The Protector Read online

  “Tom’s dead Alison. They found him at his home this morning.”

  “Dead?” I could hardly push the words out of my mouth as I felt the wind being knocked out of me. I turned briefly around in a circle again unable to digest her words. Where Joed had stood a few minutes earlier, another man with dark brown hair stood in his place. He tried desperately to blend in with the café patrons, but the look on his face clued me in on the fact he was not a regular. He had been watching me and he seemed oddly familiar. He quickly turned away as I listened to Stacy, pushing through the crowd.

  “Alison, did you hear me?” I could hear her husband Ted in the background and I could hear Stacy telling him to be quiet. “Alison, are you there?”

  “How?” I managed to stutter. My body began to shake as I realized my boss and mentor was now gone.

  “They aren’t sure. Aren’t you coming home tonight?” Her voice was full of worry and I could tell she was frantic. I only nodded my head not remembering I was talking on the phone to her. I caught sight of the dark haired man once again. He was closer to me now, only about ten feet away and he was talking on the phone. He glanced up our eyes locking for the briefest second.

  “Alison?”

  “Stacy, I have to go. I will be home later.” I began to walk quickly away from the man toward a line of waiting cabs. My pace increased as fear filled me.

  “Alison, are you ok?” Stacy was screaming into the phone.

  I didn’t answer my friend’s words and hung up my phone as I got into an empty cab, sorrow replaced the fear. “Airport please.”

  As he drove quickly through the busy streets of Tel Aviv, I tried to comprehend what Stacy had said, but I couldn’t. I barely waited for the cab to come to a complete stop before I threw what cash I had at the man, and jumped out as quickly as I could. I had sent my luggage ahead of time, so my wait through customs would be short. And as far as I was concerned, the faster I made it to the terminal gate, the more comfortable I would be. Suddenly my perfect little trip wasn’t so perfect.

  Like the market, the airport was busy and I scanned the groups looking for any sign of the red head, even Joed. My nervousness and fear seemed to subside as I realized the sheer numbers of young Israeli soldiers who walked around with automatic weapons strapped to their bodies. Tensions were high and eight years after 9/11, getting on an airplane still caused the worst fears in people. Today, the weapons, the soldiers they didn’t make me nervous. Instead I felt calm and safe.

  I finally was able breathe a sigh of relief, when I took my seat at the terminal gate. Surprisingly enough, it was less crowded and quieter than the rest of the airport, with only a few people around. I knew I needed to call Stacy back, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I wasn’t in the mood to talk to her or anyone for that matter.

  Time seemed to come to a complete stop as I sat there waiting for my flight to be called. I was bored and nothing I did made time pass any faster. I had tried to read, but I couldn’t focus. Instead I began to glance around at all the people who were now filling the terminal. One man in particular caught my attention. He wore a worn New York Yankees baseball cap that looked like it had once belonged to Babe Ruth. His dark brown hair was short under the hat and he wore blue jeans, and a navy blue t-shirt. He was reading the local newspaper in Hebrew but he looked nothing like a local to me. What surprised me the most was how oddly familiar he was. I wasn’t sure where I had seen him before, but I was sure I had.

  He sat straight as if he were a product of the United States Marine Corps and he was very aware of his surroundings, especially of the young soldiers carrying the automatic weapons. Despite the fact he seemed familiar, he didn’t frighten me. He was way too handsome to be anything scary. Suddenly, visions of him danced in and out of my head. I imagined him in a tuxedo, driving an Aston Martin and asking for a Martini shaken not stirred.

  A giggle escaped my lips as I banished the thoughts out of my head. He was good looking, ‘who wouldn’t fantasize about him,’ I thought to myself. It was difficult to pull my eyes away from him. What was even more intriguing was the tattoo on his forearm. It was probably 6 inches long and it looked like it was a huge cross.

  “Great!” I mumbled. I wasn’t looking at my own personal version of 007. I was looking at some ex-con who was visiting the Holy Land looking for redemption. I decided that I liked the 007 vision of him better.

  I continued to watch him out of the corner of my eye. It wasn’t until he waved at me, that I realized I was no longer glancing at him, but staring. Panic ripped through me, as I stared into the liquid golden hue of his eyes. It was same golden color of the man I had run into earlier in the day coming out of the hotel. My heart began to race as he looked away from me and began to gather his belongings. And before I even realized it, he was gone. I stood up looking around for him, but the crowd that had now formed at the gate was blocked his retreating figure.

  3 First impressions

  I watched as panic filled her eyes. I quickly grabbed my belongings and retreated into the growing crowd. I had sat watching her and could tell she was nervous. She moved one leg under the other over and over again in a short period of time. She thumbed through the magazine she held but never really read anything in it. She seemed to be more interested in the people around her than she was in whatever periodical sat in her lap. In a way this relieved me, she was orientating herself with her surroundings and the people around her, more so than she had done before. The only problem with that, she was bound to recognize me. And when she did, it would already be too late. The game had suddenly become much more complicated.

  She wore jeans and a dark green camisole top and a white short sleeved lace sweater that settled mid-thigh. Although she was dressed more causal than she had been all week, there was nothing casual about her today. Her eyes were something I had noticed when I ran into her earlier that morning. And from that point on, their color was permanently imprinted in my mind. And from the few feet I sat from her now, I could tell they were a brilliant green and full of fear and sadness. Her world as she knew was gone. The handoff at the plaza had gone wrong. She didn’t know it but the man she had handed the processor to was not Professor Hassan. Matter of fact, we had no idea who she had given it to. Both Seth and I had watched the handoff, as did the Israeli intelligence officer who had befriended her earlier in the week. But none of that was my concern. I needed to get her the hell out of Tel Aviv and back on US soil.

  I suddenly felt sorry for her as I walked away from her. She had no idea she had been used. The processor she had been asked to give to Professor Hassan was a unique one. A test processor similar to ones used in spy satellites, as well as missiles that defied anything Reagan envisioned when he tried to establish the Star Wars program. It didn’t matter that the Cold War was over, this processor in the hands of the wrong nations, or a terrorist organization, was trouble. It was a hot commodity and something the Israeli’s desperately wanted.

  What was puzzling about the whole situation was the fact that Tom had backed out of the exchange and sent Alison in his place. There was no logical explanation for this change, and no one had been able to get a hold of Tom to find out his motives for sending her.

  As I walked toward the bathrooms, I could see Seth waiting for me.

  “Plans have changed again,” he made a motion for me to come closer to him. “One of us is to get close to her and find out what the hell went wrong. She didn’t give it to Hassan and the Israeli’s are pissed. They want the processor they paid for.” Seth stopped talking and leaned his shoulder against the wall.

  “You know the Moussad has been following her all week. Hassan was one of them. They want to talk to her and they want to know if she knew something about it. And if she did, she just signed her death warrant.” As much as I didn’t want to hear it, I knew his words were true. You did not cheat the Israeli government and walk happily away from it.

  “I know the person she gave it to wasn’t Hassan, but come on? I don�
��t think this woman had any clue what was going on or what she was doing. I don’t think Tom filled her in on anything Seth. And the processor they paid for? What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Moussad took the imposter out and well it’s the wrong processor. The processor she gave isn’t the one everyone agreed upon and now the Israeli’s are crying foul. They want to know what she knows and they want their freaking processor. And they weren’t the ones who killed Tom Jack.” He didn’t need to finish his words for everything to register, wrong person, wrong processor, dead boss and a totally innocent young woman who had no clue her life was in some serious danger.

  “I am guessing we need to get her pretty little ass out of Israel before she’s pulled in by Israeli intelligence?” I glanced back to where I had left her sitting. She fidgeted in her seat, restless and uneasy.

  “Pretty much. We need her on that flight.” Seth’s tone did not change. And I knew he was running through all the possible scenarios that could now happen to her if she remained in Israel. My mind raced with the same scenarios. If we didn’t get her on a plane to the US it would only be a matter of time before she would be in Israeli custody. Although she had no clue about what had happened she had betrayed an agreement between our two governments and someone was going to have to pay for that mistake. My mind raced back to the handoff at the café. There was nothing I could have done to stop the handoff short of shooting the guy. And that would have not gone over well with the Israeli’s either. We were not allowed to interfere with the handoff. We were sent to observe and protect.

  “When does the plane take off?” Seth’s question broke my chain of thought.

  “About 25 minutes. They should be boarding here in a few. I don’t think we have to worry about it too much, if they haven’t moved in yet.” My head gestured to her and Seth followed my gaze. “I don’t think they are going to try something out in the open. The most we are going to have to worry about is someone helping her miss her flight.” I tore my gaze away from her and looked back at Seth. He had an awkward smile on his face and for once I couldn’t read his thoughts.

  “Get her on the plane. I think Conway is working on calming the Israeli’s down. But…” I wasn’t sure that was entirely possible. Tensions were high in the Middle East and this processor meant Israel obtaining a sophisticated defense system. And with groups like Hamas, and countries like Syria and Iran, Israel needed a stronger defense system.

  “See if Conway can negotiate something, another handoff of the correct processor. If we can ensure the Israelis that this was a mistake and get them the right processor, she has a chance. When’s your flight?”

  “Three hours. I don’t have to go London either.” Seth referred to the short layover at Heathrow I had. Although it was a hindrance it was not a complication. “I’ll call you once I know more. Guess your lucky day has come, you get to introduce yourself to her. Lucky bastard.” Seth had a huge grin from ear to ear. “For the record talking incessantly on a long plane ride annoys the hell out of her.” He hit my arm and walked away. I smiled at the satisfaction I knew he was feeling. He had been my friend for close to twenty years. We had served in the military together and were recruited together. He was there when I married Paige and he was there when I buried Paige. There was no one else on this earth; I would rather have watching my ass.

  I turned to walk back to the gate but changed my mind as I smelled the wonderful black goodness of coffee. Not only would it make for a good distraction, offering her a cup, it was going to be a long flight and I was desperate for the caffeine. I bought two cups, one black and one with cream and turned to walk back to the gate. Her staring at me would play into getting to know her. I now had to make myself visible to her, and for a fleeting second a smile crossed my face at the prospect of actually getting to have a conversation with her. Conversations with the people we observed and protected were few and far between. Often times, they didn’t even know we existed.

  My plans for a casual introduction quickly changed as my protective instincts, jealousy, I wasn’t sure what kicked in as I approached her. The man who she had befriended earlier in the week, now sat next to her. There was only one reason he sat there, and although she had no idea he was gainfully employed by Israeli’ intelligence I did. As I stepped closer, I could see the laughter in her eyes and dread filled me as I realized he had the advantage over me. He had already won her trust. A knot formed in my stomach as I walked closer and stepped up my pace until I was right in front of them. An irritated look crossed his face.

  Words formed on my tongue and I wasn’t sure how I was able to get them out but I did. “Sweetheart, they are about to call us to board, here’s the coffee you wanted.” I handed her the second cup I had bought. I nodded at the man sitting next to her. “Thank you for keeping Alison company this week. You’ve been relieved of duty.” I said, assessing the man who sat next to her. I could tell he carried a weapon and not anyone could get through Ben Gurion airport with a weapon. Ben Gurion had some of the best security in the world. The man shot me an annoyed look. And in response an arrogant smile appeared across my face.

  Alison’s eyes went back and forth between us in confusion. She stood frozen and I knew she wasn’t going to go with me easily. If I could have, I would have grabbed her and ran like hell. But that wasn’t an option. It would have alerted security and my job protecting her would be over. I needed to get her on that plane and I needed to do it rather quickly.

  “Alison,” he said in a thick Middle Eastern accent, “it was a pleasure getting to know you. I am sorry your friend interrupted us. I had hoped we could spend some more time together.” Joed’s eyes grew dark as he realized that we knew what was going on.

  “I, he,” She stammered staring at me not knowing how to answer this man she had been talking to. I could see the fear begin to rise in her face. She was absorbing the situation, and probably thinking about running, but like me she realized running was not an option. She had to trust one of us; she just wasn’t sure which one of us she could trust.

  “Sonny?” I reached down to grab her backpack, but she quickly grabbed it before I could. The look of fear was suddenly replaced with a look of annoyance. I was hoping and praying desperately that she would play along with me. If not, I was going to have to quickly come up with another plan.

  “Dear?” she questioned smugly and turned to Joed. “Thank you for showing me around Tel Aviv. Perhaps next time I am here we can continue our conversation.” She smiled politely and reached her hand out to shake his. The heat, radiating from the pit of my stomach moved up and I could feel my hands begin to shake.

  “Certainly. I guarantee you we will see each other again.” Joed looked at me instead of Alison as the words came out of his mouth. By the tone of his voice, I was sure he was going to make sure that this took place.

  “Sonny, let’s go.” Time was slipping away from us and I wanted to make sure we were on that plane in the next five minutes. If not our chances of getting out of Israel would be slim. I grabbed her upper arm and pulled her away from the man as he watched.

  We were no more than ten feet from Joed when she yanked her arm from my hand. “Who the hell are you?” She asked under her breath, a smile gracing her face to keep the façade up. “You are the guy from the hotel aren’t you?” She didn’t give a chance to answer before her mouth opened again. “And why should I go anywhere with you. I should probably scream or wrack you in the nuts? Which would you rather have?”

  Her threat did nothing more than make me laugh, which angered her more. Joed was still standing where we had left him, watching us carefully. I turned in his direction and shrugged my shoulders. “Our plane is about to take off. Let’s go.” I said it loud enough for him to hear. I needed to assert my authority but I didn’t want him getting involved. Once again, I heard the boarding call for our flight. I grabbed her upper arm again and began to pull her toward the gate. I lowered my head as close to her as I could get. I was barely an inch from
her cheek and close to her ear. To the casual observer it simply looked like I was kissing her cheek. “You need to trust me Alison. You are in danger because of this afternoon. I need to get you on that flight and us in the air and back to the US.”

  A strange, almost frightened look came across her face. “I don’t know who you are? And you expect me to trust you! What the hell is going on?” Her teeth were clenched tightly together and her words were quiet.

  “Let’s get on that plane and then we can talk, ok?” I still had not let go of her arm. The look did not disappear, but she began to walk along with me, as if she had a choice.

  “My ticket,” she asked with alarm in her voice.

  “It’s in your backpack, I watched you put it in after you checked in. We will get it out in a minute. Just keep walking.” I turned to briefly glance back in Joed’s direction. He was on his cell phone and as he noticed me looking back at him he turned and began to walk away. Seth had watched the exchange from a distance and with a smirk on his face he walked right into the man as if he had not been paying attention. He gave me a smile and a nod as Joed proceeded to curse him Hebrew for his stupidity.

  “So you were watching me,” she questioned as the realization hit her. “Didn’t think you were really reading a newspaper in Hebrew!” Sarcasm tinted her words, but she continued to walk with me to the gate.

  I chuckled under my breath at her question. “And you weren’t watching me?”

  Her face went crimson in embarrassment and it was kind of adorable. “You noticed,” she asked under her breath.

  “Yeah, pretty much everyone in the airport noticed.” This time I felt the heat rise in my face.

  4 Aston Martin man

  I felt so dumb walking with this man I didn’t know. But there was a look in his eyes that told me I had to trust him. I had honestly thought about running, but I wasn’t sure where I was going to go. He looked fit enough to outrun me and big enough, he could easily take me down. Then there was the sobering reality of the heavily armed troops all around the airport. So I followed him onto the plane. He couldn’t do much to me on a plane full of people and once we touched down at Heathrow, I could make a run for it if I needed to. Or at least this was my rationale for going with him.