. 03

Date: November 14th

Location: The Samuels Ranch, La Grange, Texas

Time: 1810hrs CST

The sun had just set as Texas crossed the terminator into night. Dave left his office with Ellie in tow and announced, "The third data package has started. Hopefully, we will crack 200GB." Walking into the kitchen, he stopped and picked a Honey Crisp apple from the bowl Bunty had kept out for snacking. He called to his wife in the lounge with Jared, Seth, and Bunty, "How is Control's migraine?"

Seth looked up from a tablet he and Jared were examining. " She isn't going anywhere tonight, Dave. Bunty gave her a Vicodin, and she was already fast asleep in her room. We can put up Cole for the night, and they can get a fresh start in the morning."

Ellie walked in with a glass of iced tea and asked, "Where is Annie?"

"She is in her bedroom reading," Bunty said before changing the subject. It was wise to open things up and enjoy the sunset. It was lovely. It has been a very long day."

Dave crunched on his apple as Seth grumbled. Swallowing slowly, he asked, "What's wrong, Seth?"

"Heather is staying over at her parents one more night. I just want the team at the new facility to open up the specs with Ellie, so she knows how big the job will be."

Bunty asked Dave, "Did you turn off the proximity alarm, David?"

Dave shook his head, "I just put the alarm on silent; why?"

Bunty deadpanned, "That explains why the light is flashing but no sound."

Once again, the pair found their sidearms and moved toward the foyer. The screen showed a company SUV parked and Cole Harshman moving to the door.

Dave said, "Hey you, disengage the front door interlock." The clank of the titanium lugs withdrawing gave Dave one last second to confirm it was just Harshman outside. Dave pulled the door away just as Cole's fist was poised to knock. "Come on in, Harshman," the big Texan gestured.

Cole wasted no time coming inside, politely saying, "Thank you, sir," as he passed Dave. He asked Bunty, "Is the Chief ready to go, and is Doc Hansen prepared for her call with the President?

Bunty smirked, "Agent Harshman, don't get flippant with your use of titles. Now, to answer your questions, No and Yes."

Cole was taken aback, unsure why Bunty was particularly acerbic and testy that evening, "My apologies, Commander. Has Control changed her plans?"

Bunty shook her head, "I am afraid the stress of learning about Agent Bostwick's death and taking her remains to her parents led to a blinding migraine. I gave her a painkiller, and she was sleeping. She needs a good night's rest. It would help if you planned to leave at first light. Jared has some shorts and a T-shirt you can wear. I planned on putting you up on the sofa."

Harshman nodded, "Thank you, Commander. I brought an Iridium phone for Doctor Hansen to use in her conversation with the President. The President will call on this phone at NLT 2130 hrs CST. We are to stand by and wait."

Harshman pulled out his backpack and asked, "May I set it up on the dining room table, please?"

Bunty came up to Cole and said, "Of course, Luv. Let me throw a tablecloth on it first. Follow me." The two moved toward the dining area.

Dave spoke, "Hey you. Engage Interlock and initiate lockdown." Immediately, the louvered gates descended on the windows and sliding glass door to the pool.

About thirty seconds later, Annie came down the hallway, asking if everything was alright. Bunty met her and said, "No issues, Annie. This is just a precaution before your Mother speaks with the President."

Annie smiled and moved toward Cole, who had just finished setting up the Iridium phone. "Hello, Cole," she said. "How was the ride from Houston?"

"Traffic sucked, Ann. I was worried I wouldn't arrive in time to set up your Mom's call with the President. I caught a break when traffic thinned a bit on 71."

Ann came up alongside Cole and asked, "You're staying tonight, aren't you?"

Cole stopped what he was doing and looked at Annie. "Yeah, I am told the Boss won't be ready to travel until tomorrow. I have to be honest, Ann. I have never heard her so distraught."

Annie shook her head. "I am sorry for her. Do you think Angela was the first agent she ever lost in field operations?"

Cole shrugged, "I don't know, but it's apparent they had a personal friendship. Her loss has hit her hard. The Boss tried every avenue to find and recover her. The Communicado covers its tracks well. Some say the Federales are taking bribes in exchange for protection."

"I saw that in several intel updates over the last six months that the State Department and F.B.I. later corroborated," Annie replied. She leaned close to Cole's ear and whispered, "You want to join me for a moonlight swim tonight?"

"Ann, I didn't bring a swimsuit," he answered.

"Oh, silly," she chided. "You won't need one."

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Date: November 14th

Location: The Samuels Ranch, La Grange, Texas

Time: 2105hrs CST

The Iridium phone rang, and the speaker Cole had connected came to life: "This is White House communications. Agent Harshman, please authenticate November, Zulu, Niner, Charlie, Tango, and over."

Cole consulted his chart and responded, "I authenticate Delta, Two, Foxtrot, Gulf, Zero, over."

The communications center at the White House responded, "Authenticated. Is Doctor Hansen present and ready?"

"Affirmative," Cole said. He moved aside for Ellie to sit at the table.

The White House announced, "Ten seconds for the President."

Ellie drew a deep breath. Her palms were sweaty, and her heart was racing. She wiped her hands on a napkin. Jared stood behind his wife and rested his hands on her shoulders.

A soft, velvety, smooth alto voice said, "Doctor Hansen, this is Charlotte Hallaby. How may I help you?"

Ellie swallowed, "Madame President, we will confirm the full extent of Evangeline's configuration and support requirements in 24 hours. I will be leaving for the development facility the day after tomorrow. I respectfully request you invoke the Defense Production Act and mobilize both AMD and NVIDIA to immediately begin mass production of EPYC 9754 128 Core Processors and NVIDIA A100 Ampere GPUs. This is a critical need. If you feel it prudent, I recommend you convey this information when you speak with the British Prime Minister. I ask that you please request their intelligence services confirm the last 18 months of hardware purchases made by the Crossthwaite Software Group and provide that information to the CIA through the MI6 liaison office."

There was a momentary silence on the speakers. "Doctor, you want to validate the specifications that Evangeline is providing?"

Ellie played with her left ear, lightly scratching behind it. "Yes, ma'am. I must ensure that our preliminary estimation of Evangeline's configuration and overall specifications highly correlate with our intelligence reports."

"Anything else?" the President asked.

"I will be able to update you in 24 hours, Madame President, with a shopping list for Evangeline. This will likely be the 21st-century version of the Manhattan Project. My team is assembled, and we won't let the nation down."

"Thank you for the assurance, Doctor," the President said. "Whatever you need, simply ask. Good night."

The call terminated. Ellie leaned back and exhaled slowly. Jared leaned in and kissed her on the forehead. "I am proud of you, baby doll."

The adults all seemed exhausted. Annie asked Dave if she could go swimming. Bunty insisted that only if Cole kept a watch out. Once she was finished and inside, they needed to lock down the sliding glass door for security.

"Don't linger outside too long this evening," Bunty cautioned.

The older adults retired to their bedrooms one by one. Annie gave her parents a big hug and wished them sweet dreams. Soon, only the dim light over the stove in the kitchen and the hallway night lights glowed in the darkened house.

Bunty had set Cole up on the big sofa. He was in a tee shirt and exercise shorts, reclined on two plush pillows, and a white Longhorn logo emblazoned on a burnt orange blanket for warmth. The Grandfather clock chimed its way to 2300 hrs. Cole figured Annie had changed her mind and had fallen asleep. He had just yawned and started to close his eyes when he heard tiny thumps on the floor approaching.

"Come on, sleepy," Annie said. "It's time for a skinny dip."

Cole was up in an instant. The moonlight coming through the sliding glass door to the patio illuminated Ann Hansen. She was nude but carried two big towels under her left arm. Cole tried his damndest not to stare as Ann's heinie wiggled on the way outside. He began to feel a stirring in his shorts. His mind shifted to football scores, and he hoped he could keep his manhood under wraps long enough to make it to the pool.

Annie set the towels on one of the lounge chairs and turned to face Cole. She was stunning in the moonlight. The soft glow of the moon illuminated her in an ethereal way. She really did look like her Mother in the night. The underwater pool lights came on as Annie neared the edge and depressed a button flush on the lip near the stairs. "I think you are overdressed, Cole," she pointed out.

Cole pulled his tee shirt off and dropped his shorts. Now, it was Annie's turn to stare at his semi-aroused state. He was handsome indeed. Fit and trim. His five-foot-nine-inch frame boasted muscular pecs. His stomach was flat, and his legs were toned. He moved toward her and held his hand out to her.

"Shall we go in?" he asked.

Annie took his hand and led him down the steps into the pool. They dove under the water and swam to where the deep end began. The water came to Annie's chin. Cole popped up alongside her. he wasted no time wrapping his arms around her waist.

"You don't waste time, do you?" Annie observed.

Cole backed a few steps toward shallower water and bent his head, linking his lips with Annie's.

Miss Hansen opened her mouth slightly and let her tongue play with Cole's as she felt his hands slide down to cup her rear. She could feel his hardness against her. Her curiosity reached between them, and her right hand grasped his shaft. He wasn't long, but oh, did he boast girth. Annie pulled away from his lips and released him before turning and twisting into a dive into the deep end.

Cole decided he should follow, but clearly, Annie had a little cat-and-mouse game in mind. She had dived down about six feet. Annie reached the far wall and then executed a perfect turn and push-off, just as her Mom had her practice so many times as a young girl. She increased her depth, blowing air out her nose after briefly rolling to face the surface. Cole was looking down at her from above as she passed beneath him. He stopped and slowly turned to pursue. Annie had reversed and accelerated up the incline to the shallower water, where she found her footing again.

As Annie broke the surface, she gulped in deep breaths, catching her wind again. She turned as Cole came up alongside her. "You are such a horn dog, Cole. Quit staring at my tits," she demanded.

"I can't help it, Ann. Your body is beautiful," he declared, taking her face in his hands and drawing her lips to his. As the kiss intensified, Cole released Annie's face and let his hands roam across the perfect 34B mounds. Her nipples were erect and stiff from the cold water. Cole bent his head and suckled each breast. Annie took his rock-hard shaft in one hand and began to stroke it underwater slowly. She leaned her head back, savoring the electric feelings stirring in her.

"Let's get inside, Cole. I want you to stay with me in my room tonight," Annie said. "We will have to keep it down, but I want you to make love to me long and slow. Don't fuck me, Cole. We will have time for lust later. I was hoping you could give me your most tender side. I promise I won't disappoint you."

From inside the house, standing in the lounge area, Ellie watched her daughter and Cole walk up the steps. Annie toed the push button and shut the pool lights off. Ellie watched her daughter and a lover towel each other off playfully. Her face reflected recognition of the independent woman Annie indeed was. Ellie turned and walked back to her bedroom and Jared.

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