“So you will be taken to the airport and flown to Switzerland,” Marko was saying. “At that point we will have no further contact with you. Is that understood?”
“Yes, Mr. President.”
“You came to us with a plan that ultimately failed,” Marko continued. “Yes, our ultimate goal was to accomplish just as you said you could deliver, yet if you had not come to us, we would have proceeded along our own timeline and in our own manner. As it’s turned out, I’m now receiving too many phone calls from the Americans with rather pointed and embarrassing questions. Of course they know all, and now I may find myself having to make concessions to them just to keep the truth from being revealed.” The tall, slender Russian glared down at Almasi. “I am the leader of the Russian Federation, and now I will have to bow down to the Americans simply because of public relations. Do you know how furious that makes me?”
“I’m sorry it has come to this,” Almasi said. “The plan was sound and it nearly succeeded. If it hadn’t been for the financial blackmail committed by the Americans, it would have.”
“If’s and blame will not salvage the situation, Almasi.”
Abdul-Shahid continued to watch the hovering drones as the Russian spoke.
“And neither will your death—as long as you remain silent. Even as we choose not to follow that course of action, I wouldn’t be surprised to read of your assassination sometime soon.”
One of the hovering drones seemed out of place. Instead of looking outwards, scanning for threats, it had rotated until it now faced the pair on the cobblestone courtyard below.
“So I would take the money that you do have and use it to dig a very deep hole to crawl into. Even though Russia’s involvement in the crisis will be used for pragmatic political advantage, the Americans will take immense pleasure in announcing your death to the world, just as they did Bin-Laden’s.”
Almasi stretched out one of his rare smiles, a gesture that caused the Russian president to pause and cast a quizzical look his way.
“Mr. President,” Abdul-Shahid Almasi began, “I believe we will both share the same fate for what we have done recently. Only in my case I will find eternal life and peace with my God. What awaits you? That will be known any moment…”
The sentry drone arched forward and descended toward the pair, a heartbeat before the explosives aboard the quadcopter detonated.
********
President Rene Ortega looked over at the sallow face of Owen Murphy and nodded.
“You’re welcome,” he said to the president-elect, a title Murphy would hold for another six hours. “Now all you have to do is rebuild the United States of America … from the ground up. Good luck with that.”
The ex-governor of Maryland remained silent, although a prominent swallow could be seen traversing his thick neck. This was so much more than he’d bargained for when he set out to win the highest office in the land. Now he would actually have to do … something. And at that moment, Owen Murphy had no idea where to begin.
The End
Drone Wars:
Book Two
Coming in January 2016
Novels by T.R. Harris
The Human Chronicles Saga
Book 1 – The Fringe Worlds
Book 3 – The War of Pawns
Book 4 – The Tactics of Revenge
Book 5 – The Legend of Earth
Book 6 – Cain’s Crusaders
Book 7 – The Apex Predator
Book 8 – A Galaxy to Conquer
Book 9 – The Masters of War
Book 10 – Prelude to War
Jason King – Agent to the Stars Series
Book 1 – The Enclaves of Sylox
Drone Wars
Book 1 – Day of the Drone
In collaboration with author George Wier
Captains Malicious – Book One of the Liberation Series
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