Part One (Continued)--by Susan
As Jonathan descended the stairs leading down into the main living room, he couldn’t help but overhear Jennifer’s father in a rather heated conversation on the telephone in the den. Jonathan wasn’t one to sneak around, but the concern in her father’s voice made him feel it was warranted. He moved closer to the opening to the den, his father-in-law still unaware of his presence. The door was partly open, and Jonathan was able to see Steven there, his back facing the doorway, and his body language telling a great deal about his state of mind.
"What do you mean, there is nothing you can do?" His voice was filled with concern, and even panic. "My daughter’s life is in danger, and you tell me that your hands are tied, that no one there can help? Conny, this is Jennifer we are talking about!"
At the mention of Jennifer’s life being in danger, a sickening feeling shot through Jonathan’s entire body. This would explain the bizarre behavior of the elder gentleman since he had arrived. He instantly recognized the name, Conny, that Steven had used when speaking to the man on the other end of the phone. He was Constantine Wainwright, an old friend of Steven’s from their days in the OSS together during the war. Wainwright became a high ranking official when the OSS became the CIA. Though he was now nearly eighty years old, and retired from service, he remained a very powerful and connected man. Jonathan realized that Steven must have been very afraid for him to contact Wainwright.
"No, I don’t know who is involved!" Steven’s voice began to shake, "That’s why I need your help. Jennifer is all I have left, you have to do something. Whoever this person, or persons, are, they mean business. I have been receiving threats for nearly a month now. At first they were directed at me… I can handle that… but now it appears that they have decided that the most effective way of destroying me is through Jennifer. Conny, nothing can happen to her! I thought I could protect her and her mother, but apparently not. I can’t let them take Jennifer away from me like they did her mother."
Steven’s agitation level continued to rise. He slumped into a nearby chair, a defeated look on his face. He was beginning to show his years, and Jonathan knew that whatever was happening was taking a toll on him. He continued to cling to the phone, like a drowning man would hold a life raft, as if the man on the end of the phone was his only hope.
"Please…I’m desperate." He paused, listening to his friend on the other end of the connection. "No, I haven’t told Jennifer, or Jonathan either. I don’t want to alarm them. They think I just dropped in for a visit, I don’t want to spoil that."
"Thank you, Conny. I knew I could count on you." Steven glanced in the direction of the door, as if he has sensed Jonathan’s presence, but he didn’t see his son-in-law just out of sight behind the door. "Yes, I will meet you at the airport in the morning. Jennifer and Jonathan don’t need to know why you are here, we’re just two old friends having a reunion. It won’t seem so strange, they know you moved to San Diego after your retirement. Have your secretary call me early with your flight information and I will pick you up at LAX. Just tell her to make sure she speaks with me personally. Will you be able to check out those names I gave you before morning?" A small look of relief crossed his face as he listened to the voice at the other end of the phone. "Thanks Conny, I owe you one."
As he placed the phone back on it’s receiver, he became aware of a figure standing in the doorway. He looked up to face his son-in-law, wondering how much of the previous conversation he had heard. He didn’t even need to ask, as the concerned look on Jonathan’s face revealed that he had heard plenty.
Jonathan waited, giving Steven the opportunity to offer an explanation about the conversation which had just taken place. A thousand thoughts running through his mind, Jonathan wondered what could have happened to cause Steven to think that Jennifer’s life was in danger. After a few seconds, which seemed like minutes, Jonathan pressed him for some answers.
"Steven, what is going on here? I’m sorry for listening in on your conversation, but when someone mentions that my wife’s life is in danger I tend to listen."
"Jonathan, I know I should have told you about this sooner, but I really thought I could handle it myself. I just didn’t want Jennifer to worry. And at first, I didn’t know what was happening…I thought it was a prank…but then things got a little more serious."
"Go on," Jonathan was waiting for a full explanation, "What has been happening, Steven?"
"Well, at first it was directed at me. I started receiving phone calls and notes at the gallery. Just your typical prank-type things. I thought it was just some kids having a little fun. This started about a month ago." He looked down at the floor, composing his thoughts before continuing. "But about a week ago, I received a rather disturbing photo."
"A photo of what?" Jonathan was mesmerized by the tale his father-in-law was telling.
"Of Jennifer’s mother." Tears began to well-up in Steven’s eyes and for the first time he looked totally vulnerable to Jonathan. "Jonathan, the photo was taken at the scene of the accident. Before the police had arrived." He was visibly shaking now. "They were there, Jonathan. It wasn’t an accident."
Jonathan was beginning to understand the fear that was controlling Steven. He had been told by Jennifer of the car accident which had claimed her mother’s life when Jennifer had been 12 years old. It had happened during the winter, on slippery roads, and there had been no official police investigation as the officers on the scene blamed the accident on the icy road conditions.
Jonathan stared at the other man in disbelief, as if he were unable to comprehend what he had just heard. "And you think that whoever is threatening you now was responsible for her death?"
"Yes, they have as much as said so. That photo was their way of letting me know of their involvement."
"Steven, where does Jennifer fit in? I heard you say on the phone that her life was in danger."
"I think they want to use her to get to me. They know that the most effective way to hurt me is through her."
"Have they made direct threats on her life?" Jonathan’s voice revealed the growing concern and impatience that he was feeling. "Why do you think that she is in danger?"
Steven took a deep breath before speaking. "Two days ago I received a package. A series of photos. This time they were of Jennifer."
"Photos of Jennifer?" Jonathan was desperate for more information.
"Yes, they were obviously taken recently. Photos…lots of them…all of Jennifer. Some of them even taken of her when she was inside this very house. They have been following her, Jonathan. There were photos of her shopping on Rodeo Drive, having lunch with her girlfriends, even photos of her with you." He waited, allowing Jonathan to absorb what he was telling him. "They want me to know that she is not safe, that there is no where that they can’t get to her."
"Do you know who they are? What they want?" Jonathan knew that he had to help Steven protect Jennifer.
"Jonathan, I have tried to figure it out. I gave Constantine Wainwright the names of the only possibilities I can think of, but I really have no idea. And if they are responsible for Jennifer’s mother’s death, why wait all these years to let me know that? And why are they threatening Jennifer now? I wish I had some idea of who it was, but I don’t. I have thought of nothing else for the last two days, since I received the package containing Jennifer’s photos, but I just can’t make any sense of it."
"Steven, I wish you would have come to us sooner." He was attempting to hide the anger he was feeling over Steven’s lack of disclosure. Jennifer was his wife and he had a right to know if she was in physical danger. But her father was suffering enough and Jonathan didn’t feel that now was the time to add to his burden by placing blame on him. "What else is there that you aren’t telling me Steven? I have a feeling that there is more."
"Yes, there is."
Jonathan was now growing impatient with the situation, and with Jennifer’s father. If he was going to be able to protect Jennifer, he needed to know everything that had been happening, and her father seemed unwilling to share that information. Jonathan turned toward the door, from behind which he had heard the terrifying revelation, and spoke softly. "I’ll be right back, Steven. Don’t go anywhere."
"Where are you going? I tell you that your wife’s life is being threatened and you walk away?"
"I’m going to wake Jennifer. She needs to know what’s going on." He was trying valiantly to disguise the growing anger he was feeling. "And when we get back down here, I want to hear ALL of the details."
Steven moved swiftly toward Jonathan and grabbed his forearm. "Jonathan, I don’t want Jennifer involved in this!" The fear was apparent in his voice but he was adamant that she not be drawn into this nightmare.
Jonathan could no longer maintain his composure. "You don’t want Jennifer involved in this?" He couldn’t believe that his father-in-law was saying this. "She is already involved in this, Steven. Someone is threatening her life! We can’t let her walk around oblivious to that fact! She isn’t a little girl anymore, she can handle this. Keeping it from Jennifer won’t help, in fact, it could cost her life. Jennifer and I have never had any secrets from each other and I'm not going to start now."
"Maybe you are right." He lowered his head, a feeling of failure overtaking him. What kind of a man couldn’t protect his own daughter? Or his own wife? He thought of his wife, and then of Jennifer, and knew that he couldn’t let his own stubborn pride place Jennifer in more danger. This time he needed to admit to others, as well as himself, that he needed help.
Jonathan sensed the emotions that Jennifer’s father was battling. He wanted to say something, or do something, that would ease the burden that Steven was feeling. He placed his arm around the older man, the man whose strength he had for so long admired, and searched for the words that would give him some peace. "We’re going to find out who is behind this, Steven. No one is EVER going to hurt Jennifer, not as long as you and I are here to protect her."
Steven’s eyes met those of the man who years before had won his daughter’s heart. The look of determination in the younger man’s eyes told him that the words he spoke were true. For a brief moment he almost felt relief, as if by telling Jonathan what was happening a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. At least now he wouldn’t have to bear the burden alone. His thoughts shifted to his daughter, sleeping peacefully upstairs, and how he was about to change her whole world. How would she react to her life being threatened? To the news that her mother had possibly been murdered? To the fact that her father’s past was coming back to haunt them? But Jonathan was right, she did need to know. "Go ahead and get Jennifer. I may as well tell you both the whole story now right now."
Hearing Steven say the words "the whole story" caused Jonathan to wonder what he had been omitting. For a brief moment, he wondered if he even wanted to know. All he wanted to do was protect Jennifer. She was his whole life and he would never let any harm come to her. "I’ll be right back." Jonathan exited the den and moved silently and swiftly up the stairs that led to their bedroom. He paused outside the bedroom door, contemplating what he was going to say to her. He wished there was some other way for them to protect her without causing her to fear for her life or relive her mother’s death. But there wasn’t. He entered the room and for a moment just stared at her, sleeping soundly, unaware that everything was about to change. He moved toward her slowly, as not to startle her, and gently kissed her cheek to wake her.
Continue on to Part Two
Back to Main Fan Fiction Page
