When the Stars Fade (The Gray Wars) (65 page)

             
“Excuse me
?
”

             
Arthur scooted closer, placing a hand on the seat between them
.“
You got a nice boost in support from your work with the grays, but other than that, what have you added to this administration? Yo
u’
ve been here barely a year and already have a seat in the High Chancello
r’
s personal motorcade? Your understanding of politics is shaky at best, and your kittenish behavior has earned you the respect of absolutely no one. I mean, yo
u’
re either related to a member of the Council or spreading it for a judge to have made it this far. Do you really think you belong here
?
”

             
Adeline sneered
.“
Listen to me, you little shit
.
”

             
“I ca
n’
t hear you. Spread your legs a hair more
.
”

             
“ENOUGH
!”
Jerry bellowed. His nostrils flared and his face flushed beet red
.“
Another word and I will kick you both out of this car and you can walk back to the fucking hotel
.”
He turned to Arthur, pointing a finger under the aid
e’
s chin
.“
And if I hear you call her that again, I will personally ensure you spend the next decade as the personal butler to the Governor of Pluto. Am I making myself clear
?
”

             
“Yes, Jerry
,”
Arthur said bitterly.

             
Adeline wiped at her eyes, quickly settling her nerves
.“
Understood, sir
.
”

             
Jerry sat back in his seat, turning on the television and finding a news program. He poured a drink from the minibar and took a long sip. His mouth twisted into a frown
.“
Goddamnit. They know I hate vodka
.”
He looked over at his boss and friend, but Alexander had
n’
t moved the entire time.

             
The small screen played a spread of local channels. Brent Kerrigan had responded with passion and, more importantly, restraint in his approach to delegitimizing the Burton regime. The media, never a friend to Alexander, had been quick to jump all over his various slips and replay them again and again on the Net. His poll numbers had already slipped, causing a cascade effect for Attac
hé
Paylok. Jerry tried his best to hold back his anger, but he could
n’
t deny the fact that Arthur was right: Alexander was handing control of Earth to the Red Hammer without even trying. But there was no need to chastise the politician.

             
For the rest of the trip, Jerry and Adeline tried to put a finger in the dam. They called in favors from every major news network. So far, their luck had been poor. Most of the media hated the High Chancellor and took no small pleasure in dragging his name through the mud. The entire Council seemed to have disappeared, leaving him on his own to defend the position. Looking out the window, Jerry had to think that even the public were out for blood. The security escort since their landing at London the day before had been nothing short of excessive. Hundreds of Secret Service agents surrounded them at all times, including the unflappable Donald Groves. The old guard do
g’
s eyes never stayed still, and Jerry could see the effect the stress was having.

             
“Adeline
,”
Adeline said, snapping her phone shut as the motorcade arrived
.“
African Media is going to ease off replaying the interview. The
y’
ll give equal air time to the advertisement we knocked out, the one with Kerrigan at that rally in Des Moines
.
”

             
Jerry scoffed
.“
Does
n’
t matter how many shots we have of him shaking hands with the Devil. People do
n’
t fear Red Hammer the way they used to
.”
He looked over at Alexander, but the man was focusing out the window into the steady downpour
.“
New York got spun around so fast yo
u’
d think people wanted to blame you to begin with. Jonah turned the whole thing into a PR bonanza, and we let it happen
.”
He swore
.“
We should have let Gilroy have those troops from Kronos, instead of sending them all to New Eden
.
”

             
Alexander stewed in his seat. He wiped absently at his cheek, convinced h
e’
d missed a spot of greasy makeup
.“
We should have let them bomb the tower the moment Jonah stepped inside
.
”

             
“New York is practically under Red Hammer control already
,”
Arthur said
.“
We had a few reports of dissenters disappearing in the night, and now we barely have anyone inside willing to talk. The Nangolani had to flee the planet, they were dying in such numbers. Red Hamme
r’
s recruitment is up two hundred percent, and that butcher Victor is running the show. They could be executing people in the street, but Jonah walks away clean
.
”

             
“And Kerrigan with him
.”
Jerry felt his anger rising, watching Alexander just sit there and take the hits. H
e’
d never seen the man so broken
.“
Do you have a plan? Alexander
?
”             

             
“What
?
”

             
Jerry leaned forward
.“
Do you have a plan? Any idea how w
e’
re going to salvage this mess? We ca
n’
t just let Red Hammer take over Earth. You do understand that, right
?
”

             
“Of course I do
,”
he said, though his voice was weak and distant
.“
We just need time
.
”

             
Jerry slammed a fist against the window
.“
W
e’
re out of fucking time! If we had six years instead of six months,
I’
d say we had a chance, but yo
u’
ve really stuck your foot in it, Alexander
.
”

             
“Jerry
,”
Alexander said, full of warning.

             
Donald, seated between the two, straightened up. He would
n’
t harm the Chief of Staff, should it come to that. He was simply making his presence known.

             
“I asked you if you could handle it
,”
Jerry said. The vein in his forehead throbbed
.“
I told you that the reporter would bait you, and you still bit that goddamn line like a guppy staffer. And you would
n’
t stop. You must have given him ten good sound bites with which to ream you until election day. To call that interview anything but an unmitigated disaster would be generous
.
”

             
“Christ, Jerry
,”
Alexander said
.“
I got a little heated. We can fix this. W
e’
re not about to let Jonah Blightman and his little band of misfits take over the most important seat in the Colonial Delegation
.
”

             
That did it for the Chief of Staff
.“
Are you out of your fucking mind? Jonah Blightman does
n’
t need to win a popularity contest here. The Federate is a young government. We have little more than a decade under our belt since the UEC crashed and burned, and all we did was put a little window dressing on the system and hope people did
n’
t notice. I know you remember how that conference went, Alexander. You were standing right next to me
.
”

             
Arthur looked interested
.“
The Disbandment Conference
?
”

             
“Two hundred leaders from around the galaxy
,”
Jerry said
.“
All of us picking up the pieces after the Mars shitstorm. All of us standing on top of twenty million dead and trying to keep a civil war from spreading to every planet in every system. And it was closer than we thought. Colorum had skirmishes throughout the war, and New Eden had that sonofabitch German defector. We were
n’
t looking at just losing the government, we were looking at the entire idea of united planets falling apart. Humanity slipping down the drain over a debate on fucking salary caps
.
”

             
“It was more than that
,”
Arthur said, suddenly animated
.“
Those miners had legitimate grievances that the Martian government was
n’
t doing anything to fix
.
”

             
Jerry stared wide-eyed at the aide
.“
Are you serious? Since when do you buy into that propaganda bullshit
?
”

             
The young man sneered
.“
The guild leaders had been protesting for years before the first shot was fired. Unsafe work conditions, the use of underage workers and a whole slew of deaths written off as understandable expenses. And it was
n’
t just Mars. Colorum had worse conditions, with all those poor men drifting off into space when their tethers broke
.
”

             
Adeline scoffed
.“
Tha
t’
s textbook Red Hammer bullshit
.
”

             
Alexander groaned
.“
Christ on a fucking cross, are you two going to argue the whole trip home
?”
His eyes were bloodshot as he glared at his two trusted advisors
.“
Ask two people about Mars and yo
u’
ll get four reasons the war started. I know all of them. Borogrin and his Mine
r’
s Rights movement. The garriso
n’
s crimes against the slums. Warden Ludvig and Emperor Norto
n’
s campaign against the lower class. All of it bullshit of the lowest grade
.”
He turned back to the window, resting his head against the bulletproof glass
.“
And now the citizens of Earth are starting to believe it. Those damned broadcasts, the polls...h
e’
s planned this out very well,
I’
ll give him that
.
”

             
“And have
n’
t we played into his hands
?”
Jerry asked
.“
We need to consider a different tactic
.
”

             
“Gilroy
,”
Alexander said, spitting out the words as though the taste of them offended him
.“
H
e’
ll destroy half of the city if it means killing Jonah
.
”

             
Jerry paced across the room
.“
We could turn over control to Admiral Knight
.
”

             
“Yo
u’
d be better off trusting Gilroy
,”
Donald said, breaking his silence
.“
I served with Knight during the New Eden expansion. He got his post puckering up to the right people. That Gilroy earned his stars by being better than anyone else
.
”

             
Arthur shook his head
.“
The ma
n’
s a lunatic. It will do more to polarize the people of Earth than it will help. If we want to fix this, we need to consider more diplomatic options
?
”