Chapter 21
Plan of Action
March 1994
It had been nearly a year since Mo had stunned Stan with the news that Peter had joined the Loyalist army on Tarizon and advanced to the rank of Commander General. Since that revelation he and Rebekah had tried to ignore the aliens who were watching them. They waited patiently for Mo to contact them again with further information or instructions as to how they could help protect their son, should he return from Tarizon. But after such a long time with no further contact from Mo, the situation became unbearable.
“Stan, we can’t live like this,” Rebekah complained. “Our phones are tapped, our house is bugged, people are following us. Now someone’s even watching Reggie at school.”
“How do you know that?” Stan asked.
“He called me the other day and told me. He’s really scared.”
“What did you say to him?”
“I told him it was one of Paul Thayer’s men. I told him you were working on a murder case and there had been some threats against the family.”
“That was quick thinking.”
“Yeah. These days, that’s a requirement of membership in this family.”
Stan laughed. “I guess it’s time to go on the offensive. This sitting around like scared puppies isn’t working.”
“No. So, what are you going to do?”
“I was thinking about having Paul Thayer follow the men who are following us. Hopefully, they’ll lead us to the new Tarizonian headquarters.”
Rebekah nodded. “Sounds good, but what will you do when you find it?”
“The same thing they’re doing to us—plant a few bugs so we can overhear their conversations.”
“I don’t know,” Rebekah said, shaking her head. “Don’t you think the CIA is already doing that?”
“I don’t know what they are doing. I haven’t seen them around, have you?”
“No.”
“I suspect they’re so wound up in bureaucratic red tape and politics, they’re pretty much helpless.”
“You think the President is holding them back?”
“Probably. He’s so afraid that the press will find out about the Tarizon Repopulation Project that he won’t authorize the kind of investigation that needs to be done to identify all the aliens and round them up.”
“I know you’re right, but if they find out that we’re investigating them, they’ll kill us.”
“I think that’s already on their agenda,” Stan replied soberly.
“What! Why do you say that?”
“Because we know too much. If they didn’t need us to find Peter we’d probably be dead already.”
Rebekah didn’t respond. She just stared at Stan with her mouth slightly ajar.
“If we are going to survive,” Stan continued, “we’re going to have to disappear for a while. They’ve already exiled Peter to Tarizon, so what’s to stop them from taking one of our other kids hostage to ensure we cooperate with them?”
“Oh, my God! You’re right. So, how do we disappear?”
“I don’t know yet. I’ll have to find us a place.”
“Are you going to tell Mo?”
“No. I’m not sure the CIA can be trusted. They were responsible for the Tarizon Repopulation Project in the first place, and I’m afraid that some of the Agency leaders may have cut some kind of deal.”
“Are you serious?” Rebekah said, her eyes widening. “You don’t think you can trust Mo?”
“I think Mo’s okay, but I don’t know anybody else in the Agency, so I’ve got to assume the worst. That’s the only safe approach.”
Rebekah put her arms around Stan and held him tight. She was terrified something would happen to him or one of the kids. She didn’t think she could bear it if anything did.
“Do whatever you have to do, but don’t take any chances.”
Stan smiled then kissed her. “I won’t. Don’t worry. Somehow, we’ll get through this.”
The next day, Stan met with Paul Thayer, the law firm’s private investigator. Paul knew about the aliens and had helped Stan track them down when he needed to prove a client innocent of murder charges. Luckily, the aliens didn’t know about Paul Thayer’s knowledge of their existence. Stan told Paul what he wanted him to do.
“Can your men track them without being spotted?” Stan asked. “The aliens are very advanced technologically. It’s not going to be easy.”
“No, it won’t be, but my men are very experienced. They’ll be able to handle it.”
“Good. I want to locate their base of operations and find out who their leaders are.”
“I’ll get started right away.”
“My next problem is to find a place to hide my family where the aliens can’t track us. If they discover what we’re doing Rebekah and the kids could be in danger.”
“That’s for sure. You won’t be able to use cell phones, credit cards, checks, or even your car. It’s not easy to go off the grid, you know.”
“I do know. I plan to buy a used car for cash. That way I won’t have to transfer the title. Nobody will be able to trace the vehicle to me.”
“What about a place to stay?”
“One of my clients couldn’t pay his bill, so he signed over a lake lot to me. It’s only about an hour from Dallas. I really didn’t want it, so I haven’t recorded the deed. There’s an old rundown house on it that will do for a while. We’ll tell the neighbors the family went on a cruise or something. I’ve got to continue to work so they won’t suspect anything is wrong. Besides, I can’t dump all my cases on Jodie and Paula; they’re already bearing more than their share of the load.”
“Hmm,” Paul mused. “Poor Rebekah having to move from a nice house to a shack in the country.”
Stan shrugged. “She’s okay with it as long as the family is safe.”
“How will you shake the alien tail?”
“That’s a good question. I haven’t figured that out yet. If you have any ideas, let me know.”
“I will.”
After the meeting with Paul, Stan went to his office. Unfortunately, he still had a busy law practice that required a lot of attention. He couldn’t afford to let anything slide. Between appointments, however, he looked through past case files to identify every alien from Tarizon he’d ever met or known about.
He thought of Martin Windsor and all the business ventures Windsor had set up to provide jobs and financial support for the Tarizonians on Earth. Martin himself was probably either back on Tarizon or dead, but there were others who might still be around.
Then he thought of Gabriel Winzell. Stan had defended his American wife after he and his children were extracted for their trip to Tarizon, and the Collin County DA claimed she’d murdered them all. But Gabe wasn’t part of Kulchz’ crew; he was just a participant in the project. Stan wondered what had happened to him after the family had been reunited.
They had been very appreciative of Stan’s efforts in clearing Charlotte of the charges and reuniting the family, so Stan thought he might be able to talk with the Winzells without it getting back to Kulchz. He told Maria to see if she could get a current address without calling them directly. She came back a few minutes later with an address she’d gotten from one of Charlotte’s friends.
Stan wanted to pay a visit to the Winzells but wasn’t sure how to do it without Kulchz finding out. It was Friday, so he thought on Saturday he might stake out their home and perhaps follow them to a public place, where he could stage a chance encounter. While following them he’d be able to see if anyone else was watching them before he made his move. Now that he’d decided how to contact them, he thought about what to say when they met. He knew a lot would depend on their attitude, as well as Gabe’s actual knowledge of what was going on.
Stan’s thoughts then turned to getting his family to safety. He’d need some help. He didn’t want to involve his partner Paula, as she had made it clear she didn’t want anything to do with the aliens. Bu
t Jodie had been the opposite. She relished danger and had helped him deal with the aliens in the past. He decided to enlist her help again. She was working on the computer when he walked in.
“Hi. What’s going on?” he asked casually.
“Oh hi, Stan. Not much. The usual paper shuffling.”
“Hey, I’ve got a problem and I could use your help.”
Stan told Jodie about the predicament he was in and how he thought she could help him. She happily agreed.
That night, Rebekah had arranged for a family meeting, to inform the kids of the need to go off the grid for a while. They met in Plano at a noisy pizza restaurant where it would be difficult for anyone to watch or hear them. Stan passed around a note to everyone. When Reggie started to ask a question, Stan put two fingers to his lips and frowned, so no one would speak until they’d all read and understood his written instructions.
We are being watched, and everything that we say can be heard by the people watching us. All of our lives are in danger, so do exactly as I say. Marcia, go with your mother to the bathroom. There is a car waiting in the alley.
Reggie and Mark, Jodie will come to our table with her niece and sit down where Mom and Marcia are sitting now. Don’t show any surprise. Then, when I get up to go the bathroom, come with me.
Marcia frowned and looked at Stan and then at her brothers. Rebekah stood up. “I’ve got to go to the ladies’ room. You need to go, too, Marcia?”
“Ah . . . Yeah, I guess,” Marcia said, getting to her feet clumsily.
Reggie looked at a wide-eyed Mark. Neither said a word. A few minutes later Jodie arrived wearing a black wig and a pleasant smile. With her was a girl about the same age as Marcia and who looked a little like her. Stan got up.
“I guess I should wash up before we eat. My hands feel grimy.”
Reggie stood up, too. “Yeah, I’ve got to take a leak.”
“Watch your language,” Jodie said, stifling a laugh.
Stan hesitated, looking at Mark. Mark stood up. “Yeah, I need to shake my lizard, too,” he said, grinning mischievously.
Jodie’s niece burst out in laughter. Mark looked very pleased with himself. Stan shook his head.
“Come on, Mr. Comedian. Let’s go.”
A black sedan with tinted windows pulled up in the alley behind the restaurant. Rebekah and Marcia got in the back seat. A moment, later Reggie and Mark joined them. Stan waved goodbye as Paul Thayer drove them away.
Just then, Stan saw two young men standing near the men’s room. He approached them.
“You two with Jodie?”
“Yeah,” one of them said.
“Thanks for doing this.”
“No problem,” he said. “A hundred bucks for an hour’s work is a sweet deal.”
“Part of the deal is you can’t mention this to anyone,” Stan reminded him.
“Not a problem, man.”
Stan took a deep breath and went back to his restaurant table. The two boys followed him and sat down across from Jodie and her niece.
“Shall we order?” Stan asked.
Jodie nodded. “Yeah, what’s the most expensive thing on the menu?”
Stan laughed. “Funny girl.”
A waitress came over and took their orders. Stan wondered if the aliens had been fooled by their little deception. He also prayed that his family was safe.
“I always wondered what it would be like to be Mrs. Stan Turner,” Jodie commented.
“Full of surprises,” Stan replied.
“Yeah, you’ve got that right. But you know I love excitement.”
“Uh-huh. Long, lonely hours at home worrying about me.”
“Right. On second thought, Rebekah can keep that gig. I want to work side by side with my man. I couldn’t be a stay-at-home mom.”
“Rebekah loves her children and cherishes every minute with them,” Stan explained. “She’d much rather be at home with them than working.”
“Good for her,” Jodie said, smiling. “Your kids are very lucky.”
The waitress brought their orders and they began eating. Stan looked out the window frequently to see if he could spot anything out of the ordinary. When they were done eating, Stan paid the check and they left, got into the car, and drove off. They went to Valley View Mall, and once inside, split up and walked in different directions. Stan moved through the mall and went out the back entrance of a department store, then hiked to a nearby strip center where he called for a cab.
Later, one of Paul’s men came by and drove Stan’s car to his office. Jodie had meanwhile taken her niece and friends to a movie.
That night, Stan joined his family at the lake house. Then he and Rebekah told the entire shocking story to the children. Stan figured that since their lives were also in jeopardy, Reggie, Mark, and Marcia had a right to know the truth. They were ecstatic to find out Peter was alive, and that they might be seeing him again.
“I knew he wasn’t dead,” Reggie declared. “It just didn’t make any sense. Peter would never get caught in a flash flood. He’s way too smart for that.”
“I didn’t think he was dead, either,” Marcia said. “We’ve always been close and I just didn’t feel like I’d lost him. It seemed like he was still out there somewhere. It’s hard to explain.”
“I knew the way you and Mom were so secretive about Peter’s death that something wasn’t right,” Mark added.
“Hmm,” Stan said. “Well, at any rate, I don’t know how long it’s going to last, but you’re all going to have to hide out awhile. I can’t let them get their hands on any of you. I love you all too much.”
“We understand, Dad,” Reggie said. “We’ll lay low for a while.”
“What if someone comes to the door?” Marcia asked.
“Don’t answer it.”
“What if it’s the police?”
“That’s not likely, but if it happens, just let Mom talk to them.”
“If you have to talk to someone,” Rebekah instructed them, “don’t give them any personal information. If they ask who you are, use your middle name, and Monroe as your last name. Your grandmother was a Monroe.”
The next morning Stan reluctantly left the family and drove into Dallas and rented a room for cash at a rundown motel not too far from his office. He planned to stay there during the week and join the family on the weekends. When he was finished settling in, he went to Gabe Winzell’s home and parked across the street, down about a block. It was a good vantage point from which to keep an eye on the place. About an hour after he arrived he saw Gabe, Charlotte, and their children leave in a Chevy Nova. It didn’t appear that anyone was watching them.
He followed them to a park where, apparently, one of the kids had a soccer game. After watching them for a moment, Stan approached Gabe.
“Gabriel Winzell. Is that you?”
Gabe turned around and did a double take. “Mr. Turner?”
“Yeah, how are you?”
“What are you doing here?”
“Ah . . . My nephew’s got a game in about a half hour. I’m a little early.”
“Oh. Cool.”
“So, how’s Charlotte doing?”
“She’s fine.”
“So, you didn’t go back . . . ah . . . back home?”
Gabe looked around nervously. “No, is that a problem?”
“No. Not at all. Let’s take a walk. I have a few questions and it’s best nobody hears our conversation.”
Gabe looked around again and then shrugged. “Sure.”
They walked away from the crowd and outside of anyone’s hearing range.
“I was just curious, you know, with the war and everything? You’re not a Purist, I take it.”
“No. Are you kidding? Do I look like a deranged lunatic?”
Stan smiled. “No. So, why not go back and fight with the Loyalists?”
“What good would that do? One man couldn’t make a difference, and I’d have to leave Charlotte again.”
?
??So, life is good for you now?”
“Yes, it’s wonderful.”
“Would you be willing to defend it?”
Gabe frowned. “What do you mean?”
Stan told him what Mo had said about the aliens left on Earth, and the possibility of a Purist-led fleet coming to wage war. He also told Gabe about Peter’s career on Tarizon and his possible return to Earth.
“Oh my God! I can’t believe the Purists would be able to do that. I thought we were safe here on Earth.”
“I did too,” Stan agreed. “But apparently we’re not.”
“I’ll help in any way I can, but I will not jeopardize my family again.”
“No problem. I don’t blame you. We’ll be careful to make sure nobody knows of your involvement. What I need now is to identify as many Tarizonian citizens living on Earth as possible, their businesses, investments, friends, and alliances.”
“Sure, I’ll give that some thought and write it all down for you.”
“Good. I’ll contact you in a few days to arrange a pickup. Thanks, Gabe. I’ll be in touch.”
Stan felt a little guilty getting Gabe involved in his investigation, but he didn’t know who else to turn to for information. He was angry that the CIA had done nothing about the alien threat other than to keep it a secret. He wondered if it was time to go to the press and tell them about the Tarizon Repopulation Project. With Gabe at his side he’d have living proof of the alien presence on Earth. That would force the government to deal with the problem. But he didn’t want to do anything that might endanger Peter, so he decided to give the CIA and the government a little more time to get their act together. It was his fervent hope that they were on top of situation, but deep down he didn’t think they had a clue what the aliens had in store for them.