Just the Facts, Ma’am
This is chapter 52 of The Matriarchy, a serial fiction novel on FITK
The FBI agents took careful notes as Sean and Mary discussed their activities of the previous month. Mary was careful not to relate any information concerning her ‘supernatural’ powers. The agents were very interested in Roger Ramsen’s computer files and they had not previously made a connection between the dead semi-driver and The Brotherhood. They also noted the suspicious death of ‘Madame Tara’, a case which was being handled by the Seattle Police. They were particularly interested in the gunman who had been hit by lighting on Tina’s farm.
“Of course, what I’ll talk about next can’t be confirmed,” said Mary, “Use this information as you will, I won’t testify in court about its accuracy, I have no way of verifying it. Before I begin, Sean and I would like to know about Sean’s Aunt Tina—her whereabouts and welfare. She’s eighty-five years old.”
“Ms. Carroll has been interviewed and is currently staying with a friend, a Mr. Edwin Duddle, in Decorah. Until our investigation at the farm is complete, we thought it better that she stayed in town,” said the agent.
As he spoke, Sean’s phone rang, the call ID was Decorah, Iowa.
“Excuse me,” said Sean, “I think Tina is on the line.”
“Sean, is that you?” said Tina.
“It’s me, Tina, how are you? Where have you been?” Sean took the phone out to the balcony.
“I’m staying with Edwin now,” said Tina, “The FBI talked to me yesterday, I told them what I knew, but didn’t tell them anything that I hadn’t seen with my own eyes. They said that the man hit by lighting was a dangerous Russian agent. They said found a stolen truck they thought was his, abandoned near the where the old bridge used to be. They think he was looking for you and he told me that I’m lucky to be alive. I told them that I’ve been lucky to be alive for quite some time now. How are you and Mary doing?”
“Well, as a matter of fact, we’re talking to FBI agents right now. They think things aren’t going to get any better soon, although I think they are now on the same page as we are. We’ll let you know if anything comes up. Is there an opening in the assisted living facility yet?”
“There may be an one soon. They said they’d let me know.”
“Okay, I’ll save Edwin’s number and call you if anything comes up. Take care.”
Tina and Sean exchanged goodbyes. Back in the apartment, Sean sat down next to Mary and told her that Tina was doing alright. Mary smiled when she heard that Tina had been staying with Edwin.
“You are aware that the company I used to own was engaged in what is sometimes disingenuously referred to as ‘data mining’,” Mary began, “As a consultant in the transition, I still have access to the ADR programs, and have been able to obtain a great deal about the organization which calls itself ‘The Brotherhood’. That information, along with some effects which had belonged to Sean’s grandmother, has given us a perspective on where the group originated, what its purpose is, and why Sean has been targeted.”
The agents looked at Sean and then Mary and then back at Sean.
“Is Mary involved with this as deeply as you are?” the agent from Virginia asked Sean.
“More so, in ways that may be hard to understand,” said Sean, “Mary, will you continue?”
“We were married in Decorah.” Mary began, “We left just before the ‘visit’ from the would-be assassin. We thought that our trip to Iowa was a secret—we told no one where we were going. Evidently The Brotherhood had been searching for us and they thought that an isolated farmhouse would be a good place to ‘eliminate’ us. We had been under surveillance in Seattle for some time. I imagine that the fortune teller, Madame Tara, had been recruited to infiltrate an engagement party for one of the ADR staffers to see if we had returned. Why she was killed is beyond my understanding. Sally O’Donnell may have been killed because of her knowledge of Roger Ramsden’s affairs. I don’t think that The Brotherhood yet knows that she copied his computer files,” Mary paused as she took a sip from her coffee, “O.K., now for the strange part. I’ve been in ‘contact’ with Sean’s grandmother, Emily Carroll, who was last seen in 1946. You could call it a dream or, more accurately, a visitation. As I said, none of this information can be used as evidence. Consider it background, it may help you to ‘connect the dots’ in the future. Emily ‘told me’ that John Regelind Jr., the father of John Regelind III, is also the father of Sean’s mother, Marilyn Carroll. The files we got from Sally O’Donnell confirmed this. Sally also said that The Brotherhood was planning something big. Perhaps that has something to do with the semi-driver who was hauling bomb-making materials.”
“I see,” said the agent from Virginia. “That information correlates with our investigation. We’ll need some time to put our case together but there is a strong possibility that one or both of you will be the subject of another attack. Is there a place you could go for a few weeks, at least until we start to make arrests?”
“Yes,” said Sean, “Iceland,” he thought, “and I can meet my son.”
“Yes, that would be good,” thought Mary.
“We’ll leave the country—as soon as we can get a flight, said Mary, “You can contact us through our lawyers.”
“Is there anything else you can tell that we need to know?”
“Sean and I expecting a baby, sometime around the end of the year.”
Fiction
