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Sample readings
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Returning to Washington the next morning, Boston reported immediately to the office of SIB at the Central Intelligence Headquarters in Langley, Virginia. Much to his surprise he found that search and rescue bulletins for him had already been posted with all the formal authorities in the CIA interlink channel. Boston could just imagine suited agents sifting through the charred remains of the Oceanus II for his body while he was safely and comfortably back home.
Because the Director of SIB was currently in France on important CIA business, Boston reported to the Assistant Deputy Director of SIB, Roger Franklin who offered him a few days respite to recover from his harrowing ordeal. Graciously, Boston declined, pleading the importance of his being close by in the event that there should be a backlash as a result of the Oceanus II matter. Franklin was understanding, as usual, and offered Boston a cup of coffee but Boston asked for brandy instead.
Roger Franklin was a robust man in his mid-forties who had risen to the rank of Colonel in the Marine Corps before his retirement. Having studied and earned a law degree from Yale before joining the Marines, he brought his knowledge and expertise in that area to SIB. Noted for his firm approach to anything legal, Franklin informed Boston that unfortunately they could expect serious reprisals from outside agencies as a result of the chaos he had unleashed on the Oceanus II and its hapless workers.
"The furor this thing has already created with the authorities, as well as within the public sector, won't be easy to calm," Franklin said with a forthrightness that made Boston cringe.
Boston glanced at his wristwatch. "So it's been roughly fourteen hours since the explosion and the entire world already knows about it, huh?"
"You can thank good old Cable News Network for that," Franklin huffed. Boston shook his head with dismay.
"You know just as well as I do how fast these things travel. Being so close to the coastline, the reporters were there with their telecams in less than an hour. Why, they had it on the eleven o'clock news and that was barely a handful of hours after it happened. I guess you were bent on making a clean escape, though, and didn't get a chance to tune in," Franklin explained, sipping at his coffee after which he chuckled slightly over his last statement, imagining the oddity of Boston's predicament.
"Does anybody outside of SIB know I was there?" Boston asked with a worried expression.
"There was some FBI patrolling the area who saw your boat leave the scene like a lunatic busting out of an asylum. Why they didn't give chase I don't know. If these guys find a way to trace that boat back to us they can cause us some real trouble. But of course, you know that," Franklin replied.
"Yeah, well they won't need the boat because I'm sure they'll trace the scheme back to SIB when they find out we detained Joey Sims," Boston reasoned, swishing the brandy around in his glass nervously.
"That's for sure," Franklin exclaimed, raising his eyebrows in a luckless expression.
"Well, there's strike one," Boston moaned dismally. "I guess my next question should be is there any way to soften the blow that's sure to come from that direction?"
"Know any magic spells?" Franklin asked with an impish grin. He sensed Boston's frustration and understood it to be the result of the lack of understanding Boston had about the legal policies SIB followed. "Look, if you were a civilian then the only mitigation might be through a court process where you could prove your innocence or else give a plausible reason for your actions down there at the Oceanus II ," he continued, leaning back in his executive chair and sounding very much like a public defender.
"But I'm not a civilian."
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