The Peace Proxy: Part 1 Read Online Free PDF

relay his approval of the use of that term of
endearment.
    She returned his smile as she nuzzled
against him. “I shouldn’t have said that,” she joked, “you’ll be
running for the hills now.”
    “I’m not going anywhere,” Garrett replied as
he hugged her closer. They were both quiet for a while. Garrett
could sense her need to hear the same from him, but he could not
bring forth the words. What troubled him most was he could not
understand why. Some part of him would not allow total immersion
into what he knew to be true. He did love Katherine, and the idea scared him a little.
Growing up in boarding schools had ingrained in him an independence
he struggled to surrender. He had subconsciously created a life
plan that included becoming a successful professional before
starting a family. His psyche was struggling with the possible
rearrangement of that sequence of events. The irony of their
relationship was without the calamity that derailed his career they
would not have met, but if he had met Katherine when his star was
on the rise he probably would have already proposed. His inner
debate continued until the silence between them became awkward.
Anything he said now would sound disingenuous. He was disappointed
at letting the moment pass them by and so, not knowing what to say,
they finished the ride in silence.
     
    Promising a night all in attendance would
remember, the World Press Alliance had reserved the ballroom at the
Millennium Plaza for the annual Christmas party. It occupied the
space that would have been the 90 th through the
100 th floors and was renowned for its extravagance.
Neither Garrett nor Katherine had seen it, and each was looking
forward to the experience. The doorman directed them to the two
elevators used exclusively for the ballroom. The lobby was crowded with people busily going about their
preholiday errands, but Garrett saw no one he recognized from the
press corps. They were an hour late; everyone else was probably in
the ballroom. They made their way to the elevator and pressed one
of the two buttons. The doors closed. The acceleration was
immediate and considerable. To let Garrett know there was no
lingering anxiety from their earlier conversation, Katherine kissed
him as they reached the top floor.
    The doors opened into a short hallway that
led to the ballroom foyer. Even from this distance, one could sense
the open space beyond the arched entrance. A door marked with a
caricature of a man caught Garrett’s attention and he excused
himself from Katherine to use the restroom.
     
    As Garrett opened the door to leave the restroom , it stopped in mid-swing. A tall
figure pushed Garrett back into the room with a smooth, but stern
force.
    “What are you doing?” Garrett asked.
    The figure did not reply. He looked over his
shoulder, giving the hallway a quick glance before returning his
attention to the restroom. He looked at Garrett briefly as he
allowed the door to shut. He then checked the room to ensure it was
empty.
    Garrett sized up the stranger as he moved
further into the restroom. He was tall, about ten years older than
Garrett, with broad shoulders framing a physique that was likely
muscular twenty years ago, but had run soft with age. It only took
a cursory glance to see the man had not shaved for several days, and by the appearance of his attire had
not changed clothes during the same period. He was
remarkably underdressed for the occasion.
    “All right, you have my attention,” Garrett
acknowledged. “What’s going on?”
    The man motioned for
Garrett to be quiet while he checked the last stall.
Satisfied the room was vacant, the man locked the door.
    “Garrett Richards,” the man began, “you know
me as Mercury.”
    Garrett was briefly surprised by the
admission, but almost instantly that emotion gave way to rage.
Mercury was the code name used by Garrett’s best informant. They
had worked together for five years but had
never met. On many occasions, Mercury had