When All Else Fails

By Ramsey Austin-Spencer

George and Jessica lived a violent and dangerous life, but when they escaped the CIA and had a son, they disappeared to live life as normal, average people. After years of playing the perfect family, and with their son ready to graduate high school, a series of odd events made Jessica realize the two of them had become complacent and bored. George no longer rushed to her side and bills and business meetings had replaced assassinations and overthrowing governments.

When Jessica and her son are kidnapped by a boy seeking revenge for Jessica killing his father, it sets off a chain reaction that brings her past back and tears her away from her family. George must fight to save her as she is used in an experiment that shatters her mind and corrupts her will so that a man bent on controlling her can use her as a weapon to get what he wants from the CIA.

As the pair battle each other to the death, George has to deal with the fact that if Jessica doesn't kill him, they may never be able to undo the damage Edgar did to her when he injected her with the experimental drug and that she will never again be the woman he loves.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ramsey Austin-Spencer
• Release date: Dec 11, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005127756

Ramsey Austin-Spencer

Ramsey was born in Salt Lake City, UT, raised in Salt Lake City, UT, married and had a family in Salt Lake City, UT and will more than likely die there as well. Don't feel too bad; Ramsey also enjoys traveling to places other than Salt Lake City, UT. In a motor home with a Jeep towing behind it she tours the United States just for fun. An accounting technician by profession (odd, I know), she does payroll for one of the municipal entities in (you guessed it), the Salt Lake City, UT area. Writing is the passion that has driven her since she could pick up a pencil. Receiving her Associate's Degree from Salt Lake Community College, and her Bachelor's Degree from WGU, she continues to work on perfecting her trade by continuing to take classes. Always looking for new educational experiences, she is a certified diver, studied sign language and French, has been in local plays and even went through a Citizen's Police Academy. Two sons and a wonderful husband are the reason you have a chance to read the work Ramsey has written. They encourage, irritate and force her to do better. Hope you enjoy.

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WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS

By: Ramsey Austin-Spencer

2022 Copyright by Ramsey Austin-Spencer

Smashwords Edition

CHAPTER ONE

Gripping the gun with practiced easy pressure, Jessica peered out at where the three men made their way cautiously along the block wall. Keeping low, they protected themselves as well as they could, but it wouldn’t save them.

Adrenaline pumped its way through her body, slowly making her mind clear and focused. Temperature, wind, body weights, heights, sun angle, how each man held his weapon, and how much of a risk they posed, both individually as well as a group, were all calculated and taken into account.

It was clear what needed to be done, and even though she didn’t realize it until now, she’d been waiting for this moment for a while. This was the day she would get to go against George, and the prospect of it thrilled her. Today she would prove herself, and even though she understood that the two of them going against each other meant one of them would lose, she couldn’t stop now and continued forward with the plan. Honestly, she didn’t want to stop because she needed to know how good she truly was and George was the only person who could give that to her.

She never allowed herself the pleasure of indulging in the idea of taking on her husband. They didn’t talk about the body count between the two of them, but she believed he killed substantially more people than she did. He was unsurpassed in his ability to take out enemy combatants, but she held many dangerous talents of her own that didn’t involve such blatant and violent killing. Not that she couldn’t be as ruthless and brutal as he was, but that wasn’t her go-to move like it was his. They both trained to be lethal, and they both excelled at it. It wasn’t a competition up until this point; it was their life. Still, even with his skill, she believed she held an advantage over him in one way. She knew him better than anyone. They’d been together for most of their lives, or at least since she was eighteen. Of course, that meant he knew her as well as she did him and would be prepared for whatever she attempted to do, so she needed to outmaneuver him, which would mean playing dirty. He wouldn’t expect that.

George was a worthy adversary, and there would be no guarantee she could take him out. The chances were great that he would beat her, which is what made this a real competition between the two of them.

Motioning the man to her left, she didn’t perceive he responded quickly enough, so she grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer to her. His eyes spun slightly, and she recognized the fear in his face, but beyond that was a look that told her he was thrilled at the prospect of what was coming. She understood it completely from her first missions with the CIA, however, that energy would need to be harnessed in the amateur and focused to her benefit. You know what you have to do? she questioned him.

Nodding in a gesture that resembled a spasm rather than agreement, she turned to the man on her right to ensure he also remembered what they intended to do prior to getting set up. They would do exactly what she told them to do because they understood her to be very serious. Still, she didn’t anticipate them being capable of adapting to any changes in the situation once things got moving. Being fluid was the key to success, and unfortunately, she’d need to be the one to make any adjustments necessary in the middle of implementing their plan. She wasn’t used to running an operation with unskilled partners, but it couldn’t be helped. This is what she had to work with, and in the end it didn’t matter because she would do whatever it took to succeed in her mission.

George came into sight, and her heart fluttered slightly. He was sexy as hell and skilled. Seeing him this way confirmed for her that she still adored him. He kept concealed behind the woodblocks set up in the field between them and moved with quick and controlled motions to ensure no opening was given to an adversary. It didn’t matter because the men with him were as inept as those sitting next to her, and they would be his downfall. He would allow them to take a certain amount of control of the situation to give them buy-in over the goal he hoped to accomplish. She didn’t make that mistake. She planned every step they took and didn’t care if the men liked it or not. She told them what to do and didn’t wait for any input or complaints. Her intention was to facilitate a shock and awe campaign that wouldn’t leave George any other choice than to engage her, and she doubted he prepared his team the way she prepared hers. He underestimated her desire to win, and she would use it against him.

The first shot by her accomplice wasn’t executed perfectly, but it accomplished what she needed. The shot went wide and struck the wall next to the man on George’s left, but it caused the short, stocky man to panic slightly and move into an exposed position where Jessica could take him out. That brought the second man from George’s team rushing forward, destroying their cohesion. From where she stood, she could see George’s face tighten. He could see the writing on the wall and understood what she attempted to do, but he wouldn’t anticipate this. Jessica ran at him with full speed, firing rapidly the entire time. She took out the man to the right and behind George while the man on her team who remained in cover kept George’s focus diverted by firing randomly. He couldn’t move in either direction to escape the assault.

Once she got close enough and George understood the imminent danger from her, she dropped and rolled as George directed his fire at her, but he couldn’t put himself in a position to get off a clean shot with her team member keeping him pinned down. She barely missed getting struck, but he was good and quickly adjusted. Of course, he anticipated her finding cover at this point, but she was willing to sacrifice everything to win against him and rose up in front of him with her weapon ready. Firing at the same time as he did, they each hit their mark; headshots. Fatal. They both went out, leaving the remaining man on Jessica’s team free to rush in and grab the flag.

Staring at her, he dropped his gun, and she could see his anger. She didn’t expect him to be happy, but this was something else. Irritation creased his face. It was a look she knew well and understood he believed she crossed a line with her plan and that there would be consequences tonight.

Her smile disappeared as she turned away from him and went to congratulate her team on winning the paintball tournament. Both men talked excitedly as they went over to the other participants in the team building program they were participating in and relived their exploits with enthusiastic animation. She was happy the men were thrilled by the outcome of her planning, but she didn’t do it for them. She missed the thrill of planning and executing missions like she did when she was with the CIA, and the idea of getting a tiny sliver of that back drove her decisions today. George appeared to have settled fully into the suburban life, wanting to play by the rules of the ridiculous people who thought playing paintball would accomplish anything in building a company’s morale.

What the hell was that? George asked, pulling on her arm to turn her toward him. She pulled roughly away, with the thought of breaking at least one of his fingers rushing through her mind, but she pushed the idea back. This wasn’t the place to get into his or her issues over what just happened, but George should know better than to treat her in such overbearing manner.

What do you mean? she returned with the same anger he held in his voice. Can you really not take losing?

This was supposed to be a team-building exercise, not an excuse for you to show off. You’re not an agent any longer. You need to act appropriately, he admonished her again. How do you intend to explain being able to make a move like that?

Why do I have to explain anything? she asked him, upset that he no longer treated her as an equal. That was the driving force behind why she felt the need to prove something to him today, but it backfired, and that only made her even more determined to make him pay for his supposed lack of respect for her. We’re not being hunted any longer. The CIA isn’t looking for us, besides, no one here would know what a planned mission even looked like. Why can’t I do what I’m good at?

You are not supposed to be a trained killer, he whispered harshly. And even though we no longer have to hide like we did before, I’m sure you don’t want people talking and having it eventually get back to someone that a simple housewife managed to outmaneuver everyone to win a flag. Just play the game, Jessica, and stop trying to beat everyone.

That’s right, she shot back at him. I’m just a housewife who should be grateful to have a husband who will allow me to go to these fun little retreats with him. Thank you for throwing me these little bones.

Holding her for a moment longer to show her his anger, he finally sucked in a deep breath. Stop being ridiculous, he snapped before turning and heading over to where the small group congregated, going over what they learned in the exercise.

Taking off her gear, she slammed it down on the table before joining him over where the others stood waiting. Vowing to try and play nice with the corporate managers who came to Park City to participate in the weekend retreat that ended tonight, she folded her arms and intended to stay quiet so as not to cause any more trouble. The man in charge was a pencil pusher who had no idea how things worked in the real world, but it didn’t matter because this wasn’t the real world. This was fun time for a bunch of rich men who acted like everything they did here was important.

Well, that was interesting, Neil, the conference host, said, scanning the group with his eyes landing on Jessica with disapproval. I don’t think we’ve ever had a group where two of them sacrificed themselves to win.

Wasn’t that goal? Jessica asked, receiving another hot look from George. She failed at staying silent, but it wasn’t in her to play the mousy good wife.

Well, the man with the pathetic-looking mustache hummed out. The purpose was actually to see if you could work together to accomplish that goal.

She wanted to tell him that was precisely what they did, but she held herself back and shut out the droning voice as he went over the pathetic, by-the-book psychology of teamwork.

Let’s all head over to the buses, and we’ll get back to the hotel where you can clean up a little, and we’ll keep moving forward, Neil said, swinging his arm in a motion meant to get everyone moving. We’ve got a jam-packed afternoon planned for you, and you don’t want to miss the dinner we have scheduled for tonight. He chuckled as though he told a mild joke.

Jessica held no intention of continuing the ridiculous façade of being like the others here who paid thousands of dollars to play paintball. The advice from people who couldn’t even fathom the life she lived meant nothing to her. All this while eating an expensive dinner that probably cost the convention hosts one-tenth the amount they were charging for it, only made this charade worse. When George stood waiting for her next to the vans that brought them out to the fair park, she shook her head. As he started to come over, her gaze let him know that he didn’t want to engage with her right now. She was still upset by his reprisal and irritated that she thought coming here with George would create any type of ‘teamwork’ with them. She wanted to be with George, but she wasn’t, even though he was standing right there.

She could see it on his face as it darkened that he was unhappy with her actions and wanted to force her to finish the conference, but she turned and walked away. She’d go down the street to the gas station and call for a ride. She didn’t need to be here, and she certainly didn’t want to sit through the next session, which according to the schedule was Trust Building. Neil knew nothing about trust, and Jessica only really trusted a hand full of people. One of those was George, but she began to wonder about that recently. The keynote speaker at dinner would be talking about success, but she didn’t care. It meant nothing to her because she hadn’t felt successful in a long time.

Walking into the house, it sounded hollow. No one was here. It felt like no one was ever here. George went on a business trip at least every other month. Joseph began acting like being home amounted to a prison sentence, and took off with friends whenever he wasn’t at school or working. At seventeen, she didn’t blame him, but it left the place feeling more like a house than a home.

With a sigh, she went into her office and looked over the bills and correspondence that had come in over the last few days. She no longer connected as a part of Joseph’s life, and began to believe she didn’t connect with George’s either.

They spent the last fourteen years here raising Joseph and maintaining their business, but things changed over time. At one point in their lives, the CIA disavowed and hunted them, but now they no longer needed to hide from them, allowing them to become less guarded. That didn’t mean they could forget that others might want to harm them, but the eminent threat lifted a while ago. They operated their business and owned everything under the false name of Harland rather than Harrington. They maintained the assets they set up in their CIA days under their real names just in case they needed to dump the Harland alias and quickly get away. They spent years getting information on other governments and businesses. They knew things that people wouldn’t want to be revealed, but the passage of nearly six years since they last went on any kind of mission made the things they once knew outdated and almost useless. She began to feel that way herself. Did she have anything left to offer?

Stan Durbin, the Western Regional Director of the CIA, used to call them in on special assignments, but in recent years, the only time she talked to him was socially. Not that she minded. She loved Stan and always enjoyed it when he would call or come visit them. They shifted their business about that time to include a gun range and a training program for security guards. They still did the configuration and setup of high-end, specialty security systems and offered consulting to other firms and government agencies, but the new ventures allowed them to do more things from their base of operations in Utah. George mostly ran the operational side of the business, and she understood George’s desire to keep himself sharp because she wanted the same thing. She could still shoot and read people and slip in and out of places, but not like she used to. There was no reason to do those things any longer, so even though she practiced, the loss of practical experience weakened her skills.

Time and their new life cruelly took what she and George once offered each other; total dedication. Now there were bills and client presentations and soccer games and parent-teacher conferences. Jessica wondered when it all turned. She wanted this life, but it wasn’t everything she hoped for. Her love for George remained strong, but it started feeling like he got the best of it, and she was left cleaning up the aftermath. She loved their son Joseph as well, but she was relegated to arranging treats at whatever sporting event he was playing in at the moment, and going to parent meetings. Her responsibility was making sure he completed his homework while George got to go on hunting trips and take him skiing and throw a ball in the back yard. Even at work, she felt she got short-changed while she tracked the expenses, filed for permits, and scheduled appointments while George got to interact with clients, walk through their houses, teach them defense techniques and work with them on the gun range. It didn’t seem fair.

The minutes ticked by as Jessica handled some of the more mundane aspects of owning a company, and when she finished up what needed to be done, she went in to try and figure out what to fix for dinner. It was pointless because George would eat at the conference and be home late. Joseph probably wouldn’t show up until his curfew, which he continually griped about. He’d be eighteen in five months, and she figured he’d quickly find another place to live that didn’t have rules. She wondered if she messed up in raising him. She didn’t want to prepare and teach him the same way her father did her, but she also didn’t want him to be completely blindsided if things went bad for them, so they took him hunting and shooting and taught him various techniques to make sure he could get out of dangerous situations. She and George never told him about their past, about the people they killed and the work they did with the CIA. She never told him about being married to a Columbian Drug Lord or that when he was an infant he was taken by a terrorist to be used as leverage against her and George. Those were things that happened to the Harrington’s, not the Harland’s.

She went from running CIA operations to running bake sales, and she hated it. Of course, she wanted this life for Joseph, and the sacrifice in that regard was worth it. He received a full-ride scholarship to several universities, though he hadn’t selected where he wanted to go. It didn’t matter because he excelled academically and at sports, which didn’t surprise her. He was his father’s son.

It was what she said she always wanted, but after so many years, it struck her as being shallow and unfulfilling. She wanted something else, something more, or maybe she just wanted to feel alive again. Her life gave her the impression of leaving her behind.

The door burst open and Joseph came in talking happily. She heard another voice and sucked in a deep breath to try and hide her disillusionment. It wasn’t Joseph’s fault that she felt unfulfilled and would be left behind while he moved on with his life soon.

Oh, hey, mom, Joseph said as she stood up to greet him. I didn’t think you’d be home.

Joseph reminded her of George, and it usually made her smile, but now she had the distinct feeling that she was losing both of them. The two held a special bond, but that gave her another reason to dislike the way things turned out for her. George seemed to get more of the fun times where she got the planning and logistics. She wanted something special with her son and with her husband, but time slipped away, making her wonder if she had missed the opportunity.

Who’s this? she asked, looking at the boy standing next to Joseph. He bothered her as he looked at her with deep blue eyes that seemed too intense for a teenage boy.

This is Houston, he introduced. I’m glad you’re here because I wanted to tell you that Houston has a two-bedroom apartment, and he’s looking for a roommate, so I’m going to move in with him.

Jessica sucked in a long deep breath but stayed silent. She expected this, but she wasn’t about to green-light the reckless venture right now. The young man next to Joseph didn’t fidget or move at all. He simply stood there looking at her. That’s a sudden decision for a big move, she said simply.

It’s not sudden, Joseph defended. I’ve been looking to get out of here for a while. I’ll be eighteen in a few months, and I think it’s time.

And how old are you, Houston?

Twenty-one, he said in a calm voice that she liked even less than his eyes.

Strange, I’ve never seen you around before.

I moved here not too long ago.

And what does a twenty-one-year-old want with a seventeen-year-old roommate?

Almost eighteen, Joseph interjected.

There’s no reason to worry, Houston offered in a smooth voice that she believed he often used to sway people. She didn’t sway easily.

I don’t worry, she told him earnestly. I plan, prepare and execute so all my bases are covered. When it comes to my son, that means I will know where he’s going, who he’s going with and why.

Houston smiled at her, and they locked eyes for a moment. He appeared amused by her, and she was getting tired of the look. He bothered her, but she couldn’t say why. She was typically good at reading people, but this kid confused her. He seemed cold and calculating, yet sincere and interested. It was odd for a young man of his age. She looked over at Joseph.

How much money do you have in your account?

What?

Money, she said again.

Joseph shrugged. I don’t know. About three hundred.

You understand that if you want to be on your own, that is exactly what you get. The truck you drive is mine, and you’ll need to pay whatever expenses you incur with the money from your job.

I understand your concerns. I don’t want to cause family problems, but I know how an eighteen-year-old feels about getting out on their own to start their life, and I thought I could help, Houston broke in, and she turned a heated look to him.

Houston, Jessica said with a snap to her voice. What’s your last name?

The boy didn’t answer right away. Thompson, he finally said.

What is it you do?

I’m currently between jobs.

Great, so an unemployed twenty-one-year-old and a seventeen-year-old with a part-time sales clerk job at a sporting goods store are going to pay rent, utilities, and food on what money exactly?

I have money from an inheritance that covers my expenses.

Where are you from?

Again, the kid didn’t answer immediately, but then he slowly smiled. Is this an interrogation?

Yes.

His smile increased until the door opened and George came in. The large man stood for a moment looking at the small group, obviously sensing the standoff he walked in on.

Who’s this?

This is Houston, Joseph said, as though accusing George of something.

Watch your tone, George said succinctly, coming over and standing in front of the group.

Sorry, Joseph mumbled. Houston has a two-bedroom apartment, and he is going to let me rent a room from him, and mom is giving him the third degree. He shot a look over at Jessica but then quickly looked away. Jessica didn’t tolerate sass any more than George, but Joseph always pushed her harder than his father.

Well, George said slowly, shaking his head. There are a lot of things we need to go over to make sure this works for you.

I just want…

It will be discussed later, George said in a calm yet commanding voice, and Joseph stopped talking immediately.

Jessica