Frightened and annoyed, Janson sealed the enclosure, shut down all
outside terminal linkage, and programmed the series of computers for
self-erase. There would be but a single copy of the transcript,
printed on thin, white computer paper. He worked the fingerboards
rapidly, knowing the codes and counter-codes by rote, until a soft blue
light indicated that the signal had been translated and was ready to
print.
And then he made the mistake of his life. Simply not thinking to do
otherwise, he touched the print button, and the machine began to feed
out paper. It stopped.
"Is that the reply from Stone?" asked Hayes severely. Janson, who had
been walking towards him with the paper in hand, stopped suddenly, and
his limbs were awash in adrenalin.
"Why, yes sir..... I never thought. That is. Anyone could have
pushed the print button. I merely assumed..... I haven't read a word,
Mr. Secretary, I swear it." Hayes lowered his head, assumed a more
natural expression. Took the paper from him.
"Very well, major. That will be all."
Janson saluted and left the room. Hayes, inclining his head as a
signal for his two subordinates to go stand by the door, sat down and
began to read.
Secretary Hayes:
I have agonized over the wording of my response to you, though I knew
right away what my answer should be. As you asked, though you may not
believe it, I have silenced my advisers and listened to my own
thoughts. Perhaps you don't think much of me as a leader, or even a
man. But as you yourself said, I am the President, and I see now that
a great deal depends on my dealings with you. It is also clear that I
must carry the brunt of this responsibility myself. At such a time I
feel very small and unprepared. But whatever else you may think of me,
I am not a coward.
I have made my decision, Charles, and I ask in turn that you consider
your next move very carefully. Much more depends on it than your ego
or mine. AT THIS POINT HAYES SCOWLED, AND UNCONSCIOUSLY WORKED THE
MUSCLES AT THE BACK OF HIS JAW. I have not revealed to the public any
aspect of the rift between us, nor will I do so in the future, so long
as we can now resolve our differences.
I'm trying to be diplomatic. But since I know you take that as a sign
of weakness, I will come to the point.
You have overstepped your authority as Secretary of State, attacking on
your own the colonies of two nations with whom we are not at war, and
deliberately lied in the process, saying that you did so under my
orders. To view the matter harshly, as you have done to others in the
past, you have committed treason.
Damn it, Charles! The military forces of this nation are not your
private army. Maybe you don't like the way I was elected; maybe you
think your ends justify the means. Maybe you hate my guts. None of
this is important now. What is important is the political survival of
the United Commonwealth, and the sparing of further bloodshed.
Please, I'm asking you, DON'T DO ANYTHING RASH. Think the matter
through. You have made veiled threats to me, which if realized, could
result in civil war, or worse. Do you really want to stage this coup?
Do you really want to denounce me, your President, and see how much of
government and the military will stand behind you? It goes against all
the principles of democracy that you profess so loudly.
I am neither historian nor moralist, as you well know, and I am trying
not to lose my temper. But it seems to me that our forefathers, as you
call them, set up their system of checks and balances specifically to
prevent this kind of showdown, and personal grab for power. And they
must have done something right, because our government has lasted,
intact, for over four hundred years. Will you tear all that down
because of your obsession with communism? Even your beloved George
Washington turned down the chance to be a monarch, saying it was
contrary to all that he had fought for.
There is nothing more I can say but to fully clarify my position, so
that there will be no chance of further misunderstanding.
A) I will not ask Congress for a Declaration of War. I will say only
that your attack on the colonies was the result of miscommunication
between us, and then attempt to make reparation to the provinces of
Democratic Germany and Greater Czechoslovakia. I am prepared to take
full responsibility for this 'misunderstanding' myself, so long as your
exploits stop now.
B) I will not disown you, as you suggest, nor call your bluff in
public. I am not looking for a fight, nor will I back down from one.
You will remain my Secretary of State, but immediately relinquish all
military title and authority. I'll not have a maverick heading the
armed forces of this nation.
C) My orders to you now, as your Commander-in-Chief, are to break off
from any plans of further adventurism, and return with the Third Fleet
to Commonwealth space at once.
THROUGH HIS RAGE, THE SECRETARY HAD SENSE ENOUGH TO REALIZE THAT THIS
LIST OF DEMANDS COULD NOT HAVE BEEN PUT FORWARD BY STONE. FOR ONE
THING, THE WORDING WAS MUCH TOO COGENT. AND IN FACT, IT WAS THE ONE
PART OF THE LETTER NOT LARGELY INTACT FROM THE PRESIDENT'S ORIGINAL
DICTATION. DESPAIRING AT HIS OWN IGNORANCE, AND NOT KNOWING WHOM TO
TRUST, STONE HAD TURNED TO HIS VICE PRESIDENT, A CAPABLE MAN, WHO AFTER
LONG AND SECRET CONSULTATION WITH SAM BACON, WHITE HOUSE
CHIEF-OF-STAFF, HAD WRITTEN THE PARAGRAPH FOR HIM.
You may consider me a small and weak man. But I have the power of the
Constitution behind me. And we will also see, should you choose to
defy me, how the American people, including the military, will react
when they find out they've been lied to, and committed murder on your
behalf.