like a spirit, or shadow. There's a very delicate line there.
— Isabel Allende
Mer and I left the CSIS office with more questions than answers.
We were being helped by a CSIS insider but he wasn't the actual ghost ally but just his visible proxy.
The real ghost ally somehow mysteriously hovered in the background seemingly possessing preternatural powers to spy on Pollock's every move and using the agent who rescued us as a kind of errand boy to carry out his commands.
We understood why the 'ghost', as we called him, didn't want his identity revealed, but it was kind of spooky risking our lives and having to follow the orders of an anonymous whistleblower whose true identity even Martin Withers, head of CSIS, didn't know.
Spooky, very spooky, indeed...
Back home in our safe house everything seemed normal, apart from the military-grade sciff in our front room and the RCMP security detail parked outside our door.
"Will things ever be truly normal?" Mer asked wearily.
I went over and hugged her, breathing in the fresh scent of her hair.
"I feel the same way, Love. It seems an almost impossible task to nail Pollock for anything since he has so many judges and government officials doing his bidding."
"What I'd like to know," she asked, "is how this so-called 'ghost ally' can see and know things that CSIS with all their spyware and know-how can't figure out. How the hell does he do that? If I didn't know better I'd think he really is a literal ghost."
"Well, if he is, it's a benevolent haunting and if it results in our learning the truth about Pollock and revealing his crimes to the world, I don't care if he's flesh or spirit. I'm sure Withers feels the same way."
And for a moment I allowed myself to consider that 'the ghost's' guidance blurred the line between the physical and the mystical.
Lightning flared outside the window and a heavy rain pelted the house.
The fire burning in the grate looked so comforting I wanted to forget all the terror of the past week and wrap Mer in my arms.
Sometimes getting physical is what we need--the comfort and warmth of another human next to us--not the chilling world of spies and invisible guides.
"You know what," Mer smiled conspiratorially, as if reading my thoughts, "I could go for a deep dish takeout pizza from Vito's right now— how about you?"
"Deep dish pizza it is," I laughed, punching in the digits on my phone. "But I won't order any drinks because we have two bottles of cab sav with our names on them."
"That sounds like warm comfort on a cold night," she sighed, pointing out the window at the flickering street frozen in rain.
I shook my head in wonderment. "Will this rain and cold ever end?"
She cuddled up next to me on the couch, "I'd like nothing better than to permanently come in from the cold and spend the rest of my days with you."
It was the first time she acknowledged our unspoken bond. And despite everything we had been through this day, I could actually see a glimmer of hope under otherwise dark and threatening skies.
Thank you!
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:re6vo5ekuz46cmjrwqjyet53/post/3m4iizz2jlc2v
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:re6vo5ekuz46cmjrwqjyet53/post/3m4iizz2jlc2v
The rewards earned on this comment will go to the author of the blog post.
Congratulations @johnjgeddes! You received a personal badge!
Participate in the next Power Up month to get another one!
You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
Check out our last posts: