The Hidden Agenda Read online

  After going through a limitless number of family photos, few too many glasses of wine, Jack and Julie always ended a night with their favourite memory.

  About age five, Julie lost her first tooth and had come home crying and scared. One of the kids from her kindergarten class had frightened her. He told Julie a horror story about the blood and pain that followed the tooth loss. Jack, acting as a caring big brother, had gone after the little kid who had scared his baby sister. Only to find out that little kid had a much older and stronger brother, who punched Jack in the face. Marvin came home to find his two grandkids crying loudly. The babysitter had given up and was sitting in the corner, eagerly waiting for Marvin. Jack's father, David, was away for work at the time. Marvin sat down both children.

  He first turned to Julie, "Sweetie, you know how trees grow?"

  Julie innocently nodded in negation. Marvin gave her a big smile. "You know every year; trees shed their leaves, and their seeds fall on the ground. They go through a lot of pain in doing that. But after a few months, do you know what happens?"

  Both Julie and Jack had stopped crying and were listening to Marvin with curiosity. Marvin continued, "After a few months, trees grow back much stronger and fresh leaves. Seeds break from trees every year to grow stronger trees."

  Julie and Jack looked at Marvin with astonishment. Marvin said, "Honey, you are going to grow back so powerful teeth that they do not break for a very long time."

  Marvin then picked up Julie and sat her on his lap. He turned to Jack, "And you, little man, it was very noble to protect your sister. But you know words and not fists win the biggest fights."

  A long silence always followed this memory. Jack and Julie both recollected this memory as root to their strong family bond.

  As weeks passed, the cases of the virus infections were growing. Julie was starting to work long hours. Two weeks after Marvin's death, the hospitals asked all the health care workers to be on-site for twenty-four hours. The nurses, doctors, the administrative staff were assigned sleeping quarters and slept only four hours. The medical team was mandated to treat patients without thinking of their health. She was not allowed to have any human contact other than hospital staff and patients.

  The loneliness was hitting Jack hard. Many evenings he would come home and sit in Marvin's favourite chair. Back when Jack was still in the academy, and Julie was in the nursing school, Marvin used to spend evenings sitting on a chair on the patio, overlooking the streets. He exchanged pleasantries with the strollers and always made them smile. Jack realized, spending evenings on the patio and just saying "hello" to people helped him kill time. In the past, Jack had always complained about that same old chair. He was annoyed by the squeaking noise the chair made and how Marvin never fixed it. Jack soon understood the reason. The sound helped Jack reduce the volume of his sad thoughts. It acted as a melody in his head.

  One of the days, Jack was sitting on the patio, lost in his thoughts, when an elderly couple walked past him. The couple approached him, "Son, are you okay?"

  Finding it very difficult to say the actual words, Jack just nodded.

  The couple looked at Jack's expression and saw the grief in them. "Son, we knew Marvin for a long time. We were his guests at Sunday barbecue parties for the last twenty years. He touched our lives on so many levels," the older lady said in a very sympathetic voice. Jack felt a pride rising through his heart. He always looked forward to hear good stories about his grandfather.

  Jack did not know how to respond. He was still getting used to talking about his late grandfather with strangers. The old man continued with a comforting voice, "This might be too much to ask, son, but if it is possible, please keep the restaurant running and keep the barbecue parties going. I am sure all of Marvin's guests would chip in to work. I think it will be a great honour to Marvin's memories."

  Jack gave a big smile to the old couple, "It sounds wonderful. I will think about it. I promise." Jack had loved the idea. For the first time in two weeks, Jack felt closer to his grandfather. He decided to follow through with this idea, once the government allows public gatherings.

  It had been six weeks since Jack lost his grandfather. It had been six weeks since he had seen his sister, who was now called in Markham General Hospital near Toronto to help with the workload. Jack was just growing accustomed to this new normalcy of the world. Even though he was sick of hearing anything about the pandemic that caused havoc in his life, he turned on the news channel.

  Now the number of people infected with the virus was over five million worldwide. The death count was over three hundred thousand. The epicentre of the virus had moved from Wuhan, China to New York City. The virus had reached over one hundred and fifty countries. Italy and Spain were reportedly hit worst in Europe, with over fifty thousand deaths combined. Most of the countries were on a nationwide lockdown. All the states were still implementing social distancing laws. Jack was annoyed at the fact that the media overused the term. He understood the importance of it, but the press had changed that term into a hashtag and some kind of a game. The businesses were now closed for more than two months all over the world, and the world economy was collapsing slowly, one day at a time.

  Jack warmed up an onion soup and changed the channel and started listening to country music. His love for country music began in his childhood when Marvin introduced him to the music of Don Gibson. Jack was tapping his feet to the tunes when his phone started ringing. It was Chief Arjun Singh calling.

  Jack had not talked to the Chief since the day he was demoted. Jack was ashamed of his behaviour and thought he had let Chief down. Arjun Singh had managed to pull Jack out of trouble. He gathered the courage and answered the phone, "Hello Chief, how are you doing?"

  Chief's voice sounded tired. He instantly said, "Not so well, Jack. Listen, you need to report to Ottawa tomorrow at 3 PM. You will meet Commissioner Ryder there. Just go directly to HQ, report to reception, and they will guide you further. Carry your passport and clothes for three days. Do not ask any questions, because I do not have any answers. Do you see any problem going tomorrow?"

  Jack was taken aback by this sudden and weird request. He took a deep breath, and answered, "No problem Chief, I will be there."

  He sat there with a phone in one hand and a spoon filled with onion soup in the other hand. Millions of thoughts were running through his mind. He just could not land on a single idea. He kept wondering about the agenda of the meeting. Then fear struck Jack's mind. What if his negligence a few weeks back was coming to haunt him? What if the department had decided to discipline him for a moment of stupidity? He started playing various scenarios with Commissioner Ryder and a disciplinary committee in his head.

  He had seen Commissioner Ryder only once during his graduation at the academy. He had read about him in papers. He had seen him give interviews now and then on television. Meeting him in person was something he never imagined.

  Jack gathered his thoughts and decided to leave Huntsville at around 9 AM. It was only a four-hour drive, but he decided to catch up with his sister in Markham for an early lunch. It would be an hour detour, but he never questioned the worth of an extra drive.

  Chapter 5

  Like every day, Jack got up at 5 AM and went for a run. Jack was an early riser since college days. He never was a party person, but Jack attended a few late-night drinking competitions in his senior year of college. He was always happy to lose in the first round. The parties went on late, and Jack was always humble enough to stay till the end. Still, the next morning he woke up early for his workout.

  Jack ate his favourite breakfast, oatmeal, and raisin and put on his uniform. He wanted today to go well. Even though he had opposed superstition for all of his life, Jack thought doing his favourite things would help him with the luck he needed. Jack left for Ottawa around 9 AM as planned. He was anxious to learn the reason for the meeting but excited about meeting his sister.

  Jack thought, he should buy a gift for Julie to help he
r through these tough times. He went to the local gift shop. As Jack pulled up in front of the shop, he saw that the shop was closed due to lockdowns. He felt foolish. Jack thought that, as a law enforcement officer, he should have known about the closure of all the shops. He still was determined to bring Julie something. He rushed back home and started going through old photo albums. Jack pulled out his favourite photo of him and Julie from their childhood.

  Jack looked at the photo, and he remembered the occasion. The picture was from Julie's second birthday. Marvin had tried to force-feed the cake to Julie, and she had started crying. Jack had one of his arms around Julie, and he was wiping Julie's tears with his second hand. He smiled, looking at the photo. Jack felt nice to relive a happy memory after a long time. He took one of the frames from his nightstand, replaced the picture, and slid the frame in his bag. He was even more excited to meet his baby sister.

  About a half-hour into the drive, Jack tried calling Julie, but it went straight to voicemail. His sadness was complimenting the gloom on the roads. It was Monday morning, but there was no rush on the ON-400 highway, known as one of the busiest routes in Southeast Ontario. There was minimal truck traffic. Jack did not feel like he was going towards the biggest city of Canada, a city of Toronto. Jack had driven to Toronto number of times with Marvin to eat one of Jack's favourite dish - Poutine. Jack liked it with extra cheese and extra gravy.

  He was about fifteen minutes away from Markham General when he decided to call his sister again. Again, the call went straight to voicemail. He decided to leave a voicemail this time.

  "Hi, Julie, I am about to reach the hospital. I hope you can make it for a quick bite. No pressure. I will wait for about half-hour before I have to leave for Ottawa. Text me when you get this message."

  Jack had left a very calm and mature message, but deep inside, he was anxiously hoping to get an answer back from Julie. As he approached the entrance of the hospital, the security officer stopped him. It was not regular hospital security, but an officer of York Regional Police.

  "Hello, Officer, how is it going?"

  "Hello, what is the reason for your visit?"

  "I am here to see my sister."

  "I am sorry, Sir, personal visits are not allowed at this moment. You will have to wait in the parking lot of the strip mall across the road. Please instruct your sister to meet you there. I am sorry again, but these are extraordinary circumstances."

  Jack felt a sudden poke to his ego, but now Jack knew better than to pick a fight. He wanted today to be a perfect day, lunch with Julie, and a good meeting with the commissioner.

  He took the photo from his bag and asked the officer, "Hey man, can you do me a favour? My sister works as a nurse here, and I want to have her this picture. Would you be able to pass it on? Her name is Julie Wilson."

  Officer's face fell. He hated this part of the job. Lately, this Officer had become the bearer of sad news to many of the citizens. "I am extremely sorry, Sir. We are not allowed to go inside the hospital unless it is an emergency. I cannot help you. I am truly, and extremely sorry," the Officer said with as much politeness as possible.

  Jack's heart sank. He had expected this response, but it still hurt. He looked at the photo and slid it back into the bag. He looked at the Officer, "I understand. Thank you for your service, comrade. I am expecting to hear from my sister. Is there a safe place I can wait for her?"

  The Officer pointed at the strip mall across the road and said, "You can wait in the parking lot of the mall. You are in uniform, so should not be an issue."

  Jack thanked him again and prayed with all his heart for Julie to call him back. All the shops were closed except for a small local pharmacy. He parked his car in an empty parking lot and put on some of the Don Gibson's classics while anxiously waiting for his sister.

  His phone beeped with a new alert. He excitingly took out his phone, hoping for a text from his sister. But it was only a notification of breaking news. At first, Jack ignored the alert, assuming that there is some sad update on the virus and new numbers of infections and deaths. But something in the headline caught his attention. Jack opened the app and read the headline,

  "China has announced that Wuhan Pharma Ltd., a subsidiary of Ziyuan Group of Companies, is very close to rolling out the vaccine for COVID-19."

  Jack continued to read further in the hopes of finding some closure to this tragedy. The article continued,

  "In the past few days, various health agencies are working round the clock to find a cure for the virus. The virus has brought the whole world to its knees. Humanity has been struck with a blow by mother nature and confined to their dwellings."

  Jack mentally told the writer to get to the point. He impatiently hopped through to the final paragraph,

  "Finally, the world might have some good news. Wuhan Pharma, the Chinese juggernaut in the pharma industry is claiming to roll out the vaccine as early as two weeks for human use.

  Rumour is that the Chinese government will engage in several trade wars. The communist country will use this vaccine as leverage with the world to reduce tariffs from countries like the US."

  As the article took a political turn, Jack lost interest. He checked his messages, but Julie had still not responded to him. He was worried about her but was positive, thinking she is just working and doing her duty as a responsible health professional. Jack texted Julie, "Have to leave for Ottawa. Talk to you later. Take care!"

  He decided not to think more into her situation and started the car to leave for Ottawa.

  Chapter 6

  Jack pulled up into the parking lot of RCMP headquarters half an hour earlier than planned, thanks to the empty roads. Having skipped lunch, he thought he should eat if he does not want his stomach to make any growling noises in the meeting. He asked the receptionist for directions to the cafeteria.

  As soon as he entered the cafeteria, he saw a beautiful young blonde lady eating a sandwich by herself. The lady was reading a few papers, probably some reports, Jack assumed.

  The woman was in her early thirties, a blonde with a perfect build. She was wearing a white lab coat, a redshirt, and a knee-length black skirt. Her beauty was radiant, and Jack certainly was awestruck by her beauty.

  She looked up and saw Jack staring at her. Feeling embarrassed by his schoolboy behaviour, Jack gave her a weak smile, which she returned. Jack kept his head down for the rest of the walk to the vending machine. He found a tuna sandwich and thought it might do for lunch.

  Jack was sitting three tables down the blonde lady. He was searching on the web to find more information on the vaccine for the virus. As he opened up an article, Jack was little jolted by a sudden touch of the big hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw an old classmate, Bryan Fowler, looking down on him with a big smirky smile on his face. Jack had hated Bryan in the academy. Although Bryan never qualified to be a bully, he had made Jack's life a little uncomfortable by calling him a nerd all of his first year in the academy. Bryan was a year senior to Jack.

  Bryan's smile widened, "Jack, my nerdy, how are you, man? I thought you were too good for Ottawa. What are you doing here?"

  Jack did not want to engage in the conversation with Bryan but was out of options. He gave Bryan a fake smile and said, "Hey Bryan, how are you? I am so glad to run into you." Bryan failed to recognize the sarcasm. One could argue that Bryan was just a piece of meat, with an empty slot for the brain, suited only for fieldwork.

  Unwillingly Jack continued small talk with Bryan for fifteen minutes or so. Jack thought that today's lunch was cursed. He laughed at his fate. Jack had dreamed of having lunch with his baby sister but ended up having to sit through a painful conversation with Bryan.

  He looked around to check on the blonde woman, but she was not around anymore. At 2:45 pm, Jack reported back to the reception. The receptionist showed him the way to the briefing room.

  Jack was delighted by the size of the police headquarters and the decor of the briefing room. The room had sub
stantial French windows on one side, where you could see the parking lot outside and, on the other, had a glass wall. The room reminded him of the corporate board rooms he had seen on his favourite TV show, Suits. He was patiently waiting for Commissioner Ryder. At precisely 3 pm, Commissioner Ryder and two women walked into the briefing room. As soon as they walked in, one of the women closed the drapes on the glass wall.

  Commissioner Ryder was a black bald man in his late fifties. He exhibited confidence and power while walking and standing. He was the type of person who you respect, just by looking at him. Commissioner Ryder had a decorative career so far. He started as a street policeman in Toronto in the early eighties. He rose to Commissioner of one of the most respected law enforcement agencies in Canada.

  Jack stood up and saluted the Commissioner. Commissioner extended his hand and said, "Thank you for coming Inspector. First of all, I want to thank you for all the amazing work you have done in the past few weeks. I am sorry about the loss of your grandfather."

  Jack could not figure out how he knew about his grandfather and also was wondering if the Commissioner had just taunted him on the demotion.

  Jack keeping straight posture, shook Commissioner's hand, "Thank you, Commissioner. It is an honour to serve and to be here."

  "Please, have a seat."

  Jack sat down in his chair as Commissioner, and two ladies relaxed into their chairs.