God of War: Part 29
Lynn Jepsen
I'm going to fire someone for letting Lisa walk into the middle of this.
You do not just give her a gun she hasn't touched in years, and say 'go
get em'. Their ass is mine. Just tell me who came up with that brilliant
idea. Wallace is in the Situation Room. Josh's office is packed to
capacity. Rachel, Ramon, Carol, CJ, Zoey, Charlie, Lionel, Ainsley....
They're all waiting. Waiting for some word from me. Waiting to know if we
should arrange for a homecoming, a hospital stay, or a funeral.
I can't bury Josh. I'm not ready to.
There was this one moment, years ago, when Josh and I talked about dying.
We were drinking and the moment passed quickly. //"Sam, if you ever, ya
know, eat one too many hotdogs at nine thirty in the morning, I'll take
care of Lisa for ya."// I had taken a long swig of my beer, and laughed.
I had a feeling Lisa would be taking care of Josh, but I appreciated the
thought. He didn't laugh though. Instead, he set his drink down
seriously. //"And promise me you'd take care of Donna." "Yeah, sure. Calm
down."// I'm calm now. Too calm. Flicking on CNN, I see my face on every
channel. The war. Live.
I feel sick.
Wallace knocks lightly on the door, waiting for me to acknowledge his
presence. Lisa said something about leadership. She told me that Josh and
I, we were leaders, and someday we were going to have to trust her to
manage things while we led. I wave Wallace in through the open door, and
he shakes his head. "We have confirmation that Aliat, well, it was Talia
Zeta." Okay, the leader of The Wrath of God WAS Talia Zeta? "The General
stepped down, and his wife has approved the treaty. We're negotiating a
cease-fire of some sort." Was the leader? I'm still sort of hung up on
that past tense thing.
"She addressed the region by radio two hours ago. During her address, she
named the General's economic advisor as her successor, and she denounced
The Wrath of God. Then Mrs. Seaborn went in to talk to her." And? "It's
been over an hour. We haven't heard anything." So everyone's still
inside? "Yes, sir." Alright. Call me when you know something.
*
Margaret is smothering me. During my weekly meeting with the leadership,
she kept sneaking in with coffee, chocolate, water, and passing whatever
it was around just to check up on me. It's endearing in a twisted sort of
way. I mean, you'd think I could be trusted with something I do every
week. Next thing you know she'll be dressing me and refusing to let me
shave all by myself.
Afterwards, I let her shoo the leadership out of the office, but Reynolds
catches my eye. "May I have a moment, Mr. President?" Nodding, I wait
until Margaret closes the door, before asking the Speaker what he wants.
"I merely wanted to offer you my assist in any way possible." Ooookay.
What's the catch? I nod politely, and move to sit behind my desk. "I
wanted to advise you on a matter of concern to the leadership." Get to
the point, and get there quickly. "When you appoint your next Chief of
Staff, try not to pick one that the leadership disapproves of."
Let's get a few things straight. Until I bury him, I don't want anyone,
especially you, to stand in this office and insinuate that he's dead. Are
we clear? "Mr. President, denial is unhealthy...." No. I talk. You
listen. I am the party leadership, and my Chief of Staff only has to make
me happy. You are dirt in comparison. MARGARET!
The door pops open, and she stands ready to escort the Speaker out. Mark,
you will leave now. You will not repeat this conversation, and you will
cut the crap before I have you for lunch. Are we clear? "Mr. President--"
Go now, or the lead on CNN is the Secret Service tossing your ass out on
the lawn.
I'm not positive, but I think Margaret winks at me before the door closes
behind them.
I rest my head in my hands for a moment before hollering at Ramon and CJ
holed up in Josh's office next door. They walk in a moment later, and
over their shoulders I can hear Lionel bellowing at Ainsley. It's hard to
remember that only one of them works for me. "Let's move on the Hill. Get
me Wallace on the phone, and find out who's in charge over there." The
two of them exchange this look.... then they nod, and we're back in
business. We're crippled, but we're walking.
God of War: Part 30
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