seemed to be mostly Americans or Europeans, a few Asians. Some Brazilians, too, Hazard noticed as he waited for Cardillo's amusement to subside.
Probably from the capital or Rio.
"Let me in on the joke," Hazard said at last.
Cardillo wiped at his eyes. Then, leaning forward across the table, his grin fading into an intense, penetrating stare, he whispered slyly, "I already told you, Johnny. If we can't avoid being members of the IPF—if Washington's so fucking weak that we've got to disband practically all our defenses—then what we've got to do is take over the Peacekeepers ourselves."
"Take over the Peacekeepers?" Hazard felt stunned at the thought of it.
"Damn right! Men like you and me, Johnny. It's our duty to our country."
"Our country," Hazard reminded him, "has decided to join the International Peacekeeping Force and has encouraged its military officers to obtain commissions in the IPF."
Cardillo shook his head. "That's our stupid goddamn government, Johnny. Not the country. Not the people who really want to defend America instead of selling her out to a bunch of fucking foreigners."
"That government," Hazard reminded him, "won a big majority last November."
Cardillo made a sour face. "Ahh, the people. What the fuck do they know?"
Hazard said nothing.
"I'm telling you, Johnny, the only way to do it is to take over the IPF."
"That's crazy."
"You mean if and when the time comes, you won't go along with us?"
"I mean," Hazard said, forcing his voice to remain calm, "that I took an oath to be loyal to the IPF. So did you."
"Yeah, yeah, sure. And what about the oath we took way back when—the one to preserve and protect the United States of America?"
"The United States of America wants us to serve in the Peacekeepers," Hazard insisted.
Cardillo shook his head again mournfully. Not a trace of anger. Not even disappointment. As if he had expected this reaction from Hazard. His expression was that of a salesman who could not convince his stubborn customer of the bargain he was offering.
"Your son doesn't feel the same way you do," Cardillo said.
Hazard immediately clamped down on the rush of emotions that surged through him. Instead of reaching across the table and dragging Cardillo to his feet and punching in his smirking face. Hazard forced a thin smile and kept his fists clenched on his lap.
"Jon Jr. is a grown man. He has the right to make his own decisions."
"He's serving under me, you know." Cardillo's eyes searched Hazard's face intently, probing for weakness.
"Yes," Hazard said tightly. "He told me."
Which was an outright lie.
* * *
"Missiles approaching, sir!"
Stromsen's tense warning snapped Hazard out of his reverie. He riveted his attention to the main CIC display screen. Six angry red dots were worming their way from the periphery of the screen toward the center, which marked the location of the Hunter, "Now we'll see if the ABM satellites are working or not,"
Hazard muttered.
"Links with the ABM sats are still good, sir," Yang reported from her station, a shoulder's width away from Stromsen. "The integral antennas weren't knocked out when they hit the comm dishes."
Hazard gave her a nod of acknowledgment. The two young women could not have looked more different: Yang was small, wiry, dark, her straight black hair cut like a military helmet; Stromsen was willowy yet broad in the beam and deep in the bosom, as blond as butter.
"Lasers on 124 and 125 autofiring," the Norwegian reported.
Hazard saw the display lights. On the main screen the six red dots flickered orange momentarily, then winked out altogether.
Stromsen pecked at her keyboard. Alphanumerics sprang up on a side screen. "Got them all while they were still in first-stage bum. They'll never reach us." She smiled with relief. "They're tumbling into the atmosphere. Burn-up within seven minutes."
Hazard allowed himself a small grin. "Don't break out the champagne yet. That's just their first salvo. They're testing to see if
Jo Gibson
Jessica MacIntyre
Lindsay Evans
Chloe Adams, Lizzy Ford
Joe Dever
Craig Russell
Victoria Schwimley
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sam Gamble
Judith Cutler
Aline Hunter