Every Last Mother's Child

by William J. Carty, Jr

A Ten days after week after the announcement Wilson’s staff had not been set up yet. They were still working out some of the staff details. At the present time he had two over worked clerks from the palace offices who were valiantly attempting to keep the crack pots from disturbing the Marshal. Mostly they succeeded, the AI screened most of the calls routing them to the appropriate office; but when one of the gGreat Lladies of the Trena Nobility called, they AI put her straight through to the clerks who knew enough to pass her on to the Marshal when she explained her business.

  “Your Lordship,” The woman’s voice on the other end of the circuit was incredibly sexy, and when Wilson put her face up on the monitor he was like any other adult male and was for a momentarily distracted by her beautiful face. “I don’t know if you can help me or if I can help you. I thought I would pass this along though.”

  “And what is that,” Michael asked hoping that this beautiful woman wasn’t an air head that would take up his time needlessly. Some of the nNobles spouses he had dealt with so far had not been very useful or helpful to him. Just immense time wasters.

  “You may be aware that some of our nobles have snuck off planet,” The woman said. Wilson nodded hoping she wasn’t asking him to do something about it. He was more than aware of the problem. Several members of the Queen’s Government had jumped ship in the last twofew days, “Well there are a lot of families like mine whose father or primary breadwinner has left. Leaving their children and spouses behind with no money, and who will need help to survive until we are evacuated. If you wish, and if it’s okay with the Queen I am willing to take in a few of the families. This may help you and the Queen.”

  Wilson tapped a few keys and soon had the public file on the Hawthorne’s. Although a well to do agribusiness concern, most of their wealth was in land, and cattle, some grain. No manufacturing. He wondered what she was leading up to. More so when the intelligence system reported that several daysthe night before Lord Hawthorne had emptied the family’s accounts and not been present in the House of Lords for the last several sessionsthat morning.

  “How can it help the Queen and the evacuation force,” Wilson asked.

  “Well these families are going to have to be taken care of somehow,” She said, “I may not be able to buy flour, but I can house them, and feed them some of the best beef on Trena. Doing this will allow you and the Queen to concentrate on others who really need your help.”

  It was then that Wilson saw other possibilities. It was true that the families abandoned by their spouses would need some sort of help. As Wilson reflected on this he realized that these same people could help him get his charter accomplished. The evacuation would need large sums of man power. Man power not just to load shuttles, fly shuttles and control traffic, but small things such as cataloging Trena precious art, and getting it packed and ready for shipment. Acting as instructors or aids helping families get ready for their own evacuation. He also needed civilian supervisors and line bosses to get things done. The abandon spouses of nobles could be of great assistance to him in these tasks. Many were experienced in supervising their family estates or businesses which could have a hundred or more people working for the family. It would help them feel useful and wanted after their spouses said by leaving them they weren’t wanted.

  “Lady Hawthorne,’ Michael said, “That is a very good idea. I think it has merit. I also want to offer you a job.”

  “Oh,” The lady said, “I don’t know your lordship I’m still nursing my youngest one. And I got my hands full with the estate. So I am not that free to come and go like some others. My other children are watched over by their nanny, but not Billie.”

  “You may be able to do much of this job from your parlor,” Michael said, “If what you are offering comes about you are going to have a houseful of people with nothing to do but wait for evacuation. It will make your job easier, and make things better for you and them if they can be of some service to the Crown in helping plan and implement the evacuation. They have contacts and skills the Crown needs to make this happen. As the nobles seek refuge with you would you act as my recruiter? Help me to recruit them to help us get our people off world.”

  The younger woman looked at Wilson dumbfounded for a moment, then it was a light went on as her expression brightened, realizing what he was about. The first of the many legends of the Trena Evacuation team was started right there. Lady Hawthorne would later be remembered as the first member of a group of women that became known as W2, short for Wilson’s Women. Something Lord Wilson would be teased about for years to come. How he had literally a thousand women at his beck and call. Lady Hawthorne would become one the Kingdom’s greatest assets during the evacuation. She would also go on to do the one job that no one had anticipated.