House and home part 3

Auggie stood on the sidewalk waiting for the beeping sound of the traffic light indicating that the lights were green. Right after the first beep, he was startled. Someone grabbed his arm and tried to drag him across the street. Like all blind people, Auggie hated it when someone grabbed his arm without asking just out of the blue and without a word. He was annoyed and said "Hey, what are you doing?" He shrugged off the hand, that had grabbed his arm and continued walking with his cane. Arriving on the other side of the street, he almost stumbled over the curb because he was so annoyed and did not concentrate. He had been blind for almost 10 years but it still annoyed him when people took him for helpless or assumed he might also be mentally retarded. Being dragged across the street was not only annoying, it was also scary.

Auggie walked along the sidewalk and made his way to the grocery store. Annie was still working and he wanted to prepare dinner. After two minutes he reached the shop. He found the door with his cane and walked in. He knew where the checkout was and walked towards it. The young lady stopped typing in the prices and looked up to him "Can I help you Sir?" "Yes." Auggie´s hands rested on top of his cane "I would appreciate some help." "Of course" The lady took the phone and called a colleague. A few seconds later a young man appeared. He grabbed Auggie´s arm and started walking. OH NO, NOT AGAIN Auggie thought and said as friendly as possible. "I would rather take your arm when you are guiding me." Both strolled through the aisles and whilst Auggie said what he needed, the young man put everything into a shopping basket. Auggie also had to remind the young man not to shout at him. He obviously assumed that Auggie was deaf, too. After 15 minutes the shopping was done. Auggie paid and put his groceries into his back pack and left. This was one of these days when his handicap bothered him. How could everyone assume that he was completely helpless?

At home, Auggie unpacked the groceries he had just bought and started cooking after he had wrapped an apron around his waist. He felt for the adhesive dots that marked the settings of the stove and chose the temperature. He put the chicken into the oven after he had seasoned it with pepper, salt and a variety of spices. Then he started peeling the potatoes, filled a pot with water and added some salt to the water. The timer also had little tactile dots in a 5 minutes rhythm. Auggie felt for the dots and set the time. After that he vanished into the shower. Annie would pick up Jeremy at Kindergarten today, so he had time.

After a refreshing shower Auggie returned to the kitchen. The potatoes were boiling and even the chicken smelled good already. In about half an hour Annie and Jeremy would be back and they would eat together. Three steps to the cupboard and Auggie opened the door. He took out plates and little bowls for the salad and opened the first drawer to get some cutlery. He set the table and started washing the salad. He would add the dressing a bit later. Twenty minutes later the door opened and he heard the voices of Annie and Jeremy. "Daddy, Daddy….!" The little boy ran into the kitchen like a whirlwind and tugged at Auggie´s apron. Auggie hugged him and kissed him on his little cheeks. " Daddy I am soooooooo….hungry" and then Jeremy peeked into the oven where the chicken was sizzling. "Mmmmhhhh….chicken…." he said and looked over to the table. "When will dinner be ready?" Auggie felt for the timer and the tactile dots and said "Well, in about 15 minutes everything should be ready." In the meantime Annie had opened the fridge and had taken out the bottle with the yoghurt dressing. She added some dressing to the salad and set the salad bowl on the table, too.

"Mmmhh…that is so yummy" Jeremy said whilst chewing. "Daddy should cook more often" Annie´s cooking skills were not the best and despite being blind Auggie was the better cook. Annie knew that but to hear that from her little son was something else.

Auggie sat at his desk in Langley, listening to some e-mails he had just received, when Joan entered the room. "Auggie? Could I have a word with you?" Auggie took off his headphones and listened "Sure" he said and turned into Joan´s direction. "We have a difficult situation and I need you and Annie to go on a mission together." Wow, Auggie thought. It had been a long time that he had not been out in the field. His blindness was an obstacle for him. "What kind of mission are we talking about?" Auggie asked incredulously. "Well, we have received information that a businessman from Egypt is selling weapons to Al Quaida. Knowing that you speak some Arabic, it would be convenient if you could accompany Annie to Cairo and give her the support she needs. Auggie was delighted. He would get out of his office again. That did not happen often since he had gone blind 10 years ago. "But what about Jeremy?" Auggie asked. "We would have to ask Virginia to stay with him while we are away.

Annie and Auggie were at the airport. They had just checked in and were waiting for their flight to be announced. For this mission, Auggie had decided to wear sunglasses. He rarely did that. But during a mission, the sunglasses supported a bit more the cliché of a blind man. He could also act pretty helpless in order to distract people. Nobody would assume that a blind man could be a spy. This tactical manoeuvre had already worked in Amsterdam when they had saved Eyal of of Khalid´s hands. After a long flight, they had finally arrived at their hotel. Auggie carefully explored the hotel room with his cane to memorize the position of the bed, the desk, the TV etc. He also found the bathroom and checked the position of the tub, the wash basin, the shower and the towel rack. He knew from experience that the first day in a hotel was always a bit difficult. Living without sight was never easy and it always took some time to get acquainted with the surroundings.

One day later

Auggie sat in a café sipping on a cup of coffee. He wore his sunglasses and had an almost invisible in-ear headset that connected him with Annie. Suddenly a little boy in rags approached begging for money. Auggie grabbed his wallet and took out one of the neatly folded bank notes and handed it over to the little boy. The boy thanked him in Arabic and started walking to the next table. Auggie knew, it was not always a good idea to give money to the beggars on the streets and to begging children. But now, that he was a father himself, it hurt him to know that other kids were less lucky than his own son. Seconds later Auggie heard Annie´s voice through his ear piece. "Auggie I need you to check on a guy named Sahid Al Basri" "Okay" Auggie replied. I will be back at the hotel in 5 minutes. I am on it." Auggie paid and had the waiter call him a taxi. Right after his arrival at the hotel Auggie booted his laptop and searched for the name Annie had given him. His hands slid across the portable Braille keyboard reading the information. Sahid al Basri was a manufacturer of textiles, but it seemed like he was also involved in money laundry for the Al Quaida group. After Auggie had found the information required, he called Annie.

The mission was a success. After a week Annie and Auggie returned to DC. Virginia was waiting at the airport with Jeremy. This time, Auggie did not use his cane. Annie was guiding him and with the other hand he trailed his suitcase on wheels behind. As soon as Auggie and Annie got closer to the exit, Jeremy spotted them and flew right into his parents´ arms. He had missed them. Then Jeremy took Auggie´s hand. He had already learned how to guide his father and they all made their way to the exit where a taxi was waiting for them. Virginia had greeted Auggie and Annie and had immediately left. She did not want to disturb the family reunion.