"Would I do that to y'all?" Barrett's grin got bigger as he mimicked his wife's lovely Savannah accent. He got the laugh he was looking for.
Barrett continued, "George Gwinnett is true Southern aristocracy and can trace his Southern roots back to the 1700's. He's an army brat and decorated hero, is smarter than hell and has absolutely no ambition to be a politician. George will be a perfect figurehead. He'll do what we tell him and won't get in your way in two years. He's richer than anybody in this room, and I understand you both know him and have taken his election offerings. He's my best friend and we'll be politically-neutral between the two of you. Both of us will gratefully retire in two years when one of you get the nomination. Make sense?"
The room was silent and for the first time in what seemed ages, Barrett smiled and relaxed. He'd made his pitch and knew which way this was going to go. It felt good to know the old magic still worked, even in this crowd.
"He'll sign?"
"If he doesn't, he doesn't get the job. I guarantee it," said Barrett.
The two men who could block the process looked at each other and silently came to an understanding. Two nods across the room assured the deal.
25/03/2047 10:15
Charlie Webster let up on the accelerator and the tractor slowed at the rise in the headland of his biggest and best field. He pushed in the clutch and the weight of the fully loaded seed drill stopped the big green machine almost instantly. Charlie took a deep breath and got out of the air-conditioned tractor cab. The steel toes of his work boots showing through the flayed leather toes rang off a few access-ladder rungs as he climbed down to check the soil. He knelt down on one knee, dug a shallow hole with his hand and checked the color of the underlying soil.
Darker than the surface. Not a lot, but enough to get these seeds germinated. At least they'll get a decent start, Charlie thought. Then who the damn-hill knows. He shook his head.
The sun wasn't fully up but the heat of the prairie morning was already stifling and Charlie knew he wanted to get these seeds in and covered up again before the sun robbed every bit of moisture from the disturbed ground.
He walked the length of the seed drill checking the drop chute for every row to ensure it wasn't plugged. It would be a royal pain to have missing rows because of some damn weed that got itself up there on the way over here. Every chute was clear and clean. At least something's going right this morning, he thought.
He climbed the ladder slowly, being careful to put his feet on each rung. He knew it wouldn't go well if he fell from this height. Plunking down into the seat, he revved up the engine to operating speed and set the computer system that controlled the seed-drill depth and operation. The GPS autopilot confirmed it recognized the field and the crop it was sowing. All lights turned green and Charlie clicked the drive switch. With a big smile, he said "Engage" out loud and pointed forward.
He leaned back in the seat, the tractor and its computerized systems didn't need him. If it was going to be his last crop, he wanted to be part of it. He smiled contentedly as the massive machine created the rows that would determine his future.
25/03/2047 10:45
A chorus of agreement sealed the fate of at least one person.
25/03/2047 23:00
After the cops dumped her outside her apartment later than night, Aleysha lay where she landed. She had no idea how long she'd been there but the pain started over again when somebody lifted her arm off her bruised and swollen face. She heard her momma's voice. Insistent. Demanding.
"C'mon girl, I got you. We can get you upstairs, safe into bed. C'mon now. Aleysha honey. I know you're hurtin' but you have to try girl."
Aleysha tried to move, tried to help but couldn't get her feet under her, they wouldn't work. She fell back down onto her back. She felt arms wrap around her, sit her upright, lift her so her heels touched and then pull her backwards along the pavement, useless legs dragging and bumping along the broken bits of concrete pavement.
"Momma?"
"I'm here Aleysha, I got you. But you gotta help me get you upstairs. I can't carry you by myself, baby girl. And I can't take care of your girls myself you know."
They took 20-minutes, stair by stair, landing by landing, to reach momma's apartment.
"Momma, don't let the girls see me like this," said Aleysha.
"Don't you worry. They're asleep. Safe in their beds. And that's where you're going now. I've still got some toilet paper here we can wad up to stop the bleeding. I'll take care of the girls tomorrow too. You sleep. We got two aspirin left; they won't do much but better than nothing. I'll get them."
"Damned Ro, damned reporter, damn fucking cops. Sorry momma for swearing."
"That's OK baby girl, you said it for both of us."
Aleysha passed out, fully clothed on her momma's bed. It hurt to move even to breathe but exhaustion won. She didn't sleep well.
26/03/2047 05:45
The night sky lightened with pre-dawn softness. Her mother's voice reached her consciousness.
"Aleysha, you get up now. It's morning. We have to get food for the girls. Right now girl." When Aleysha didn't move, her momma dragged her out of bed. "You gotta think about your babies, especially now."
She almost screamed but held it to a whimper when her momma pulled on her. Everything hurt. Cramping and nauseous, she could barely stand. The cuts on her head throbbed, unlike the rest of her body that delivered agony with every step. She was empty; something inside her had given up and disappeared. She wanted to crawl into whatever hole was available and not see anybody, and never be seen by anybody, again. She vaguely realized her momma was talking.
"Aleysha, we're going to the park for bread. I know, you don't want to go, but you have to so we can eat. We'll stay in the park and eat there. Now get your butt off that floor, get dressed and take care of your girls."
Aleysha considered this in one part of her mind. Momma was in charge, she'd make it right for all of us, but I have to put a good show on for the girls she decided. But I never want to see that park or those cops again. Never.
"Now, girl." The memory of her momma's most forceful voice sprung unbidden from her childhood memories. Her present pain wouldn't allow even the briefest flicker of amusement.
"Now."
There was no denying that voice. Aleysha forced herself upright. She stood, swaying back and forth, her legs threatening to give up. Her momma supported her with one arm around her shoulders. Her youngest took her free hand. She didn't absorb the frightened look on her girls' faces.
In this way, with momma supporting her and her youngest holding on with all her strength, they got to the park. But there, between the lack of food in the last 48 hours and the press of bodies with the sweaty miasma of starvation and desperation, she couldn't focus, couldn't make sense of anything. Her momma kept up a running commentary about everything she saw and Aleysha let it flow around her.
The line crawled toward the bread.
When the crowd separated into individual lines, Aleysha stumbled and fell into a marine. He caught her, carefully set her upright and told her she'd be fine in a few minutes. She didn't register this happening through her blurred-out, wavering vision.
She focussed on the smell of the doughy, still-warm flatbread fresh out of the ovens. Memories of her momma's kitchen and thick crusts of bread fresh from the oven, with so much butter it pooled and wouldn't soak into the bread brought a tentative smile to her face. Her daddy loved bread. Momma made sure he got a fresh loaf almost every day. But that thought faded on the next half step as the pain reappeared.
Aleysha was about to get her loaves and she wasn't watching anything else other than the trooper in front of her.
"Give me your right hand," ordered a nearby soldier.
Aleysha looked at her blankly but did as she was told and the trooper used an indelible pen to put a long stroke on the back of her hand.
"You can come back the day after tomorrow for more bread but that mark won't let you in tomorrow. Understand?" said the trooper.
Aleysha didn't say anything but remained standing in place. Her momma took her arm and led her away.
With two loaves each, her momma took her and the girls over to join the growing group at the edge of the park beside the parked marine transport trucks. She heard momma say it would be safe to stay here for a while and eat. She wondered at how disconnected she felt as she watched her babies rip up a big chunk of bread to share and she marveled at how they giggled over the flat taste.
26/03/2047 20:30
Charlotte looked up as George came into the living room. She knew that look; it told her her husband was about to launch yet another new adventure.
"Baby, I'm glad you're sitting down," George said.
The fading, early-spring golden light as the sun went down lent the room a soft edge and one that Charlotte had worked with the interior designer to establish for this old downtown mansion. When oak midges killed off the live oaks a few years ago, the house was left to bake in the Southern heat. Charlotte had shutters installed to help keep the house cool. Authentic looking, they were modern, electronic controlled, and opened and closed based on the amount of sunlight falling on them.
"Now what have you got us into?" Charlotte laughed. She never knew with George. He was always heading off on an adventure and she'd have to pull him back from the stupid ones or try to relax as he went off on one that might kill him. She sighed and, for the thousandth time, admitted she loved this man but wondered why she fell for one with such an adventurous spirit.
"Baby..."
She interrupted him.
"Sweetie, that's two babies in a row. Skip to the good part. We've been married thirty years now and whenever you get to babying me, you're up to good ol' boy stuff you think I'm not about to like." An arched eyebrow emphasized the message. She leaned back, crossed her ankles and arms.
"I just talked to Bill, and he offered me the Vice-Presidency," said George.
Charlotte stopped at this. They had talked about his running for office but both agreed he wasn't the ass-kissing kind and wouldn't survive very long in the political world. He was tough enough, they agreed on this too, but he didn't possess the drive for recognition all politicians seemed to possess. They both agreed the real power that their money and the company gave him was more than enough for him. And for her by extension, she decided.
"Oh sweetie, you want to be a politician? What are the two of you planning?" She couldn't believe he'd change his mind without talking to her first.
"I know I usually bounce things off you first. I couldn't have built the company without your insights, you know that. And if you say "no", then that's the answer I'll give. You've always had veto-rights," said George.
"But, listen to the offer. It's for two years until the next election. I have to sign I won't run for President. You know we're already moving the company north so we're leaving Savannah anyway. I can take this as a step to semi-retirement. You've been after me to slow down. So I could take the VP job and turn QuellCorp over to Sarah. We can talk about what to do afterwards. I'd be free to travel like you want, and we'd still have the Lear, so we could visit Savannah any time you like. Or, I could step back into running the company if I was bored out of my mind. And you'll see Alice regularly if we're in D.C."
Charlotte knew he had to have something to keep himself occupied; he wasn't the kind of man to retire to a fishing boat. There'd always be one more challenge for him to take on and conquer.
He interrupted her thinking. "Bill asked me to do this as a personal favor."
Looking at his face and hearing the tone of voice, Charlotte understood the decision had already been made. Those two had cooked up more adventures over the years and George always supported Bill as he and Alice created their political power base. In return, Bill sent military contracts their way. There were only two people George could not refuse, and Bill was one. But she had the final say.
She smiled her gracious Southern hostess smile and knew George would get the false signal. After thirty years, he knew that look directed at him meant he'd pay a price for his decision. "So when do we leave? And don't you 'Baby' me," she smiled again. "You probably just decided you want to take me out for fresh oysters and crabs tonight didn't you?"
"Baby, I love it when you read my mind."
Charlotte smiled at the man she had fallen in love with that magical night on River Street. Whatever else he promised her, his declaration life would not be boring still held true. She'd like to kill him now and then because of it, but she loved him.
Now she would be a politician's wife for the next two years. Well, it's not what we discussed, but it's better than the other god-forsaken place George has planned she decided.
26/03/2047 21:15
out everything they have. That means even the older stingers and other old-style anti-copter weaponry to defend their turf along with all the modern stuff. They have the ability to take out drones as well as the bigger copters. They're not going down easily."
A chorus of obscene comments and goodbyes filled their channels for a few seconds and they all went dark again.
27/03/2047 09:30
Gwinnett sat in his office, shaking his head and wondering why Gordon wouldn't leave him alone. The damn kid had moved to D.C. yet he wouldn't stop calling for information. Why doesn't he bother somebody up there, he wondered.
2047: Hell In A Handbasket Page 10