I'll Cover You

by A. C. Grey

  "I love you," Emmy said as Kate turned to leave.

  Kate nodded absent-mindedly. "Me too," she said before striding out of the room.

  Emmy knew that this threat affected more than just her family and that Kate had many bigger issues to deal with. All the same, she couldn't help but feel a bit abandoned. Kate had taken just a few moments to reassure her before fleeing for the advice and support of her aides. Leaving Emmy alone. As much as she fought it, Christine's warning crept into the back of her mind. What if she had been right? What if Kate was more concerned about her career? Emmy shook off the thought almost as soon as it had entered her head. Kate had never done anything to suggest that. In fact, she'd often gone out of her way to make Emmy and her family feel special.

  * * * * *

  As Kate left, her mind was flooded with feelings of guilt. After reading the letter, she’d been nearly overwhelmed with the sense of responsibility. There was no doubt about it. This situation, a very dangerous and very precarious situation, was her fault. The responsibility rested on her shoulders and hers alone. If she hadn’t come out, if she hadn’t aired her own personal business to the American public, Emmy and her family wouldn’t be in the danger that they were currently in.

  She’d managed to keep a brave face for Emmy, long enough to briefly reassure her. Barely. She hadn’t wanted to break down in front of her girlfriend. It was her job, had always been her job, to be brave in the face of trouble. So she’d calmly told Emmy everything would be fine. When Emmy had told her that she loved her, despite the news they’d just received, it had taken all her willpower not to break down right then and there. She’d somehow managed a response before fleeing the room, holding back the tears.

  But now that she was alone, she took just a few minutes to herself to be upset, to be scared and to feel guilty. This was not how their first Christmas together was supposed to be. So much for her plans for a perfect holiday, she thought as hot tears streamed down her face. After a few minutes, a very awkward-looking Beth knocked gingerly on the door.

  “Uh . . . are you alright?” Beth asked.

  Kate nodded. “I’m fine. You didn’t see this.”

  Beth nodded in response. “Of course. Whenever you’re . . .uh . . . ready, we’ve got a team assembled in your office.”

  Without a word, Beth crossed the room and pulled Kate in for a quick, somewhat awkward hug. “I know you and that mind of yours. This isn’t your fault. Don’t you worry. We’re going to catch those sons of bitches.”

  Kate sighed, releasing a breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding before pulling back. “Thanks, Beth. And . . .”

  Beth cut her off. “I know. Not a word.” She patted Kate reassuringly on the arm and left the room.

  After taking a few more minutes to wipe away her tears and compose herself, Kate went to meet her staff for a briefing. As she’d expected, they were on top of things. A team of agents had been assigned to cover the Harris family 24 hours a day and the FBI was in the process of tracking down leads.

  After being assured that everything that should have been done had been done, Kate turned to other matters. “So how does this affect the announcement I was planning for December 26? Do I back off? Or do I go ahead as planned?” she asked her team.

  Beth answered. “That’s up to you. I don’t think giving in and backing off the gay rights message accomplishes anything. It just gives them all the power. But then again, maybe it’s best to table the announcement until after we’ve caught the bastards.”

  Kate nodded and pondered the idea. Finally, coming to a decision, she shook her head. “We’re going ahead with it. As long you can assure me that no harm will come to Emmy and her family, I’m not going to back down. I said that I was going to stand up for this issue and by God I meant it. I will not be forced back into the closet. Those fucking bigots don’t know who the hell they’re dealing with.” Gone was the weepy, doubting woman of a few minutes ago. Anger roiled through Kate’s veins as fierce determination set in. She would win this battle. Not just for her or Emmy, but for all Americans struggling with bigotry and discrimination.

  “Make whatever arrangements are necessary. We’re going ahead with our plan,” she said to her staff. The combination of the steely look on her face and her rare use of profanity signaled to those in the room that she meant business. The various staffers nodded and scurried from the room.

  “You sure this is the right thing to do?” Beth asked once they were alone.

  Kate let out a weary sigh. “I sure hope so, Beth.” She ran a ragged hand through her blonde locks and collapsed into her desk chair. She sure hoped she’d made the right call.

  * * * * *

  Given the circumstances, their first family Christmas together was a little awkward for Emmy and Kate. Normally, the biggest worry would have been having their parents meet each other, but that was the least of the worries on anyone’s mind. Despite a valiant attempt on everyone’s part, there was a certain tension. No one was able to completely escape from the worry that the threat had created.

  Emmy couldn’t rid herself of the doubt, worry and guilt that had been present ever since she first read the letter. Her father had chuckled, trying to make a joke about how everyone thought he was someone famous now that he had his own private security detail. She knew he’d been trying to lighten the mood, but it just made her feel all the more guilty. She may have chosen to date the President and the life of added complications that went with it, but her family hadn’t. Yet somehow, they’d been burdened anyway, and it was all her fault. An incessant tugging on her sleeve brought her out of her reverie. She saw Gabby standing before her. If there was one cure for a bad mood, it was this little girl. Emmy grinned and pulled Gabby into her lap.

  “Hey big girl! Why don’t you tell me a story?” She said, eager for the distraction of one of Gabby’s rambling anecdotes about her dolls or her friends or her favorite TV show.

  “What kinda story?” Gabby asked.

  “I don’t know. Whatever you feel like sweetie? How about you tell me about school?”

  Gabby nodded and thought for a minute. “When I went to school last week, your friend Phil came along with me. It was kinda cool. Kinda like show and tell. But then, at recess, we played hide and seek. Except it was no fun because every time it was my turn to hide, my friends would find me right away ‘cause Phil was standing there. Do you think you could ask Phil not to come with me to school next time? ‘Cause I wanna win at hide and seek.”

  The smile that had been on Emmy’s face dropped. It broke her heart. What was she doing to her family? What was she putting them through? Would Gabby ever have a normal childhood at this rate? She offered Gabby a weak smile. “We’ll see what we can do, kiddo. Now, I think it’s time to go to bed. Santa’s coming tonight, remember? And he can’t come until we go to sleep.”

  “Do you think Santa will know to find me here? He usually comes to my house.” A look of worry crossed Gabby’s very serious face.

  “Of course, sweetie. Santa has very special kid-tracking radar so he knows where every kid on the whole planet is. He’ll find you. I promise.”

  The answer seemed to satisfy the little girl. “Okay. Wanna help me get Santa’s cookies and milk? We’ve gotta put them out, along with carrots for his reindeer. They get hungry after all that flying around the world.”

  Emmy chuckled and let Gabby lead her to the kitchen.

  30 minutes later, with Gabby safely and snugly tucked into bed, Emmy collapsed on the couch in Kate’s private suite. She hadn’t seen Kate for a good portion of the day, as Kate had been busy with work and things like getting photographed for the Presidential holiday greeting card. Thankfully, Emmy had been left out of that. Kate had urged her to sit for the photo as well, but Emmy had begged off and she was grateful that Kate hadn’t pushed too hard. Emmy didn’t know if she could deal with another public appearance right now.

  Emmy must have fallen asleep on the couch, as the feeling of a familiar
and very welcome pair of lips lightly brushing hers awakened her. Her sleepy eyes fluttered open to see her girlfriend standing over her.

  Kate reached down to pull Emmy up. “Come on sleepy head, let’s get you to bed. We’ve got a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”

  “Huh?” a confused and sleep-addled Emmy responded.

  “You know. Christmas?” Kate offered with a smirk. She hoped to make tomorrow happy and memorable for Emmy despite all the drama that had threatened to ruin their holiday.

  “Right,” Emmy said with a sleepy smile before rising. She captured Kate’s lips with her own. “I missed you today.”

  Kate pulled Emmy into a deep hug and whispered into her hair. “I know. I’m sorry. This isn’t how I’d planned to spend Christmas Eve. But you know . . . stuff’s come up,” she said, not wanting to offer more. No need to add any stress to Emmy’s already stressed and guilt-ridden conscience. “But tomorrow. I promise tomorrow is just for us. And our families. It’ll be special. I promise.”

  Emmy nodded and kissed Kate once more, trying to suppress feelings of doubt. “Thanks. I love you, Kate.”

  “I know.” Kate smirked, flashing Emmy those trademark dimples that never failed to make her go weak in the knees. “I love you too. Now let’s get you to bed.”

  Sleepy and unable to argue, Emmy nodded and let Kate lead her to bed.

  Once Emmy was snuggled up against her and gently snoring, Kate allowed her mind to wander to the recent events. She couldn’t help but feel responsible for this awkward and difficult situation. Despite the fact that she herself had told Emmy that no one was to blame but the crazies responsible for the threat, and despite the fact that Beth had told her the same thing, Kate couldn’t shake her feeling of responsibility.

  She’d done her best to put up a brave front for Emmy. She’d had to work today, that had been no lie. But she’d purposely spent a little extra time working, just to avoid her girlfriend and family. She felt beyond guilty about it. Normally she was not one to shy away from tense situations. But despite the fact that she was an expert at dealing with the most stressful of situations, all it took was one look at Emmy or at her adorable niece and Kate’s resolve was in shreds. And she could not, would not, break down in front of them. She needed to be brave for them.

  She’d spent hours with her staff, getting briefings, updates on the investigation. She’d been told that progress was being made, but that so far, they had not been able to trace the letter back to its sender. That unnerved her. She knew that Emmy and her family were safe, but even so, she was wracked with worry.

  Kate sat up for hours. Thinking and rethinking her plans for the next few days. Was she making the right move? Should she give in lay low until the creeps were caught? Part of her ached to do so. To accede to their demands. To just put Emmy and her family out of their misery. It wasn’t fair to them to put them through all this. If she went ahead with her plans, she’d be potentially be putting them through even more in the future. But at the same time, she didn’t see how she could back down. It wasn’t in her nature. She was right on this, and she wouldn’t change her plans, her life, her viewpoint, her own future as well as that of all other gay Americans just because of a lousy threat.

  Kate warred with herself, swaying back and forth as to what to do. Finally coming to a decision, she fell asleep.

  The next morning, they were awakened to Gabby’s excited shriek as she ran into their room. “Aunt Emmy!!! Aunt Kate!!! Wake up!!! Santa came!!! It’s Christmasssssss!!!”

  Kate chuckled and smiled as she stretched. Had Gabby just called her “Aunt” Kate? She liked the sound of that.

  Emmy giggled and sleepily kissed her girlfriend. “Come on ‘Aunt’ Kate. Let’s go open presents,” she said before rolling out of bed and capturing her niece, tickling her until Gabby was laughing hysterically. “Let’s go munchkin.”

  Kate smiled as she followed the two out to the communal living room. She could get used to this. Waking up on Christmas morning with Emmy, a few giggling and excited kids of their own.

  * * * * *

  They sat around opening presents, laughing, sharing stories, and drinking hot cocoa. It was, despite the underlying tension, an almost picture perfect holiday. Emmy and Kate exchanged presents, including what turned out to be matching heart-shaped necklaces. They laughed at the duplicate gifts, each loving the fact that they’d been clearly of the same mind. At last, there was one present left under the tree for Emmy from Kate.

  Kate smiled nervously as Emmy unwrapped it. As Emmy pulled out a sheet of paper with the Presidential letterhead at the top of the page, she looked up at Kate quizzically.

  “What’s this?” Emmy asked.

  “Read it,” Kate said.

  After Emmy was done, Kate continued. “I know it’s a bit of an odd gift. And it’s not really just for you.”

  “What is it?” Emmy’s father asked.

  “It’s a press release that went out this morning. I’m planning on giving a speech tomorrow where I’m going to call for the introduction of a Constitutional amendment that will allow for marriage between any couple, not just heterosexual couples,” Kate explained.

  Emmy gave Kate a small smile, not quite sure what to make of it. “Thank you,” she said before kissing Kate chastely. Emmy was proud. Yet at the same time, she couldn’t forget where Kate’s championing of gay rights had gotten them so far. A death threat, against, among other people, her own precious niece. As she watched Gabby obliviously playing with her new toys, Emmy couldn’t help but get a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach.

  And as much as she hated to admit it, Christine’s warning had once again crept back into her head. Kate had given this to her as a present. But was it really? Lately, ever since the threat, Kate had been distant, and preoccupied even a little cold at times. What if this whole family Christmas had just been a ruse? Something to help with this big announcement. She’d even asked Emmy to be in her Christmas portrait. Emmy shrugged it off. She was being unfair to Kate. Of course she’d been distant – fairly so – this threat was something that took up a lot of her time. As well as this big speech, apparently. It was just the stress. Emmy knew that. So she pushed away the feelings and did her best to enjoy the holiday.

  * * * * *

  A few hours later, Emmy and Kate were enjoying some quiet time together, watching some Christmas movie on TV. Kate’s mind was far from the movie. She was pondering her next steps. Was she really making the right choice? Was now the right time? Was she being fair to Emmy? To Emmy’s family? Was she, Kate, just being selfish? Kate stared off into space as she pondered, unable to comfort herself, unable to fully believe she’d made the right choice.

  Emmy had noticed Kate’s distance appear once again. She’d been a little off for the past few days. Sure, it was probably just the stress, the pressure that all of them were feeling, but she couldn’t help but feel left out. Like Kate was keeping something from her, like Kate was silently pushing her away. Still, it was Christmas and Emmy was determined to be happy, so she did her best to ignore the doubts.

  Their movie was interrupted as Beth knocked. “I’m sorry to interrupt your holiday. But we just received this.”

  She grimly handed the piece of paper to Kate. Both women read it quickly.

  I see you’ve failed to take our demands seriously. This is stupid. Very stupid. Instead of doing as we ask, you’ve gone ahead and scheduled a speech for tomorrow? One that will apparently deal with this so-called marriage equality issue? Are you really that dense?

  You’d better think long and hard about this, bitch. We will not be trifled with. Do not play games. We certainly aren’t. You aren’t as safe as you think you are. You have 24 hours. That’s right. You’re going to give that speech, but you’re going to tell the American public that being gay is an abomination and that you are resigning. If you don’t . . . well, let’s just say you don’t want to find out what the consequences will be. You won’t like them.

  Citiz
ens for the Moral Family

  Kate looked up at Beth. “You’ve got this under control, I take it?”

  “We’ve got every agent available on it, Kate,” Beth replied.

  “Okay. Good,” Kate replied.

  “Does this change any plans for tomorrow?” Beth asked.

  “Like hell it does.”

  “Just checking,” Beth said before heading from the room.

  Emmy was shaking. She was overwhelmed. With fear. With rage. With guilt.

  “It’s going to be okay,” Kate said, somewhat distractedly, as she stroked Emmy’s back.

  Kate warred with herself. Was she crazy? Should she give up this whole plan? After a moment of self-doubt, she shook it off. No. She was the President of the United States and no one told her how to live her life or what to believe in. She knew one thing for sure. She wanted a future with Emmy, and that meant fighting for that future. And fighting for what was right.