White Jade

Chapter Fifty

Stephanie met the team at Andrews and drove them back to the Project.

Carter felt like a sack of cement. Jet lag was on him like a wrecking crew on a Vegas casino. Pain killers had his back down to a dull ache. Ronnie came hobbling out of the bathroom. No showers for him. He had bandages around his damaged ribs, cracked by the Chinese rounds. His leg wound was tightly wrapped.

"Coffee, guys," Stephanie said. They each took a cup.

Steph's cell went off.

"Yes, Director." She listened. "They're fine. All right, I'll tell them."

She hung up. "Guess what?"

"What? Let me guess. We're getting on a plane again."

"No, Nick. The President wants to see all of you."

"The President? You're kidding."

"He's sending a car for you tomorrow morning."

"I know the President." Selena sipped her coffee. "He's a good man."

"How do you know him?" Nick said.

"He and my uncle were friends. We had dinner with him at the White House about six months ago."

"What's he like?"

"Straight forward. He has no patience with people who dodge the issues. He hides his thoughts well when he wants to, and he's not someone you want to cross. I'd say he's a genius when it comes to politics. He takes his job seriously. It determines everything he does."

"Why do you think he wants to see us?"

"I imagine he wants a first hand account."

"The Director said to turn on the TV." Stephanie set the coffee pot down.

"Why would she say that?" Nick reached over and turned it on.

"Holy shit," said Ronnie. "Isn't that San Francisco? The Bay Bridge in the background?"

"That's the Ferry Building. But what happened to the pier and the Plaza?" Selena's voice was strained.

"Turn up the sound."

In a few minutes they had the picture. The death toll was rising. Public services were compromised. Hospitals all over the Bay Area were overwhelmed.

Homeland Security had gone to Imminent in the West. People were ordered to remain in their homes. All public transportation was under military control. All government facilities were shut down or under heavy guard. In San Francisco the BART tunnels were flooded all along the Embarcadero and across the Bay to Oakland. Power was still out over most of California and the West.

The President was scheduled to address the nation in the morning.

"Yang," Carter said.

"Has to be," said Ronnie. "It's too much of a coincidence."

"I wonder what's happening in China? Yang must be making his move."

"I hope they shoot that son of a bitch." Ronnie said.

"They will, unless he shoots them first."

"You think he'll use those missiles?"

"Not unless he's completely crazy. He might threaten to use them. That would be a big mistake." Carter set his cup down.

"This could be Cuba all over again. That was too close for comfort." Ronnie drained his cup.

"At least Kennedy had a line to Khrushchev. I don't think anyone's got a line to Yang right now. We'd better hope the PRC is up for this."

"I never thought I'd be rooting for the ChiComs."

"Yeah, well, it's a strange world, Ronnie. In this case, the PRC is on the side of the angels. I just hope they move fast enough to stop Yang before he does something stupid."

"Like launch a missile?" Selena brushed a strand of hair from her forehead.

"Like that."

"God, I'm tired," she said. "I can't think about this anymore."

Stephanie stood up. "Come on, Ronnie, I've got a place for you down the hall. Get some sleep before you see the President."

The door closed behind them. Carter lay down and the next thing he knew, Stephanie was knocking on the door and saying coffee was up and they had an hour before heading for the White House.