The Natural Order by R.A. Zilber (e manga reader TXT) 📕

on the ground, and don’t pick the fruit from the four corners of the orchard.” And in the dream she remembered asking the man, “Why? Why not the corners?”
And he answered, “Never cut corners. Never in the field, and never in life,” then she awoke.
When Rachel entered the coffee shop, Detective Noonan approached her from the back of the shop. “I will come straight to the point. I have evidence pointing to your involvement with a central figure of my investigation. We suspect Adam Brahms made investments using illegally solicited data.” Rachel felt bolts of adrenalin shoot through her body.
“Do you have a court order, Detective Noonan?”
“Would you like me to obtain one?” he asked. “Ms. Laban, in less than an hour, I can produce a court order that will prevent you from leaving the country.”
Rachel remained cool saying, “You are going after the wrong person.”
“Are you denying that Adam is your brother in law?” Rachel felt dizzy; she had never met Jake’s brother. The brothers haven’t spoken since their father died.” He handed Rachel his card, “when you are ready to talk, call me.” Rachel ran back to the residence, and called Adam’s cell, “Adam,” she said, controlling her impulse to scream.
“Yes.” Adam’s unemotional voice answered.
“The treasury is investigation us. The investigator said you are Jake’s brother,” she hissed.
“I returned to collect what is mine—my birthright.” “Rachel--both of us lost. You gave everything to Leila’s family, your youth, your love, and your time. Now, you are alone—an orphan—forsaken by the very ones you love and gave everything to. Rachel, with me, you can have whatever you want.” In a low, deliberate voice, he said, “I have set a side a passport and a ticket to Switzerland, just in case this type of thing happens. Come with me.”
Rachel interrupted, “No, Adam, that’s not how I am. My answer is and always will be—no!” Adam heard her hang up--then a deathly silence.
When Michael called Jake to tell him everything, he set an avalanche of events in motion. All night Jake wrestled with guilt about taking his brothers place at his father’s deathbed. When he met with Adam, he told him about Rachel, Leila, and his children. But the moment of clarity came when Jake said, “Greater civilizations fell before ours and it is inevitable that ours will follow suit. Without society’s constraints, people are capable of eating their young--as savage animals. By observing traditions and rituals of the book and teaching those to our children, regardless of the circumstance—we remain rooted in humanity.”
Before the brothers parted, Adam told Jake that he gave Rachel suicide pills, he said, “if the pills are swallowed whole they will harmlessly pass through the digestive tract producing only an appearance of death, but if they are crushed between the molars -- they will release a fast-acting poison. I told her to swallow them,” Adam voice was filled with remorse.
Jake was minutes away from the residence when Detective Noonan knocked on Rachel’s door, “Ms. Laban, I know you’re in there. It’s useless to stall; I will have a search warrant within the hour. Open the door!”
Her nerves wound to the highest pitch of tension, she emptied the contents of the small black box, remembering Adams words, “and death will come quick and painless.” In a moment of weakness Rachel swallowed the rubber-covered ampoules. She stretched out on the floor, closed her eyes, and whispered,
“Shema Israel, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Ehad,” but the last word came out as “Ehath.” As her breath became quick and shallow, she experienced an overwhelming feeling of regret.
Detective Noonan’s rookie partner Davis sprung out of elevator, waving the warrant,
“I got it! I got it!” Noonan grabbed the warrant out of Davis’s hand, tearing it slightly.
“Let me see,” Noonan jerked the warrant out of Davis' hand tearing the top part in such a way, that one half of the warrant remained in Davis's hand.
He formed his hand into a fist, pounded on the door, blaring, “Open up, I have a search warrant. Open the damn door, I say.”
Davis produced a plastic room key and opened the door. Rachel’s lifeless body was sprawled across the floor, next to her lay a sheet of paper, and one brown rubber ampoule. Noonan, grabbed the sheet and read aloud,
Detective Noonan,
Stalemate! You win!
-R
“Bitch! Bitch! Goddammit,” Noonan raved while Davis checked Rachel for signs of life. The rookie detective flinched when Noonan kicked Rachel’s body spitting at it, “All my work came to nothing! Nothing! I have no goddamn case with that bitch dead.
“Let me at least try CPR, maybe she is still alive,” Davis said almost pleading.
Uhg! Noonan picked up the brown rubber ampoule, and said, “She’s dead—these are cyanide pills. I’ve seen them during my OPS officer days with the CIA,” Noonan said, his voice filled with disgust. “And don’t even think of calling the paramedics, a scandal like this can cost a man his career. I want a promotion not a demotion. Leave this trash for the garbage collectors—the Metro police.Understood! Now let’s get the hell out of here.” Davis bowed his head and shuffled his feet, following Noonan out of the room.
Minutes later in the residence’s basement, two men pushed a gurney into the rear of a service van and closed the rear gate. Inside the van, a woman positioned one electrode hand over Rachel’s right breast and the other under the left breast. The man stood back as Rachel’s body jerked from the voltage. The woman produced an auto-injector syringe, made a fist around it, swung back her fist, and thrust the syringe into Rachel’s heart. For five long minutes they took turns administering CPR before Rachel’s vital signs stabilized. The blows from Detective Noonan’s sharp pointed shoe caused agonizing pain in Rachel’s hip. As she slipped in and out of consciousness,she heard “passport,” “today,”
“no time.”
Five hours later Jake wheeled a heavily sedated Rachel through the security gate at JFK airport. The TSA officer returned the passports to Jake, and in a thick southern accent, mispronouncing their new names, said —Isra-EL, take good care of that there LE-Aah. Ya’ll come back now. Y'hear!”


--End--


Imprint

Publication Date: 10-25-2009

All Rights Reserved