Chapter 5

Thank God for the internet. The things I didn't learn by osmosis and from Roberta, I looked up online. People post all kinds of convenient things these days, like: 'Proper Toe Polishing Techniques, ' and 'How to Apply Mascara Without Making a Mess.' Between the video assistance and the previous practical lessons, I managed to get myself together in such a way that people wouldn't point and howl in laughter or pass out from the fright.

A military chopper flared and landed right in the center of the lighted ring I'd turned on just before nine P.M., and Constance stepped out to escort me aboard. There were uniformed soldiers there to help, and one took my small bag while the other took my free arm. I was more or less, lifted into the chopper, and we were immediately away to the north east.

Constance tried to speak to me but the engine noise was too loud to make it possible to do more than grunt and point, so we waited for better circumstances. She smiled and patted my arm occasionally to make sure I did not feel abandoned.

When we landed, a military G3 was waiting with the engines warmed, and we were taxiing out as soon as the door was swung shut. The cabin was nicely appointed, and Constance led me to a pair of very comfortable recliners, and we were belted in by a military stewardess.

As the pilots taxied out for take-off, Constance formally greeted me. "Angela, I am Constance Ames. We spoke on the phone, and the President is anxious to meet you tomorrow morning. We will be flying to a secret military location, where President Dryden is staying until the sickness is over.

"The President is very adamant about properly thanking you for all you and Noah did to save us from untold millions of deaths. We will be flying to a military base, and we both have to be checked out by one of the doctors who take care of the President, to be certain we are not bringing the virus back with us. Then we'll wait our turn, and then YOU get to meet the President. Isn't that great?" She was excited for me, because she saw a fourteen-year-old girl, barely into puberty, and not a sixty-year-old man barely able to cope with being a fourteen-year-old girl.

"I nodded enthusiastically and replied, "I am excited. Thank you for doing all this. It's kind of unbelievable."

That seemed to satisfy Constance, and she went back to working on her laptop, leaving me alone to stare out the window and think about the enormous circle I'd traveled since that day on Interstate Forty-Four in Springfield, Missouri.

Thinking about the crash that stated it all, made me lonesome for the family, and that would lead to depression, so I put it out of my mind, and forced myself to think of other things. Constance was watching me, and I looked at her, confused. "What?"

She smiled, and said, "You were thinking about Noah, weren't you? I could see the sadness in your eyes."

Constance had a wonderful way of softening that kind of blow, and I was instantly grateful for the nice way she put it. "It still makes me sad. We were ... close, and it hurts to remember what we had and see what I have left, sometimes..." I decided to let Constance decide what to make of that.

She made a lot out of it. "Were you two really ... intimate? I mean ... like ... all the way intimate?" She made it sound like it was the worst thing in the world.

"We made love a lot. It was part of our cover and how we got inside The Outpost. Their leader, a guy name Othneal, had a weird fixation about incest, and The Judge asked us to pretend to be brother and sister to lure him into trusting us.

"It worked really, REALLY, well, and he would peek into our little bedroom all the time to see if he could watch us making love. If Noah or I knew he was there, we'd undress and do it so he would get all worked up and forget to be suspicious of us.

"If you have sex with a good looking man often enough, and if he's really kind and gentle, then you can't help but fall in love, and we loved each other very deeply. It was like what it would feel to lose a spouse..."

I let her make of that whatever she wished.

What she wished was to talk about herself. "I never had a lot of luck with men, and the one man I loved more than my own life, was much too young for me, and ended up getting murdered by terrorists, too. I guess you and I have that in common."

She was quiet for a little while, then continued. "You might remember the young man who tackled the shooter who killed President Gray? We were ... close. We were really close..." She thought about that for a while, then said, "He showed me more about myself than I taught him about life, even though he was the teenager. We had such a wonderful relationship, even after it was obvious that he was hurt and dying.

"Kevin never complained. He just took it all in stride and tried to make something good about every day.

"When I found out that he'd been killed, I cried for two straight days. When you work for the President, you don't really get to make your own schedule. It's all about his needs, and that's Ok because it's what I signed up for, but when Kevin was killed, I withdrew from everything and everyone for a few days, and let myself grieve.

"I really made myself grieve, Angela. It helped a lot, and I bet you need time to do the same thing. When you got sick was when Noah was going after that woman terrorist, and you never got to experience full grieving, I bet.

"Grief can be good, and it can be healing, but either way, you must grieve, or the hurt never lessens."

We talked about that for a long time, and when they announced we were going to descend, the stewardess came around and closed all the blinds, warning us to leave them drawn until the plane was inside the hangar, and the front door opened.

Constance kept me busy answering questions about The Outpost, and we were on the ground before I knew it. The plane taxied straight and fast, somewhere, but we had no idea where until the front door opened to the sight of a big hangar, and parked right beside us was Air Force One.

Right up until then I didn't miss being President, but when I saw my plane – well, Hawk's plane now – I didn't realize how badly I missed the action, the challenge, and knowing all the secrets about what was going on. I was struck dumb for so long, that Constance put her arm around me, and said, "I know. It's amazing to think that you are right here, beside the most famous airplane on earth, isn't it?"

That about covered it, but I said nothing, smiled, and let her lead us towards a small group of people who seemed to be waiting for us. The leader of the group, detached herself immediately, and said, "Miss Ames, Miss Debusque, I am Natalie Horner, and it is my pleasure to welcome you to ... well, let's just say, we are very glad to have you as our visitor. The President asked us to let you know he is looking forward to meeting you tomorrow, and we have a van to take you to your overnight accommodations. If you will please follow me," and we were led to a large van, with very comfortable seats, and driven a short distance to a small house that was off by itself and guarded quite well.

Our guide continued talking as we arrived at the cottage. "This is one of our Visiting Officer Quarters. I think you will find it quite comfortable, and we took the liberty of having a small buffet made up in the dining hall and delivered as you touched down. The house is quite comfortable, but all three bedrooms are on the second floor. I hope that presents no mobility issues."

We looked at her and smiled. Neither of us minded climbing stairs. Natalie led the way, and we found the cottage was small, clean as could be, and comfortably furnished. Somehow I knew Hawk was much more comfortable, and his dinner was far more delectable, but I wasn't President any more than I was John Gray, so this was perfect as far as I was concerned, and I looked forward to what came next. Two doctors were waiting and they drew blood, checked us over and left without a word.

Natalie stayed and had dinner with us. She seemed at ease, but full of questions, which tipped me off that she was Secret Service. I let her pretend I didn't know who she worked for, and when we were stuffed and exhausted, she mercifully let us go to bed without further evaluation.

Upstairs, I had barely undressed for a shower before bed, when Constance knocked and let herself into the smaller of the bedrooms that I had chosen. She was dressed for bed, and let me rinse off without abusing my privacy. When I came out, she was lying across the foot of the bed, answering email while she waited. "You look ready for bed," she giggled, as I hopped up on the bed to join her.

"Well, it is late for me, even if it isn't quite as late in whatever time zone we're in."

Constance nodded and let me get settled before she started twenty questions about Noah and me. "How did you two meet?" was how it began, and for the next two hours, I gave her as much information as she needed, and as much as I thought was necessary to satisfy the Secret Service who were, no doubt, listening from multiple devices hidden all around the room.