Heavy Traffic

While Sean knew that he should focus his concentration on strategy and tactics for recovering the girls, his thoughts continued to wander to Amanda. Her strength and confidence were obvious, but he was more intrigued by how he had responded to her inquiries into his life. He kept trying to analyze what it was about her that had him sharing himself in such an uninhibited manner. She had a way of listening that made him feel like the most interesting person she had ever encountered.

Maybe it was the fact that he had been introduced to her during a period where she was completely vulnerable that permitted him to share his own vulnerabilities with her. Maybe it was the trust in him that she had demonstrated that allowed him to trust her so much.

Sean spent the next seventy-plus minutes contemplating his feelings towards Amanda, and while he came to no conclusions on why he felt the way he did, he could acknowledge that he had absolutely no regrets for sharing anything with her. All he knew for certain was that he had never met another woman who had impacted him as much as Amanda had.

Amanda awoke as Sean was slowing the car on its approach to the main gate at the Marine Corps Logistics Base. In truth, she hadn't slept much. Her mind had been too busy with thoughts of Sean Wallace. No man had ever made her feel more connected, but she wasn't altogether certain of what that connection could be between them. Her body was telling her what it wanted, but her heart and mind were playing catch-up. She sat up in the back seat as Sean rolled down his window to speak to the Marine guard who approached the car.

"Hello Corporal, I'm Sean Wallace and I'm supposed to be meeting Special Agent Anderson from Immigration and Customs Enforcement here. Has Special Agent Anderson arrived yet?"

"Yes sir," said the guard. "Special Agent Anderson is in Captain Ewell's office. If you can show me some ID, I will get you a pass and an escort to the Captain's office."

"We are short on time, so could you just ask that Special Agent Anderson be brought here to the gate so that we can get going as soon as possible?"

The corporal was shaking his head as he responded, "My orders are for you to be sent to Captain Ewell's office."

Noticing Amanda in the back seat, he modified his earlier request, "If you and the young lady can show me identification, I can get you a pass and an escort as quickly as possible to minimize your delay."

"I don't have any identification," Amanda said to Sean.

The guard heard this and said, "I cannot issue a pass without identification. The young lady will need to wait here while you are escorted to Captain Ewell's office."

"That is unacceptable Corporal," said Sean. "I am going to pull over to the waiting area and make a phone call. You may want to inform Captain Ewell of my arrival in the meantime."

Without waiting for a response, Sean pulled his car into an area for vehicles waiting to pick up personnel from the base. He scrolled through his phone's directory until he found the contact he was looking for and then hit 'dial'.

"Headquarters and Support Battalion, Sergeant Major Touey's office."

"Please tell the Sergeant Major that Recon Wallace is on the phone," said Sean.

"Captain Recon Wallace?" asked the clerk.

"Still Recon Wallace, but no longer a Captain. Please let the Sergeant Major know I would like to speak with her."

"Yes, sir."

Within seconds his call was transferred and Sean heard the familiar voice of Tosha Touey on the phone.

"Captain Wallace, how can I be of assistance?" she asked.

"Tosha, do you know who the Sergeant Major is at Logistics Base Albany?" he asked.

"That would be Kevin Meyers," she said. "Is there a problem?"

Sean went on to explain, "I am working with the Department of Homeland Security in an unofficial capacity. I was supposed to meet a Special Agent from Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the main gate of the Logistics Base, but a Captain Ewell is interfering. I could go through my contacts at DHS to get past him, but I would prefer to handle this through the Corps. Please call Sergeant Meyers and ask him to explain to Captain Ewell who I am, and the urgency of the situation. I need the Special Agent brought to the main gate immediately. Can you do that?"

"Consider it done. Give me your number and I'll call you back within five minutes."

Sean provided his cell phone number and disconnected the call. He turned and looked over the seat at Amanda. "Did the short nap help?"

Amanda rubbed a crease in her face left from lying on the duffle bag and said, "It probably didn't do anything for my looks, but I sure needed it. Thanks."

"At some point, when you get to know me better and trust my sincerity, remind me to tell you just how beautiful you are. I won't tell you now, but when you're ready, I'll make certain that you know."

"Sean Wallace, you are too funny," she laughed. "Thank you."

Only a few minutes passed before the corporal guarding the gate walked over to their car. Sean lowered his window.

"Captain Ewell is bringing Special Agent Anderson to the gate, sir. He asked me to inform you that he will be here within two minutes."

Before the guard could return to his station at the gate, a Marine staff car approached from inside the base. When it pulled to the gate the Corporal approached the driver's window and saluted. After a brief exchange, the corporal pointed to Sean's car and returned to his post. The staff car pulled into a space next to Sean and the Captain driving the car got out.

Sean opened his door and walked around the front of his car to meet the Captain halfway between their vehicles.

"Captain Wallace?" asked Captain Ewell.

"Recon Wallace. Former Captain with Force Recon, Special Operations Training Group," Sean said.

"Celer, Silens, Mortalis," said Ewell. The Captain was trying to ingratiate himself with Recon by citing the motto of Force Recon, which translates from Latin to "Swift, Silent, Deadly".

"Thanks for accommodating us, Captain. I would like to spend more time with you, but we have a very tight tactical operational timeline that we need to meet or exceed."

A tall attractive raven-haired woman wearing a FLETC instructor's polo shirt and khaki pants had removed a duffle bag from the staff car and was approaching Sean and Captain Ewell.

"Hello Sean," she said as she gave him a hug that Amanda noticed was more than friendly in its duration and intensity. "It's good to see you again."

"Good to see you too Michelle. Are you ready to roll?"

"Unless Captain Ewell has any other issues with me, I believe I'm ready?"

Captain Ewell shook his head. "We were just surprised by the sudden appearance of a DHS helicopter and wanted to know why standard protocols were not followed. The Sergeant Major has explained the situation so there are no further issues here. Please accept my apologies for the delay."

Sean's cell phone vibrated. He checked the display and answered the call from Tosha Touey. "Hi, Tosha. Everything is all set here. Thanks for your help."

"Anytime, Captain. Take care."

Sean hung up and put his phone back in its holster. He shook Captain Ewell's hand and then led Special Agent Anderson to the front passenger door on his car. He opened the door for her and took her duffle bag. While she got situated, he placed her bag in the back of his car and resumed his place in the driver's seat. Amanda noticed that Agent Anderson had unbuttoned the last bottom button on her polo shirt while they were waiting for Sean to return to his seat.

"Amanda Wallace, I'd like to introduce Michelle Anderson," Sean said as he started his car and began to back out of the parking space.

"I thought your fiancée's name was Kimberly?" said Michelle as she looked over her shoulder at Amanda.

Sean was confused for a second until he remembered that the last time he had been with Michelle Anderson, he was still engaged to Kimberly, and she must think that he and Amanda are now married because of their last names.

"My fiancée's name was Kimberly. Amanda, could you explain the rest to Michelle?"

"Certainly sweetheart," Amanda said. "I stole Sean away from Kimberly and we have been married for over a year now." She said this with a straight face and was able to maintain it until she saw the shocked look on Sean's face in the rear-view mirror.

"I'm just teasing," Amanda said with a chuckle. "Sean and I just met today when he saved my life. It is merely a coincidence that our last names are the same."

Michelle smiled at Amanda's joke at Sean's expense then directed her next question to him, "So did you and Kimberly get married or not?"

"Not," said Sean.

"Her loss will definitely be some other lucky girl's gain," said Michelle, and Amanda noticed her smile broaden as well as subtle changes in her body language towards Sean.

This tall attractive vixen evidently had an interest in Sean Wallace and Amanda realized that she didn't feel a single flutter of jealousy within herself. She sensed that Sean wouldn't respond to any advances from another woman as long as he was with her. Her trust in the fidelity of a man that she had just met would have surprised her, but for some reason after his explanation about Karen Mason, she almost had expected it where Sean Wallace was concerned.

Michelle turned back to look at Amanda, "I'm pleased to meet you, Amanda. You can call me 'Mickey'. So, you were captured with the girls as I understand it?" The breathy voice that she had used when speaking to Sean became entirely professional as she addressed Amanda.

"Yes," Amanda confirmed, "but we were separated early this morning."

Mickey nodded. "Give me a second to activate the recorder feature on my smartphone, and then I would like you to tell me your story from the beginning. I hope you don't mind being recorded because if I tried writing your statement down while riding in a moving vehicle, I'm afraid I would get car sick."

"Of course," said Amanda.

When Mickey gave her the go-ahead, she repeated the same details that she had shared earlier with Sean, with clarification or additional details added when Mickey interrupted her with questions.

Once Amanda had finished, Mickey turned off the recorder, turned to Sean, and said, "It sounds like Sean has a reward due him for his heroism." She reached over, stroked his arm, and continued in a tone that clearly indicated her intentions, "I'll see what I can do to make sure he receives the recognition he deserves."

Sean ignored the obvious flirtation but Amanda sensed his discomfort and thought she should try and change the subject.

"Do either of you know if there is an Australian Consulate office in Atlanta? I need to try and get a passport and arrange for some money and credit cards."

Mickey turned back around to face Amanda. "The Australian Consulate in Atlanta closed down in 2012. The closest resource you would have is the embassy in Washington, DC. I can have someone from our headquarters contact them for you and expedite getting you a replacement passport. Let me make the call right now so that you can provide the necessary information to get the process started."

Without waiting for a response, Mickey dialed a number on her phone and put it on speakerphone. Once she had the Director of Enforcement and Removal Operations on the line, she explained the situation. The Director asked Mickey to hold for a minute, and when he came back onto the line, he had established a conference call with Consular Services at the Australian Embassy.

A professional voice with a proud Australian accent said, "This is Gregory Talbot. I understand that someone needs to obtain a replacement passport. Can I have the name of the traveler please?"

Amanda leaned forward to speak into Mickey's phone, "My name is Amanda Jean Wallace. My Mother's maiden name was Graham. My residence is in the Northern Territory and my date of birth is March 18, 1989. What else will you need to know?"

"Amanda Wallace of Wallace Holdings?"

Watching Sean's eyes in the rearview mirror for his reaction, Amanda said, "Yes, that's me."

"Good Lord! We had no idea that you were traveling to the United States, Miss Wallace. Normally we would have been notified so that we could be prepared to assist you. Do you mind if I ask what your point of departure from Australia was? Heads will definitely roll over this."

Both Sean and Mickey had looks of curiosity on their faces but remained silent as Amanda continued, "This wasn't a planned trip Mr. Talbot. I didn't depart from Australia. I was volunteering in East Timor when I was captured along with twenty-five orphan girls by slave traders. I was rescued this morning when I was taken off the ship that brought us here."

Mickey cut in at this point, "Amanda is currently working with U.S. authorities to locate and rescue the rest of the girls that were captured along with her. She is in our protective custody and we will make certain that her every need is taken care of until we can safely return her to your Embassy."

The Director of Enforcement and Removal Operations added, "While our guest in this country, Miss Wallace's immigration or visitor status will not be an issue, but we wanted her Embassy to be aware of the situation and be prepared to assist her when she eventually returns to Australia."

"Of course," said the Consular agent. "Miss Wallace, is there anything further that we can assist you with in the meantime?"

Amanda spoke again, "I believe I will need some form of identification for me to get my credit cards reissued and to have my bank release some funds to me here. Does anyone have any suggestions in this regard?"

"The Consulate will be able to assist you with all of that Miss Wallace. If you would like to provide me with the details of which credit cards you would like reissued as well as the amount of any funds you require, I'll get on it for you immediately along with a replacement passport which should serve as adequate identification for you. I should be able to have everything ready for you to pick up from an American Express office within a couple of hours, but definitely by close of business today. How can I get in touch with you once everything is in place?"

Mickey gave him her cell phone number and provided their destination for today as Atlanta for the proper American Express office to be identified.

As soon as she finished, Amanda continued, "If you could assist with getting my passport and American Express card reissued, I could handle the transfer of funds from that point. I would also appreciate it if you could contact Jeremy Thorndike at Thorndike and Rogers to let him know my situation. Tell him that I will contact him as soon as I can, but no later than tomorrow evening."

"Excellent. Miss Wallace, please note my direct number is 202-797-3113. I am at your service twenty-four hours a day."

"One more thing Mr. Talbot. As of this time, only five people, including you know of my situation and the circumstances related to it. I am a very private person, Mr. Talbot, so if anything about me shows up in the press, I will have a very short list of heads to place on spikes. Please provide my status and location to Jeremy Thorndike but no one else without either his or my approval. Is that understood?

"I should let the Ambassador know, but I will relay your desires to her as well."

"As long as you and the Ambassador recognize that these are not 'desires', but demands then I am fine with you letting her know. Thank you, Mr. Talbot."

After disconnecting the call, Mickey looked at Sean and then turned back to study Amanda. "Are you a member of the royal family or something?"

Amanda laughed and said, "There's not a drop of royal blood in my body."

"Then who are you?" asked Mickey. "I mean besides 'Amanda Jean Wallace of Wallace Holdings'?"

"That's all I am," said Amanda. Her dejected tone was not lost on Sean.

Mickey was getting frustrated so she decided to Google Amanda's name. She had to modify her search by adding "Australia" to the string before she started seeing results that shed some light on the situation.

After reading the results for a few minutes she turned once again to Sean and said, "Amanda Jean Wallace is one of the 10 wealthiest women in Australia, with a net worth of more than three-hundred-million dollars. She's richer than Nicole Kidman for crying out loud."

Turning back to Amanda she asked, "That's who you are, right?"

Amanda simply nodded and turned to look out the side window of the car. Sean watched her reaction in the rearview mirror. He recognized the defeated expression that comes from losing the anonymity that allows a person to be viewed as "normal". He knew better than most how it felt to be treated special because of wealth, and he wanted to share this with Amanda, but he didn't think that this was the right time or place.

Mickey was still reviewing the details she had found on Amanda. "You won an Olympic medal?"

Amanda nodded but kept her eyes on Sean's as she said, "I won an individual Silver and a team Bronze at the 2008 games."

"Impressive," said Sean. "What was your sport?"

"Twenty-five-meter pistol," said Amanda.

Mickey and Sean exchanged glances but didn't comment further on Amanda's background.

"We're going to be hitting Interstate 75 soon," Sean said as he paired his phone with the hands-free Bluetooth again. "I want to see if we can find out where the truck is at this point."

"Wallace", was the greeting when his uncle answered.

"Any update on the location of our target truck?" asked Sean.

"Hold on and I'll get the latest," replied Kirby. After a minute he came back on the line, "Still northbound on 75 approaching exit 97."

"Perfect," said Sean. "We'll be entering 75 at exit 99 in about five minutes. We should be falling in right behind them."

Turning to Amanda so that she knew he was including her in the conversation he went on, "Anyone have suggestions on how we proceed? Personally, I'm for getting the girls safely off the truck and continuing to investigate the conspiracy after that."

"The safety of the girls has to be the priority," said Mickey. "If we can rescue them without tipping off the conspirators that would be the ideal situation."

"I have some thoughts on how to handle the rescue," said Sean. "Uncle Kirby, could you arrange for some cellular dead zones along our route, say the entire section of Interstate 475?"

"It would take me about five minutes to shut the towers down in that area," said Kirby. "I have a direct line established already with Ericsson and their technicians are standing by the switches."

"Good," said Sean. "Let me make another call to see what I can get in place to stop the truck and separate it from the blue van. I'll get back to you in a few minutes Uncle Kirby."

Looking at Mickey again Sean said, "Can you start making arrangements for handling the girls once we get them off the truck? We'll need transportation and a location for you to take them for processing."

Before Mickey could answer Amanda interrupted, "I need to be there with the girls. They will be frightened and few of them understand any English. Most speak Portuguese, but some only speak native Tetum Dili. Some will also likely require at least minor medical attention."

Mickey agreed with Amanda, "I think you being there at the rescue would make things much easier for everyone. I'll get a bus heading south from Atlanta immediately with a team of agents for transport and then start identifying suitable locations for the girls to be treated and processed."

Mickey started dialing her phone as Sean disabled his hands-free and spoke into his own phone with voice dial instructions. Amanda had trouble following the two subsequent one-sided conversations as Sean and Mickey each gave instructions and received information on their respective plans, so she tried to focus her attention on what Sean was saying.