"For the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory are yours, now and forever…Amen."
Father Nick bowed his head before the small gathering, then led a short blessing as Linda and A.J., Oscar and Rick hovered around the visibly grieving uncle.
"Rudy, would you like to say the final prayer?"
Rick ached at the tear the older man wiped from his cheek. "Thank you, Nick….but all I can say is….God rest you, son. I'll miss you."
There was a moment of silence, then their friend quietly said, "Amen." At once Linda came forward and took Rudy's arm. "Time to go, Rudy."
"Thank you, honey." He replied, seemingly strengthened by her touch. He allowed her to lead him out of the small cemetery, then climbed into their sedan and followed Rick and Father Nick to the small hotel they were staying at. As they pulled up, a familiar car sat at the curb, and Rick was puzzled to see their friends Ron and Abby Johnson get out and wait for them to park.
"Hey, guys, when did you get here?" he asked, climbing out of his truck.
"Bout an hour ago, we got a message from the D.A.'s office in LA this morning that some old case Rudy was involved in was about to be re-opened. They couldn't get a hold of him, so I volunteered to come and find you two." Ron explained, then Abby added, "And we figured there was safety in numbers."
Just then Rudy approached, looking a little puzzled at seeing more friends from Arizona in Ojai. "Ron, Abby…I'm glad to see you…but what happened?"
"Let's go inside and I'll tell you what's up." Ron promised.
An hour later, both Rick and Oscar were angrily pacing as Rudy shook his head.
"Never thought I'd see the day when my own government would sell my safety down the river. I can't believe that Ray Fisk…..he claims he's repented and he wants to spend his last years with his wife and children? I don't think so!"" He fumed, then took a deep breath as Rick bit back a cuss word.
"You and me both, Rudy. The Secretary didn't even bother to notify us about this…" Oscar suddenly raised his voice in anger, then simmered down as Rudy placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Oscar….calm down. I don't want to have to put you back on your high blood medication, now. It'll be okay, I'll make a statement and…."
Just then the phone rang, and picking it up, Rick found his wife on the other end.
"Laurie? Sweetheart, hi. Everything all right?"
Her tone was worried as she said, "No, Rick. I went to check on Oscar and Rudy's cabin, and there was a letter stuck in their door. I thought it might be important, so I opened it and it said "This time it's your nephew; next time it's your friends. Don't come to the parole hearing."
"What!" Rick was loud enough to gain the attention of their friends. "Laurie, did you see anyone around the place? You didn't go by yourself, did you?"
"Darling, no..of course not. I promised. Robbie was with me, he was going to surprise Dad and Rudy with a new fishing bench. We didn't see anybody, and he took the note to have it analyzed." Rick grinned sheepishly at Laurie's retort, and Oscar immediately raised an eyebrow.
"I'm sorry, angel. I know you did. I'm glad Robbie has it. I'll let the others know and we'll find out who made that threat. You stay close to Robbie and the others, okay?"
"Okay." She replied, then whispered, "I miss you, love. Please be careful, and take care of Oscar and Rudy, I love you."
"I will, Laurie. Love you too." Rick couldn't keep the longing out of his voice, and heard a blown kiss before her soft "Bye".
As he hung up the phone, four sets of eyes were on him, and the anger against whoever threatened his friends burned again.
"Rudy, Dad, you're not going to like this….." Rick took a deep breath and calmly told them of the written threat and the mentioning of the parole hearing.
"I knew it! I knew something was wrong about Russ's death; he always was very cautious. There's no way he'd crash his car like that!" Rudy fumed, then saw the horror in Rick's eyes as A.J. came into the room, then told them, "I'm sorry guys, there's more. The coroner says your nephew was unconscious when the car crashed, Rudy, we need to find out if Fisk or someone working for him had him killed and if they're behind the threat to you."
"I'll get the D.A. on the horn, there must be a way to track who's been hanging with Fisk all this time and who on the outside had access to Russ's truck." Oscar added tersely.
Within minutes he had an answer for Rick and A.J.; "Norma Fisk, Ray's wife, is the only one who's visited him the last 2 years. The fingerprints on the note on the cabin door match hers too. Guess she didn't think we'd check for them. I'll get an APB out on her, somehow I think she might lead us to who caused your nephew's death."
Canceling their trip back to Arizona, Oscar and Ron Johnson poured over reports while Rick and A.J. called Robbie and had him take Laurie and A.J. and Linda's children to his house for safety.
"Pop, do you want me to have Andy take my job for the next few days?"
Rick shook his head, touched by his son's devotion to his family. "No, Son. Jaime's going to be there in the morning, she and Laurie and Ramona can handle things. Have your mom call me once you're settled in."
As the day wore on, Rick saw the strain on Rudy and Oscar grow, as there was no trace of Norma Fisk. Their only lead was a sighting of her the day before in Phoenix, at a local motel.
"I can't believe that woman, she swore up and down she was done with Ray, that she would have nothing to do with him." Rudy nearly exploded the next day, when Ron Johnson called to check on them. "Now I find she killed my nephew, and threatens my family!"
"Rudy, listen, we still don't know how much she had to do with this….." Rick attempted to placate the older man. Suddenly a thought struck him.
"Wait….a minute! Didn't you say Fisk wants out to spend time with his wife and children?"
"Yes." Rudy stopped in mid-rant….his natural calmness taking over. "He had two sons….one was a doctor, he died some years ago…but the other…"
"Was an engineer…for an auto company!" Oscar finished, his fierce expression beginning to lighten.
A couple of hours later Rick had a satisfied smile on his face as he got off the phone.
"Rudy-you've hit the jackpot! Michael Fisk took a leave of absence from his job at Mac up north last month. He told his friends that he was moving to LA to be with his mother, then dropped out of sight. Last time he was seen…he was at the same store Russ was at before his "accident". Ron's got a copy of the store video, so there's a broadcast out that he's a "person of interest" in Russ's death."
A gleam of hope appeared in Rudy's eyes, as Oscar let out a sigh of relief.
"Guys, I have an idea. Why don't we go to Lake Cachuma tomorrow-let Ron and Robbie do their job. Nobody's going to try anything with Rudy as long as we're with him."
Forestalling the other men's protest, Rick added, "I don't think our family would appreciate either of you getting sick from all the stress of this."
Hearing the tone of his voice, Oscar and Rudy looked at each other, then at Rick and A.J..
"Okay, you two. Maybe you're right, we won't do anybody any good if we dwell on this." Rudy said, surprising the others. Seeing a surprised look on his former bosses face,
he continued wistfully, "Russ used to love to fish from the docks at Lake Cachuma, maybe it'll be a nice way to remember him by."
"Oh, Rudy…." Linda came over to him and gave him a hug, which he returned with a smile.
"Bless you, honey. I'm glad you're here. We'll have a regular picnic and say goodbye the right way to my nephew." he said determinedly, as Oscar nodded.
The next day was bittersweet to Rick; he hadn't known the younger man well, but Oscar and Rudy made the serious young man come alive through war stories and tales of "the one that got away". While Linda insisted on watching from the dock with Abby, Rick, A.J., Rudy and Oscar took a small skiff out onto the lake and fished most of the day, coming back only for sandwiches at lunchtime. When the foursome returned at dusk, They found a grill hot and ready for the dozen fish they'd caught.
"Honey, you and Abby are the best!" A.J. crowed, seeing corn on the cob and potatoes already cooked. "Well, we figured that you might not catch enough!" Abby smirked, then laughed as Rick needled "Says she who runs from the sight of a worm!"
"Yeah, but I bet you guys wish you hadn't run into that "catch and release" group, otherwise you would have twice as many!" Linda teased.
The hungry group quickly finished off their catch, leaving nothing but bones. As the rangers started clearing the last of the spring vacation crowd, a weary group packed up and caravanned back to the hotel. When they got there, the parking lot was full of fire engines and ladders, with a steady stream of cars exiting.
"What the…" Rick started, then caught sight of Father Nick approaching. Rolling down the window, he called "Nick, what happened?"
"A fire, that's what." He said, a chagrined look on his face. "Somebody got drunk, apparently, and started a fire on the second floor. Luckily they got everyone out, but there's too much smoke damage to have anyone stay. I managed to get your things out; good thing you all didn't have much with you."
"Yeah, but where will we stay tonight? I imagine everyone's high-tailed it to the other hotels." Rick sighed.
There was a moment of silence, then Rudy said, gruffly, "If nobody'd mind, I'd like to go home…to Arizona. If we could find someplace for you to sack out for a couple of hours, Rick, we could cross the desert tonight, then be home in the morning."
"Sure, Rudy, that's a great idea…..'''cept I'm rested enough. Let me gas up the truck, then we can go." Rick answered, secretly relieved. He missed Laurie, and the kids, and it would be good to sleep in his own bed.
Seeing his brother cover a yawn, he laughed. "Somehow, I think you and Linda and Oscar better park yourselves for the night."
"You're right, we'll head back in the morning, we can bunk over at the guest cottage at OSI headquarters, might even have room for you, Abby." Oscar winked at the former police captain.
"Oscar Goldman, you are a prince….good thing I like Ron!" she snickered, then traded places with Rick and Rudy in Oscar's jeep. As the older man climbed into his truck, Rick stowed their gear, then hollered "behave!" at Abby as he started the motor and headed down the road to the nearest gas station.
Minutes later, they were on the road.
As they left the metropolitan areas and headed toward the desert, Rick noticed how quiet Rudy was.
"You know, Rudy, if you're tired we can always stop at a motel…." He started, then stopped when the former scientist shook his head.
"I'm alright, son. I guess it's just hit me now…..my only living relative is gone, and what do I have to leave behind? A string of old inventions, a few medals, and …well, the feeling I'm stuck in a rut."
Surprised, Rick cleared his throat. "Uh, Rudy, somehow I think you've missed a few things. Who are you calling old; Steve, Jaime, Laurie? You're responsible for their very lives….and what about me and Oscar ….you've helped save us both, as well as our children. And the clinic and the hospital….that's no rut, that's life."
Beside him he heard Rudy sniff, then blow his nose. "I'm sorry, Rick." He said, finally.
"I guess I was feeling sorry for myself, I didn't stop to think who my family really is, or what I would do without them. You're right, I guess I have counted for something."
"You're darn right, besides, if not for you, I wouldn't have my Laurie to keep me out of trouble for the last 28 years." Rick wiped a telltale tear from his eyes.
"Or her to keep me going, bless her." Rudy added, the sparkle returning to his eyes. "Did I ever tell you how she piloted a robot plane that came off its controls and landed it on the top of a mountain?"
Astonished, Rick listened as the older man talked them across the California desert, describing his wife's courage in surviving the plane's crash landing, then making it partway down the side of a mountain.
As it approached midnight, Rick pulled over at the California/Arizona border so they could stretch their legs.
"Let me call Laurie and Ramona, let them know where we are." Rick told Rudy, then seeing the pay phone in use, pulled out his transmitter.
"Laurie, sweetheart, can you hear me?" he called, then heard his wife's voice clearly.
"I'm here, Rick…where are you and Rudy?"
"At the border, we'll be home by sunrise, darlin'." Rick answered, then handed his watch to Rudy so they could talk for a moment while he pumped gas.
20 minutes later they were coming out of the hills and headed for the highway to Phoenix when a funny whistling noise interrupted their discussion about a 80th birthday party for Oscar.
"Rudy, what is that?" Rick scarcely had the words out of his mouth when the steering went out on his truck and he started to skid out of control.
"Hang on,……" was the last thing he was able to say, then the ground rose up in front of him and the world spun into darkness.