Chapter 14

AND WE'RE OFF TO SEE THE PENTAGON

Cassie was currently sitting on a plane on her way to Washington DC and she was already exhausted.

How DO I get myself into these things?

After it had been finalized that Cassie would be making the trip to Washington she had then spent the next eight hours with Daniel and Sam going over the finer points of negotiating with the Pentagon. By the time she had made it home at 11pm she had the biggest headache on record and couldn't fall asleep. She had laid awake most of the night going over and over in her head what she was going to say to convince the right people not to do anything drastic with the machine. And the rest of the night she spent laying there thinking about Paul, something she really didn't want to deal with right at the moment. The next four days where going to be hard enough with out having him in the back of her mind, that and the fact that at any given moment she would walk around a corner and there he would be.

I'll deal with him if and when the need arises. I've enough to keep me going on with at the moment as it is.

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she tried to relax. She opened her eyes and looked out the window. It looked as though they would be landing in a few minutes so she packed up the books she had been looking over and got herself ready for her first trip to Washington.

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Once they had landed and she had disembarked from the plane she made her way through the hordes of people to the arrivals lounge. Once she had grabbed her case and bag she fished around in her pocket for the id card that Jack had given her, and pinned it to her coat. When he had dropped her off at the airport he had told her that the General was going to be in a meeting when she landed, and that he was going to send a driver to take her to the Pentagon.

She looked around for some one that looked like they might be from the Pentagon. In the far corner, she spotted a young man dressed in an air force uniform. He must have also spotted her because he made eye contact with her and smiled as he made his way over to her.

"Miss Frasier?" he asked he said rushing up to her, causing her to take a step back in surprise.

"Yep. That's me." She replied a little nervously.

"Excellent I feared that I would never find you in this crowd. I was debating weather to go back and face the General's wrath for not bringing you back with me or to leave the country before he could catch up with me. Oh where are my manners, Lieutenant Kemp at you service. Can I take your bags Ma'am?" He said without taking a breath.

"General Hammond isn't that bad." She said, she didn't know why but this guy did sit well with her. He was very polite and eager but she got the feeling that there was something not quite right.

"Only when it comes to you." He said smiling back at her. "He seems very protective of you."

Arh! Just when I thought I was going to get a break from the over protectiveness!

"I guess you could say I'm family." She said handing over her suitcase that he had asked for. He smiled back taking the case from her and ushering her toward the doors.

"The car is waiting outside. We'll be taking you straight to the Pentagon. General Hammond is waiting for you there." He said as they made their way through the doors.

"We?' she questioned.

"The driver is waiting in the car." He answered

"An escort and driver." She stated rather than asking the question.

Talk about overkill.

The lieutenant chuckled a little as he put the case in the boot of the car and then opened one of the doors for her. "Like you said, you're family." He said answering her.

It took them about twenty minutes to get to their destination and the lieutenant talked her ear off the whole way there. If he wasn't talking about the various buildings that they pasted on the way, then he was telling her about the latest election scandal. Most of what he said to her went in one ear and out the other, making her feel a little guilty. But he was just a bit too much for her to take at the moment. Her stomach was feeling a little uneasy.

They arrived at the Pentagon in good time and got out of the car. They then made their way inside and through four different security checks, up two floors in the elevator through another security check and down a corridor that branched off into other corridors lined with offices. The place was teaming with people everywhere. A bit further down the main corridor they came to a large glass door that led into a large lab, surrounded by more offices.

"Not much research is done actually here but demonstrations can be conducted in there." Kemp said pointing to the lab, he then gestured further down the corridor "just down here is General Hammond's office."

Just as they neared the secretary's desk to announce their arrival, the General's door opened and a familiar bald headed man came to stand in the doorway with a smile plastered across his face.

Cassie couldn't help but squeal and ran towards the man, throwing her arms around him in a hug. "Uncle George!" she exclaimed then realizing where she was pulled back a little. "Sorry. Got a little carried away there."

He just chuckled and pulled her back to him in a tight hug. "That's alright. We've missed you. Your Aunt Heather can't wait to see how much you've grown. She has insisted that you come and stay with us whilst you're in town. She couldn't bear the thought of you in a hotel room on your own." He said as he pulled away and smiled back at her.

"Oh I don't want to impose…" she started.

"Nonsense. Besides if I go home with out you and there is a roast on the table for three my life will no longer be worth living."

"A roast? Beef? With Yorkshires?" she said the excitement of the dinner evident in her voice.

She sure knows me to well.

"Of course." He said nodding.

"You talked me into."

"Fantastic. Now let's get you familiar with the place and I can show you your office for your stay." He said. She said goodbye to lieutenant Kemp, thankful to be rid of him, and her Uncle George ushered her up the hallway a few doors. Unbeknownst to either of them they were watched by someone standing in a doorway just out of sight.

General Hammond came to a stop and opened a door and allowed her to move inside.

"I get an office? I'm only going to be here a few days." She questioned as she looked around the room she had been shown into. It was quite a spacious room with a large wooden desk. It had a beautiful leather chair behind it with two other chairs in front. On the desk was a rather complicated looking phone and behind the desk were two large filing cabinets. Off to the side there were two leather couches with a coffee table in between them. On the wall over looking the couches was a beautiful picture of a waterfall and there were several fern type plants scattered around the room. WOW!

"It's beautiful. But what do I need this for?" she asked turning back to face her Uncle George.

"This is the guest suite. It is used for dignitaries and the likes. No one is going to be using it for the next month or so, so I thought you might as well make use of it. Over the next few days you will probably have to do a lot of hanging around. At least this way you can be comfortable and have a little peace. I know for a fact that you brought other work for yourself to do." The last sentence was given with a teasing scowl.

I have NO secrets.

"Now this is the key to the office and just up the hallway near the lab you pasted is a kitchen and rest rooms. Why don't I leave you for half an hour to get settled and then I'll take you home. Tomorrow we can go over a few things regarding the review for the day after." He said.

"Sounds like a plan. Thank you." She said smiling back.

"I'll come and get you in half an hour." He said and left. She walked slowly to the door he had just left though and slowly closed it. Leaning back against it, she turned back around to take in the room again.

Ok Frasier now we get to see what you're really made of.

Taking a deep breath she pushed herself off the door and slowly made her way to the desk and placed her laptop and book bag on top of it.

She was just running her hand along the large desk when there was a soft knock on the door.