Wrinkles creased Mel’s brows as the laughter in his eyes faded. His gaze shifted down the hall to his right then back in its original direction.
“What are you doing here?” he said.
“I work here,” Ben replied. He had stopped for a moment, hoping to have one enjoyable conversation that day.
“Didn’t Zedekiah give you the week off?”
“I can’t sit around my place anymore.”
Mel studied his friend’s face. “I get that.”
“Thanks for dropping by Tuesday. It meant a lot to me.”
“No worries. I remember how it was when I lost Molly. Come to think of it, I got back to work right after her funeral.” Memories carved silence into the walls. Mel cleared his throat. “Yeah. Well, if you’re here, why aren’t you in the meeting?”
“What meeting?”
“Over in Patrick’s office. Jason, Maraina, and Ibrahim are there. I guess they didn’t know you were back.”
“They knew,” Ben said. “My guess is they don’t want me there. Probably concocting another idiotic scheme to sell to Zedekiah.”
“Shouldn’t you head over there and talk some sense into them?” Mel’s smile returned.
“As if that were possible,” Ben smiled back. “Besides, I’d prefer an intelligent exchange right now.”
“You certainly came to the right place,” Mel said in that manner of his which betrayed neither sincerity nor sarcasm. “By the way, how’s Gedaliah? I didn’t get a chance to speak with him. I did notice, though, he wasn’t in uniform.”
“He decided not to re-enlist. Eight years was enough for him.”
“Eight years? Has it really been that long?” He paused for a moment and nodded. “I guess so.” Another pause. “He’s grown another couple inches.”
“And put on a few pounds. He’s a terror in the gym.”
“Like this guy?” Mel asked, curling his right arm into the bicep pose.
“Something like that. Say, Mel, I gotta get going. Do you think we could meet up tonight at Harvey’s? Assuming you’re not doing anything.”
“I get off at seven. See you there around seven-thirty.”
Ben clasped his hand on Mel’s shoulder. “Thank you.”
Mel understood the true significance of the words and watched his friend head down the hall.
Four heads turned at the click of the opening door. Jason Modesta, the de facto leader of the group, hid the fullness of his displeasure. Ibrahim Quadri let a muted grunt slip out.
“You’re back,” Jason said. “Have a seat. If I’d known you were here, I would’ve invited you.”
“We passed each other in the hall this morning,” Ben said.
“Right, but I assumed you had come in to get something and leave, seeing as how you had the week off.”
“Of course.” Ben licked his lips and snarled for a fraction of a second. “Since you’re all together in the conference room, I take it you are working on something for the president.”
Maraina’s eyes flashed around to the other three faces as though asking for advice on what to say. Patrick Collins lowered his head and shuffled through a stack of papers on the desk.
“It’s rather important,” Jason said, “and we’d appreciate your input.”
Ibrahim let a subtle motion of his hand ask the question, ‘What are you doing?’ He understood the response of Jason’s raised shoulder combined with a quick nod and sat back to follow his lead.
“Well, what is it?” Ben’s irritation grew with each gesture.
“Um ….” Jason hesitated and clenched his jaw. “It’s not easy to say but ….”
“Just get on with it.”
“You understand that this can’t leave the room.” Ben didn’t respond, so Jason continued. “It seems Maraina stumbled on a plot to remove President Zedekiah. She got wind of it Tuesday evening at … well, that’s not relevant right now … and she brought it to me the next day. We’ve been discussing what to do. Whether we should tell the president now or wait for more information. One thing I can tell you is that the source is reliable.”
“What do you mean, ‘remove President Zedekiah?’ Is Congress planning to impeach him? For what? And who are these sources?”
“Impeach? No,” Jason said. “It’s a bit worse than that.”
“Explain now,” Ben demanded. “And stop the games.”
“The Russians,” Jason said.
“The Russians what?” Ben replied.
“They’re going to remove him.”
“For what reason? Where are they sending him?”
“They’re going to remove him,” Jason repeated. “Permanently.”
Ben’s voice rose to a roar. “You’re not answering my question. What are they going to do to the president?”
Jason let out a puff of air. “The Russians are planning on assassinating him. We’re not sure of all the details, but we know they’re going to make it look like he died of natural causes.”
Ben squinted and shook his head. He sat in the chair beside Jason. “How? When?”
“Like I said, we’re a little short on the details. Soon, I assume.”
“Why? What purpose would that serve? If they wanted to replace him, they could simply come here and do it.”
“Optics,” Ibrahim interjected. “They don’t want to look bad, especially ….” He cleared his throat. “Especially now that they’ve been weakened.”
“What are you talking about?” Ben asked.
“The Chinese,” Maraina said. “They’re making a push to reclaim their lost territory. If we were to join them, say because the Russians murdered our leader, we might be able to regain our freedom.”
Jason grit his teeth and shot Maraina a look.
“I see,” Ben said.
Jason interrupted before Ben could say more. “I know how it sounds, but when you consider the source, it won’t sound so implausible.”
“And who’s your source?”
“Jeremiah.”
Ben’s brow furled for a second. “Jeremiah?”
“He came to Maraina and told her. Didn’t he, Maraina?”
“Yeah,” she mumbled.
“Tuesday night,” Jason said. “He went to her house. Not sure how he knew where she lived, but he seems to know a lot of things. Told her all about the plot. As you can imagine, we didn’t believe him, us not exactly seeing eye to eye on many issues. However, it’s our job to take all threats seriously, so we looked into it.” He paused. “We didn’t like what we found.”
“Have you told the president yet?” Ben asked.
“Not yet,” Jason said. “We finally collected enough evidence and were deciding how to approach him with it.”
Ben rubbed the side of his face. “Jeremiah,” he muttered. “Let me talk to him and see what he has to say.”
“Be my guest,” Jason said, “but we don’t have time to waste.”
“And why’s that?” Ben asked.
Jason stacked the papers in front of him and fit them into a folder. “Like I said, feel free to talk to him, but we’re taking the evidence to the president right now.”
President Zedekiah wore the same incredulous expression Ben had when he first heard the explanation. Jeremiah’s witness didn’t convince him as much as it did Ben.
“The Russians are going to assassinate me?” he said. His breathing remained controlled the whole time he spoke.
“It’s the opportunity you were looking for,” Ibrahim said.
Ben decided to keep quiet for a while and read the expressions and body language of the people in the room. He didn’t like what he saw. At the same time, if Jeremiah had given them the information, he had no reason to doubt it.
“The Chinese have already contacted us through back channels,” Ibrahim continued. “They’ve promised us complete autonomy if we help them with their Russian problem over here.”
“Complete autonomy?” Zedekiah stroked his chin as he contemplated.
“They’d set you up as president,” Jason said. “That is, they’d provide the necessary funds until the situation stabilizes,” he quickly added. “Afterwards, they’d leave us alone. They were quite explicit about that.”
“They also stated they’d supply grain as well as equipment to dig wells to help capture water,” Ibrahim said. “You know how bad things have become. We could use all the help we can get, especially since the Russians have dismissed our requests out of hand.”
“Hmm,” Zedekiah let out.
“Quite honestly, I’d take the Chinese up on their offer before they change their minds,” Ibrahim said. “With all due respect, of course. I don’t presume to tell you what to do.”
“Is that the opinion you all share?” Zedekiah asked.
“Absolutely,” Maraina answered.
“I have no doubt,” Jason said.
“But if they assassinated me,” Zedekiah said, “wouldn’t one of you be next in line?”
Jason seemed ready for the question. “None of us would betray you, sir. Besides, if they’re willing to do that to you, what would stop them from coming after us next?” He pushed a folder across the desk. “All the evidence is in the file.”
President Zedekiah opened the folder and rummaged through the papers. When he finished, he leaned back in his seat. The room fell still as he allowed the thoughts to marinate. No one uttered a word. Only the occasional squeak of a chair interrupted the silence.
“The Russians want to assassinate me,” Zedekiah finally said with as much conviction as he could muster. “And the Chinese will back us against them.” A slight smile came over his face. He let a short laugh slide out. “Complete autonomy. What would that be like?”
Ben couldn’t hold his tongue any longer. “Sir. If I may.”
“Of course, Ben.”
“I’m not convinced this is our proper course of action. Let me, at least, look into this.”
“What do you need to look into?” Zedekiah asked. “The evidence is right here.”
“I don’t think we should be hasty,” Ben said. “Even assuming this is true, there’s no guarantee the Chinese, or other parties, have our best interests in mind.”
“Maybe, you’re the one who doesn’t have my best interests in mind.” Rage bubbled beneath the controlled breaths.
The bluntness of the attack caught Ben off guard. For all their disagreements, the president had learned to trust his advice or, at the very least, would listen to it. This felt like more than an offhand remark, as though he had waited for just the right moment to deliver the condemnation.
Zedekiah bore his eyes through his chief of staff. “What are you doing here anyway? I thought I gave you the week off.”
“Sir,” Ben started.
“You’ve always sided with the Russians,” Zedekiah interrupted, “even when they refused us the shipments of grain. Even as our people suffered. I’m beginning to wonder if there’s a reason for it.”
“My loyalty to you is without question ….”
“The more you talk, the less likely that seems.”
The corner of Jason’s lips turned upward. “So, should I tell our Chinese friends we’re on board?” he said.
“Give me the night to think about it,” Zedekiah said. He closed the folder and tapped it on his desk a couple times. “I’ll let you know in the morning.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Ben paced the floor. A dry hum, the rumble of machinery drilling deep into the earth in search of the precious liquid flowing underground, pierced the window and settled over the living room. The last remnants of Victoria’s perfume lingered, trapped among the dust particles choking the air. How many times he had wanted to fling open the windows to let the sunlight cleanse the apartment of the decay. But those last reminders of Victoria would fade as well, so he choked on the dust and the mold.
The sound of approaching footsteps stilled his breath until they continued down the hall past his door. He peeked through the blinds and, not finding what he wanted in the street either, headed to the couch to think.
The Russians wanted to assassinate Zedekiah. Or so Jason said.
Ben saw the looks between Jason and Maraina, between both of them and Ibrahim. They had concocted the assassination plot. He was sure of it. Maraina had let a sliver of the truth slip out. The Chinese would back the Atlantic States in their attempt to rebel against Russian rule. That was their true motivation. They just needed a way to get Zedekiah on board. But what would Jason and Maraina and Ibrahim get out of it? Money or power, of course. But how much? Or maybe the Chinese had compromising information they could use against the three.
Ben had no doubt the discussions with the Chinese started long before Tuesday. Weeks, months, maybe longer. He had spent the last year caring for Victoria, work a distant second on his list of priorities. How many meetings had he missed in that year? How many behind the scenes discussions? Without him around, the advisors’ plans had gone unchecked. Without him to counsel the president, they could have planted whatever seed they wanted.
Clearly, they had chosen to use that time to undermine Zedekiah’s confidence in his chief of staff. They wouldn’t have come right out and maligned Ben to him. More like a word here, a comment there. Subtle slights designed to create misgivings about him. A year of these slights could account for Zedekiah’s bold yet completely false accusation. At the same time, Zedekiah seemed a little too eager to rid himself of the Russians, as though he knew the assassination story existed only in that place where imagination and desire come together to create their own reality.
The longer Ben sat and pondered the situation, the greater his frustration grew. Zedekiah galloped down the same path as his predecessor. Did he think he would achieve a different result?
“Look around you!” Ben yelled at Zedekiah and to himself at the same time.
A cup shattered against the wall, pieces falling in white splinters. His shaking hand went to his forehead.
“You OK in there?”
The voice came muffled through the door. A few solid knocks followed.
“Ben? You alright?” Jeremiah said when he saw his friend.
“Yeah. No. I don’t know. Come on in.”
The broken cup lay along the edge of the carpet. Streaks of coffee dripped down the wall. Jeremiah helped his friend pick up the pieces and take them to the trash.
“What’s going on, Ben?”
“Nothing.”
“I can see that.” Jeremiah immediately regretted the harshness of his tone. “I’m sorry. I know it’s been tough on you.” He let out a deep sigh. “What can I do for you, my friend? You called me here for a reason.”
Ben’s face turned red. “I can’t believe he’s going to do it. Of all the stupid, foolhardy things a person could choose. It’s not like there’s no precedent. You said the same thing to him. Over and over. You do a stupid thing, you get a horrible result. You watch other people do it, you should learn from them, not make the same terrible decision. Are you so blind? Are you too deluded to see the truth anymore? I don’t get it. I really don’t. Money, power. Do you think those will save you? It didn’t save us before. In fact, things went to hell. Literally. Yet you’re following the same idiotic path. What’s the matter with you!”
Jeremiah’s brows furrowed at his friend. “I don’t understand. What path? Who’s going down it? Zedekiah, I assume.”
“Zedekiah,” Ben acknowledged. “And the pack of hyenas he calls advisors.”
“What have they done?”
“Nothing yet. But they will. Unless someone stops them. Unless you stop them.”
“Stop them from doing what?”
“They’re going to align themselves with the Chinese to overthrow the Russians.”
Ben waited for the stunned look to cross Jeremiah’s face. It never came.
“Did you hear me?” Ben asked. “They’re going to join the Chinese alliance to try and free us from Russian rule. After you explicitly told them not to.”
“I heard you. It doesn’t surprise me.”
“Will you go talk to Zedekiah? The advisors got to him, convinced him it’s a good idea. He won’t listen to me anymore, but he might listen to you.”
Jeremiah shook his head. “No.”
The red returned to Ben’s face. “Why not? Don’t you know what’s going to happen if he goes through with it?”
“More aware then I want to be.”
“Then, why won’t you talk with him?”
“He won’t listen.”
“He might if you try. You’ve got to try. If you don’t ….” He paused. “If you don’t, there’s no hope.”
Jeremiah stared directly into his friend’s eyes. “Zedekiah hears what he wants to hear. If he hasn’t listened to me in the past, what makes you think he’ll do so now? You said it yourself. He watched other people make the same choices. He saw the result of those choices, and he’s convinced himself something different will happen this time.”
“You’ve got to try, Jeremiah.”
“I won’t.”
“Why not? Don’t you care? How about Gedaliah? Are you going to condemn him too without giving it a chance?” “I won’t, Ben. And I can’t. The Lord has told me not to speak with them. Not about this anyway. They had their chance. Hundreds of chances. He won’t give them another one. Their fate is sealed. Judgment is coming.” He looked out the window towards the north. “In fact, it’s on its way.”