Chapter 34

Updated Cast

Patrick

Father of Amy and Cindi, twin brother of Victoria, husband of Elizabeth. Co-owner and founder of PI firm, former FBI agent. Host of the white energy, also known as Katoro.

Elizabeth

Mother of Amy and Cindi, sister of Robert, wife of Patrick. World famous TV news reporter. Killed in Iraq in chapter one.

Victoria

Mother of Katie and Becky, twin sister of Patrick, wife of Robert. Co-owner of PI firm with Patrick, also former FBI agent. Shield color green.

Robert

Father of Katie and Becky, brother of Elizabeth, husband of Victoria. Career marine. Killed in Iraq in chapter one.

Megan

Mother of Julie and Samantha. Victoria's best friend. Archeologist. Helps out at PI firm. Host of the purple energy, also known as Nagalla. Serves as Scribe and as Healer. Also often able to see the future.

Amy & Cindi

14 year old twin sisters, daughters of Patrick and Elizabeth. Shield colors are green and blue respectively. Amy is Protector and Guardian. Cindi has power to alter events not involving herself.

Samantha (Sammi) and Julie

14 year old twin sisters, daughters of Megan. Samantha sometimes goes by the nickname 'Sandi'. Shield colors are brown and pink, respectively. Samantha also known as Lady Samantha, if you are brave enough to call her that. She is also able to use blue and red as shield colors. Her body originally was a clone of Cindi in Book 1, originally made to house Cindi's brain by Bandor after Cindi 'died' in Book 1. Made part of the family by Patrick using Protocol 29 just before the end of the last cycle. Has the ability to see others no matter where they are. Although it is not known how yet, Sammi is an important figure in the Ancient Prophecy. Julie is a second Scribe, brought into the family by Patrick using Protocol 29 just before the end of the last cycle. This action will have effects not yet described.

Becky and Katie

14 year old identical twin sisters, daughters of Robert and Victoria. Shield colors are orange (Little Orange Person) and yellow (Little One) respectively. Katie and Becky can manipulate electrical and mechanical objects and computers. Becky is Sammi's Guide in the Ancient Prophecy.

Bandor

Black energy, opposite of white energy, also in a human body.

Carnella

Girlfriend of Bandor, used to be friend of Katoro.

Eric

Twin of Megan, died when they were 9 years old. Was able to see the future.

Cire

Cat who by some unknown process will someday be Samantha's husband. Has shown ability to use energy of all colors simultaneously, ie the Power of the Rainbow.

Jeff

President of the United States

Grace

First Lady, wife of Jeff

Valerie and Christina

14 year old twin daughters of President.

Sarah

Adopted daughter of Paul and Karen, discovered to have powers like all the twins. No indication of whether or not she has a twin. Can teleport people, telekinese objects, transmute objects, possibly create objects. Is able to see people from afar. Shield color silver.

Paul and Karen

Parents of Sarah and Rhonda.

Rhonda

Daughter of Paul and Karen, sister of Sarah, Marine officer.

John

Marine officer, works with Rhonda. The two of them are staying with the family, providing security, while supposedly spying for the Marines on the family. Romantically involved with Rhonda and possibly Victoria.

"Dad and Mom"

Parents of Patrick and Victoria

Chief Haskin

Police Chief of city where family lives

Russ

Secret Service Agent, whose wife is a friend of Megan's and coworker in field of Archeology.

David

Secret Service agent, close 'friend' of Victoria, some indication of previous romantic involvement.

Chapter 34

I guess we all did look kind of foolish, standing there with our mouths hanging open. Or at least, they did. I'm sure I looked suave and debonair, just like usual. Right. We all were pretty embarrassed. Then Katie, bless her little heart, started choking and gasping for breath.

"Oops! Swallowed a fly!" She announced, as she crossed her eyes and looked pitiful. Everyone laughed at her, but we also all closed our mouths. The President leaned over and kissed the top of Sarah's head.

"You know they are not going to leave any of us alone until they hear this story, don't you Sarah? Do you want to tell it, or should I?" He said, grinning. Sarah looked up at him and smiled shyly.

"You tell them," she responded. "I'll probably just cry before I get through it." She looked at me and smiled brilliantly, her eyes twinkling. That was about the third dazzling smile she had given me in the last few minutes. I smiled to myself when I realized why. Sarah was afraid I would think that she was attracted to the President more than me. She was trying to tell me that she loved me, not him; that he was special, but not like me. What a sweet girl, to think of that at a time like this.

"I first met Sarah and Rhonda about a year ago. I had made an unscheduled and unannounced trip to Iraq, to meet the Prime Minister and to generally show the government and the people that we were behind them. You know, one of those shows of political support we are so fond of. My advisors had thought it would be a good photo op to have a teenage student with us. They saw it as an opportunity to show that young people were behind us in bringing democracy and freedom to a poor, disadvantaged country recently saved from a despotic ruler, or some such drivel." He smiled slightly as I watched Grace's eyes widen in surprise and alarm. Cindi, ever the politically correct little politician, choked as she swallowed down the wrong pathway. The President laughed.

"Don't worry; there are no reporters around to hear me. These young people won't say anything; I could still put the lovely Cindi in handcuffs and cart her off to jail, you know!" He grinned as Cindi looked at him, fear in her eyes. He tousled her hair and smiled at her. "Relax. A federal judge wouldn't let me keep you there for more that a few days before he ordered your release." I could swear I heard Cindi whimper.

"Anyway, they decided it would be best to have a young female, the prettier the better. When they went through the list of possible dependents in the area, apparently pretty little Sarah jumped out like a rose in a weed patch." Sarah blushed prettily. Incredibly, I knew from talking to her before that she didn't think she was pretty at all. "It didn't hurt that her father worked for a very influential member of the government, although his boss's name wouldn't be recognized by anyone in the general public. I believe that man is your father," he said to me. Rhonda and Sarah both looked surprised, as did everyone else in the room except Megan and me. I knew who her father worked for; I had figured it out some time ago. Megan, of course, probably knew it long before I did, as usual. Who knows, she might have known it before Sarah's Dad or my Dad knew it!

"The plan was that she would ride in the Presidential motorcade with us to where I was to give a speech, and just stand on the platform next to me. Although I have been assured, and have verified myself that she's not just another a pretty face but is incredibly intelligent, her job was just to stand there and look... pretty. It was a job she does very well without even trying." The President laughed at her discomfort; Sarah was in a state of permanent redness now.

"Everything I tell you from this point on is confidential and has never been released to the press. Incredibly, it has never leaked out either. It's one of the best kept secrets in the government in many years. As far as I know, even Sarah thinks that she was just involved in an automobile accident. Remember Cindi and those handcuffs." Everyone laughed nervously. I saw by the look in Sarah's eyes that she wasn't as naïve about what had really happened as everyone seemed to believe.

"We'll probably never know exactly what happened, as everyone that could tell us is no longer alive. There was an attack on the Presidential convoy as we traveled to the site where the speech was to be given. In all likelihood, it was an attempt to assassinate me. Let me explain how those caravans work. There are usually six large, armored vans, usually of the Suburban type and size, with dark tinted windows. The one that I ride in is rotated on a random basis, determined each day by the agent in charge of security for the convoy just shortly before we leave, so that no one except the Secret Service detail guarding the convoy knows which van I am actually in. The other vans are filled with Secret Service agents and special guests, like Sarah that day. The day before, I had been in the 3^rd van from the front. Presumably, the perpetrators knew that, or else they just decided that was as good a guess as any. The only other possibility was that they were actually after Sarah, which would make no sense."

Years of training with the FBI taught Victoria and me to keep a straight face when faced with the revelation of startling information, but my girls had never received such training. Megan and Julie didn't react, as they were scribes; very little surprised them anyway, and besides, they had probably known this before it even happened. Katie and Becky, being involved rather extensively in the last cycle in what was going on, were trained enough not to react either. I was probably the only one that noticed the very slight widening of Amy's eyes before they quickly returned to normal and her face looked as if it was carved in stone. Poor Cindi and Sammi had no such training or talents, and they reacted to what the President said just as a normal person would; dramatically. The President didn't get to where he was by being stupid or unobservant, and I noticed his reaction as he filed it away in his mind for future consideration.

"At any rate, the van that Sarah was riding in was hit by either an IED or an RPG. The armor of the vehicle protected the occupants from the explosion fairly well, but the resulting accident as the vehicle was overturned several times injured Sarah very critically. She would not be alive today had it not been for the fast work by Russ and David. They saved her life. Unfortunately, her legs were severely injured. You can imagine the gratitude that Sarah feels towards them even to this day."

"Sarah told me I was being silly, but Grace, the girls and I all felt somewhat responsible for her getting hurt. We had her flown back to the States and I personally oversaw her recuperation with my personal physicians. At least one of us visited her every day. As you have probably figured out by now, from being around her, it is totally impossible to spend much time around Sarah without becoming completely charmed by her. I only wish my own daughters were as sweet and well behaved as she is." The smile he shot in their direction clearly showed that he was not serious in the least. I felt right at home as I saw them both stick their tongues out at him. You can't do that to the President, can you?

"Unfortunately, even though Russ and David saved her life, there wasn't anything they could do about her legs. We had the best doctors and surgeons in the world look at her, and the best they could say was that they might get better in time, but there were no guarantees. I would really be interested in knowing how you got better, Sarah. Just a few months ago when I saw you, there was little improvement. Tell me what happened, honey."

Poor Sarah. She was not very good at subterfuge. She knew she shouldn't tell him what really happened, but she didn't know what to say. She gave Megan and me a 'deer in the headlights' look, which once again the President noticed. I took over smoothly.

"I have a college friend that is a fairly well known scientist that has been involved in some leading edge research applications in cases like Sarah's. Their group was able to provide some treatment that worked like a charm with her. The improvement was rapid and dramatic. It was truly a miracle. I don't quite understand it all, but it has something to do with energy and light treatments." I used an old philosophy of mine; always lie by telling the truth, just in a way that no one will believe. Unfortunately, the President apparently belonged to the same school, as the look he gave me almost screamed 'liar!'. He let it go, though.

"Well, I'm certainly glad she was able to help Sarah. It just broke our hearts to see her incapacitated like that. I hope I get the chance to thank her personally someday for what she has done," he said. I hadn't said it was a 'she'. I would have to remember not to underestimate this man.

Sarah, of course, was as red as a beet from all the attention being paid to her, not to mention teary eyed from reliving a very traumatic part of her young life. I could see her hand trembling from the emotional impact of hearing about it all again. She must have been broadcasting her emotional trauma, as Cire suddenly woke up, whined piteously, and jumped down out of Megan's arms. He ran over to Sarah and jumped up into her arms, nudging her face with his head and purring loudly. Sarah petted him and seemed to calm down.

About that time, it was announced that dinner was ready. Megan had arranged for an old college friend who owned a catering firm to do much of the final cooking and to provide catering service for the actual meal itself, and any drinks or snack service required that evening. This allowed all of us to enjoy the meal and each other's company. Of course, the caterers were rigorously interrogated and investigated by the Secret Service beforehand.

Dinner was a delightful occasion. I had the privilege of having the President's lovely daughters on either side of me. Originally, Rhonda and Sarah were slated to sit on other side of the President, and Cindi next to me. Rhonda, however, noticed the longing look Cindi gave to the seat on the opposite side of the President from Sarah and gave up her position to give Cindi an opportunity she would never forget. Valerie took the opportunity during the confusion and musical chairs to slip into Cindi's vacated place next to me, so I was flanked by Presidential twin daughters. Rhonda noticed that and laughed, giving me a look of pity. Cindi's face virtually glowed all evening long as she sat next to the President of the United States! He noticed her excitement and made sure to include her in every conversation he had. I thought she was going to faint the first time he laid his hand on her arm as he talked to her. She looked over at me and smiled happily, as if she was in heaven. 'I love you!' she mouthed to me from across the table. I saw Valerie and Christina look at her in surprise, then at me, before they giggled and went back to paying attention to me again.

I was having a wonderful time myself. Valerie and Christina were a joy to be with in every way. They never failed to miss an opportunity to make me feel special, from touching my hand or arm softly as they talked to me, to laying their head gently on my shoulder as they whispered some witty comment in my ear. If they had not been the President's daughters, I would have been sure I was being flirted with all evening long. They had a knack for making me feel like I was the center of their world, with no one else mattering at all to them.

After dinner, we retired to the living room, with the seating arrangements remaining essentially the same. Cindi and Sarah remained at the President's side, resting their heads occasionally on his shoulders as he had his arms around their shoulders over the back of the couch. Grace sat between Victoria and Megan, deep in conversation, laughing frequently. Grace occasionally observed the antics of her girls as well as mine with an amused, tolerant smile on her face. The rest of my girls looked on intently, amused and enthralled with the dance they observed going on all evening.

Valerie and Christina at first seemed unaware of the effect they were having on me, but they also never failed to touch me, no matter how briefly, every chance they got. Several times they kissed me affectionately on the cheek after some presumably witty remark of mine, laughing merrily when I blushed or shifted my 'weight' periodically. They were simply delightful young ladies that had no doubts whatsoever about their attractiveness or effect on the male species, I realized after sitting with them for awhile. I was intrigued to learn during the course of conversation that they were 14 years old, not the fifteen that I had assumed they were.