THE 13: STAND BOOK TWO (34 page)

Keene tossed the remote on the couch beside him and tuned out. Something still didn’t feel right. He sensed it when they pulled in the drive. But he couldn’t put his finger on it. Maybe it was just because he was so angry with Jennings over taking Boz out of Sykes’s house. He was still trying to figure out how he was going to handle that problem after he got Sykes home.

The phone ringing in the kitchen brought him back. He turned to see his boss pick up the receiver. Jennings nodded a couple of times and said, “Uh-huh…yes…that’s great news. Yes…someone will be over soon. Thank you very much.” He hung up the phone and looked at Keene. “Good news, Jon. Megan’s awake. She’s asking for you.”

Keene felt his heart skip.
Megan’s awake!
He sighed a huge sigh of relief. He felt as if an enormous weight had been lifted.

The news anchor on the television was giving everyone a five-minute warning. Walker was about to go live. Jennings came out from the kitchen and stood by the couch. “Jon, why don’t you go?”

Keene felt an immediate surge of anticipation. He wanted to. More than anything. But he wasn’t about to leave Jennings and Sykes alone. “I can’t. I need to be here.”

Jennings looked at him. “You
need
to go see Megan. There’s no telling how long she’ll be awake. They said they have her pretty sedated. Bob and I will stay here, eat some food, and watch Walker do his interviews. We’ll be right here when you get back.”

Keene had a thought. He’d already been toying around with the idea on the drive here. “What if we call Ramirez and the boys? They could sit outside while I’m gone. Besides, I think I can use them at the house.”

Jennings walked back to the phone in the kitchen. He picked up the receiver and dialed. “Yes, this is Director Jennings. I need to speak with General Markus.”

Jennings spent the next two minutes on the phone. He informed the general that he wanted Ramirez’s team to report to his home forthwith. He gave General Markus the address and thanked him. He hung up the phone. “Ramirez and his team will be here within the hour. Markus is sending them as we speak. Does that make you happy?”

Keene smiled a little. “I guess it’ll have to do.”

Jennings grabbed the keys to the SUV off the counter and tossed them to him. “Get out of here. Go tell Taylor I need her back in the office by Monday.”

Keene caught the keys but stayed put. “Thanks, but I’ll wait till Ramirez gets here.”

Jennings shook his head. “No. Go now, you stubborn mule. Ramirez’s team will be here within an hour. Megan might be asleep again by then. And I need to know if she has any information that might be pertinent to what we’re dealing with.”

Keene hadn’t really thought about that. All he was concerned with was just seeing her. He had to get his head on straight. Thinking about her was becoming a distraction. And as much as he wanted to just sit and talk with her—to just catch up on the last five months they’d missed—he knew Jennings was right. Megan could have important information.

He stood up and walked to the door. “I’ll call if she has anything. But you call me when Ramirez and his team get here.”

Jennings said he would.

Keene got in the SUV and backed out of the drive.

Alex watched as Jon Keene exited Jennings’s house, got in the SUV, and left. And in a big hurry, at that. She didn’t know what to make of it. Obviously, Jennings and Sykes weren’t planning on going anywhere. Had Keene left for the night? Was Sykes staying at Jennings’s house?

She smiled to herself.
You’re pretty smart there, Jennings
.

She knew there was a possibility that Jennings knew she was alive—especially since she didn’t have the chance to make sure Agent Taylor was dead. That was something she still needed to rectify. And if Jennings knew she was alive, then he also knew it was more than probable that she would show up here in DC. She guessed he figured that keeping him and Sykes together was smarter than being isolated. Hence, Jon Keene being there with them.

But if that were the case…where was Keene going? And why would he leave them vulnerable like that? He must’ve been called away to something extremely important to leave Jennings and Sykes in such a hurry.

And then she realized. Keene
wouldn’t
leave anyone vulnerable like that, let alone the director of the CIA and the secretary of the navy—the two most important people in the country, next to President Walker. Someone else must be on his way.

She felt the tingle in her spine return.

An idea quickly began to take shape in her mind. If Keene ran out of there like that, then whatever it was that caused him to leave wasn’t planned. So neither would backup security be. And that meant whoever was coming, it would take them—she figured—at least twenty minutes, at best.

Opportunity!

She pulled her Glock out of the holster and checked to make sure she had a round in the chamber. She felt inside her jacket—just to make sure the extra magazines were there.

Farid looked at her. “What are you doing?”

She reached up and killed the dome light then opened the door. “Stay here and don’t move. I’ll be back in less than ten minutes.”

Opportunity
.

B
oz got to the news station just as Walker was finishing up. He had been listening on the radio the whole way.

Walker did a great job
, he thought. He fielded every question thrown at him. And for someone who hadn’t been a believer for very long, Boz was impressed with his knowledge of scripture and how he used it to respond to the interviewers’ questions and comments.

The best part of the whole interview was when Walker asked them point-blank, “Do you honestly think this nation can handle another war with China right now? Look at us! Our military is stretched. Our resources are thin. They have over a million foot soldiers over there now. The only way to effectively win would be to completely destroy every square inch of land west of the mountains. And what good would that do us, Jeff? Sure, we might have defeated the Chinese, but at what cost? How many innocent lives are you willing to just throw away over there? How much of our land are you willing to obliterate?”

That had left them almost speechless. But Walker hadn’t been finished. He kept on.

“Joe Nolan is a dangerous, power-hungry man. He has the audacity to stand in front of a news camera and accuse me of not fulfilling my sworn oath to our Constitution. Well, let me tell you something, Mr. Nolan. When I took that oath, I had my hand on a Bible, just like every president before me. And If I recall correctly, I said the same words that every one of my predecessors have uttered—‘So help me, God.’ Who, by the way, is the very God you deny even exists!

“Listen, fellas. I don’t sit here and pretend to be perfect. I’m not saying I have all the answers. But one thing I’ve never been is a liar. I love this country with every ounce of my being. And I would
never
stand in front of the American people and ask them to buy into some half-cooked story about God sending a Prophet to help us get back to where we need to be if it weren’t true.”

After that, Walker had finished his interview with a plea. “Ladies and gentlemen”—Boz imagined Walker looking directly into the camera with a desperate look on his face—“Ladies and gentlemen, please, I beg you. Do not let Joe Nolan deceive you. There is no hope for our nation if we choose to go down the path that he is suggesting. The same Prophet who initially delivered God’s warning to us before, now says that God has chosen to restore us. I can’t tell you I know exactly what that looks like. However, I can tell you that God never fails to fulfill a promise. If you allow Joe Nolan to lead this country back into war with China—well, God help us all.”

Boz flashed his ID to the man at the desk and was shown down the hall to where Walker was.

“You did a great job in there, Mr. President.”

Walker shook his hand. “Thank you, Boz. It felt good—getting in front of that camera and getting a chance to expose Nolan. Let’s just hope the American people were able to see it.”

Boz was reminded of a passage of scripture just then. “Remember, sir. ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’ ”

Walker smiled. “Matthew 19:26. It’s become one of my favorite verses.”

The head of Walker’s detail came over. “Sir, we’re ready to leave. CNN is waiting for us. Can I go ahead and tell them we’re en route?”

“Yes, Agent Carnes. Thank you.” As the agent turned away, Walker called him back. “Agent Carnes, you know Mr. Hamilton, yes?”

Carnes stuck out his hand to Boz. “Yes, sir. Good to see you. I guess you’re with us?”

“Apparently so.”

“Good to have you along. Jennings made it absolutely clear you’re in charge. So you just holler at me if you need anything.”

Boz thanked him and said he would.

Carnes called to the rest of the detail and they all headed for the motorcade. Boz opened the door to the limo and watched Walker climb in. He started to step in himself when Carnes called to him from the lead vehicle.

Boz stood back up. “Yeah, Zach. What’s up?” He walked up to the lead SUV where Carnes was standing.

“Hey, Jennings didn’t tell me much. Just that you were coming along. You want to tell me what’s going on?”

Boz didn’t want to alarm anyone unnecessarily. But Carnes was the head of Walker’s detail. If Jennings hadn’t filled Carnes in, then he probably expected Boz to. “I can’t say that anything is going on for sure. You know the name Alexandra Sokolov?”

Carnes nodded. “Yeah. I know it.”

“There’s a good chance she’s in DC. And with everything going on right now with Nolan and Walker, we just want to make sure everything’s good. If you know who she is, then you know Jon Keene, Megan Taylor, and I have a history with her.”

Carnes nodded again. “Yeah, I heard.”

“Jennings just wants me along because I’m familiar with her.”

Carnes bobbed his head one last time. “Good deal. That’s all I need to know.”

Boz started to turn back to the limo but stopped. “Hey, Zach.”

“Yeah?”

“Honestly, I don’t think we have anything to worry about. But let’s keep an open channel on the radio. Just in case. No chatter unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

“Got it.”

It was only a few blocks from Fox News on East Capitol Street over to First Street NE to the CNN offices. The motorcade pulled up to the front entrance and Walker’s detail got out and did a quick check over the area. A few seconds later, Carnes gave the all clear. Boz and Walker exited the limo and stepped through the front doors.

Another reception was waiting for them as they walked inside. Walker and Boz were led to a green room while Carnes gave direction to the agents on where to take up posts within the building. Boz and Walker had just stepped into the green room when an attractive young lady appeared in the doorway.

“They’re ready for you, Mr. President.”

K
eene hurried through the hallway as he entered the hospital. Once he had gotten out of Jennings’s neighborhood, it was lights and sirens the whole way.

When he approached Megan’s door, a couple of doctors were standing outside, talking. Keene’s heart immediately sank. He slowed his pace as he approached them.

“What’s wrong? Is Megan all right?”

The doctor that he had spoken with before stepped forward to meet him. “Everything is fine, Mr. Keene. Megan is awake and doing well. We were just deciding on next steps.”

Keene let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. “Oh, okay. Good. Thank you, Doctor. So, what
are
her next steps?”

“Rest. Lots of rest. As I told you before, the bullet under her arm punctured her lung. It also tore blood vessels. There was a lot of work done during surgery. It’s mostly the reason why she’s been unconscious—her body has just been in too much pain to wake up. She doesn’t need to be doing anything even remotely exciting for another week or two. After that, we’ll see. Maybe some physical therapy for the muscles in her shoulder and side. And we’re going to have to keep a regular check on her lung. Make sure it’s operating the way it should.”

“Thank you, again, Doctor. We owe you a lot.”

“Just doing what I’m paid to do.” The doctor laughed. “And…I didn’t want to get a visit from you in the middle of the night.” He winked.

Keene felt a little convicted over that. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that. I was just really stressed and worried.”

“It’s all good, Mr. Keene. Now go see your friend.”

Keene moved past them and opened the door. Megan was sitting up in bed. She had a small food tray in front of her that was almost completely empty. Only a cup of half-eaten Jell-O and some crumbs from what used to be a sandwich—or wrap or something of that nature—were left. Megan pushed the tray away as soon as she saw him enter.

“Jon!”

He walked over to the bed and sat down in the chair. “Hey, kiddo. How you feeling?”

“Like I got shot in the lung.”

“Well, that’s ironic. Because I think they told me you did get shot in the lung.”