Читать книгу PIPER'S, INC. 2 - JUDAS KISS - Joaquin De Torres - Страница 5

SIX MONTHS PRIOR

White House

Oval Office

President Turo Marin Sanchez’s glassy eyes glimmered as he gazed at the licking tongues of the fire. With the fireplace crackling and a snifter half-full with cognac in his hand, he settled into his personal ritual of introspection. All lights in the room were turned off while the warmth and glowing dance of the flames comforted him. As per this ritual, he undid his two top buttons, loosened his tie to a lazy noose and rolled up his sleeves.

This was a special night, a memorial of sorts. He turned slightly to look down at the floor a few feet away, an area of carpet in front of one of his couches. It was there that he watched his then Attorney General Will Zachary die. Tonight was the three-year anniversary of his death. It was an occasion that he had planned when he committed himself and his administration to PIPER’S, Inc.

He raised his glass to that patch of carpet in tribute. There was no remorse in his silent toast, no detailed imagery of that night, no sentiment of any kind. Sanchez was too far beyond such trifles. Zachary had to be gone, plain and simple. He was a thorn in the side of progress, and like all hard-Right politicians of yesteryear, he had to be eliminated. How ironic, Sanchez mused, that Zachary’s last dying breath would resuscitate the nation with new life.

“To you, my old friend.” He downed his cognac and refilled his glass.

The exploits of PIPER’S, Inc. had been a boon to Sanchez’s popularity and to his presidency. Since the night of his historic State of the Union Address, the metrics for the nation’s success had been nothing less than miraculous. Every facet of the government and the economy touched by PIPER’S, Inc. had transformed. The cornerstone of the changes was a completely rejuvenated Congress which now shunned lobbyists and worked entirely for the sake of the nation and the voters who elected them.

Sanchez, with the help of an army of Constitutional lawyers, lead by PIPER’S, Inc.’s Jasna Diamond and Robert Baggett, effectively ended the Congress members’ $174,000 annual base salary and gave each member a choice: work for the new national minimum wage of $22.00 an hour, or receive an annual salary of $53,000 - the nation’s median salary. The average number of legislative work days which had been 137 since 2001 was doubled to 274 with no paid overtime. Filibusters were eliminated and a simple majority vote was installed. These changes, for the most part, were written in the New American Constitution, the NAC, designed and authored by Dr. John Belleci and his team of PIPER’S, Inc. Constitutional scholars.

Needless to say, there was an uproar among the long-serving and corporately-entrenched representatives, senators, and the lobbyists tethered to them. They thundered their disgust on the Congressional floor, on political talk shows, and in Op Eds calling Sanchez a tyrant and a dictator who used PIPER’S, Inc. as henchmen to force his agenda. But their rants fell on deaf ears nationally. They received no sympathy from the American people who cheered the retributive moves and demanded publically for those who didn’t like them to get out.

A great number of members did just that, retiring and going back to their private businesses or seeking work elsewhere. This paved the way for new special elections to choose dedicated patriots to come forth and serve. However, those who decided to remain in their seats but were still connected to corrupt industries and dark money, began to disappear from public sight one after another. It didn’t take much thought to realize that their fates were tied to PIPER’S, Inc.; in fact, the public expected it. The organization had cleaned house in Congress, and the populace couldn’t have been more exhilarated. The newest polls rated the New Congress’ performance at 92 percent favorable - a stunning number in a stunning new economy. Sanchez raised his glass to Zachary one last time.

“Will, you will never know how much you changed our nation. Good-bye, my old friend.” He sipped his cognac in silent satisfaction, feeling for the first time in his life, that there was nothing he could not do.