Disclaimer: I don't own it or get paid for it : ) I don't own the characters and therefore have no hope of making any money off this.
A word of warning: the next few chapters are short.
End of 35
Carl Reese looked at his boss then at Robert Quinn, the thorn in his professional side, and picked up the phone. Gage reached over and put his hand over Carl's.
"Who are you calling?"
"The White House."
Before Gage could object, the conference room door opened again.
"That won't be necessary."
Everyone turned toward the door, mouths open, as the President of the United States entered the room.
CHAPTER 36
"Mr. President, to what do we owe the honor?" Gage asked nervously.
"Mr. Gage, I assure you, I am not here to honor anyone. I understand that you and Mr. Quinn have been engaged in some behavior that is at best unethical and at worst criminal. Which one of you would like to explain why an agent in service to this country has been in hiding for the past four years? Why she felt it necessary to conceal her identity, why she feared for the safety of her family? Why she felt the only way out of the situation was suicide?"
Gage and Quinn looked at each other. Once again, Robert Quinn seemed unfazed by the nature of the questions; his exterior hid his incredible fear.
"Mr. President, you and I have known each almost twenty years. You know my level of dedication to this country; you know that everything I do is to protect our interests and preserve our way of life. You know my reputation."
"Yes Robert I do. In deference to you and to our past dealings, I'll rephrase the question."
As smug little smile crept across Quinn's face as he looked at Carl and Jackson.
"Why did you authorize an American agent to sell secrets to the North Korean government? Why did you allow a different agent to be taken to that same country rather than having her rescued as soon as you found out where she was? Why was that same agent, who I believe was pregnant at the time, later rescued only to later be sent into hiding after being threatened? Shall I go on?"
As President Powell was firing off questions the smile on Quinn's face was replaced by a grimace. His usually calm exterior was unchanged except for the dark red color that was steadily moving from his neck to his forehead.
Powell then turned to Stiles. "Mr. Stiles, again, you have my apologies for what happened to you and your wife. Mr. Quinn, you and I have known each other for a very long time. We've been through many situations and I've overlooked some of your more unorthodox solutions and defended others, but this time you've gone too far Robert. You've become a victim of your own ambition."
As the President finished speaking, four secret service agents entered the room and handcuffed Robert Quinn. Quinn said nothing as he was whisked out of the room; for the first time in his life, he had nothing to say.
After Quinn was escorted out, President Powell turned his attention to the director.
"Mr. Gage."
"Yes sir."
"As of this moment, you are relieved of your duties as the Director of the Central Intelligence. I promised the American people that everyone under my command would be trustworthy, would do his or her best to uphold the integrity of the position held and most importantly, would tell the truth. You've failed on all accounts. You're very fortunate that, unlike your colleague, you will be able to walk out of here on your own power; however, I assure you that every minute detail of your term here will be examined. If even one piece of evidence suggests that criminal activity has taken place, you will find yourself explaining your actions to a grand jury.
Powell turned to one of the remaining secret service agents, "Mr. Smith, please escort Mr. Gage to his office."
"Tom, you may collect your personal belongings before you leave. Give your keys to Samuels there; he'll bring your car around. You can turn in your badge at the front gate."
"Mr. President, may I please say a word?"
Powell nodded yes.
"I apologize. I too got caught up in winning the game and forgot that the process is just as important as the result. Mr. Stiles I truly am sorry for all you've been through. I was not aware that Terri was alive, but had I stopped Quinn sooner instead of going along with him on other matters, things may have been different—for all of us."
Tom hung his head as he finished speaking. He knew that over 30 years service to the United States was over. Robert Quinn had managed to take his job after all.
As Tom was escorted from the room, the President looked at Carl. "Mr. Reese, I want to personally thank you for your hard work and dedication to this country. Mr. Stiles tells me, and my sources confirmed that you were not involved with Mr. Quinn's and Mr. Gage's activity. If you're interested, I would like you to take over as interim director. We can talk about making the position permanent in a few months."
"Sir, I would be honored."
********************************************************************
A news conference was scheduled for that afternoon though within an hour reporters had swarmed the lobby of the CIA. Everyone wanted to know what happened to the two now former agency directors.
The only thing the president promised was that Terri's and Stiles' names would not be mentioned; there was a longstanding policy in the White House that the identities of undercover agents would not be revealed.
As soon as the President left Stiles called his father. "Dad, it's over. I've got my family back; Terri and the kids can come home."
A word of warning: the next few chapters are short.
End of 35
Carl Reese looked at his boss then at Robert Quinn, the thorn in his professional side, and picked up the phone. Gage reached over and put his hand over Carl's.
"Who are you calling?"
"The White House."
Before Gage could object, the conference room door opened again.
"That won't be necessary."
Everyone turned toward the door, mouths open, as the President of the United States entered the room.
CHAPTER 36
"Mr. President, to what do we owe the honor?" Gage asked nervously.
"Mr. Gage, I assure you, I am not here to honor anyone. I understand that you and Mr. Quinn have been engaged in some behavior that is at best unethical and at worst criminal. Which one of you would like to explain why an agent in service to this country has been in hiding for the past four years? Why she felt it necessary to conceal her identity, why she feared for the safety of her family? Why she felt the only way out of the situation was suicide?"
Gage and Quinn looked at each other. Once again, Robert Quinn seemed unfazed by the nature of the questions; his exterior hid his incredible fear.
"Mr. President, you and I have known each almost twenty years. You know my level of dedication to this country; you know that everything I do is to protect our interests and preserve our way of life. You know my reputation."
"Yes Robert I do. In deference to you and to our past dealings, I'll rephrase the question."
As smug little smile crept across Quinn's face as he looked at Carl and Jackson.
"Why did you authorize an American agent to sell secrets to the North Korean government? Why did you allow a different agent to be taken to that same country rather than having her rescued as soon as you found out where she was? Why was that same agent, who I believe was pregnant at the time, later rescued only to later be sent into hiding after being threatened? Shall I go on?"
As President Powell was firing off questions the smile on Quinn's face was replaced by a grimace. His usually calm exterior was unchanged except for the dark red color that was steadily moving from his neck to his forehead.
Powell then turned to Stiles. "Mr. Stiles, again, you have my apologies for what happened to you and your wife. Mr. Quinn, you and I have known each other for a very long time. We've been through many situations and I've overlooked some of your more unorthodox solutions and defended others, but this time you've gone too far Robert. You've become a victim of your own ambition."
As the President finished speaking, four secret service agents entered the room and handcuffed Robert Quinn. Quinn said nothing as he was whisked out of the room; for the first time in his life, he had nothing to say.
After Quinn was escorted out, President Powell turned his attention to the director.
"Mr. Gage."
"Yes sir."
"As of this moment, you are relieved of your duties as the Director of the Central Intelligence. I promised the American people that everyone under my command would be trustworthy, would do his or her best to uphold the integrity of the position held and most importantly, would tell the truth. You've failed on all accounts. You're very fortunate that, unlike your colleague, you will be able to walk out of here on your own power; however, I assure you that every minute detail of your term here will be examined. If even one piece of evidence suggests that criminal activity has taken place, you will find yourself explaining your actions to a grand jury.
Powell turned to one of the remaining secret service agents, "Mr. Smith, please escort Mr. Gage to his office."
"Tom, you may collect your personal belongings before you leave. Give your keys to Samuels there; he'll bring your car around. You can turn in your badge at the front gate."
"Mr. President, may I please say a word?"
Powell nodded yes.
"I apologize. I too got caught up in winning the game and forgot that the process is just as important as the result. Mr. Stiles I truly am sorry for all you've been through. I was not aware that Terri was alive, but had I stopped Quinn sooner instead of going along with him on other matters, things may have been different—for all of us."
Tom hung his head as he finished speaking. He knew that over 30 years service to the United States was over. Robert Quinn had managed to take his job after all.
As Tom was escorted from the room, the President looked at Carl. "Mr. Reese, I want to personally thank you for your hard work and dedication to this country. Mr. Stiles tells me, and my sources confirmed that you were not involved with Mr. Quinn's and Mr. Gage's activity. If you're interested, I would like you to take over as interim director. We can talk about making the position permanent in a few months."
"Sir, I would be honored."
********************************************************************
A news conference was scheduled for that afternoon though within an hour reporters had swarmed the lobby of the CIA. Everyone wanted to know what happened to the two now former agency directors.
The only thing the president promised was that Terri's and Stiles' names would not be mentioned; there was a longstanding policy in the White House that the identities of undercover agents would not be revealed.
As soon as the President left Stiles called his father. "Dad, it's over. I've got my family back; Terri and the kids can come home."