Published: 24 Sep 2018

“John, you were asking those questions for a reason weren’t you. I mean I really felt you were interested, but it was more than that wasn’t it, you’ve been offered another job haven’t you? Can I help?”

I told him that I was certainly going to need his help, but I wasn’t sure just yet what that help would entail. I told him that what he had shown me really impressed me and I first had to have the outline of a plan in place before I’d know what his involvement would be. He told me he’d help in any way he could. I told him I appreciated that and I would probably have at least some computer research for him to do soon, maybe even tonight as I had to work out some logistics before I even accepted the job.

Just after we had our lunch the phone rang and from the caller ID I saw it was Todd Michaels, the lawyer handling Bill’s parent’s estate. I answered and he told me that by tonight the news of Bill’s parents deaths would be on the news. He had informed his contact at the Ugandan consulate what we had told him and he had been able to confirm our story with a few phone calls back home. Death certificates for both parents were on their way and expected on a flight to the USA by midnight. If Bill so requested, their bodies could be retrieved, but he honestly said that the village dead had attracted vultures, hyenas, and other carrion eaters and he doubted there was anything much left to bury. Their identities had been confirmed by the papers carried on them that were retrieved from the clothing found on their meager remains. He said that we should be prepared for a media flurry and I told him we were not staying at the house right now and we might not be for a while yet, until I felt sure that Bill could return to a more stable and normal atmosphere at his home. Todd thought that was wise and I told him that he could always reach us by my phone, no matter where we were.

I explained all this to Bill and I told him that we could always hold a memorial service for his parents when the media flurry died down. He agreed, and I held him as he cried.

The evening news did have a segment on the deaths of the St. Stevens and a followup on the situation in that country and how in a short time, after the death of the man held responsible for the raid on the village and the deaths of the missionaries, the rebel troops were disbanding and a more stable atmosphere was prevailing in the country. Nothing was said about Bill having been over there and we were happy about that. I told Bill that we should go to his dojo the next day and get in a good workout and that the police had wanted us to receive some sort of commendation for our actions the other night, but I had told them we didn’t want any publicity as it was too soon after the deaths of Bill’s parents.

I placed my call to my contact at the organization that wanted to hire me to take out Kim Jong-Un, the leader of North Korea. I listened as he agreed to the terms laid out in our coded conversation and I could hear muted conversation in the background and also some dings, like the coded bells in a hospital. I assumed our conversation was being monitored, as I figured all of our past ones were also. It really didn’t phase me, it meant more than one person was responsible for my assignments. What they didn’t know was that this satellite phone I used for all business calls was set to record to a disc, in a computer in another state, all transmissions on this phone, and with a voice recognition program, I knew the true identities of the people I dealt with. If they were not on the up and up I didn’t accept the assignment offered. A lot of times, somehow their identities were leaked to a government agency I was comfortable with and they were either watched closely or eliminated one way or the other.

Now was the time for an intensive study of the maps and terrain of the expected target area and I would assign Bill the chore of devising the simplest way to change our appearances to blend in with the locals as much as possible. I’d decided I didn’t want to leave him behind.

I went to my laptop and connected to the web via satellite and did a search of the area surrounding the capitol of North Korea, Pyongyang. There were photos of the surrounding areas, and by looking at the faces of the inhabitants I came to the conclusion that while I could see Bill fitting in, my 6’3″ frame wouldn’t, as bulky as I was, and there was not enough time, or inclination on my part, to drop a hundred pounds of muscle off my 225 pound frame. It gave me a lot to think about as we spent the afternoon talking about his school and alternating tossing out different scenarios that would enable us to get in and out of the country and also to achieve my mission.

I did learn something interesting during that afternoon, Bill would be in the same grade and most of the same classes as the new president’s son. He had been vetted by the secret service just before he and his parents went to Uganda, but that now gave me a chance to talk to someone I knew in the secret service, someone I had once hoped to have a long term relationship with.

“Agent Ford” was how he answered his office phone. I responded with “Special Agent Travers, this is a priority call”, that was our old code for, “call me asap on my satellite phone.” Jim Ford called within a minute and I explained about Bill, and that he was now my ward and living with me. I didn’t tell him about the forged custody agreement or the trust papers, Jim didn’t need to know about those, only the bare facts, that Bill was now living with me since his parents deaths and for now we were at my address and probably around the start of school, in just under 4 weeks, we would be moving into his parents home which was the address the secret service had for him. Jim told me that the agency had no problem with this arrangement, as I was one of the most respected former agents they knew, and they sometimes hired me to get them out of a tight spot, this was one of the agencies in our government I could trust implicitly.

Jim explained that the president himself had already met the parents of the other students his son would be attending classes with, but because the St. Stevens were out of the country, doing their missionary work, the president had waited until their return to invite them to the White House as the others had already done. Jim asked when would be a good time for Bill and I to come. As he knew the president wished to personally convey his condolences to Bill and to let the boys meet before classes started at the private high school the boys would be attending. I told Jim that we had no plans this week, but we were possibly going out of town for the two weeks before school started. Jim asked if he heard right, that both of us would be going out of town and I assured him he had. Jim said he couldn’t wait to meet Bill, he must be an amazing 17 year old to be “traveling” with me. I told him I’d explain soon. He told me he had been assigned to the president’s son, so if the boys hit it off we just might see more of each other. He imparted a hint at the new president and I just might be more compatible, on more levels that I would have assumed, he told me that after his wife’s death, some years ago, he had reverted to only occasionally having brief liaisons with eligible fit men, Jim thought I would be just his type. He told me he’d get back to me soon with a time available for the president and his son. I told him that would be fine and we’d talk soon.

I told Bill about the call and that we’d probably be invited to the White House soon. He thought that was cool, and he asked me if I had seen photos of the president’s son. I told him no, I didn’t think I could pick him out in a crowd. Bill pulled out his own laptop and there as his screensaver was a picture of a shirtless mini hunk after scoring a goal on a soccer field. Muscles bulging, arms raised in victory, a huge smile on his handsome face, yeah, in about 20 more years, if he looks as good as he does now, I’d consider getting to know him. I told Bill jokingly that the only guy he should be hero worshiping was his guardian, and Bill told me he could still dream, couldn’t he? I ruffled his hair and told him he could dream all he wanted, and I meant it.

Jim called me back about two hours later, and asked if Wednesday night was good for us. The president was inviting us to dinner and a chat. I told Jim that we didn’t want press involved or anything like it and he assured me that this was a very private meeting, sort of one family meeting another. I told him that the day after tomorrow should be fine and asked if was there a dress code for this dinner and Jim told me it was to be a casual family dinner, and it would only be us four, and two agents in the room, him and another agent who covered the president, someone I knew and respected. Jim said he’d arrange for a car to pick us up at my apartment and drop us home after. I thanked him and told him I’d see him Wednesday night.

I went to tell Bill about our dinner plans for Wednesday, and to ask if he wanted to visit his dojo. He was enthusiastic about meeting Kevin (the president’s son) on Wednesday, but excited about me going to the dojo with him. The master evidently had great respect for Bill and visa versa. The master told me that Bill was one of his best students, despite his age. This coming school year he was going to ask Bill to teach a class of mid level students. I told the sensei that would be fine with me, but to please ask Bill himself. I told him that I had had the honor of instructing others in these martial arts when I was in the Secret Service and held a black belt myself. He encouraged me to put on my gi and I did so, bowing to him as I entered his ring and we proceeded to spar with the other rings of students halting in place and watching us spar. We were pretty evenly matched but my last move had him on his back. I bowed to him and helped him up and he bowed to me lower. I thanked him for the exercise and for allowing me to save face in front of my ward. He thanked me for the exercise also, and for providing him with a way to teach a lesson to his students in humility as well

He encouraged me to shower with the boys, “so they can see what a real warrior looks like, and not his aged old body”, he was all of 50 if he was a day. Bill, thrilled, introduced me to his class as his guardian/uncle. We stopped for dinner on the way home and while eating Bill asked if I had any contacts or friends in China. I told him as a matter of fact I did, a good friend, in Shenyang China. He told me that North Korea shares it’s northern border with China, and Shenyang happened to be close to where we needed to be, Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea.

I thought about what he said and I could see his reasoning. It made sense and if I remembered right Ken’s favorite pastime was deep sea fishing and he had a small fleet of beautiful boats he often rented out to friends, family, and certain Chinese government officials. Ken was a retired secret service agent I had served with for the five years I was an agent. Ken was about 50 now and had left the service when his parents died in an explosion on a boat they were renovating to add to their fleet. Their deaths devastated him and he moved back to his home country to take care of his brothers and sister. I began to wonder if he could arrange a rental for an old friend who might want to take his ward out for some sport fishing in Korea Bay?

We finished our meal and walked home to the apartment. There we sat with one of my atlases and we looked at the area from south China to the Northern border of North Korea. It was just over two hundred miles from Kim’s marina on the Amnok river to the capital city of North Korea, and it was all doable by water. Could Kim Jong-Un be lured to a marina in his capitol city where I could take him out, Or would a marina or dock there be my jumping off spot? I needed to talk to Ken to make up my mind. I decided to wait until about 3AM to make my satellite call to him, and hopefully he remembered our old telephone speaking code.

By the time we went to our beds I still hadn’t come up with how to get to the dictator, or to entice him to me at the marina I thought would provide us with some anonymity. Remember, we would have to be in disguise the whole time, from when we left Ken’s marina to when we returned to it, and then flew out to somewhere safe and then home. We would pose as tourists to China and while there taking a day or two to visit a former co-worker of mine.

I had set my alarm for 2:30 AM so I’d have time to wake up some and hit the can before placing my call. My phone made contact and it only rang twice on my end before it was answered by Ken. “Ken! It’s your old buddy JT, how the heck are you? How are the fish biting where you are?” translation: Ken, it’s John Travers, are you able to talk? are you alone? Are you under surveillance? He replied,”John, long time no see, I’m getting ready for bed, alone as usual, mores the pity. Things have been quiet for some time now, boy it sure would be good to see you” (He was alone, no surveillance for a long time [China is wary of their former citizens returning, especially someone like Ken who had held a government job in the USA] my visiting wouldn’t be a problem) I told him that my ward and I would like to visit the week after next for about 4 or 5 days and would like to make a big fishing trip, but no more that about 200 miles. Could he accommodate us? He told me it wouldn’t be a problem, he just thought of a fishing area we might like and he could take us ourselves as he knew a way to catch a big one. He told me to call anytime, he had enjoyed talking to me and was looking forward to seeing us when we got there.

He had basically told me he knew my target and was eager to help, he had hinted he even had a plan he would discuss with me, but only when we got there. It was time to latch onto a tour group, or an educational group might be better. China frowns on independent traveling by visitors, they like the tourist dollar, but like to keep them in easy to watch groups. It was going to be somewhat tricky, especially if we did go over with a group, how were we going to slip away for a few days of mayhem when each group traveling in China was assigned a government minder who would sound the alarm if we used a different bathroom than one he or she had pointed us to, let alone disappearing for 2 days. Maybe we should just slip into China unannounced to everyone but Ken. I’d have to think on this, and run any scenarios by Bill, his analytical mind was capable of seeing the ins and outs of any way of our gaining access to Ken and his marina full of boats.

We discussed little else the next morning, and into the afternoon as well. Bill’s first idea was to have a plane drop us from 30,000 feet and we parachute into either country. I laughed and asked what were we going to do then? We’d hardly fit in with the locals and they would undoubtedly receive great compensation from their governments for capturing us and turning us over to their local police, no, I told him, we’d be much better off with a quiet entry into either country, but we had to have a reason for entering either to begin with, but a reason that would allow us to travel about somewhat freely. I reminded him we had to not only get in safely, but it was more important we get out in one piece as well. As the day went on Bill’s suggestions became less fanciful and more reasonable and mature, being more thought out and he consulted the atlas many times. We were still going at it when we decided we better get ready for our meeting at the White House. Bill then went from being an analytical problem solver to a nervous teen about to go on his first date.

We were ready when the driver from the White House arrived. The driver called on my satellite phone to tell me he was downstairs and ready to drive us to dinner. I recognized the voice and told Jake we would be right down. Jake was a secret service man and he and I were often on assignments together when I was still attached to the service. We greeted each other warmly and I casually asked if Jim had given him my number, he chuckled and told me that it was only given to him and one other person, when I asked who else had my number, he told me it had been given to the president, as he had a valid reason for having it, as I would soon find out.

We were not driven to the big porticoed entrance you see dignitaries being greeted at, we were driven to a side entrance where a marine in dress uniform acted as doorman and held the very heavy door for us as Bill and I, with Jake at our heels, were shown into a rather large hall while someone else drove off in the car we had arrived in. Jake gave several nods to the marine guards and the atmosphere became more relaxed, as I guessed we had been verified and cleared by Jake. We were escorted to an elevator and taken to the family quarters for the First Family. There in a very nice but casual living room we were presented to the President and his son Kevin. Kevin and Bill seemed to hit it off right away and the President made us feel welcome. He immediately walked away a short distance from us and took Bill with him. He expressed his heartfelt condolences to Bill and they returned with the President’s arm over Bill’s shoulders and asked Kevin to give Bill the 50 cent tour, but not to take longer that 45 minutes, as dinner would be served soon. The entire time all this was happening I couldn’t take my eyes off the man.

For a man who had just turned 50 he certainly didn’t look it. He was about my height, about 6’3″ and almost my build. His light brown hair was peppered with a few white ones, but his handsome face was unlined and his medium gray eyes sparkled in amusement as he noticed I was checking him out, as he was checking me over. How he got those chinos to fit so tight in the mid section and thighs was beyond me. As he handed me a glass of wine he said, “A really good tailor”, that was all until we sat kitty corner in a pair of wing chairs and commenced to take sips from our wine glasses. He spoke, I listened, “John, I hope I’m not being too familiar, having just met you, but could you drop the Mr. President crap and call me Wayne? I’d feel more comfortable with that, especially considering we’re about to get into some really personal stuff here in a minute, and I really don’t want to put you off. To begin with I’ve been briefed about you, probably the second or third day I was in office. I totally agree that you are a valued asset to this country and I want you to know from me, that almost all your assignments have come with the sanction of the most trusted men and women in our government. I know you don’t know this but your mission in Uganda was a present to my son from me. He had seen newscasts about the plight of the children over there and we, together, decided what had to be done, so through the organization you most hired out to we made the decision on your mission. Your current proposed mission is one we, as a country, need to happen, as unobtrusively as possible. There is already a shadow government formed and it is prepared to assist in any way necessary, as is our government. I realize your reluctance to accept help in any way, but this mission is vital to preserve what peace there is over there and to not have a specific finger to point at any one country, or individual, involved in any way. You are most defiantly a secret weapon, one your current president is proud to have you working under.”

He was blushing at that last remark, and I felt myself chubbing up at his double entendre. He noticed and it was my turn to blush a bit. Bill and Kevin arrived back in the room at that point and they went over to the wet bar for a soda or two and Wayne patted my hand and said we’d talk more later. He pulled his hand back quickly, but both of us had felt the tingle from that first brief intimate touch. Jim and Jake were across the large room, out of earshot, and both smiled when they saw the reactions on our faces. The boys were back, each with a small bottle of ginger ale and Bill was explaining why the ginger ales were a wiser choice than the colas to Kevin. I had introduced Bill to Jim and Jake already, as former co-workers, and I was pleased to see that they both had an easy relationship with not only Kevin, but the president (Wayne) as well.

During dinner, where we all became more casual, Kevin asked Bill what he was doing from now until school opened in about three weeks, and Bill replied that we might be taking a trip to Asia before school started. Wayne heard that and asked if Kevin would like to go along. I just about threw up on the White House family dining room table. Wayne was so casual about it and Kevin looked right at Bill and said he’d love to.

After dinner we split up again and the young men went to do something on the computer in Kevin’s room and Jim and Jake sat in with Wayne and I in Wayne’s private office. Jim told me that this was a soundproofed room, and there was a sweep for bugs every day, two or three times a day, depending on how many visitors the private quarters got on a given day. Wayne said he had a proposition for me (again I started chubbing up) and let him get it all out before I interrupted him. I nodded and encouraged him to start. He said he had had a meeting with the Chinese ambassador and he could arrange a trip for me, the two boys, and a security detail to go to China to visit some of the provinces there and one of the ones mentioned was Shenyang. He said the group would not be escorted by Chinese government nationals, but by employees of the US embassy in Peking, some of which were Chinese and some American. The visit would happen in about 10 days and last for four to five days. The boys would be home for three days before school started. Wayne explained that not only did he know, and the secret service know, but the Chinese government was hoping someone could eliminate Jong-Un before he started World War 3. He told me that the Chinese ambassador had offered any assistance that we needed, they just didn’t want to be acknowledged as having helped in any way. Wayne told me that in addition to Jim and Jake there would be about five other trained men with us from Special Ops, who would be outwardly posing as secret service, and that the entire operation was mine, I would be the leader of all agents and the boys. My fee would be met and paid by both China and the USA. He was entrusting me with his only child’s life.

I asked if we could talk privately and he asked Jim and Jake to wait outside for now. When we were alone he didn’t return to his desk chair, he sat right next to me and looked me in the eye, awaiting my response. I told him that there seemed to be a lot of support for this mission, and it was my understanding that they didn’t want an international uproar over the mission, and that they were asking me to accomplish this, as much on my own as possible just for that reason, so no one could point a finger at any one country for bringing Jong-Un to his ultimate end. Wayne agreed that that was the point in hiring an independent to do the work and he and everyone involved with this mission were 100% behind me, just not publicly. He then did the darnedest thing, he reached out and touched my arm again, and he let his hand rub from my wrist to my elbow. There was an immediate reaction, but this time it wasn’t static electricity, it was as if something like a vibrator was passing up my skin, with a tingling sensation along with the caress. He was looking in my baby blues as I saw the gray in his eyes deepen in color. My eyes never left his, but my other arm came up and my hand cupped the back of his head as I drew his moist lips to mine.

We kissed like our lips and mouths were made for just each other. When we did break away from each other we were both a little out of breath and he whispered in my ear, “Can we arrange a night together before you go?” I told him he might have to do the arranging and he said, “Since I’m entrusting my son to you, and I certainly want to see you, even when you return, how about we be seen together casually, like you and Bill come to Camp David with us this weekend? We’ll let it be known the boys are friends from school and I am considering you for a position in my administration.”

I quietly asked just what position he intended for me as I snaked my arms around him and instigated another long, tongue filled kiss. When we broke from that one the look of lust was in our eyes and it took some time for us both to calm down, and as we did I think we both came to the realization that this just wasn’t the time or the place. Wayne asked me if he could send a car for us Friday morning, as he and Kevin would be ready to leave by 10 AM. I told him that we’d be ready by 9:30 at the very latest. He gave me a quick kiss and then we went out to the living room, after making sure we were all put together.

We spoke as if we would continue our talk over the weekend, and Jake went to get the boys. Jim kind of smiled at me and we soon all gathered and said our thank yous and goodbyes. On the drive home Jake told us that he would pick us up at 9:30 Friday morning and he would be accompanying us as would Jim. Bill asked what we were talking about and I told him we had been invited to Camp David for the weekend. He sat there grinning the rest of the way home.

When we got inside the apartment Bill told me that he had gotten to kiss Kevin, that he had felt not only a mutual attraction, but they both felt a spark or tingle when they had been introduced and had shaken hands. I laughed and when he started to look crestfallen I reached out and grabbed him in a hug and told him I wasn’t laughing at him, I was laughing because the same thing had happened when Wayne and I had touched each other. He stood there staring at me and said, “You and the President?” I said to him, “You and the First Kid?”

We were laughing now and we gave each other a hug. We talked over our coming weekend at Camp David and I told him about my talk with Wayne and what he was offering as far as getting us in and out of China. Bill said he wasn’t sure he liked the idea of using a visit by the son of the president as cover for getting into a foreign country, but I explained that we were not planning anything for anyone in China, we were just using the transportation offered to get to Ken so he could help us get into North Korea and get out again.

The rest of our talk was about our upcoming weekend and what we could end up doing there. I told Bill that it was really a big ranch style house with kind of a dog leg shape with one end the bedroom wing and the other the sun-room, kitchen, dining, and living-room. There were two big terraces out front and out back there were; a swimming pool, a one hole gold course with several different teeing off spots around the green. There were several guest cottages beyond the pool area, all of this in a woodland setting. There were separate quarters for the security detail, a couple of tennis courts and usually horseback riding. The retreat was first used by FDR and every president since have used it to one extent or another. I told Bill it wouldn’t be my first visit, since the retreat was used in 2012 by president Obama as the meeting site for the G8 summit meeting that year and I had been assigned to Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to assist her security detail.

I hope everyone enjoys this story, enough to write to our New Author, Art West. ArtWest at CastleRoland dot Net