Background
Calin Roberts is an operative with Homeland Security. His name however appears on no official documentation. His reputation though is feared throughout the hallways of Washington
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What to do? Once more she employed the thought process she'd used before. What would Calin do? Jess checked her watch, 4.13. At most they had two hours start. Jess glanced around, she sensed something was wrong. If only she had a torch. Darkness limited her vision to around fifteen feet. Could she afford to wait until daylight?
Urgency told her to hurry, instinct slowed her down. She obeyed the second impulse, it rewarded with discovery. A glance up and down the river revealed nothing. There was no sign of footprints or indication of things being dragged towards the water. She hadn't jettisoned the weapons or equipment. Next Jess headed away from the river. She found what she wanted, two weapons and the backpacks. Panic swamped her. The discovery lead to only one conclusion, Calin was no longer in control.
She searched for evidence to verify that thought. She found it where Calin had laid. Her worst suspicions were confirmed. A significant pool of blood lay next to where his head had been. Had the blood flow halted? How much had he lost? One point was obvious, he'd be moving slowly.
Would Alexis have adhered to the plans they'd outlined prior to boarding the inflatable? Jess banked on that. Alexis was, Jess felt certain, a doer, not a planner. What though was her intent? Did she plan on handing Calin over to the military authorities? Hadn't she listened to Calin? This wasn't a military exercise; it was a major Pentagon cover-up. There would be neither survivors nor heroes, especially anyone with knowledge of Marvin Trent.
Jess set off at full pace, she'd travelled no more than a couple of hundred yards when she saw him, collapsed on the path beside the river. Was he dead? Where was Alexis? Was it a trap?
Thoughts of her own welfare yielded to Calin's need. His appearance terrified her. Even in the dark she could see his skin had lost its colour. The bleeding continued, his pulse was weak and he drifted in and out of consciousness. He was dying.
She knew she couldn't move him and she had to halt the bleeding. Why hadn't she brought one of the back packs with her? She needed a bandage, something to stop the bleeding. Despite the cold, she removed her top and held it against the head wound. She shivered and his eyes opened. A weak smile appeared.
"Get out of here, Jess," he struggled with his words. "It's over."
"Not quitting on me, are you?"
"Save yourself, Jess. I can't walk."
"You don't have to walk, Calin, just float. We're going swimming; the current's going to take us downstream."
"Do you have any idea how cold that water is?"
"Cold's better than dead," she countered. She helped him to his feet.
"Are you sure about this?" he asked.
"Never been less certain of anything in my life," she replied. On that note she dropped into the river. Her entire body trembled on experiencing the shock of the water temperature. She questioned the wisdom of the idea. How long could the body endure this torment? She hoped to get at least a quarter mile downstream.
"Are you coming?" she called.
"Jesus," he said on feeling the biting chill. "I hope you know what you're doing."
"Just relax, enjoy the cold and float. I'll provide the momentum."
The water temperature won, the swim lasted less than a hundred yards. Back on land they retraced their steps to where they'd taken rest in the early hours of the morning. Calin's rate of recovery amazed Jess, twenty minutes earlier he was near death now he was walking unaided.
She recovered the military backpack that had been carried by Alexis and extracted the emergency medical kit. It was minimal, a few bandages, antiseptic creams and tiny implements, scissors, tweezers and needles. Jess applied a liberal quantity of the cream to Calin's head injury then bandaged it. What would she do if infection set in?
"What happened?" asked Jess as she completed the task.
"Why did you leave?"
"Why did you choose her over me?" she challenged. Jess made no attempt to conceal her anger. "And don't lie."
"An error of judgement, I was wrong."
"Why?" His refusal to apologise irritated her further.
The question, or was it the display of emotion, triggered another partial memory, a long forgotten argument with a woman. Who was she? Closing his eyes he saw an outline, she was naked, but he couldn't see her face. In his mind though he heard tears and the single word, 'why' rebounding in his head. Had he betrayed her too?
"Jess." He was talking to no one. In anger she had walked away.
Calin knew the futility of arguing with an aggrieved woman. She wouldn't listen, nor would she understand. It wasn't a matter of personal preference; it was a case of necessity. He was searching for his past, and Alexis, and her father, were perhaps a part of that past. Maybe she had the tools necessary to rebuild his 'memory.'
But now that hope too had vanished. How, and where then could he locate information on Tyler Spellman? Or on Alex Bryant? Not forgetting Marvin Trent.
"What happened?" It wasn't a question, it was a demand. She had turned back to him. Calin was stunned to see tears in her eyes.
"I'm not good at apology, Jess," he said. "And I'm even worse at admitting failure, but I'm guilty of both. I'm sorry."
"You could be dead."
"Maybe, it's what I deserve."
"Is all this self-pitying your way of making me feel sorry for you?" Her face almost broke into a smile. "Or are you trying to avoid my question?"
"Where do you want me to start? The reason why I chose Alexis? Or how she surprised me?"
"Explaining how such a small woman overpowered you might be a little tough on the ego."
"Maybe I'm getting old and need more sleep. Last night I just zonked out, the lack of sleep over the past few days caught up with me. I didn't hear you leave and I didn't hear or sense Alexis standing over me. When her presence finally hit me, it was too late; the rifle butt was on a collision course with my head. I went from semi-conscious to unconscious in an instant. When I came around, the other end of the gun was pointing at my head.
"She hadn't tried to stop the bleeding and I knew I'd lost a lot of blood, I had no energy and had trouble standing up and even more trouble trying to walk. I felt my life was slowly slipping away. But she wouldn't let me rest, just kept pushing me forward. Finally my legs gave way and I collapsed where you found me."
"Do you have any idea where she was heading?"
"I'd guess the police. I doubt she'd want to again risk linking with her military colleagues."
"Would I be overstepping the mark to ask why you chose Alexis?"
"Last night while coming up stream, I attempted to weigh up the merits of both you and Alexis. I thought I was being both logical and fair. In hindsight I now know I allowed a degree of bias to impede upon my judgement."
"What bias?"
"She knew my past; your knowledge of me goes back less than two weeks."
"May I challenge that point? Does she know your past or is she just repeating the manufactured version supplied by those who created Calin Roberts' past?"
"What are you implying?" he asked.
"Trust only what you know and see yourself. My Nanna used to say; 'it's better to be a doubting Thomas than a gullible fool.'
"Sounds like she was a wise woman," said Calin.
"She also said, 'never finish a conversation without getting your question answered.'"
"Jess, I've never been one for self-analysis, I do what I have to and never consider the consequences and effects on others." Realisation attacked his inner core; life was much simpler without a conscience. "Till now that has always worked, but you've changed all that. I'm not a team player, never have been. I use people to further my agenda. And that's precisely what I did last night when I chose Alexis over you.
"There is no defending what I did, it was all about me. I believed Alexis' knowledge of my past offered me the best chance of finding out who I really was. And that's all I cared about. I totally disregarded the assistance you've provided and the risks you've taken. I'm sorry, Jess.
"And, you know the worst thing; I experienced no guilt until I saw your tears. I'm sorry."
"It's not too late to change sides, you know?" He didn't understand her smile. Was it the smirk of victory? Or was it the forgiveness of a friend? "But I think we should get moving, we've wasted enough time talking.
