“Oh, two things before you go. What day of the week is it?”
“Today? Monday. The meeting is next Monday.”
“Yes. Just making sure.” A week at home and back here. Good. “Also, is there a phone that I can use to call New York? I need to contact a friend in the administration.”
“Try my office,” He pointed, “but long distance calls are always problematic.”
As Caden stepped away, David called to a person across the lobby and lined out another item on his list.
Picking up the phone, he glanced at his watch. Nearly two in the afternoon, that would be five in New York. She’ll still be at work. After a half-hour of attempts, disconnections, phone trees and transfers he was getting worried, but finally he heard Becky’s voice.
“Caden is that really you? I thought…I feared…is it really you?”
“Yes, it really is me. It is great to hear your voice. I was afraid you died in the Atlanta blast, but then three days ago I saw you on TV.”
“I was afraid that you were in Atlanta when it happened. I’ve really missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too,” he said, but the words sounded strangely hollow. “A road block stopped me or I would have been right there looking for you. When did you get out of the city and how did you end up as the press secretary for President Durant?”
“It had been an incredible two weeks.” She described being on the edge of the metro area, seeing the flash and feeling the torrent of wind buffet the van she was in. “I think I was close like you were. The remote studio was damaged. It took two days to get back on the air and almost as soon as we were, President Durant asked me to join the administration as his press secretary. How could I say, “no?”
I could have found a way. “That’s a great opportunity for you, but only for a few months. Is Durant going to run for president? The election is in nine months and, the last I heard, Governor Monroe is the only candidate still alive.”
“There isn’t going to be an election. Parts of the country are already under martial law and by the end of the month the whole country will be. President Durant plans to cancel the elections until martial law is lifted.”
“Elections are conducted by the states. The federal government can’t….”
“Durant appointed new Supreme Court justices. They will approve his martial law declaration and the cancellation of the election.”
“How can there be new justices if there is no senate to confirm them?”
“The senate is not in session so President Durant made nine recess appointments.”
Caden was stunned into silence. Durant was acting within the letter, if not the spirit, of the Constitution.
“Caden, this is all for the good of the country. The nation doesn’t need elections right now. It doesn’t need a bickering congress, it needs security. America needs strong leadership and a guiding hand. Durant is that leader.”
You sound like his campaign chairman.
“Come to New York as quickly as you can. Now both money and power are centered in the Big Apple. This is where the action is going to be in the coming years. Working with Durant could make both our careers. I could get you a position in the administration.” She paused. “I’ve got to go, another meeting. I love you.”
“I miss you.”
“Come here quickly. We will make a great team.”
He ended the call with a promise to think about it.
Caden looked in a mirror as he adjusted the collar of his new ACUs. It’s strange to be back in uniform. He placed the Velcro rank insignia on his chest. And stranger still to see the oak leaf of a major on my uniform. Cold wind buffeted him as he left the new National Guard offices on the capitol campus. A low sun hid behind the gray buildings. Caden flipped up the collar of his uniform jacket to the cold and shifted the weight of the duffle bag on his back and then continued on toward the guest house just off the plaza. Two soldiers standing watch on the corner saluted. One said, “Good night, sir,” as he passed.
Caden, deep in thought, mumbled his reply. It had been a long and perplexing day. Assume command of the armory. What if no one is there? How do you command an armory with no soldiers? Secure the weapons. What if it has been looted? Act as a liaison. What if the farmers don’t want to listen?
The call with Becky stirred an array of emotions. He had feelings for her, but was it love? Besides beauty and education, she was career orientated and mixed well in Washington circles. Three weeks ago those last two were qualities he cultivated in himself and admired in others.
His thoughts returned to his family. What if they are dead or gone? He pulled out his phone and dialed home once again. The phone rang several times.
“Hello.”
Caden was shocked to hear a voice and hesitated. “Ah, hello…Mom?”
The line went dead.
Did I really hear her say hello? Yes, yes I did, but was that Mom or my sister? Did the line go dead or did she hang up? He tried several more times, but never connected.
At the steps of the guest house, he slid the phone back into his pocket. The building was an old, two-story mansion with a large, covered front porch. He walked up the steps and looked back. The capitol and surrounding office buildings were in full view. Turning toward the door he fumbled with the keys. One unlocked the front door, the other had the number three on it. Caden walked up creaking stairs to the second floor. He opened the door and gently set the duffle bag down. In the dim light of a fading winter day he could see Maria curled around the baby on the bed. Standing in the doorway he paused to admire the beautiful picture before him.
She opened her eyes.
He smiled.
She blinked, then screamed.
Waving his arms he said, “Me…just me…Caden.”
She sat up, held a crying Adam to her chest, and looked him up and down. “You enlisted?”
“Actually I’m an officer.”
Confusion spread across her face.
“Officers don’t enlist.” Walking toward her he said, “I’ll explain the difference later.” He sat on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry I frightened you. I’m surprised you were so deeply asleep.”
“I didn’t sleep well in jail.”
He laughed. “No, I guess I wouldn’t either.” He explained that the governor called him to duty so that he could take charge and secure the armory in Hansen. Then he told her all that happened during the day, except the call to Becky.
“Are you hungry?” she asked. “This house is really a Bed and Breakfast. The owner lives in an apartment downstairs. There’s food in the fridge in the kitchen.”
“I’m famished.” He frowned. “I haven’t eaten all day.”
Placing the sleeping baby in a large cushioned chair with blankets around him Maria went to the kitchen with Caden. Later in the dining room they ate, talked and laughed about everything and nothing until the moon was high in the night sky. Only when they both yawned did they return to the room.
While Caden hung up his uniform Maria said, “The bed is big and comfortable…we could…I mean you could sleep on it, in it together…well not together, separately, but to…you know what I mean, I hope… I’m going to shut up now.”