Thirty minutes after Angela left in a taxi, Jack and Kathy noticed an old black British Rover slowing and pulling over to them. As it got closer and the sun angle changed, he could see Bernadette behind the wheel. Bernadette got out, laughed, and hugged Jack and Kathy.
“I’ve never, or at least not for a very long time, hugged two people who smell more like a barnyard than a drawing room. Quickly now, jump in. You both need a bath, a cold beer and something to eat in that order.”
When the car came up to a gated driveway, a guard came out and looked inside the car before unlocking the gate and letting them in. Jack was glad to see Anita on the bougainvillea-covered verandah.
As soon as he had a bath and a cold beer, Jack told Bernadette he wanted to look the bungalow over and evaluate the security procedures. After an hour of walking around the bungalow inside and out, he made a few changes in the position of the guard posts, making it clear they would be changing daily at random times.
Jack told Bernadette Arjun Singh had done a good job, and his men looked tough enough to hold their ground. He also told the gate guard nobody but the people who lived here and Arjun Singh were permitted inside the gate. If anyone else wanted to come in, the guard had to ask him or one of the other Americans. Absolutely no exceptions allowed.
Jack assigned Anita to be the outside roving patrol person. He asked her to walk around the area every couple of daylight hours at random times, covering a perimeter no larger than fifty yards from their compound. Fortunately, no high points on surrounding hills or tall buildings allowed someone to see or shoot over the wall into the compound.
Jack completed his security round and sat down with the others for a quick lunch of cheese and tomato sandwiches, mulligatawny soup and cold mangoes. Jack thought he could actually see the tension going out of the faces of the women. They began to relax. The food and beer helped a lot, as did the feeling of being in a safe haven.
As they were lingered over lunch, Kathy asked Bernadette to tell them about herself and her comfort level in being involved in the investigation.
“Yes, Kathy, I do. If Peter Brandon’s son needs my help, he has it. I’ll do whatever I can to help. I am quite civilized now, but I am no stranger to violence and terrorism. In my youth I lived in Belfast. I can use weapons, and I am not afraid of having them around. I’m guessing, but I don’t suppose you have any weapons except those two Webleys. I can manage a safe haven as long as you don’t expect anything better than camping out service.
“Rather than tell you the little I know about Arjun Singh’s activities, I’d sooner wait until he comes over at tea time. I don’t have a telephone yet. Maybe tomorrow. But I don’t think a direct call from here to Arjun is a good idea. Too much information is contained in a phone dump. Kathy, I think it would be good if you call him from the hotel and tell him you and your friends will be at tea today. Nobody in the security business, either for or against, likes surprises.”
Anita said, “Bernadette, I’m in a state of shock. I didn’t realize you were a pro. That makes me a lot more comfortable with our situation here. No wonder Peter thought so much of you. You are far more than a pretty face.”
“If things had been a little different, I might have been Jack’s stepmother. God knows I was willing enough.”
Jack said, “Mother, will you please pass the sandwich tray?”
“Yes, but that’s as far as it goes. Remember I said might have been.”
Kathy interrupted, “What did you know about his activities?”
“I knew he was immensely rich. He used his money to make things happen and knew how to protect what he felt was important. He loved his country and wanted to dedicate his life to protecting the freedom enjoyed by his fellow Americans. I think his work was dangerous at times, but he never talked about it. He said I was safer not knowing. Now you’re asking me if I want to know what his son is doing. You’re damn right I want to know! More, I want to help if I can. So I’m listening.”
Kathy said, “First, I think we ought to tell you why we all walked in. Jack doesn’t want any government records showing we were ever in Kathmandu. We’re tracking an al-Qaeda cell responsible for causing considerable loss of life in the U.S., including Peter Brandon’s, and is planning to increase the number of dead Americans as soon as they can. The main contact to a terrorist network in the U.S. will be meeting with senior al-Qaeda members in the next few days right here in Kathmandu.”
Bernadette said, “Count me in. Just tell me what to do.”
Facts and Fictions 