“Tommy, that is not the point,” said Eleanor. “You could have hurt the other boy.”
“I hope I did. I hate this place! I hate it! I wan
t to go back home.”
“Look, son,” began the president, looking around nervously. “We’ll discuss this later, in private.”
“No we won’t. You’re the president. You don’t have time for your son.”
“Tommy!” Eleanor exclaimed in a shocked tone.
“You were covering your dad’s six,” said Reel.
They all looked at her.
Tommy said, “What?”
“You were just covering your dad’s six. Watching out for him. Sons do that for their dads. Daughters do that for their moms. Kids do that for their parents. You were protecting his honor. Covering his six. That’s what we call it in my line of work.”
Tommy rubbed his swollen eye. “I guess I did. Cover-his-six thing.”
Cassion turned to Robie and Reel, obviously relieved that his son had calmed. “Tommy, these are two of the finest Americans you will ever meet. They just performed an important mission on behalf of our country. They’re real heroes.”
Tommy looked suitably impressed by this. His entire demeanor changed.
“Wow,” he said.
Robie put out his hand. “Nice to meet you, Tommy. And for what it’s worth, I got in fights at school too. But I figured something out.”
“What? Better to turn the other cheek?” Tommy said in a sarcastic tone.
“No. I never really learned to do that. I figured out that if I talked to the other guy and tried to learn where his issues were coming from then maybe I could fix things that way instead of using my fists. Whether you win or lose, getting punched in the face still hurts.”
Tommy did not look convinced by this but said, “Okay.”
“You should get some ice on that eye,” advised Reel. “It really helps with the swelling. Just in case there’s a round two.”
Tommy flashed her a smile.
“Let’s go get cleaned up, young man,” said Eleanor quickly, pivoting him around. “And this is not over. I’m sure I’ll be hearing from the school, and you’re probably going to get a detention. I know you’re getting one from me.”
She glanced at her husband and said in a low voice, “Do you still think I’m overreacting? Nantucket here we come.”
As his mother pulled him away, Tommy looked back at Robie and Reel. Robie winked at him, and Reel gave him an encouraging thumbs-up. Tommy smiled again before turning away.
Cassion said hurriedly, “Sorry about that.”
“Kids are kids, Mr. President,” said Robie. “And he has to live in the world’s biggest fishbowl. Not easy.”
“No, you’re right. It’s not easy. I doubt I could have done it when I was ten.”
Cassion walked them to the outer door of the West Wing.
“I want to personally thank you both again. I know what I asked of you was truly unfair and really an impossible mission. And still you succeeded.”
Robie said, “No problem, sir. It’s what we do.”
Cassion suddenly looked worried. “Have you any inkling what the North Koreans might do in retaliation?”
Reel said, “Unfortunately, Mr. President, we present a lot of soft targets for them. That’s the downside to a free and open society.”
The president nodded, turned, and walked back inside.
As Robie and Reel walked back to their parked vehicle, they passed a landscaping crew doing some work on a flowerbed and an adjacent bank of bushes. All but one stayed focused on their work.
This man looked up as the pair passed. He took off his cap and rubbed his brow.
This was not done because of the sweat on his face.
A group of tourists walking along the street on the other side of the fence included three men dressed in polo shirts and khaki pants. At this signal from the man inside the fence, all three started snapping photos of Robie and Reel. As the pair pulled out of a side entrance to the White House a few minutes later, this same group of tourists took photos of their license plate.
Robie and Reel drove on.
Chapter
62
THE JUMBO JET FLYING IN from Frankfurt, Germany, descended smoothly into the airspace around JFK. Min watched out the window from near the back of the plane. She had been nervous about boarding an airplane but had done so when reassured by Chung-Cha.
As Min looked out the window, Chung-Cha gazed over her shoulder at the impressive Manhattan skyline that appeared in her line of vision when the jet banked to come in for a landing.
Min looked at Chung-Cha in wonderment. “What is that?” she asked, pointing at the buildings down below.
“It is a city. New York City, they call it.”
“I have never seen so many tall…” Here her limited vocabulary faltered.
“They are called skyscrapers,” said Chung-Cha. “And they used to have two others that were the tallest of all.”
“What happened to them?” asked Min.
“They fell down,” replied Chung-Cha.
“How?” asked an astonished Min.
Since they were currently riding in a jet, Chung-Cha did not want to answer truthfully. “It was an accident.”
They landed and taxied to the gate, where they deplaned. They went through customs. Chung-Cha steeled herself for any questions that might come her way. Her documents identified her as a South Korean here with her niece. South Korea was a staunch ally of America and thus they anticipated no problems. But such anticipation guaranteed nothing, Chung-Cha well knew.
However, the customs agent merely looked over her passport and smiled at Min, who clutched a doll that Chung-Cha had purchased for her, and welcomed them to America.
“You have a good time, honey,” said the female customs agent. “The Big Apple is a great place for kids. Don’t miss the zoo in Central Park.”
Min smiled shyly and clutched Chung-Cha’s hand.
Chung-Cha too smiled at the agent. Their plan had worked well. The child had caused all defenses, all natural caution to be abandoned. While she felt guilt for using Min in this way, she could not leave her back in North Korea.
They retrieved their luggage and were met by a car and driver in the area outside the international arrivals terminal.
They were driven to a hotel in lower Manhattan. On the way Min spent the entire time staring out the window, her head constantly swiveling so she would miss nothing.
Chung-Cha was doing the same. She had never been to America either.
They arrived at the hotel and checked in. They had one room on the ninth floor. They took the elevator up and unpacked some of their clothes.
“Is this where we will live?” asked Min.
“Just for a little while,” answered Chung-Cha.
Min looked around the room and then opened a small door in a cabinet.
“Chung-Cha, there is food in here. And things to drink.”
Chung-Cha looked inside the minibar. “Would you like something?”
Min looked doubtful. “Can I?”
“Here is some candy.”
“Candy?”