Friend on the inside.
Thank you for the lovely reviews, because of them I have decided to add this chapter! Let me know if you want more! Enjoy!
Again, a big thank you to 'Sardixiis' for proof reading this chapter!
Disclaimer – I don't own anything.
When Elizabeth first started out as Secretary of State she had been under the impression she would be working in a nine to five office. After a few months on the job she'd been called in at eleven in the evening and found most of her staff still there. Then when she got to the White House she had realised that it never stopped. Much like her own staff, the White House staffers had been as busy as ever. So, when her days seemed to go from seven in the morning until anytime past ten at night, she saw it as normal.
Both Elizabeth and Ellen were still in her office at twenty past two in the morning, working on the one strategy that they'd both agreed on. Get the kids to Afghanistan, get them on a plane, and get them home. However, they would be wrong if they thought it would be that easy.
"I know that you want a solid plan, but you also need sleep. Why don't you go home? Even if Nadine has gotten some more information there is not a lot we can do now," Ellen told her.
Bess was now sitting down on the settee whilst Ellen remained in the chair by Elizabeth's desk.
"It's early morning here. Nine-hour time difference making it around mid-day in Pakistan?"
Bess had worked out the timing in her head and knew Ellen had too. She also knew that Ellen was aware that they could do something, but that she wanted Bess to get some sleep too.
"I can't go home. I can't sleep until I know we have a plan in place," Bess told her firmly.
It was true. Thirty kids were in a foreign country, a country that was currently under a state of emergency, and still they had no idea why those kids were out there.
Ellen nodded slightly, folding her arms across her chest as she willed herself to focus. She assumed Elizabeth was doing the same, but even she knew she couldn't last much longer before she would need to go home and get some sleep.
"Would you like to inform the President?" Ellen asked her.
Blake had come in a while ago and informed them both that Conrad and Russell were still there, but hours had passed since then. Chances were they'd both called it a day.
"Not yet. I want to go to him with a solid plan. We need a solid plan…" Elizabeth said.
"Getting them to the base is Afghanistan is their best option. Right now things in Islamabad look stable so we need to move quickly. If we want them to come home safe and not traumatized, we need to get them out before the government starts to collapse and people start to riot," Ellen told her, knowing full well that they had little to no time at all.
All the intel she'd gathered pointed towards a play for power in the country and everyone in politics knew that meant riots, violence, and terror for everyone else. That was even more common in the Middle East.
Moments passed where the two didn't speak. Nadine walked in within those few moments, notebook in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other.
"Nadine, please tell me you have something," Elizabeth pleaded, moving towards her chief of staff.
"The headmaster is coming in tomorrow morning to explain further, but I think I know why those children are there, and it's not good news," Nadine said, moving towards Elizabeth's desk to put her coffee mug down and open her notebook.
She took the chair next to Ellen and waiting for Bess to move behind her desk.
"The school trip wasn't supposed to be to Pakistan," Nadine started.
"I thought the parents received letters about the trip and it explained that Pakistan was the chosen destination," Ellen interrupted.
"They did receive letters, but not the right ones. The parents were and still are under the impression their children are in Greece on a religious education trip."
Nadine watched as both women took in the news. Ellen was the first to recover.
"Greece is close to three thousand miles away. How the hell did no one know about that?"
Elizabeth looked up at Ellen when she heard the woman curse.
"The Headmaster did, but by the time he found out they had already been there a day, and he assumed they would be in the country for no more than five days. He thought no one would know."
"So, he trusted a load of kids not to tell their parents they ended up in Pakistan instead of Greece? What about the staff? Why didn't they do anything?" Elizabeth asked, shaking her head as she too tried to wrap her head around the information.
"There is one more thing, and I think after you hear this, Ma'am, you should take it to the White House."
Elizabeth nodded at what Nadine said, now dreading what she would hear next. How could this get any worse?
"There's an assistant that accompanied the children to Pakistan. His name is Amir Nadeem. He was born in Pakistan, but has been living legally in the U.S for the last eight years." Nadine stopped, looking between the two women and wishing it was someone else giving them the information.
"So, he was born in Pakistan, but he's technically a U.S citizen…" Elizabeth encouraged her.
"He was the childhood friend of Jibral Disah. According to the FBI when they spoke to Amir Nadeem a few months ago he said he hadn't spoken to Disah in years. But, Ma'am, Amir requested to accompany the children," Nadine explained
Elizabeth stayed quiet for a moment processing all the information Nadine had just given her. Amir Nadeem wasn't going to bring those kids home. He would most likely use them to get back in with Disah. That was if he hadn't already reunited with him. If he wasn't going to use them to get back in with Disah then Elizabeth figured they would end up being used for suicide missions or ransom demands. Neither of which gave Bess any comfort.
Ellen had instantly felt sick when she realised what Nadine was saying. There was no way those kids were going to get home within the next five days. Ellen wondered if Nadeem had planned this all along, if this was his way of proving to Disah that he was useful to him. Ellen considered all of the possible outcomes, but even the best one wasn't pretty.
"Nadine is right, ma'am. We need to inform the President. There is no way that this is a coincidence," Ellen told her, the worry apparent in her voice.
Bess only nodded, letting her head fall back against the chair.
"Thank you, Nadine," she said, hoping her Chief of Staff would get the hint and leave the room.
After a moment Nadine picked up her coffee mug and notebook, giving both women a small smile before leaving and closing the door behind her.
"Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse," Bess muttered.
She wondered how it had gone from a simple rescue mission to terrorism, and just what that meant for her. She ran through the checklist in her head. Get more intel. Come up with a plan. Inform the President. Then make sure her plan was absolutely perfect, again.
"Elizabeth?"
Bess looked across at Ellen when she heard her name.
"You need to go home and get some sleep. This is no longer a mission to get these kids home. This is leading to terrorism," Ellen told her firmly.
Both women needed sleep at this point.
"We will continue this in a few hours, but right now you need to get some rest," Ellen pushed, waiting for Elizabeth's reply.
"Fine. At seven we meet back here. We gather all the intel we can find on this Amir Nadeem and just what he's planning to do. Then we find a way to bring those kids home," Bess explained, more so to herself than Ellen, but at least Ellen now knew what the plan was.
Bess watched as Ellen gathered her things, taking the time to note how this wasn't really her job. Ellen was there to advise the President on matters of national security, not assist the Secretary of State with rescue missions. Although, she didn't think Ellen minded. Bess was under the impression that Ellen would want to help in whatever way she could.
"Would you like my motorcade to drop you home?" Bess asked for no other reason than feeling bad for making her stay so long.
Ellen shook her head with a smile.
"I have my own security detail who drive me. But, thank you. I hope you go home and get some sleep. I doubt you'll be any use to anyone, let alone those kids, if you're running on empty," Ellen carried on.
"You're not going to wait here until I leave, are you?" Bess asked, chuckling a little.
"I would, but I don't think that would make me very popular. My phone is on if you need me. I'll see you later."
Ellen stood up from the chair she'd been sitting in and picked up her briefcase. Elizabeth watched as Ellen pulled her phone out of her jacket pocket, straightening her jacket with her free hand before finally saying goodnight.
"Thank you, Ellen," Bess called after her as she left.
Sighing, Bess let her head roll back again. Ellen was right. She was no use to anyone if she didn't get some sleep. Sitting up again she looked over her desk. All of this could remain where it was until tomorrow morning. Picking up the personal items she needed she began to shove them all in her bag, wondering if she should call Henry and tell him she was coming home. Deciding against it, she finished up packing her bag and wandered out into her outer office. She knew Blake would still be around, and she figured Nadine would still be in her office, quite possibly researching more of this Amir Nadeem or maybe researching some of the other ways they could get those kids home.
"Would you like me to call your motorcade, ma'am?" Blake asked making her jump slightly.
"Please. Is Nadine still here?"
"No, she left around ten minutes ago. She did say you could reach her at home if you needed to," Blake explained before picking up the phone to call her security detail.
"Right," Bess said quietly.
She was pleased that Nadine had gone home, and she would feel even better when Blake went too. Her staff worked hard, and she knew sleepless nights and nasty coffee were not part of the job description. Once Blake put the phone down, she gave him a small smile.
"Go home, get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a long day," Elizabeth told him, giving him a moment to nod in response before she headed to the elevator.
Tomorrow was going to be a long day. She knew as soon as she was with Ellen the next morning neither of them would stop until they had a plan. At least she knew she would have the help. Thirty kids, over three thousand miles away and she and the state department were their only hope.
I hope everyone enjoyed this. If you want more, please let me know!
Until next time, Bethany – Louise.