by Jerry Bruce
“Are you saying that this guy is the one who brought us the agriculture and water projects?” Adam was dumbfounded.
“Yes, that’s correct. He brought us a lot more, however. In order to get me the influence that he wanted the U.S. president to have, he arranged for the assault on our embassy in Cairo.” Richard didn’t like having to reveal this and he was right for being leery.
After a lengthy pause, a shocked Adam finally spoke.
“Mr. President, are you saying that even though this guy caused the loss of American lives, you went along with his later plans?” Adam had a disgusted look on his face at the realization that his president and friend could have sold out the country.
“Believe me Adam, I’m not proud of what I did. But before you kiss me off completely, let me ask you something. Would you have sacrificed the lives of a platoon of Marines in order to bring peace to the world? Would you consider it a fair exchange for being able to end starvation? How about trading those lives for the ability to put an end to disease? Do you consider any of those things worth the price? Those were the questions I had to ask myself. And you know what? I came to the same conclusion anyone else would, those lives, and many more, would be a small price to pay for such a huge return. Think of me what you will; until you sit in the Oval Office, you have no idea the compromises that are necessary. I was facing a conflagration in the Middle East sometime during my first term. Of that I was totally convinced. You have to admit Adam, you were also positive that something had to be done before the Middle East blew up in our faces. But I’m not here to make excuses. Maybe I could have handled things differently, in fact, looking back on it, I should have. Anyway, by the time I got involved in the embassy situation, the Marines were already dead. I could not have done a thing to prevent that from happening. The problem was, and still is, that the influence this man has extends far beyond me. I have uncovered at least five heads of state that he has control over.”
“This is the most incredible thing I have ever heard.” Christine was awe struck. “What does he hope to accomplish?”
“That’s the next thing I was going to tell you. As it turns out, the projects were aimed at achieving only one thing, making sure that every man, woman, and child were partaking of a substance that would render them subservient. The grain crops were genetically altered to accomplish this and the water treatment plants also added the substance to the water supplies. It doesn’t render everyone mindless but it does play upon a person’s desire to not rock the boat and question those in positions of authority. It gives one a false sense of security and contentment and breaks down their resistance.”
“Oh my God, what have we done?” Adam was obviously distraught at this news.
“I’m afraid I have more to tell you. The reason for all this was so the Controller could be the dominant force on the planet. Essentially he has made himself the non-elected leader of mankind. To ensure that he will always rule, he had his ‘wonderful’ scientists perfect the art of cloning. There will always be a Controller around to rule. It was when that was revealed to me that I made a promise to myself to take this guy down, no matter the cost. This is where the two of you come in; I need your help. I think now you can understand the meaning of the questions you were asked.”
“Good grief, Mr. President. How are the three of us supposed to stop this madman?” Christine was shaking her head in disbelief at what she had been told.
“It’s not just the three of us, hopefully. I believe that we can count on a few of the other leaders to cross over to our side once they know the Controller’s plan. I’m convinced that they aren’t aware of all the details. I think I am the only one the Controller has told.”
Adam said what Christine was thinking. “Where would we even start?”
“First of all, I need to know if I can count on you two to join me.”
“Of course, Mr. President.” Christine responded first.
“We’ve been together too long to break up a winning team now, don’t you think?” Adam chimed in.
Richard filled them in on his notes and his plan of attack. After swearing them to the utmost secrecy, he told them of Ralph Blocker’s research and findings and the level of his involvement and cautioned them to not reveal anything to Blocker. Then Richard told them what their first assignment was going to be.
“It was obvious from the first day I took office that there was someone in the White House, someone close to me, who was in collusion with the Controller, watching my every move and reporting back to him. The Controller himself confirmed this and later told me who it was.”
“Who would do such a thing to you?” Christine took the words right out of Adam’s mouth.
“Veronica.”
The silence in the room was at last broken by an “I don’t believe it” from Christine. Adam just sat with his mouth open in total shock at this revelation, unable to summon a comment.
“I assumed that if there was one mole, there could be others. That is why I was forced to subject you to polygraph exams. I have anguished over this mole situation for years, not being able to give my total trust to anyone on my staff. The only person I felt I could trust ended up being the spy. I haven’t confronted her, as she would say that she was forced to cooperate under the threat of harm to our children. I can honestly say that I don’t know whether to believe this or not. I can only assume that I can’t trust her since she didn’t come to me at the beginning. That leads me to the task I have for you two. I have been in contact with Stephen Hamilton and he has assured me that he has never heard of the Controller, let alone colluded with him. I want to believe that, but I need to know for sure. He already knows where I stand, but he doesn’t know anything about you two taking the examinations. If one of you approaches him as though you are working for the Controller, he will do one of two things—tell me about it or keep it quiet. What he does will determine how we deal with him. If we had the President of the United States on our side it would definitely make things easier. Do I have a volunteer?”
“It has to be me. It would seem too unlikely that Adam would be involved. You two have known each other forever; it would be too hard to swallow.” Christine made sense but that didn’t make Richard any more comfortable with having to put her in the middle.
“How much does Stephen know?”
“I see where you’re coming from, Adam. I have told him enough that if he is aligned with the Controller, then I am not long for this world. I debated with myself long and hard before deciding to show my hand. I dangled the carrot of a secret source, Blocker, but I never gave him any specifics. I figured that would buy me some time. The Controller would want to know who my source was.”
“I am counting on you two to take up the battle should anything happen to me. Between the two of you and Blocker, you should be able to make things hot enough for the Controller and to wake up the other leaders.”
Christine was uncomfortable with the idea of approaching Stephen, feeling that if the Controller was going to do something to Richard that he wouldn’t hesitate killing her as well. She put the reservations out of her mind. “When do you want me to talk to Stephen?”
“As soon as you can. I want the two of you to remember one thing—we can trust absolutely no one. The slightest slip up and we are history. Assume that everyone is in collusion with the Controller and that the walls have ears. And one other thing.” Richard got up and went to his desk, opened the center drawer and retrieved two envelopes. “Inside each of these envelopes is a key. Each key fits a different locker. There is a letter in each envelope as well that reveals the location of the locker and its contents. Should anything happen to me, one of you has to be sure to retrieve the contents from your locker and take the appropriate action. What you need to do is outlined in the letter. Under no circumstances is either of you to open your envelope while I am still alive.” He handed an envelope to Christine and the other to Adam.
“Why can’t we just have access to that information now
?” Christine was saying what Adam was thinking.
“Because I feel it is best that I be the only one with all the details. The less dissemination at this time, the better control we will have should anything go wrong. It will only be a temporary situation. Once we have everyone on board and ready to take action, all of the team members will have access to everything I know. The information contained in those lockers would place you in the same position I now find myself. There is no sense in placing yourselves in harms way unnecessarily.”
Richard paused, took a deep breath and gave his trusted friends an admonition.
“Don’t for one minute underestimate this man. Not only did he take the lives of our Marines without so much as a second thought, but he was totally behind a nuclear strike against Israel if the need arose. This man plays for keeps, don’t lose sight of that.”
CHAPTER SIX
Richard had decided that since French President LeClerc had been so straightforward with him soon after he started serving his first term as U.S. president that he should be the first one contacted. LeClerc had been open with Richard and it was clear that LeClerc was under the influence of the Controller. At the time Richard sensed that LeClerc was highly distressed over the situation and unless things had changed in the intervening years, LeClerc should be open to his plan. There was only one way to find out.
Richard was expecting the French president’s call at two p.m. New York time. Since it was ten minutes past two, Richard was hoping that LeClerc hadn’t opted out but was merely running late due to a prior commitment. He was pleased when LeClerc called him before he could grow too worrisome.
“Richard, I’m so sorry to be late. As you know, the affairs of state sometimes do not allow us to do as we wish, but rather as we must.” LeClerc was sounding slightly winded, his heavy breathing indicating that he had just exerted some energy.
“Think nothing of it Jean Pierre. I understand completely. You sound a little winded, may I assume you have been jogging?” The joking tone in Richard’s voice drew a slight laugh from the Frenchman, who was known for his lack of physical conditioning.
“I jogged, but only to get to the phone quicker so that I could call you before you engaged in some other matter. And I have to admit that I am getting far too old to be jogging the hallways! But you didn’t want to speak to me about jogging did you?”
“May I speak freely, Jean Pierre? I mean, will this be a private conversation?”
“Yes, of course. I am alone in my office. Why the mystery, Richard?”
“I have been meaning to discuss something with you for quite some time, years, in fact. I just didn’t feel that the time was right until now. Do you remember a conversation we had about eight years ago regarding your support of my world trade agreement?”
“I believe you are referring to the discussion wherein you questioned me as to my motivation for suddenly siding with you after having been so adamantly against the plan?”
“Yes, I can see that you do remember the conversation. Do you recall the reason you gave me?” Richard was being coy, hoping that Jean Pierre would take the bait and volunteer to discuss the Controller instead of forcing Richard to broach the subject.
“How could I forget? I admitted to you that there was a particular individual who was responsible for my change of attitude. Is it this individual that you wish to discuss?” LeClerc wasn’t going to make this easy for Richard, having sensed that Richard was trying to draw him out.
Richard could see no other alternative than to be direct. “Jean Pierre, are you still in contact with this individual? And if you are, what is your involvement?”
“I see you decided to get straight to the point, at last.” LeClerc took a deep breath and exhaled it loudly. “I am only contacted by him on rare occasions, specifically when he wants me to support a particular agenda of his.” LeClerc was opening up and that pleased Richard.
“When was the last time he asked you for your cooperation?”
“Funny you should ask; it was to support you for world president. Incidentally, he didn’t need to ask me, I was behind you all the way. I guess he merely wanted to make sure.”
“Thank you for that, Jean Pierre. How would you describe your relationship with this man?”
“I cooperate with him only out of desperation; he has very effective techniques of coercion. I believe I mentioned that to you when we originally discussed him. In any case, nothing has changed that relationship over the years. Fortunately he hasn’t required much of me. Don’t you think it is time you told me why the sudden interest in this fellow? Is it because your involvement with him is far greater than mine and perhaps not as comfortable?” LeClerc was no dummy and Richard could see that he was also astute.
“Before I answer your questions, let me ask you something. Do you have any idea as to the scope of this man’s power?” Richard wasn’t sure how much LeClerc knew about the Controller and his activities.
“I only know that he has told me virtually nothing. However, I do occasionally have access to information from another source, a source not unlike you and me, who is in the political arena as well.”
“Really? Are you at liberty to tell me more?” Richard’s interest just peaked.
“Not without checking with this person beforehand. However, I will say my source is known to you and has also been coerced by this man. I can also state confidently that he is as unhappy with the situation as I am.”
Richard couldn’t believe his good fortune. Not only has LeClerc opened the door for an alliance, but also has brought a friend with him.
“Would it be possible for you to talk to your source and get permission to talk to me further? Also, and I know this is asking a lot, do you think you could ask your source to talk to me?”
“I can ask, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up if I were you. By the way, does this person we have been discussing have a name?”
“I know him as Controller. How do you know him?”
“Both me and my source know him by that name as well. I will contact my source to see where he stands on this situation. I will contact you as soon as I have any information. Good day to you Richard.”
“Good bye, for now, Jean Pierre. I hope to talk to you soon.”
Richard had gotten much more out of LeClerc than he was hoping. He was wishing for some indication that LeClerc was willing to join his efforts to overthrow the Controller and he felt he had gotten it. It could possibly turn out that LeClerc’s source is someone Richard knows to be involved with the Controller, but it could also be someone new to the scene. Richard hoped that LeClerc would be able to convince the source to talk to him.
* * *
It was a week before Richard had any further contact with LeClerc, so he was slightly surprised when LeClerc called him one evening. For LeClerc it would have been about three in the morning. Richard had given Jean Pierre a phone number where he could be reached at any time and now Richard was curious why LeClerc felt it necessary to call at such an odd hour.
“I apologize for calling you outside your office; I hope this is not an inconvenient time?”
“It’s perfectly fine, Jean Pierre. I have been waiting, quite anxiously I might add, for a call from you. But why are you up so late?”
“I felt the need to call you after deliberating for hours whether I would be doing the proper thing or not. You see, Richard, I have had several conversations with my source and he has only just this evening given me permission to talk to you. He told me a few things that have me quite upset. He made me promise to not reveal to you the things he told me. He believes that it is in his and my best interest to have you talk to him first. He will decide whether or not to take you into his confidence.”
“When can I call him?”
“He will call you at your office at ten a.m. Richard, may I ask you something?”
“Sure, Jean Pierre.”
“Why aren’t you willing to tell me more about your relationship with the Controller?”
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br /> “Just as you and your source are trying to find out if you can trust me, I am trying to find out if I can trust you.” Richard couldn’t have been any blunter.
“It would seem that we are at an impasse, Richard. Neither party willing to make the first move. I fully understand the reasons why. That became apparent to me earlier this evening. But if we can’t come to an agreement to trust each other, we will not make any progress.”
“Well, it sounds like your source will be the deciding factor. Based upon what I learn from him, I may or may not be speaking to you again on this subject. Thank you for calling, Jean Pierre. Please do try to get some rest.”
“Thank you, Richard. I hope we will be talking again soon.”
* * *
Richard was reviewing paperwork that required his signature and performing other routine tasks when his secretary stuck her head in the doorway.
“Mr. President, the Russian premier is on the phone. Should I put him through?”
“Yes, please do.” Richard looked at his watch—precisely ten a.m. He never imagined that LeClerc’s source would be the Russian premier.
“Hello, Mr. Premier; it’s so good to speak with you.”
“Thank you Mr. President. I believe you have been expecting my call?” Josef Vashenko had a deep, burly sounding voice, just as one would expect of a person who grew up in the climate of Siberia. He had worked his way up through the ranks of the proletariat the hard way, by working hard and not asking any favors. He was born to lead and that quality was quickly recognized. He was also a very proud man, proud of his humble ancestry, and proud of his country.
“Yes, President LeClerc told me to expect your call and I compliment you on your punctuality, Mr. Premier.”