Chapter 40

Edward Brandt had spent the last few days attempting to heal in the presence of his wife and mother-in-law. He would’ve much preferred the comfort of his own home, but the completion of renovations was still weeks away. The New York apartment was cramped, and the rules of the residence, even in adulthood, were stern and non-negotiable. Sleeping on the couch, separate from the comfort of a bed with his wife, had given no relief for his back and shoulder. The doctors had told them that no permanent damages were visible, but Brandt wasn’t too concerned overall. The potential mental damage from being cooped up with a pushy mother-in-law posed the real threat. The day did have a reprieve in store for him, though. He felt that it was time to give his final condolences to his friend Andrew.

Joyce rode with him as they made their journey to Tarrytown. Edward was in no condition to drive himself, but Joyce also wanted to pay her respects. The days of hearing the story of the once benevolent Artificial Intelligence and the heroic actions of Dan, Smith, and her husband made her feel the importance of closure for this adventure. While she was saddened to have never met Jean personally, the next best thing for her was to thank Andrew for a truly inspirational creation.

They traditionalized their trip with a stop at a nearby florist. Joyce had purchased a bushel of red, pink, yellow, and white roses. The red roses were symbolic of love. The pink roses represented friendship. The yellow roses indicated zealousness. Finally, the white roses signified purity. Edward had chosen his own arrangement for the visit, a dozen pink and white carnations.

It was a quiet and emotional time during the remainder of their trip. When they finally arrived, Joyce assisted Edward out of the SUV.

“Thanks, my love,” Brandt responded with his appreciation and love for his wife.

“Are you ready for this?”

“It’s been a long road for all of us, but it is time.” Edward removed the carnations from the back seat and started walking onto the freshly cut green grass, holding Joyce’s hand.

As they made their way past the final resting places of the many souls that inhabited the cemetery, they stopped to read upon their dear friend’s headstone.

Joyce could see the tears well up in the corner of her husband’s eyes, so she took the initiative and offered her words of affirmation first. She placed the flowers at the base of the headstone and gave a small speech. “We miss you, Andrew. You’re in our thoughts every day, and the world truly is at a loss without you. You were capable of so many great things; we wish that you could have witnessed them to their true potential. I offer my thanks, whether intentional or coincidental for saving both mine and my dear husband’s life. You’ve left an impression on all of us, and we are sorry that many may never know how wonderful you really were. Rest in peace, my friend.”

Edward stared downward, looking lethargic, until Joyce gave him a nudge with her shoulder to bring him back to consciousness. He held the carnations in his hand as he spoke. “Hey, buddy. I’ll always miss the games that we played, but more than that, I’ll miss your friendship. Whether you ever intended to or not, you showed me who I really was and could potentially be. The good and the bad. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you on that fateful night, but I hope that you have found peace as I did when justice finally prevailed. They were both unique, and their determination to do what they thought was right had meaning. But nothing is without its flaws. I can only hope that, in the end, everything was the right thing to do. I’ll miss you, my friend.”

Joyce smiled at Edward and kissed him on the cheek as she held his hand tightly. The pair sidestepped a few feet to the right to pay their respects to another soul that had meant so much to them, especially recently. They looked down again to read the headstone.

Edward placed the pink and white carnations at the base of the headstone as tears again streaked along the side of his face. “Hello again, Jean. It’s difficult to understand what has been real or simply in my mind over the past few weeks. While I only knew your beauty and compassion briefly in life, a part of me wants to think that you were there with us all along. I am going to believe that it was you, somehow and somewhere in there, watching out for us and helping us on our journey. Unfortunately, that I can never repay the selfless acts you provided, but we will all be eternally grateful that you were there when we needed you most. I miss you. Dan misses you. And Smith misses you. Even if I may never fully comprehend the last few weeks, just know that our memories will not be forgotten. These carnations are the expressions of everyone that you had saved. The pink ones are a symbol of our gratitude. The white ones represent our everlasting remembrance of you. There’s only one more thing that I could ever ask of you. Please take care of Andrew for us.”

Joyce squeezed Edward’s hand again as they looked at each other and provided another kiss, this time on the lips, followed by a gentle hug.

They both said what they needed to as they turned around to walk back to the vehicle. Joyce had opened the door for Edward. He thanked her but insisted that it was fine and that he could muster the energy to do the rest by himself. She moved toward the driver’s side and was about to open the door when she noticed two vehicles pulling up right behind them.

“Um, dear?” Joyce said, motioning her hand in the direction of the stopped vehicles.

Edward removed the one leg he had placed into the vehicle and looked back at what Joyce was concerned about. A white pickup truck, followed by a black Ford Explorer, became an immediate alarm for him as he reached for a weapon he no longer carried. He could swear that it was the same exact truck that Sorren had driven to the data center a week prior. He was stunned and concerned when he noticed Dan exit the truck.

Dan moved around to the front of the truck. There was a sadness in his eyes and body language. “Edward. Joyce. I’m sorry for showing up like this.”

Edward and Joyce moved together and confronted Dan, who was looking down at the asphalt. “What are you talking about? How did you even know that we were here?”

Dan looked up again, his eyes becoming glossier by the moment. “I called the house first, and your mother-in-law answered. She told me where you were headed.”

He wouldn’t dare say it out loud, but Edward apologized to Dan in his mind for having to deal with Joyce’s mother. Looking over Dan’s shoulder, he noticed Smith exit the driver’s side of the Ford Explorer. Smith waved, and Edward returned with a head nod. What the hell is going on? He had so many questions now. “Dan. Why are you here, and with Smith?”

“I’m here to give you this truck.”

It didn’t take much further observation to realize that it really was Sorren’s truck. “You came all this way to give me the truck of my former enemy? I don’t want it, and I’m not buying it. Now tell it to me straight.”

Dan sighed and gathered his thoughts. “In less than two hours, you will be publicly labeled as an enemy of the state. Hurst has taken it upon himself to charge you with grand theft, destruction of government property, destruction of private property, conspiracy to commit international terrorism, stock market manipulation, cyber-terrorism, and multiple homicide.”

Edward’s jaw dropped in disbelief, while Joyce had a more vocal reaction to the news. “No. This can’t be. My husband should be hailed as a hero. All of you should be. Are you saying you’re here to arrest him for something that all of you were a part of?” Joyce held onto Edward’s arm, protecting the man she loves.

“No, ma’am, we are here to provide Edward an escape,” Smith chimed in when he reached Dan’s side.

“That’s correct. We want you to take this truck and go somewhere nobody can find you. We need you to disappear until we can get this straightened out.” Dan outstretched his arm, attempting to pass the truck keys to Edward.

“Why is he doing this? I’ve already left the Bureau. There’s nothing in it for him to put these false claims on me.”

Smith gave a more direct explanation. “It was Beckett. Hurst used him to gather as much information about your actions as possible. Everything from disobeying his authority all the way to engaging Jeffrey Sorren without a warrant. The incident in Texas had given Hurst a lot to answer for, and you became the man who needed to take the fall.”

“Wait, what? That quiet little shit dimed me out just to make himself look good?”

“He was offered more than a positive personnel review. Bonuses, career advances, you name it came with his actions.”

“How do you know all of this?”

“He told me. Maybe he thought that I would be on board with it. Maybe he was just gloating. I don’t know. What I do know is that if you don’t leave now, soon you’ll have an entire country looking for you.”

“I can’t leave. I had just got my life back. Joyce and I were even considering the possibility of bringing a child into the world.”

Dan struggled with the words but needed to get the point across. “You have to. With Hurst’s connections, you’ll never see the outside of a prison cell; worse, you may be sentenced to death. We are here to help you, and we will fight this as long as we have to in order to make sure that you are cleared of any wrongdoing.”

“Take the keys,” Joyce spoke into Edward’s ears. “It’s okay. I’ll go with you.”

Dan quickly stepped in to prevent another bad decision. “No, Joyce. We can’t have you also charged with a crime. We may be able to clear Edward of this mess, but it would be more difficult to clear you after knowingly abetting your husband. Besides, where Edward must go is not likely to be a comfortable place. The underworld is dangerous, and I don’t want you on my conscience as well.”

“Where will I go?” Edward couldn’t think clearly with the overload of information swimming through his head.

“South of the border. Rural Montana. I don’t know; go where it feels right to you and stay hidden. There’s a duffel bag in the truck with over thirty thousand dollars. A gift from the late Mr. Sorren. Don’t use your own bank cards or identification, be careful in everything you do.”

“Do you really want me to go?” Edward turned to Joyce, hoping that her wonderful mind would give him peace in her answer.

“Yes. I don’t want to see you behind bars, and I trust your friends here. You don’t have to be a martyr for Andrew; just be smart like him. I know this will all be behind us someday, hopefully someday soon.”

“Can I have a moment with my wife, please?”

“Sure,” Dan and Smith both spoke in unison, turned around and walked to the side of the truck.

Edward held both of Joyce’s hands in his and looked her directly in the eyes. “If I am to go down this path. I want you to know that I have never given up on you as you have never given up on me. I have loved you since the first time we met, and everything I have ever done or ever wanted was for your happiness and to make the world a better place. It may be a long time before I hear your voice again, so I need you to remain strong. Worry if you must, but remember that getting back to you will always be my priority, and I’ll fight for it every day.” He pulled her in for a tight hug as she lost control over her emotions and the tears flowed endlessly from her eyes.

Joyce was only able to say three words before she continued to weep. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Edward pulled back and kissed her lips before releasing her and turning to meet Dan and Smith again. “I guess we are doing this.”

As Edward walked slowly away from Joyce, Dan reached out again and opened his palm with the keys to the truck. Edward looked at the keys and grabbed them, turning his head back to Dan. “Thank you, friend. And you too, Smith.”

“Any time, Edward. It’s been a pleasure, throughout it all,” Smith replied.

Edward opened the door and tried to get comfortable in the driver’s seat while the tenderness in his back and shoulder still gave him pain. He carefully placed the keys into the ignition and started up the truck. Rolling down the window, he said two words. “Stay true.” He put the truck into drive and nodded to Dan as he accelerated away from all three of them. He didn’t want to do it, but looking into the rear-view mirror, the image would be seared into his mind forever. Joyce was sitting on the grass crying, Dan trying to console her, and Smith trying to console Dan.