As the last video ended, a new screen appeared: Incoming Video Conference. Matt clicked the “accept” button to find the face of a dead man staring back at him.
“Hello, Sergeant Major. It’s been a long time.”
“President Sterling? You’re alive?”
“I am, Matt.”
“But, but … how? What’s going on?”
“The explanation is really quite simple: Jackson Butler was responsible for the attack in Miami and he betrayed us to the Chinese.”
Matthew Bankhead stared back at the screen, a whirlwind of confusion rendering him speechless.
“Jackson has been lying to you, feeding you false reports. Your battalion is protecting the traitor and his Chinese agent. The Chinese hold everything west of the Mississippi.”
“I don’t believe it. This can’t be happening!”
“It’s happening, Matt, and I need your help to stop him.”
“The Chinese have two battalions here on the grounds. We’re outnumbered but we’ll fight!”
“Excellent, Sergeant Major, that’s what I wanted to hear. You won’t be alone. Help is on the way.”
“Just say the word, and we’ll have the element of surprise on our side. I’ll shoot Butler and his chink spy right in the head.”
“You’re to do no such thing. A great deal depends on them being captured alive. Do you understand? Detain them, nothing more.”
“Yes, Mr. President.”
“Matt, your tablet is recording this conversation. Show the videos and our conversation to Colonel Hagglund and her officers. You have to convince them to join the fight.”
“Don’t worry, Mr. President, they’ll join the fight or be detained as traitors. I can’t believe Butler is doing this. We’re protecting a traitorous piece of scum-suckin’ filth!”
“Matt, I’m glad you agree. And please address me as Mr. Sterling.”
“Sir?”
“My allegiance lies with the only true patriot to hold steadfast to the principals of democracy—our true president, democratically elected by the people, President Howard Beck. What’s left of the UAE on the other side of the Mississippi will join forces with the PSA. Together we will stop the Chinese.”
“Yes, sir, Mr. Sterling.”
“Have Colonel Hagglund contact me when she’s battle-ready.
“Yes, sir.”
“Richard, what should we do?” asked Howard.
“If my estimates are correct, we lost thirty percent of our military forces during the Chinese attack on our failed invasion. We’ve lost another twenty percent of our troops fighting Hal’s hijacked drones and robots. The bulk of our forces are fighting to protect our borders.”
“General, we can’t think in terms of the PSA. We have to think of the entire country. I want all our assets to move toward Beck Castle and Beck Estates.”
“Yes, Mr. President,” Richard said with the utmost sincerity. Richard, Elizabeth, and Max all waited for Howard to recoil at the formal address but, much to their surprise, he didn’t react at all. For the first time, Howard didn’t scoff at the idea of being president— he was the president.
“Where’s the vice president?” Howard asked.
“Mr. President, Vice President Beck is in Seattle with a protective detail,” answered Richard.
“Good, good. How many troops can the stealth jets carry if we cram them in like sardines?”
“With their gear, twelve each, sir.”
“Contact General Bedford in Seattle. I want one hundred forty-four of the best soldiers, and I want them ready for battle. When Simon’s people at Beck Estates say they’re ready, we’ll be ready. Drop off the soldiers, keep eleven jets in the fight, send one back for us, and we’re gonna take my fucking house back.”
“Yes, Mr. President,” said Richard. They all looked at Howard and beamed with pride
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
Colonel Natalie Hagglund was furious. Before she became an officer, she spent twelve years enlisted, during which time she was a drill sergeant. Even as an officer, she maintained the imposing nature of a drill sergeant. She left the days of screaming and intimidation behind her to become an effective commander and communicator. However, when she got especially angry, she could make a major or a captain feel like they were privates enduring a rough day at boot camp.
Command Sergeant Major Bankhead was not daunted by her drill sergeant moments in the slightest. Having been a drill sergeant himself, he was no stranger to a first class ass chewing. What upset her was that Simon Sterling had chosen to contact him instead of her. Matt explained to her that since her office was located next to the president’s office and his was not it made more tactical sense to contact him instead of her should someone overhear the transmission. Once the good colonel calmed down and was thinking rationally, he knew it was time to get down to business.
“I just can’t believe it! President Sterling is alive, and we’ve been protecting the man who tried to kill him? Why aren’t we executing the traitor immediately?”
“Ma’am, you saw the vid-con. Butler and his… aide are of vital importance. They are to be detained, not executed.”
“You and I will make the arrests ourselves. When do we begin?”
“Ma’am, Beck already has his assets in place. When we start the surprise attack, they’ll join the fight. How big is the president’s… uh, Butler’s security detail?”
“They’re in strategic locations in the mansion. He usually has four on his personal detail, five if you count his mysterious ‘aide.’ Before we make the arrest, we kill all four members of his security detail.”
“But ma’am…”
“I know, Matt. His detail is under my command, but we can’t risk it. They’d just as soon shoot us to protect Butler.”
“Yes, ma’am, I concur.”
“I want a platoon of MPs, and I want them now.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Jackson Butler and Charles were in the grand library of Beck Estates preparing for the inevitable battle ahead. Jackson studied a holographic map of the twenty miles surrounding the estate.
“What are you up to, Howard?” Jackson muttered to himself.
“Jackson, our combined forces make three battalions protecting this location. The only logical move for him to make will be from the air. Those twelve stealth jets are his only asset. He can’t cram an entire army into them.”
“He kept us out of the Castle. Maybe he has Hal back somehow.”
“Impossible. He played right into our hands by taking him offline and installing the cores one at a time. We had control before he put the first one in place.”
“He’s has something up his sleeve, I just know…”
The door to the library burst open as a platoon of MPs surged in, followed by Colonel Hagglund and Command Sergeant Major Bankhead. Four quick shots to the head from silenced pistols put down Butler’s security detail. Colonel Hagglund stood resolute. “Jackson Butler and whatever the hell your name is, you’re both under arre…”
“Hal!” Jackson commanded the A.I. into action.
Hagglund, Bankhead, and the MPs hit the floor with a thud. The colonel and several of the soldiers tried to regain their footing but went down hard as rubber bullets pounded them.
Bankhead groaned. “Stay down, everyone! We’re beat!”
They all put up a fight, scrambling to retrieve their weapons, but rubber bullets rained down anew. Their cries for mercy went unanswered. Bankhead watched in amazement as Jackson and his mysterious friend drew their pistols and shot the MPs dead.
Jackson Butler stood over his fallen prey. “I’d listen to him, you bitch. You see, Matt here knows exactly what’s going on. We got Hal back online, and he was kind enough to get internal security working again. Matt and I were once laid out on the floor of this library just like you are now. So, this is what the old coot had up his sleeve. Tell me, Colonel Hagglund, how’d he do it?”