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147 pages

English

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Roger Sheehan leads a treacherous path to the highest seat in the nation. A CIA top secret is underway in the South of France. Construction of an ultra-modern nuclear reactor is put on a Flash Drive and falls into the hands of an American Senator. Hitmen from the CIA are closing in on Paul Bradley, but the Flash Drive is up to the highest bidder. It reaches a zenith point twisted metal at a resort on the Caribbean Island 380 feet up. Marianne Sheehan is standing at the threshold of Washington's world power holders. Deception and distrust hang over the Capital turning its lightsome image dark and grey.

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Fiction

Suspense

Thrillers

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Publié par	eBookIt.com
Date de parution	06 décembre 2017
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781456629816
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0500€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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World High

by Walt Williams
Copyright 2018 Walt Williams
All rights reserved
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
http://www.eBookIt.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-2981-6
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
Contents
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-one
Twenty-two
Twenty-three
Twenty-four
Twenty-five
Twenty-six
Twenty-seven

One
Ellen Richards routinely took a late-evening shower, but this time it was a few minutes longer. The headache would go away, and it would be different. She kept trying to push the thought aside, but there comes a time when we must face the bare facts of life. Enjoy it to the fullest; she had no regrets. Teri was an honors student at Harvard, and a degree in biotechnology would put her right where she wanted to be. She hoped to land a position at some laboratory. Providing support is being firmly rooted.
Overseas job offers were already coming in. She stood in front of the mirror and blow-dried her hair. Next the undies, denim slacks, then the blouse. In was 92 degrees in San Francisco, a 40-degree difference from Cambridge. She held the phone in her hand and punched in the number. Someone picked up on the first ring.
“Teri.”
“I bet I caught you in the middle of studies again?”
“How large are you planning to expand? There’s New York, London, and where else?”
“I’m sorry, darling, you must forgive me. I hope you understand. I’ll explain later.”
“You must take care of yourself, Momma. Before you know it, you’ll be old and gray.”
“Of course. And don’t worry too much about your father, darling. You remember the route we used to run on? We ran the entire five miles in half an hour. But that was only a portion of the run. The total distance was over seven miles.” She turned the keys over in her hand. “The run of the two sisters.”
“Honey, you’ve got two long years. You can’t wish it by, but take one day at a time.”
“B average.”
“That’s because we raised you well. Teri, you were so gifted at portrayals in plays at such an early age. I wish I could’ve started you out even earlier.”
“Why, Momma? I was there every Saturday.”
“You spent all that time with those plays and paintings when you could’ve been running, but I admired your talent. All the other kids looked up to you. You could pronounce those difficult words and phrases so well. You knew the entire play by heart.”
“Would you have liked it more if I had gone into acting?”
“Too many fake people, who needs ’em? You sounded just like Judy Garland singing Hitsville. It was all to no end, because look where you are now.”
“What do you mean, Momma? I’m gonna be a lawyer and get a degree in biotech.”
“When you should be with the company.”
“Those Hollywood people are no good to be around. There’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you. Have you ever cheated on Dad?”
“Well, if you can call a friendly kiss at the convention cheating. Did you ask Karl that question?”
“Momma, he’s cheated several times.”
“It’s hard to say those three simple words to you. We’ll meet again somewhere on high when they roll out the red carpet.”
Dial tone. “M-Mother, are you there?” She went and got in the Ford Expedition. I didn’t intend for it to end this way, but it’s too much to live with. Her eyes were brimming with tears. I couldn’t stand to see the disappointment in her eyes. Somewhere along the road of gold and silver, we’ll meet again. She stopped at the San Francisco Bay Bridge, got out, climbed up on the platform, and leaped off.
Two
Teri was descending the three-layer steps of Harvard when she turned to her companion. “Roger, the only thing I don’t like about physics is Mr. McLaughlin’s boring speeches.”
“Sounds like my music instructor, Mr. Kosinshy. More airtime and less talk. There’s an upcoming gig for the holiday, and we have to rehearse.” Her hair was reddish-brown and hung down her shoulders. He was tall with wide-set eyes and dark, curly hair.
He was born in the States, but his parents were residing in England. Born into wealth, the Sheehans were a dynasty with financial assets in the hundreds of millions. The excited figure rushed through the doorway and descended the concrete steps.
“Teri! Teri! There’s an emergency call, you must come at once!”
She spun on her heels and headed back up the three-layer steps. Matters of urgency instill fear and have a way of distorting the mind, and that’s what happened when he stepped in front of her and pulled the door open. “The open line on six.” She entered the chancellor’s office. Let it be something good! But it couldn’t be. Her mind was racing. One tragedy was enough to take. Why would he want to take his own life? Getting run over by a train was a horrible way to go. The readings said there’d be tragedies. There was a stirring inside. She stepped in the office and took the receiver. “Teri.”
“There’s been another accident.”
“Accident? Who? Who is this?”
“Aunt Glades. Your mother committed suicide last night at around ten-thirty.”
Suddenly, the room was spinning.

Lieutenant Thomas Blaine was by the phone and hesitated for a minute.
Should he put the call through or wait to meet the senator for a formal interview? Hell, the guy’s so damn busy, I’m lucky if this call gets through. The receptionist was on the line. “One moment, sir.” A few minutes later, the senator came on.
“Senator Flannery O’Connor.”
“Lieutenant Thomas Blaine.”
“You kinda threw me there for a minute. I’m good, no more traffic tickets.”
“Senator, I don’t mean to take up too much of your time, just a few quick questions. Ellen Richards. Do you know her?”
“Sister. What has she gotten herself into now?”
“She got herself dead.”
“Ellen—dead?”
“She threw herself from the Bay Bridge yesterday. Do you have any idea why she’d take her own life?”
“The poor soul... Whatever it was, she had it bad.”
“How about spouse trouble?”
“Whatever. You figure it was too much for her to bear.”
“We thought it appropriate to ask around and speak with people who were closest to her. This’ll be put into the report. The autopsy hasn’t been done yet, but you can view the body at the city morgue. I appreciate your time and effort, Senator.” The line went dead. Lieutenant Thomas Blaine was a seventeen-year veteran on the force and had seen his share of jumpers.

He was over at the Richardses’ rounding up the report. “Mrs. Kearns, this is standard departmental procedure on an apparent suicide. I still have to ask you these questions.” He pulled out a pen and pad.
“Your full name?”
“Mrs. Glades Kearns.”
“Where do you live?”
“Tacoma, Washington, seven-o-one President Street.”
“Your relationship to the deceased?”
“Sister.” He stopped writing and drummed the table.
“Did you know of your sister being under stress or having mental problems?” Someone was at the door. “Excuse me.” She was so self-assured and upright that small things didn’t matter. Then it happened that the door swung open. Teri was a younger version of her mother; her sandy-blond hair was in a ponytail as she dabbed her eyes. Aunt Glades ushered her in. “I’m glad you made it okay, dear. Detectives are here to see you.” She meekly found a seat. The detective had his arms folded.
“When your mother was pulled from the San Francisco Bay, they were looking at the possibility of a late-night jogger.” Teri was bent over in the chair; the pain and anguish cut through her like a knife. The lawman looked up from his notes and saw what kind of shape she was in. “This won’t take long, I’ll be as brief as possible. Teri Richards, am I right?” She nodded in the affirmative. “Blaine, Homicide. I’m doing a routine investigation on the death of your mother.” There was a reflection of the body being pulled from the water. He held out his hand. “First the father, then the mother. Anything that may have pushed her to the edge? Inner circle? Or maybe it was because of Karl? The family went from being super rich to just about nothing in less than a few weeks.” She found her voice. “I-I... This is s-so unimaginable,” she stammered. “I’m shocked beyond words.” Pause.
“Is there anything at all that you can tell me?”
“Some psychic told Dad about hardships and calamities.”
The detective took in his breath. “So your parents wanted to envision the future through all this, is that it?”
He looked at his partner and put the pen away.
“Tom, some kind of cure.”
“First your father throws himself in front of a train, then your mother drowns herself.” The two lawmen stood heavily.
“I can arrange for someone from the agency to speak with you. There are usually psychological bouts that follow this sort of thing. Before you know it, you’re way out in the zone.”
“I’ll be okay,” she chided. “I have my aunt Glades.”

Prior to the second tragedy, the attorney had gone through the will to resolve what was left of the estate. Mr. Richards held a bond to be committed and pull together. Reminiscing about her childhood upbringing, Teri was exceptionally talented. Aunt Glades felt proud as the crowd came to their feet in a standing ovation. There was an autograph signing. This one was sponsored by the Donna Stovall Art Foundation. The Lexus pulled into the driveway, and Ellen greeted them as they got out. “The attorney’s inside.”
“Any luck in recovering some of the money?” she asked.
“Small donations, that’s about it.” They held up at the doorway.
“So none of the money Karl donated can be recovered?”
She shook her head.
“Not one red cent.”
“Whatever the lawyers didn’t steal, the rest went to building shelters, social programs, and food banks. Thousands of jobs across the nation have come in.” They