I want to be Alone

I think it was Greta Garbo who issued that famous line, “I want to be alone,” he thought.  God, so do I.  Daniel “Big D” Bridges stared out the window of his luxury penthouse office at the swirling mass of people below.  They look like ants, he thought.  His thoughts were interrupted by the intercom on his desk.

“Mr. Sharpel is here to see you, sir,” his executive assistant said.

Big D walked to his desk and pressed a button on a small console.  “Very well Sherrie; send him in.  And no interruptions; I will be tied up with Mr. Sharpel in a private meeting for the next hour or so.  Call Shannon in building security.  I want an armed man posted outside my door.  Does Mr. Sharpel have a case with him?”

“Yes sir; actually two.  One is an attaché secured to his wrist with a security chain, the other, an aluminum case.”

“Have him leave the aluminum case with you; you can send him in.”  He released the button, pressed another and his office door slid back.  A tall man with wide shoulders, carrying an attaché, stepped through the exposed door way, and the door slid back in place.  Big D held a finger to his lips, pressed yet another button and a soft hum emanated from hidden speakers in the corners of his office.

“Now we can talk.  It is good to see you, Sharpel.  Did you bring the last of the information with you?”

“Yes sir; I have it right here,” he replied patting his attaché.  “I must tell you, it has been an interesting five years for me.”

“You have been well compensated for your time, Sharpel.”

“Indeed I have!  I thank you for your generosity.  I have enough to live on for the rest of my years and do so in style.  Shall we get down to business?”

“Yes, let’s get to it.  Show me what you have and give me the final timetable for this project.”

His visitor began pulling out satellite photos, weather maps, several binders of reduced sized architectural drawings, and laid them on the conference table.  “Here are the latest satellite views of the island, sir.  As you can see by the data collected, especially the night time thermal views, the island is uninhabited.