Address criticisms to [xazqrten@cox.net] ****************************** Susan's apartment Saturday morning: Susan and Charley had just finished getting reacquainted. Susan went into the living room and made a phone call. Charley could hear her talking, but couldn't understand what she was saying because she was speaking Minbari. After the call, she explained that she had checked with the Minbari doctor concerning their sexual engagement in view of his medical recommendations of the previous Sunday. Susan had gotten dressed and asked Charles his opinion. Whistling at his wife, Charley exclaimed, "You can't be serious about wearing that to the cookout!" "Why not? It's a pool party and cookout. I'm dressed appropriately, and I'm carrying my swimsuit in my gym bag. If you want, I can carry yours, too." "Susan! Shorts and a halter? What kind of image are you trying to project?" "I'm going to enjoy myself, Charley. I'm not trying to project anything. I'll say it again. This outfit is appropriate. Are you ashamed of me?" Charles almost choked when she asked that. "Of course not. I'm just trying to imagine what the other wives are going to think." "That's the point, Charley. I don't care what they think. I intend to enjoy this afternoon, one way or another." ****************************** 1100 hours at the Ashley estate: Wallace Ashley met his guests in his front room. "Which one of you is Colonel Jake Carns?" Carns, a man of average build and ordinary looks appeared to be about thirty-five to forty years of age. He, looking like the typical Earthforce officer, even though he was attired in civilian clothes, stepped forward. "That would be me, Mr. Ashley. This is Brad Gordon. He likes to call himself agent to the stars. In his case, it's true." A man of about sixty, slender and as tall as Ashley, stepped forward and offered his hand. "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Ashley. Jake tells me that you and the Wayne woman are very old friends." "I was her flight instructor and her first wingman a few years back. We shot up more than a few enemy fighters while we flew together," replied Ashley. Gordon pointed to two men with him and said, "This gentleman is Dick Nelson. He is a well-known producer, and the fellow behind him is Clarence Buckley, a first rate director of photography. We have some make-up people and other staff with us. We'd like to interview Mrs. Wayne, and maybe get her on video if possible. Sort of an audition of sorts." "She doesn't know about any of this. Colonel Carns asked me not to tell her about it. I can tell you one thing for sure. She doesn't like surprises. I take no responsibility for your well being when you meet her. I'll do one thing for you though. I have some recordings I think you'll find informative and interesting. If you'll follow me." Just over a half an hour later after having seen Ashley's videos and some Carns had brought with him, the group of men retired to Ashley's study and sat down to talk and share drinks. "She's not going to be easy to negotiate with," said Gordon. "She's no young star-struck girl. She has one hell of a day job for starters. I think she may be the one calling the shots. I mean what does she need us for?" "I just thought you should know what you'll be dealing with," replied Ashley. "If I may say so," said Nelson, "I think the best way to approach her will be to go through the motions of shooting a commercial, and pretend we need someone to fill in for one of our sick stars. We can get her to do a few readings for us to see if she has what it takes. I leave the rest up to you, Brad. If she tests out like I think she will then we have a winner. We brought a couple of young nubile types to drape around your swimming pool, Mr. Ashley. It'll give us an atmosphere to work with." Ashley led Gordon and his associates out to the swimming pool. There were four beautiful young women arrayed on lounge chairs. Looking at Gordon, Ashley asked, "Are they old enough to be out of high school?" Nelson laughed and replied, "They are all twenty years old, Mr. Ashley." "I hope Susan doesn't ruin their images of themselves," commented Ashley. "I'll give you that she looked very good when she was in flight training, Mr. Ashley," said Gordon, "but she is what, twenty years older now?" "Not quite," replied Ashley. "However, you haven't met her in person, yet. She can easily pass for about twenty or so." "I am so looking forward to meeting this woman, Mr. Ashley," said Buckley. "If she can pass for twenty on her own, I and my make-up people can make her look young enough to be in middle school." ****************************** In Susan's apartment: It seemed a short time between when she and Charley had traded verbal jabs about the way she was attired and the doorbell ringing. "That'll be my guests. Will you answer the door, Charley?" Charles answered the door, and was confronted by the appearance of a woman of about forty. Looking puzzled, the woman asked, "Is this the Wayne residence?" "Yes, ma'am. I'm Charles Wayne. You must be looking for Susan." Susan walked into the front room, carrying a small athletic bag. "Charley. I'm taking our swimsuits and such in this bag." Seeing Barbara Engles at the door, she said, "I'm ready to go, Charley. Mrs. Engles, I'd like you to meet my husband, Charles Wayne." As they left the apartment, Engles said, "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Wayne." Engles' husband was waiting, leaning on the right front fender of their car. As Susan exited her apartment building, he saw her, and stifled a whistle. He didn't know who she was, but he was sure she wasn't the woman they were supposed to pick up. It was obvious to him she wasn't a general in anybody's army. Susan and Charles approached Engles' car. Susan noted that Mr. Engles was a variation on the "fireplug" school of body type. He was about 175 centimeters tall and easily weighed 90 kilograms, all of it muscle. She thought that a bit odd for an attorney whose firm specialized in corporate law. He was what she would have expected in a football halfback. She would learn that football had helped pay for his education. "Susan, Charley, I'd like to introduce my husband, Harvey. Harvey, meet Charles and Susan Wayne." Harvey shook hands with Charley, and Susan could see him wince. Releasing Charlie's hand, Harvey took Susan's hand in a firm grip and got the surprise of his life. Instead of wincing like her husband, Susan squeezed his hand very tightly. Harvey's hand felt like it was caught in a vise. His eyes widened in disbelief. Susan held his hand for at least ten seconds before releasing it, saying, "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Engles." "Harvey always says you can tell a lot about a person by the way they shake hands," said Barbara Engles. "Well, Harvey?" "Mr. Wayne has a good firm handshake, about what I'd expect from a regular Joe. However, his wife has a grip like a vise. It'll take a week for me to get all the feeling back in my fingers," he said flexing the fingers of his right hand. "Where did you develop a grip like that, Mrs. Wayne?" "I'll explain it on our way to the party," replied Susan. ****************************** In the Engles' car: "You said you would explain how you got such a hand crushing grip, Mrs. Wayne." "Yes, I did. On the Ares, my last ship, we had artificial gravity, a gift from the Minbari. We’ve been able to work with the initial data and devise small gravity control areas, such as a gymnasium area with variable gravity. I’ve been working out and doing all kinds of exercises under heavy gravity conditions. For example, I can do twenty pull-ups in a three-gravity environment. I can do one pull-up in a six-gravity setting. That's the equivalent of doing a pull-up with almost three hundred kilograms strapped to my back. You develop a firm grip doing exercises like those under high gravity situations. You build the strength, but you don't get increased muscle mass like you do when you use free weights." "So, when it's all said and done, you come across as a superwoman to those who have never experienced anything other than Earth normal gravity." "Exactly. It's the same effect you experience on the Moon or Mars." "If you could build a gym like the one you just described here on Earth, you could sell it in a half a heartbeat." "Someone is already working on it, Mr. Engles. I suggested it to my superior officer as super addition to the training regimen of our soldiers. Since things like that are by nature not specific to military usage, I suspect some in the physical health industry will be champing at the bit to license the rights to produce and sell such a system to educational customers and the general public." "You would be a perfect spokesperson for such a system, Mrs. Wayne." "I'm afraid my superiors in Earthforce will balk at that idea." "Why did you join the Earthforce in the first place, Susan?" asked Barbara Engles. "My brother had joined earlier, and I think that my personal dealings with my father prompted me to join. It was my way of telling him he no longer controlled me or my life. After my brother was killed, I got into pilot training. I had a natural knack for flying, and in short order, I was being trained as a fighter pilot. I'm qualified in both atmospheric and non-atmospheric fighters and attack aircraft. I suppose it was lucky for me that The Earth-Minbar War ended before I completed my flight training." "How long have you known Wallace Ashley?" asked Harvey Engles. "He was my flight instructor in fighter pilot school, and he served with me on my first starship. I was his wingman for almost two years." "So the two of you go way back," noted Barbara. "Yes. I was the reason he left the service. He developed a problem with flying in and out of planetary gravity wells, and I reported it. They transferred him to shuttle pilot duties, and shortly thereafter, he resigned his commission. He was a Lieutenant Commander at the time. He hated me then, but recently he said my actions were what led him to be the success he is today. I don't believe any of that tripe, but if it patches things up between us, I won't complain. Wally is a very fine man. Now, it's my turn. How did you two survive the Clark Regime? I can't believe they just let you carry on business as usual." "You first, Harvey," said Barbara. "Actually, Mrs. Wayne, my business wasn't affected too badly. The main effect it had on my business was that it more than tripled the red tape involved with all my transactions. It also became necessary to pay bribes to every 'official' we had to deal with. It was out and out extortion, but who in hell were we going to complain to. The guy with his hand in your wallet was working with the one to whom you would have to submit your complaint. So, we jumped through the hoops and paid the extortion money. We kept very good records, and when Clark fell, we started court proceedings. It didn't hurt to have the bastards have to stand in front of my wife to receive their sentences. It was payback time, with compounded interest." "My job was harder, Susan. I was watched like a hawk, and had to both try and sentence what amounted to many political prisoners. In the event that a real criminal came before my court, they let me do my job. If the accused was one of theirs, well, just let me say that very few of them ever made it to court, and I dismissed those that did, but like Harvey, I kept some very accurate records. Those who escaped during Clark's tenure that came back into my court, and every one of them who was still alive did, were given the stiffest sentences that I could give. Most of them will be old enough to draw retirement pay by the time they get out of prison." "You haven't said anything, Mr. Charles," noted Harvey. "I find that I learn much more by listening than I do by talking, Mr. Engles," replied Charley. "Did you see yourself on the tv news Monday night, Susan?" asked Barbara. "I didn't bother watching. Besides, I've seen myself in the vids before, when I watched the replays of my Voice of the Resistance broadcasts." "I saw some of those. You look very good on camera, Mrs. Wayne," said Harvey. "It's not something I'd want to do for a living," replied Susan. "You should have watched. They managed to include footage of the clowns you took out in the mall, and a few quick frames of your fighting with the Minbari fellow," added Barbara. "Maybe if I can leave the planet for another fifteen or twenty years, they'll forget who I am." "If only it were that easy, Mrs. Wayne. The truth is you're the kind of person who interests people who live humdrum lives. In newspaper jargon, you make good copy. They won't let go of you until you are no longer 'good copy'. Leave if you will, but they will pounce on you once you return," commented Harvey. "Might as well give it up, sweetheart. You look good on camera, and every red-blooded male who sees you wants to take you home," said Charley. "You already won that contest, Charley. They'll just have to drool." Everyone laughed at that statement. ****************************** At the pool party: Susan found the party and people interesting. The wives of Ashley's guests had been buttonholing her and her classmates since their arrival. "Mrs. Wayne, what do you do for a living?" asked a woman in her late forties or early fifties, who had identified herself as Marge Bennet, the wife of the personnel department manager of Ashley's company. "I'm a middle manager for the Earthforce. I serve as a manpower and material manager. I've worked at various levels in this area for some years now," replied Susan. About that time, Susan felt something wrap itself around the calf of her leg and her knee. Looking down she saw the top of someone's head of blond hair. A face peered up at her. She knelt down and picked the child up. It was a small boy no more than eighteen months old. Susan held the child so she could look him in the eyes. "Are you lost?" The child just looked back at her, then he wrapped his arms around her neck and gave her a big kiss on the cheek. Still looking into the child's face, Susan said, "My husband takes a dim view of me being hugged and kissed by younger men." A young woman came hurrying up and apologized for her son's behavior. A young man obviously her husband was close behind. "I'm sorry, ma'am," said the young man. "We only turned our heads for a minute." Susan gave the boy a kiss on the cheek and handed him back to his mother. "He seems to prefer older women." The young man looked sheepish and replied, "Pardon me for saying so, ma'am, but he has excellent tastes in women." Susan smiled at the comment and turned back to her inquisitors. Another woman, Gale Daily, wife of Marge's husband's executive assistant, asked, "What does your husband do, Mrs. Wayne?" Smiling at the way they were trying to talk down to her, Susan replied, "He's an independent consultant." "What does he consult in?" ask another of Marge's friends. "Mostly, he specializes in personnel security, he currently is working under contract to Earthforce." "Oh, really. What does he do for them?" pressed Marge. "It's classified, and I don't know. However, it does pay well," smiled Susan. Marge and her friends all but turned their noses up and walked away from Susan. Susan for her part was enjoying the whole thing, immensely. She headed for the horse riding event that she saw being set up further out toward the back fence of the yard. Out of range of Susan's hearing, Marge and her friends began to discuss Susan and her husband in a most derogatory manner. Helen Ashley approached the small group of women. The women didn't try to keep Helen from hearing their remarks. "Marge. What did Susan tell you she did?" inquired Helen. "She said she worked for Earthforce as a manpower and material manager. You can imagine what that means," Marge laughed derisively, then continued. "She said her husband was an independent consultant under contract to Earthforce. I don't see why you invited her. She has a good figure, but she obviously doesn't have a brain in her head. You can tell the type. Uses her looks to get her way with the men." "Do you know how many people work for Wally's companies?" "Not even an idea, Helen." "If you count all his various enterprises, the total might reach three or four thousand people scattered all over the country. Susan is between assignments, but her next assignment is to the largest single department in Earthforce. There must be almost a hundred thousand people, civilian and military working in it." "What does that have to do with anything. So she is one of ten thousand low level managers. She still doesn't count for much." "In the first place, she doesn't just work for Earthforce. She is an Earthforce officer." "I'm still not impressed," retorted Marge. "She'll be running the whole damned department, Marge. In other words, She will then be Major General Susan Ivanova-Wayne, and all those people will be hers. She will be responsible for a budget of a hundred billion credits or so. How much money does your husband manage, Marge?" Marge and her friends just looked at Helen. "That's why she was smiling at us," said Gale Daily. "She was laughing at us for being so damned smug." "One other thing girls, if you'll come with me for a few minutes, I'll be pleased to enlighten you." Thirty minutes later the women finished watching the videos that Helen had played for them. "She made fools out of us," complained Marge. "Speak for yourself, Marge. You were the one who wanted to make fun of her and her classmates," shot back Gale Daily. The group of women were no longer having a good time. Susan had played them for fools. ****************************** Susan had enjoyed answering the women's inquiries about her and her husband's work. The looks of envy in their eyes when they first saw her had been poorly hidden. Most of the women were near her age. None of them could hold a candle to her in physical appearance. She had also noticed the nymphets located around the pool. She learned that they were part of a group using Ashley's home to shoot a commercial. After her first look, she promptly forgot about them. There were numerous games set up and operating for the youngsters that accompanied their parents to the party. Susan found the horseback riding interesting. She had not ridden a horse since she had been a young girl in junior high school. Even then she had only ridden the horse four times. An experienced rider, she was not. She stepped up to the man giving the rides. "I don't suppose there is a version of this for adults, is there?" "No ma'am, but they have horses in the stables that you can rent to ride," replied the man. Susan thanked him and turned back to the area where most of the action was occurring. She had been here an hour and the thought of trying out Wallace's swimming pool was appealing to her, more and more. She retrieved her gym bag and went to change clothes. In less than ten minutes, she was preparing to dive into the pool. She was concentrating on her diving, which was juvenile at best, and missed the looks she was receiving from the men and women in the immediate area. Susan dived into the pool and swam the length underwater. Because of her strength, developed in high gravity training, she came out of the pool far enough to literally step up onto the edge. That maneuver got some oohs and aahs from the onlookers. A man appearing to be about thirty-five or so approached Susan. "Mrs. Wayne, may I have a word with you?" Susan looked at the speaker, and noted that he looked vaguely familiar. "Have we met before, sir?" inquired Susan. Before he could respond, she remembered where she had seen him before. "Of course we haven't," she continued. "We passed in a hallway in Earthforce headquarters. Your name is Jake Carns, you're a colonel in Earthforce and your title as displayed on your name tag, when you're in uniform, is PAO." "I was told that you have a phenomenal memory. However, there was no mention that you have a fantastic eye for details." "What can I do for you, colonel?" "Please, call me Jake, General Wayne. I have some people who want to meet and talk with you." "I assume it concerns some kind of business." "Yes sir, it does." "Do you think you might bring yourself to call me Susan for the duration of today's party?" "That'll be very difficult. I know who you are, and we don't know one another well enough for me to call you by your first name, sir." "Jake, you're going to ruin this party for me today if you insist on formal communication. You'll be the only person here calling me general and referring to me as 'sir'." It was obvious that Carns was uncomfortable with the idea of using Susan's first name, so she let the matter drop. Susan used her towel to dry herself off then she followed Carns away from the pool. Inside the house, Susan was led into Wallace's den. There were several men there drinking and chatting. When she walked into the room in her two-piece bikini type bathing suit, the conversation came to an abrupt halt. Carns introduced her. "Gentlemen, I'd like for you to meet Susan Ivanova-Wayne. She works for the Earth Alliance." "Jake told me some of you were interested in talking with me. Exactly what do you wish to discuss?" As she spoke, Susan studied the faces of the men very carefully. There was one of them to whom she took an instant dislike. She decided to cheat, so she carefully lowered her mental barriers. There was something about these men that didn't inspire her trust. Everyone introduced themselves to Susan. Brad Gordon looked at Susan and said, "We're shooting some video to be used in commercials. Mr. Ashley was kind enough to let us do the shooting here in his home." Susan looked Gordon directly in the eyes and said, "Would you care to try again?" Gordon replied, "I don't understand Mrs. Wayne. What makes you think I've not told you the truth?" "Wally, did you mention to these gentlemen that I'm a telepath, and that lying to me doesn't work?" "It never came up, Susan," replied Ashley. "You're a telepath?" inquired Carns. "Jake, how can you work for Leftcourt and not know. For Christ's sakes you're his PAO," answered Susan. "Does my being a telepath bother you, Mr. Gordon?" "No. I have worked with some of them in the past. I didn't know Earthforce had any telepaths in the upper officer ranks. I mean, you are pretty high up on the totem pole. You had to be serving for a long time before Psi Corps went out of business. How did you manage that?" asked Gordon. "I hid in plain sight. My telepathic abilities only manifested themselves a few months ago. Before that, I was just another non-telepath." "Jake, maybe we should just be honest with her and let the chips fall where they may," commented Gordon. "Yeah Jake. Why don't you tell me what this is really all about?" requested Susan. "Mrs. Wayne, before we waste time talking, could I get you to pose for me outside for a few minutes?" asked Clarence Buckley. "I can do that, Mr. Buckley." At that they all went outside to the pool area. Susan had noticed recording devices and lighting units, but had ignored them, since they were obviously there for the commercial shooting. Buckley had Susan pose for a number of pictures under different lighting conditions. "Could I get you to read these lines with one of our young models, Mrs. Wayne?" Susan smiled and said, "Of course." The men could see that she was thoroughly amused by the whole event, and was enjoying herself immensely. Finally they were finished and everyone went inside again. It took several minutes for Buckley to get his equipment ready. As they looked at the pictures and the short reading of lines for the camera, Gordon became convinced that Susan was worth whatever it would take to get her signature on a contract. "Mr. Ashley, it's very obvious that your statements about Mrs. Wayne weren't exaggerations," commented Buckley. "Jake, you still owe me an explanation of what this is all about," noted Susan. "It's very simple, General. You are very photogenic. General Leftcourt and I watched the videos of your fights and we had already seen some of your Voice of the Resistance broadcasts. I convinced him that allowing you to cash in on your soon to be newfound fame could be used to help in our recruitment efforts. In other words, some of your commercials can play up your Earthforce involvement. Hell, General Wayne, we pay a fortune to hire actors to do these commercials. General Leftcourt thinks it could be a real boost to our efforts. After all, why use an actress when we have the real thing. I can see you inviting them to join your team, already," explained Carns. "Somehow, I don't feel like I'm properly attired to conduct business negotiations." "Believe me, Mrs. Wayne, the advantage is yours," noted Nelson. "Even after seeing pictures of you in your uniform, seeing you sitting here in a bikini makes it hard to believe that you are a brigadier general in Earthforce." "Believe it, Mr. Nelson," said Carns. "Could we do some more shooting with you reading lines, Mrs. Wayne. I want to try some makeup and some outfits on you that we brought with us. You aren't wearing any makeup and you look fabulous, but when you use artificial lighting, makeup is a must," said Buckley. "I know. I had to use it for my VOR broadcasts. It makes you look ghastly in normal light," said Susan. Everyone laughed at the remark. ****************************** Inside the house almost two hours later: "I'd like some time to review what we've shot, Susan," said Dick Nelson. "I want to edit some of it together and then review the results with Jake and Brad. I'll leave you to hammer out a contract with Brad. Meanwhile, if you don't mind, I want to shop what I put together around. Brad, and I go way back, and I see no reason not to give him first crack at whatever may develop from this. It was Jake's idea to get this ball rolling, so he gets whatever we can do in the way of Earthforce recruiting support while making a tidy profit for all concerned. After all, without the support he has gotten from your superiors in Earthforce, none of this would be happening." "I think you and I have some business to conduct, Susan," noted Gordon. "Jake can sit in on the negotiations. He'll make sure you get a fair deal. Although, I personally believe we'll make so much money, none of us can lose." It took Jake and Susan less than thirty minutes to read the standard contract that Gordon offered her, including all the fine print. Susan knew enough about contracts to understand what she was getting into, even without Jake's guidance. Carns was interested in getting her the best deal he could. If this worked out the way he thought it would, he would be on easy street after he retired, and he could have a good career in the 'business'. Susan wanted several changes and bargained Gordon's fee down to six and a half percent from the standard ten per cent. He let her have her way because she didn't need this contract, and if he was correct, he would not have any money problems for the rest of his life. They had no sooner agreed on the contract than he advanced the idea that Susan should quickly write her autobiography. He reasoned that her life would make at least one hell of a movie, and that due to her youthful appearance, she like a highly decorated war veteran of the twentieth century could play herself in all the parts after her high school years. Susan didn't need to be told who he was talking about. “To Hell and Back” was one of Michael Garibaldi's most treasured movies from that era. She had watched it a number of times with him over the years. It never ceased to move her, and the trials and tribulations that Audie Murphy suffered in life after the war was one of the few things that could make her heart ache. She had seen it many times over the years. Someone could fight and survive through the most horrendous combat situations, and then be completely unable to readjust to normal civilian life. The younger ones seemed to be affected the most. Many hid it very well, whether that was a bad or good thing, she had never been able to fathom. Susan and Jake walked out to the pool. The 'bathing beauties' were gone as was the sound and video equipment that Nelson and brought with him and his crew. It was getting to be toward the time for the real food to make its presence known. They could smell the barbecue odor permeating the air. They walked over to where Charley was talking with a group of company people including Susan's classmates. He must have been on a roll because his audience seemed to be in stitches with laughter. Marge Bennet and her small group of 'friends' were also laughing very hard. Susan noticed that Marge had tears rolling down her cheeks. As Susan and Jake approached, Marge Bennet fought hard to control her laughter. "What's so funny, Charley. Are you telling dirty jokes again?" queried Susan. Charley shook his head no. "Then what?" she asked. "He told us how the two of you met. Then he told us how you came to be together," said Gale Daily, through barely controlled laughter. Susan looked at Jake and smiled. "Ask me sometime, Jake. You'll laugh, too." "Make sure it gets in the book and movie, sir." "I told you to call me Susan today, Jake." "I'll do that," he replied, hesitating as if waiting for a hammer to drop. "Now that didn't hurt, did it?" she asked. It was about then that Wallace Ashley approached the group and announced, "The appetizers are ready for sampling. Just amble over to the grill area and help yourselves. The chef tells me that the main course won't be ready for at least two more hours. And while you may not feel like eating, I'm just short of being starved." As the guests headed for the grill area, Charley stepped close to Susan, and asked, "What all transpired in there today. I saw you in several outfits reading from what looked like a pamphlet." "It was several pages of some very short scripts, sweetheart. They want me do some recruitment commercials for Earthforce." "The fellow you walked out here with, I heard him mention putting something in the book and movie. What was that all about?" "Nothing important. The older man was an agent. You need one of those if you’re going to deal with people in the media." "Deal with people in the media?" "Charley, I signed a contract with an agent. He is going to look after my interests in this commercial making venture. He's seen some videos and thinks I might have an interesting story to tell. There's nothing to it really." "How much is this endeavor going to pay?" "I don't have any idea. It doesn't matter anyhow. I'm being sued for enough to pay off the Mars Colony's national debt. Remember, the Arklands are suing me for everything I could make in two dozen lifetimes and more. Everything I make will end up going to them." Susan and Charley wandered over to the table where the appetizers had been arrayed. The cacophony of odors excited Susan's sense of smell. She hadn't eaten anything since she had gotten up that morning. Charley had fixed himself breakfast while his wife had been occupied with her workout. Looking around, Charley spotted Jake Carns on the other side of the table, putting a selection of the offered delicacies on a paper plate. He had seen Susan talking to him just before she had disappeared into the house, a few hours ago. He walked around the large table and approached Carns. "I don't suppose you and I could talk for a minute, could we?" Carns looked to see who had addressed him and recognized Susan's husband, even though they hadn't been introduced. "I'm sure we can, Mr. Wayne," replied Carns. "Let me grab a few snacks, and then we can go sit and talk." As she stood smelling the odors from the food on the table, Susan looked closely at the other people present. She had been introduced to many of them earlier this afternoon. She sensed that they were regarding her differently than they were earlier. She couldn't imagine why. She also noted that Charley and Carns were moving away from the food table. She decided to ask Charley about it later. Carns and Charley found a small round table with two chairs on a section of the back lawn. Ashley had a number of these set up all over the back lawn in addition to larger tables suitable for several families to eat at. After taking a bite of food, Carns asked, "What can I do for you, Mr. Wayne?" "My name's Charley. I saw you talking to Susan just before she went inside the house earlier. When I asked her about it, she said something about commercials and an agent. She also said something about a book and movie. What's she talking about, Jake?" "Have you seen the videos?" asked Carns. "What videos, Jake?" "Between me and Wallace Ashley, we have put together several interesting videos of Susan. I got the idea after seeing some security videos of her in action, so to speak. Wallace had some he’s had for years. I didn't learn about them until I arrived here this morning with the film crew. It seems that the general is a very interesting personality. I've convinced General Leftcourt that letting her make commercials and play up her connection to Earthforce, could be worth many millions of credits in recruitment advertising. We use professional actors in our present commercial campaigns. I asked why we couldn't use one of our own officers, who just happens to be very photogenic and an honest to God hero. Maybe if you saw the videos, you would understand better. I'll show you a couple of our own then I'll show you the videos Wallace and me have. Last, but not least, I'll show you some samples of what we shot a short while ago with the general. I'm taking the footage shot today back to show General Leftcourt and some of the others involved in these decisions." "I'll give you credit, Jake. It was a ballsey move on your part, taking a chance like this that Susan wouldn't just hand you your head on a platter. Show me the videos." Susan selected some of the tidbits and started looking for a place to sit. She saw some open room at on of the 'family' tables, and moved to take a seat. "I'd rather you didn't sit there," said a young mother with three children, ranging in ages from about four to ten years of age. Susan started to ask why she shouldn't sit there, but something in the woman's demeanor dissuaded her from doing so. She tried to sit at several other tables, but she was rebuffed at each one. She had met some of these women and men earlier and they had seemed friendly enough. She wondered what had changed their minds. She heard a familiar voice from somewhere behind her. "You are welcome to sit with us, Susan." It was Mary Locks and several of her classmates. Susan put her food and drink down then sat down. "Why am I persona non-gratia all of a sudden?" She asked. "It may have something to the videos that Mr. Ashley and that Carns fellow have been showing all of the adult guests," responded Ken Sothy. Susan looked perplexed. "What videos?" "They have videos of you as a young fighter pilot, you fighting a Minbari with pikes and the videos of you taking out the thugs in the mall restroom. There are several others, but I don't remember what they were from," replied Sothy. "They make you look like violence incarnate, Susan," added Mary. "It might explain the young mothers not wanting you around their children." Susan ate and drank in silence for almost five minutes. "I don't understand that line of reasoning, but for some reason, I'm not surprised. I was enjoying the interaction with the children. I feel like I was getting a view of what I've missed while I’ve been leading such an adventurous life in Earthforce." The last statement was spoken in a sarcasm loaded tone. "I thought I saw your husband walk into the house with the Carns fellow, Susan," said Mary. "Any idea why?" "Not even the slightest," responded Susan. "I plan to ask him later." It was almost forty minutes later and Susan was eating her third helping of appetizers and working on her third cup of juice when Charley and Carns walked up to the table where Susan and her classmates were sitting. "I've just seen some very interesting videos featuring you, honey, and had a very interesting talk with Jake," commented Charley. "And what videos might that have been, Charley?" queried Susan. "The ones of you as a fighter pilot." "There are no videos of me as a fighter pilot, Charley. Anything you saw was a fabrication." "With all due respect, you're wrong, general," replied Carns. "These are copies of gun camera footage shot when you were a very brand new pilot." "Jake. That footage was classified and then destroyed, after the required retention period," said Susan. "Ashley made his copies the day the footage was shot. He has had them all this time, and since it's well outside the expiration dates of their classification, he gets to keep them. I dug some more out of archives. It seems that they haven't been doing a bang-up job over there of destroying old files and records in accordance with regulations. In this case, General Leftcourt and I are grateful. They even have the video from the bridge records of the Zeus. They make for interesting watching." Susan just sat and looked at the two of them. "Why me, Jake? What have I ever done to deserve to be exploited like this?" "General Leftcourt and the others don't see it like that, sir. If anyone is to blame, it's me. I sold General Leftcourt on the idea of letting you shoot commercials for money. I got the idea from what you said when you called him earlier in the week. The idea of having a knockout high ranking officer be a pitchman, or in your case pitchwoman, was very appealing to them. They see it as using a terrific resource in a manner that gets the most out of it for everyone involved. I was told that even President Luchenko signed off on it, sir." "I still feel like I'm being exploited." "Yes sir, but you get to call the shots. If you don't like what's being done, you can nix it. Hell, sir, all of us get exploited at some time in our lives. When you were deployed and flying fighters, you were being exploited as was every other member of the Earthforce. This time it's you who is in the driver's seat." "He has some good points, honey." Susan just got up and walked away from them. She had some thinking to do, and she didn't need any help. It wasn't long before she found herself at the place where the horseback rides were being conducted. She leaned against a fence rail and just watched the children having fun. From out of nowhere, she felt a great sadness, then the pain became a sharp stab in her heart. She realized she was feeling the loss of her unborn child. Somewhere in her abstract thought processes, she wondered why she could feel so much pain for something, or was it somebody she would never meet. No answer presented itself for examination. She continued to watch the children, unaware of what was going on around her outside of what they were doing. The next thing she became aware of was Wallace blaring out that the main course was ready for serving. As she came back toward the grill area, she noticed that a small podium had been set up. She wondered what was on Ashley's mind now. The food had been served and everyone was busy eating. Susan had chosen to take a seat a one of the small tables and eat alone. Charley and Jake had taken seats with some of Susan's classmates. "May I sit here?" asked a familiar feminine voice. "Sit down, Mary. You're always welcome. Any ideas about why they set up that podium?" "None at all." In a few minutes, Susan had her answer. Ashley stepped up behind the podium and tapped on the microphone. It sounded with a loud thump. "Well, I see that it's working. I'll make this short and to the point. I appreciate all of you coming out here and making this a successful pool party. It has been my pleasure to host it. My butler will accept your charge card of choice on your way out." There was a round of laughter. "The people who were here earlier were test shooting for some commercials. They were very interested in one of my guests. Actually, she is one of the reasons I'm putting on this shindig. I owe her a lot, and want her to know that I really mean it. Colonel Jake Carns and I have been showing you some videos today. The gun camera videos have never been seen by the person in question. She wasn't aware of their existence. I know she isn't prepared for this, but I'm going to ask her to come up here with me anyway." Susan was caught by surprise. He could only be talking about her. She noticed that people were outright staring at her. She felt very self-conscious. Ashley continued. "She was responsible for me leaving Earthforce. I had a medical problem that wasn't caught by any of the exams all pilots routinely receive on an ongoing basis. When it manifested itself, it almost got us both killed. That was the gun camera video you saw in which she destroyed six Drazi raider fighters, to jerk my ass out of the fire, after having destroyed two other fighters who were intent on killing her. No other Earthforce fighter pilot has ever destroyed even half that number of enemy fighters in a single sortie. Few people are aware of that fact." Susan was trying to crawl down under her table, but was having no success. Mary felt sorry for her friend. Ashley and company had ambushed Susan. She looked at her friend and remembered that about an hour or so ago, these people wouldn't even let her sit at their tables. Ashley looked directly at Susan. "Would you come up here a minute, Susan, please?" Susan stood up and walked over to stand by Ashley. "Ladies and gentlemen, it's my pleasure to present to you the person responsible for me being here today. She is the finest fighter pilot I've ever known. She may very well be the best that Earthforce has ever had. Records searches for credited kills have not turned up any other pilot who has ended more than a quarter as many enemy fighter pilot careers than she has personally terminated. She was the second in command of the rebel forces during the civil, war and just recently prevented the Mars Colony from being destroyed. I personally owe her my life. I'm sure there are a great many others who could make that same claim." Ashley stepped aside and indicated that Susan say something. She cleared her throat. "For those who haven't met me yet, my name is Susan Ivanova-Wayne. Wally tends to exaggerate things. While it's true that I've pulled his chestnuts out of the fire a couple of times in the past, I don't believe I've ever been more than an adequate pilot. I don't think anyone could live up to the accolades he has heaped on me. I noticed that he failed to tell you how much losing a pilot hurt him in those days. You see, Wally has a problem; he's a kind hearted soul to a fault. On another subject, when I first arrived here today, I was greeted warmly by most everyone I met. However, something changed within an hour or so. When the appetizer table was set, I like many of you selected a few things to eat and a drink. For some reason, everyone except for my classmates refused to let me sit at their table. It's nice to know what you people really think of me, Wally's statements notwithstanding. Some of you tried your best to insult me and talk down to me, even suggesting that the only way I could get anything was to use my physical appearance. I don't mean to rain on Wally's party, but I think it's time my husband and I left. I'm sure I've worn out our welcome." Finishing her statement, Susan walked away from the podium and toward the house where she had left her gym bag. Charley got up and followed her. Ashley stood behind the podium, stunned. Susan had unleashed a broadside at most of his guests, and she was probably on target. He knew who some of the guilty ones were. He noticed that Susan's classmates were also leaving, as were the judge and her husband who had brought Susan to the party. He smiled and hid the fact that there were people present whose necks he would like to wring. ****************************** In the car: "I'm sorry to mess up the party for you, Barbara, but I don't like those kinds of surprises." "It wasn't the surprise that set you off, it was the actions of some of his guests. I have a feeling they won't be invited to the next one." "I saw those videos, Susan," said Harvey. "Your performances were most impressive. Ashley was correct. He owes you his life, several times over." "I don't hold people responsible for those things. It was my job. It's just that I do it very well." "Amen to that," added Charley. "I suppose the next time I see you, Susan, it will be in criminal court. I really do feel sorry for the lawyers that are representing those young men. We did enjoy the party. The film people were most interesting and entertaining. I just loved the dirty looks those young women kept giving you." ****************************** In the apartment: Almost immediately after returning to their apartment, Susan began talking into a recording device. Charley noted that she prefaced every statement with a day-date down to the hour. He elected to not bother her, figuring that she would talk about today when she was ready. Several hours later, Susan took a break from her recording. "Charley, I need to explain about today." ****************************** END PART 21>From the author: I mentioned a gentleman named Audie Murphy in this story segment. He was in every way a hero of WWII. He also was a tragic figure. A web page dedicated to his memory is located at, http://www.audiemurphy.com/There is the statement of what he did to be awarded the Medal of Honor. It will make you stop and think for a moment, especially when you realize he survived the ordeal. I've been around for a long time and very little impresses me anymore... His performance in that effort still does.