ARC 3

Changes......................

This past Saturday, I took the train/bus combo into the Bronx and met up with my brothers. Then we drove up, and spent a few hours with our last surviving aunt. Good people, good talk, good time. Sunday passed uneventfully. Monday, Doyle called.

They knew I had another blood test scheduled for Tuesday - my Tacrolimus level has been fluctuating and I've been back and forth several times - so we agreed to meet this morning in the parking lot of the Rahway Library.

Of course, he was there when I arrived, sitting in one of those dark blue, government-issue sedans.

"Level's up to 16, huh? I wouldn't worry about it. Adjusting your dose should take care of that."
I was stunned at first, but didn't say anything. They tracked me through the implant and always had a way of knowing what was going on. I was surprised that he mentioned it, but I didn't want him to know.

"So, how did the meeting go last week?" I figured I might as well change the subject and jump right in.

He grinned at me. "You have a slow leak in that front tire, you know? I have a can of that inflator stuff in the trunk. You can use that." He got out and walked to the back, opening the trunk. He brought the can back with him. "Here. You know how to use this?"
"Very funny. You know I had AAA come out Monday cause of a flat. How did you know it was a slow leak?"
"Kenny, the kid who answered the call, he's one of us. He did what we told him to." Another not too subtle way of showing me that they  had a very close eye on me.
I set up the inflator, and turned back to him.
"OK. I get it. You keep a close eye on me. I don't really need the reminders."
"I know. Let me ask you something. The last time we met you wound up coming up here afterwards, remember?"
I said I did. I come to this library often.
"Yeah, well, you staged an Event here that time. A Postal worker."
"I know that."
"You stopped. You didn't slow down as you passed his truck, you stopped. Did he see you?"
I started to hedge, but I knew it would be useless.
"He saw me, and I saw him. Looked into his eyes before the Flash went off. What difference does it make?"
"A big difference. Even though it was random, you acknowledged him. It became personal."
"OK. So what?"
"That brings it to the next level. Which is good. It's what we wanted. Though we couldn't predict when you'd get there."
"Why is that important?"
"I'll tell you later. Right now, I need to bring you up to date on the meeting from last week. The People Upstairs are making a move forward and you're gonna be involved."
The inflator was empty. I removed it and threw it in the trunk. "The directions say I need to drive around for a couple of miles so the stuff can coat the interior."
"So we'll discuss this in your car."

We got in, and drove in circles around the parking lot. He continued.

"There are things you need to know about the power structure in the People Upstairs, but I don't have the time now to tell you. What you need to know now is that we're expanding on the original premise. Do you remember what that was?"
"You mean to protect our resources? To reduce the 'drain' on them?"
"Yeah, but we can call a spade a spade now. The original plan called for - as Scrooge put it -a reduction in the surplus population. You were doing that one person at a time, in a random pattern. The People Upstairs want to improve on that."

He paused, gathering his thoughts. I had nothing to say. I couldn't object, because what he said was true.

"There are 2 parts to this," He continued, " The first is that I will be trying to set up similar programs in a few different areas, different states. Of course, finding the right people - people like you, may be difficult. It will also be time consuming. To that end, you'll be dealing with Givings for the foreseeable future."
He looked at me, but I just nodded. No reason to object now. I pulled the car back into a parking spot by his car and turned it off. We didn't get out.

"Givings will be in touch soon. She's narrowing down a range of targets that will give us the biggest bang for the buck."
"What?!?"
"The 2 of you will be carrying out a much larger Event, involving more then 1 target, but it has to be something that's quick, easy, and explainable. That's Givings' job. When she has it picked out, it will be up to you to stage it."
I wanted more information, he couldn't give it to me. He got out of my car.

"Givings will be in touch, sooner rather then later, I think. Meanwhile, you still have the Flasher and are welcome to continue what you've been doing."

He turned to walk away, but stopped short of his car.

"Good luck!"

He got in, and drove away.

So did I.  He forgot to tell me why making it personal was important.

Potential............

Doyle called. We met by the Woodbridge Municipal Building. There's a Memorial to borough residents who died on 9-11 just outside the building, surrounded by some benches. I walked up, since it's fairly close to my place. Nice day our. Doyle was there already.

"Know why I asked you to meet me here?"
"You have something to tell me?"
"No..well, yes..but that's not the only reason. What I'm trying to get at is - why 'here'?"
I gave him the obvious answer. "Saturday was the 9th anniversary of the attack, and you're being sentimental? Frankly, it doesn't work well for you."
"HAH. That's partly it. 9-11 was just Saturday, and it was a tragedy for this country, but do you know why I draw your attention to it?"

I tried to think of some other reason, but drew a blank. I told him so. He just shook his head.

"9-11 created some big changes in how the government looked at it's internal security operations. In short, because of 9-11, the Department of Homeland Security was created, and led, 9 years later, to us standing here discussing it." He actually grinned. It was my turn to shake my head.

Again, I was speechless. He continued.
"To get to the point, the People Upstairs will be meeting next week. They do this every year at this time, and try to lay out the direction our piece of the Department should take in the upcoming year. You are going to be a big part of that discussion."
"You told me about the meeting before. Why meet again?"
"To see how you were doing, and to make sure how important this is. You've done everything they've asked of you. You've actually done better, but you know this."
"I know."
"Well, what you don't know - and I don't have much information on - is what they'll be discussing. How much do you know about the People Upstairs?"
"There are 6 of them, and it takes 4 of them to pass on whatever they are trying to decide on."
"That's pretty much it, but you need to know that they are - or at least were - pretty much split on how to proceed. One faction wants to continue on a small scale, and one wants to escalate. How or why, I don't know. But you need to be ready for whatever happens."

I didn't know what to say. He'd just confused the issue, as far as I was concerned. "You want me to be prepared for something that even you don't know about?"
"Yeah. Put that way, it isn't too helpful, is it? Sorry, but I thought you should just - I don't know - get too comfortable, I guess."
"Thanks for the update. Anything else you can't tell me?"
"Nope. That's it for now. One of us will be in touch after the meeting. Till then, keep up the good work"
He laughed, stood, stared at the Memorial for a bit, then walked away with a look back.

I had nothing to do, so I walked home, got in my car, and decided to visit a few libraries. I headed towards Rahway.

There's a way into the Municipal Complex in Rahway that leads directly to the library. It's off Main Street, and bends around this large sports complex. There was a Post Office truck - actually one of those mini-vans they use - in their back lot. I was in the library for about 15 minutes, but left empty handed. I drove out the same way I'd come in. The Post Office van was still there.

I took out the Flasher, rolled down my window, and approached slowly. No one was around. No other cars passed. The vans window was down, the mail carrier seemed to be sorting through his route. I came up real close, actually coming to a stop. The carrier put down what he was working on and looked at me. I didn't care. Point, press, Flash.

I drove away. The confirm came in as I drove down St. George's Avenue.

Keeping up the good work.