“Yes I do,” replied Lela handing the phone back to Tom.
“OK boss, what can I do for you?” said Jonathan to the newest and youngest CEO in the world.
Part Three
Chapter 33
General Powers wasted no time when he arrived back in Washington. He headed straight to the Whitehouse to see the President. The meeting was brief and filled with sincere apologies and explanations. Powers was not interested in all that guff, he just wanted to see the new statement which was to be sent to his staff immediately. The President handed him a draft, he tweaked it and added his own paragraph at the end. He waited for confirmation that the message had been sent and then left without so much as a goodbye. He was in no mood to be cordial.
Powers began to calm down as he approached his office. He had toyed with the idea of going home but wanted to make a few calls first. He had called his wife from Zach’s school and had been stunned to learn that she hadn’t even been informed of his demise. Two and a half million soldiers of the US armed forces had been informed but she hadn’t. The more Powers delved into ‘the incident’, the worse it got. Things were very strange and something was going on. His thoughts stopped as he opened the outer door to his office. His secretary’s desk was completely clear, her papers and personal things were thrown into a box on the floor. The door to his office was closed but somebody was in there, he could hear them moving around.
He opened the door slowly and quietly and watched as a short, tubby man was frantically putting things back where they should be from a pile of boxes in the middle of the floor. Walker had spent most of the morning moving into General Powers’ office and was still furiously trying to move back out. Walker had been informed by the President about Powers still being alive but not about his very quick return. As far as Walker was concerned, Powers was on a plane crossing the Atlantic.
“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?” shouted Powers in his best drill instructor’s voice. Walker just about had an involuntary action such was the surprise and terror of hearing the General’s voice. Powers was a large and powerful man and was going to use every inch of his presence on the insignificant weasel. He had gone too far, it was one thing to take his job, he could be forgiven for that but moving into his office before his body was even found, especially on a Sunday, was unforgivable. Powers expanded his already vast chest and moved within a whisker of Walker.
“I’m just putting things back where they were Sir,” replied Walker, his voice quivering.
“Why would they need to be put back if I never moved them in the first place. A bit quick off the mark weren’t we Walker?”
“No, no, Sir, it wasn’t my decision, the President himself phoned me to tell me to move into your office asap.”
“So you scurried in on a Sunday and started moving my things out?” Powers began to smell an even bigger rat.
“Well that’s good,” said the General, “because you have a new command post. I understand that your previous post has already been filled,” smiled Powers.
“Only on an interim basis Sir. I was just moving back to my office,” said Walker who was now very nervous. He knew Powers had never liked him.
“No, no, you were right to put Michael in your old role, he’s a very good man.” Powers had always preferred Michael, the Vice Chief of Naval Operations, to Walker.
“So where are you putting me?” asked Walker meekly.
“I’ve had to think long and hard about this. A man with your skills is wasted behind a desk. I mean, you’ve got what, 30 years service behind you? All that naval experience stuck in here.”
Powers could see the look of fear on Walker’s face. He was a lifetime desk jockey. Powers could not believe Walker’s personnel file. He had managed to get to the top job in the Navy despite never seeing any action. The biggest sea command he had held was cruising around the Caribbean looking for drug smugglers which had raised a few serious questions in itself.
“I’m very settled in Washington, it would be hard to move now,” squeaked Walker barely able to breath.
“Oh, what I have in mind won’t require you to move house,” replied Powers smiling. “We need a new Commander for the Second Fleet.”
“But that’s a Rear Admiral position, I’m a Four Star Admiral, that would be ridiculous,” blurted Walker whose fear gave into anger.
“Correction, you were a Four Star Admiral,” said Powers letting the words hang for a second. “Not anymore, Rear Admiral.”
“But you can’t possibly do this, I mean you just can’t. I’ll speak to the President,” said an exasperated Walker, his heart pounding. The US Second Fleet was in the middle of the Artic and would remain there for some time.
“It’s covered, I’m afraid, you’re my payback. I can do whatever I want with you,” smiled Powers.
From the day he had taken on the Chairmanship of the Joint Chiefs, Walker had made things as difficult as he could for him and had seemed untouchable. The President had refused many of Powers’ requests to replace the useless Chief of the Navy.
“I’ll resign,” Walker informed him.
“You wish,” said Powers.
“What do you mean ‘you wish’? I’m perfectly within my rights to resign.”
“Fine but if I receive your resignation, I will immediately launch an investigation into your command of the anti drug ship in the Caribbean. I’m sure I’ll find out why, on your command, drug seizures were 80 % less than any other commander.”
Powers had noted the discrepancy while reading Walker’s personnel file and adding this to rumours at the time, he couldn’t help but wonder.
Walker didn’t know what to do. The 20 % seizures they had made were while he was on holiday. The actual truth was that while in command, he had made no seizures whatsoever. Powers had it in for him and Walker was fairly certain that Powers could ensure that testimony would come to light which would incriminate him in some pay-off scandal. He could spend the next ten years in jail. As a matter of fact, he had never taken a pay-off from the drug runners. He didn’t need to, his family were very wealthy. The simple truth was that he was a coward who needed a stint at command to progress his career and had managed to wangle the easy task of cruising around the Caribbean for 18 months.. He hadn’t realised until he arrived that the drug runners were as dangerous as they were. Ten sailors had been injured prior to his arrival and an anti-tank missile had narrowly missed the ship two weeks before that. He decided if drug runners wanted so badly to navigate their waters, then he would just make sure his ship was nowhere near them.
“Well?” Powers knew Walker was a coward and had more than likely never taken a kick-back but his crew at the time had certainly thought he was. They didn’t know his daddy was worth a few billion. Whoever was watching out for Walker was very good. The rumours had been quashed quickly and effectively, a difficult thing to do in the navy.
“When do I leave?” he said resignedly.
“Now. The car’s outside and your transport plane awaits,” replied a triumphant Powers.
“Right this second?”
“Yes, right this second. Oh and you may want to stop and buy some sweaters. I hear it’s rather cold up there. Now get out of my office before I throw you out.”
Walker took his box of personal belongings and walked out. Powers picked up the phone and dialled the Interim Chief of Naval Operations.
“Michael?”
“Yes sir, General Powers and may I just say how relieved I was to hear that you’re OK. It was a terrible accident Sir.”
