“It is Oscar. It’s very hard. First of all Steve just vanishes, then I lose three children before we finally had Chip. Then I lose my husband.”

“I understand.” Oscar continued to hold her. “I appreciate your letting us bury Steve next to Rudy. I’m sure they both would have wanted it that way.” Oscar added.

“I’m sure they would too. I was so happy when Steve showed back up. I really didn’t care where he had been.” Jaime started crying. I was devastated when I lost Rudy, but then Steve returned …”

“Then the trial…” Oscar finished.

“Oh Oscar the past three months have be horrible.”

“I know that.” Oscar started to open the car door for her. “Too bad Chip couldn’t have gotten away.”

“He’s so busy with school.” Jaime sniffed.

They were just getting ready to pull away from the curb when Chip’s car pulled up beside them. “Please tell me you just got here.”

“Actually we were…” Oscar started

“We just got here Chip.” Jaime interrupted. The three of them headed back into the cemetery.

“I still say Steve didn’t get a fair trial.” Chip tried to hold back his anger. “I heard the lawyer who defended him was disbarred.”

Oscar nodded. “If everything hadn’t moved so fast Steve could have appealed.

“I think he could have won too.” Jaime sobbed.

“Same here.” Oscar also wept.

“Well he said after regaining his composure “It’s over with now. We can’t go back and change a thing.”

“I guess you’re right Oscar.” Jaime agreed. “As much as I hate to admit it. I guess life does go on.”

“Let me assure you Jaime, I’m not going to rest Jaime till I clear Steve’s name. I know for a fact Steve is not a traitor.”

“I know that too Oscar.” Jaime cried

“If it takes me the rest of my life Steve Austin will not be remembered as a traitor.”

By now they had pulled up in front of Jaime’s house. “Anyone interested in the house?” Oscar asked when he saw the for sale sign in the yard.

“I’ve had a few people look.” Jaime sighed.

“You still moving to Boston?”

Jaime nodded. “I think that would be best. I’ll be closer to Rudy Jr. that way he won’t have to drive home every weekend. I don’t want to lose him too.”

“I understand what you are saying.” The tears were evident in Oscar’s eyes.

Jaime started to get out of the car. “You let me know if there is anything I can do to help with clearing Steve’s name.”

Oscar thought for a moment. “Maybe there is something you can do. Meet me in my office in about an hour.”

“I’ll be there.” Jaime got out of the car and Oscar watched her walk up the sidewalk.

An hour later Jaime sat in Oscar’s office. “You have a lead?”

“I don’t know it’s something Steve mentioned some time ago.”

“What was that?” Jaime leaned forward

“Steve said that when he woke up in the cave he had fallen asleep in it had ‘caved in’ so to speak. He said the entrance was blocked. He said he had to dig his way out. I guess if we are going to start anywhere that would be the place.”

“You want me to go to Ojai?”

Oscar nodded. “I know those are bad memories too Jaime, but it’s for Steve.”

“I haven’t been there since Helen’s funeral ten years ago.”

“I know that. Think you can handle it. If now I could send another agent.”

“No Oscar I can handle it, but so what if I find the cave the way Steve described it. How do you prove a man has been asleep for twenty years?”

“Just call me if the cave is the way Steve told me it was. I can get a forensic team out there. They could tell us a lot.”

“Ok Oscar I’m on my way.”

Two days later Jaime stood outside the mouth of the cave. Big boulders had been scattered all over the place. Most of them were inside the cave.

She slowly stepped inside. ‘Oh Steve. What you told us. Could it possibly be true’? Jaime thought. She reached into her purse and pulled out her cell phone. She quickly dialed Oscar’s number in Washington.

“Yes Jaime.” Oscar spoke into the receiver.

“Oh Oscar it’s true. You need to get to Ojai.”

“I’ll be on the next flight.” Oscar gathered some to the best doctors he knew in forensic science to join him.

Jaime led them back to the cave.

Oscar looked around the cave which was exactly the way Steve had said it was even though two months had now passed since Steve stepped into his office after his twenty year absence.

“This is where we start gentlemen.” Oscar announced. “I want you to turn this cave upside down I want proof Colonel Austin spent twenty years in this cave.”

The forensic team went to work. They bagged up bags of sand and dust off the floor of the cave. With Jaime’s help they managed to get a couple of the boulders to the lab.

“Mr. Goldman. We are going to dust those boulders for Steve’s fingerprints. Then we are going to go through each particle of sand and look for Steve’s DNA.”

“I appreciate that gentlemen I only wish we would have done this two months ago.”

Oscar oversaw the entire procedure

Two weeks later Oscar was handed the report. “Sir Colonel Austin did spend a considerable amount of time in that cave. His DNA is on every grain of sand we took.”

“Which means?”

“You drop your DNA just about everywhere you go.” The forensic specialist explained. “It happens every time you sweat and so on. Even though you don’t know it or feel it your skin also flakes away and you leave your DNA that way also.”

“So you’re telling me that Colonel Austin did spend time in that cave. Twenty years?” Oscar emphasized.

“That’s what my final report is going to say.” The scientist told him.

“Thanks Tom.” Oscar grabbed the report from him. He reached for the phone and called Jaime in Boston first.

“Good news Jaime.” Oscar almost shouted into the phone.

“Go on Oscar.” Jaime grabbed for a chair and sat down to listen to what he had to say.

According to the forensic report which I hold in my hand states that Steve’s DNA was all over that cave.”

“So what do we do now?” Jaime asked.

“First I place a call to Hanson at the NSB and tell him that Steve didn’t commit treason. That he actually was asleep in the cave for twenty years.”

“Do you think Hanson will buy it?” Jaime wondered.

“No, but by the time I finish with him he will. Things may get ugly Jaime. I’m going to resign from OSI as soon as I speak to Hanson.”

“Oscar you can’t!” Jaime protested.

“Jaime the only reason I stayed on this long was to find Steve. I’ve been ready to retire for years. I guess that’s the word I should have used rather than resign.” Oscar corrected himself.

“Well if you think that’s what you have to do. I’ll back you.” Jaime agreed.

“That means a lot to me.” Oscar whispered.

The next call Oscar placed was to Hanson. “I need to meet with you in my office as soon as possible Hanson.” Oscar spoke into the phone.

“On what matter?” Hanson was suspicious. He knew Oscar had been doing some investigating on behalf of Steve Austin and Hanson wasn’t all together sure he wanted to hear about it.

“It’s about Steve. I’ve uncovered some new evidence that should clear him.” Oscar reported.

“Mr. Goldman. Colonel Austin is dead.” Hanson reminded. “It doesn’t matter now.”

“I feel that it does matter.” Oscar shouted. “Colonel Austin was innocent of the crime he was unjustly accused of and I want his name cleared. It’s the least I can do for him.”

Hanson met with Oscar in his office. “Ok Oscar what’s this evidence?” Hanson scoffed.

Oscar handed him the report from the forensics people. Hanson skimmed through it.

“Yes I see.” Hanson agreed. “I’ll set about correcting this right away.”

Three days later Hanson appeared on a television talk show denouncing the previous reports that Col.onel Steve Austin died a traitor. Several articles also appeared in major newspapers across the country.

Jaime helped Oscar load all of his personal belongings from his office. “I’m glad you decided to move to Boston too Oscar.” Jaime smiled as they pulled away from the OSI for the last time.

“Yea me too. I’m anxious to see Chip. It’s been awhile.”

“He’s anxious to see you too.”