Honor Thy Mother And Thy Father Ch 27

Note: This is a work of fiction! Although the areas this story takes place in are real; all the landscapes depicted, the people described, and everything else this story uses to make it enjoyable reading for you are NOT REAL. As you read this story try to remember:

This is a Novel

110. Plausible Deniability

"Clark, where was that boy when I was running for President?"

"He was helping me run for governor, sir."

"Any Democrat can get elected in Connecticut. I barely made it for my second term."

"I don't consider three points barely making it Mister President, and the Electoral College was a landslide."

"One day the people are going to wise up, change that part of the Constitution, and make this a real democracy."

"It's not going to happen while we are live Mister President."

"When are you going to hold your news conference?"

"I wanted to check with you sir, and make sure you had nothing you were going to do that was important. I didn't want to bump you out of the news cycle."

"Tomorrow is a slow day; why don't you call for the conference at 11. It will be all over the news at noon. I will be leaving by helicopter at 2 PM, and the press will be all over me as I leave."

"As you wish, sir; I will have that traitor of mine take care of it."

"Be careful what you call that boy, Clark. I have the feeling he may be the next White House Chief of Staff, or your next Legal Advisor."

"I know Mister President, and it scares me to death."

"Have a good day Clark."

"Thank you Mister President, I hope you have an easy day.

"Fred, get in here."

Sondra came on the intercom, "I'm sorry sir; Fred is indisposed."

"What do you mean he's indisposed?"

"Sir, he's taking a nap."

"He's doing what?"

"He's sleeping sir. Can I help you?"

"I'm going to kill that boy. I'll be right out."

Fred was sitting in his chair, with his feet up on his desk, pretending to be asleep, when the Attorney General walked out of his office steaming mad.

"Wake up you lazy bastard."

"No, I don't want to. You forced me back to work too soon, and if you're not careful I'm going to go home early."

"You have never done that since I have known you."

"I've never been forced to work 55 hours a week before either. It's not fair. I can't get my work done. If it wasn't for Sondra, this office would have to close and you would be up the creek with no boat."

"Fred if you don't get back to work I'm going to cut your hours to 40 hours a week."

"Your eminence, if you do that I will go back on sick leave, or I will quit."

"If you keep up that attitude I will cut your hours to 30 hours a week."

Sondra was getting angry with both of them. "Would you two stop this pissing contest. The testosterone level in this room is getting out of hand."

Fred said, "Who invited you to my party?"

"Be quiet Fred before I strangle you with my pantyhose."

"Sir, what did you need Fred to do?"

"Fred, I have to get more women around you. It seems the only time you take orders is from a female."

"You wouldn't do that to me, sir. I have five of them at home, and one in the office. Anymore and I would have to take Sondra up on her offer."

"I want you to set up press conference for tomorrow morning at 11 o'clock, without hinting what I am going to do.

If another rumor starts that I am stepping down, I will take Sondra up on her offer, and defend her in court myself."

"With all due respect sir, she could use a better lawyer."

Sondra threw a desk reference book and hit Fred in the head. "If you don't stop, you won't be able to come to work tomorrow, or next week, or next month, or next year. I will feel sorry for Sharon and the girls, but somehow I think they will get over it."

"You work for me Sondra, not for him."

"You're wrong Fred. I work with you, but I work for him."

The attorney general laughed. "Fred, it seems that you are teaching her too well. She has developed your acid tongue and your quick wit."

"I know, disgusting isn't it? I will set up your news conference, and tell them you're retiring Friday."

"Fred, do you remember the movie "Castaway?"

"Yes sir, I do."

"It is one of Julia's favorite movies. She even found the island on a map. I'm going to take you there on my boat, and leave you there with a soccer ball, if you do that to me."

"I'll try to remember that as I make phone calls, your grumpiness."

"I have no idea what would happen if they separated you two. I would not want to be anyplace within 50 miles to see it. It would be like splitting an atom, and nothing good could come from it."

**********

"The Attorney General has a very tight schedule today. He will make a brief statement and take a limited amount questions afterwards."

Clark Atwater walked to the podium. "Good morning. I spoke with the President as soon as this spurious report hit newswires, and assured him I had no intention of stepping down from my office at this time. If and when I do decide to step down, I will tell the President directly, as is the proper manner for a senior cabinet official to do. I do not know how this rumor started, or why it started, and caused such uproar, but it is totally false." I will take some questions now.

"Sir, is it true you going to be running for President of the United States?"

"I am the Attorney General of the United States, and intend to stay at that position at this time."

"Sir, you did not answer my question."

"My answer remains the same."

"We were told the rumors were started by a member of your staff."

"Give me the name of that person and he or she will be fired instantly."

"You know I cannot give you the name of the source, but it is very highly placed."

"If you cannot tell me who it is, there is nothing I can do about it. I am not stepping down from my position as Attorney General."

After 10 minutes of questioning, and repeating denials over and over again, Clark Atwater thanked the members of the press for attending the conference and left the podium.

"How did I do Fred?"

"You are a little out of practice sir. We are going to have to work on your lying skills. As I said to you before, just keep your eye on the prize and everything will be fine."

"Who won the pool at your house Fred?"

"It was Debbie. She hit it right on the head."

"Wait until I tell Jim Green that a 19-year-old girl did better than he did at picking a date that I should announce that I am stepping down. It will drive him batty."

"Don't forget to tell him about the reasoning behind her decision for that date. He may need some time to recuperate."

"He may begin to think he's losing his edge."

"Sir, assure him that we cannot have 19 and 20-year-old girls running your campaign. It would go very well with the 18 to 35-year-old demographics, but us old folks would be very skeptical of their political ideology."

"I'm glad you included yourself in that 'Old Folks' comment."

"I am of a certain age sir. I am soon to be married to your niece, and while you and Ms. Julia are discussing if your marriage is strong enough to withstand the rigors of running a campaign for the White House, and four years of the Presidency, while babysitting our daughters, Sharon and I will be basking in the sun of Barbados, and having cold drinks, with little umbrellas in them."

"I could make you work those two weeks."

"You could do that sir, only if you want your niece to scratch your eyes out. We have never had a blind President. You could set a precedent."

"God dammit Fred, are you never at a loss for words?"

"Not since I left Harvard, and started working for you sir. I've learned from the best."

"Why did that guy have to miss your head?"

"Enough you two, separate and go to neutral corners. I don't know if you have anything to do, but I have work on my desk, and I have to get it done."

The Attorney General and Fred looked at Sondra, who had pencils sticking out her hair.

Fred said, "Sir, watch out for those projectiles in her hair. They are sharp, and she never misses."

At 1:50 Fred said, "Sondra, I'm going to lunch. There is about to be an explosion in that office, and I don't want to be around when it happens."

"Fred, what did you do now?"

"Me, what could I possibly do?"

The news carried the President's departure from the White House live, and he stopped to answer a few questions.

"Mister President is it true you spoke to the Attorney General yesterday about his stepping down from his office."

"Yes I did. He assured me that he was not stepping down. He told me pointedly that he had lost one loving wife to his political ambitions, and he was not going to lose Julia, because of any other political ambitions he might have."

********

Sondra didn't have to wait long to feel the ground shake under her feet, when the booming voice of the Attorney General yelled:

"Where is he, I am going to kill him."

He stormed out of his office and saw Fred was not at his desk.

"Sondra where is that numbskull?"

"He's at lunch sir, may I help you?"

"Do you have a gun, because I am going to kill him when he walks through that door?"

"What did he do this time sir?"

"I don't know how he did it, but somehow he got word to the President to use the exactly wording I was supposed to use when I stepped down from this office."

"Gee whiz sir, you just told everyone you weren't stepping down. Do you mean you lied to the American people?"

"Don't you give me that look Sondra, that boy couldn't keep a secret if his life depended on it."

Fred walked through the door eating a sandwich, and said, "Whose life depended on it sir?"

"Fred, you're fired."

"Oh good, I can go home now."

"How did you do it? When did you talk to the President and tell him what to say?"

"Sir, the only time I spoke to the President personally, was the day I got out of the hospital. I haven't spoken to him since that day. You can look at my phone logs and check if you don't believe me."

"I'm going to get a warrant for your cell phone calls."

"You don't need a warrant sir. I'll sign away my rights and give you access to my phone records."

"God dammit Fred, how did you do it?"

"If you tell me what you're talking about, I might be able to help you."

"Did you hear the President speaking to the press a few moments ago?"

"No sir, I was online in the cafeteria waiting to get my sandwich. What did he have to say?"

"Would you like me to tell you exactly what he said?"

"It would be helpful, sir."

He said, "I had lost one loving wife because of my political ambitions, and I was not about to lose Julia, because of any other political ambitions I might have." Do those words ring a bell in your head Fred?"

"Yes sir, they do. It's very close to what we talked about the other day. Who have you been talking to Sondra?"

A pencil flew through the air and stuck in the center of Fred's tie.

"If you try to blame this on me, I am going to put glue on your chair. When you're stuck, I am going to pull your hairs out one at a time, all the way down to your little toes."

"I told you she was mean, sir."

"I'm going to call the CIA, and see if they use that one in their torture protocol. It sounds interesting."

"Goodbye sir, I'm going home now. It's been fun working with you."

"Where do you think you're going at this time of day?"

"You fired me? My future wife is independently wealthy, thanks to you, and I'm sure I can attain lucrative employment at any number of law practices, with all the experience I have gained working with you. I may even find time to write a book about you."

"You wouldn't miss this coming presidential campaign if your life depended on it."

"I could always work for the other team."

"Fred, I would pay to see you work for that Governor who can't speak properly."

"He may not speak straight sir, but he is a Yale graduate."

"Get back to work Fred, before I hit you over the head with a golf club."

"Are you going to use a driver or a putter, sir?"

The Attorney General threw his hands up in the air, turned, walked back into his office, and closed his door. One day he hoped, if he made it to the White House, to see Fred with his mouth open, and no words coming out.

112. Searching for Patricia.

After weeks of searching, they had been no sighting of Patricia Valentino, or the helicopter she had flown away in. With the helicopters range she could be anywhere in a 900 mile radius of Glens Falls.

She had not taken her pocketbook, or any identification with her. The authority's worst fears were if she had a psychotic break, she might not remember who she is. Her name and picture was circulated over every media outlet in the nation, and in Canada. Every ship that left port was checked to see if she was trying to stow away on it.

William was using both his legal influence, and his not so legal influence to find her. He posted a $10 million reward for anyone who found his daughter and returned her safely to him.

Every available asset of the US government was at work trying to find her. They could not allow her to fall into the hands of an unfriendly government, because of her prowess with computers.

If any rogue government were able to force her to replicate the Garden of Eden, the damage they could rein upon the rest of the global community, would be nothing less than catastrophic.

During the second weekend of November, a group of Boy Scouts was trekking through the woods, near the Cross River reservoir, when they happened upon a helicopter that had landed in a copse of trees. The troop leader immediately called it in to the police, because he recognized the picture of it from what he had seen in the media.

A police helicopter was able to find the location within 20 minutes, however, the remote location made it difficult to get to it on the ground.

When the police inspected the helicopter, it was not damaged, and it had plenty of fuel on board. Why she had decided to land in this particular spot was a mystery to everyone. There were no roads, trains, or rivers for her to leave the area easily. Had she stopped here to rest? Had she become disoriented, and gotten lost in the forest? The police didn't know, but started to search the area, with all the people they had available.

When William and Stephano were told of this, William said, "I don't care what it costs, I will pay it. Get every man, woman, child, and search animal out there to find my daughter."

Two hundred people searched the forest area for three days, and didn't find a footprint, a piece of clothing, or anything that would lead them to Patricia Valentino. The search was called off Tuesday afternoon.

Stephano flew back to Glens Falls, with Paul and Rita. He was pale and gaunt, and had lost over 12 pounds since Patty left him. He could not stand the sight or smell of food. He was living on energy drinks and milk.

Sleep evaded him. He cried into her pillow every night. He kept going over and over in his mind what he may have said that was so terrible.

"Why had she run away without trying to talk to him first?" That's what they were building the room in the new house for, wasn't it? If he had just gone outside when she yelled for help when Brad was chasing her, none of this would have happened.

Patty was sitting under a tree, eating apples. She did not know who, or where she was. She tried to figure out why was there. Every time she heard a noise she hid. Her clothes were dirty, as was she. She hid during the daylight hours, high in the apple treetops. She would climb down, and move around, only during the darkest hours of night. She liked this place, because it reminded her of home. Her biggest problem was she did not remember where her home was. She had a knot on her forehead, which bled from time to time, but other than that, she felt fine.

She was always afraid. She was afraid of people, afraid of not belonging, afraid of spiders. She was always afraid of people. People would think she was crazy, and lock her away, if she told them she did not know her name.

She walked through the apple orchard during the night, and looked at the stars, until she came to a fence, where she turned around every night.

She was walking back to the safety of the area she knew, when she heard a little girl scream. It was coming from the unknown side of the fence. She ran away from the screams, holding her hands against her ears.

The child was frightened, but so was she. She wanted to stay on the safe side of the fence, but the child's screams haunted her.

Finally, she stopped moving away from the screams, turned and walked back towards the fence, hesitantly. As she approached it, her stomach started to convulse. She wanted desperately to run away. She remembered running away from something before, but she could not remember the reason why.

The child's scream brought her back to the present. It forced her to make a decision. She climbed over the fence, and listen for the young girl's cry for help.

She moved closer to the sound of the tiny voice, and slowed down try to see the child.

She called out, "I am here, where are you?"

"Down here; I fell into a hole in the ground, and it's too high; she it's too high for me to get out."

"If you keep talking, I will find you."

The young girl talked, and within moments Patty almost joined her in an old dry well. The wooden cover had rotted, and when the young girl stepped on it, her weight caused it to collapse.

"Are you hurt; are you bleeding?"

"I hurt left ankle real badly, and my arms are bleeding."

"What is your name?"

"Angie."

"Angie, what?"

"Angie Carmen. What's your name?"

"That's not important. What is important is getting you out of there. Can you stand up without hurting yourself?"

"I'll try."

"If it causes a lot of pain sit down."

"I'm standing, but I won't be able to for long, because it hurts a lot."

"I'm going to stick my arm down to see if I can touch you. If you see my hand, try to grab it."

The young girl reached up as high as she could. "I see it, but you are just out of reach."

"How far did we miss by Angie?"

"2 inches, maybe a little less."

"Angie sit down I'm going to look for a rope, or maybe something for you to stand on."

"Okay, but don't go away please."

"I'll be right here. I promise I won't leave you."

To take her mind off her pain, Patty asked, "Angie what are you doing out here at this time of night?"

"I love walking around my dad's orchard. It was his dad's orchard, and his dad's orchard before him. It's been in our family for six generations. It will become mine next, unless my mom and dad have a boy. It doesn't seem fair, because I love this orchard."

"How old are you Angie?"

"I am eight years old."

"You are eight years old, and your folks let you walk around the orchard, alone, at night."

"Well, not exactly. They think I'm on the porch studying."

"How far is the house from here?"

"It's all the way at the end of the trees."

"Angie, I know a little girl who's in trouble."

"I do too."

"Angie, I found two large concrete blocks. I'm going to drop them down to the bottom one at a time. Stay against the wall and be very still, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good, here comes the first one. Move it to your side, and tell me when you're ready for the second one."

"Okay, I'm ready.

"Here comes number two."

"Okay, what do you want me to do now?"

"Put them beside each other and stand on them."

"Okay I'm standing on them."

"Stick your hand up and I'm going to reach down and grab it."

"I see your hand."

"Okay I gotcha. Hang on, I'm going to pull you up."

"Hurry, you're pulling my arm out of my body."

Pulling with all her might, Patty rolled her body away from the hole and brought the little girl up.