Chapter 13

During breakfast the next morning, I talked with Betty about her translation efforts. She said she needed an office in which to work. I suggested she get with Misty and set something up in the Hospital portable.

Then the conversation took a turn that I wasn’t expecting. Rita said, “Carol and I have been talking to Betty and Cindy about your trip to visit with Harry at his office at the Archer Conglomerate.

“Betty and Cindy think you are interested in the receptionist at the front desk and that she is interested in you. What’s going on, Doug?”

I was caught totally flatfooted, and wasn’t sure how to answer that question. I knew it wasn’t a good idea to delay, so to give myself time to think I asked, “Are you referring to Kaitlin?”

Rita smiled and looked at Betty, who said, “Yes, Kaitlin. I noticed how you looked at her when we arrived and sat in the lobby, and when we left. I also noticed how flustered she was by your presence and attention, and no, it wasn’t because of your being the majority stockholder. As we started to leave, I noticed her watching you and her face said she was interested in you as a man. When you turned and waved, she must have thought you caught her staring at you. That moment of surprise embarrassed her and made her blush.”

Rita asked, “Are you interested in her, Doug?”

“Ah ... well ... sort of. I like her, but I’m not thinking of pursuing her if that is what you are thinking.”

Cindy said, “Sweetheart, you know that we want what is best for you.

“You have the four of us, and we have talked and agreed that we like being part of a large family. We think that our family needs to grow, so we want Abby and Sereine to join us as your wives. Six wives will be nice, but eight to ten wives are what we are thinking of. You don’t have to pursue women. We will find women who are right for all of us. If they are interested in us, then we will let you know it is time to start courting them.”

I knew Cindy wanted me to marry Abby and Sereine. I hadn’t realized that all of my wives had been planning to increase the size of our marriage or by how much. Four wives were difficult enough for me to handle. I didn’t know what I would do with six wives, not to mention ten!

I had been staring at my wives with what had to have been a shocked look on my face. After all, I didn’t know of any man whose wife or wives were looking for a cowife to join their marriage. I did what any smart man would do: I kept my opinion to myself and only said, “We can talk about it later.” Even that was probably too much.

I had just gotten to the office when my telephone began ringing, so I answered it.

Cindy said, “Ken Smythe is calling for you.”

“Okay, put him on.

“Morning, Ken, what can I do for you?”

“I was reviewing my outstanding tasks this morning and found one related to you. Charlie got a call from Senator Janice Huff about the time you left on your last trip to the Multiverse. He passed her request on to me, and when I called I was told you had already left and would be gone at least four weeks.

“Charlie told me that the Senator and her two associates, Senators Dan Evans and Jake Johnson, heard about the attempt on your life and wanted to offer you their help.

“I called and talked with Senator Huff. I let her know you were on a trip to the Multiverse and wouldn’t be back for at least a month. We briefly discussed her offer of help. She doesn’t have anything specific in mind; it is more like an open offer.

“I could be wrong, but I got the impression she and her associates have decided to align themselves with you and the Multiverse. All three of them have been around for a while and have a degree of power and influence, so if I’m right, they may be good allies for you to have.”

“Thanks, Ken. I’ll call her and see if she still wants to speak with me. Can you give me her contact information?”

It took Ken a few moments to find the Senator’s phone number. We said our goodbyes and I hung up. I needed advice from Matt and Abby, so I called and asked them to join me in my office.

After I explained the situation, Abby said, “I’ve never met Senator Huff. I’ve heard she has a good reputation as an influential, upstanding Senator. Her associates’ reputations are about average for a politician, and they are more followers than leaders like Senator Huff.

“Senator Huff is also known to be a very calculating politician who doesn’t make a move without a lot of forethought, and she typically wants something for anything she offers. If she is looking to help, she may also want your support of her agenda either now or at some time in the future.”

Matt said, “Like Abby, I haven’t met the Senator, and I’m not as familiar with her reputation as Abby is. However, I’ve heard both good and bad about her. She has been around Washington for a long time and she has friends and enemies. If you decide to associate with her, I’d say be careful of what you accept from her and what you commit to doing. She could be an ally, but her enemies might become your enemies, and that would be bad for us.”

“Okay. The two of you seem to be saying, she can be a big help, but associating with her can also be a risk. I’ll keep that in mind when I call her. Thanks for the advice.”

After Abby and Matt left, I gave the matter some thought as to how to handle Senator Huff. I wouldn’t object to an association with her and the other two Senators as long as our agendas aligned, but I didn’t know what her agenda was.

“Good afternoon, Senator Huff’s office. This is Missus Delores Kaner, can I help you?”

“Good afternoon, Missus Kaner, this is Ambassador Doug Smith. This morning I was informed that Senator Huff attempted to contact me while I was on a trip to the Multiverse. Is she available to talk?”

“I’m sorry, Mister Ambassador, but she is in a Senate meeting at this time. Can I take a message?”

“Yes. Please let Senator Huff know that I appreciate her offer of help with the investigation of the attempt on my life. Currently, the FBI investigation has gone as far as it can go without further evidence. It appears that there is nothing further that can be done at this time. If she has the time and wishes to speak with me, she can reach me here at my Embassy.”

“Yes, Sir, Mister Ambassador. I will give her your message and we have your contact information on file. Goodbye.”

When Senator Janice Huff and her aide, Merideth Charles return to the office, Merideth checks with the receptionist for any messages that may have been left for Janice while they were out of the office. She reviews them as she takes them to Janice’s desk.

“Anything of any importance, Meri?”

As she hands the messages to Janice, Merideth says, “No, nothing really important. Just the usual types of requests from the usual people. But, there is one from Ambassador Smith.”

As Merideth sits down in the chair in front of Senator Huff’s desk, Janice goes through the messages until she finds the message from Ambassador Smith. After she reads it, she pauses for a minute before speaking to her aide.

“Meri, Ambassador Smith had an unfortunate encounter during his honeymoon. Have you heard anything about him and that encounter since he held his press conference?”

“Not much, just two things. The first was a statement made by Piper Tate of the Pure Earth Society. It was the usual xenophobic remarks we get from that group; he demanded that the government kick the Ambassador off the planet. There was also an interview on TV by the Black Activists Coalition spokeswoman, Layla Cutler, in which she accused the Ambassador of lying about the Multiverse not practicing slavery.”

“What was the public’s reaction to Tate’s statement?”

“Most people seem to have just ignored it.”

“What about Cutler’s interview?”

“That received more attention. The various civil rights groups released a number of statements to the press, but there were no demonstrations or any violence reported.”

After a few moments of thought, Janice said, “Dan Evans, Jake Johnson, and I made overtures of assistance to Ambassador Smith to help him find the assassin who made the attempt on his life. Considering his current circumstances would Ambassador Smith be an asset or liability to my position?”

“That is complex. Ambassador Smith has made himself several enemies.

“The Pure Earth Society and the Black Activists Coalition are the most recent in the news. You know about Senator Bolton. The religious groups consider him a bigamist and a heathen so they have to be taken into consideration, but I haven’t heard about what they may be planning.

“Sometime back, there were complaints from the drug companies about Ambassador Smith’s announcement that he would be selling Multiverse pharmaceuticals and medical equipment here on Earth, but that has died down lately. The big unknown is, who paid for the assassin to kill Ambassador Smith. Overall, I would say he is a liability.”

“Thank you, Merri; that is what I was thinking. Right now, allying ourselves with Ambassador Smith is not a great idea. If things settle out, I will reconsider it. Please call Dan Evans and Jake Johnson; tell them to meet me at our usual place for drinks at seven tonight. Tell them it’s important, but shouldn’t take long.

Janice Huff was waiting in their usual Hotel cocktail lounge when Dan Evans arrived, and five minutes later Jake Johnson arrived. Once they were served their drinks, Janice said, “Ambassador Smith is going to be a problem for us right now. There are just too many powerful people and groups upset with him. An alliance with him right now would be a liability for us, so I think we should back off until we see how things work out.”

Dan said, “I agree. An alliance right now could lead to us having problems with The Black Activists Coalition and Senator Bolton at the same time. That would be bad news.

Jake added, “The Pure Earth Society isn’t that powerful, but they could gain support from people who don’t like the idea of us being invaded by aliens. I’ve also heard rumors that the Baptists are planning something, but I don’t know what.”

Janice summarized by saying, “That’s four adversaries, but you overlooked at least one; there is someone out there who paid an assassin to kill Ambassador Smith. Professional hits aren’t cheap, so that person has money and is willing to use it in illegal ways.

“For now ... I say he is a liability, but we should keep the door open in case things change.”

Dan said, “I agree that he could be a disaster for us at this time, but my instincts tell me we should drop the thought of ever forming an alliance with him.”

Jake said, “What should we do now about Ambassador Smith? Just forget the alliance or should we support someone who opposes him.”

Janice said, “What most of the world doesn’t know or fails to realize is, Ambassador Smith is an extremely powerful man here on Earth and he will be a major competitor in many commercial areas. For example, he has been trading in bullion for years, which is what he did to build his current fortune. People who know him say his millions here on Earth are just a drop in the bucket compared to his wealth in the Multiverse. One person said that in the Multiverse he has an annual income equal to about fourteen trillion US dollars.”

Jake asked, “Did you say Trillion or Billion?”

Janis replied, “Trillion, and I shudder to think what he could do if he considers us an enemy and he decides to use his wealth to gain power here on Earth. One more thing about his income, he holds most of the stock in a major manufacturing megacorporation in the Multiverse, and it’s the dividends from the stock that generates his income. Keep in mind that here on Earth, stock dividends are typically less than ten percent of a company’s gross profit. His stock must be worth somewhere over a hundred and forty trillion dollars, and he may have other holdings. That and the fact he was appointed to be Earth’s Ambassador indicate he is an extremely powerful man in the Multiverse.

Dan said, “You’re right he is not someone we want as an adversary.”

Janice said, “That’s not all. I had an investigator look into the construction he is doing on his ranch. According to the report, Ambassador Smith installed a small cold-fusion power plant that uses silver as fuel, and according to what the investigator heard, the generator will produce power at about a tenth of the cost of the electricity we generate using coal and nuclear plants. Imagine the power he would have if he became a major supplier of electricity. He also installed a Sewage and Recycling Unit that will separate any and all of the liquid and solid waste it receives into things that can be sold commercially.

Jake asked, “What types of things, Janice?”

“The investigator mentioned bricks of different types of metal and fertilizer. That was all he was told, but if you consider what we could obtain if we recycled everything that goes into our landfills, there are likely to be many other things of value.”

“A confidential source told me that the assassination attempt failed because Ambassador Smith installed a force field over his facility in Colorado, and the force field stopped the bullet. Can you imagine the other technology that is available to him?”

Dan said, “I have to agree that Ambassador Smith will be a liability for us in the short-term, but if everything you said is true, he is likely to be a strong ally for us to have in the future. So that leads to the question of, how much support we can give him now without coming out as his ally.”

Janice said, “I will call and talk with him about our offer. The message he left for me today indicated he thought there was nothing we could do for him on the assassination issue. I’ll make it known to him that we agree with many of the things he has proposed, and in the future, we may be in a position to provide him with some support. That should be non-committable enough to keep the door open for a future alliance, and allow us to determine how much support to give now, if we decide to provide some support.”

Dan said, “That sounds like a good balance to me, Janice. Let us know how the call goes.”

When I returned from eating lunch with my wives, Sandy was waiting for me in my office.

“Doug, I created a list of things that we agreed were needed for the Trade Center. Do you want to me to call the HRD Architectural Group and set up a meeting to talk with William about what we need for the Trade Center?”

“Yes, but Phyllis may want to be included. Get with Cindy and find out when we are both free to meet with Phyllis and William.”

Fifteen minutes later, Sandy informed me that William was available all of tomorrow morning and would meet with us at eight thirty tomorrow in his office. Phyllis was busy and told William that she didn’t have to be present for a preliminary concept meeting. I agreed and called Bill, so he could make the arrangements for our escort.

“Bill, Sandy and I just scheduled an eight thirty meeting in downtown Denver at HRD. I’ll let you arrange for our escort. What time do you think we need to leave?”

“That is right in the middle of commute traffic, Doug. If we leave at six thirty, we should get there by eight or eight fifteen.”

“All right. I’ll let Sandy and Cindy know when we need to leave.”

The next morning Cindy and I met Bill and Sandy at my office. Parked outside were two of our new SUVs and my limousine. This was the first time I had a close look at our new vehicles. I liked the emblem that Cindy had designed for our vehicles’ front doors. The red faceted diamond on the floral background stood out against the light tan color of our vehicles without being blatant. I still didn’t think I needed a limousine, but I won’t gripe about it to Bill.

Cindy, Sandy, and I left at six thirty with the three of us in the limousine. I have to admit the limousine was very nice and the ride was very smooth. The commute traffic was as bad as Bill thought it would be, and we made it to HRD a little before eight thirty. Parking the limousine would be a problem for the driver. There was no street parking in the downtown area suitable for that big of a vehicle and the building’s parking garage wasn’t set up for parking limousines. The driver would have to find a commercial parking lot or a nearby store parking lot.

My security detail made the usual checks of HRD’s office before they allowed us to enter the office. William and Phyllis met us in the reception area. She apologized for not being able to meet with us before leaving to get ready for her other meeting. William escorted us to a meeting room.

When we were settled with mugs of coffee and a few pastries, I said, “William, Sandy and I need three buildings designed and built on the ranch. We decided to locate two of the buildings where our mobile homes and portables are currently located. We haven’t selected the location for the third building. Sandy has a list with the requirements of each building, and I’ll let her explain what we want built.”

Sandy handed William a copy of her list, and then said, “As Doug said we want three buildings: a Headquarters building for our new LLC, a building for our Trade Center, and a Hotel. The Hotel and Trade Center are to be located where we currently live, so construction can’t begin until we’ve moved into the Embassy. The Headquarters building will need offices and work areas for Doug, myself, our VPs, and other employees and meeting rooms.”

William asked, “Do you want to include a break area for employees?”

“Yes, add that to my list. Consider what is on our list as the minimum requirements. If we overlooked something just add it to your concept sketches and we can make a decision about keeping it when we review the sketches.”

After adding a break area to her list, Sandy said, “As a minimum, the Trade Center will need:

Sereine’s Trade Check Point staff will need:

A holding cell,

Five single-person offices for Sereine’s Checkpoint officers. The cell and offices need to be close to the area where the traders and merchants will be doing business.

2. The Trade Center’s Security Force will need:

Three holding cells,

Six offices for the on-duty shift supervisor and security officers,

A Break Area, and

A Control Center with provisions for communications equipment, work stations for monitoring the cameras and audio pickups installed in the Trade Center.

3. A store where traders can purchase supplies,

4. An open area with tables and chairs for traders and merchants to discuss their business,

5. Offices for traders to rent for private discussions with merchants,

6. Storage facilities for traders to store their merchandise and equipment,

7. An office for a Translation Services business,

8. An office for a Car Rental business,

9. A Computer Center, and

10. Bathrooms equipped with just audio pickups.”

William asked, “That is an extensive list. Did you have a layout in mind for the Trade Center?”

“We did a few sketches of how to lay out the security offices, but we didn’t save them. Besides, with your experience, you would do a far better job.”

Actually, we still had the sketches but didn’t want William to be inhibited by something he might think we wanted him to design.

Sandy went on with, “For the Hotel, we want: