The Strangeness Within Pt. 02

Esther sighed and gripped his hand. "I might be a difficult partner, then," she said.

"So we take our time, and we expect some frustration," he said. "I'm not going anywhere."

.........*** Chapter 9 ***.........

Esther waited nervously in the phone booth while Javier kept watch. As agreed, they'd sent Paul a message on his pager with this number, and he was supposed to call to let them know how things had gone.

She jumped when the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Ms. Thompson?" It was Paul's voice, though he sounded exhausted.

"Yes," she said. "Is everything all right?"

"Well," he said. "Best I start at the beginning. Javier's mother is fine, and she had things well underway when I arrived, I suspect through a potent combination of smarts and bullying. That wouldn't have worked much longer, so she was grateful to have the legal documents. Even more grateful to hear Javier's message. But the next morning, the police showed up. Apparently someone had told them you were missing. Ms. Sanchez gave a very convincing account of the way you two had run off together, saying that you were adults, if rather foolish ones, and she suspected you'd both be back soon, so she'd kept quiet to prevent you from even more embarrassment when you got your foolish rear ends back home. You get the gist."

Esther smiled as she imagined the scene.

"Anyway, that seemed to convince the police, though we both wondered who had contacted them in the first place. Not any of your relatives, I assume?"

"No," Esther said.

"I was afraid of that," Paul said. "Because that evening I was approached by someone in plain clothes, who behaved like an official of sorts. He even implied he was with an intelligence agency or something. No identification, of course, and even if he'd had it there was no legal basis to demand information about you. When I finally sent him off, he gave me the kind of blustering and vague threats that I've come to ignore in my profession."

"I'm so sorry," said Esther. "Was his name Fred Daniels? We suspect he's very dangerous. I would keep far away from him."

"Ah," he said. "I'm afraid even if you had told me that, I would not have anticipated what happened. You see, when I finished business and returned to San Jose, I discovered my office had been broken into. I had nothing stored there concerning your case, but many of my sensitive papers were taken. And the theft was done so professionally that no one else even knew it had happened. Needless to say, this is not the sort of thing that happens in our profession. It makes me very concerned for your safety. I have become so paranoid that I'm calling you from an anonymous pay phone."

"Oh," said Esther, her heart sinking. "Thank you for all your work. We didn't expect you'd get wrapped up in all this. I think the best thing you can do now is to forget about us."

"Not very likely," said Paul with a sigh. "But I understand what you're saying. And I wish you the absolute best. My regards to Mr. Patel, and you know where to reach me if you believe I can be of service."

She hung up the phone and stepped out to tell Javier the news. His face fell as she spoke.

"All this time, I've been hoping we made a mistake," she said. "It's all true, isn't it."

Javier looked dejectedly at his shoes. "Enough of it, anyway. Enough to know we did the right thing. Except maybe we haven't even been cautious enough."

"Raj," Esther said urgently. "Raj's information might have been among those papers."

They hadn't heard anything from Raj recently, but that hadn't worried them much. He'd said he would contact them only when he'd heard from the mysterious woman, or if he had other news.

"We have to warn him," said Javier.

The two of them worked out the shortest message that could convey the information, and then Esther set to the slow encryption work. When she was finished, Javier made the drop as usual, this time wearing a Stanford hoodie and baseball cap low over his eyes. He was still sure everyone knew he wasn't a student.

* * *

"He's in trouble," said Esther, not for the first time. "He would have checked, at least every day."

Javier shook his head. He'd been up much of the night, worrying and uncomfortable, and he wasn't coping well with Esther's nervous chattiness.

There had to be a way to contact Raj. Javier couldn't just walk into the department and start asking questions. But maybe -

"Professor Kuznetsov," he said. "He would know if his colleague is OK. We could call him."

Esther smiled and nodded. "That's a great idea," she said. "I think you have to be the one, though. He knows my voice and I don't want anyone else dragged into this mess."

A half hour later he was calling the main department number from another pay phone.

"One moment - let me transfer you," said the department secretary.

"Yes?" asked a brusque voice with a strong Russian accent.

"Professor Kuznetsov," he said. "This is about your colleague, Raj Patel. We just -"

"What?" the professor interjected. "What is going on? Where's Raj? Do you know anything about this? His office -"

The professor's voice tailed off.

"Please," Javier said nervously. "We just want to know if he's all right. If you know where we might reach him."

"We?" the professor asked warily. "Who are you, exactly?"

Esther tapped on his shoulder. "Ask him about chess," she said.

"Do you know anything about correspondence chess?" Javier asked, feeling stupid. "Perhaps Professor Patel mentioned it?"

The professor's tone changed completely.

"If all this has anything to do with correspondence chess, I'll eat my own textbook. Do these numbers mean anything to you?"

He spat out a few numbers, and Javier repeated them to Esther. She thought for a minute before giving him two apparently random words.

The professor sighed when Javier passed them on. "Last night Raj insisted I give the following message to the person who responded correctly. You will want some paper."

"All right," he said, gesturing for Esther. "Go ahead." He handed her the phone, putting his finger to his lips.

She listened intently. After some time, she handed the phone back.

"Well?" the professor asked. "Do I have to repeat all that?"

"No," he said. "I have it. Thank you for your time, Professor."

"Wait," said the professor quickly. "What do you know? Is Raj all right?"

"I don't know," Javier finally said. "I hope so."

* * *

"It's just two decimal numbers," said Esther after a minute with her calculator. "I think they're geographic coordinates. We need a good map."

It took some time in the library to find a map with enough detail. The location was some miles away in a wooded park.

"It's somewhere near here," said Esther after they'd walked a short distance on a trail. "Within a hundred feet or so."

They were surrounded by towering oaks and underbrush. There was no way they could search everywhere.

"How about that bench?" said Javier. "It's the only landmark nearby."

Sure enough, they found a folded piece of paper taped to the bottom. It was filled with chess diagrams.

"This will take a while," said Esther.

Javier drove out of town and kept driving while Esther worked. He was scared - for Raj, of course, but especially for Esther. There was no chance that Daniels and whoever he worked for didn't have a description of his car by now. Probably its license plate as well. It sounded as though Mamá had done her best to provide them a few days of grace time, and he'd wasted it by playing tourist and enjoying being on a road trip with Esther. He needed to get serious.

Without really thinking about it, he realized he'd been heading towards the north side of the Bay. And the next step fell into place.

"All right," said Esther after a while. "Do you want to hear it now?"

"Is he OK?" Javier asked quickly. "Let me pull over before you read the whole thing."

"He was - physically all right when he wrote it," she said. Javier had an unpleasant feeling about this. When he pulled over, Esther started to read.

E + J:

I got your message. But you must have missed mine, meaning two things: they are following me, and now they have an encrypted message. I trust our encryption, but the more messages they find the worse our chances become. The message I sent was this: she called me and told me she would be in touch. She didn't explain how.

Your message about P. alarmed me. Later in the day, several events happened. My office was also broken into and my computer stolen. They left a mess, I assume intentionally. There was nothing for them to find there about you. But when I returned home, I found a letter containing private information about me. Crude blackmail, and they had already disseminated it to my own family. Anatoly already knew and accepts me for who I am. But my parents are disgusted.

I knew this moment might come, and I accept the consequences for myself. But a former partner of mine could have his professional and personal life destroyed. That is the true purpose of the blackmail. I'm ashamed to say I cannot help you for the indefinite future while I sort through my personal affairs. I will visit this spot in two weeks, only if I am positive I am not being followed. If the woman contacts me before then, I will try to leave a message. For now, goodbye, and may the gods protect you both.

-R

"I don't understand," said Esther. "How are they blackmailing him? Not that it matters, I suppose. It's not our business."

"He's gay," said Javier. "Attracted to men. But he hadn't been open about it. I should have guessed, the way he talked about Lukas. It seems obvious in retrospect."

"I've never met anyone who was gay," she said slowly. "The poor man. And his previous - partner. Having to hide something so important."

"I think he's also implying that you're not alone," Javier said. "You're not the only one with secrets that can be dangerous."

Esther bit her lip, looking troubled. "What do we do now?"

Javier was ready. "We need to be able to hide better. Even if we're mostly using cash, we need some new identities. I might have a way to do that."

Two hours later, Javier pulled up near the address they'd looked up in the North Bay. Luckily his uncle hadn't changed the name of his business. Esther stayed out of sight in the car.

"Tío!" he smiled when the door opened.

A familiar man squinted and a smile lit his weathered face. Miguel wasn't really his uncle, but rather some sort of cousin around the same age as Mamá.

"Javier," he said. "I almost didn't recognize you. What on Earth are you doing up here?"

"Well," he said. "It's complicated. Do you have some time to talk?"

Miguel's face fell. "I guess you should come in. Slow business today."

His uncle ran a small appliance repair business from his home. They sat in the front room.

"Pedro's at school," said Miguel awkwardly. "You in trouble, Javier?"

He nodded, trying to start his speech. As a child he hadn't understood why Pedro needed to spend most of a summer with them. Mamá had never talked about it directly. But as he'd gotten older he could guess why Miguel had needed to return suddenly to Mexico, and why Pedro's mother had never come back.

"I need someone to make me an ID," he said. "I ran afoul of some dangerous people. Well, my girlfriend really. Neither of us did anything wrong, nothing illegal. But now we both need to hide."

Miguel's expression hardened. "So, of course you came to me. You stupid child. You're a citizen, all your documents in order from the moment you were born, and you want to throw that away? Do you understand what you're asking? How old are you now? Eighteen, right?"

He nodded, embarrassed.

"You should be heading to college. Voting for the first time. Drinking at parties, screwing girls, all the carefree things every American kid gets to do. And you say you'd rather have what I have? Does your mother know you're here?"

He shook his head. "Tío, I know exactly what I'm asking. I would give anything to have back the life you describe, but it's already gone. Mamá knows we're in danger and that we've run off together, but she doesn't know where, and it must stay that way for her safety. I'm putting you in danger just being here, and I'm so sorry, but it really is that desperate."

Miguel blew out his breath and sat back, staring at Javier for a while.

"You seem serious enough," he finally said. "So I'll respect that and take you seriously, which means I don't want to know any more. I'll send you to someone I trust well enough, for family. Could you pass your girlfriend off as a sister?"

"No," said Javier.

"Then don't bring her at all," said Miguel. "What Rafael doesn't know he can't sell to someone else."

"All right," said Javier after Miguel had given him the address. "I can't tell you how I appreciate this. Don't mention to anyone I was here."

"I'm not a fool," said Miguel. "Don't come back here. Not until you've sorted all this out.

* * *

Javier did not like the look of Rafael's neighborhood. He drove on a few blocks until he found a place that seemed safe to leave Esther.

"I don't know how long this will take," he said. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"What do I do if police come?" Esther asked nervously. "I can't even move the car. I feel useless."

"Just pretend you're younger than you are," he said. "You're waiting while your mother shops. You don't have a license or any ID. Smile and look scared, and they'll be nice."

Esther shook her head in annoyance, but accepted that. He left her the keys just in case. Probably she technically knew how to drive just from watching him and her father. But then, so had he, and he'd still needed all the practice. She wasn't a superhuman. Not at everything, anyway.

A short, bland-looking man answered Rafael's doorbell.

"Rafael?" he asked. "My uncle Miguel said he'd give you a call."

"Ah," said Rafael, giving a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "So, how is he doing anyway? How's his son?"

"Last I saw Pedro he was an annoyingly hyperactive little kid," said Javier. "But I'm sure he's a real heart breaker now."

Rafael relaxed slightly, giving a snort and gesturing Javier inside. Most of the doors were closed, and he walked quickly towards the open one leading to a stairway down.

The basement was damp and smelled of mildew. In front of a washing machine some children's clothes hung on a rack. Rafael directed him quickly to a corner with some machines, and what looked like a craft station. None of it inspired much confidence.

"Six hundred dollars cash, up front," he said.

"What?" Javier blurted. That was a lot more than he'd expected. It was almost everything he'd stuffed in his inner pocket.

"This isn't some shitty thing to get you into a bar," Rafael said. "Go to someone else if that's what you want. This is an identity."

Javier sighed and slowly pulled out the bills. Rafael locked them in a box and sat down.

"I'll need a photo," he said. "I have a little instant setup here if you don't have one. Maybe an old ID?"

He shook his head, and after a few minutes Rafael had him arranged properly.

"You want any extras? I can make you a second one for a reduced cost."

Javier shook his head. The one would have to do.

The whole process seemed to take forever, but in the end Javier was impressed.

"Congratulations," Rafael said. "You're now José Santillo of Reno. You have a clean driving record except for one paid-off speeding ticket. Above-average credit score. Living the dream, amigo."

Javier smiled nervously. "I appreciate this," he said on their way back upstairs. "Uh, I have one favor to ask. You know anyone who could take a car off my hands? Give me a fair price?"

Rafael's bland smile sharpened. "Well, going for the full package, then. Why don't you go down to the garage on eleventh street. Tell them Rafael sent you."

At the door, Javier thanked him again.

"Anything for family, eh?" Rafael said. "Be seeing you, then."

"Sure," Javier said, escaping as quickly as he could.

* * *

"You'll have to wait outside," said Javier. "Better we not be seen together."

"I don't like this," said Esther. "This area doesn't feel safe."

"It's busy enough," said Javier. "Just wait at the bus stop. Make small talk if there's a woman you trust, or pretend to be bored, like you always wait for the bus there."

The garage looked even less reputable than Rafael's place. A brusque man who seemed to be the manager listened to Javier's little recitation and then walked right over to his station wagon.

"That piece of shit still running?"

"Of course," said Javier, offended. "I replaced the master cylinder and fixed the transmission and -"

"One hundred," the man said. "And that's generous, as credit against the replacement."

Javier tried to haggle, but he was out of his depth. In the end he paid far too much for a beat-up old sedan. But the registration paperwork seemed legitimate, and now "José" had a car in his name. Unlike his beloved wagon, it really was a piece of shit. He felt his ears burning under the manager's gaze as he quickly shuttled all their possessions into the new car.

He breathed a sigh of relief when he pulled up beside Esther. She was shaking when she got in the car.

"I can't do this," she muttered. "I don't know how you're managing it. I can't live like this."

"It will be all right," Javier said as he drove towards the freeway in the noisy car. That bastard hadn't even left him much gas in the tank, but he felt a strange weight lifted, as though the next chapter were finally beginning. "We have a car and I have an identity. We're getting a little low on cash, but now I can find some work. Anything, really. Once we're sure of money, I can find a cheap motel for the time being. Think of that! Showers every day. And I should start teaching you to drive, somewhere out of the way."

"Javier," Esther said softly. He realized he'd been babbling on. Esther looked miserable.

"Sorry," he said. "What's up?"

"What - what exactly will I be doing while you're out trying to earn some money? Hiding in the car, or this cheap motel room somewhere? Going shopping or to the library where I'll think everyone is staring at me, where Daniels or one of his people might just show up out of nowhere? What kind of life is that? I have to meet this woman. She's the only thing I can think of right now. And I have to get out of the city. Away from all these people. I can't handle it anymore."

Javier swallowed. Maybe he'd gotten carried away. But he'd been thinking of what was best for both of them, surely.

"OK," he said slowly. "But we have to come back to check for messages in two weeks. And we really will need money eventually. I need to find work somewhere."

"I know," said Esther. "But can we just go? To - the foothills, the way you described. The forest. I'll be able to think there."

Javier nodded. Actually, that made a lot of sense. They could find a place to camp for free, and it sounded idyllic in its own way. Just the two of them in the woods. The way they'd started.

.........*** Chapter 10 ***.........

"It's beautiful," said Esther, and Javier murmured agreement.

There was no one thing that stood out, but the ground seemed softer, the light dimmer, the trees more moss-covered that any of the other forested spots. It felt like a welcoming camp site. A place to settle down for a while. Esther had relaxed a bit as soon as they'd left the giant nest of freeways, but now she felt almost buoyant. She stretched her arms high and sighed, then yelped when Javier tickled her stomach.

"Sorry," he said, though he didn't look very sorry. "It was too tempting."

She smiled and drew him in for a kiss. Even the smells here were making her giddy. Javier seemed surprised at the kiss, but he eagerly returned it. It was just the two of them and their patch of forest.