Intersection (64 page)

“I know,” he said looking down.

“Don’t you miss your friends?” He shrugged. “You like it here.” He nodded. “I know you do. And, you know you will get to see lots more of Cat and Nick and Barb soon.”

“‘Cause Alex is gonna live with us,” he said.

“Yes.” Cassidy smiled.

“For good?” He asked.

“I hope so, Dylan; yes.”

Dylan put his head against Cassidy’s shoulder. “So….can Alex…” he stopped.

“What, Honey? Can Alex what?” He nestled a little closer but didn’t answer. Cassidy took a deep breath. “Dylan, what is it you want to know about Alex?”

“Well,” he began shyly, “Alex can’t be my dad.” Cassidy closed her eyes and took in his statement. It was clear that Dylan was hurt by his father. He had not wanted to visit his father unless it was just for the day and in New York where Cassidy was close by. When he did have to spend longer periods away, he would cry for hours the night before leaving. Cassidy had to reassure him constantly. It wasn’t until Alex came into their lives that the teacher discovered why. The reality that the congressman paid little attention to his son did not surprise his mother. Cassidy had fought that battle from the time Dylan was born.
She had always hoped Dylan would bring them closer together but the opposite happened. It only served to pull the congressman and Cassidy father apart. She listened closely as her son continued; knowing that he too had found something in Alex that he didn’t know he was missing until she appeared. “…and she can’t be my mom….you are my mom,” he said. There was a touch of sadness in his voice. “And Alfred is Batman’s so….”

Cassidy stopped him. “Dylan, Alex loves you very much.”

“I know.”

“And you want Alex to be like your dad…or like me.” He nodded. “That’s all right, sweetie.”

He looked at his mother and Cassidy could see that he was afraid of hurting her feelings. “Dylan,” Cassidy sat up and pulled the small boy to face her. She touched his cheek and smiled. “No matter what you call Alex, Alex will still be your parent….just like me and just like your dad.” He looked at her hopefully. “So, whatever you and Alex decide…whatever you want to call Alex…Whether it’s Alex or Alfred or I don’t know… Po the Panda,” he giggled. “No matter what you call her; she’ll still be
your
Alex.” He looked at his mother still a bit leery. Cassidy thought about her student, James, and the essay he wrote. She smiled. Dylan might always call Alex by her name but he needed to know that he could refer to Alex in whatever way made him feel comfortable. “And, I think whatever you decide is great even if someday you want to call Alex your mom too. Okay?” He hugged his mother’s neck tightly and Cassidy felt her heart swell. “I love you, Dylan.”

“You’re the best mom,” he said affectionately as Cassidy felt a tear roll down her cheek.

“And you are the best Speed Racer. Why are you a Speed Racer?” Cassidy asked lightheartedly and with genuine curiosity.

“Easy. Speed’s fast and cool like me.”

Cassidy laughed. ‘Another Alexism,’ she silently thought. “All right then, Speed… let’s see how fast you can get ready for breakfast.” He hopped off the bed and ran toward the door.

“Mom?”

“Yes, sweetie?”

“Are we having cereal?”

Cassidy snickered. “Ummm....Why do you ask?” He shrugged. “How about pancakes?” Dylan nodded his approval and skipped off. “Too much milk,” Cassidy chuckled to herself.

“
Iln’a pas le contrôlede la situation
(he does not have control of the situation),” a dark haired man sitting at the table said.

Jonathan Krause smiled. “Ahh….Andre. American politics are complicated. We always….”

The man stopped the statement abruptly, “
40 millions euros dans cette affaire, une Krause. Nous ne pouvons nous permettre d’interférence
(forty million euros in this one deal, Krause. We cannot afford interference).”

“You want assurances?”

A tall fair-haired man stood from his seat and walked toward Jonathan Krause. He smiled as he reached the American. “My friend,” he said, “the message must be clear. If he cannot control this than we must control it.”

“And how should we control it?”

The man narrowed his gaze and leaned into the handsome CIA agent. “You find someone who can,” he whispered.

Jonathan Krause felt a rare chill travel down his spine. He stood tall and firm and clenched his jaw slightly. “What you suggest requires an opportunity.”

“
Ensuite, nous allonscréer
(Then we will create it),” the man said.

It was well past eleven o’clock when Cassidy heard the garage door close. Nick had spent the afternoon and evening at the
new house with Alex but he had arrived home hours earlier; extremely tight lipped about the efforts. “Hey,” Cassidy greeted the agent as she walked into the living room. Alex looked exhausted as she walked toward the small blonde woman. The agent sat down beside Cassidy on the couch where the teacher had been curled up with a book waiting. “You look like hell,” Cassidy smiled.

“Ummm,” Alex groaned a bit and Cassidy noticed she was wincing.

“Your back?” Alex didn’t answer. “How bad?” The agent forced a smile. “Did you take anything?” No reply. “Alex….”

“It’s okay,” Alex said softly.

“No. It’s not okay. Can you make it up the stairs?” Alex looked at Cassidy helplessly and somewhat embarrassed. “MMM,” Cassidy shook her head and stood up. “All right. Stay right there for a minute.”

“Where are you going?” Alex called after the woman.

“Just sit there,” Cassidy called back.

“I don’t have much choice,” Alex grumbled.

“No, you don’t,” a voice answered as Cassidy entered the kitchen. The agent couldn’t help but grin at the realization that Cassidy could hear a pin drop across the house. It was hard to hide anything from her lover. The agent moved gingerly and tried to bend over to untie her shoes when she felt a presence above her. “And…you would be doing what now?” Cassidy asked. Alex looked up at her with apologetic eyes. Cassidy had already learned that Alex became very quiet when she was in real physical pain. The agent was stubborn and pushed herself, but it was clear to the teacher that right now, her lover was in more agony than she was willing to share. “Take these,” Cassidy handed Alex some pain reliever and water and knelt down to start untying Alex’s sneakers.

“Cass, you don’t have to…”

Before Alex could finish her thought, her sneakers were off and Cassidy was gently lifting Alex’s feet onto the couch
and helping her move into a more comfortable position. The teacher grabbed a throw pillow, put it behind the agent’s head and helped her lie down. “Why didn’t you call me?” Cassidy asked, running her fingers through Alex’s hair.

“I was okay until I got in the car.”

“Alex…you need to be careful.”

“I’m okay,” the agent smiled at her lover’s touch. “I’m just tired.”

“Well,” Cassidy covered the agent with a blanket, “close your eyes and go to sleep.”

“I don’t want to sleep without you,” Alex said almost like a small child.

The teacher smiled and kissed Alex’s forehead. “Go to sleep.”

“You…”

Cassidy smiled. “I’m right here…go to sleep.” Alex struggled to stay awake. Her back was beginning to relax but it was sore and stiff and her eyelids would not cooperate. Cassidy watched as the strong, beautiful woman she loved gradually transformed into what looked like a peaceful sleeping child. “Je t’adore, my love,” she whispered placing a tender kiss on the woman’s cheek. “I never knew I could love anyone so much,” she said softly as she made her way to the far end of the couch and lifted the agent’s feet onto her lap. The truth was that Cassidy was still struggling with nightmares of her own and being close to Alex made her feel safe. “I couldn’t sleep without you if I tried,” she admitted aloud and stretched out to join her lover in sleep.

“Admiral….I understand….but this situation…”

“Jonathan… our friends in France are not wrong. I spoke to Edmond last night. I understand and this is not the course any of us wanted but Ivanov is spooked. And, I just heard from the British Prime Minister. We have to get control back…send
a message.” Rear Admiral William Brackett was a large man with a commanding presence. At sixty-seven, he had spent the better part of his life in service to his country; much of that engineering delicate and intricate invasions and covert operations in Southeast Asia. He had served as an adviser to several presidents and was widely regarded within the intelligence community as a genius. When he spoke, people listened.

Krause took a deep breath. He was not looking forward to this next question. “Admiral…your daughter…”

“Yes, Jonathan?”

“She provided Carl Fisher with FBI clearance…Where would she get that?”

“From me.”

This was the answer that Krause had expected and that he had hoped he would not get. “Why, Sir?”

“It’s not always as simple as we would like, Jonathan. You know that. Edward Fisher was a good friend.”

Krause stroked his jaw, “and so is John Merrow.”

“That’s true. But this is not my choice and it’s not yours. I stalled this with O’Brien… made him the fall guy. That won’t work again.”

Jonathan Krause sighed. “When?”

“Saturday.”

“Who?” Krause asked receiving silence at the other end.

“It has to be believable,” the admiral answered.

“Very well…I will make the call…. Sir?”

“Yes, Jonathan?”

“About your daughter….”

William Brackett smiled. He adored his daughter but she frequently challenged his patience as well. Her affair with John Merrow had been ill advised as was her seduction of the FBI agent. “She’s been sent to O’Brien.”

“Is that really….”

The admiral nodded his agreement on the other end of the phone. “You take care of business…I will take care of Claire.”

Krause hung up his phone and sat on the bench in the airport. He felt the spiral, a dangerous spiral. Nothing could go wrong now or everything would likely be lost, everything.

Alex woke up and still felt a bit groggy. She looked around and realized she had never made it to bed. As the room came into focus she saw that Cassidy was sleeping sitting up at the far end of the couch. Carefully, Alex maneuvered her legs out from under the teacher’s grasp and got to her feet. Softly, Alex guided the smaller woman onto the couch and pulled the blanket over her. Cassidy grumbled slightly but then just shifted, never opening her eyes. “
Je vais passer ma vie à vous rendre heureux
(I will spend my life making you happy),” Alex whispered, planting a light kiss on her lover’s cheek. The agent quietly headed up the stairs and peeked in Cat’s room to see Dylan sprawled across the bed. She smiled. He was so much like his mother.