Chapter 20
The Oval Office
Jack scrutinized the muscular man in a black suit that was escorting Jill and him through the White House hallways. Jack noticed a slight bulge under his left arm. I wonder if the Secret Service still carries Uzi machine guns.
They were escorted to a small workstation just outside the Oval Office. An elderly lady sitting at a desk looked up at them. She had gray hair pulled into a tight bun, hunched shoulders, and thick wire-framed glasses that rested on the tip of her nose.
“Ms. Jackson, this is Lieutenant Jacobson, and Sergeant Savage. They are scheduled to see the president at eleven hundred hours.”
“Thank you, Harry. I will take them from here.” Ms. Jackson spoke in a polished and confident manner. “It is a pleasure to meet you two. I am honored to shake the hands of two people that have risked so much to make our country better a better place to live. Let’s step across the hallway to the Roosevelt room. It’s the waiting room for official delegations preparing to meet the president.”
Jack looked at Jill. Are we an official delegation?
“Would you like anything to drink? Coffee, tea, iced tea, soda, wine, beer, mixed drink?” Their hostess smiled as she led them into a magnificent room full of historical paintings, fresh flowers, and a grand fireplace at one end. The center of the room was filled with a thick dark oak conference table. It was surrounded with sixteen deeply padded leather chairs. One chair, in the center of the table, was slightly taller than the others.
Jill looked at Jack. Jack shook his head, and then Jill looked at the hostess and said, “No, thank you.”
“If you need anything, I will be right across the hall. We are waiting for General Morrison and General Hayes. They are currently en route from the Pentagon, and will be here in about seven minutes. In the meantime I will be at my workstation.”
Jill and Jack nodded a thank you, and Ms. Jackson exited the room, closing the door behind her.
“General Morrison and Hayes?” Jack murmured.
“I think they are direct reports to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They evidently were in the loop about our mission. I wonder what they think about the outcome,” Jill said.
“If I had known that the generals would be here I would have gotten dressed up,” Jack chuckled as he looked at Jill’s dress whites.
“Ha, good one. By the way, you look pretty spiffy in your dress whites, Savage.”
“Likewise, ma’am.” Jack was glad to be here at the White House, but he was really looking forward to spending time alone with Jill at the beach. Calling her “ma’am” just doesn’t seem right. We are beyond that. I will be glad when we get away from all this formality and can call each other by our first names.
“Hey Savage, check out this painting of Teddy Roosevelt. He looks like he is having so much fun.” Jill, standing in front of the large fireplace, was staring up at a painting of Roosevelt galloping on one of the Rough Rider horses.
“I wonder if he enjoyed his stint in the military as much as we do,” Jack said.
“I doubt anyone could enjoy it as much as I am.” Jill shot a cute smile at Jack.
The door opened and Ms. Jackson walked in followed by two well-decorated generals.
“General Morrison, General Hayes, this is Lieutenent Jacobson and Sergeant Savage.”
Jill and Jack both came to attention.
“As you were,” General Hayes said in a friendly manner. “We should be saluting you. You two have made quite a name for yourselves.”
“Thank you, sir,” Jill replied.
“Please take your seats so we can review the procedure for the award presentation.” Ms. Jackson spoke in a commanding manner. “As you know, the purpose of this ceremony is to award Aegis medals to both Lieutenant Jacobson and Sergeant Savage. This medal is special, and few people know about it. It is only awarded to people that have served their country with daring actions and fearless bravery during top-secret operations. You may wear the medal, but you may never explain why it was given to you. Do you agree to this?”
Jill and Jack both replied, “Yes.”
“By the power vested in me by the office of the president, and with the witness of General Morrison and General Hayes, I do hereby make the affirmative notation in White House records that you have agreed to the terms of the award.” Ms. Jackson’s voice was monotone and sounded official. “Oh, and by the way . . . Congratulations.” Ms. Jackson’s voice returned to normal, and a smile returned to her face. “The president will be receiving you in a few minutes. You may continue to wait here. I will return when he is ready to see you.” Ms. Jackson left the room and the door closed behind her.
Lieutenant Jacobson, Sergeant Savage, General Morrison, and General Hayes sat in silence. Each wondered who would speak first.
“I think Ms. Jackson is in love with me,” Jack said.
Everyone laughed.
“General Morrison and General Hayes, that is the first time I ever heard Savage tell a joke.” Jill continued to laugh as she addressed the generals.
“From what I hear, Sergeant Savage can do a lot more than tell a funny joke,” General Morrison said.
“And I understand that you are a very talented lieutenant,” General Hayes chimed in.
“We are both proud to be serving our country,” Jill responded.
Ms. Jackson returned to the Roosevelt room. “The president will see you now.”
The four soldiers stood and followed Ms. Jackson to the Oval Office. The generals entered first, followed by Jill, and then Jack. After the four were in the president’s office, Ms. Jackson said, “Please be seated. The president will be right in.” Ms. Jackson then exited the Oval Office and closed the door behind her.
A moment later, a door on the other side of the room swung open, and the president entered. He was carrying two small boxes made from dark oak. The soldiers rose to their feet and stood at attention. “As you were,” the president said.
The president walked over to them and began shaking hands. “General Morrison, nice to see you. How is your arthritis?”
“It is much better, sir.”
“General Hayes, how is that new grandson of yours doing?”
“Very good, sir, thank you for asking.”
“And these two soldiers must be the famous ‘Jack and Jill’ sniper team. You must be Lieutenant Jacobson.”
“Yes, sir. I am pleased to meet you,” Jill said.
The president paused and looked closely at Jill. He squinted as he looked up and down several times. Jill was concerned. “Is something wrong, sir?”
“As a matter of fact, something is very wrong,” the president replied.
Jill began looking nervously at her uniform. She looked at her buttons and shoes. She used her hands to check to position of her hat. “Mr. President, I’m not sure what could be wrong.”
“Lieutenant Jacobson, the problem is that when I was in the military, the soldiers were just not nearly as pretty as you are. In fact, there weren’t any women in the military.”
Jill started to breathe again. She looked at the three other soldiers and saw grins on all three faces. With a sheepish look on her own face she replied, “I will try to do better next time, sir.”
“Lieutenant, you are doing just fine. I don’t think you should change a thing. Now, let’s see, I believe that you are Sergeant Savage?”
“Yes, sir. I am pleased to meet you.”
“Sergeant, I understand that you were the key player in this little black ops mission.”
“Sir?”
“I read the report that Lieutenant Jacobson wrote, and I understand that it was your initiative and daring that allowed Lieutenant Jacobson to take the shot that you otherwise were going to take.”
Jack looked at Jill with surprise. He did not expect her to give him so much credit for a mission that was technically her responsibility. “Ah, well, yes, sir. Thank you, sir.”
“I wish that our military had more soldiers like you
two. I am proud to meet both of you.” The president smiled. “Now, let’s get on with the ceremony.”
The president stood in front of Jill and opened the first wooden case. Jill glanced down. She was shocked. There was a small blue ribbon with a bronze eagle at the top, a horizontal red stripe at the bottom, and a white star in the middle. Jill had only seen one of these before in her life. Shooter had one in a box with the rest of his medals. When I asked Shooter about his medal, he would not say anything about it. No wonder Dad never talked about that medal. He was sworn to secrecy. He received the medal as a result of a black ops mission.
“This medal represents the highest award that can be given to any soldier,” the president said. “The red stripe represents the blood of United States citizens that would have been shed if you had not preformed this act of bravery. The white star represents all fifty states that you have protected. And the eagle is the part that I like the most. Most people don’t know why eagles fly so high. They do this so they can look for food for their fledglings, and at the same time keep a watchful eye on their young that are still in the nest. That way, if any predators attempt to bring harm to their babies, they can swoop down and take the appropriate action to save their little ones. This is exactly what the two of you did. You literally swooped down from the sky to kill a very bad person, so that the flow of drugs into this country would stop, and thereby prevent the death of innocent young people here in the United States. It is with the utmost appreciation that I proudly present each of you with the Aegis medal.”
The president removed the medal and pinned it to Lieutenant Jacobson’s uniform. He shook Jill’s hand, thanked her, and handed her the empty box.
The president then pinned the second medal on Jack’s uniform, shook his hand, and handed him the empty box.
“In the course of a presidency, there are many memorable moments. This is by far the one that gives me the most pleasure, and makes me the most proud. Thank you both for all you’ve done for the United States.”
Jack and Jill both responded with, “You’re welcome, sir.”
“I don’t give out many of these,” the president said. “On the rare occasion that I do, I remember it vividly. I will never forget this moment, or the two of you. I want you both to know that if you ever have a personal favor that can only be granted by someone in high places, consider me a friend, and please call me. I am greatly in debt to you for what you have done. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.”
Jack was speechless. He sensed the sincerity of the president, and didn’t know how to respond. Finally Jill said, “Thank you for that gracious offer, sir.”
The president smiled and looked at Jack. “Could I give you some personal advice, Jack?”
“Certainly, sir.”
The president leaned over and spoke quietly into Jack’s ear so no one else could hear him speak. “If I were you, I would keep an eye on Jill. She makes a good sniping partner, but I am a pretty good judge of character, and I think she likes you.”
“Er, ah . . . why, yes, sir. Thank you for the advice, sir.” Jack was surprised that the president of the United States was making bold, romantic suggestions about his sniping partner, especially since the military had such strict rules on fraternization.
The president straightened up. “This has been a lot of fun for me, and I am so glad that I was able to meet you two. I wish I could stay and talk, but I must get off to a meeting with my boss—I mean, my wife. She has planned a special lunch for the two of us in the Rose Garden.”
The president once again shook hands with each person as they exited the Oval Office.
Ms. Jackson stood and smiled as they approached her desk. She motioned with her hand toward the man next to her. “This is your escort. He will take you out to your vehicles. Have a wonderful day.”
The escort led the four to the parking garage and said goodbye.
General Morrison spoke in a friendly but somber tone. “Jack and Jill, I want to reiterate what the president mentioned about how you two did a great service to your country. Your mission was very unusual, not to mention dangerous. The results will have a direct impact upon the safety of our nation’s youth. But I want to mention also that it will have a secondary impact. Jill, you showed bravery that has never been seen in a female soldier before. The details of this mission will never reach the general public, but nonetheless, your valor is bound to open doors for other women in the military because of the respect you have earned through the success of this mission. I hope you understand and appreciate the contribution you have made to those women.”
General Hayes nodded in agreement.
“Thank you for the kind words, sir,” Jill said.
A Hummer pulled up next to the generals. “You two will have to excuse us,” General Hayes said. “General Morrison is taking me out for a steak dinner tonight. It has been a pleasure to finally meet you two.”
Jack and Jill both saluted the generals. They returned their salutes and climbed into the Hummer. Their driver drove them down the long driveway.
“Jill, let’s get out of here. I have had enough formalities for one day.”
“Good idea. I’m ready for a break, too.”