulted one of her professor's on why a woman would want to kill a man; I started laughing and told first it might be best if she stopped asking some professor about life and second my guess she was assuming I had been having a relationship or at least the woman had delusions of such but no I had no idea who she was other than the fact she had pointed a gun at my chest and told me to get into her car and since the said gun was one favored by law enforcement I was assuming she worked in that field or new someone who did or she was possibly part of the defense field.  One of the men assigned to protect my wife asked why I thought that.  I just looked at him and then told them all at the moment they may want to put some space between me and themselves as it might be bad for their health.  Going out to my truck I made sure it was full loaded with my tools and the fuel tanks were topped off.   I then went back into the house and unlocked the gun cabinet and pulled out my rifle which I stripped, cleaned and reassembled in less than twenty minutes.  Christina asked what that was for, without slowing I told her I would be up in grizzly country which also had its share of large cats and wolves.  As I was getting ready to leave the colonel drove up with the third member of the three person security company whose only client was technically me.  He asked if I was headed back to work; I nodded.  He told me before I went I might want to know the sheriff had been charged and that his marriage to Christina was illegal as he was already married.  I shrugged and went about preparing to leave by hooking up a stock trailer and loading horses.

The colonel finally took a stand in front of me and told me to stop.  I did long enough to tell him I was grateful for his meddling in my life but at the moment it was still my life and thanks to my decisions to stop working for someone it appeared to me someone did not like that much and I for one was not willing to fight yet one more war for a nation of selfish brats.  The colonel told me to forget about the past and look to my future.  Nodding I told him that was what I was doing but thanks to circumstances beyond my control it would be a future of me living alone for the foreseeable future.  He asked why and I told him it seemed to me all I found when I was around other people was someone trying to end my existence and that would just get me to wondering why.  I saw the look of shock on Christina's face.  Three hours later I had pulled out of the drive and headed to I did not no where with only the knowledge that all three women who had shown an interest in my life since my return were angry with me and my children were now blaming me for their mothers decisions.  I had my meeting with Carlos at the hunting lodge with him were four other men and their  families.  I had looked over their proposals and asked pertinent questions but my heart was not in it, though for the sake of others I agreed to do the design and engineering work on a number of large resort complexes which would include housing and shopping areas as technically these would be master planned communities. Once I said good bye to Carlos I had gone back to one of our field cites to drop off my rig before riding out on horse back.  It would be almost four months before I made it to our one time Mountain Home.  There I sat down and brought up the topographical maps for the properties I was supposed to have been designing. I spent two weeks there drawing both by hand and on the computer before sending the drawings onto Steven and Carlos with notes.  By the first blizzard of winter I made it into Arizona, I camped above my cabin on Ben's ranch to watch and realized it was now being used as a getaway by my family.  I waited about a week when I saw no one before riding down and unaware there was an alarm I set it off.  Spooking the young stallion I had rode in on.  I was still calming the creature down when the red and blue lights could be seen coming up the drive.

The young deputy who drove got out and put his hand to his weapon and I told him if he pulled it he better shoot to kill and then go turn himself in for murdering the occupant of the property onto which he was now trespassing.  Once I had the stallion calm I remounted and started to ride off when he told me to freeze.  Looking over my shoulder I asked if he had been watching to many movies as he really needed to learn how to introduce himself and talk politely to people.  I told him to go ahead and call in and tell whoever he needed that the resident of this cabin was back and would appreciate the code to the alarm system he did not authorize to be installed and since me four legged friend was a bit sensitive I would be just over the ridge at the Oasis until someone turned the noise maker off.  I was cleaning myself up in the small spring when the rest of the evenings company began showing up.  Steven was the first to find me followed by Carlos who was smiling when he saw me.  Steven wanted to know why I had not returned any of his calls.  I finished shaving before I answered and told him where I had been there was no cell pone reception and beyond that I had ran out of battery months ago.  Ben and his wife came riding up about then and she asked what all the commotion was.  When I stepped out from behind my horse they both dropped their mouths.  I told them it was nice to see them as well.  Ben's question was if I had seen Christina yet.  I shook my head and said beyond the four of them the only person I saw was the young man who looked like he was planning on shooting me.  Ben told me when they could not find me, I looked at Steven who said he figured I did not want to be found so he did not really tell anyone that I had been in contact.  Once I had finished cleaning up the best I could, I threw on the cleanest shirt I had and rode back down to the cabin to find Christina, my children her two lawyers and several dozen law enforcement agencies represented.  The first person to talk to me was the same sheriff deputy who had been on the scene first.  He introduced himself as deputy Williams and I asked if he was related to a Captain Williams who was in the Navy.  The young man stopped and said his dad was no longer in the Navy as he had retired a couple years back.  I nodded and told him all the old horses had to go to pasture sometime.  I told him to tell his dad the next time he spoke to him and old friend said hi.  When he asked who he should say said hello I told him to tell his dad Mr. C said hello.

All went silent, an agent of some sort in a windbreaker asked if I was thee Mr. C.  I nodded and he said some people wanted to talk to me.  I nodded and asked him if those same people intended to do the job others had failed to do.  A district attorney walked up to the small knot of agents and deputies surrounding me and asked if I was Mr. Christensen.  I told him that depended on who was asking and why. She looked at me and then back down at her folder she had opened up and said if I was Mr. Christensen I should no it was a crime to fake my death.  Smiling I told her since I had not faked my death and had not ever claimed to be dead then I committed no crime and if I had been declared dead I would like to know who did the declaring and what coroner signed off on it as it was rather plane I was very much alive.  When she looked up at me she said yes I was alive and I asked her why exactly was she here and why all the different law agencies for a simple alarm going off.  When she nodded she said she could not answer for the rest but her boss gave her a call to find out how a man who was supposed to be dead just showed up at his house.  I told her to go back home take all her friends with her and to tell her boss in the morning the reason I showed up at my house was I was not dead and needed a shower before I sat down to take a look at the books to see how my companies were fairing.  As the law men began leaving I was informed since the process of me being declared dead had begun my ownership in my companies was; I shook my head jumped on the stallion and chased after the entourage heading down the drive.  Catching up to the assistant DA I told her I would like to talk to her boss concerning the circumstances behind me being declared dead.  She gave me a card and told me for what it was worth that helped her out immensely.  As I turned around the planes began coming in for their runs for the night.  I let the stallion have his way and run when we came up to the house I reigned him in bringing him into a sliding stop.

Christina asked what that was about and I told her it seemed to me someone wanted me out of the way to get their hands on my companies again or was getting some really bad legal advice.  When she told me they had searched for me for weeks, I told her since I had not been missing there was no need to for anyone to search for me as I was a single man who was free to do as I chose and it would seem to me if the alimony checks had still been arriving on time that would indicate I was still alive.  I looked at Steven who said he would have to check with payroll but as far as he knew my paychecks were still being deposited to the same account.  I asked how much my life insurance was worth and he told me as I had requested it was still set at just enough to cook me and spread my ashes.  I watched the two lawyers of Christina's start fidgeting.  I asked which one of them filed the paperwork; they looked at Christina and I told them Christina was a doctor not a lawyer but not to worry I knew how to find out the information so they may want to go have their little pow wow and decide who was taking the fall for this one.  Looking at the shorter of the two I asked how her brother was doing.  When she said he just got reelected to another term I smiled and told her she needed to break her habit of her brother giving her advice or I would do more than embarrass him.  Turning away I asked Ben if I was no longer living here, when he started to say I had been declared dead.I nodded and said I supposed my belongings had been removed.  Steven told me they were down at the offices.  I looked at Carlos and asked where we were on those plans.  Smiling he nodded and said we had broken ground on all four projects and thanks to my detailed drawings they had been able to begin work without to many delays.  I asked about the management on site and he smiled saying all had been with me for more than a ten years and knew their work but it would be nice if the boss showed up to see about their progress.