I am almost finished with this or perhaps it's almost finished with me. Either way, one maybe two chapters and it's fini.
OM
The private business jet eased off the runway on its way home. The 10 passengers and crew probably breathed a collective sigh of relief at putting Thailand and its dangers behind them – all but two of the passengers.
"I shouldn't have slapped her, Chuck, but she made me so damned mad…" Hannah was still beating herself up over the incident with Su-Fi.
"I know, honey, and it's going to bother you for a long time but at least we got her to agree to delay her wedding for a few months. Maybe things will change in her world after Yve and Jeb get married. Y'know, we may have to have the wedding at the Chateau. Yve mentioned overhearing Jeb and Su-Fi talking after you slugged her. They both have parental 'issues' to contend with."
"What? That – that - blonde Barbie Doll of an ex-handler of yours doesn't think our Yve's good enough for him?" She bristled and he smiled but was quick to correct her. It would be bad enough once they confronted one another and he didn't want to increase the 'wrath of Hannah' any more than was necessary regarding Sarah Walker Stuart.
"Nope, not Sarah, but her husband. I'm not sure I understand things but I suspect that he's worried that he never told her just who Charles Windsor really is…or was. Bartowski's dead, Hannah, and Chuck Windsor loves his wife more than anything. Whatever he felt for Walker died with him in that café all those years ago."
"I know but I still feel jealous and a little threatened. Chuck, I have a confession to make…every year we get a card from the Stuarts at Christmas time and every year I throw it away. I always compared me to her picture and I didn't want you to have a 'visible' reminder of what you left behind. I'm sorry."
"I'm not. You worry too much, Hannah. Remember I warned you about getting all wrinkled and then I'll have to find a new 'Windsor woman'…"
She punched him in the arm, hard, and glared at him in mock anger.
Bangkok Airport
Departure Lounge
"Come, Chai, let's go. They're in the air and on their way back to Paris. I agreed to delay our marriage for 3 months but I didn't agree to not being with you for 3 months so you can forget about finding me a 'suitable' apartment. I'm staying with you."
"But, Su-Fi, the director specifically instructed you to have an apartment…"
"Fine. We'll rent a one room apartment over some bar and your honor will be intact." She looked up at him with those huge brown eyes and he felt himself falling into her eyes and her trap but was helpless to do anything about it other than to agree with anything she said.
"Of course, of course. Honor is preserved, propriety is maintained and I get a cook and cleaning lady as well as a playmate. Excellent thinking, my love."
She addressed him as if her were a servant. "I do not cook. I do not clean." She turned away and walked rapidly out to the SUV that was part of their 'convoy', another of her father's demands.
"Su-Fi, please, baby, I was just…"
"I do, however, play and mate, my Thai pig. Come, Chai, don't dawdle. You have much to teach me and I have much to learn. If my father asks, my apartment is adequate and I'm spending time learning new skills from a Thai master. That way you won't have to lie to him."
For the hundredth time since New Year's he asked himself why he'd ever gotten involved with Su-Fi Windsor. And every time he asked, the answer was always the same. Because I love her, may Buddha help me find my path.
He didn't know if he could survive until the wedding.
Things were tense in the Stuart household. With Megan away on a trip with friends to the Jersey Shore it was just the two of them. Any other time that would be fine but not now. Not with what lay between them like a crevasse in the glacier that had become their marriage.
Mike tried to talk with her but she just listened and then left whatever room they happened to be in. She was sleeping in Megan's room and avoiding all contact with her husband. The conversation with Beckman had burned a hole in her soul and she was so damned angry at being played all those years.
Intellectually, she knew that Mike was as much a victim as she was, probably more so since he actually believed that his political opponents had leaked the photos of her and her marks in various stages of undress and sexual poses to the media. Now she knew the truth and felt betrayed by the very government she'd served without hesitation or reservation.
She lay curled up in her stepdaughter's bed, her head covered with a comforter to muffle the sound of her sobs. She cried for the life she might have had if only she'd faced her fears and stayed with her Burbank Nerd.
Sometime between wakefulness and sleep she made up her mind. She would resign from the Agency and file for divorce immediately after Jeb's wedding. She was going to live the rest of her life as she willed it, not as the Intel Combine dictated.
Three months later
Yve and Jeb Stuart had planned a simple wedding but it soon grew as more and more guests were added either because of family or political expediency on both sides of the aisle.
For Chuck, it was both political and social. All the heads of Circus Information Systems branches would be in attendance at a special 4-day meeting to be held before the wedding. Chuck had sent a personal communiqué to each of the directors inviting them but stressing that the wedding was not to be used to further any personal agendas.
Various defense officials from countries the Militia had worked with were also invited as were several potential clients. It never hurt to be nice.
The Stuart family was going to arrive that evening, a week in advance, and Hannah had insisted that they stay at the Chateau. She had her reasons although Chuck suspected it was just to ensure that she maintained her usual rigid control over the planning and event.
Su-Fi and Chai were also coming in early and Chuck looked forward to testing the waters with Chai about possibly relocating to the headquarters in Paris. He needed a 'perpetuation plan' and both Yve and Chai were critical to his plan and 'line of succession'.
Paul had flown in (of course) and was spending time with his Uncle Casey out on the Ro-Ro and trying to wheedle his way into a berth in the Militia since he was a contract flier for the Legion and wanted the action the Militia seemed to offer.
The stage was set. The players had their marks.
Charles DeGaulle International Airport
They walked through Customs courtesy of the escort from CIS as well as their passports. No bags were checked. Not for this party. Their escort had been specifically briefed on the route to take back from the airport and there were to be no deviations.
"This way, please. Our car is out front and we will take the scenic route to the Chateau. Your son and future daughter are waiting to greet you as are the other members of the Director General's family. He, unfortunately, will not be in residence until a few days before the wedding. It is the annual branch meeting and all members of the Directorate are required to attend and report. It is our 'State of the Union' meeting."
They passed by the American embassy where Stuart had met the Director for the first time and traced the path they'd walked so many years ago and slowed but didn't stop at the Café Lafayette. Sarah's eyes watered and her husband squeezed her hand but she ignored him, concentrating on what she knew was a deliberate tracing of events important to both of them.
The limo slowed and stopped at a small street probably too narrow for the limo to pass and the driver got out and walked toward an older mansard-roofed three-story building.
"C'est là où le directeur avait une petite guerre avec les hommes qui ont enlevé sa famille."
"Michael, this is where Shaw was killed when he kidnapped Windsor's family!" She couldn't imagine the firefight that must have broken out and she shivered remembering some of her own close calls but not against such odds and for such precious stakes…
The driver returned a few moments later, escorting a young Eurasian woman of perhaps 20. He opened the door and she slid into the seat opposite the Stuarts and introduced herself in fluid English with just the hint of a French accent.
"I am Su-Fi Windsor although most simply call me 'Sophie' and I answer to either. Only my father calls me Su-Fi. It is a pleasure to meet you both. Your son is a most welcome addition to our family. He is very…" and here she seemed to be searching for a word before saying," Il est très compréhension et de sympathie à notre sort" in French.
Sarah asked, "What plight do you both have?" Both she and Mike both spoke French but with none of the fluency the young woman spoke with.
Su-Fi glanced out the window and then replied sadly, "Neither of our families wishes us to marry our own true love for whatever reason. My father feels I am far too young to be making such a commitment while you seem to think that my sister is somehow inferior or not good enough for your son."
'She is certainly her father's daughter,' Mike Stuart thought. 'She calls a spade a spade and cuts right through the crap.'
Before either of the Americans could respond, Su-Fi turned to the driver and lowered the privacy shield.
"Pilote, veuillez le retourner au Café Lafayette et de l'arrêter pour quelques minutes." Su-Fi asked the driver to return to the Café Lafayette. She had a point to make.
The limo pulled up and stopped on the street beside the open air Café and Su-Fi turned to the Stuarts in an almost lecture-mode.
"Several years ago my father and grandfather met for the first time at that table," she pointed to the table beside the wall with the floral sconces, "and my grandfather, Jacques asked my Jzhuck for a favor but before he could do it, he was shot down by an assassin's bullet."
Sarah had tears in her eyes and the image she saw was from years ago, not the one being described.
"My grandfather's men took Jzhuck into the limousine and found my mother walking in the rain. They were lovers then and have been ever since. My mother knew my father less than a week before she knew he was her 'forever after' and they would have been married a year later except… Pilote, de le château s'il vous plaît. J'ai retardé notre clients suffisamment."
Su-Fi turned to the driver and rattled off some instructions and the limousine moved out into traffic and out of the city.
"Except what, Sophie?" Sarah wanted to know what happened.
"He and my Uncle Hugo were traveling to South America and they became separated. My Uncle returned by my Jzhuck did not. A ransom was paid but apparently they had no intention of returning my father to my mother and France. He was 'rescued' by forces loyal to my father but he suffered terribly. He still has dreams, and pain but he 'soldiers on'. He wears gloves to hide his worst injuries and a hearing aide."
Sarah's image of the mysterious Charles Windsor changed from a vibrant man in his 40s to a crippled man, bent and in pain. She never made the connection between Windsor and Cold Storage.
Su-Fi looked out the window and kept her own counsel. Chai was staying in Paris to attend the meetings and would stay at the apartment. She would meet him there as opportunities arose. The 16km drive to the Chateau only took 40 minutes in the traffic.
Hannah was nervous about meeting the 'Blonde Barbie'. She had changed outfits several times and finally decided 'to Hell with them' and opted for comfortable clothes. With nothing more to do, she found Yve and Jeb in the garden having a 'discussion'. She walked behind some shrubs and blatantly eavesdropped.
"My father does not hold you responsible for the actions of your stepmother, Jeb, so why do you keep bringing it up? He tried to protect your family even as his own was in peril. I do not understand why learning what Circus is and does changes how you perceive my father."
"It changes my perception of what you want, Yve. I don't know if I like the idea of you eventually running an organization that has so many enemies. I love you and worry about you. Your father is not my issue, Yve. Your safety is."
"All that happened years ago and the world has changed, my love. It is not so dangerous and what happened in Thailand will probably never happen again. That was the last gasp of a dying faction."
She kissed him and soon things began to escalate just as she'd planned they would and Hannah coughed loudly and then walked around the hedges and smiled at the couple.
"Jeb, you and Yve should freshen up. Your parents will be here soon. Yve, your sister is coming in with them. Take some time and talk with her. She won't take my calls."
"She gets her stubbornness from you, Mother. Perhaps if you put yourself in her shoes and looked at it from her perspective…"
"She insulted your father and dishonored all he's done for her…"
"Ah, the Terrible Secret comes into play. Mother, she adores her Jzhuck and thinks of him as her hus…"
"THAT will never be spoken of outside of the family. And the issue is her marriage at such a young age to a man she barely knows…"
"Mother, that is so hypocritical considering your history with Daddy. Really, that's probably what has pissed off Little Sister – your double standard. She's older than 18 in both experience and maturity. Daddy just doesn't want her to make a mistake, that's all."
4 days later
The last meeting had adjourned and Chuck and Chai were finishing off a tumbler of good Irish whiskey. He'd broached his plan for a line of succession and, as expected, was met with an enormous amount of disagreement. No one wanted him to resign his post and no one wanted to offer suggestions as to what alternatives there were.
"Face it, Chuck, you're stuck with the job. Director Dubois tried on several occasions to resign and you saw what happened then. If it's time you wish, delegate more. Let Casey and Panzer run the Militia and just sit up here and make the hard calls."
"Let's head out to the Chateau. Casey and Panzer have left messages to the effect that 'tensions run high'."
Orly Airport
Northwest of Paris
Megan Stuart had been unable to make the same flight as her parents. She'd been backpacking in the Grand Canyon. Now she stood in the airport wondering what to do next. She had a phone number to call if there were 'difficulties' but she didn't know if being 'lost' was one. Her flight had been diverted from Charles DeGaulle to Orly and her 'ride' was noticeably absent.
Sighing in frustrated embarrassment, she started to dial the 'emergency contact number' and was startled when someone said, "Miss Stuart? I'm Henri and I'm here to collect you. We were informed that your flight had been diverted due to 'mechanical issues' and so here we are. Shall we go?"
He took Megan by the elbow and led her out to where a car waited at the curb. The driver got out, smiled and waved her towards the open passenger door. She slipped in and the man closed the door and went back to the trunk and stowed her luggage and then got in and the trio drove away.
Megan yawned and laid her head back against the headrest and decided a nap was in order since she'd been in the air almost 8 hours counting the change in London. The passenger turned and looked at her and removed the breathing device from his mouth and opened the windows to flush out the gas he'd released the instant they'd donned their breathers and pulled away from the curb.
"We've got her," he spoke into a cell phone and then nodded to his partner who turned off the highway and drove south to the vineyard country. The gas would last long enough that the girl wouldn't be a problem.
A/N: I promise to finish this one next. Not a lot of sand in the hour glass.