"Fire & Ice" (Revised for Wattpad), Ch. 10:  Suspicion, August 18, 2015 Gratiana Lovelace

(An original story copyrighted by Gratiana Lovelace, 2015; all rights reserved)

[From time to time, I will illustrate my story with images of actors representing my dream cast--including Richard Armitage as Thomas Kane and Anne Hathaway as Caroline Walters, Doris Roberts as Mrs. Burns, Tim Gamble as Peter Wendt, Brian Protheroe as Martin, Mary McDonnell as Mary, Seth Green as Todd, Raven Symone as Fiona, and Logan Lerman as Allen, Andrew May as Paul Foster, and others as noted in the image credits.] [(1) "Fire & Ice" story logo]

Author's Mature Content Note:  "Fire & Ice" is romantic thriller story with mature themes (D for drama, S for sensuality, and V for violence) of love and relationships. Most chapters will be PG or PG-13. However, if you are unable or unwilling to attend a movie with the ratings that I provide, then please do not read that chapter. This is my disclaimer.

Author's Recap from the previous chapter:  Caroline's introduction to the Division on Monday went smoothly. And the revelation of she and Thomas having a prior relationship that is now rekindled was handled with finesse. However, the specter of their nemesis in one of the other Division Chiefs, Paul Foster, looms large in their future.

"Fire & Ice", Ch. 10: Suspicion

At precisely the same moment that Director Peter Wendt is discussing Caroline Walters new hire with Thomas Kane's team in their 9:00am Monday morning meeting, other Division Chief Paul Foster [(2)] leaves his Division office suite on the floor above and he takes the elevator to the basement vault encased in concrete 6 feet thick where top secret documents and encrypted electronic backups of current project analyses are kept. Access to this area requires top clearance--only the technicians, the Director, and the Division Chiefs have access to it via retinal scans and saliva swabs.

This latest biometric method of mouth swabbing was employed after The Company's Home Office in D.C. decided that only billion string DNA samples could not be replicated nor counterfeited as a means of security clearance identification. But of course, once a person receives such high level security clearance, who is to say what they will do with it?

A tall man at six foot 2, Paul Foster is also powerfully built--his forty plus years having been kind to him. there is only a sampling of gray dusting his full head of hair to betray his age. His estranged ex wife used to say that Foster had a portrait stored away somewhere that was aging when he was not. The inevitable frictions that arise when one spouse--in this case Foster--has such a secretive career and must be away for long periods without explanation took its toll on his marriage.

But for the sake of his wife's daughter whom he had adopted, he and his ex-wife try to remain civil around the child. But just barely. Theirs was an acrimonious split--which Foster exacerbated by his seemingly blasé attitude toward the divorce. And it cost him. His ex-wife received their house, half of his future pension, a large settlement, and generous living and child support allowances. It is only because Foster's salary as a Division Chief approaches a quarter of a million dollars, does he have some money to live on. But he has a plan to set himself up financially.

Foster looks wary and agitated by something--or someone--but he still manages to smile imperiously at the security guard after having his mouth swabbed. After gaining admittance to the bunker as the Director and Chiefs euphemistically refer to it, Foster enters a secure room with an encrypted computer terminal and he accesses some documents that he learned were of interest to Thomas. Foster thinks that Thomas' stubborn meddling will get him killed one day.

Foster's cell phone vibrates and he swipes the phone into active mode. A text flashes across the screen of his secure cell phone: Bambi and Thumper not in the forest this morning. Foster texts back for his surveillance team to follow and report back to him.

Returning to the documents regarding the embezzlement of [300] million dollars of [the 3 billion dollars in] U.S. aid to Kamirastan, Foster scoffs privately to himself that his rival and one time friend Thomas Kane is slipping if he can't figure this out. But then, the money trail has been expertly covered. Foster smiles to himself. He may have at most a week before the shit hits the fan. And by then, Foster plans to be long gone--with plenty of money to get lost permanently.

As Foster returns to his Division Offices, he notices the Director Peter Wendt [(3)] walking toward him.

Peter Wendt: "A word, Foster."

Wendt signals with his head for Foster to follow. Foster rolls his eyes. Neither man says anything more until they are inside Wendt's spacious and well appointed executive office. It is an elegant and refined space--fit for the man who hob knobs with diplomats and ambassadors.

Foster: "Well? What do you want?"

Peter Wendt: "Tsk tsk, so testy." Then he gets right to the point. "You are to stay away from Thomas Kane and Caroline Walters." Peter had assured Thomas that he would handle Foster.

Foster: "Stay away? Hardly a necessary request. The only time I see Kane is at our Friday Division Chief meetings with you."

Peter Wendt: "Yes, well, he and Caroline have reconnected over the weekend. So if you harbored any hope of worming your way into her good graces now that she is working here, you've missed the boat. So give it up."

Foster: Seething about Wendt so blithely mentioning Caroline in his presence--Wendt knowing how Foster still feels about her--Foster replies through clenched teeth. "Give it up? That's rich, coming from you." Foster sneers. "If you want me to back off, you'll have to compensate me accordingly."

Wendt raises a questioning eyebrow at Foster's mention of compensation.

Wendt: "I am not in the business of playing match maker for my employees. You are on your own." Wendt replies snidely.

Foster: "Don't be obtuse, Peter. You either cut me in, or you'll suffer the consequences." And with that, Foster storms out of Wendt's office--slamming the door behind him.

Wendt fumes. He realizes that Foster won't be as easily removed as he had hoped. So Wendt will have to placate Foster somehow until the time is right to rid himself of the man. Although, Wendt smiles, he might have a better use for Foster.

***

Meanwhile, Caroline's sitter and neighbor Mrs. Burns and Trevor have a yummy lunch this Monday of bologna and cheese sandwiches, chips, apple sauce, carrots, and apple juice--your basic kid's meal. Then they walk across the road from their apartment building to the park and playground--with Mrs. Burns being very careful to hold onto Trevor's hand so that he doesn't dart out into traffic.

Mrs. Burns: Sitting on the bench near the sandbox, Mrs. Burns reminds Trevor some does and don'ts. "Now Trevor, remember to let the other children play with the sand castle building shape blocks, too."

Trevor: Trevor [(4)] rolls his eyes, because he is a big boy of almost 3 and a half years old. "I know, Mrs. Burns. I'll be good."

Mrs. Burns: "Yes, you're always a good little boy, Trevor." She pats his cheek before he runs to the sand box five feet away.

Trevor plays in the sand for about ten minutes, making a sand castle tower while Mrs. Burns claps at his accomplishment. It is a bright and sunny day. So there are a lot of parents and kids at the playground--as well as other people enjoying the park's walking pathways, she notices. Then Trevor runs back over to her.

Trevor: "I'm done! Did you like my castle?" He asks as she wipes his face with a wipe cloth and then wipes his hands.

Mrs. Burns: "I did, Trevor. I think you're going to be an architect when you grow up." Mrs. Burns [(5)] caresses his little chin and smiles.

Trevor: "What's an ar-chi-ek?"

Mrs. Burns: "That's ar-chi-tect." She says the word slowly for him. "They design buildings, like the apartment where we live." She gestures behind her while glancing over her shoulder. She notices a man in a gray sweat suit suddenly look away from her direction and walk over toward the flower beds. But she thinks nothing of it. "Now! What do you want to do next?"

Trevor: "The swings! I want to swing!" He says cheerfully swinging her arms back and forth.

Mrs. Burns: "Alright! Let me pack up my Trevor bag, and we'll go over there."

She puts her kid wipes, apple juice box, and water bottle back into her satchel. Then she and Trevor walk twenty feet over to the swings and she sits on another bench.

Trevor: "Come and swing with me, Mrs. Burns." He pleads cutely.

Mrs. Burns: "Goodness! I haven't gone swinging in years! But I will for you." She says with a smile.

Trevor: "Yippee!" He skips over to the swings.

Mrs. Burns: Mrs. Burns sets her Trevor bag and her purse next to her swing seat and she and Trevor begin swinging.

"Oh this is fun! I feel like a kid again." She says getting into the swing of swinging.

Trevor: "I could swing all day long."

Mrs. Burns: "Really?"

Trevor: "Yup! Except when I want to play something else."

Mrs. Burns: "Ha ha ha!" Mrs. Burns laughs and turns her head to her left to smile at Trevor. He smiles hard back at her.

But out of the corner of her eye, she sees the man in a gray sweat suit again that she had noticed earlier--just standing around. And she wonders why if he is out running for exercise, why he isn't running?

Trevor: Observant as he is sometimes, Trevor asks. "What's wrong, Mrs. Burns?"

Mrs. Burns: Not wanting to alarm him, she snaps her fingers. "I forgot to call my dentist's office to check on my appointment. I'm going to sit over there on the bench and make a quick call while you're swinging."

Trevor: "Okay!" He pumps his feet to keep himself swinging.

Once sitting on the bench near the swinging Trevor, Mrs. Burns settles her Trevor bag and her purse on the bench next to her--on the side facing the man she is curious about. She pulls out her flip cell phone and pretends to make a call to her doctor's office as she speaks into the speaker phone while holding her cell phone in front of her.

Mrs. Burns: "Oh hi. This is Althea Burns. I'm just checking on my teeth cleaning time." She smiles and takes a photo of the man in the gray sweat suit outfit with her phone. "Oh? It's tomorrow at 3:00pm? That's great."

Trevor: Little Trevor skips over to where Mrs. Burns is sitting. "What's at 3:00pm?" He asks innocently.

Mrs. Burns: She closes her flip cell phone. "My teeth cleaning." She smiles hard showing him her teeth.

Trevor: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Trevor giggles. "You're so funny, Mrs. B."

Mrs. Burns: "I'm so glad you think so. Now my back is starting to hurt me with these hard wooden benches." She fibs--she really wants to get Trevor back into their security building. "Would you mind if we went back home and played indoors?"

Trevor: "No. That would be okay, too." He says agreeably--though he would really like to play outside some more.

So, Trevor and Mrs. Burns turn and clasp hands and walk to the nearby park exit--smiling and waving at park ranger Mike on a bicycle who glides past them. Then Trevor notices that someone else is walking in their direction--and he is dressed in gray sweat pants and top. Trevor and Mrs. Burns wait patiently at the cross walk for the lights to change and traffic to stop. Then they walk across the street and up the sidewalk to their security guarded apartment building. The man in the gray sweat suit does not follow them across the street, but stands there watching them for a minute, then changes direction and jogs away.

Once safely inside her apartment, Mrs. Burns feels sheepish for being so suspicious. She thinks that the man in the gray sweat suit was probably just resting before continuing jogging. So, she doesn't contact Caroline about it--not wanting to worry her unduly. Mrs. Burns and Trevor go on to play some board games, and then watch a kid's movie and he naps a bit, until his parents come home for the day. But Mrs. Burns hopes to mention something to Caroline about it later, just to be prudent.

And the man in the gray sweat suit jogs to his car at the park's far parking lot. He slides into his car and sends a text message: Bambi and Thumper exited the forest, returning home. Then he waits for a reply--and his orders for what he should do next.

To be continued with Chapter 11

References for "Fire & Ice" (Revised for Wattpad), Ch. 10, August 18, 2015 Gratiana Lovelace

1) The "Fire & Ice" 2015 story logo is a combination of the following elements edited together by Gratiana Lovelace:

a) Upper left image of Thomas Kane image is Richard Armitage as John Porter and Caroline is Shelly Conn as Dani in Strike Back series 1, epi 5 found at http://www.richardarmitagenet.com/images/gallery/StrikeBack/album/series1/Episode5/ep5_034.jpg;

b) Lower right image of Thomas Kane image is Richard Armitage as Lucas North in Spooks series 7 promo found at http://www.richardarmitagenet.com/images/gallery/Spooks/spookspromo/album/series7-67.jpg

2) Paul Foster Image is that of American actor Andrew May portrait jpg7c4eec2d68d2a6ad_medium Aug1312viaClevelandPlainDealer _ Aug1815 Grati sized hairmanip mask1; for more about Mr. May, visit http://www.cleveland.com/onstage/index.ssf/2009/12/cleveland_theater_legend_andre.html

3) Image representing Director Peter Wendt is that of American actor Tim Gamble and was originally found at Earth Circle Films, but it is now a broken link.

http://earthcirclefilms.com/notebook/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/tim-gamble-farmer1.jpg

4) Image representing Trevor is a stock photo titled "Young boy with apple on his head" (removed) found at MS Office Clip Art

5) Image representing Mrs. Burns is of Doris Roberts and found at http://images.wikia.com/desperate/images/1/17/DorisRoberts.jpg