CHAPTER 49
JEFF WAS GOING TO BE addressing Congress in their emergency session. His entire Cabinet were going as well, along with Mom, Raj, Chuckie, and Serene. He also had the lobbyists, Muddy and anyone from the Planetary Council who weren’t on my team, plus the majority of the military, including the flyboys. So, basically half of the room.
The other half was with me. Thankfully we were the Loud and Proud Contingent, because stealth was out of the question.
We’d coordinated as much as we could with Gower, then he’d gotten off the phone to do his own kind of wrangling. My gigantic entourage was busy prepping—making copies of the Turleen’s star chart, doing translations, and doing whatever Antoinette and Vance felt was necessary in terms of where we were going. Chose to leave most of this to them—I’d do what they told me when it mattered, but otherwise, I was focused on my real job, which was finding and stopping Cliff.
I’d been given one member of the military—Butler. “I’m the most expendable,” he explained. “And I’ve been able to download information as well. I have comprehensive military knowledge, and can speak and read every language in the world now.”
“Wow. John, that’s kind of awesome.”
He gave me a sad smile. “Not as awesome as being fully human, but there are perks. This is my first important mission since . . . my transition. I hope to reward your faith in me.”
Didn’t think about it, just gave him a hug. “You did that yourself. I helped and Chuckie and the others helped, too, but the manual override was all you.”
He looked surprised, but hugged me back, very gently. “Thank you. I’ll do whatever you need. By the way, Mister Reynolds told me to be aware that you probably have an agenda that isn’t being shared with the general group and asked me to tell you to please include me in whatever, and I quote, insane commando idea you’re planning.”
“Gosh, duly noted.” Would have said that I hated that both Jeff and Chuckie knew me this well, but reality said that if they already kind of knew, then I wasn’t lying to them. Moral quandary solved.
Jeff grabbed me and we stepped out of the LSR for a few moments. We spent the time making out, which was fine with me. “Come back to me safely,” Jeff said, as he stroked my face. “That’s all I’m asking. I don’t care about the rest of the world if you’re not in it.”
Leaned my head on his chest and let his double heartbeats soothe me. “I’ll do my best, Jeff. I promise.”
“Then everything will turn out just fine.” He kissed the top of my head. “Your mother feels that, under the circumstances, the kids need to stay here. And by here I mean in the Embassy, under lockdown, with their full security details with them twenty-four-seven.”
“I’ll take the Worst Mother of the Year hit on that, because I think they’ll be safer here than with me.”
Jeff heaved a sigh. “I’m not sure if anyplace will be safe. If the Aicirtap are what Muddy’s said they are, we’re in for a world of hurt.”
“We’ll handle it. We always do.” Looked up at him. “So, technically, you really are the king of the world. Did you know your dad abdicated?”
“No one tells me anything, my parents least of all, so no.” Jeff managed a small grin. “You chose well, baby, when you put Alexander on the throne. I do know that.”
“Chose even better when I picked you.”
“I feel exactly the same way.”
We spent a couple more minutes making out. Then duty called and we went back into the LSR. Jeff and his team took a floater gate over to Capitol Hill. The room seemed normally full now.
“You need to get some rest,” Antoinette said to me. “You look tired, and I’m sure you are. You’re the face of this entire operation, so do yourself and the mission a favor and catch a few winks.”
“I want to see my children before we leave. They might be up, they’re having a slumber party.”
“I’ve already contacted their nanny. They’re all in bed asleep, even your ward, but the nanny will wake them when I call her to tell her that we’re ready to leave. You’ll see them then. Right now, you need to focus on you.”
Couldn’t argue because I was exhausted all of a sudden. Considered asking for Chef to bring me a dessert per Algar’s instructions, but decided I’d rather just get to my room.
Headed off and upstairs. But I stopped midway up. “I know you’re there.”
Siler appeared next to me. “Did you hear me breathing?”
“No. I just know how you roll. I don’t need babysitting.” Started off again, this time with him visible next to me. “Per Antoinette, the kids are asleep but we can see them in the morning, right before we leave. I assume you want to go over with me.”
“I do. But I mainly wanted to mention that the empire in Star Wars started similarly to this. Since it’s a reference I know you’ll not only get but embrace.”
“Yes, I know. And I also know that it’s not going to be easy or smooth or anything else. What I also know is that no one on this planet is going to declare me and Jeff their sovereign lords, Alpha Four’s policies or no, so I don’t think we’re at the same risk as they were in the movies.”
“I think that if Muddy’s correct, five or six shiploads of aliens are going to be declaring you their rulers.”
“If Muddy is correct about that. I’m not saying that he’s lying or even wrong, but he has an agenda. He wants us to stop the Aicirtap before they destroy his system. He also wants us to stop the Z’porrah from uplifting already sentient races, based on what happened to the Aicirtap. Having met some Z’porrah personally, I can’t argue with that mindset.”
“And the Turleens want to come to Earth if their planet is destroyed. I know. But . . . can you trust him?”
Thought about it. “Yeah, I can.”
“What makes you so sure?”
Shrugged. “He reminds me of Richard. And you.”
“Ah. I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“You should. I’ve almost never been wrong about who I could trust.” Of course, I’d been wrong in a big way when we’d first gotten to D.C. But why mention that now?
“Malcolm mentioned that you’ve been wrong before. But the person who fooled you was a pro at doing so. And you weren’t in your element.”
“Of course you know about that. Look, if the Turleens are lying about the Aicirtap we’ll know fast. However, if they’re not—and John Wruck doesn’t seem to think they are, and neither does Jeff, and he can read them by now—then we only know about what’s coming behind the refugees because of them.”
“I’m more concerned that you and your husband are about to become the rulers of this world.”
“I’ll take Jeff as a ruler over at least half of the actual rulers we have right now.”
“No argument about that. However, it’s going to create a backlash we may not be able to survive.”
“If it happens. You’re assuming that Jeff and I are going to toss on crowns and say that everyone has to listen to us. We aren’t.”
“But you are,” Siler said patiently as we reached my rooms. “You’re going on a world tour to basically tell all the leaders what you told Antoinette—what’s coming is so terrifying that we need to join together or be destroyed. But there can only be one leader in a situation like that and, once the battle is won, will that leader give the control back to the ones who used to have it?”
“I know what I want to say, which is yes, but I can see a lot of scenarios where that would be worse than just keeping hold of the reins. But, since I have you as my Jiminy Cricket, and, frankly, the Turleens looking like the real thing, I’m probably good.”
He didn’t look convinced. “Just remember that many times it’s easier to take control than to give control up.”
“And often the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Sometimes they’re a worse enemy. And sometimes you feel like a nut and sometimes you don’t. I have to go give the world a Coke and a smile. And I need to do it at hyperspeed.”
“Basically, yeah.” He didn’t look comforted.
There were Secret Service agents in the hall. Opened my room, pulled him inside, and shut the door. Expected to hear through the Secret Service Grapevine before sunrise that I was having a torrid affair with Siler.
“Look, this is a between us only right now statement. I could not care less about getting the rest of the world on board—the aliens are coming whether they like it or not. I’m going to the Middle East because I point-blank know that’s where Cliff Goodman’s hiding out. I’m positive that the Casey Thing was actually a badly completed clone. And that means Cliff’s back in the cloning game. My plan, my real plan, is to take him down, permanently, before he can capture, sway, or compel any of the new aliens that are coming here to hide into becoming his next cloning targets, particularly the ones Muddy already identified as the Z’porrah’s next targets, the minotaur people called the Q’vox. Now, are you in or are you not?”
Siler stared at me, as a slow grin formed on his face. “I knew I’d chosen my allegiance correctly. In, one hundred percent. I’ll reassure Malcolm and Wruck that there’s more going on and that they’ll approve, but won’t tell them anything beyond that until we’re on-site. I think Butler is already aware that you’re going to be doing something more than diplomatic.”
“Yeah, he told me as much.”
“Good. At least half of your team are fighters, too. And with the Chief Usher along, you actually have someone who can be diplomatic if needed.”
“Vance is coming, too. He’ll handle all the real FLOTUS stuff. I’ll handle what really needs to be done.”
Siler laughed. “Or, as you all call it, routine.”