Professor Randolf studied him and then his gaze drifted across the rest of the class. “Yes.”
André didn’t wait for permission to leave. He got up and walked out of the room and out to the craft in the lot. He dug his cell phone out and dialed his father’s office.
“Is my dad available?” he asked.
“Yes, I’ll get him.”
André listened to the classical hold music, rolling his eyes. He didn’t think the music had ever been updated since the invention of the hold function.
“Is everything okay?” Matthew said, discarding the salutations.
André considered the question. “I’m not sure.”
“André, I don’t have a whole lot of time right now.”
“You better make some time for damage control,” André answered. “Because the secret is out and it’s only a matter of time before it gets to someone who can cause problems.”
“What did you do?”
André laughed. “It all started with Anna and my teacher the first day of exams.” He stared at the school. “Can I come to your office?”
“I’ve got a meeting with the president in a half hour. I don’t have much time, André.”
“Maybe the timing is perfect. We can talk to the president in person,” André replied. He was already in the high-speed zone, shooting toward Matthew’s office.
“André, we can discuss this later this afternoon.”
“Too late, Dad. I’m landing now.”
Matthew met André at the entrance to the building. “I don’t have the time for this.”
André transmitted the entire story to his father, starting with the ambush at the school by the female population and ending with the final exam in Professor Randolf’s class during the short walk back to Matthew’s office.
He stood on the opposite side of the desk with his hands behind his back and waited for his father’s reaction. When Matthew turned away from the window and met his gaze, he knew there was more to the quiet response, but his father was putting up the same type of wall in his mind as André had around the locker scene.
“You didn’t actually show them your powers,” Matthew said.
“True, but I did acknowledge that I wasn’t from here.” He shifted his weight as nerves got the best of him. Not knowing what his father was thinking or feeling left him in the dark, and he hated being in the dark.
“Take a seat,” Matthew said in a calm voice, and waved to the chair.
André sat down and started picking at a hangnail, unsure of how to respond. He thought his father would go on another tirade like he did when he found out Katrina was pregnant, so this calm reaction threw him.
Matthew sat at his desk and folded his arms in front of him. “We both knew this day would eventually come. I can do damage control if you want me to, but that’s up to you.”
André raised a questioning eyebrow.
“Either way, I think it’s time I give the president a heads-up,” Matthew said and his gaze traveled to the door.
Before André could speak, Matthew’s secretary poked her head in the door. “Sir, the president is here.”
“Send him in,” Matthew said and stood.
André followed suit, turning to see the president walk into his father’s office.
President Foster was a regal looking man with white hair and a rugged build hidden beneath the finely tailored suit. His dark brown intelligent eyes surveyed the room, falling on André.
“Sir.” Matthew saluted.
“At ease,” President Foster replied. “This is your son?”
“Yes, sir. President Foster, I’d like you to meet André,” he said.
André extended his hand. “Pleased to meet you, sir.”
“My pleasure.” The president smiled and shook André’s hand with a firm grip.
André was hit by the confident air around the president, reminding him a little of the arrogance of the emperor on Zyclon, but unlike the emperor, this man had a warmth radiating under the projected persona.
Matthew took a deep breath. “Sir, I asked André to join us today because I think it’s time we discussed the matter of his origin.”
The president’s brow creased and he glanced at André while Matthew crossed to the safe on the wall, opened it and returned, handing the president the contents.
He waited in silence while President Foster shuffled through the papers, reading each one before trading it with a new one. Each paper brought forth a darker shade of red in his cheeks and André glanced at his father. Matthew sent an imperceptible shake of his head, telling him not to speak.
Finally, the president lowered the papers, meeting Matthew’s gaze. “You have been keeping this a secret for over six years?” he hissed, tossing the papers on the desk and ignoring André for the time being.
“Yes, sir.” Matthew replied.
“What the hell were you thinking?”
Matthew glanced at André. “He was just a boy, sir.” He looked back at his president.
André opened his mouth to defend his father but Matthew’s silent directive snapped it closed. Keep your mouth shut. André clammed up and sank into the chair.
“I could have you court-martialed for this.”
Matthew shrugged. “I’m aware of that, sir. I ignored my orders when I boarded his ship,” he said. “I kept him out of the media fiasco and hid him from the government with the help of Commander Lawrence.” He nodded at the gravity of his infractions. “I raised him as my own, producing false documentation as to his identity.” He looked at André. “And I’d do it again in a second, sir.”
President Foster turned his attention to André, the aggravation visible in his eyes.
“He took me in and gave me something I never had before,” André said.
“What was that?”
“A home.”
His answer struck the president into silence, but his mind was active with aggravation and questions.
The president swung his gaze back to Matthew. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t have you stripped of your rank and court-martialed?”
“You’re a father,” Matthew said. “What would you do for your child?”
“It isn’t the same, Commander. You risked your career for an alien child you knew nothing about.”
“André was a scared eleven-year-old boy drifting in space,” Matthew responded. “I was a colonel in the Armed Forces, sworn to protect the innocent, and he certainly fell into that category. My sworn duty to protect him was in direct conflict with the orders to terminate him and I went with my gut.” He paused, looking at his son. “It was a ludicrous order given the situation. Six years have passed and for all intents and purposes, that boy sitting next to you is my son.” Matthew stepped behind the desk and took his seat, his jaw set in defiance. “So do what you feel is right, sir. I did, and I have no regrets.”
President Foster took the seat next to André, his jaw tight and his lips pressed together in the thin line of anger. His eyes darted from Matthew to André and he swiveled in his direction. “How old are you?”
“Seventeen.”
President Foster studied André. His eyes fell on the wedding band on his left hand and his brow furrowed. “Aren’t you a bit young for marriage?”
“I don’t think so. But both of our parents did,” André replied. He glanced at his ring and turned it slowly on his finger. He raised his eyes back to meet the president’s.
President Foster let out a laugh. “I agree with them.”
André stopped fidgeting. “I love Katrina and neither of us wanted to wait to be together. I did my best to respect my father’s wishes up to that point but I couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t stay away, so I married her.”
“Katrina, as in Commander Lawrence’s daughter?”
“Yes, sir. He wasn’t happy at all with the arrangement.” André looked back down at the ring on his hand and glanced over at his father. This was so much harder than he imagined.
“I didn’t have a choice as to where I went, sir. I was lucky to drift into this solar system, and that you had the technology to rescue me, otherwise I would have died in space. Which, I’m sure was the emperor’s intention when he exiled me.”
“Exiled? Why were you exiled?” the president asked, his eyebrows arched with curiosity and surprise.
“The emperor used an old Zyclonian myth to justify killing my parents and sending me into space to die, and because I was the first child ever to be born with blue eyes, that just gave him the fuel to manipulate the people into believing his bullshit.” André ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t ever remember being in one place for more than a week before someone noticed me and then we’d move on, until one day we walked right into one of the emperor’s traps. Next thing I knew, my parents were charged with treason. I watched them die before they launched me into space.” His voice cracked and he cleared his throat, blinking back the red tinge that blurred his vision. “There was nothing I could do to stop any of it.” He met the president’s gaze. “I didn’t think kindness and decency existed in the universe until I arrived here.”
The president swung the seat toward Matthew and took a deep breath, standing and walking to the window, digesting the points André made. “I still don’t understand why you were exiled,” he finally said.
“He viewed me as a threat, sir.”
“How can a six-year-old be a threat?”
André sighed and closed his eyes, hanging his head for a moment. He hadn’t dredged up memories of his home planet for years, but today seemed to bring on an overload of memories. “Beyond the fact he believed the prophecy was real, there was no rhyme or reason in the emperor’s thinking, sir. He viewed me as a threat and went to great lengths to make sure the people shared that viewpoint.”
A crease appeared between Matthew’s eyes and André dropped his gaze to the floor. There was much more to the story, but even after six years on Earth, he wasn’t ready to open that can of worms.
The president studied André and then turned to Matthew. “Commander, I suggest you reseal those papers.”
Matthew let out his breath, unaware that he had been holding it, and traded a glance with André. “Thank you, sir, but there’s more.” Matthew sighed and looked at André. “My son has certain abilities.”
“What kind of abilities?” President Foster asked turning toward the two of them.
“I can read minds, sir,” André answered before Matthew could. “And I can manipulate matter,” he added. He was about to confess to having the ability of mind control when Matthew shook his head to keep quiet.
“Control matter?”
André looked at the chair the president had been sitting in and sent it rolling across the room in a display of what he was talking about.
President Foster watched the chair and his gaze shot back to André.
André shrugged.
“Sir, it doesn’t end there. He can teach others to do the same,” Matthew said.
The president glanced out the window, thinking of the ramifications and on the heels of those, the possibilities broadcasted in his thoughts to both André and Matthew.
“My dad won’t let me join the military until I’m out of high school,” André replied.
“He doesn’t have much of a choice.” President Foster turned his gaze toward Matthew.
“Sir, no disrespect, but André has to finish high school.”
“He can finish at the military academy in the capital,” President Foster replied.
“Denver?” André balked.
The president turned toward André. “Yes, Denver. It’s the best military academy in the nation.”
André looked at his father. “I don’t want to be away from my son.”
The president’s mouth dropped. He closed it and glared in Matthew’s direction before snapping back to André. “You have a child?”
“Yes. He’s four days old,” André said.
“This just gets better and better,” the president muttered under his breath and his thoughts turned to the offspring of an alien and human with curiosity. That would be something to study, to observe, to make sure it wasn’t a monster in disguise.
André shot to his feet, his eyes flashing with anger at the new direction of the president’s thoughts. “No,” he growled and his hands balled into fists. “You will not take him away. Not my son, you son of a bitch.”
“André!” Matthew shot out of the seat. “You do not talk to the President of the United States like that!” he bellowed.
“He—”
“I know damn well what he was thinking,” Matthew interrupted, glaring at André. “Now I suggest you wait outside while we finish this conversation,” he commanded.
André glared at the president and then back at his father and he stalked out of the office, slamming the door behind him, his anger still simmering just below the surface.
Matthew squashed his own anger and waited as the president played each possible scenario over in his mind. He sat back down, knowing the president did this with every major decision. He turned the chair in the direction of the president and hardened his gaze so it was just as unreadable as his thoughts.
Finally the president turned. “You have put me in a particularly sensitive spot Commander,” he began. “There are several routes I could take to address this situation. However, most of them are as despicable as the monsters that sent that boy into space.” President Foster paused and glanced at the door. “He is obviously hot-headed, but still displays a level of respect that’s admirable considering he’s only been in your care for six years. However, I’m troubled by the matter of teenage pregnancy.” He shook his head. “I’m not so sure it is in his best interest to stay here in Dallas.” He walked to the desk and leaned on it with his fists. “I want him under government control,” he said to Matthew.
“André isn’t something to be controlled,” Matthew said, holding his ground. “He is my son and you will not exploit him. After he finishes high school here in Dallas, I will personally recruit him into the armed service, where he will report directly to me through this base,” Matthew finished, pointing his finger on the desk as he stood. “Sir,” he added standing tall and proud, his eyes not wavering from the president’s.
Anger flared in President Foster’s eyes. “I don’t take kindly to my staff barking orders at me,” President Foster said.
Matthew nodded. “I don’t take kindly to anyone threatening my family, sir.”
The president crossed his arms. “I should fire you right now.”
“That’s your prerogative, sir,” Matthew said, his tone matching the bite of the president’s.
“Goddamn it, Matt! We’ve known each other for years.”
“Yes we have, sir.”
The president’s mouth pinched with frustration. “Stop with the formalities for just a moment. Why the hell didn’t you tell me when you found him?”
Matthew weighed his response. “Mitch, your first instinct was to exploit him, not protect him. It would have been the same six years ago. You would have found a way to use him as leverage in your campaign.”
“Jesus Christ, you were always such a Boy Scout.” The president stood, crossing his arms. “I honestly don’t know whether to fire you or give you a commendation.”
Matthew smiled.
“The exposure of an alien cover-up would kill my chances of a second term in office,” he replied to Matthew’s smile.
Matthew nodded. Not to mention my career. “I’ll make sure this is kept under wraps for the time being,” Matthew said, wondering just how he was going to pull that off with André’s science teacher.
“This will have to come out at some point Matt, and I’ll be the one who will deliver the message.” President Foster leveled his gaze at Matt
hew, making his point without saying a word.
Matthew nodded, accepting the silent order. “Hopefully, at that point he will be enlisted and under my command, training an elite force of special officers.”
President Foster gave a curt nod. “Commander,” he said, signaling the end of the conversation. He turned and left the room.
Matthew pressed the intercom. “Please send André back in.” He disconnected without waiting for a response and sent his most harrowing glare at André when he walked into the room. He waited until the door closed and then let the frustration blow to the surface. “Do you have any idea how much trouble you are in, young man?” Matthew bellowed. “You do not speak to the president that way.”
André shrank into the chair, his eyes wide like he didn’t expect his father’s outburst.
“I want you in this office every day this summer from seven in the morning until five at night so I can keep an eye on you. Understand?”
André blinked and confusion filled his expression, creasing the space between his eyes.
“You have a summer job here,” Matthew said.
“You have got to be kidding me?” André balked.
“Do you want to live in a cage? Do you want Sam to grow up the same way?” Matthew snapped.
“No.”
“Then you better damn well do as I say because if this gets out before President Foster wants it to, that is exactly where you will end up.”
“Fine,” he grumbled and left Matthew alone in the office.
Matthew closed his eyes and collapsed in the chair, relief washing the tension from his taut muscles.
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