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Chapter 33: Christina Rose
Alex, Jack, and Lang returned to the FBI Field Office. Alex called all the agents together.
"Okay, who's got what?" he asked, glancing around at the agents.
"Christ as a rose is a pretty common theme in the Bible," said Lang.
"Martin Luther adopted it," added another agent.
"And Christ rose from the dead," said Lang.
Jack nodded, "And this is Scofield's final step. Maybe it symbolizes something to do with having a new life?"
Alex pointed at a nearby agent.
"You! Keep track of this on the board."
The agent nodded and began jotting down notes on the white erasable stand-up board behind him.
Alex glanced around.
"Where's Wheeler?" he demanded.
Lang did not reply.
"Here we go!" said another agent, distracting Alex, "First settlers of Indiana used a golden rose as their symbol for Christ."
"That's a reach," said Alex, disdainfully.
"There's a flower called the Christmas Rose," offered another agent.
"Wasn't Christ rose a German code name for a counterattack by the Nazis that led to the Battle of the Bulge?" asked Lang.
"Yeah," replied Jack, "But that's kind of a reach too. Scofield's not obvious, but he wouldn't take it quite that far, I don't think."
Alex glanced at the white board and froze. He inclined his head and studied it intently.
"Where was that, though?" asked Lang, "Just in case."
"Belgium," replied another agent, "Near the German border."
"Not a bad place to hide if they can find it," conceded Jack, "But still, it doesn't sound right."
"Okay, so what else?" asked Lang.
"Christ rose from the dead on Easter," said the other agent.
Alex drowned them out as his study of the board grew more intense. He was picking up on something, but he could not quite place it. Suddenly, it dawned on him.
"Who's got Scofield's file?" he demanded.
Lang rummaged through some papers and pulled it out.
"Here we go," she said, handing it to him.
Alex began to flip through the file and paused suddenly.
"Christ in a rose," he muttered to himself.
"Yeah," said Lang, "What about it?"
"Scofield's mother's name…"
Jack gave him a curious look. Alex walked over to the white board and wrote an "ina" between Christ and rose.
"…Christina Rose Scofield."
"But I thought she was dead?" said Jack, bewildered.
"Oh, so did I…so did I."
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"The very first thing Scofield did when they broke out of Fox River is he picked up a bunch of supplies and stashed them in a grave," said Alex as he, Lang, Jack, and another agent walked down the hallway.
Alex pointed suddenly at the other agent.
"I want you to find out where Scofield's mother is buried."
"And do what?" asked the agent.
Alex gave him an incredulous look.
"And see if she's buried."
The agent muttered a "yes sir" and walked away.
Alex walked towards his office, closely followed by Lang and Jack.
"What about Panama?" asked Alex as they walked into his office.
"What about Panama?" asked Lang.
"When we found his hard drive, it was full of information about Central America," answered Jack, "Panama in particular."
"Which he knows you two have," said Lang, "The guy's got all sorts of humors but he's smart enough to stay out of a country where he knows you'll be waiting for him."
"Unless there's something there that he needs," retorted Jack.
"Or someone," added Alex, "I want a map of Panama. And find out if Scofield's mom, Christina Rose, has any family in Central America, any property…anything. I want it all."
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Later that day…
Alex sat in his office, glasses on, studying a pile of papers.
Lang and Jack walked in to give their report.
"So far no hits on the connection between Scofield's mother and Panama," said Lang.
"But there are thirty-eight listings of Christina Rose in various combinations of first name, middle name, and last name," added Jack.
"Alright," said Alex, "Cross-reference the names with the numbers six, one, seven, from the tattoo. Maybe it's not a date. See if it's an address, P.O. Box…"
Lang and Jack nodded and turned to leave.
Alex stood and removed his glasses.
"And if anybody pops, call the embassy," he said, "Have them send an officer and pick up the woman for questioning."
"Um, I don't think we can just arrest a foreign citizen and…"
"Patriot Act, Agent Lang," snapped Alex, "I could have your grandmother arrested for missing a stitch in her macramé if I wanted to. If anybody's helping Scofield, dead or alive, I want to know who they are."
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Alex stood in front of the board with the pictures of the cons posted onto it. Suddenly his phone rang, startling him out of his trance.
"Yeah?" he asked as he turned to go into his office.
"Three things I hate, Alex," said Bill Kim, "Traffic, hockey, and calling you with the same question over and over."
Alex glanced quickly at Jack, who was sitting behind her desk, typing on her computer. She looked up briefly and frowned, realizing who the caller must be.
Alex quickly went into his office and shut the door.
"Then don't call me anymore," he snapped, "But I do believe that the brothers are in Panama."
"Is that so?"
"The key to exactly where is in one of Scofield's tattoos, and…"
"Well, while I'm thrilled that you've narrowed it down to a country…that's not why we're talking. Benjamin Miles Franklin is alive."
"I'm aware of that, yeah."
"And being released from custody."
"That's impossible," retorted Alex, "They would need permission from my office."
"Good to know you're on top of things," said Kim sarcastically as he hung up on Alex.
Alex whirled around and walked out of his office. He looked at Wheeler's desk and saw that it was still empty. Jack glanced between him and Wheeler's chair. She narrowed her eyes, wondering what he was thinking.
Anger filled Alex's gaze. He stalked past Lang and Jack's desks and pointed at Wheeler's.
"Find me Agent Wheeler," he growled.
He glanced at Jack and motioned for her to follow him.
"Alex, what is it?" she asked as they left the main room.
"Franklin's being released."
"What? How?" asked Jack, astonished, "They would need our permission and we didn't…"
Jack froze in mid-stride, realizing suddenly why Alex was so angry.
"Wheeler."
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