Nothing new under the su.., p.29
Nothing New Under the Sun, page 29
“Discoveries have shown that they could polish a mirror of obsidian, which is hard volcanic glass, without scratching it.” Carter’s enthusiasm was now showing. “They drilled minuscule holes through stone beads, including obsidian, that are so small even a hair-thin, modern, steel needle can’t penetrate them.”
“It will be interesting to read your report when you get back,” the Director responded.
The Vice President moved to the next item on the agenda. “Carter, would you mind telling us about your wife’s research? We are all very interested to hear more about it.”
Carter had thoughts similar to those of Hunter a few moments ago. At least we have his attention this time. Someone must have thumped him behind the ears hard enough to make his feet sting!
Carter gave them an overview of Mackenzie’s research and her goals and then went into a bit more detail about the respirocytes and what progress she had made on that front.
“She has a foundation devoted to the study of ancient medical practices?” the President asked when Carter ended his narrative.
“Yes, Mr. President. She dedicated it to my late grandfather - The Will Devereux Medical Archeology Foundation.”
The three Leaders continued asking questions about Mackenzie’s research and foundation for another 15 minutes. James, Hunter, and Carter were pleased that they showed a lot of interest in her work.
Finally, the Vice President asked, “Is there any possibility you could convince her to come work for A-Echelon?”
Carter smiled. “Mr. Vice President, as I have told Hunter and Jim, my wife has red hair, and I know better than to make decisions on her behalf.”
Everyone exploded into laughter, and the Vice President remarked, “Yes, I understand those red heads can be quite fiery sometimes! Okay, so that we don’t get you into trouble with her, how do you suggest we go about recruiting her then?”
“Mr. Vice President, with your permission I will pave the way for Hunter and Jim to talk to her, but I have to state that I will not try to persuade her. This is her research and expertise, and she will make her own decision. I will support her decision, of course, whatever she decides. That’s all I can promise.”
“That’s good enough for me,” the Vice President said. He looked at Hunter and Rhodes. “You two just let me know if you need my powers of persuasion. We can always invite her to dinner at the White House if it helps.” He laughed.
The President nodded.
The Vice President wanted the last word. “We,” he pointed, including the President and the Director of the CIA, “discussed her work yesterday and believe it is crucial that we help her achieve her goals and protect the information from landing in the hands of our enemies.”
Carter nodded. It was obvious there was a very definite ‘squeeze’ going on to get Mackenzie involved.
***
Mackenzie was waiting for him in the electric cart when he landed at Freydis. He taxied the plane down the runway and into the hangar, contacted the tower at the Canadian airport to let them know he was safely on the ground and gave them his coordinates.
Joining her beside the cart, he took Mackenzie in his arms, gave her a long and lingering kiss and told her how much he had missed her. Then he looked around, “no Liam?”
“He’s out fishing with Ahote,” Mackenzie said as they got into the cart. “They will be back later.”
Carter breathed deeply of the fresh air. “I have always loved it here, and the more often I’m gone, the more I appreciate it when I get back.” He started the cart, “especially with you and Liam here waiting for me,” he said with a smile as he drove toward the cabin.”
While Mackenzie got the espresso machine going, she asked, “So what kept you away from me for another day? Or are you not allowed to say?”
“I am allowed to say, but you won’t believe me.” Carter smiled.
“I’ve known you long enough to be sure it could not have been trivial, so out with it.”
“It was a meeting with the President of the United States, the Vice President, and the Director of the CIA.”
Mackenzie stopped in her tracks and looked at him with distrust. “Carter Devereux, you’ll sleep with Bly’s chickens tonight if you don’t tell me the truth right now!”
“Mackie, I’m not joking. It’s true!” He laughed. “I told you; you wouldn’t believe me!”
“At the White House? … That big white building there in Washington D.C? … The one where the President of the United States lives and works? …” She looked at him, still very doubtful.
“Yep, that’s the one! The White House,” he confirmed. “That big white building there in Washington D.C.”
“Am I really to believe you? Why did they want to meet with you? You didn’t even vote for them.”
“I don’t think they cared about my vote. They wanted to know about the project I am working on, the one I can’t tell you about. But I got the impression the meeting had an additional purpose.”
“And you can’t tell me about that either?”
“Oh, I can tell you about that,” he said with a devilish grin, “but I won’t until I have a nice coffee in my hand.”
She handed him his coffee and said, “I am listening. Just remember Bly’s chicken coop is still available as your bedroom tonight.”
“You certainly know how to put pressure on a fella,” he laughed.
She just grinned; her curiosity had the upper hand.
“I will give you all the minor details later because I know you will want to hear them as well. For now, I suspect the part you would be most interested in is that they asked me about your research and were wondering if you would be interested in working for them. It’s the same organization I work for.”
“Work for them? ... me … how did they come to know about my research?”
“Easy, it was a chain reaction. Jim told his Director, who was instantly intrigued. He then told the Director of the CIA and got him very excited. The CIA Director, in turn, told the President and Vice President. Needless to say, they also got enthusiastic and wanted to hear more about it immediately.”
“So what exactly did you tell them?”
“You mean apart from you being the most beautiful and clever woman on earth?” He teased.
“You like to live dangerously don’t you?” she grinned.
“Okay, okay.” He held his hands up in defense. “I told them everything about your research, what you have achieved so far and what your primary goals are - as close to verbatim as I could to what you gave Jim and me the other night.”
“And how did you answer them when they wanted to know if I will work for them?”
“Well, I told them you’re a redhead and that I was in no way going to risk my life to tangle with you on this. I told them they could take the risk; I am not prepared to.” He smothered a laugh and tried to keep his face straight, but it didn’t work.
“You said what?” She shoved him, and he fell off the couch onto the floor laughing. She jumped on top of him and thumped him again. He thought he heard her murmur something about Bly’s chicken coop.
“Ow! That hurt.”
There was silence for a moment. Another moment passed and for a little while, they were quiet. Carter reached up and undid her hair, letting it flow around her shoulders, watching it glint in the afternoon sunlight seeping in through the window. “My wild Freyda, my beautiful woman, I have missed you so much,” he murmured.
She leaned over and kissed him slowly, deeply, passionately, her hair creating a curtain, cutting out the rest of the world and their thoughts, as they came together. Time ceased to exist for them.
Sometime later, they regained the couch, and he spoke. “Mackie, you know you don’t have to say yes, it could turn out to be dangerous. Don’t forget the warning Jim gave you.
“You wouldn’t work for the President personally, but the organization does report directly to him. We’d have to move down south again. Of course as Liam’s starting school soon, that will be necessary anyway. The good news is, you would be near your parents, and I know they want to see Liam more.”
“I’d have to share my research with these spooks, wouldn’t I?”
“Watch it, your husband is a spook.”
She stared out the window, “Did you really mean what you said when you told me you will back whatever decision I make?”
“Yes, and I told them so as well. You will have my support whatever you decide to do.”
“And based on that, I now have a job offer from this organization?”
Carter nodded. “They would want to review everything - national security interest and all that. However, you would have access to all kinds of classified data few people are allowed to see. I can’t promise you’ll find the answers to all your questions, but you will definitely be in a position to get a lot closer.”
She went quiet for a while. “This requires some serious thought. We need to consider the ramifications to Liam and our life here.”
She got up and walked out onto the porch where she stood deep in thought for some time. Carter knew better than to interrupt her. If nothing else in his six years of marriage, he understood her need to have some time alone to think things through. She stood on the porch hugging the rail while Carter watched her. He had a vision of the earliest Freydis in full battle armor on the deck of a Viking long ship. He could feel the sea breeze, smell the salt, and hear the sound of waves crashing against the hull.
About an hour later, she came back into the house and went up to Carter. “We still have the house near Boston. We’ll use it as our primary residence and Liam can start school in the fall. If that works for you, I’m in.”
“You have my full support,” he said taking her in his arms and holding her close to him.
“Does this ‘organization’ I’m going to be working for … we work for, have a name, or is it too secret for that?”
Carter laughed. “It’s called ‘A-Echelon’.”
“What a strange name.”
“Mmmm” Carter murmured as he kissed her brow. “You will learn more about it in the orientation and training classes you will attend.”
As he expected, once Mackenzie got over the surprise, she peppered him with questions - about the meeting, everything leading up to it, and afterward. Carter had to give her everything in minute detail from the moment he received the invitation: what he was wearing, what the room looked like, what they talked about, and what sort of people are the President, Vice President and the Director of the CIA. She didn’t allow Carter to miss one bit of detail.
Once Mackenzie was satisfied that Carter had given her a complete brain dump, they talked about their plans for the immediate future. Returning home to Boston was sensible because Liam was about to start school, and being close to her parents when Carter was away would be an added bonus.
To say that Liam was not pleased with the idea of leaving Freydis was an understatement. Once he heard about it, he came up with many excuses to stay with Ahote and Bly. The only way they could console him was by promising him they would come back as often as they could, and that he could video conference with Bly and Ahote anytime he wanted, so he could see Nelly and hear about the wolves, the deer, and Bly’s chickens. He brightened up when they also told him he’d be able to see Grandpa Steven and Grandma Mary anytime he wanted to, when they moved back south.
Chapter 41
Not negotiable
A week later, the Devereux family arrived back at their home in Boston. “Looks like the maintenance company has done a good job of keeping the place in good condition,” Mackenzie noted after she did her inspection. She took her shoes off and sat down on the leather couch as Carter brought in their luggage.
During the flight from Freydis, she’d pummeled Carter with questions about the Institute and how it functioned. He told her all he could, but many times had to let her know there were some things he was not allowed to discuss. Besides, he was clueless on many aspects of the Institute. He had no idea how many field agents worked for them or the number of staff and contractors.
Carter had passed Mackenzie’s willingness to work for A-Echelon on to Hunter and James but, at the same time, also told them that before she would agree to come onboard, they would have to negotiate the terms and conditions with her.
As the first step in the recruitment process, three days after their arrival in Boston, Hunter Patrick and James Rhodes met with Mackenzie at a local Boston restaurant. Although Carter was invited, he did not join them. Mackenzie was more than capable of handling it on her own.
Mackenzie looked at Patrick and tried to sum him up. He was probably in his late 60’s, overweight, balding, and wearing wire rim glasses. Not the sort of person you’d look at twice while walking down the street. However, Mackenzie soon concluded that the gentle exterior concealed a sharp and clever mind.
Once they were seated and had placed their orders, Hunter got right to the point. “So, Dr. Devereux, can you tell me more about your work?”
“You can call me Mackenzie. I trust it’s okay if I call you Hunter?”
“Of course, Mackenzie,” he continued. “People have called me much worse.” They all laughed.
“I’m spending the bulk of my time on the respirocyte technology which Carter told you about,” Mackenzie answered. “It has the greatest potential to change the world for the better. As you may have noted in my papers, creating a more efficient red blood cell using nanotechnology would advance the human race and cure many diseases.”
“So how does that tie in with your archeological work on ancient medical practices?”
“The idea of expanding my research into ancient texts actually came from Will Devereux, Carter’s grandfather, whom I believe you knew. With Carter’s, and other’s discoveries of lost civilizations and artifacts, it makes sense to explore the possibility that this technology could have existed in ancient times, especially if you are prepared to admit they could have been much more advanced than we are. It wouldn’t surprise me if they already had this technology. That’s why I’m ‘digging’ around in the past.”
The restaurant was quiet, but Mackenzie noticed they were right next to a water fountain. The sound of the water annoyed her for a while until she realized that Hunter probably placed them there for a specific reason. The noise created by the water fountain created a blanket of white noise, making it impossible for anyone to eavesdrop on the conversation even with a parabolic microphone.
Patrick nodded his understanding.
“So, why don’t you tell me a little bit about what it is you do, and how you see my role in your organization?” Mackenzie asked.
Patrick explained A-Echelon’s mission - to investigate ancient history and identify potential benefits and threats originating from discoveries. He went on to explain to Mackenzie how he saw her work tying in neatly with A-Echelon’s own efforts and objectives.
“Your work has a lot of potential benefits, but in the wrong hands, it could easily become a major headache.”
“I have recently become aware of the perils,” she said while looking at Rhodes. “Since Jim and Carter made me aware, I have become more conscious of the potential negatives.” She was shaking her head, “I just can’t believe there are people who would want to take something as useful as this and use it for evil purposes.”
“Mackenzie, don’t doubt that for a moment. There are people who, for their own purposes, would go to extremes to get their hands on this information, and, as you said, use it to strengthen their own powers.”
She nodded her agreement.
“I’m glad we’re in agreement about that aspect. So I have to ask you then,” Patrick continued, “what would it take to have you come on board?”
“There are a few things we will have to agree on before I will get on board. First and foremost, I need to understand how it will affect my family, especially my time with our son Liam. Second, we have to reach an agreement under which I would be able to preserve my independence while working for the Institute.”
“Good,” Patrick nodded. “Please go ahead and give us your terms.”
Mackenzie placed her coffee cup down. “I suggest that I telecommute from Boston and only go down to D.C. for meetings and research as required.”
“No problem with that,” Patrick agreed.
“I keep the Will Devereux Medical Archaeology Foundation going, which means I will be continuing my research on ancient medicine, and the only part of my research that will come under the auspices of A-Echelon will be the respirocytes.” She paused and looked at them. “And that is not negotiable.”
Patrick and Rhodes both had to suppress a smile when they heard her choice of words and saw the determination on her face. Carter was right about the fiery temperament going with the red hair.
“Agreed,” Patrick said, “but I would like to add one condition, and that is you will tell us about any discoveries you make outside of the A-Echelon project.”
As he saw her body language stiffen and she started to object, he quickly raised his hand in a stopping gesture and continued. “The reason being, we would like to assess the implications and offer you the necessary protection and support if required.”
Mackenzie paused and then relaxed. “Okay, no problem. I can see the logic of that, as long as you won’t try and direct my research or claim it as your own.”
“Don’t worry, it won’t happen. Our interest is purely about national security.”
“Next, I want full access to the Smithsonian archives and any other information you might have for both the respirocyte project and my foundation research.”
“No worries,” Patrick smiled. “I have been ordered by the President and Vice President to arrange that access for you as soon as your security clearance comes through.”
“Finally, I will need Liu Chuen’s help for translation, which means you will have to get security clearance for her as well.”
Rhodes grinned. “It seems we are a few steps ahead of you Mackenzie. You might not believe it, but the truth is Liu has been working for us for a few years already!”
