“We have 6,400 acres in West Texas, about 150 miles east of the New Mexico border.”
“6,400 acres is quite a ranch, is it not?” Commissioner Kane asked. “6,400 acres is about ten square miles.”
“A hair shy of ten square miles, Commissioner,” Wyl said.
“Texas is huge, too, right Wyl?” Dr. Riordan asked.
“The State of Texas covers over 268,500 square miles or around 172 million acres, Commissioner,” Wyl said. “So if Ireland is in the neighborhood of 32,500 square miles, Texas is eight times the size of Ireland.”
“We worked on comparisons,” Rod said. “The northeastern point of Northern Ireland southwest to the southwest town of Dingle is 350 miles, give or take. In Texas, the northern Panhandle town of Dalhart is almost 900 miles from Brownsville and the southern tip of Texas. We have a rhyme to poke fun at our state: The sun has riz, the sun has set, and we ain’t out of Texas yet.
Dr. Riordan laughed. “Well, that puts things in perspective.”
“If you ever come to the States, Dr. & Mrs. Riordan or Commissioner and Mrs. Kane, please accept our invitation to stay a few days on our ranch. We’ll put you on horseback and show you a real, functioning Texas cattle ranch.”
“We’ll plan to take you up on the offer,” Commissioner Kane smiled.
Relative silence blanketed their table as they finished the meal. At twelve-thirty, Dr. Riordan asked, “Wyl, are you ready?”
“You bet, Dr. Riordan.”
Dr. Riordan stood and climbed the steps to the dais, taking the podium. “I hope everyone enjoyed the wonderful lunch. Let’s give a round of applause to the waitstaff and caterers for their attention to our needs.” He began applauding, and the audience joined him.
“I am privileged today to introduce Mr. Wyl Sterling. Mr. Sterling boasts an unparalleled reputation as a computer programmer, having worked in cybersecurity while serving in the United States Marine Corps. He retired from the Corps almost eighteen months ago. He and his husband, Dr. Rod Bonner Sterling, own a ranch in West Texas, a ten-square-mile ranch. No wonder they use horses in Texas.” Dr. Riordan laughed, and the audience joined him.
“Dr. Bonner earned his doctorate in musicology, and if I’m not mistaken, he was the featured speaker at the symposium on the university campus yesterday. Rod, stand up for the audience.”
Rod stood and the audience applauded as he waved to the crowd.
“Ladies and gentlemen, without further delay, I give you our esteemed guest speaker, Mr. Wyl Sterling.”
The audience applauded as Wyl approached the podium and shook hands with Dr. Riordan.
“Thank you, Dr. Riordan,” Wyl nodded to his host. “As we planned our trip, my husband shared a humorous story about one of his previous trips to Ireland. Although this is my first time in the Land of the Shamrock, Rod traveled to Ireland twice before. On one trip, he and his friends sat in a bar in Galway, enjoying an afternoon drink. When the barman brought the glasses of foamy Guinness, one of his friends commented, Oh, a clover in the foam.” Wyl paused while an uncomfortable chuckle rolled through the audience. Rod explained to him the Irish use the term shamrock when referring to their national symbol. “Deportation proceedings began, Gardaí was called in, and the group of friends fought to stay in Ireland.” The audience roared with laughter. He had them in the palm of his hand. He took what many considered to be a boring topic and made it enjoyable…even to an audience familiar with his topic.
Rod admired his husband as he engaged the audience. An aminated speaker, Wyl strolled the stage and used his hands to emphasize points or focus the audience's attention. As a master speaker, he came across as full of confidence and able to transform the audience into a group of participants. Rod wondered how he missed this side of his husband. As Wyl finished his presentation and the audience leaped to their feet and applauded. Dr. Riordan once again took the podium.
“Thank you, Mr. Sterling, for the in-depth talk of computer security and keeping cyberspace safe. I think the audience will agree your presentation is the highlight of our symposium so far. Folks, let’s give another round of applause to the Sterlings for being here with us today.”
The audience erupted in enthusiastic applause. The introduction of Rod as Wyl’s husband cemented their relationship with outsiders and validated their reason for being in Ireland. And the presentation further increased Wyl’s potential value to one particular attendee at a table in the back of the room…Ailbe MacGowan.
* * *
Ailbe and Declan met Wednesday for their usual afternoon drink at O’Connell’s Pub.
“You should have attended Wyl Sterling's presentation at the symposium luncheon today, Declan. He is much more gifted than I realized. His bio in the campus newspaper article about the symposium did not begin to reveal the depth of his knowledge and experience. We need to make every effort to become close friends with the Sterlings. I need Wyl.”
“What about Rod?” Declan asked. “To use Wyl, you need Rod. Wyl will likely cooperate more if we have Rod as insurance.”
“Fair point. Those two are inseparable. The article in The Advocate didn’t begin to cover their relationship. I never met two guys so committed to each other. If we have one, we will have the other, giving us a huge advantage.”
“Did I spot an evil gleam in your eyes?” Declan said.
“Success is ours, Declan.” Ailbe raised his glass of Bulmers in a toast.
Declan raised his glass, clinked, and they to a self-congratulatory sip.
“Let’s ask them to meet us at Wilde’s tomorrow evening for dinner,” Declan suggested. “James Pearson will be performing. By getting Rod to talk about music, he will relax and be part of the social interaction we are trying to create. We’ll find out their plans so we can strike when the time is right.”
"But how do we reach them? We don’t have phone numbers or email addresses.”
“Relax. The handout for the luncheon gave a short bio and indicated the Sterlings took a flat at CityPoint in Eyre Square. We can call the apartment manager’s office and ask for the message to be delivered,” Declan said.
“I like the way you think. Can you make the call? I’ll be busy with a class in the morning and won’t be able to do it first thing.”
“Leave it to me,” Declan said.
Early Thursday morning, Declan called the CityPoint management office and asked for delivery of a call-back message to the Sterlings. The flat superintendent agreed and took the information.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The following day, a knock at the door interrupted their late breakfast.
“I wonder who that is?” Wyl’s fork clattered to the plate, and he stood to answer the door. Looking through the peephole, he recognized the flat super. “It’s the superintendent. I hope nothing is wrong.” Wyl opened the door.
“Mr. Sterling, I have a message for you.” The flat superintendent handed Wyl a note. “A gentleman called and asked for me to deliver this.”
“Thank you.” Wyl took the note and closed the door. He unfolded the message and read it.
