Book I: The Others - Chapter 6 - The House of Danann (Part 3)

Bob Danann paused for a few moment in his “presentation” to drink from a bottle of water on the table. Catherine watched as he studied the bottle before setting it down. She sensed that the irony of that bottle was not lost on the man.

“From time to time over the years a more direct approach has been required, and now is one of those times.” Danann again pointed his remote at the screen, and another picture of Blackman.

“This is the enemy of all of us and the leader of who we call The Others. Given the information that we’ve gathered, we’ve projected that without intervention William Blackman will seize total control of the world in less than ten years. We intend to stop him. Currently, we’re gathering data and preparing for the final confrontation. But while we’re doing that, we’re indirectly irritating Blackman’s organization. Not so much that it points to us, but enough to be an inconvenience.” Danann gave Catherine a satisfied smile, “And that, Catherine, is where you and your husband come in. By removing Collin from his position as a courier, we block – at least for a little while – a major conduit for weapons, drugs, cash, and much more ...”

Catherine interrupted, “But how did you find me in the first place, especially since even Collin thinks he’s someone else.”

Bob looked at her with a slightly pouty smile, “Catherine, do you want me to give away all of the family secrets?”

“No, just this one.” She wasn’t amused.

He looked at her for a few heartbeats as if he was trying to decide whether or not to divulge whatever little secret he was keeping.

“Oh, all right. It not that complicated really. We just obtained a DNA sample and traced it back through the prison records, Scotland Yard’s database, and finally to you.”

“But all of those records are sealed. How could you get access to them.”

Danann again smiled, this time with more than a little pride, “You’ll find, Catherine, that most of the United Kingdom’s and Ireland’s government records are archived and stored by a single company based in London, which as it happens is a recently acquired, wholly owned subsidiary of Danann International.”

She sat back for a moment, not nearly as shocked as she felt she should be. “Mr. Danann, I’m glad you’re on my side.”

“So are we, Mrs. Connley, so are we.”

Bob Danann looked at his watch. “Catherine, I have another meeting to attend. Can we continue this after dinner? I’m sure you’ll want to get you mind off of all this for a couple of hours.”

Catherine knew that the question was only meant as a courtesy so she stood up and extended her hand. “Of course. After dinner then.” Bob took her hand and grasped it.

“Maybe you’d like Mac to show you and Jesse around the city for a couple of hours? There’s plenty to see and great places to eat, and then Mac can let me know when you get back.”

The sunset was breathtaking from the garden atop the Danann building. Jesse ran around checking each flower, plant, and tree making sure all were healthy and happy. Watching her perform her duties, Mac and Catherine sat on a stone bench admiring the view.

Although Mac was an excellent tour guide, and Jesse was having a great time, Catherine just couldn’t get her heart into their little adventure into and around San Francisco.

They drove all around in Mac’s convertible going from the piers, to Ghirardelli Square, Ocean Beach, and Coit Tower to end up in North Beach for dinner. Catherine supposed the food had been excellent, but she was so caught up in reviewing the day’s events in her mind that she hardly remembered eating.

Mac apparently couldn’t help but notice her introspective mood and suggested that the roof garden was a perfect place to foster that kind of thinking. So back they went and as luck would have it they were just in time to watch the sunset.

Catherine sat there still lost in her thoughts. What was she going to do? Was she going to buy into this conspiracy theory? She wasn’t sure yet. What she was sure of, however, was that she was going to do everything she could to recover her husband so they could all go home as a family.

The fog was just now beginning to encroach on the city in its normal summer pattern, but it made a beautiful contrast with the red and orange wispy clouds higher up.

Breaking her silence, Catherine spoke up, “Does it look like this every day?”

“Not every day,” he replied. “Sometimes it’s even better.”

Linda Mason was just arriving when Mac glanced at his watch. “It looks like it’s about time for us to get back downstairs and finish up. Linda can watch Jesse until we’re finished.” He looked at Catherine for a couple of seconds. “Are you ready?”Catherine was feeling overloaded, but the next few hours would be the most important yet. She would find out more about Conner.

Chapt. 7 - Conner (Part 1)