Blind Ambition, Just.Us.Friendz [top fiction books of all time .TXT] 📗

Chapter 1 Early Ambitions

Jacob Steinmann was born in a dusty kibbutz located on the West Bank not far from the Jordanian border. His parents were both Americans from devout Jewish families who had immigrated to the Biblical homeland while still in their early twenties.

His father was a quiet, scholarly man who taught in the village school. His mother was a trained dietitian who helped in the kitchens and ran the shared gardens. She somehow coaxed carrots and cabbages, lettuces and herbs from the sandy soil. One of his first memories was of carrying bucket after bucket of the scarce water to individually soak each precious plant.

Not that he really knew his parents all that well. He was raised in the communal nursery, and went to school with the same group he had played with all his life. When they turned teens, they moved into barracks together. The few dark and sturdy girls held little attraction for him, and sexual play was frowned upon by the entire community. When he grew up, beautiful, blonde, hard-to-get women held a fascination for him.

He did well in school, and spoke and wrote fluently in both Hebrew and English. He took to military training with a will and was commander of his kibbutz's militia at 19. That was when Mossad came looking. Jacob Steinmann jumped at the offer. His drive, energy and ambition impressed his trainers, and he was offered opportunities to travel and learn. Glad to get away from the dull routine of a small farming community, he explored the colorful and sometimes dangerous life in the ancient cities of Jerusalem, Cairo, Beirut, Istanbul and others

When the United States seemingly ignored warnings from Mossad that terrorists were planning large scale attacks on major U.S. targets shortly before the World Trade Center and Pentagon disasters, it was decided to place double agents inside the Central Intelligence Agency. Jacob Steinmann was one of the 6 selected for the special training necessary.

That's when Jacob Steinmann became Ben Mercer and a whole new history was created for him. With beautifully forged documents that proved he was the son of a Baltimore family that traded in Middle Eastern artifacts and fabrics, and with his knowledge of Farsi and Pashto, he had no trouble being accepted as a C.I.A. recruit. It was no surprise that he aced his training period at the Farm.

Chapter 2 Home Again

If I never see another airplane again, it will be way too soon, Annie thought as she disembarked at Dulles in the early evening rush. She had left from this same airport some six days ago and flown across the Atlantic to London. From there she flew to Brussels and found a lead that took her on north to Moscow.

After the usual dance with the modern Russian state and its system of escorts and watchers, she finally was able to meet briefly with an informer who assured her that the man she wanted had gone to New Delhi. Another endless flight took her there, where she found that all trace of the man had evaporated into the dust and noise of the marketplaces and teaming humanity of India. Her handlers told her to come home. For once, she was more than happy to comply.

She slung her tote full of soiled clothes over her shoulder and with a weary lag in her usual confident stride, headed for the exit. For some reason she looked up, and just beyond the glass doors that divided exiting passengers from the concourse she saw a tall, slim figure dressed in quiet colors standing and waiting. He was anchored by just the lightest touch of his shoulder against the wall. His hands rested atop his long, white cane and his head was cocked in an attentive attitude.

She picked up speed and burst through the doors in a bubble of passengers. She veered to the side and as soon as he heard her footsteps, he opened his arms. His wide, open-mouthed smile glowed with happiness. She stepped into his welcoming embrace and put her arms around his neck, her face turned upwards for a kiss.

"Annie," he murmured as their lips met.

"Auggie!" She hated to break their hungry clutch, but this was about as public as it got. "What are you doing here, sweetheart?" It always worried her when he ventured into mobs of people on his own, despite repeated proof that he could manage admirably. "You said you were going home to wait for me."

"I know, but I realized that I didn't want to wait that long. Traffic is wild tonight with the Redskins playing at home. You could be hours getting a taxi. I've got a staff car at the South Exit."

It amazed her that Auggie could command a car and driver at any hour for anything he could remotely claim to be agency business. He just lifted one eyebrow and said it was part of his original agreement with D.P.D., like the handsome apartment they had bought for him and that he now shared with her.

Tonight it was a perk she accepted gladly. She leaned against Auggie as he folded his cane and caught a light grip on her left elbow. He dropped a kiss atop her tousled honey hair and asked, "Tired, love?"

"Exhausted. There should be a humane limit to the number of hours they can require you to sit upright on an airplane, breathing recycled air and drinking canned orange juice. I just want to go home, have a long hot bath and fall into bed."

"And that's absolutely all you want to do? You have been away six whole days … and nights."

"Well, I hope you stocked some Rocky Road ice cream. I haven't had a bite since I left."

"Tease!" He laughed. "Ice cream you shall have, and I left roasted chicken and baked potatoes in the oven and one of Mr. Moretti's beautiful, fresh salads in the fridge. Hope you're not too tired to eat … first?"

"I'll try to choke something down." Annie had a hearty appetite and, unlike Auggie, rarely forgot to eat. "You spoil me, you know." She snuggled her shoulder against his.

Cooking didn't come easily to Auggie. He hadn't done it as a kid, and since losing his sight, it took careful planning and close concentration to avoid cuts and burns. It was a particular treat that he had made one of his specialties, lemon roasted chicken, for her homecoming. He would have chopped chives and crumbled bacon to top the sour cream for the potatoes, as well. It felt great to come home to his warmth and caring.

Annie tugged him quickly to one side as a heavily loaded luggage cart trundled near.

The driver realized Auggie was blind and stopped. He touched his cap and said, "Ma'am, do you folks need some help. I can call for a cart to drop you off wherever you need to go. It would be here in just a couple of minutes."

Annie favored him with one of her radiant smiles and said, "Thanks so much, but we're fine. There's a car waiting outside the next exit."

"If you're sure, then," the driver said with a question in his voice.

Auggie touched two fingers to his eyebrow in a half salute and said, "We're sure, but thanks anyway." The driver fed his carrier juice and moved away down the corridor.

The crowd had thinned, and Annie led them to the exit. Just as Auggie had promised, a plain black sedan with tinted windows awaited them at a stretch of curb clearly marked No Parking. The driver must have shown his agency I.D. Auggie felt the hairs along the base of his neck rise as they approached the vehicle. It was the same feeling of being watched by something hostile that he had experience off and on for the last three weeks.

"Annie," he said urgently. "Check out the driver and verify his I.D. before we get in. Something feels off."

Accustomed to Auggie's enhanced senses picking up on things that the sighted often missed, Annie did as he said, but the driver cleared with no problem. Soon they were settled in the back seat and on their way home.

A hooded shadow stepped from behind a taxi call box 30 feet beyond where they had been parked and blended smoothly into the crowds moving toward the parking area.

Inside their sedan, Annie gave Auggie a light shove and said, "You're going to have to tell me what's going on with you, Augs? I know we're paid to be paranoid, but this is getting a little strange."

"Later, Annie," he told her. "I think we'll be safe enough at home for now." He switched the subject. "Jake has almost finished work on the extension. I think you'll be pleased when you see what's he's done while you were away."

When they had agreed to move in together, Auggie had bought the adjoining apartment, and an old Army buddy of his, Jake Johnson, and his "Everything Jake" construction outfit, had taken down the dividing wall and were refinishing the apartment to meet their needs. She would be glad when it was done and she could unpack the last of her boxes.

She leaned close, and Auggie put his arm around her. She let her head rest his shoulder and sighed tiredly. It was good to be home.

Chapter 3 The High Life

In his new life as Ben Mercer, he had been functioning successfully as a covert agent for both Israel and the U.S. for some 2 years when he met Elfe Kappel. He felt he was performing a service for both sides as he passed useful information back and forth freely, and he enjoyed traveling widely throughout Europe and the East.

Elfe was playing alongside him at the twenty-one table in the Casino Gran Madrid. Ben liked the thrill of gambling, but even two salaries, deposited in different accounts under different identities, didn't go far at the tables. He drew on 17 when he should have stayed and went bust when an eight turned up. He was leaving the table when Elfe touched his arm and asked if he like to join her for a drink.

She was a stunning Germanic blonde with pale, flawless skin and a mass of spun gold hair. Slender and willowy, almost to the point of being fragile, she turned huge blue eyes up to him and clung to his arm. She was different from any woman he had ever met, and he was intrigued. One drink led to another and on to dinner. He was supposed to meet a contact, but business was forgotten when she invited him to her luxury suite on the top floor of the casino. She taught him things that night that he had never known existed.

They skied in Switzerland, sunned on the Cóte d'Azur, and gambled again in Morocco. She had exotic friends everywhere that she was happy to introduce him too. Her soft voice crept into his dreams. He found he thought of her almost constantly. Elfe had become a sweet poison in his blood. He was madly in love with her.

When Ben had cleaned out his bank accounts and run his credit cards up to the maximum, Elfe introduced him to Klaus.

Klaus was willing to pay handsomely for someone with contacts in the Middle East who could meet with certain groups