Christian Pov
I finally got that damn cast off my leg from the crash. What a fucking pain in the ass. Now, I can bathe with my girl, swim with my girl and go running once the weather clears up in spring with my girl and not have to wrap it up every time. She may not be up for running though by then. She'll have a cute baby belly by then. God, I'm never going to stop grinning and imagining my Anastasia with a round little belly protecting my little girl. She protects me just by surrounding me with herself. She is starting to get a bump now at almost four months at the beginning of February. It's so cute.
Work has been busy and we all have been working hard. Anastasia jumped some asses in finance, because of wrong figures she caught them sending her. Boy, her mind is sharp catching stupid mistakes before she submits them to Roz and I. It's been nothing but a win-win situation since hiring her in July.
July, I can't believe it's been six months and everything we have lived through, gone through and experienced has led me here. A totally happy, fulfilled and changed man with a loving wife, happy family and a baby on the way. If someone would have told me three months before my hurricane kitten landed, I would never have believed them and called them insane. My life has done a 180 degree turnaround. I'm damn glad she didn't hate me the day I scared her in my old playroom, that is now a nursery. My stress just vanishes when she touches me. All I have to do is find her wherever she is and it's gone.
John Flynn was at the wedding and he said he never saw me so happy. He said that if Anastasia ever wanted a job as a psychologist or psychiatrist, she could easily obtain a master's degree and license. To just give him a call. He said she has done more in four months at that time than he did in all the years trying to help me. I told him it took her less than a week to change me. Flynn laughed so hard. He said she is my miracle, so hold on with both hands and never doubt it. I never have and never will.
It's Saturday night and I get my weekly Anastasia cooked dinner. She is making me Bacon Pear Parmesan Salad with Parmesan Dressing, Cornish Hens with Wild Rice Mushrooms Stuffing, and an Ultimate Chocolate Cake with four layers, whipped chocolate filling between the layers and chocolate rich ganache and shaved chocolate on top. That cake was by far the best I have ever eaten anywhere in the world. I love Saturday dinners, because she is an expert chef. Gail is outstanding but my Anastasia makes time to make weekend breakfast, lunch and dinner menus just for me. If she takes off on a weekend or wants to go out, now and then, I get to take her out on the town and show her off. Life is good.
Anastasia is taking me finally to her father's home in Montesano. We packed up for a weekend and took Taylor with us. Anastasia asked him to go because he might find it interesting being he is security. She wouldn't give him anything more in detail about it all week, which was funny because it drove Taylor nuts being teased by her. He kept asking if I knew what she meant by interesting? I said I'm just as blind going there as he is. It was like Taylor had an anxious itch in his brain.
We drove down to a rural area and turned off the highway to a narrow paved two lane road that wound around in the woods. We turned into a hidden driveway only made for one vehicle. I was surprised it wasn't snow laden. But Anastasia said that the pavement is made with Conductive Concrete that is controlled at the house. We reached a gate. Anastasia opened her door, jumped out and typed in a code that opened the gates and she hurried and jumped back in.
She said, "Hurry Taylor there are In-Ground Directional Traffic Spikes for the next 200 yards on a pop up timer." He floored it to get past the area.
She said, "Just pull up to the side of the house Taylor. The perimeter fencing and gate are all electrified with barbed wire above the fourteen foot mark and a six foot cement rat wall. Nobody is getting in my daddy's property conventionally. There are 160 acres of land we own, with 4 acres squared as our compound that's fenced with a self-sustaining pond fed by a spring. Everything has trigger laser technology that all act like hunting cameras and I am notified of any activity that triggers. I see mostly ducks, geese, and various birds. The software updates and the house's interior conditions on my phone app. It is basically a military fortress only accessible by helicopter." We get out of the SUV and grab our bags and food. She walks up to the door and swipes a card and does a retinal scanner. This is syfy shit. Wow. The door clicks and we walk into the perfect hunting lodge with vaulted ceilings, open floor plan, all cedarwood, and flannel.
She looked over at me and said, "We have a 2007 Eurocopter EC 130B4, Six passenger, 3,036 pounds, capacity of 5,512 pounds, 147 mph, 140 gallon fuel capacity, Single Turbomeca Arriel 2D turboshaft engine, 710 kW (950 hp) engine, 337 mile distance. Before you ask, yes, he taught me how to fly it." My jaw hit the floor. I just stared at her. I didn't think I had a copilot and married her. She never said a word during the crash. Anastasia took the food to the state of the art kitchen. I want to live here and fly to work. When I get Charlie Tango back or buy an exact duplicate of him, I want us to live here.
She says slowly, "I didn't tell you but, you never wondered why I went after the radio without questions on how it works when we crashed. You didn't ask if I knew the fuel bladders were in the tail end and floor that was ripped away from us. We had more important things on our minds. I knew going after Ryan in the other half of the helicopter was dangerous and it could have exploded. It hadn't that point and I had to know if he was alive. We should have all been dead from that crash, you know. It could never happen with that ending, the same way ever again. It was a genuine miracle." I know that and if it would have been anybody else but her with us, we all would have died of exposure. Her personal phone was the only one that even worked.
I said, "I know it was a one in a million shot that we survived. God and the universe were on our side that day."
She said, "So you know for future use, I know about design and maintenance pertaining to helicopters, specifically Eurocopter 130's too. Daddy told me if I'm ever in a crash to secure myself, check for environmental safety conditions, then check on others before trying to get help. He said then survival preparations can begin afterwards. Fuel leaking will kill you quicker after a crash no matter how safe they say the bladders are. He said you just get the hell away from that fuel as fast and far as you can. The bladders were leaking from somewhere when I rescued Ryan from the seat he was trapped in and led him back to us. That flying you did was some fancy footwork and God's hand on us all. Ryan should have exploded with all that fuel and one spark and with him trapped next to it all." She walked up and kissed me. I held her closely, thanking God we lived through it. Anastasia was my good luck talisman.
Taylor yells, "Ana, what's in this computer room!" She giggled and pulled me with her. The room was full of monitors, keyboards and blinking lights on modems.
She says, "It's a computer room." She starts pointing out everything. "This is environmental interior control, exterior perimeter control, security control, and weapons control. Each system has sub categories like, security is locks, doors, laser triggers, scanners, gate and wall monitoring/night vision surveillance, interior surveillance. It is a perfect smart house like I said. The environmental controls are monitored 24/7. I know through the WiFi system if the interior temperature is at a constant 70 degrees and if I need to switch from heat to central air conditioning. The septic tank is self-sustaining, the water is on well and a purification filtration system." I think Taylor just wet himself on this house.
She said, "We have a separate building for my daddy's carpentry, another for animals we never got because daddy died before he could get some chickens and pigs, another is a gym for practicing and working out. There are two more that are vacant and he never figured what they should be. They would make a nice security living space. They're pretty nice buildings, and are just unfinished. They are all attached by an underground tunnel system to get to each building going outside and an escape tunnel that leads out to a hidden tunnel outside the perimeter that has a locked door that is off grid and camouflaged. The tunnels are in three foot concrete cement and solar powered led lighting down there. Most of the energy that powers everything is collected by self heating solar panels and wind turbines, and hydro turbines that generate energy from falling water in the pond. There is a big building with generators, back up generators, battery storage all tied into the system. He has the system setup for notification when at the end of warranty. So far in three years there has been an issue with needing maintenance yet. My daddy spent millions in his inheritance on designing this property over six years with some security ties to the Pentagon of state of the art technology ahead of its time in development. Basically it's governmentally sanctioned technology. My father had friends and connections with everyone in tech, government and outside companies. Everyone loved him, but I think he saved lives and did things I'll never know about for the right people that got him clearance to make this a reality. It was his dream for us. I miss my Daddy." She frowned. She walked away back to the kitchen.
I knew she was hurting. I went to find her and get her to talk to me. I sat at the counter as Anastasia made some tea and a pot of coffee. She was quiet. She unpacked the bags of food we brought with us. She put it all organized on a section of the countertop. She put the refrigerated meat and dairy in the nice stainless steel refrigerator. The whole kitchen was done in stainless steel.
After a while as she stayed silent, she handed me a cup of coffee and took Taylor a cup. She came back and made her tea. She sat next to me at the counter and dipped her teabag instantly pulling it out.
She softly said, "He was the strongest man I ever knew, with a mind that most admired. He knew so much about anything and everything. He was irreplaceable. The world lost a truly rare person when he left it. I was so very all alone taking care of everything and tying up loose ends. He told me that he built this all for me because he always wanted me to have a safe space in this world in case I needed it. He left me a million dollar inheritance and a million dollar life insurance policy. He made sure…. I… I could survive alone with all the money he invested here. The pond is stocked with fish, ducks, there are wild berries, mushrooms, wild onions and plenty of room for a garden. My daddy thought of everything but one thing….. him." She broke down crying in her tea. I turned and took her in my arms holding her and letting her cry it out. I carried her to the couch and held her in my lap gently rocking her.
She told me that she hadn't been here in nine months and he died on November 15, 2008. She was in the middle of her degrees at school and had to settle his estate and funeral all alone living with that bitch Kate. He was the only person who she trusted and loved after her horror with her mother. She could rely on only him. Then to lose your anchor and still carry on alone. She was so lonely but never showed or told a soul.
She didn't say a word when the day he died passed the three year mark four days before our wedding day. My angel suffered alone thinking of the father that would never walk her down the aisle. My heart was breaking how she never wanted anyone to know her love for him was so deep. She loves hard and completely. My baby will never be alone again, I swear this to you Ray Steele.
I kissed her tears and carried her to the bedroom and wet a washcloth I found in a linen closet in the bathroom. I knelt on the floor and I wiped her tears gently away. I kissed her soft puffy lips.
She said, "You are my anchor now, my sweet Christian. I love you just as deeply. I am so thankful you filled the huge hole that was in my heart waiting for someone just like you. I knew you were special when I caressed your face in your office trying to help you calm down. I was instantly attracted when we touched hands. It was an electrical current that went up my arm shaking your hand in the lobby of GEH, when I held the door open for you. I thought of you all day and night. My body knew you were the one." I remember it well.
I reached up and caressed her tear stained face. I said, "I remember it well, because I was hit by lightning right in my heart. You'll never be alone again, baby. I'll be right beside you." She reached out and put her fingers in the hair at the back of my head and rubbed it. She leaned down and kissed me softly with her plump soft lips. It was slow and oh so sweet.
We went and made lunch together. She made grilled ham, gruyere cheese, with sauteed mushrooms and red roasted peppers. She bought the best garlic pickles and homemade chicken with vegetable barley soup she made a week ago and froze a container full. We called Taylor to come eat. He tore himself away from the computer room and had lunch.
Taylor said, "I don't know what your father did for our government or the friends and connections he had, but he must have been an invaluable person. The intelligence to build everything on this property is amazing. The high tech equipment that this entire property contains is state of the art and ahead of its time. I think Barney and Welch should see this. They may never leave. It's a perfect home and secure property with all the amenities."
Sarah said, "My daddy was a very brilliant person. He knew everything about anything. A true genius. How he got tied up to my mother I'll never know. He said he fell instantly in love with my chubby cheeks " She giggled. "He was such a sweet loving father and Master Drill Sergeant. I will miss him always. I will do my duty and remember everything he taught me and live my life the way he wanted me too." She had a winsome smile thinking of him.
She said, "I want to live here, Christian we have a helicopter to go to work and back and a couple of them when you get yourself a new one. There's a landing pad and warehouse where the vehicles can be stored. I have a 2009 Cadillac Escalade with all the bells and whistles and two cars at Escala. You have a fleet. We have the perfect house to raise our kids safely. Montesano has a high school, grammar school and kindergarten. A small town is a good place to build character, at least that's what daddy used to say. We can build and convert the spare buildings into living quarters furnished for security and even a separate in for Taylor and Gail. We could get a crew in here to build it?" She was right.
I said, "Tomorrow give us the complete tour ok?" She nodded. We settled in for the rest of our Saturday. I check my emails through her secure WiFi network on my phone. While she sat with Taylor in the computer room and showed him everything and logged into the network. Taylor loved it all.
She came out and started preparing dinner to make, Pan Seared Steak with Garlic Butter, broccoli spears, baked potatoes with sour cream and butter. She brought a tiramisu she made this week. The house smelled delicious. We could only coax Taylor out of the computer room with food, it was hilarious how enthralled he was. Anastasia showed him his room upstairs and we took the one off the living room down stair, it was the master suite. The huge walk in the tub and bathroom was really nice. I know my brother would wet himself looking over this place