Anthony DeCosmo - Empire

“I’m a firm believer,” Evan said, “that those who make the sacrifices for the betterment of the greater good should be given certain, um, leeway.”

“You’ll find that I’m quite willing to do things that some people shy away from. Call it, a sense of self-preservation.”

“None of us would have survived this long without that, Ray. I understand completely.”

“Good, I’m glad you do. Because dentist appointments and extra food rations are nice ‘thank yous’ for information here or the slip of a tongue there, but a man expects compensation based on the level of his, well, investment. I’m not an idiot, Mr. Godfrey. Not some muscle-head lackey. But I think you’ve figured that out by now.”

“Unmistakable, Ray.”

“Not as smart as you, mind you. You’ve got a leg up on me in that department. Part of being smart, you see, is knowing your limitations. By myself, well, not much I can accomplish. And you, Mr. Godfrey, by yourself, that silver tongue of yours can only go so far, too. Sooner or later the rubber meets the road. Think of that as my area of expertise. At the same time, it’s nice to know I’ve got someone in a high place watching my back.”

“Are you suggesting a partnership of some kind, Ray?”

“Partnership? No, not a partnership. That suggests equals. I know my place, Mr. Godfrey. I don’t see the big picture as well as you do, only my little part. Of course, I’m hoping my little part will be a big part some day. Not as big as yours, of course. But a few privileges here and there, some indulgences. That would be the pot of gold at the end of my rainbow.”

“Risk-reward. Sounds reasonable to me, Ray.”

“So let’s just call this a friendship. Let’s say that. You know, Evan, it always pays to have a friend in Internal Security. All that inside access…all that information…all sorts of friends in the military, and really close to the big brass. You never know how that might come in handy some day, as long as a person knows precisely when to play their trump card. And Mr. Godfrey, I am a very patient man. You get that way when you’ve served time. I can tell, you’re like that, too. Different reason, of course, but another way in which our friendship is certain to last.”

Evan admitted, “I suppose it never hurts to have a few more friends.”

Trevor Stone did not want to sit alone in his office any longer.

He stood and walked, almost stumbled, out the door to the second floor hall. Usually he might find Ashley or JB or even grandpa Benjamin Trump there. A few years prior, grandma Trump might be around but she had fallen victim to breast cancer.

This time he found no one. Grandpa Trump, Ashley, JB and nearly a platoon of security left the mansion to enjoy the nice weather with a picnic in a nearby park. Maybe some ‘normal’ relaxation would take Jorge’s-and Ashley’s-mind off the intruder. At least for while.

For Trevor, forgetting about his half-brother and the chilling answers he provided was easy, thanks to New Winnabow. Chasing away bad news with more bad news could do that trick.

As he descended the stairs, Trevor thought back to that first year after the Apocalypse.

Those were the days.

Yes, those were the days when the estate could have been wiped out by nothing more than a brigade of Hivvans or one Shadow. Their existence had been tenuous at best. Every day a struggle to survive; to fend off starvation or disease; to outfight some hostiles and outrun others.

Back then, he woke up every morning wondering if today would be the last day for humanity. Every morning he feared making the wrong decision as he juggled tactics between hiding and fighting, when to sacrifice and when to make a stand all the time wondering if he had the courage to lead.

Yet the question of right or wrong rarely entered in to the picture. He needed to hide from and then kill monsters and aliens to keep the flame of humanity from being extinguished. No gray area, no ambiguity. Humanity had been wronged and the responsibility to survive and avenge that wrong fell on his shoulders. Easy enough, if he were up to the task.

The gift of the estate gave him a redoubt from which to muster strength. The gift of memories provided the abilities and the confidence to charge forward. The dogs-regardless of the source of that gift-built the foundation of an army.

Failure remained his biggest worry, but not like before. No one force could snuff them out with a sudden blow. If failure came now, it would be a slow and agonizing retreat.

Trevor no longer wielded merely a carbine and a cadre of Grenadiers, he commanded an army. His power had grown exponentially and would need to grow further still to seize victory. With that expansion the lines of black and white merged and swirled into gray with only one shining light breaking through the murk, and that was the cause. The mission. His purpose.

That frightened him. He knew he could send his soldiers into New Winnabow. He knew he could justify the slaughter in the name of the great cause. What kind of man could make such a decision?

So yes, Trevor could order Shepherd to march in there, kill any opposition, and secure passage. He could do that.

And what would happen then?

Trevor doubted Shepherd would refuse the order no matter how much he might not like it, but what about Shepherd’s Captains? What about the rank and file? Would they refuse to kill other human beings? Would they refuse to fight despite their pledge of loyalty?

Maybe he should not attack New Winnabow for that reason alone. Losing the race to trap the Hivvans would be a severe blow; losing control of his army infinitely worse.

If he ordered the attack, New Winnabow would put up a fight and people-men and women-on both sides would die. How would The Baltimore New Press cover that story? Would the little ticker they had at the bottom of the page recording liberated humans subtract out those murdered in the Emperor’s name?

As he reached the bottom of the stairs he heard a familiar voice and it brought a smile to his face. Trevor followed the sound of that voice into what had once been a dining room but now served as Lori Brewer’s office. He walked in as she finished a phone call.

“Right, have them meet me there. From what I hear, Wilmington isn’t in as bad a shape as Raleigh was but we need to move fast. Right. Goodbye.”

She hung up the phone.

“Hey,” Lori said.

“How are you doing?”

“Considering my husband is a couple of thousand of miles away marching across a polar ice cap, I think I’m holding up okay. Of course, that’s assuming they made it to the sub and that the sub made it to Greenland.”

She did not need to add you sent him there. Trevor heard that clear enough.

Lori shuffled papers, discarding some while shoving others into a leather messenger bag.

“So, ah, what’s going on?” Trevor tried to strike up a conversation.

“Well, let’s see. I’ve got to catch a shuttle to Philadelphia then from there to Baltimore then…well, you get the idea. If things go well I’ll be in Raleigh late tonight and Wilmington in the morning.”

“Assessment?”

“Yes, assessment. Lots of civilians, some orphaned kids, there’s a rail link that would be useful, lots of empty housing. The normal stuff and with the mess Raleigh is in I need to go see for myself.”

“Oh. Yeah. I understand.”

Lori stood and slung the bag over her shoulder.

“I have to go and talk to the housekeeper about Catherine and make sure she has everything. I swear, I’m taking care of the needs of tens of thousands of people and I can’t even take care of my own kid without going completely mental.”

She walked to the door, stopped, and asked, “I’m sorry, did you need me for something?”