Chapter 23
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Rod watched in horror as the garbage truck backed up, slowly moving to crush Wyl against the brick wall where Ailbe held him.
Bound and gagged, Wyl’s body slumped forward against a device that resembled a Euro symbol on the end of a long pole.
Declan sported an evil sneer from the truck's cab as he backed, inching toward Wyl and prolonging the anticipation of the deadly outcome. Rod’s muscles jerked with each steady screaming beep of the relentless backup alert as the truck crept closer to Wyl.
Rod’s legs felt stuck in thick molasses as he struggled to run toward Wyl, helpless to stop the terror before him.
The beeping continued, and someone reached in front of him.
He fought against the entrapment, hearing his name repeated over and over.
“Rod. Rod.” Wyl reached over him and slammed his hand on the offending alarm clock, silencing the intrusion despite Rod’s flailing arms. Rod gasped, the memory of the nightmare still fresh in his mind. He grabbed Wyl in his arms.
Wyl huffed as Rod squeezed. “What’s the matter, babe? You’re breathless.”
“I had a nightmare. Ailbe and Declan had you trapped, and I couldn’t get to you.” Rod tightened his hold on his husband. “It was awful.”
Wyl returned the embrace to calm Rod’s teetering emotions. “Everything is fine. It was only a dream. I’m right here holding you, and we’re both safe.”
Rod whined a sob. “If anything ever happened to you, I don’t know what I would do.”
“Hey, now, nothing will happen.” Wyl stroked Rod’s back. “We are trained agents. We know how to protect ourselves.”
Wyl’s soft touch and reassuring words calmed Rod. He drew in a deep, calming breath. “You’re right. I guess the reality of our situation hit last night. I’m glad we’re here together.”
“I wouldn’t be anywhere else.” Wyl tightened his hug and kissed Rod’s forehead. “Let’s grab a shower and have breakfast. We don’t want to be late to the campus.”
* * *
A knock at the door interrupted breakfast.
Wyl tossed his napkin on the table. “Every time I hear a knock at the door, Mitzi comes to mind,” he laughed.
“If she’s outside…don’t open the door,” Rod said.
Peeking through the peephole, it was Glenn Cross. Wyl opened the door. “Come in, Glenn.”
“Sorry for the interruption, gents.” Glenn stepped inside and handed Wyl an envelope. “O’Brien sent it.”
“Any idea what it is?” Rod asked.
Glenn shook his head. “I’m only the messenger. I wanted to catch you before you left for the day. I’ll let you two get back to your breakfast.”
Wyl showed Glenn out. “Thanks. We’ll see you guys.”
Wyl opened the envelope. He pulled out the papers and glanced through the pages. “This is the course project of one of the students,” he said.
“Is that helpful?”
Wyl shook his head as he slid the papers back into the envelope. “I’ll need time to review the information in detail before I know what it means.”
“Grab your coat, and let’s go.” Rod tugged open the door and grinned. “We don’t want to be late for class.”
* * *
The students crowded into Dr. MacGowan’s class.
“Good morning, lads,” Ailbe spoke as he strolled into the classroom.
“Good morning, professor,” the students responded, almost in unison. Ailbe liked the students honoring him. Woe be the student who questioned him or failed to show respect.
“I asked Mr. Wyl Sterling to come and speak to you today. He is a world-renowned cybersecurity expert who is in Ireland for his honeymoon. He spoke at the Technology Symposium on Wednesday. You lads are in for a treat. A man of Wyl Sterling’s caliber rarely visits my classroom.”
“I bet his wife doesn’t like him working on the honeymoon,” one student said. The other lads chuckled.
“He doesn’t have a wife. He has a husband,” MacGowan said. “I met them both and never met a more happily married couple.”
Stunned expressions crossed the faces of several students, but a few sported smiles. Ailbe looked around the room and spotted the few who were likely either gay or trouble.
Garrett Burke raised his hand.
“Yes, Mr. Burke?”
“What is Mr. Sterling’s husband’s name?” Garrett asked. A few of the lads chuckled at the question.
“I don’t see that the name is anything of your concern, Mr. Burke, but it’s Rod. Rod Sterling.”
“Oh…like the Twilight Zone guy on those ancient television shows,” one student smarted off. The rest of the students laughed.
“If you had bothered to do your homework before opening your mouth, Mr. Cassidy, you would know the Twilight Zone guy is Rod Serling, without a T.”
The chuckling subsided.
Wyl poked his head in the door of the classroom. “Am I in the right place?”
Ailbe turned to greet Wyl and Rod. “Yes, Misters Sterling. Please come in.” He shook hands and guided them to the front and center.
“Lads, this gentleman is Mr. Wyl Sterling, the renowned cybersecurity expert.” He briefly squeezed Wyl’s shoulder.
“And the gentleman accompanying him is Dr. Rod Bonner Sterling, who is not only a musicologist and an expert on opera, but he is also Wyl Sterling’s husband.
” He placed his hand on Rod’s shoulder. “Let’s make them feel welcome.
” He began applauding, and the lads joined in.
Rod moved to the back row to sit while Wyl took a position at the front of the classroom. Ailbe sat by Rod.
“Dr. MacGowan asked me to give you a shortened version of my presentation for the symposium. Afterward, I’ll be glad to answer questions from you lads,” Wyl began.
Again, Wyl demonstrated his extreme comfort in front of an audience. He walked back and forth across the front of the lecture hall, using his hands to emphasize points or briefly pausing to let a particular item soak in.
Rod peered at the lads, all of whom focused on Wyl and his topic. After twenty minutes, Wyl stopped and slid his hands into his pants pockets, gazing at the lads seated in the classroom. “All right…who has a question?”
Hands shot into the air immediately, and lads squirmed in their seats to be first.
Wyl pointed to a student in the back of the room, waving his hand wildly. “You. Give your name, then state your question.”
“Seamus MacAuley, sir.”
“Yes, Mr. MacAuley?”
“Cybersecurity sounds like a fascinating career. How did you get into it?”
“I got into security about when home computers became widespread, Mr. MacAuley. While serving in the Marines, I worked with the government to ensure the safety of our military and all Americans. As computers infiltrated society, I studied coding each year to keep up with not only changes in technology but changes in criminal activity as well.”
Students raised their hands again, waving wildly in the air. Wyl pointed to a student in the front row. “You. Give your name and state your question.”
“Bradan Cooney, sir.”
“Yes, Mr. Cooney?” Wyl said.
“Were you involved with any criminals?”
“Good question, Mr. Cooney. After computers became prominent, much of what I learned came from criminals. As the general population began to learn computer coding, the criminal element emerged. As they were caught and tried, many criminals volunteered to help the government understand how they had committed their crimes, enabling us to become more effective at catching others. So yes, I learned much of what I know from criminals.”
From the corner of his eye, Rod noticed Ailbe tense when the topic of criminals arose.
“Are you okay, Ailbe?” Rod asked.
“I’m fine, Rod. Why do you ask?”
“You look a bit pale.”
“The kippers I had for breakfast aren’t agreeing with me,” Ailbe lied.
The class period ended, but the students remained. For an additional two hours, students asked questions. All remained fascinated with Wyl’s topic.
“Lads, I hate to cut this short, but I need to feed my husband lunch,” Wyl said. “If you have additional questions, funnel them through Dr. MacGowan, who will see that I get them.”
Ailbe stood and walked toward Wyl, applauding along with the students.
“Excellent session, Wyl,” Ailbe said.
“You never cease to amaze me,” Rod said. “You had those students in the palm of your hand. They hung on every word you uttered.”
“You definitely gave the lads something to think about,” Ailbe said. “Now they’ll be bugging me to bring criminals into the class.” Ailbe chuckled.
“Ailbe, I can’t imagine criminals anywhere near an academic environment,” Wyl said.
“Academia has its fair share of the criminal element,” Ailbe said. “We slap an advanced degree on it, which becomes a learning experience.”
“Time to feed your husband, Mr. Keynote Speaker,” Rod said.
“Ailbe, join us for lunch?” Wyl asked.
“You two go ahead. I have work to catch up on. I’ll grab something in the campus cafeteria.”
“Okay,” Rod said. “Maybe we’ll get together this weekend.”
“I’ll check with Declan,” Ailbe said. “I’m sure he’ll want to go out. We’ll give you a call.”