It was the sixth of June, and the day before Liam's birthday. It was also the anniversary of the day U.S. led Allied forces stormed the beaches of France to start the end of World War II in Europe, finally to rid the world of German Nazi Fascism. He couldn't help but remember Smith's declaration that it had been his intent to have America regain its once preeminent corporate world dominance, ruled, like Hitler's Third Reich, by an elite cadre, with everyone else working for the state in whatever roll they had been assigned, and eliminating any group they found undesirable. How ironic! he thought, as he strolled along, hand-in-hand with Carol, as they walked off the National Mall. Today was to be another D-Day.
"And history repeats itself!" he said out loud.
"What are you talking about?" Carol asked, startled.
"Sorry" he said to her, telling her what he'd been thinking. "I was just drawing the comparison, and the contradiction. Where we once fought against totalitarianism in a 'hot' war in WW II against the Axis Powers, and not to mention about forty years of 'cold' war against the Soviet Bloc, now we're about to fight one against a domestic variety. History repeats itself. We never learn."
"Most of us do. Some don't, or can't. That's why people always need to pay attention to what's happening politically, and to get an education, so they can understand what the politicians and Big Business are trying to do. If you're uneducated, or just don't care, you'll wind up being someone's 'tool'," Carol responded. Then she added, "Are you afraid?"
"Only a fool is unafraid. Of course I am! I don't want to die. I don't want you to either...or anyone else! Crap, Carol, this isn't some video game, where you can do battle, die, and get another life to fight some more. This will be real. For keeps! Hell yes, I'm scared."
She squeezed his hand. "So am I, but we have to do it. Think of all the people out there that will suffer if we don't , or if we fail."
"If we fail it won't matter."
"Then we don't fail."
"To quote Robert Burns, 'The best laid plans of mice and men...'"
"Come again?"
“The Scot poet. In his poem, To a Mouse, the whole quote goes, 'The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray', meaning, no matter what we plan, we can't plan against the unknown factors that will derail our plans."
"What unknown factors?"
"That's the point, Carol! Have we thought of everything? What haven't we thought of, what don't we know?"
"We can't necessarily know everything. We're not prescient, like your Gran was, sometimes. We don't know the future, we can only do the best we can with what we've got."
"Prescience! Scott!" Liam exclaimed.
"Huh?"
"Remember? He’s exhibited he has it, like when he knew we were in trouble at Smith's. Before she died, Grand worked with him on it. Maybe he can see what we can't!" Liam almost yelled. "Keep holding my hand, and guide me, while I go to him."
He closed his eyes, and called out to Scott, Where are you? I can't sense you! Drew? Where are you guys now?
It had been decided that the troops would work in pairs, with one in a presence-blocking trance, the other guiding the zombie-like partner. Of course, the one not in the trance was open to detection, but that only meant that the enemy would only sense him, and not the other, thus revealing only half their true strength. It had taken Liam many weeks of practice and, even though he finally managed to achieve it, he wasn't always able to sustain it for very long as his conscious would inevitably intrude. He simply could not stop his mind from thinking about things. Of the others he taught, a few found they could do it quite easily, but many simply could not, no matter how hard they tried. Most were like him, marginally successful.
We're at the Lincoln Memorial. What do you need, Liam? Drew's consciousness spoke to Liam's mind.
Wake up Scott. Ask him to try and use his foresight to see if he can tell how this is going to pan out.
After several minutes, Scott answered, Liam? I can't see anything right now.
That’s okay, Scott. But I want you and Drew to stay where you are, and for you to keep trying. Tell Drew to keep guard over both of you.
Okay, Liam.
He searched out his father. Finding his mind, Liam spoke to him. Dad, is everyone where they're suppose to be?
Yes, Liam. Everyone is ready. Where are you and Carol?
Lafayette Park. It's now or never, Dad. We're going in.
You know, it’s not too late to call this off if you want.
Dad, President Kennedy once said in a speech, after our sending a man into space, about the need to go on to the moon, ‘We have thrown our hat over the wall of space, and we have no option but to follow it’. Or something like that. Anyway, once we announced to the enemy we were on the move it was the ‘hat over the wall’. We have to go on.
Liam opened his eyes and looked at Carol. "Ready?" he asked. "Know what to do, right?"
"Yes, Liam, I know what to do. We've been over the plan a dozen times. Really!"
"Sorry, I wasn't implying anything. I guess I'm just nervous. What if this doesn't work?"
"Well, I am too. But we'll never know if we don't try."
"Right, then," he answered, as he closed his eyes and dreamt of where he was taking them. "I love you," he told her.
Just as he felt them both leaving, he heard her say, "I love you, too".
They opened their eyes and found themselves standing in the middle of the Oval Office. Behind the Lincoln desk directly in front of them sat the President of the United States.
The President was looking down at some papers in front of him and wasn't immediately aware he had company. Liam cleared his throat audibly, “Ahem!”
The President's eyes briefly stayed on what he was reading before he looked up, expecting to see, perhaps, his secretary, or one of his staff. Seeing two young people momentarily caused him to stare in wonder why these two children were there.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I wasn't told to expect visitors. Or, have you been separated from the tour and just got lost?
"Mr. President, I am Liam MacDonald."
The President paused, and with a little surprise said, "I've heard that name more than once. Didn’t realize how common it must be. So, how did you get in here, anyway? And what do you want?"
"We just want to apprise you of a situation you may not be aware of. But first, you said you've heard my name. May I ask the context?"
The President leaned back in his chair and smiled. "The first time I heard the name was when some school kid ‘discovered’ an alleged plot to turn our school systems into boot camps for future tycoons or something. There was a big to-do about it. I never really understood what the problem was — if there was one — behind it all. I mean, really, how could anyone think a handful of schools scattered across the nation could significantly change our educational system, marginalize the federal government, and think big business is behind it all? Now, my national security advisor advises me that someone, with apparently the same name as you and that kid, is mounting an insurrection against the government. According to our intelligence community and the FBI, that person and his followers supposedly also think they are some sort of mind-controllers, or something. Can you believe that? There's no end of crazies out there these days!” Suddenly, he sat upright and placed his hands on his desk. “Now, you answer me. Who are you, what do you want, and how in the Hell did you get past my secretary, let alone a dozen security officers?"
"I'm that ‘school kid’, who must be ‘crazy’. I used ‘mind-control’ to get past your staff so I could kidnap you. I'm sorry, Sir, we mean no harm. But we do need some of your time." Noticing the President's hand slide stealthily under his desk, Liam added, only too late, "And please don't reach for that alarm under your desk."
He nudged Carol in warning, just as the door behind them opened. Carol spun around just as what had to be a Secret Service agent came into the office.
"Agent Jones,
I believe these two young comedians are lost. I don’t know how they got in here, but would you escort them back to their tour?"
"There isn't any tour just now, Mr. President."
Carol saw the agent reach into his suit jacket, just under his left arm. Gun! - She immediately did what they had rehearsed, should this happen. She instantly threw her mind into his, and brought him to his knees, totally incapacitated.
"What's going on here?" the President demanded.
Carol looked past the crumpled body of the agent on the floor in the doorway and could see into the President's outer office. His secretary was on her feet by her desk, hand to her mouth stifling a scream, as more agents came bursting in her office's outer door.
"Liam!" she called in warning.
With his back to the oncoming onslaught, and his eyes still locked on those of the President, Liam, in an incongruously quiet voice, said, "Let's get some air, shall we?" Closing his eyes and focusing his mind, Liam and Carol disappeared before the President's eyes.
"What the...!" the President exclaimed, as he suddenly found himself, not in his office, not even in the White House, but standing on the sidewalk curb across the street, facing the Executive Mansion and Lafayette Park behind him and with the boy standing beside a car, holding the back door open.
"Mr. President, if you would be so kind as to get in?" a voice behind him said softly in his ear. Turning his head, he saw two men. One older than he, but who had a determined bearing about him, and the other one, though younger, wiry and looked equally menacing. He knew he'd have to cooperate, at least until his security team located him using the GPS transmitter hidden on his person. They'll be on these fools in moments now! he thought to himself.
"How did you get me here?"
"All will be made clear soon. Just get in, now," Liam said.
Liam's father gently steered the President into the backseat, pushing him to the center and climbing in next to him, as Liam ran around and entered the other backdoor. His Uncle Gene got behind the wheel as Carol got into the passenger seat.
As the car pulled into traffic, Liam broke the silence. "Sir, as I told you we mean you no harm, but we do need to talk to you. I'm sorry, but this is the only means available to us to insure you hear us out fully, without interruption, and without anyone else overhearing or recording our conversation."
"I don't know who you people are, or what you think kidnapping me will get you, but I'll tell you this! All of you are going to spend the rest of your natural lives in a federal prison. The Secret Service will be interdicting this vehicle within minutes. Rest assured, they know exactly where I am 24/7."
"Oh, I'm sure they do, and I'll bet they're with you even as we speak," Carol interjected, as she turned on the car's radio. Fiddling with the tuner, she found the twenty-four hour news station she was looking for.
"...is being transported to Bethesda Naval Hospital by helicopter. The President's condition is being monitored in route by his personal physician. All we've managed to learn at this point, from a source in the White House, who spoke to this reporter 'Off the record', is that the President was found in the Oval Office slumped in his chair and unresponsive. We have also learned that there was some kind of an altercation involving a Secret Service Agent and two young adults in the President's office immediately prior to finding the President unconscious at his desk. We haven't managed to find out who these two 'Persons of Interest' are, or whether or not they are in custody. Stay tuned for further updates. To repeat our breaking news, minutes ago, the President of the United..."
The President looked at Liam. The look in his face almost made Liam break out laughing — he hadn't seen anyone look so surprised in all his life!
"To begin," Liam told him, “I am the Liam MacDonald you've been warned about."
Chapter Twenty Nine: Lunge and Parry
“Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”