God of War: Part 15


Lynn Jepsen


They sent Toby in to babysit me. I'd be annoyed if I wasn't fighting this
deep seated fear that I'm about to lose my best friend, shut out my wife,
and fire the initial volley of Armageddon. My, haven't I been busy.

Josh was right. I'm pushing too hard. I wanted to accomplish something so
badly, I've stopped caring what it is. I never should have given that
speech. I wanted to show that I wasn't going to worry about interest
groups, and I wasn't going to worry about my numbers. I forgot one thing
though... Those numbers represent actual people. Those people don't want
their rights infringed on, but they don't want their President to morph
into a militant activist.

I think I need to go back to California. Not literally, but, you know, in
a figurative sense. Back then, I knew what I was doing, where I was
going. I've got to work on that.

Man, nothing to makes you philosophical like a war, a kidnapping, and
being shot at.

"Sam?" I swing my head towards Toby. He hasn't really said anything yet,
and I'm not sure I want to know what's on his mind right now. "You
realize the Amazons are in there brainstorming, right?" No, I wasn't
aware of that, and who are the Amazons? "CJ, Lisa, Diana, Rachel...."
Okay, just tell me they're not planning a military coup or anything. "No,
just forming a criminal conspiracy." Okay, so long as I shouldn't be
worried. How's Lily? "Still in surgery." Have we heard anything about
Josh? "Officially?" Yeah. "No." How about unofficially? "Nothing I can
tell you about." Okay.

What are they doing in there? "You don't want to know." Alright. What am
I supposed to say during my brief press appearance. "You're alive. You're
on top of things. You're praying for Lily Mays." Right. I'd ask for
clarification on that, but Carol appears at the door, and so I leave Toby
camped out on my couch to face the piranhas.

*

Carol pats my shoulder when we're through and I have to say, I'm
surprised I'm holding it together. I haven't yelled at anyone tonight,
and I haven't killed anyone yet. One of those is sure to change by
morning. The path from the press room to the Oval Office is lined with
agents, and I sigh. On the twenty-first, the United States lost an
aircraft carrier in the Red Sea. On the twenty-second, religious bigots
tried to assassinate the President and ended up shooting the Deputy Chief
of Staff, which is starting to look like a damn dangerous job after Josh
and now Lily. Now, on the twenty-third, I realize it's been forty-eight
hours since I've slept, and I have to close my eyes, if only for an hour
or two.

When I walk into my office, I realize any hope of sleep is fleeting, for
although Margaret's head is resting on her desk, those inside are wide
awake. Everyone scrambles to their feet when I walk in, and I have to
take a minute to survey those still standing. The Amazons, as Toby calls
them, look the sturdiest. Why, heaven only knows. Lisa has obviously been
upstairs to take a shower and check on Elle, because her hair's wet and
her clothes are different. She's left behind the power suit for a pair of
brown slacks and a beige sweater. CJ's head is bowed as she and Lisa
confer. Somewhere along the line, Claudia Jean ditched her shoes, because
she's barefoot now - still towering over everyone, but not by as much.
They look like they're holding up well. They're not. Not with Josh
missing, but they're faking it remarkably well.

Rachel and Diana aren't even attempting to fake it. Rachel's still
wearing the skirt and blouse she threw on when Josh called her after the
USS Bartlet was bombed. She might actually look more rumpled than I've
ever seen her, but her eyes are dry, and her hands are mostly steady.
Diana could be a zombie. She might be, I'm not sure, but she looks like
death warmed over, and I'm fairly certain that if Toby hadn't stationed
himself next to her on the couch, she'd bolt. Ah, Toby. Toby is, if
nothing else, constant. I'm fairly certain he'd still be sitting there,
with a sour look on his face, and a supportive hand, under any
circumstances.

Carol creeps in through Josh's door, and then we're all here. I intend to
send everyone upstairs for a few hours sleep. The goal was to put
everything on the shelf except for the Middle East, Josh, and Lily. My
plan was shot to hell within thirty seconds, because Jeff steps into the
room and utters five words. Five words which mean so much more from his
mouth than Margaret's.

"You have a phone call."


God of War: Part 16

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