The contributions of your parents to the Order of the Saltire cannot easily be counted. Your father took up the torch that I laid down and lifted it higher than I could have ever dreamed. Your mother, standing resolutely at his side, brought new techniques and new technologies to the Order that have improved its ability to help others beyond my wildest expectations. Put simply, they did more than I ever imagined, and they were the right people in the right place at the right time to advance what I started into what it has become.
But all of this is well and good, except for the fact that no member of my family is actively involved in personally helping others anymore. Of all my grandchildren, only you possess the same spirit as I did at your age and as your parents did when they were younger. You need the Order to understand who and what you are, and the Order needs you to help it continue my work.
So this is the challenge that I lay upon you. Join the Order. Take a step into a larger world – a world where you’ll be in a position to advance the cause of justice and freedom at every turn. Help others who need help getting justice for themselves. You won’t have to look too hard to find people like this. They’re all around you. Help them without any expectation of praise or acknowledgment for what you’ve done. Be prepared for law enforcement to view your actions as suspicious, but don’t let that deter you from doing what needs to be done. Work as an extension of the law, not as a replacement for the law. Then, when you see how it feels to truly help others in a meaningful way, you’ll be ready for what’s inside the box.
OK, let’s talk about the box. By now, you’ll have realized that it isn’t an ordinary box at all. It’s called a “puzzle box”. I hope that you didn’t break the wax seal or cut the cord that’s attached to it. The seal is the key and the cord is part of both the key and the lock. It may take you a while to understand how the key and the lock work together, but in the end, you’ll have a Crowning Success. The contents of the box will help you on the final steps toward membership in the Order. If you have no interest in joining, please cut the cord and destroy the box, but I think that you won’t do that. If you’re the granddaughter that I believe you to be, you’ll open that box and complete the beginning of your journey. The Order will take you the rest of the way.
Remember that, no matter where I am or the number of years that have passed since we were last together, I love you with all my heart and hope for nothing but the best for you.
Yours Fondly,
Granddad James
P.S. If you choose to take this journey, please keep this letter secret, revealing it to your parents only after you’ve opened the box and are ready to complete the beginning. If, however, you choose not to take this journey, please destroy this letter at once and never speak of it to anyone.
Jamie put down the letter and reached for a tissue to dry her eyes. She heard her grandfather’s voice as she read his words. In her mind, she saw him sitting at the desk now in her dad’s study, holding a glass of scotch and talking to her in that quiet, gentle voice of his. It made her miss him even more, and yet she felt that she held the better part of him in her hands. The letter was part of him, and now it was also part of her.
Her grandfather had issued quite a challenge for her, and she wasn’t one to back down from challenges. She picked up the box and examined it carefully. There were no visible seams anywhere. In fact, apart from the hole where the cord entered the box and the faint image of the cross on the top, there were no markings or blemishes on the box at all. It looked like a solid piece of wood. She re-read the letter carefully, looking for any clues in it to help open the box. Seeing none, she carefully placed the book camouflage images back on the box and letter and returned the “book” to her bookcase.
Even before she finished reading the letter, she knew that she’d accept her grandfather’s challenge. I’ll make you proud of me, Granddad! As she got up to go into the kitchen and get something to eat, she thought that she heard her grandfather’s voice in the back of her mind saying, “I know you will.”
4
Jamie loved the University of Alabama. The combination of old-world charm and modern ingenuity blended into an environment where Jamie learned about engineering and life in general. It was her first time away from home, and though she missed the ever-present support that her parents provided, it was good to learn to stand on her own two feet.
The campus, near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, sat on the banks of the Black Warrior River. At the center of the campus, where her dad’s old ROTC buildings sat on either side of the library, was the quadrangle, or “Quad,” where Confederate military cadets marched and drilled every day during the early 1860s. Across from the library was the famous Denny Chimes tower. Jamie liked to sit in the shade of the tower between classes, either working on her homework or just watching her fellow students enjoying the sun and the grass.
There was a martial arts studio near campus that her teacher had recommended where she could keep up with her studies and practice. There were also running trails all around campus where she could clear her mind from the pressures of class. She usually ran with one or two running buddies, since it was never wise for young women to run alone through some of the darker and more hidden trails. Jamie remembered her dad telling her stories about some of his female friends getting attacked while running in the early mornings or late evenings down by the river, and while she was certain that she could handle herself if attacked, she couldn’t see any reason to be reckless.
Jamie quickly made friends with her fellow students, including one who loved to skydive. Not one to shy away from new adventures, Jamie accepted an invitation to go with him one Saturday and learn how. After the first two jumps, which were done with an instructor, Jamie found that she loved the sensation of flying, falling, and being suspended high above the earth. Soon she was jumping solo and encouraging her other friends to try it. She didn’t get to jump often, but she made a point to go as often as her schoolwork and other activities allowed.
She came home for Christmas break, and she and her parents went to the gun club almost every day so she could practice her shooting. She didn’t have enough time to practice shooting at college, and she didn’t want to get rusty. Her parents were pleased that her aim seemed to improve by the end of the holidays, and they were sad to see her leave to return to school in early January.
Tom and Emily were getting used to being “empty nesters,” but they missed their daughter very much. Still, there was the Order, which kept them both busy. Emily was responsible for surveillance training for the Order, and Tom traveled with her whenever she had to visit some of the Commanderies that were far away from the Headquarters. Emily was also a senior executive for SignalCorps and actively involved in the development and marketing of the new versions of the surveillance system that she had created. Tom was the one who seemed to have the most time on his hands, and he filled his days by poring over intervention and intelligence reports from the other Commanderies so he could stay informed about what was going on around the world.
That summer, Jamie took the opportunity to defend her title at the regional, state, and national Tae kwon do tournaments. She won all three, adding several more trophies to her bedroom at home. The next week was the family gun tournament, where she did much better than in previous years. She beat all of her family in pistols except for Tom and Emily, and she came in fourth in the long arms categories, only losing to Tom, Emily, and her Aunt Sophie.
The week after the gun tournament, Jamie took the box and letter from her grandfather off the bookshelf and read the letter again. She had made a commitment to do as her grandfather asked, but so far, she had been unable to find ways to help others. She thought about doing volunteer work, but somehow that didn’t seem to be what her grandfather was suggesting. Jamie looked at