“Glad to see you. I thought you were a goner,” Raymond said, trying to smile.
“He just got off a lucky shot. I’ll be fine. Besides, I get paid to get shot; you were just along for the fun of it. Anyway, how are you feeling?”
“I’ve been better, and not to hurt your feelings, but I’ve had better times before, believe it or not” he said.
“I have to say, you look like crap.”
“You’re the second person to tell me that lately. I gotta start hanging out with a different crowd.”
“Hopefully one that won’t try to get you killed. By the way, my name is Captain Thomas Miller. Nice to meet you Raymond.”
“Thank you Thomas. You saved my butt. Devin would have killed me.”
“It wasn’t me. The guard shot him.”
“Guard? What guard?” Raymond asked.
“The one lying next to you on the floor with two bullet holes in him. Devin had shot him and he figured it was time to get a little revenge so he returned the favor,” Miller explained.
“I never even saw him,” Raymond said.
“It doesn’t matter. He shot Devin before he could shoot you or fire the weapon. It’s called the BlackStar, by the way. It's in orbit somewhere around one hundred and ninety miles above the earth. They are just starting to piece the story together from the boys in the white coats who were working on it. Devin killed the guy in charge, Dr. Gimbel,” Miller told him.
“Who was that crazy bastard planning to use it on? I heard something about the Pentagon.”
“Well, according to what we have so far. His first shot was going to be the Pentagon. He was going to show them a thing or two. After that the Capital Building and unless the President gave in to his demands, the White House was next on his list.”
“I thought I heard some of that after I was shot but I figured it was just a bad dream. My God, he really was insane. I think that place could make anyone go insane if they were there too long,” Raymond said.
“Look, I just wanted to drop by and see how you were doing. I doubt that our paths will cross again but it was a pleasure to meet you, Ray,” he said smiling.
“You take care of yourself, Captain Thomas Miller. I appreciate your placing your ass on the line for me. I’m sorry about your men that got killed,” Raymond replied
“I appreciate that. They were both good men. They died for a good cause,” he said.
As he turned to leave he said, “Oh, yeah. Someone is waiting to see you.”
He opened the door and Lynn came in the room.
“Hey sport, you look like hell,” she said and laughed, “Captain Miller told me to say that,” she confessed.
“I’ve been getting a lot of that lately. It’s good to see you. Is everything back to normal?”
“No. Everything is shut down. All projects are on hold until further notice. I get a vacation at government expense,” she said.
“The important thing is that you are all right. At least Devin didn’t get to you,” Raymond said.
“Thanks to you and the guys that came busting in,” Lynn said.
“So what do you plan to do with all this new found time?” he asked.
“I’ll tell you,” she said, leaning over to whisper in his ear.
The President gave Eller a big handshake and then he did something remarkable. He actually gave him a hug and pat on the back. No one had ever seen him react like that before.
“I thank God for your safe return to us Ray,” he said, his eyes watering.
“Thank you Mr. President.”
“You know, everyone kept telling me you looked like hell, but you look damn good to me,” he kidded, “This is Dr. Yurris, is it not?”
“Yes sir. She is the one that I told you about. She is also my fiancée. We plan on being married later this year,” Raymond said, taking her hand.
“Dr. Yuriss, it is indeed very nice to meet you.”
“Please Mr. President. Lynn will do if it is alright with you,” she said.
“It is a pleasure, Lynn,” he said, “I know it’s rude to presume, but I will be invited to the wedding won’t I?”
“You’re at the very top of the guest list,” she replied. She hadn’t voted for the man but now she couldn’t imagine why not.
When Raymond recuperated enough, President Sampson asked him to head up the Area-51 facility. The Gunnery Range would be turned over to the military. He would have a free hand at reorganizing and setting the goals and priorities for the entire facility.
He could live any place in the southwest he wanted as long as it could be reached in one hour by helicopter which the government would provide.
After talking it over with Lynn, he agreed, as long as he could pick his successor at the Department of Homeland Security. He picked Sarah to be the new director dependent on confirmation approval. She was a shoe in.
J lay back in his chair. It seemed that there was some glimmer of hope for this planet. The immediate danger had passed. The human Devin was no longer in control. The weapon, while still a threat as long as it was in orbit, was now dormant.
