Free Timecachers by Glenn R. Petrucci Page B

in rural Virginia, he had plenty of opportunity to spend time in the woods enjoying outdoor activities like hunting, hiking, camping, and fishing.
    Tom was just over six feet tall, with steel gray eyes, sandy hair, and a trim, close-cropped beard. He had a slight but athletic frame, with tough, sinewy muscles that gave him more strength than his features revealed. At thirty-nine, he was ten years older than the other members of the team, but had more stamina than any of them.
    He carried his briar pipe everywhere. He smoked only on occasion, and this evening’s solitary constitutional was the perfect opportunity. He joked that he sometimes used the pipe as a prop, to give him a wise, contemplative look whenever someone asked him a question he had no ready answer for. At work, his pipe gave him the look of an astute senior engineer. In the forest, dressed in jeans, flannel shirt, and wide-brimmed hat, he looked much like a country gentleman out for a stroll on his mountain estate.
    While he was in high school, Tom expected he would attend the University of Virginia where his older brother and most of his friends had gone. UVA had a great engineering school, and even though they specialized in medical studies the school had provided accomplished engineers in many fields, and an engineering degree from UVA would open many doors for him. It was by chance that an online friend invited him for a visit to the Philadelphia area and to check out UPenn before making his final decision to attend UVA. Tom found that despite his dislike for the congested feeling of the Philly area, he was attracted by all that the area had to offer; not only the cultural urban amenities and close proximity to other metro areas, but the historical significance of the city and its structures fascinated him. Virginia had an intriguing history with its battlefields and presidential homes, and Philly gave him a similar thrill walking the streets of the town where the founding fathers had met to plan the beginnings of our great country. He loved wandering about the city inspecting its many magnificent granite buildings and spending time in the museums and libraries, looking through old photos, etchings, and drawings depicting the city from pre-colonial times to the present. He was soon convinced that UPenn could offer a great degree program as well as diversify his education with the culture and history that the area had to offer.
    His folks were a little disappointed that he selected a college outside of his home state, but they understood his reasoning and supported his decision. Fitting in with the Philadelphia crowd was never an issue. The teachers and students were from all over the country, and the majority of the locals were a lot friendlier that he’d been led to believe. He had to admit they were more accepting than many of the folks in his own hometown, who tended to be provincial and sometimes untrusting of anyone not from the area. It also helped that he was well-spoken, and his slight Virginia accent gave his voice a friendly and refined quality-- a sharp contrast to the south Philly slur. His country charm and easygoing nature was pleasing enough, especially when combined with his southern old-school manners.
    After his graduation, Tom was recruited by MBNA, formerly a large financial institution headquartered in Delaware, home to many corporations due to their business-friendly tax structure. MBNA was primarily a credit card company, and they were particularly interested in implementing web services for their customers—an innovative offering at the time. Tom was one of the few people local to the area who had expertise in secure financial transactions over the internet, and MBNA had the resources to make an offer very hard to refuse for someone right out of college. Taking the job at MBNA allowed Tom to move to New Castle, Delaware, a tiny, well-preserved colonial town that suited his historical interests and was a four hour drive from