In her message to the Grads who volunteered to help staff the Gathering she said, "We're asking that you come to the venue a few days ahead of time, at least two days but anything up to a week will be okay. We want you fully acclimated by opening. Most of you will wear a simple uniform with a Gaia Guide patch on it and your job will be to help the attendees however possible. We'll have booths scattered throughout the show floor where recliners, water and information are available and which you can use as bases. We want the experience of the Gathering to be as pleasant as possible. Think of yourself as the lubricant for the interactions at the event.
Some of you, we'll let you know who, will be in your regular clothes and will be our eyes and ears on the floor and among the visitors. You won't be expected to act as security but you will be expected to mingle, listen, observe and report. Seminars will be conducted all day every day throughout the venue so you'll be able to learn something as well. This is a celebratory Gathering so some inebriation and wild partying is to be expected. We don't want to be wet blankets but we do want to know what's going on.
Remember, social lubrication is accomplished by cooperative, helpful attitudes, tolerance of differences and soft words. Thanks, I'll see you all there." She sent the message to the communications list and made a note on her calendar to speak to the Grads the day before the opening of the Gathering.
Her clerk came to the door to say, "Lowell's here, ma'am," and to usher him in.
"How's Mishi?" asked Helene.
Lowell grinned, "Great," he said. "She's down with Granny today helping her with some medical stuff. The old girl's finally letting herself accept some help."
"That's good. How do you think Mishi's doing as an operative?"
Lowell became serious, "You know, she's changing. She's taking Gaia to heart and she's talking about learning more so she can be more effective. She's already great as a liaison to the other Down Belows."
"What do you think her capacity is?"
"I don't know. Pretty big. She's extremely bright and observant. She's tough minded and she has no problem understanding even very complex ideas. With training I think she can do anything."
"That's not love and loyalty talking, is it?"
"No ma'am. Not on a subject like this. You can love someone and still see them clearly. Hanging out with her is like living with a box of fire crackers that go off at odd times. Her wit and insight crackles like that."
"Okay. In that case I'm going to bring her into the office to work as my aide. But no fooling around between you two on the job."
Lowell grinned, "Yes ma'am."
"Now, have you identified all the "sergeants" we want to invite? What's the status?"
When Lowell came to work with Helene he brought his master's thesis titled "Decision Implementation in Bureaucratic Organizations" and Helene had found it interesting. He argued that "sergeants effectively run the Army" and that decisions from above could be implemented more or less efficiently. More when the sergeants agreed, less, much less, when they didn't. Using that viewpoint he had identified the "sergeants" in most of the agencies and governments they dealt with and a program of direct contact and support for them was initiated.
"They've all been invited and we've had a ninety percent positive response from them."
"Positive meaning they're coming?" asked Helene.
"Yes, ma'am. They're coming and they've signed up for the seminars. We should have a group of Guides dedicated to their care and comfort."
"If I give you a list of names of Guides can you train them in time?"
"Oh yes. They'd just have to be aware of who's who."
When Lowell left to implement the plan Helene allowed herself just a moment to appreciate how good a choice he had been and how that choice continued to pay off in human dividends. First Mishi, but she was sure Mishi was the first of many. "He'll get me some good ones out of the Guides."
She allowed herself just a moment of satisfaction before turning back to work.
Chapter 59
Harrison was sitting across from Granny in her "apartment" Down Below and watching her shake her head in firm denial, "No, no, no," she was saying, "you can't publish any of that."
"But why not?" he asked. "It would only appear in an academic journal. No one will read it but other historians."
"No," she said loudly, "It would be the beginning of the end of Down Below."
"Why do you think that? It's lasted this long."
"In secrecy. It's lasted in secrecy," she insisted, "and once the secrecy is gone it will be destroyed."
"By whom?" he asked in a voice that conceded he would comply."By everyone. Some jerk politician will begin to complain in order to ride the publicity and then the maintenance people will back off and the social services people will be under pressure to "care for the unfortunate" and bit by bit the security of the place will go away and so will the people. We exist because no one knows about us. We trust each other so we feel safe here. As soon as the light of publicity shines down here we're history."
"Okay. I won't publish."
"Swear."
"I swear."
The old woman stared at his face in an effort to read the truth or falsity of his oath and decided he was sincere. "We are natural scapegoats," she continued her explanation. "We're easy targets and there's no price to pay for attacking us. We're vulnerable because we have no money and no power. What we have is a hidden place to live in peace. I can't let you endanger that."
"I won't."
They sat in silence for a few minutes letting the emotions of the disagreement dissipate. Harrison's thoughts turned to the forum he had planned for the Gathering where he hoped Granny and Shawnte and perhaps a few others could discuss the workings of Down Below. He saw he would have to drop the idea of a public forum but perhaps the ladies could have a private conversation. He wondered whether Mishi could help accomplish that.
Granny stirred and said, "Thanks for what you're doing with Mishi. She's wasted down here and I'm glad she's getting the chance to shine up above."
"So are we," said Harrison. "She's sharp and tough, two characteristics that Helene really likes. I think Mishi will have the opportunity to really flourish."
"Good. And I hope Lowell realizes what he's got and treats her well."
Harrison chuckled, "I don't think Lowell quite believes he's 'got' her, but I know he appreciates who she is. He treats her like gold."
"Well, if he's smart enough to see that she's as independent as can be he'll be all right. She does think he's fine, though."
On his way back to his office Harrison ruefully made plans to secrete his work on Down Below so that it wouldn't accidentally fall into uncaring hands. He knew he would continue working on it but he mentally pushed it to a back burner. Perhaps someday he'd be able to publish, but not now.
The 24 hour news screen in his office was ablaze with the news that Axel Radnich had been ejected from Bulgaria to parts unknown and that the government of Italy was about to fall over a scandal in which Radnich's stake in the Bank of Italy figured prominently. A sub-paragraph mentioned that reports of troops in the streets of the capital of Kazakhstan tied it to revelations of Radnich's ties to the ruling junta.
"An empire crumbles," mused Harrison.
Helene called to ask, "Have you seen the news?"
"Yes, just read it. The headline should be Don't Mess With Helene."
She laughed, "Still, desperation may be taking hold and we need to stay alert. Please stop gadding about without a guard."
Harrison was taken aback at the idea of himself being a target, "Who'd want to attack me?"
"Anyone who wants to get to me," she replied.
He felt abashed. "Okay, my dear. I won't ditch my guardian any more."
"We have a meeting at two with Leah about the preparations at the venue. Can you make it?"
"I'll be there."
Chapter 60
Lucas couldn't help feeling antsy. He had been trained to he
ed his hunches, his feelings, his premonitions, in short the building blocks of his professional paranoia. He had patrolled his defenses both physically and mentally, he had sought input from his coders, the security detail at the ranch, the guards in New York and the Head of Security at the hall in Las Vegas. He had looked and found nothing.
Sam shared his anxiety. They were worried about Team Six but it wasn't clear that they formed the only threat, and as the days to the Gathering shortened their nervousness grew. They sat together in Sam's office watching the reports come in. There were reports that were patently off the mark referencing incorrect information, outdated sightings and lunatic theories. When Fran messaged "Got it," they sprang to hopeful alertness.
"Get this," she messaged, "Six months ago a house was rented by a subsidiary of one of Axel's companies. A six bedroom, four bath mansion on a ten acre lot. Guess where."
Without giving pause for their guesses she wrote, "A suburb of Las Vegas!"
"Address?" queried Sam.
She replied with the address and added "They're there already. Surveillance of the area shows two cars and regular movement in and out."
"Can we confirm IDs?" asked Lucas.
"Working on it, but someone should physically check it out."
"We'll get someone on it and get back to you," Sam cut in.
Lucas was on the communicator to the Head of Security at the venue to work out a plan of action. The ten acres were fenced and gated so surveillance would have to be from a distance.
"I don't want to spook them," cautioned Lucas. "If you can keep an eye on them for a day we'll send a team to do the identification."
"We can do that. We'll position a motion sensitive camera opposite the gate. That way we'll have images of everyone in or out."
"Good," said Lucas. "See you tomorrow."
"You're going?" asked Sam.
"Yeah. I'm going nuts here. I might as well handle this myself."
"How?"
Lucas grinned, "With a little swarm of bees."
He spent the next few hours saying goodbye to Maeve and packing his tools. The "bee swarm", tiny flying drones equipped with video and audio capture, would be released after dark to settle in spots with views of the house. The information gathered would be streamed to Lucas' tablet while he sat in a cool room and could direct the action.
He arrived in Las Vegas after nightfall, met by the Head of Security and the two of them drove to within a mile of the house. The "bees" were released and were quickly settled around the building's perimeter. The two men then left for the venue, Lucas setting the "bees" controls as they went.
At dawn Lucas was awakened by a loud buzzing from his screen and leaped out of bed to see streaming video from two of the "bees" showing a man outside the back door doing calisthenics. Lucas took the best facial image he received and sent it to Interpol and the U.N. security arm for identification. "No match found."
The screen buzzed again as another man joined the first. His photo was distributed with the same non-result.
"Who are these guys?" Lucas was thinking.
"Hey Luke," Fran's message appeared on his screen, "Look at this."
A series of photos of men's faces scrolled down his screen with captions in a language he didn't recognize.
"What, you can't read Kazakh?" was Fran's sardonic comment. "It's the file of students at the Kazakh Army's Special Ops unit and your two guys graduated three years ago."
"Fran, you're a genius."
"I know, and I'm skinny too."
Lucas called Helene to tell her his plan and received an enthusiastic "Go ahead," from her. He then worked through his old contacts at the spy agency and finally was connected to the under-secretary of State for the Caucasus region who was actually an operative for the spy agency. He explained his plan.
"Are you sure you can keep it quiet?"
"I'm sure we can but who knows what they'll do. I'm offering a way out with their necks intact. I think they'll take it. If not we'll have an international incident."
A long pause ensued, "You can do this with local police?"
"Oh yes. Will you make the call?"
"I will. How long before you're set up"
"No more than an hour. I'll let you know."
Contrary to what he had said Lucas deployed his own security team around the property and flew a swarm of Killer Bees onto its roof. The Killer Bees would literally sting an object and inject a paralyzing drug into their system which effectively put the target out of action for several hours. When his preparations were complete he called the under-secretary. She in turn called the Consul General of the Kazakhstan embassy and after an exchange of pleasantries said, "General, there are four Kazakh operatives in a house in Las Vegas. I believe you know them as Team Six?"
There was a long pause then, "I'm not sure I know what you mean."
The under-secretary suppressed a chuckle.
"This is what I mean, either the men come out of the house with their arms in the air leaving any and all weapons behind and climb into a van that is parked outside. The van will transport them to the Las Vegas airport at the door to a Kazakh Air luxury jet which they will board immediately and be flown out of the country immediately as well."
Another long pause ensued, "You said "either" but I haven't heard 'or else' yet."
"And you don't want to hear it but I'll tell you. If they don't comply we will attack the house, capture or kill the men and begin an incident which will go to the U.N. and every media outlet in the world. You know the kind of press this would generate, "Kazakh Kill Team fights battle with Las Vegas police. Who were they here to kill?" That kind of thing."
"You would do that?"
"Without cooperation an international incident is our best option."
"I don't know anything about this. I don't know who they are or what their mission is. They might just be tourists."
Well schooled in diplomacy the under-secretary said nothing.
"But of course we want to cooperate with the authorities so I'll be glad to help. Who shall I call?"
"First, call the Kazakh Air people and get the plane ready to leave, just don't disconnect from me, then we'll patch you through to the house."
The reluctance to comply was evident on the Consul General's face but the threat was one he didn't want to face. An incident involving a "Kill Team" would be damaging to his country and, he had no doubt, to his own health. He gave the orders to the flight crew and said, "I'm ready." A few presses on her screen established a link between the General and the entertainment screen in the house which came to life to the surprise of the man in the room with it.
The conversation was carried on in the Kazakh language with predictable results. First the other men were called into the room, then, when hearing the situation explained two of the men ran off to check the windows. What they saw was the open door of a military van at the end of the driveway. There was a certain amount of arguing and one of the men left the room and returned tucking a weapon into his waistband. The under-secretary, still monitoring the call, said, "Weapons will be cause for attack. Leave them all behind."
The frustration in the room was almost palpable through the screen. When the men finally reluctantly agreed to leave the under-secretary ordered, "Strip. Carry your clothes to the front door and drop them. Walk to the van with your arms raised. There are clothes in the van."
The men were practically gnashing their teeth in frustration but the threat was too imminent and apparently too strong not to obey. They stripped their clothes off and opened the door but one, the one who had gotten a weapon, pushed the door closed behind his teammates and began to barricade himself behind it.
Lucas, sitting in the front of the van, activated a Killer Bee which had flown in through the open door and now stung the reluctant soldier who instantly fell to the floor.
"Go in and get your mate," said Lucas. "He'll come quietly now."
The other three retrieved the limp body and trudged to the
van. They were still hesitant but climbed in. Lucas locked the doors and set the robo-driver to deliver them to the airport.
Chapter 61
Harrison and Helene watched while Leah ran through the program for the Gathering, "The Four Globes, of course," she said, "showing the state of the Earth, presentations on a dozen subjects which will start the day before the opening ceremony, the ceremony, the Awards Day, the Best Practices exchange among the representatives of Gaia Meetings and the Closing Ceremony. The floor will be open throughout. We have nearly twice the vendors participating as we had two years ago."
With the overview in hand they discussed some of the finer points. "What about Maeve's talk on the state of education?" asked Helene.
"We're planning on pre-recording it and delivering it via hologram. That way wherever you are in the venue you'll have access to it by just pressing a button. We'll do the Opening and Closing Ceremony remarks the same way. She can stay in the Reception Room the entire time, which, according to Lucas, is necessary to insure her safety."
"What does she think?" asked Harrison.
"She reluctantly agrees. She'll still be interacting in person with the Reception Room visitors but he thinks it too chancey for her to mingle with the crowd."
After Leah left Harrison reviewed the State of the Earth images on his screen. Leah was excited about the presentation this year, "It's more realistic. There's more data, which makes it all richer and deeper, and, best of all, the growth and influence of Gaia is starting to show up."
Harrison could see what she meant. The numbers of children being educated in Gaian principles had risen dramatically and were heading upward. Successful political actions in re-wilding, conservation and development were increasing and doing so exponentially as Best Practices were shared and the Misery Index had modified albeit only slightly. Overall the trends were positive which he remarked to Helene.
Growth (GAIA Trilogy Book 2) Page 18
