Chapter 38

Everyone had Thursday off except for the critical people needed to run the airport and command center. Even those were working split shifts.

Thursday morning we went out in the boats, Jake’s and Dad’s. We had not bought a boat yet. The cut that came up behind the house had not been dredged yet. It was on the schedule but was a month away. After it was dredged, sheeting would need to be driven in to stop the creek from filling in with topsoil over time. After all that, the dock would get built before we could look for a boat. We cast some lines just to make it look like we were fishing.

We took turns lying on the cabin in the sun - naked - for the natural tan while watching the boys. There is something about extended time in the warm sun over a few seconds in the tanning booth.

Lorrie and Ching Lee both had returned to their pre-pregnancy form. Other than a few slight stretch marks you would never have known they had been pregnant, other than that and the slightly bigger boobs, that is.

At noon - with no fish to clean - we went home to start our cookout. At four our families and close friends were coming. Frank, Ben, Eric and their wives and kids were invited along with Joey. I wondered if they would show after yesterday.

All the normal foods and steamed crabs would be a feast for all of us. We had plenty of mac and cheese and hot dogs for Jacob and little Robert; their favorite foods.

There was no business or political talk for a change, just the normal things; the weather, kids, traffic and family.

After the meal and socializing, we were all going to watch the fireworks from our yard. We were close enough to the big yacht club to see them. They always put on a great show. We would have gone back to the boats and anchored on the viewing area by the narrows. We were afraid the explosions would be too loud for the little ones if we were that close.

I stayed home on Friday with the IRS now in capable hands and with Harrisburg over and now in the hands of the investigators; it eliminated two reasons for me to go.

Congress was soon on summer recess - as if they needed one. They were in the rush of budget bills along with the rush of trying to get all their local projects approved and funded, also appeasing the special interest groups they needed for campaign funds.

As such, I did not need to worry about any subpoenas for a few weeks. There were a few senators rotating in and out of the news cycle making noise to keep the story alive in order to distract the media from what they were really doing behind closed doors.

I hoped I could put off testifying until Andrew and Anne finished the investigation. I planned a blockbuster report with all the whistles and bells. The final report should take the steam out of Congress.

I stopped by Roberts’s office to look in my box and to talk to the duty man. Robert had given his group Friday off; I approved the extra day for them. Many had worked twelve hour days for the last few weeks on the Harrisburg mess.

The duty man had made himself busy deciphering the hackings from Tiam. I was glad to see it was still active, even more to read the orders from the general.

He was furious over Harrisburg, raging about the loss of valuable people and resources with no message to the detractors and no glory for Allah. All because of weakness for the vile temptations of women and drink.

A series of directives and orders were in my unencrypted messages.

In a nutshell he ordered all operatives to abstain from all alcohol, pornography, and the illicit temptations of infidels. He ordered a complete religious cleaning and new commitment to the cause.

I believed that it was a general broadcast to all their operatives. The best thing about it was he wanted acknowledgment that the operatives received the message.

One more sign that it was bad for leaders to micro-manage people in the field to the point of wanting verification of messages.

For us this could be an intelligence bonanza. With enough research Robert should be able to track down just how many active groups the general had planted and were working in the US.

The immediate question was, were the communiqués a plant and would any information gleamed be false? Only time would tell.

The rest of the morning was spent in meetings with the rest of the girls; we had a lot to talk about. The primary thing was who to assign the Pact country security teams to.