Standing in for Dad

The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs then spoke up, "This is going to be called operation 'Chili Pepper'. The President called a closed session of Congress and has asked for and received a resolution authorizing the use of military force to meet the imminent threat posed by the crime families in Mexico. The current Ambassador and the CIA Station Chief will be arrested when everything starts."

"We are going to need a Pacific fleet naval group off Mexico's west coast to help support a Marine contingent there and provide air support in taking out the gangs. They will not go down without a lot of blood."

"We are also sending 2 reinforced infantry brigades split between the several border cities who will be supported with Apache helicopter squadrons."

SOCOM, Spec Ops command, added, "We have battle tested special operators shadowing each of the crime families and have documented their primary assets both inside Mexico and in the United States. The Mexican President's personal assets will be released to Lady Isabella immediately after seizure and all assets in country seized from the accounts of the crime families as well as assets in the United States will be available for her use in running the country. The assets will be diverted electronically minutes before this operation kicks off so there will be no prior warning nor issues with local banks."

"I will need someone to liquidate those material assets and place all the cash in one account from which I can pay the bills for this transition."

"Lady Isabella, might we suggest you call in the United Nations as observers to verify the honesty and integrity of your elections?"

"General, That will be one of my very first priorities, along with ensuring our economy remains stable through the changes that will be coming with the installation of a true Democracy."

"Before anything else, however, we need to make sure my people are safe, have food, and have clean water. Tell your men to leave the power stations and lines alone, please. Building a better infrastructure will be difficult enough without adequate power. I will also need advisors for each of my ministers to both oversee operations, provide feedback to me so I can make good decisions for our people, have independent audits of the banking system and governmental agencies, and offer expertise in how to make things run more smoothly. This is to include what to prioritize."

"With that in mind, Mr. President, I need schools set up for both military and police training as well as the proper military and police equipment necessary to enforce the peace and protect us from southern border incursions by others hoping to capitalize on the upheaval that is to come. I also need food banks filled with any surplus MREs your military forces have as well as portable water purification facilities."

"I need engineers who know how to construct and maintain Run-of-river hydro power facilities to channel flowing water from our mountain streams and rivers through penstocks to spin electrical turbines so we can develop our natural capacity with our mountain streams to create a stable electrical grid. The cost of building that grid is to be paid by America as payment for eliminating the drug and human trafficking across the border."

"I would also ask you to consider creating a combined military base at a place of your choosing between Veracruz and Merida in the Bay of Campeche to patrol the border and turn back refugees. I believe there is a natural incursion of the Gulf there you can transform as a protected port for your ships."

"You can use the base as an out of sight and out of mind training facility for tropical jungle as well as mountain and desert training as well as your Naval and special operations divisions."

"I also want 1,000,000 prepaid cell phones to distribute among the towns and cities to support all our communities so they can call in gang issues as they arise. I will also set up trade schools to give my people jobs so they do not have to resort to crime for their income."

"Please tell your military to impose martial law and broadcast anyone involved in violent crime, extortion, or other felonious crimes will be shot on sight. The legal system is corrupt and there is no valid reason to expect them to change overnight. We can begin to ease up on that as the legal and penal systems are purged of corruption and the criminal organizations are put in disarray."

The Vice President looked at Lady Bella and just chuckled, "My Lady, are you sure you are not a natural born diplomat and negotiator?"

Isabella just smiled and, looking towards Dad and me, just said, "I have good teachers and am a quick study."

The President looked at me and replied, "No shit."

Isabella looked at the people in the room and asked, "Well?"

The President nodded his head, "Done, small price to pay for the national security gains. I will mandate it as part of the military operation supported by Congress. If we do this right, it will save us hundreds of millions of dollars a year for the rest of our lives and improve our healthcare and infrastructure as well."

The head of the Joint Chiefs looked over everyone and said, "Men, we have some planning to do. Operation Chili Pepper commences in 8 days but the logistics needed to start moving yesterday."

I then made my final requests, "When our week is over here, I need my family's SUVs air lifted to Puerto de Veracruz as soon as the base is secured at the port for transportation. Those things are armored better than the presidential tank. Additionally, I want to be designated Chief of Mission. That will require the military in-situ keep me in the loop of what is going on so I and others can appropriately advise Lady Isabella."

I could tell the Joint Chiefs were not too keen on that idea so I continued, "Gentlemen, you are wanting the full cooperation of Lady Isabella. I cannot guarantee that if I am hamstrung by political in-fighting between the branches."

"No way in hell am I going to stand for another Bay of Pigs fiasco and we all know that with special forces, Army, Navy, and Marines involved there will be pissing contests. This will nip that bullshit in the bud. I have no intention of pissing in someone else's pond, but we all know there needs to be someone who has the authority in-situ that can make shit happen. And, frankly, I don't have any dogs in this fight."

"If you want assurances I can work with your people just ask Captain Barnes." With that I nodded in his direction.

Captain Barnes cleared his throat to give him a second's pause and said, "I can assure you Ambassador Walker's request has merit. In the three engagements we have had in just the last week he has worked seamlessly with the Secret Service, the SEAL Team stationed onboard, and those of us on ship who have military skills. While a superb strategist in his own right, he has no qualms receiving suggestions and feedback and is able to reach a consensus without ruffling feathers or endangering boots on the ground."

The Vice-President confirmed, "The President and I saw him work when our lives were in the balance, the kid is cool under pressure, thinks fast on his feet, and is a bad ass mother-fucker, apologies Lady Isabella, no offense meant."

Bella chuckled, "None taken, Sir. And I also agree with both Captain Barns and you concerning Ambassador Walker's abilities. I am here with you today because of his leadership and ability to take command of and control a situation as it develops."

The President looked at his Joint Chiefs, "Without objection, I am giving Ambassador Walker COM status." There was no objection raised. "Then get your plans together and meet with Ambassador Walker for approval of the general operational plan. You have two days, Gentlemen. Also, about your vehicles, I will run them by Norfolk first so they can be covered in that carbon fiber scrim painted with the Aluminum, Boron, Magnesium, and Titanium Boride coating. Is the natural silvery gray finish acceptable?"

Dad nodded, "Anything would be acceptable for that level of protection."

With that the Joint Chiefs took over the meeting and the rest of us left the room.

The President then asked Lady Isabella, "I look forward to working with you in the next few months Lady Isabella. Perhaps, when things have cooled down and I can visit the base there in Veracruz and we can get to know one another, better?"

Lady Isabella smiled, "Why Mr. President, it would be a fun time, IF the First Lady approves and comes with you? I would not want to be the cause of marital problems between the two of you."

Just at that time, Mary walked up and asked, "What does Bill need my approval for?"

Lady Isabella looked to Bill and he smiled, "The soon to be ruler of Mexico has agreed to some very fun time together in the Port of Veracruz in about a month's time. She wanted to make sure whatever happened would not cause issues."

"Oh how very kind of you, Lady Isabella," Mary said without any guile in her voice, "Bill does love to spread his oats from time to time. Perhaps you have a significant other who might be interested in having a row with the First Lady of the United States?"

"I cannot speak for him, but I will certainly ask." She then blatantly turned to Captain Barnes and raised an eyebrow much to the surprise of all the non-consulate members of the group. Barnes had the good grace to just smile and nodded with a wink at Bella, "And, it is just Bella, please. If we are going to be intimate, then the formality in private just seems pretentious, don't you think?"

"Absolutely! And it is Bill and Mary, please." Mary said, having recovered her shock before Bill did. She then leveled her gaze at Captain Barnes and said in a sultry voice, "Most impressive Captain, most impressive indeed!"

Bella smiled.

****

Back at the B & B we all went out drinking at a local Irish pub to celebrate Billy's purple heart. We were being a bit loud, granted, but one Irish really bad boy wannabe approached our group and told us to shut the hell up or else he and his boys were going to fuck us up.

I looked at him kinda funny and smiled, "Dude, these fellas eat grenades for breakfast, we will keep it down a bit for you, but you need to back up and reassess my friend because you have just bitten off more than this whole bar can chew."

Fella looks at me and says, "Ó sea! Fuck TÚ!" and he pulls out a 38 snub nosed revolver.

At that point, 16 Navy SEALS pull out their.45s, all pointed at wannabe whom they immediately surrounded. And that didn't include dad's machine gun. "Um, yeah. Keep him with us fellas, I am dialing 911. Try not to shoot him if you can help it." Of course his 'boys' backed up immediately and nobody was moving in the bar which was quiet as a church mouse.

Sue just started laughing her ass off, "Dude, you just fucked up in more ways than I can count. You just threatened a United States Ambassador and his security detail who are very highly trained in lethal combat tactics...not to mention a foreign dignitary."

Captain Barnes added, "Yep, son, in the history of bad decisions, this one of yours ranks right up there with the Bay of Pigs invasion or the air raid of Hawaii at the start of World War II. In a recent fight with Marines who outnumbered these boys 50 to 1, the Marines lost. Just saying."

One of the SEAL members scrunched his nose, "Dude! Did you just shit your pants?"

"911, please state the nature of your emergency. Do you need fire, police, or an ambulance?"

"Well, Mrs. 911, right now we need some police. A bad boy wannabe just pulled out a.38 pistol on a foreign dignitary, a U.S. Ambassador, and a whole diplomatic security team at the (name withheld) bar and someone needs to come collect this bad boy before he gets more holes in him than a vegetable sieve. The situation is under control as our boy has 16.45s and one sub machine gun, all with armor piercing ammo, pointed at his head. He isn't going anywhere."

"Oh, and the officers may want to bring something for him to wear as I heard one of the security detail fellas claim he shit his pants. Don't want this idiot wannabe to soil one of your vehicles. I will let you know if you need a Coroner to try and put him back together again if Humpty Dumpty decides to get even more stupid."

I then heard over the phone, "ALL AVAILABLE UNITS! 10-18 CODE ONE TO THE (NAME WITHELD) BAR. 10-61, 10-31, MULTIPLE 10-32s SO 11-59."

I chuckled a bit as the bar was as still quiet as a mouse, "Yeah, might want your highest ranking officer 10-18 as well, Mrs. 911. And please let your officers know to come in slow. My security team is understandably a bit edgy right now. We want everyone to go home alive tonight."

"Sir, is your life in danger?"

"Oh heck no! Our bad boy's life is, though. I will stand outside the door to greet your officers as they arrive to explain the situation. No need for the scanners to catch it all."

"Please stay on the line until our officers arrive."

"Sorry hon, I need to call the U.S. Department of State to appraise them of the situation."

I hung up and made the call as I walked out the front door with two of the SEALs in tow, "US Department of State emergency line, please state the nature of your emergency?"

"This is Ambassador Walker with the wife of the Mexican President and a security detail at the (name withheld) bar in the city of (name withheld). We have an incident where a local brandished a gun and 911 has been called. Everyone is safe, but the locals will need to know we actually are diplomats and that she is an actual foreign dignitary. Could someone from your office be so kind as to call the local Chief so the officers understand the bigger picture here?"

"Yes, Ambassador, the foreign affairs undersecretary is making that call as we speak. Is there anything else I can help you with? Do you need the F.B.I. or a military unit in route?"

"At this time I don't think any of that will be necessary, we have the situation well in hand. I just didn't want the locals to get themselves over their heads without fair warning. Please give the Chief this number to call so everything can be verified? Thank you so much."

"Very well, Mr. Ambassador, please let us know if you need us for anything else."

As I hung up the first of several police cars careened into the parking lot and came to a screeching halt.

"Easy fellas, we want to de-escalate the situation. These boys are just doing their job."

"Roger that, Sir."

We all put our hands up, Mine had my wallet with my diplomatic credentials for the officers to look at when they felt they had controlled the situation outside.

Doors flew open and pistols and shotguns pointed at me and the two SEALs, "Turn around and kneel with your hands behind your heads!"

We complied as more cars showed up. As we were being cuffed I mentioned, "I am an Ambassador and these men are my security detail. There are several more inside and they are all armed. Please do not storm inside as they may mistake your intentions."

One officer chuckled, "We have bullet proof vests, they shoot at us they are going to regret it."

"Actually, officer, they all have armor piercing ammunition in their weapons and this is a trained crack assault team. You will be lucky to get a shot off. Besides, the bar is full of innocent people, do we really want a fire fight in there? May I suggest an alternative approach?"

"I'm listening."

"First, check my wallet, you will see my diplomatic credentials. Second, wait for your Chief to call you on my cell phone as the Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs has just called him to let everyone know we are legit."

As the Officer was checking my credentials my cell phone went off. "Please, feel free to answer it, I am sure the call is for you." At the same time I heard everyone's radios pop off about standing down and not entering the building until the Captain in charge of night shift arrived on scene.

"Hello, this is Sargent Watkins with the (redacted) Police Department, who is this?"

"Chief! Yes, Chief, we have Mr. Walker in cuffs with two associates who were armed with what looks to be specialty Sig.45's."

There was an extended one way conversation where the Sargent slowly turned more and more pale.

"Yes, Sir! Understood, Sir! I will inform the Captain as soon as he arrives, Sir! No Sir, you have been crystal clear, Sir!"

"The Chief wants to talk to you," he said as he put the phone to my ear. "You Ambassador Walker?"

"Yes Chief. Sorry for pissing in your pond tonight. We were just out for a celebration, one of the boys just had the President of the United States himself pin a purple heart on him. We didn't want to create a problem for you and your officers."

"Well, I just want to thank you for the enema I just got from the Feds. Just what I wanted just before I went to bed for the evening."

"Sir, can we speak in confidence?" I asked as I looked at the Sargent, who nodded.

"Sure, son...hit me with your best shot."

"My security detail is an active SEAL Team. They are fully armed and I didn't want a full on fire fight when everyone was just doing their job. I am sure you can agree, it would have been a much bigger mess if that were to happen."

"No shit!"

"I do have a request that is a national security issue, Sir. No photographs of any kind. These boys cannot be identified by anyone by any means."

"Done, give me the Sargent"

I looked at the Sargent, "Back to you."

The Officer responded, "Here Chief. Yes Sir. All of them, cars, too? Yes Sir, I will inform everyone here face to face. Yes, Sir."

"ALL OFFICERS TO ME!" When everyone gathered around he said, "By order of the Chief, all video is to be erased and all cameras, both departmental and personal, are to be turned off. That is a direct order. Speak to no one unless cleared by me or the Captain when he arrives. Get to it and clean those devices! Cars, too!"

The Officers looked at one another and one asked, "Who the hell are these people?"

The Sargent bellowed, "No questions! You have your orders! MOVE!"

Everyone jumped and got about turning off all video and cleaning all visual records of the incident.

The Sargent uncuffed the three of us and gave the SEALs their pistols back, "Sorry for the misunderstanding, Ambassador."

"Nah, it is a credit to your department that your Officers acted so professionally. I am very happy with how things are developing. Would you and one of your junior Officers come in with me so you can secure the perp?"

The Sargent distributed the cuffs to the appropriate officers and called one of the lady officers to accompany us into the building. After securing my wallet I reached out to shake her hand, "Officer...Walsh? (I read her name tag) I am Ambassador Walker. It is a pleasure to meet you this evening. I deeply apologize for all the hoopla."

To her credit she was very professional, but she did smile as she said, "Sea, bhí sé beagán ar an taobh mall anocht, Ambassador! Níor thug tú ach beagán deifir do gach duine chun iad a chur ag imeacht don tráthnóna." She replied in her best Irish brogue.

One of the SEALs asked, "What did she just say?"

I laughed. She said, "Yes, it was a bit on the slow side tonight, Ambassador! You just gave every one a bit of a rush to get them going for the evening is all."

Officer Walsh looked at me with a big smile, "Ya got it in one, Yank. Good for you!"

"These boys are my security detail, along with several more inside. I would introduce you but national security issues prevent a more formal introduction....Just call this fellow 'Bad' and this one 'Ass'"

Both SEALS laughed their asses off. Officer Walsh didn't miss a beat, taking both hands and smiling, "Well met! Bad Ass!" Ok, even the Sargent laughed with that.

I led the way, announcing as we came in, "It's all good fellas, friendlies approaching!"