The Razor's Edge: A Postapocalytic Novel (The New World Book 6) (10 page)

Again, her words struck him. She was right. He could live a different life, and in many ways he was, but the past had found him again and along with it the urges. Power was intoxicating. But there was a hunger besides power that he struggled with, a dark companion that lived inside of him. He had kept this passenger at bay, and for a small sliver of time he thought that passenger had died in the helicopter crash, but he was wrong. It came back as soon as his men had shown up.

“Are you listening to me?” she asked, noticing he was lost in thought.

“Yes.”

“You have a home here, know that.”

“I know.”

She then acknowledged the eight-hundred-pound gorilla in the room. “Your past is camped outside our gates and it pulls you. I don’t believe in telling people how they should live their life, but I will give you some advice. What’s outside those gates and what’s inside are two different worlds, and they can’t cohabitate for long.”

He furrowed his brow. She was right and was the only person who truly knew the truth.

She continued, “You offered your men to me so that I could exact revenge for Sebastian’s life. I never gave you an answer, but now I can. I forgive those men who killed my beloved husband. I won’t forget what they did, and God will judge them later, but I’m choosing to live a life that is different now. I can’t be that person who was filled with hate, I just can’t. So if you’re keeping your men out there for me, know that I don’t need them.”

He swallowed hard. He was confused, as her pursuit for justice had become his mission too. He wanted revenge against Conner for what he did to him and his army but also saw righteousness in having his men be a tool for her too. He looked down at the frozen ground, unsure how to respond.

“It appears I’ve said something to upset you.”

He lifted his head and said, “Not upset.”

She shivered and gazed up. With a heavy sigh she asked, “Would you do something for me?”

“Yes,” he answered immediately without question.

“I’ve talked with my family and the others here; they feel uncomfortable that your army is parked out there. I know it sounds odd to say that considering they can protect us, but they’d like to see them leave.”

He was shocked to hear her say that. He looked away and thought for a second before responding. “And you?”

“I know you have a connection with them, but they represent a different time, and to be quite honest, they’re not the nicest people. They did come here looking to raid our compound, let’s not forget that.”

“True.”

“So if you’re asking me what I want, I would have to agree, it’s time for them to go.”

Pablo pulled away from her and took several steps. He felt a strong desire to give her what she wanted but he also had desires.
Does it have to be so black and white?
he thought.
Is there a middle ground?

He turned back around, cleared his throat and said slowly, “I’ll have them move further out, but let me keep a company close by…for your protection.”

Annaliese nodded. “That seems fair. I’ll talk to the others.”

Pablo nodded in return.

She stepped up to him, took his arm and said, “Come, let’s get inside; it’s cold. I’ll make you a hot cup of tea.”

The feel of her arm again gave him the warmth he needed. He truly liked being in her presence and he would do what he could to keep her happy.

“Emperor, come in. Over,”
Luis said over the radio tucked in Pablo’s coat pocket.

And just like that, the warmth and moment were snatched away.

He stopped and pulled out the radio, looking at her like a child would after being caught doing something embarrassing. He gripped the radio but didn’t reply.

She smiled and said, “Go ahead. I’ll meet you inside.”

He watched her walk off.

“Emperor, come in. Over,”
Luis again called.

He
turned away from Annaliese and replied
, “Yes.”

“We have returned, sir. We have much to report,”
Luis said.

“Coming,” Pablo said. He pocketed the radio and looked on as Annaliese cleared the stairs and entered the house. When the door closed, he headed for his Ranger. He had much to discuss with General Luis.

DECEMBER 27, 2015

“In a time of universal deceit – telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” – George Orwell

Cheyenne, Wyoming, United States

Baxter snatched the phone from the cradle upon the third ring. “Yes.”

“Sir, the first lady is insisting on speaking with you
,” a voice said over the phone.

Baxter turned on the light and sat up. He rubbed his eyes and glanced at the clock to see it was a little past four in the morning.

“Sir?”

“It’s fine. Patch her through,” Baxter said.

The phone clicked and went silent.

Baxter wondered if the connection had been lost. “Hello?”

Another click.

“Secretary Baxter, are you there?”
the first lady asked.

“Yes, how may I help you?”

“Andrew’s mother is missing,”
she said.

“What?”

“Andrew’s mother, Maria, is missing. I haven’t heard from her since Christmas. I’ve called numerous times, nothing. I had some people go and visit her and she’s not there,”
she rambled.

“Hold on, are you saying she’s been taken or something?” Baxter asked confused.

“I don’t know. I just know she’s gone.”

Baxter swung his legs out of the bed and sat up. “Have you contacted everyone who might know where she might be?”

“Yes, she’s gone. I’m concerned. After Andrew’s assassination and now his mother is missing, I’m worried something bad has happened to her.”

Fear gripped Baxter. He wondered if Eli had something to do with this, but didn’t want any word of this to get out. “Who else have you spoken to?”

“My detail leader contacted someone he knows in Cheyenne. They visited her house but other than that, only you.”

“Good, keep it that way for now. Let me look into this immediately.”

“Please stay in touch with me,”
she urged.

“Of course.”

“No, please stay in touch with me,”
she insisted.

“I will.”

“You haven’t in regards to Andrew’s funeral.”

He hadn’t discussed the issue that no remains had been found. He knew he should but something in him made him hold back.

“When can we expect to have the state funeral?”
she asked.

“The thing is…”

“What?”

“Well, I don’t know how to say this, but we haven’t found any remains of the president, so we really don’t know if he’s dead,” Baxter finally admitted.

“Andrew could be alive?”

“I wouldn’t hold out hope, madam, but it could be a possibility.”

A loud sigh and cries hit Baxter’s ears.

“Please be patient. I know this is tough for you and your family. We just need to complete our investigation; until then we’re not leaking any word until we know for sure,” Baxter said.

The first lady continued to cry.

“Madam, can I ask for your discretion on this and everything we’ve discussed?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll be in contact soon, good night,” Baxter said.

“Thank you,”
she said and hung up.

Baxter put the phone down. Something wasn’t right, and now with Cruz’s mother missing, it was adding up more and more that something much larger or vast was happening. He picked the phone back up.

“Yes, sir,”
a voice said.

“Gather my detail; I’m headed into the office.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And wake the rest of the cabinet; I have an important announcement to make.”

West of Joseph, Oregon, Republic of Cascadia

Nicholas woke to the smell of something cooking. He started to rise and stopped when the pain from his wound reminded him he wasn’t operating at a hundred percent. He slowly and gently swung his legs out of the bed and placed his bare feet on the cold wood floor.

The sound of sniffing at the door alerted Nicholas that he wasn’t necessarily alone.

“Is that you, Beau?” he asked.

The sniffing grew louder.

“Come, boy, come,” Nicholas said in a higher pitch.

The door cracked wider and in popped a furry muzzle.

“Come on, boy, come on in,” Nicholas said excitedly.

Beau pushed the door until it was wide enough for him to walk through. He came to Nicholas and sniffed his feet and gave him a lick.

Nicholas bent down and scratched Beau’s back.

Beau’s head popped up when Lexi began to whistle from the kitchen.

“Is that your momma? Hmm?” Nicholas asked.

Beau took a step but the intense scratching kept him from leaving.

The door to Nicholas’ room opened fully. Lexi stood and glared at Beau.

Beau quickly went to her side.

Lexi looked at Nicholas then back to Beau. “So you’re cheating on me?”

“He’s a good dog,” Nicholas said.

“Yes, he is, but not very loyal though,” Lexi said.

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that, hard to walk away one someone is giving you a deep scratch. I have magic hands,” Nicholas flirted.

Lexi rolled her eyes and said, “Trust me, he’s not all that loyal. I stole him from his other master just by offering him a treat, it was that easy.”

“You stole him?”

“I’ll rephrase that, I coaxed him away. He made the final choice.”

“You know us boys.”

“Yes, I do. He’s a typical male, stupid and will go wherever he can get an easy meal,” Lexi quipped.

“Right,” Nicholas said.

“You’re looking better. Speaking of food, I’ve got some corned beef hash cooking. Come and get a plate if you care to,” Lexi said.

“No room service?” Nicholas joked.

Lexi laughed and said, “Not likely, since you seem able.” She walked away, with Beau in tow, and said, “If you’re hungry, you know where to find the food.”

He didn’t know her at all, but he found Lexi attractive and not just in a physical manner. Yes, she had the prerequisites, lean body, pretty face, big beautiful eyes, but when he added in her tough-as-nails attitude, which he knew was somewhat of a façade, he found her sexy.

***

He made his way to the kitchen; the smell of perfectly cooked corned beef hash grew with each step. When he stepped into the room he found Beau lapping up an empty plate but no sign of Lexi.

On the table an empty plate sat, and on the stove top, a pan sat covered.

“Where’s your momma?” Nicholas asked Beau.

Beau looked up, licked his chops and sauntered off.

“Belly full, time to go rest, I guess,” Nicholas said. He walked to the stove and removed the lid from the pan. There he found the hash. It was canned hash, but then again, he always found the canned to be better than homemade. Maybe it was the white trash upbringing, or maybe it wasn’t, but he liked it. Now if he could have some fried bologna he’d be in heaven. He dished up a plateful and went searching for Lexi.

In the front living room he found her propped up next to the large bay window.

She gave him a quick look. “You made it.”

“Yeah, got a bit of pain, but I’ll live,” he said taking a seat in the rocker recliner chair opposite her.

“Alive is good, for you and me,” Lexi said.

“For you?”

“Yeah, means I can move on,” she replied.

He shoveled a mouthful of hash into his mouth and said, “You’re leaving?”

“I promised myself I’d make sure you were okay. Now that I’ve done my charity work, I can go with the full knowledge that I’ve done my part,” she said and stood up abruptly.

“Now?” he asked shocked.

“There’s not a better time than now.”

“Hold on, don’t leave just yet,” Nicholas begged.

“You said you’re better,” Lexi replied.

“I said I’ll live, but I’m definitely not better,” Nicholas clarified.

“That means the same to me, so if you’ll excuse me,” Lexi said and headed for the hallway.

“Please just stay for a bit. Let’s chat, have a drink or not, but can I at least have some company,” Nicholas urged.

Lexi kept walking.

“Forgive me if I want a bit of human contact after just losing my sister,” Nicholas blurted out.

The mention of sister gave Lexi pause. She asked, “Stephanie was your sister?”

“Yes.”

Lexi lowered her head and turned back. “Sorry.”

“Me too, I failed her.”

“Were you close?” Lexi asked.