Chapter 19: Finding a Place to Live and Selling A House

Last night’s phone call with the President motivated me to get back to Chicago and wrap things up so we could move on to our new lives in Washington. I had called the airlines before we went to bed, and I was able to book us on the earliest flight from National Airport to Chicago O’Hare. The flight left at 6:30 AM and landed in Chicago 7:30 AM local time.

We would have to be up at 4 AM, and at National before 5:30 AM, to make the flight. I didn’t have a problem being ready as I was too wound up to sleep. Grumpy Karen, on the other hand, wouldn’t get up and get ready. We still had to checkout and ready for the taxi I requested to take us to National. I seriously doubt we would have made our flight without me constantly nagging her.

The taxi ride was a short one and the flight was on time. Karen went to bed and I had phone calls to make when we arrived home. I called Lawrence’s direct extension at the FBI Field Office and I got his voicemail. I thought odd he wasn’t in, and it didn’t roll over to the office receptionist who would have picked up. I realized that today was Sunday when I looked down at the calendar I had on my home office desk. This trip to Washington had messed up my sense of time. I hung the phone up, and called Lawrence’s home number, hoping that he would be home. I had a bunch of questions and requests for him.

The phone was answered on the fifth ring, just as I was about to hang up. Camilla answered and was quite pleasant to me over the phone. She congratulated me on my new position and asked me to have Karen call her when she could. How did Camilla already know about my new position working. I then realized Karen must have called her when I took a walk around the hotel’s parking lot trying to calm myself down last night. Lawrence was in the shower after working out in his home gym. She said she would have him call me back ASAP. I thanked her and hung up.

Our phone rang fifteen minutes later, and I answered it. It was Lawrence returning my call. Lawrence being Lawrence greeted me with, “Hello, Sir James, how are things with the newly landed gentry?”

“It’s good to see that you lowly peasants know how to speak to your betters,” I responded.

We both laughed at our exchange and I gave him the run down on Washington and all that had happened over the next ten minutes. He gave me a verbal “Atta’ boy” for the way I dealt with the attempted abduction. Those thugs were looking at doing some serious hard time for the attempted abduction. Lawrence said they would sing like birds to get a reduced sentence.

I told him the reason I called was to ask if he knew of a Realtor that could be trusted as I was thinking of selling the townhouse. Karen would be much happier with a place in the suburbs if we came back to Chicago. He asked me what I was thinking about asking for the townhouse. I told him what I thought was a fair price. He agreed it wasn’t out of line for the property and he would talk to Camilla about it. He said she had wanted a place like that once they had the baby when I asked him why he wanted to involve her. He knew that I kept the place in good repair and could not think of a better place to move his family. Besides he reasoned, it’s only minutes from the hospital.

He surprised me by his offer to buy the townhouse. I told him I had to include Karen in to the negotiations before we shook on the deal. He thought that was fair and he had to include Camilla on his side of things.

I had a verbal commitment of buying the townhouse when I went to bed that night. Lawrence and Cammilla joined us for a dinner that Grandma Jorgenson had made for us. Karen and Camilla went about the house during the negotiations, pointing out changes that would have to be made and suggested colors to paint the various rooms. I thought poor Lawrence was regretting ever mentioning that he was interested in purchasing the townhouse.

Grandma was calculating how many boxes we would need to move while the wives went through the townhouse making suggestion on how to improve. She was also deciding what to bring and what to toss during the move. She was just as excited about the pending move as Karen was.

All we had to do now was decide where in the greater Washington, DC, area we wanted to live. I was voting for Georgetown, as it seemed to be DC’s up and coming area. I would call Randy and maybe Andi in the morning to see what they had to say. I wasn’t about to rent, and I would not park my precious VWs on the street. I would get as much input from the natives as I possibly could before talking to Karen. I was not the only person living there. Another consideration would be Grandma. I felt a narrow three-story townhouse would be too much for her unless it had an elevator. We would have to see what was available. I also wasn’t sure if I wanted to own or lease it.

Another worry was if DC was motorcycle friendly. I could see riding the motorcycle on those narrow side streets Washington had a plethora of to explore. Karen and I would have a blast riding double on the motorcycle exploring the city on weekends. I wondered if Randy and Scotty rode around Washington. That would be among the first questions I would ask once we moved to Washington.

Monday morning was the start of a new day. I got up at my usual time and had a great breakfast Grandma made. I saw there was a stack of dirty dishes to be put into the dishwasher. I did not think she forgot to run them. That would be so out of character for a lady who prided herself on keeping her kitchen spotless. I then remembered the protection detail standing guard outside the house. She now has me feeding that crew. I would say something to the shift supervisor and see about reimbursement for feeding ‘her boys’.

I went out to jump on my bike after eating a good breakfast, and found my way down the drive blocked by an Agent waving his arms to get me to stop. I shut the bike off and took my helmet off so I could hear what he had to say. According to my protection detail, I was to let them drive me to and from the office. I would have an Agent with me at all times. This was not going to work; I wouldn’t change my lifestyle to make their job easier. They needed to fit my lifestyle if anything. This was another phone call that I was going to have to make.

I turned the bike around and put it away in the covered parking area. I went out front and asked them how was I to get to work if I couldn’t ride my bike. I may have concluded my teaching responsibilities, but I still had research and computer simulations I needed to run. I had to test my modifications to the algorithm.

An Agent had me follow him to the SUV parked in front of the house. One of the Agents opened the back door for me to get in so the two Agents could take me to the University. I had to tell the driver which building to go to on campus. I had to wait once there, as he and the other Agent got out and made sure there were no threats in the immediate area. This was most annoying to me. The driver left with the SUV after I was finally allowed to get out of the car. The Agent assigned to me and I walked into the building where my office was located. I had my key out to open my door, when the Agent asked for the key to open my office door. That was the final straw; I opened my office door myself and asked the Agent to come in to my office. I didn’t want my colleagues privy to what I was about to say, so I asked him to shut the door.

I knew the Agent was only doing his job, but it interfered with my daily routine. I politely explained to the Agent that we needed to come to some sort of an arrangement that allowed me to go about my day as I normally did, yet allow them to protect me. He listened to what I had to say, then said he was willing to do so within reason. I explained how the FBI provided security for me a couple of years ago and it worked well until that time when Ginny had sneaked undetected into my class lecture. I contributed that to an Agent untrained in security and looking at the assignment as ‘babysitting’.

We were able to put together a plan that would allow both of us to go about our day after a twenty-minute give and take session. The Agents would be nearby instead of being constantly at my side. One would be able to patrol the area; the other could sit on the bench nearby. Both would be available if I called for them. The Agent also smiled when I pointed out that I also carried a weapon and had a permit for several years. I informed him that I shot to FBI standards and practiced regularly. He was satisfied with that, and did admit the FBI shot almost as well as Secret Service Agents.

Satisfied with our talk, the Agent left my office and took up a position where he could observe my office and not be a hindrance. I didn’t get much work done before noon, but it at least felt like life was back on a somewhat normal cycle. I asked the office assistant that was in that day if she minded to grab a couple of lunches for me at the campus grill room instead of going out for lunch. She didn’t object and I handed her the cash for three lunches. I was willing to spring for hers if she was willing to play gofer for me.

The Secret Service Agent assigned to me that day was a nice guy. We briefly talked about our backgrounds. I had come from the Midwest, he was from Wyoming and had gone to college at BYU after serving his LDS mission. He had graduated with a degree in business administration and had found that retail was not for him after working a year as an assistant buyer. He happened to be reading a book about the Secret Service at the time and found it to be interesting. He wanted to learn more, so he applied and was accepted. He had been with them going on five years and found the work to be satisfying. Each day was different and exciting to him; no two days were the same. He found this to be what he wanted to do and not be cooped up in some office dealing with the headaches of retail.

He went back to his duties after lunch, I got on the telephone to start my search for a house in Washington. My first call went to Andi. I wanted to know why she hadn’t returned my call and to ask if she had any ideas where to find a house. Andi said she was going into a meeting and promised to return my call that evening. My next call went to Randy and told him the good news. He already knew we were coming to Washington from Karen’s call to Olive earlier. I asked if he could recommend an area of town for us to consider. He promised he would get back with me tonight after consulting with Olive as she had been in town the longest. My next call went to the gentleman who acted as our host the four days Karen and I were in Washington. I had some details that I wanted clarified and I had no idea where to start.

That call was well worth it as the man on the other end of the line was a gold mine of information. I filled three full pages of notes that answered 99% of my questions. I found out when I had to be in Washington, whom I was to report to, where I was to work, and lastly, what my salary would be. I found out working for the government pays quite well, by the way. I was also informed that I would receive a housing allotment for the time we were in Washington. Most people would combine that with their own money and use it to pay for a more upscale home. I learned I should lease a home instead of buying one. It made more sense since I may someday want to go back to Chicago and I wouldn’t have to be concerned about trying to unload a house. I thanked him for his help and ended the call.

My last call of the day went to my Washington, DC, contact at the FBI. I asked him the same questions I had of the gentleman who had served as our host during our recent DC stay. I was doing what my job entailed, ‘Trust but Verify’. I was satisfied I had been told the truth after that call, as my FBI contact’s answers were similar to the ones given to me earlier.

I would be assembling my official staff tomorrow, and I had a very good idea of whom I wanted to would work with me. I wanted people I could trust and not question their loyalty above all else. I would personally select everyone on my staff and would not accept any appointees. I simply didn’t trust people who didn’t earn their on their own way. I felt appointees would be looking out for number one. They would jump ship at the first opportunity. I penciled out an outline of the positions I wanted to include on my staff. Security was already a done deal. I had Scotty and Jean for those positions. I wanted Randy for investigations and backup security. I wanted Andi for co-analytical work and assistance in Russian culture and mindset. She was someone I knew, I completely trusted, and had worked with before. I had penciled Molly and her bubbly personality in for clerical assistance for what could be a dull and boring office assignment. I felt I owed her for all I had put her through before. I also trusted her, with some reservations. I made a note to never be with her in a room alone. I had penciled in Robert as a driver and gofer. I hoped I could lure him into working for me. He was another person I completely trusted. That left me with one position to fill and one that had me stumped. That would be legal as I needed an expert on international law, especially in dealing with treaties. I thought that position would be the most difficult to fill, and I needed someone I could completely trust. I fortunately had a good resource nearby in Washington. That would be Georgetown University, as their law school was one of the top ones in the country. I felt their alumni office or faculty could direct me to a few good candidates.

I went out in to the hall to tell the Secret Service Agent I was ready to head for home, except that I couldn’t locate him. Wonderful, I thought I was either going to have to walk home or call and have Karen come get me. Having to depend on others to do what I could have done myself is what irritated me. I kept looking around, wondering if he had stepped out to go to the men’s room or outside for a break.

A young woman, who I thought was a coed, stopped and asked me, “Are you looking for your protection detail, Dr. Mercer?”

Dumbfounded, I looked at her and wondered how she knew? Was it that apparent that even the students knew I now had protection?

Grinning, she continued, “I’m it for this afternoon. Are you ready to go home?”

“You could have fooled me; I thought you were one of the students,” I responded. “Yes, I’m ready to go home.”

I went back to my office to turn the light off and grab the things I wanted to take home with me. The young woman who was working as part of my protection detail patiently waited in the corridor while I was doing this. She had me follow her out when we left. Being security minded, I didn’t mind at all, besides she was extremely cute. A black SUV sat outside the Math and Science Building, and the chubby campus cop who patrolled this part of campus was being his usual annoying self. I wanted to laugh at his attempt of throwing his considerable bulk around, shouting at the Secret Service driver to move the vehicle or he would have it towed.

“I am afraid you have met your match this time, Officer,” I said, smiling at him. “These are Federal Officers who are part of my protection detail. They’re being Federal Agents trumps your local jurisdiction every time. Get used to it, they are going to be here on a regular basis. Oh, and have a nice day.”

The female Secret Service Agent and I got into the SUV, and the driver pulled away from the curb, leaving a fuming campus cop behind.

“I take it that you have a history with that officer?” the female Agent asked.

“Yes, you could say that,” I answered. “He has been a pain in my side from the first day I was on campus. He considers this part of campus as his fiefdom, and he patrols it that way. I take advantage of any opportunity I can be a pain in his side.”

That left both Agents in front laughing.

“He even ticketed an FBI Agent’s car a few years back, and then tried to have it towed. That was when I escalated our confrontation,” I added. “He will hopefully have retired by the time I am back on campus after doing my stint in Washington.”

I had a stack of phone messages Grandma had taken for me when I got home. All were with a 202 prefix. That meant they were from Washington, DC, and inside the beltway. I did not recognized the name of a majority of the persons calling. I had approximately two hours before supper would be ready, so I went into the home office and began to return the calls. I started with the ones I didn’t know. One was from a leftist publication wanting me to make a statement about my recent appointment. That one didn’t even get a comment and I hung up. Another one was some lobbyist shyster wanting to know if he could help me learn my way around Washington. I hung up on him as well. Several others were from the offices of several Congressmen on both sides of the aisle, letting me know that they would be available to assist me. I thanked those for their offers, but I was going to blunder through my job by myself. I intended to return the other calls after supper and I’d had a chance to talk to Karen about what I learned from my Washington contacts this morning.

We had a very busy family meeting at the dinner table. I told them what I had learned about the Washington, DC, housing market. They both agreed that the idea of leasing a home using the housing stipend and adding some of my take home pay seemed to be the best choice. I asked them to get a list of things together that we needed to look for in a neighborhood. I wanted them to start doing some research in women’s magazines and whatever other sources they thought of. I said I thought that Karen’s cousin, Olive, would be another good resource. I requested they look for a house and not an apartment, as we had a lot to take with us, including our precious VWs and my vintage motorcycle. I didn’t intend to leave any of them behind.

I wanted to call Molly and Andi after supper to see if they would be interested in working for me. I tried Molly first, hoping I could catch her at home before she went out. I phoned the home number I had for her and had success. After some initial pleasant small talk, I asked her if she was happy with her current position. She told me working for the Congressman has initially been fun and she thought would be a stepping stone to career advancement. Rumor around the office had been that the Congressman had decided not to re-run for election, however, as the FBI had been sniffing around in the Congressman’s affairs. She would be looking for another job at the end of his term next year. That was when I asked her if she was interested in working for me as my Office Manager and assistant. She jumped at it and asked when she could start. I told her that it would be soon and I would call her when I had the details. She thanked me for thinking of her and we ended the call. One staffing position filled.

I called Randy at home next to see if he had time to talk. Randy was excited to hear from me. He said people at work were envious when he mentioned that he was related to me by marriage. I asked him if he was happy where he was. He responded that the job was OK and it was a paycheck, though it did get to be routine after a while. I asked if he ever considered looking for another position elsewhere. I think he understood where the conversation was going. His next question to me was when I wanted him to start. I could hear the smile in his voice and I said that I would pass the details along as soon as I got them.

My last call for the night was to Andi. I hoped she would be in and receptive to working with me on an important job such as this. I got her on the fifth ring, and she sounded perturbed until she heard it was from me. She congratulated me on my appointment and was happy I got it. She thought I would do well. I thought the scream over the phone had burst my eardrum when I asked her if she would like to work with me again. I guess my call could not have come at a better time. She said her current boss was constantly hitting on her and all the complaining she had done to the HR people achieved nothing. She did add that she would call Karen if I tried anything.

I told her she was the first person I thought of when I accepted the position. I knew I could count on her and her knowledge of the Soviet culture and language. She was also happy when I told her Randy and Scotty would be joining us. She ended the call by saying she would be giving her notice to her current place of employment in the morning. She informed me that I was to tell Karen she was anxious to get back with her “sister”.

My protection detail and I exited the SUV in front of the Math and Science Building the next morning. I had two of the Agents assigned to the detail this time; both of them looked young enough to be students. Dressed as they were, they would blend in with the students on campus for summer session. One of them would sit on the bench across the hall from my office keeping a vigil on my office while the other would be patrolling the immediate area for anything unusual.

I found a memo from the office of the Campus Safety Director, the fancy name for the chief of the Campus Police, when I opened my door that morning. The memo asked me to call his office as soon as possible concerning an incident with the officer and my security detail yesterday afternoon. It sounded like someone got their feelings hurt yesterday to me, and tattled to the teacher. I made the call as requested and asked to speak with the Director. The Director came on the phone a short time later, complaining that my detail had hurt the officer’s feelings, and wanted us to apologize to the officer. I didn’t have time for this, so I simply told the Director to call the University President to file a complaint and ended the call.

I made an organizational chart to see where I was in acquiring staff to fill my team. I had the security covered; I had an Office Manager and assistant, an Investigator, and an expert on Russian language and customs. The position I still needed to fill was an expert on International Law, with an emphasis on treaties and their execution.

I decided to call and see if the Political Science Department here at the University had any suggestions. I got my University phone directory out and looked up the Department Chair. Finding the number, I called, and I connected to the Department’s receptionist instead of getting the Department Chair. I was informed that most of the Department was on vacation or they were attending a seminar in Florida for the week. That was university speak meaning they were in Florida working on their tans. They would not be available for calls until next week.

My next call went to the University’s Law School. I identified myself when someone answered. I explained what I needed to the receptionist who took my call, and asked to speak with the Chancellor. He was out of town as well, but she connected me to who she thought would be best at answering my question. The person she connected me to wasn’t much help in recommending someone either, but was willing to act as a consultant for a fee. This was not getting me anywhere, so I asked that he send me his resume and contact information via the inter-campus mail. I thanked him for his time and ended the call.

My last call was to my Washington FBI contact to ask if he any contacts with the Georgetown Law School who could help. He mentioned the name of one person he thought might be able to help me. He didn’t have a number but the name would at least narrow down my having to make multiple calls. I let my protection detail know that I was walking over to the library to do some research shortly after ending the call. Both of them were waiting in the corridor when I was ready to go.

I was able to get some background on the individual suggested to me by my FBI contact at the library. The man he suggested was one Johannes Frisch, a German immigrant who came to the United States as a teenager. The gentleman had graduated from Washington University and received his law degree from Michigan. Both of the schools were top notch. He worked for the US State Department for several years in their international commerce division after graduating from law school. It was only after working for the State Department that he passed the bar exam in New York State. He then had worked as a junior associate for a major New York City law firm specializing in international business. I liked what I read so far; he was definitely someone I wanted to contact.

It was late by the time I returned to my office and decided that a walk over to the campus grill for a late lunch would be a nice opportunity to get some exercise and another chance to be outdoors. I like to walk as it gives me a chance to think about things without interruption as I often was in my office. I didn’t get to go out as much as I would like. It had only been a couple of days and I was already missing my daily motorcycle rides. I was sure I could work something out with my protection detail that would allow me to continue riding. I was positive there had to be some who rode as well.

It was late afternoon by the time I was able to get find the phone number for Georgetown Law School. I wasn’t positive that anyone would still be there, as it was just before the Summer Term began. I was able to connect with the main office and asked to speak to Johannes Frisch, or at least leave a message for him. Luck was with me as the receptionist told me he was still in his office and connected me.

A male voice with a slight German accent answered the phone. I introduced myself after he identified himself as ‘Dr. Frisch’. He immediately knew who I was and seemed eager to talk to me. I knew after a ten-minute conversation that he was the right person to fill the last position. I still wanted to interview others to see if there was anyone else. In closing, I asked Dr. Frisch if he knew anyone else at Georgetown who I should contact. He mentioned one name and I immediately ruled that person out. I had recently seen that person interviewed on a Sunday morning news show. That person was so left leaning that I was surprised he wasn’t representing the Soviets at the world court. I thanked the good Doctor and ended the call. I was satisfied with my choices.

I contacted the leftist leaning law professor the next morning using the information provided by Dr. Frisch. I was surprised as he was expecting my phone call. The call turned into a lecture of how he would do my job for me instead of being an interview. I listened to what was wrong with our form of government and how the Russians did it the right way for thirty minutes. I thanked for his time after I couldn’t bear to listen to his fanaticism any further, and would let him know of my decision. There was no way I would choose him to join my group.

I told Karen I had my choices made for my treaty group at supper that night, and now all we had to do is find a place to live. I knew that would mean another trip to Washington. I thought the logistics of this move were going to be a nightmare. Packing, moving, unpacking, and then settling into a new city, and making new friends was a challenge I was not looking forward to. I think Karen and Grandma shared my feelings.

I decided to make reservations for the three of us to travel to Washington the following week. What I first wanted to accomplish was to find a house for us, then to meet with some of the others on the treaty negotiating team, so that I could get a feel for them. I wanted to be able to know who and what I had to work with. I learned that important lesson on my Russian mission. I wanted to see be aware of any ‘Mikes’ who could sabotage the negotiations. I thought we might be able to ferret out any questionable team members and support staff with Karen’s and Andi’s abilities. Lastly, I wanted to get my staff together. I felt the more familiar they were with each other, the better the results of their work as a team would be.

I then realized I had not contacted one member who was a minor, yet important member. That would be our gofer and driver, Robert. I would wait until when we got to Washington to give him a call. I was positive that he would not let me down.

I kept busy winding down my responsibilities with the university the rest of the week. All I wanted, come Friday, was to hand in my office key and walk away. I took some of personal items that I had kept in the office home every night. The first thing I took home was the sea bag. I made sure that it never left my control, as it would have embarrassing to explain the large sum of cash in British pounds, US Dollars, the Makarov pistols, and the Skorpion machine pistols. The sea bag went up on the shelf in my closet when I got it home. Karen rarely bothered my clothes, and the only people who were ever in our room were Karen and me.

I turned off the light to my office for the last time and took the key to the office receptionist on Friday afternoon. I stopped several times to say goodbye to former colleagues on my way out the door. All except one wished me well in my endeavor, but she and I never got along. I think she was glad to see me go, as she would inherit my classes and my tenure. I wonder how she will take it if I decide to return after my stint with the Treaty Team was up. That was a battle and concern for another time.