by Gordon Ryan
“She’s going to need a new partner in any case, isn’t she? Are you satisfied with her performance while I’ve been gone?”
“She’s intelligent, seems to have overcome her grief at Samuels’ death-she was present at the robbery and, in fact, shot and killed the man who shot Samuels.”
“I see,” Pug said. “What’s your opinion? Can she handle it alone?”
“I like her instincts. I have a more senior agent in mind to assign with her, but he would assume leadership. She clearly wants to remain on the task force, and she’s in town, at my request, although I haven’t told her about the meeting this morning.”
“I’ve been the new boy a few times myself, George. I thought she had a good head on her shoulders. I vote we keep her onboard. As for a new team leader, that’s your call.”
“Good enough,” Granata said, picking up a telephone. “Sam, please arrange for Agent Bentley to meet us at the White House. I believe she’s at the Washington Hilton.”
Granata nodded at Sam’s response and replaced the receiver.
“So, how does the president want to handle this new development?” Pug asked.
“I haven’t a clue. Prescott called the meeting, and I’m not even sure if Eastman will be there. But we can be sure of one thing-he’s not easily pushed around, even by domestic enemies, and he’s got a lot of alternatives at his disposal.”
The president disagreed with Judge Granata’s assessment. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve thought about nothing but this problem for the past thirty-six hours-indeed, for the past several months if truth be known, but I’m flat out of options,” President William Eastman said to the small group gathered in the Executive Office. “Any open restraint I make will appear militant and infuriate those groups that are on the fence, including Governor Walter Dewhirst. In the old days, the president simply would have talked to the CIA about the problem, and some of the bad guys would disappear-if they could find them. We don’t work that way anymore. Sometimes I wish we did. George, what has the bureau come up with?”
“Mr. President, we’re quite certain who the primary leaders of the Western Patriot Movement are-at least the military leaders-but none of them have actually been observed for nearly a month. They’ve gone to ground, and with our inside agent killed, we’ve lost daily contact.”
“You mean to tell me you don’t know where they are, or what they’re doing?”
“That’s pretty close to accurate, Mr. President. We have a tail on some of the general membership, but not the leaders. Of course, we have a tail on Grant Sully, but still haven’t really determined his role, if any, in all this. But picking up the rank and file would be fruitless.”
“Clarene, this has been your ballgame so far. Where do you suggest we go from here?”
Ambassador Clarene Prescott, serving as national security advisor, leaned forward in her seat and placed her elbows on the highly polished walnut table. Around the table, seemingly as perplexed as the president, were FBI Director George Granata, Colonel Pug Connor, and Special Agent Nicole Bentley.
“We encourage them to come to us, Mr. President.”
“And what makes you think they will?”
“So far, every senior government leader who has spoken out on the issue, with the exception of Senator Turner, of course, has expressed his or her disapproval of the secession. The people behind the scenes on this have no one to confide in-no government official to publicly meet with to offer their support and suggestions. I have a feeling they would rather develop into a political action group-lobbyists advocating their new nation-than continue as militants forced to confront superior odds.”
Director Granata spoke up. “Ambassador, do I hear you correctly? You want to have some of us cross over to their side of this preposterous patriot movement?”
“Not quite, Director,” Prescott said, smiling at him. Looking back at the president, she continued. “Mr. President, I have a long-standing relationship with Governor Dewhirst. I believe he could be of assistance, if approached with the right ideas.”
“But he’s opposed to the secession, Clarene, or so I last heard,” the president said.
Prescott nodded. “But now. . he’s heard the will of the people.”
President William Eastman slowly nodded. “I see. . and he will slowly, even reluctantly perhaps, move down that path. Is that what I hear you saying, Clarene?”
“Yes, Mr. President. Something along those lines. And if not him specifically, then some of his staff. If he begins to prepare his state for the transition, perhaps it will give Colonel Connor and the task force the time they need to ferret out what is actually behind this patriot movement and its true leaders. If we don’t offer such staunch, unyielding opposition, maybe we can forestall further bloodshed until Colonel Connor has a chance to obtain some results.”
“What do you think, Pug?” the president asked.
“Mr. President, our options are few, and open military confrontation would only serve to bring about unacceptable bloodshed. As we both know, sir, from past experience, Ambassador Prescott is usually two steps ahead of the rest of us on this type of analysis.”
Eastman looked back at Prescott and smiled. “Well, it seems you have at least one acolyte on the team, Clarene. But doesn’t this plan carry the potential of simply escalating the movement toward secession?”
“That’s what I’m counting on, Mr. President.”
“So be it then,” the president said, standing up. “You’ll have your personal safety on the line out there, Pug, as well as the dedicated people on your team,” he said, glancing at Agent Bentley, “and I’ll follow along only so far. Then, at my sole discretion, I’ll take the steps I deem necessary to bring a halt to this thing, by whatever means I might decide. Do you understand me clearly, Colonel?”
Pug stood and nodded. “I do, Mr. President.”
“Then let’s get to it. Clarene, what do you propose to do first?”
“Vice President Hamilton leaves on his trip to London on Saturday morning, and the press will focus on that. I’ll slip out the back door and have a private meeting with Governor Dewhirst in California. If he announces the appointment of a few people in key positions to begin the transition phase, with luck, the political structure behind the militia movement will come out of the woodwork.”
“That’s asking a lot, Clarene.”
“It is, Mr. President, and will require a bit of faith along the way.”
“And the task force?” the president asked.
“I believe the existence of Colonel Connor and his task force should remain confidential.”
“So do I,” Eastman said. “Godspeed to you all,” he said, shaking hands around the room.
Chapter 24
London, England
Leaving the formal dinner through the lobby of the London Hilton Hotel, Vice President Terrance Hamilton was surrounded by reporters and well-wishers as he made his way to the vehicle. British Prime Minister Roslyn Thornton accompanied the vice president, and together they entered the black limousine, driving away into the night with escort vehicles front and back.
The meetings had gone well, other than the expected interruption from crowds of dissidents beleaguering the vice president’s appearances, each pressing for one cause or another. If it wasn’t AIDS or military bases, it was support for human rights in third world countries. The vice president often took the flack for the United States on these flag-waving expeditions on foreign soil.
Both Prime Minister Thornton and Vice President Hamilton had agreed in the initial press conference that the recent announcement of Australia’s formation of a republic, replacing the queen as head of state, did not presage a separation of interests between the two countries. It represented more of a movement toward economic association as opposed to merely political alliance; the former, rather than the latter, being the focus of many independent nations as the world plowed its way through the twenty-first century.
The small convoy of dar
k vehicles proceeded to the corner of the block and made a right turn. As soon as the lead car made the turn, the limousine in which the prime minister and the vice president were riding entered the intersection. In a blinding flash of light, the vehicle was lifted completely off the ground and skidded to a stop on its side. The occupants never saw the shoulder-fired missile that impacted the vehicle, turning it into an instant fireball.
Swerving to miss the burning limousine, the following escort vehicle was impaled on a corner water hydrant that immediately spouted a geyser, flooding the intersection and adding to the frenzy of the scene. Security escorts were out of their vehicles immediately, rushing to the limousine with fire extinguishers and weapons at the ready, but no attackers appeared-their mission had been accomplished, and they were already following their escape plan.
A red-haired, ruddy-faced man, who stood on the far corner of the next intersection, lingered only long enough to confirm that the impact had been sufficient to inflict the desired damage. These things never went exactly as planned, and the end result was often open to question. But in this case, there was little doubt. The occupants of the limousine could not have survived the direct hit by the TOW missile.
As part of the contingency plan for just such an emergency, medical service vehicles were on the scene almost instantly. Four occupants were rushed to the hospital: the British special branch driver, an American Secret Service agent, British Prime Minister Roslyn Thornton, and U.S. Vice President Terrance Hamilton. No immediate announcement of their respective conditions was made available to the reporters who had been following the entourage and who now descended en masse, taking photographs of every detail of the carnage.
At about 6:00 p.m. Washington, D.C. time, the president was advised that the vice president had been involved in a terrorist attack in London. His condition was listed as critical. Furthermore, Prime Minister Roslyn Thornton was dead, as were the driver and the vice president’s personal Secret Service agent.
Eight hours later, at two o’clock the following morning, the president was awakened to be advised that the vice president had died during surgery.
In a clean sweep, the terrorists had done away with the senior British government official and the vice president of the United States, and within two hours, the Provisional Wing of the Irish Republican Army had claimed responsibility for the atrocity. It was, they said, an act of defiance in protest against the support given by the United States and Great Britain to the Australian bid for independence, while withholding such freedom from Northern Ireland-a nation that had been struggling for independence for nearly eight centuries.
A spokesman for the political wing of the IRA, Sinn Fein, stated that effective immediately, the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, signed in 1998, was no longer valid, having been broken in concept by British support for the Australian republican movement and by the American government de facto support for the California secession.
This act of aggression against the United States broke a longstanding tradition of the IRA. Within forty-eight hours, public opinion polls reflected an immediate withdrawal of American support for the IRA, which for many years had been sympathetic to Irish interests.
At 11:00 a.m., Eastern Standard Time, the president made a nationwide announcement that the perpetrators would be identified and brought to justice. He made a point of declaring that this unprecedented and unprovoked act of terrorism was a clear indicator of the true colors of the IRA, an organization that deserved only scorn from freedom-loving Americans.
Repeating each clause after U.S. Supreme Court Justice Maria Ramirez, Clarene Prescott pledged the oath of office.
“I, Clarene Elizabeth Prescott, do solemnly swear. .”
“. . that I will faithfully execute the office of Vice President of the United States. .”
“. . and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. .”
“. . so help me God.”
Justice Ramirez smiled and offered her hand to Vice President Prescott. “Congratulations, Madam Vice President.”
“Thank you, Justice Ramirez,” Clarene replied. The women had been friends and political associates for many years, and Clarene’s choice of Justice Ramirez to perform the swearing-in ceremony was not so much a feminist issue as a response to their longstanding friendship.
Others, however, had not been equally supportive of President Eastman’s nomination of Ambassador Prescott. Three weeks had passed while Eastman and his senior staff had lobbied the holdouts in the party, seeking coalition from Congress. One Senate stalwart, a member of the same party as the president but who had often opposed his causes, had, on this occasion, reason to support the president and had lent his hand to the formation of the coalition.
Senator Malcolm Turner hoped to find an ally in Clarene Prescott, as they were both Californians. He looked toward her appointment as one that would give him greater leverage in the White House and, therefore, in the executive branch. While some within Congress had privately supported Turner in his call for California secession, most feared the political repercussions back in their home states if such a movement caught fire. Clarene Prescott was indebted to Turner for his support, without which her nomination and Senate approval would have been much tougher, a debt he had not allowed to escape her attention.
President Eastman took Clarene by the arm as they moved toward the White House pressroom. “There were times,” he commented, “when I wasn’t sure we could pull it off.”
The press, and indeed the Senate committees, had demanded of Ambassador Prescott her statement of position on the intended secession of California before they would confirm her nomination. In spite of her California origins and the very vocal support she had received from Senator Turner, a known advocate of secession, Clarene Prescott had been able to convince all sides that she was in favor of the Union, while at the same time favorably disposed to correcting the intrusions that the federal government had imposed on all individual states, not limited to just California.
“You did break some new ground, Bill,” Clarene responded. “That requires one to break up the dirt clods first.”
“Haven’t let your farm roots get far away, have you?” Eastman said.
“Something like your ‘Alaska sled dog’ stories, I suppose. Remembering where I came from helps me to keep things in perspective.”
Entering the press room, Eastman moved toward the stand. “You’re about to discover a new perspective, Clarene,” he whispered as he took his place behind the lectern.
“Ladies and gentleman, it is my privilege and distinct honor to introduce to you the vice president of the United States, Clarene Elizabeth Prescott.”
The Washington press corps, cynical from years of ferreting out the truth in a town that thrived on leaks and intentional deception, rose as a body to applaud Vice President Prescott as she took the stand. She understood that some of the applause was prompted by her having become the first female vice president. But perhaps, she reflected, part of the accolade grew out of their recognition of her nearly thirty years of service to the country-as deputy under secretary of defense, deputy secretary of state, ambassador to the United Nations, and for the most recent seven years, national security advisor to the president. Prescott had served in four presidential administrations, two Republican and two Democrat. A Democrat herself, she had earned the respect of both parties through the performance of her duties and her ability to work both camps without sacrificing principle-no simple feat in Washington.
The deference paid by the press lasted nearly sixty seconds before it became business as usual. After offering some brief introductory remarks, including some self-deprecating humor, Vice President Prescott opened the floor for questions. Henry Schikman, UPI, stood first.
“Madam Vice President, congratulations on your appointment. It comes at a time of great domestic turmoil and international change, the likes of which the world has not
experienced. In the face of the continuing war in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the domestic attacks against federal law enforcement agencies, specifically the attack on the ATF in California, and the murder of numerous congressional representatives by those who favor the secession, how do you respond to those who actually applauded these actions as well-deserved, and what will you recommend be done to punish those who perpetrated these acts of war against the United States?”
Clarene glanced at President Eastman, not so much for direction as to acknowledge his earlier comment and recognize the brevity of her appointment honeymoon.
“Thank you, Henry,” she said. “I believe it was Andy Warhol who said, ‘Everyone is entitled to their fifteen minutes of fame.’ As the president predicted, I’ve had less than two minutes of honeymoon in office,” she replied, eliciting mild laughter from her inquisitors. “You are correct, however, that we are passing through a period of unprecedented international and domestic political upheaval. The breakup of the former Soviet Union over twenty years ago presaged a separatist movement among other nations, including some that had been politically aligned since the turn of the last century. Ethnic diversity, historical geography, and, certainly, philosophical and religious variations have called into question many traditional national alignments-some of them longstanding. The terrorist activities in the Middle East, Europe, and even within our own borders have brought us face to face with some hard choices.
“While not all bad in its context, these actions have certainly given rise to a worldwide instability, which often, as history has shown, causes the turmoil of which you speak. We are, of course as you know, withdrawing our troops from the Middle East, as quickly as the security of those nations allows.
“The president is on record as being supportive of the need to assess each situation as it develops and has assured the American people of his determination to provide a secure and stable domestic environment and to evaluate each international development with an eye toward the strategic interests of the United States. Beyond that, Henry, I feel it inappropriate to project our response as to the proposed intentions of the federal government, or indeed, to preclude any necessary specific measures, other than to say that we firmly believe that all citizens, including those in California, have the right to live peaceful, normal lives and to live free of the fear of military or government-sponsored organizations inserting themselves into their lives.”
