President Clayton put the phone down slowly. He couldn’t believe it. John had been seen and they knew right away that the President had been behind it. Now he was in danger of losing that money. If he lost that money, he wouldn’t be able to jump start the economy. He sat as if paralyzed, a growing fear gnawing at the edges of his mind and heart.
A knock on the door and then someone entered. It was one of the late night staffers. “Mr. President. The game feed has been interrupted.”
“What?”
“The transmission has been cut. A report says that it is sabotage.” The man looked worried.
Clayton regarded him. “What’s the problem, son?”
“Well, sir, I’ve got over $1000 bet on the game. With the feed cut, how does anyone know who won? What if I lose my money?”
Clayton rose to his feet. “You bet $1000 on the outcome?”
He nodded. “Do you think the game was rigged? Do you think someone meant for me to lose?”
The absurdity that there was a planet-wide conspiracy to rip one man off of $1000 was just too obvious for Clayton to voice. So he said nothing. He just waved the man away and turned his computer on. He immediately went to the news sites to see what they were saying. He listened as growing hysteria over the lost transmission began to mount. He was shocked. He had thought people were bored with it all, or angry and wanted it shut down. Only then did he realize how much money the American people had bet on these games.
He shivered. There was enough money in the pot to bring him billions—trillions even. He had to stop this from spiraling out of control. He picked up the phone. “Give me General Carlson.” He waited. “General? Dispatch Orange 9 to the Island. They are to terminate John Dale—no! Don’t argue with me, General. Just do it. Oh, and kill those kids too. They’ve become a liability.” He slammed the phone down. That insufferable man! He would need to replace him and subject him to a Ts2 scan. The man seemed bent on questioning every decision he made. He wouldn’t stand for it anymore!
He belatedly recalled that Manari had wanted John alive. Oh well. It will be simpler if we just killed him. Manari will just have to live with it.