CHAPTER 35
FLIGHT
July 18, 2004
Nedonna Beach, Oregon
Almost a week passed since Stephanie Pecura was questioned by the police. As time went by, her confidence grew. Maybe her performance was more convincing than she thought.
She returned to Nedonna Beach and the quiet life she loved. Sitting at the antique mahogany desk in the corner of their bedroom, she consulted her calendar and began planning the rest of the summer.
Congress recessed and soon Paul would leave Washington to spend several weeks at home. He promised she wouldn’t be needed in D.C. until September. She wanted to make the most of the remaining good weather in Oregon and planned to arrange outings for the whole family.
Learning that Michael was surfing the Web for her picture while Karen was involved in the fatal crash created a bizarre sense in her. Perhaps, in the end, they were meant to be together. After all, Michael’s undying attraction to her saved his life. Had he been in the car with Karen he would have been the second fatality.
Why did he want to see her picture? Did he close his eyes, remember how he kissed her lips, how he caressed her breasts, how they held each other through the night? Was the picture his passport to the past? Would he go back and feel her, be with her again in his mind?
In Tucson he resisted her. He wished her a good life but a life without him. Now, things could be different. Karen was gone. Michael had no loyalties to stand in his way.
Could she leave Paul, the man who treated her so well, even adopting her children? Maybe she could stay with Paul and still find a way to re-establish her relationship with Michael.
Stephanie locked the bedroom door and moved to the bed, placing her head on the pillow. After a few minutes she sat up and removed her halter top, letting her breasts fall free. She closed her eyes and pictured Michael during that first time when they were together, when she had her way with him. God, he was an attractive man. Those intense blue eyes, the clean-cut looks, the drive to help people he hardly knew.
She remembered holding herself over him, his eyes opening with wonder from a dead sleep; then, his fingers rubbing her nipples.
Stephanie moved into position. Eyes closed, she rubbed her nipples trying to duplicate the sensation. Her mouth opened, her lips flared; she could feel her body responding.
***
The ringing came from her purse, sitting on the floor next to the desk. Only Paul knew her cell phone number. Reluctantly, Stephanie rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed. She put her halter top back on, got off the bed, and walked to her purse. With cell phone in hand she answered his call.
“Hi, Paul. How’s my favorite Congressman?”
A few seconds of silence followed and Stephanie got a bad feeling. Then, Paul began.
“I don’t want you to get upset or to panic but we may have a problem.”
Stephanie sat down at the desk and braced herself.
“What’s happening?”
“Well, it seems both the New Jersey State Police and the Department of Labor’s Inspector General indepen-dently requested assistance from the FBI. The state police believe there’s more to Karen Bloom’s murder and Michael’s disappearance than meets the eye. The I.G. believes the claims of fraud and abuse regarding the minimum wage hearings may be responsible for Karen’s death and Michael’s disappearance.”
Stephanie’s heart sank and her body tensed.
“I thought they were going to leave us alone. What do we do now?”
“First, I don’t know how long this line will maintain its privacy. Once the Feds get involved, no line is safe. Second, if the FBI questions you, you must stay silent or tell the truth. If you refuse to speak with them, they’ll redouble their efforts. If you lie to a federal investigator, you will have committed perjury, which carries an automatic jail sentence.”
“Oh my God! I can’t go to jail, Paul. What would happen to the kids?”
Stephanie could feel the sweat pouring from her body. Her head shook uncontrollably. Sensing her reaction, the Congressman tried to reassure her.
“Stephanie, don’t panic! I have three lawyers working for us and I still have a number of cards to play. I know where several skeletons are buried and the President would prefer they stay that way. Be a good soldier. As soon as I have some real news, I’ll fly home and we can talk.”
“Okay, Paul. I’ll just wait here for you to come home.”
“That’s my girl. Just stay calm, honey. Can you promise me that? If either of us runs, the vultures will be all over us.”
***
Maybe he knew and maybe he didn’t, but Stephanie would not wait for the FBI to come knocking at her door. She had committed too many criminal acts: conspiracy to influence a federal Committee by drugging the Wage and Hour Division’s Chief Economist; poisoning the same man in order to squelch his anticipated charges of fraud and abuse; and accepting large sums of money for both those acts, money on which no income taxes have been paid.
The kids were playing in the backyard and Stephanie decided to take action right away.
She concluded that she never should have come back to the Mainland. She didn’t belong, no matter how elegant and powerful she looked. She was Samoan and she belonged in Samoa. It was foolish to believe she could make it in the states.
I will always be an outsider, an intruder in this land.
She would return home where she would be safe. If the FBI came looking for her, she would leave the kids with her mother and disappear. There were places in the Samoan Islands where federal officers couldn’t go.
***
Within the hour she made reservations to fly to Hawaii and then to American Samoa. She told the kids Paul would meet them later. This trip would be an adventure, a surprise visit to see their grandmother.
By seven that evening Stephanie finished packing, loading their suitcases into the SUV. The kids were in bed excited about the morning flight. For them, it would be another chance to see their grandmother and visit with friends from the old neighborhood.
***
Stephanie stood in the shower, letting the water pelt the front of her body. She closed her eyes. She just wanted to relax, to get away, to be safe. She didn’t want to be a congressman’s wife. She didn’t want to be wealthy. She wanted to be with the man she loved and she wanted to be safe.