Jack and Jill IV
Chapter 20
Kate was all curled up next to Rick right where she wanted to be and where Rick wanted her. "You knew the FBI guy. He didn't introduce himself and yet you knew his name." Rick skipped that Alexis had told all of them before he had even showed up.
"Old boy friend years ago," Kate told him and sighed since she knew she was going have to explain. "He was an FBI agent even then. He got a job offer and kept it to himself. The day before he was going to leave for Boston and his new job, he informed me. He expected me to just up and quit my job and follow him to Boston. Just like that.
"Really pissed me off. I wasn't his damn slave. I had a job, I had a career, and his only defense was that Boston had a police force also. Like that meant anything. Naturally I said no and I never talked to him or saw him again. I didn't even know he was back in New York. Don't really care, either.
"You have nothing to worry about, Rick. I don't care what he does. I would be a little sad if Storm broke most of the bones in his body, but not that much," Kate said.
"So I shouldn't be jealous of him?" Rick asked her and grinned, not that she was watching.
"NO! Why would you be jealous of that flat head, flat foot, fat head. Did you know, no, probably not. There was a kidnapping, well two separate ones, actually. Will followed the FBI play list to the letter. That got the boy who had been kidnapped killed.
"The second one was a little girl. He asked my captain for me personally and of course, my captain assigned me. Just like last time he followed the FBI play list to the letter. I found her in the arms of the mother's aunt. The mother had kidnapped her own child to get back at her husband. Would you believe after it was all over he wanted back in my pants?
"I damn near shot his sorry ass. He's an FBI asshole. I don't know what the FBI sees in him, but he's not my problem." Kate adjusted her position and laid her hand on his chest.
"So does this hurt?" Rick placed his hand on her chest between her breasts. She knew he was talking about the scar between her breasts. It wasn't her only scar. He had probably seen the other ones. She had a nasty one on her side under one arm.
"No. It's a gun shot wound in case you didn't know. My captain was dead and I was giving his eulogy. I spoke about the man I knew and respected. He taught me a lot. Then a sniper shot me in the chest and damaged my heart but it didn't kill me.
"I spent months in recovery. I still don't know why I was shot. We didn't find out who did it and no one ever tried again. Shortly after that my dad was found dead and immediately after that I was forced to kill that eleven-year-old kid. That was too much for me. I was done.
"That's basically my sad story. Only child and parentless," Kate told him and moved her head to look up at him and saw he was asleep. Kate kissed what she could reach and wanted to say those three magic words but couldn't even with him asleep and not listening.
oOo
Kate had Rick up, showered, swirled, teeth brushed, and got him dressed. Then she did the same for herself and packed for them both for three days.
"Ever been to Brussels?" Kate questioned him.
"Never. I'm not sure just how much of it we're going to get to see, though," Rick mentioned. "Kind of a working trip and I've been on those. Those are no picnic."
"Well maybe we'll get to see something before our meeting," Kate said hopefully. She didn't know if or when they would ever be back again.
oOo
Kate was driving the van with Storm and Rick. Storm had made sure each of them were armed so they were all ready. Alexis was driving the Aston Martin and was out in front, driving interference. Rick was a rich man and someone might decide to try something stupid if they were watching so Jayne wanted his hands free to shoot with.
Kate, Storm, and Jayne each also had their communications headsets. "I have a tail. Black Ford four door about three cars back, my side," Kate told everyone. "Dark windows."
Storm moved to the back and found the car easily. "Unmarked somebody," Storm noted. It was an unmarked government car. Now just who's he didn't know.
"Would they send an armed escort and not tell us?" Kate queried.
"Not if they don't want them killed," Storm responded. "Watch the front, this guy might just be bait." Storm told Jayne.
"Copy that," Jayne replied. "Keep your weapon handy. We have a tail," Jayne told Alexis who instantly looked in her rear view mirror to see what was behind her an the van. All she saw was the van. Nothing else stood out to her. She hated her little weapon but she had it in her lap.
oOo
Nothing happened all the way to the private terminal of the airport.
Then they encountered their first real problem. They found six heavily armed men in full combat gear, complete with backpacks, and they all leveled their weapons at Storm and Jayne who naturally did the same.
"Not this again!" Madam Secretary groaned. "Colonel order your men to stand down!"
"I have my orders, ma'am." He kept his weapon on those two only to suddenly see three more pointed at him and his men.
"For the last time, Colonel, stand down or you and your men will spend the rest of your lives in a prison somewhere like Poland, for example," Madam Secretary threatened them but nothing happened.
"What the fuck is going on out here!?" a new voice called out. It came from the blue and white plane. "Colonel McKinnon, what is going on?"
"I have my orders, sir." He wasn't going to stand down.
"Colonel McKinnon, I am Major General Dennis Dowell and you are hereby relieved of command. You will relinquish your weapon immediately. You have three seconds to comply," Dennis bellowed.
Colonel McKinnon groaned as he freed his weapon and laid it on the ground.
"Lieutenant McGinn, secure Colonel McKinnon. He is under arrest pending a general court marshal. We haven't even started yet and we already have a mess." He couldn't believe this shit.
"We were tailed," Storm yelled at him.
"GOD DAMN IT!" He retreated back into the plane while McKinnon was taken away with his hands behind his back secured by a zip tie.
oOo
It took two whole hours and they had an entirely new combat team. Storm and his group were still all armed and everyone was on the plane as were all five dead bodies, the alien equipment, parts of the fighter, but no Lanie.
The two engines were only just starting to spool up when Dennis found the Castle group. "Something's going on already. I'm sorry for the delay. We were forced to add a pair of F-15s as escort all the way and arrange for in-flight refueling multiple times to keep them.
"Colonel McKinnon has lawyered up and his entire team is in holding. My apologies, we'll be in the air with our escort soon," Dennis assured them.
"Who was following us?" Storm asked him.
"The local police found an abandoned, black, unmarked Ford. It was checked out to a Will Sorenson of the FBI. However, we didn't ask for FBI assistance. The local police are looking for him," Dennis answered.
"Will." Kate shook her head. What was that idiot thinking?
"Flight time is a little over seven hours. We'll be serving lunch once we reach altitude. If there's something you need just ask the flight attendant. They're used to guests. If you find a locked door that will be the only place you can't go. Everything is wide open." Dennis told them and left.
Rick was in his chair right next to Kate. "Will?" Rick whispered.
"I have no idea what the idiot is thinking. We've been over for a long time." Kate didn't get it.
Rick had a question and since he had his chair and they hadn't left the ground yet, he began rolling. Kate unbuckled her seat belt and was up following him.
"Madam Secretary" He found someone that might have an answer.
"Mr. Castle. I heard what happened outside. You have my apologies." If he was there to complain they were on it even from this plane.
"Not that. Well, partly that. Who knows about us?" Rick asked her.
She wasn't stupid. "You're thinking one of us?" She didn't see it.
"On this plane, not likely, but can you tell me who knows?" Rick asked again.
"The President, Vice President, Joint Chief of Staff, Director of Army and Naval Intelligence, Admiral Lotterer, and a few others. We all informed the President at the same time in a secure room. The President requested this visit and we made that happen," Madam Secretary explained.
"And who did you tell after that meeting?" Rick was betting there was another meeting somewhere. They were short on time so they had to tell a lot of people fast.
"We had a closed door meeting with a number of Senators. The President has ordered all states to call in their entire National Guard. We didn't explain to the governors why just yet," Madam Secretary informed him. She also knew these two had Jack and Jill so she needed to answer his questions.
"Someone talked. They got to that military guy and possibly to the FBI guy. The question is did they get to his entire squad that leveled weapons at us? But what did he hope to accomplish?" Rick didn't get it.
"They were the only ones armed. Save for us. Maybe that wasn't what he was expecting? Take us prisoner and while you might have authority they have weapons and you didn't," Kate said.
"Except his second in command took him prisoner," Madam Secretary mentioned.
"Maybe because he didn't know or because he bailed on the idea, no matter how much money he was being paid. Maybe he was simply doing what his superior told him and the others to do until someone higher up yelled," Kate persisted. "It fits what little we know. I was at one time a homicide detective."
"Yes, we know and I'm sorry about your parents. …Dennis. We need to talk." Madam Secretary stopped him and soon the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, the Vice President, Madam Secretary, and Admiral Lotterer, Rick, and Kate were in the conference room having a very important conversation.
oOo
Everyone got to see Jack and Jill first hand as Jack demonstrated just what he was capable of.
They watched him follow a message that used VPNs till finally it reached a destination. "Who is in building H of the Senate buildings?" Jack inquired and began looking for himself. "I find twelve that are assigned to that building." He then proceeded to give them a list.
"Eight of those were part of the closed door meeting," Madam Secretary informed all of them. "They could have told anyone including other senators. It's supposed to be a clean room."
Rick's eyebrows went up. "So someone talked or it wasn't that secure."
"So it would appear." Dennis cursed under his breath.
"Just two F15s?" Kate questioned.
"Two were deemed enough to get there. We have arranged for eight on the return trip along with a number of KC-135s for refueling. We have another combat team waiting for us when we arrive," Dennis replied then sighed. "It'll be hell getting more 15s now along with additional KC-135s."
"You don't know until you try," Rick offered.
"Lottery numbers. You don't win if you don't play no matter how bad the odds are," Kate added.
"I'll be back." He could try.
oOo
Rick and Kate never found out what happened but thankfully getting to the Brussels airport didn't appear to be a problem. Once on the ground they had a train of SUVs for everyone.
None of them actually had to check-in. it was done for them.
Madam Secretary handed out the keys. "All of us are on the same floor. You have three one bedroom suites side, by side, by side in-between the rest of us." She handed out keys. Rick and Kate got one, Alexis another, and Storm and Jayne another.
"You are not prisoners here. However, we can't allow you to walk around with automatic weapons on display. If you decide to go out and act like a tourist you are required to take at least one Secret Service agent with you per room. Their rooms are on either end of your suites.
"Having said that, after our meeting you will be restricted to at least this hotel and possibly your room. If something's going to happen it will likely happen then so we are going to insist that you stay here until we leave.
"It's for your own safety. You can keep your automatics so long as they stay in your room or one of your three rooms. For now you're on your own. Just remember, take one Secret Service agent per room with you," Madam Secretary told them and let them find their rooms.
"Hotel Amigo?" Kate muttered to Rick as they went toward the elevator to find their room. "You're sure this is Belgium?" That had Rick chuckling a little.
It was a lovely old building. Brick with white windows and a planter at each window.
Rick and Kate found their room. Red curtains, red stripped sofa, red headboard, dark brown carpet, and beige chairs. Maybe she was spoiled from Rick's room but while it was nice, it wasn't that nice.
"So are we still going?" Kate asked him since they had discussed this before they had even left home.
"We just need three Secret Service agents. One for each group of us." Rick was willing even with the anchor.
"I'll get the others and our watch dogs." Kate left him and eventually she had everyone in their room.
Storm and Jayne checked their silenced weapons and put them where no one could see them as did Kate. Alexis put her little pink weapon in a pocket while Rick put his silenced weapon between his hip and his chair. He wasn't going to have the strength to hold it for long but he had it if someone needed it. He could always hand it off to someone.
Alexis made sure everyone had what they would need. "We didn't know there would be three of you so we'll have to buy yours when we get there."
Experience Brussels through your taste buds with this tour of the city's culinary offerings. You'll sample famous Belgian chocolates, delicious speculoos cookies, and all sorts of Belgian beers, from lambics to Trappist ales (Including the exclusive Holy Grail of beers - Westvleteren XII). You'll then get to try Belgian whiskey (yes, it exists). At the end of your trip, you'll enjoy a Belgian waffle topped with chocolate and fruit.
"Beer!" Jayne was ready.
"No hangovers tomorrow. The people we will be talking to might not approve," Alexis cautioned him.
"No promises. I've never gotten to do this before, so thanks." Jayne smiled at her. He wasn't sure if not having Alexis for the next three days was a good thing or a bad thing. He was getting used to having sex with her. Her size and pale skin were difficult to resist.
"Then let's have some fun before we inform everyone we're about to enter an interstellar war that's headed our way and can't avoid," Alexis offered. Even she didn't think she would ever be back here again.
oOo
They were down to twenty days as they traveled around. They started at Grand Place, then out into Brussels and stopped at Place du Grand Sablon. Manneken Pis was next which was a little boy pissing into a fountain.
They spent three hours next in Brussels stopping here and there till they stopped at Les Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert. It was there that they got their Belgian waffle to eat with chocolate and fruit on top as well as their glass of whiskey.
Alexis had mostly just taste tested all the beers and even the whiskey, then gave all of them to Jayne who gladly drank them. "Anyone else doesn't want theirs I'm your man," Jayne informed them all.
The Secret Service Agents didn't drink anything so Jayne got theirs though they did eat the waffle. Even they were likely to never be here again.
oOo
The entire event had gone smoothly and the Secret Service Agents and even Storm hadn't seen any reason to pull a weapon.
Now they were in the restaurant located in the hotel. It turned out it was Italian with local Belgian fruit. The space had chocolate booths and chairs and really dark green walls with white cloth covered tables.
The food in the menu was a little more questionable for Italian fare.
Kate ordered sole, Brussels sprouts, shrimp, and clams
Rick chose lamb chops, oven baked potatoes, and morels
Alexis liked asparagus risotto, red shrimp, and stracciatella
Storm decided on veal ossobuco, gremolada, and mashed potatoes
Jayne agreed with Rick and got lamb chops, oven baked potatoes, and morels
And they had three orders of Italian cheese selection by Frederic Van Tricht® for everyone to share for dessert.
Kate got looks as she cut up Rick's food and fed him while feeding herself. But she was used to it and didn't care what they thought. She even cleaned his face if she made a mess.
Since the cheese was small and light Rick managed to pick up a few pieces and feed himself. Otherwise it was all Kate.
oOo
It wasn't their big bed but they didn't use all of it anyway so this bed was big enough. Kate had noticed that giving Rick a shower in the morning was going to be a challenge. His room was all set up for him. This room wasn't.
"Are you ready for tomorrow?" Kate was doodling on his chest while she looked at him.
"It's going to be different, that's for sure. I've never even bothered to look at pictures of the place. One thing's for certain, it's going to be noisy. We're about to tell countries that an interstellar war is headed their way, like it or not," Rick told her.
"Yeah." It meant people were going to die. That was how wars worked.
oOo
It took longer than Kate liked but she had Rick clean, dry, swirled, teeth brushed, dressed, and in his chair. Then she took a shower, put her hair up, applied her makeup, and got dressed in front of Rick.
"Oh, so now Junior comes out to play." Kate had no trouble noticing that he had an erection.
"What can I say, you're beautiful and sexy and he has a mind of his own." Rick couldn't help it.
"Right." Kate didn't believe a word. She freed his erection and gave him a blowjob till he climaxed in her mouth; she swallowed all of it.
"There, now you're nice and relaxed. But I'm sitting on your face tonight for this," Kate informed him.
"Careful. Junior might come back out to play," Rick cautioned her.
"You're incorrigible." Kate didn't believe him but she was happy he was capable of making love a lot now.
"No, I'm horny," Rick countered which earned him a kiss.
"Later, tiger. Now let's go tell the world everything is about to go to hell." Kate let him go first till he reached the door and they found a Secret Service Agent waiting for them out in the hall.
oOo
NATO Headquarters turned out to be a large all glass building.
They were all searched and everyone lost their weapons. It was just the way things were.
They were escorted to a large round room that had a large set of tables set in a circle with three rows of dark blue seats behind theater-style. Rick was given a space while Kate got the chair next to him and Madam Secretary took a chair on the other side of Rick. Everyone else took seats behind them and opened their notebooks ready to take notes or pass information to either Rick, Kate, or Madam Secretary. Storm grumbled that he was weaponless.
An hour later the place was packed and there wasn't an empty seat anywhere.
They had built-in monitors in front of them, however, Madam Secretary had a laptop in front of her. Five gurneys with a cloth over the dead bodies were wheeled into the very center and it was only then that Kate noticed that Lanie wasn't invited. About twenty seconds later all of the alien equipment was brought in and set on one of two tables.
There were four large screens behind everyone on the wall. It was impossible not to see at least two of them. They presently showed the NATO symbol.
"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, babe," Kate joked with him and got Rick to chuckle softly. It was the biggest board meeting Rick had ever attended in his life.