Chapter 16

"My God You're Pregnant! I mean, really, REALLY pregnant and you look GREAT!" We hugged, kissed, and hugged some more. Beth Ann glowed in her sixth month. She was absolutely on fire, and I was in pain wanting her.

Regina waddled over and presented her swollen belly for my commentary. Instead of commenting, I knelt, lifted her smock, and kissed her distended tummy with all the love in my heart. Millie and Jim shared a precious smile watching me shower my darlings with the kind of love and respect I was famous for in the other life.

We were upstairs, behind locked doors, and I couldn't stand not touching them for another second. We played, touched, kissed, licked, rubbed, and squeezed for about a half hour. Then the mood changed and we got to business.

"So, Carl, do you really have a mission for us, or was it all about finding a way to get back in our panties?" Colleen, Beth Ann, Rebecca, and Regina were reclining on the bed, naked, and soaked from our exertions. The only thing that would have made it more fun would be if Winnie was there with us, but she was happily married (to the observant eye) to Jack, and NOT available for any extra-ordinary exertions with us. They'd left the children with their nannies and lots of guards, and flown the Seven-Thirty Seven to D.C., landing at Reagan, and the Judge arranged with Steve to get them delivered to me.

"There are some intricate plots afoot, and some of them include killing me and Charles Thornton as their end game. The Secret Service, FBI, CIA, DHS, and DOJ are all hamstrung by protocol, rules of engagement, and limitations that I need to be able to avoid, so that those behind the plots can find themselves ... less effective, permanently." We had talked about my life, how I became Vice President, when I woke up in the body of John Gray and what it was like meeting the President.

"When I was shot, back in the nursery – what happened next?" I really wanted to know, even though it hurt to remember it.

Colleen got an angry look on her face. "Jack and Edward shot both women. One got the shot off that killed you, but she was already dead and didn't know it. Rebecca worked on you like a maniac, but the damage was way too bad. You gently closed your eyes and then died..."

She wept as she remembered that awful day.

Rebecca took over the story. "When you lost consciousness, I knew there was nothing I could

do. Your heart pumped so fast, it emptied almost every drop of blood trying to feed your brain, Carl. It all happened in seconds.

"You knew.

"You looked in my eyes, and I knew that you had already accepted it. That hurt worse than anything. Jim and Millie held us together, while Jack and Edward dealt with the state police and FBI.

"Edward and his guys tore the van apart, looking for clues as to who set you up, and when they pieced it together, they snuck off and killed a bunch of people, Carl. We were terrified someone would piece it together and come for us, but the Judge sent word that the government was classifying the bodies as criminals killing each other, trying to gain control and power.

"We were mostly lost when you died. I don't think we understood how much you drove the agenda in our lives, until you weren't there to think up crazy ideas like buying small countries, and giant jets. Jim and Millie spent weeks holding us while we cried, and crying with us when it made sense..." She trailed off staring into space, remembering what she hoped to forget.

"Winnie told us that some Russian gangsters seemed to be involved, but no one could figure out how or why. We hoped it would make some sense, so at least we knew who to hate ... really. Oh how I hated those two girls. I wanted to bring them back to life so we could kill them a couple more times each." Regina put in her two cents.

"Hate can be a very destructive thing, and I indulged my ability to hate, way too much," Colleen hit the nail on the head for all of us. "We need to move on, and that's why we agreed to meet the Vice President when the Judge flew in and proposed it. Now that we did, and found you – again – it's like I felt myself come back to life all of the sudden. Please tell us we can be together, that you have it all figured out, and that we don't have to be sad all the time, anymore."

"I do have it mostly figured out, and if necessary, I will retire and go away to be with you all, somewhere private. But first, we have a mission to complete that Jack and Colleen, Winnie and I are perfect for, and all of you can help, if you're willing."

We reconvened in my private study, again. All of us reconvened. Millie and Jim had taken a nap, and Jack wanted to call and check on the kids, so he and Winnie had been gone for some time, but we were all together again ... finally.

I looked at them, all together one more time...

With me...

It made me want to cry...

Instead I led them through my problem, how I wanted to attack it, why I thought they'd be the right team to help me, and how we could leverage the assets of the security apparatus of the federal government, without being handcuffed by it. As I talked I saw the lights come on in Jack's eyes. He got it before anyone, then Winnie – of course. She would catch on quicker, because she'd had a career full of the kinds of problems I wanted to circumvent.

Pretty soon Jim caught my vision and turned to Colleen and said, "Baby, this is brilliant. Carl – I mean the Vice President has put his finger on the button that will turn off so many of the things that are driving people crazy about out government, but he needs us. I see it, Carl. I understand what you want from us, and I can get them all on board. We can do this."

He did get it!

We wrapped up our discussions, and I showed everyone not sleeping with me, a place to sleep. Jim and Millie got the big guest suite at the other end of my hallway. Winnie and Jack got the guest rooms downstairs, but they were very comfortable, and Steve took great pains to give us complete privacy, so they could talk freely, and we could ... play ... freely.