Mo hung up and relayed his conversation with Peter to Aerial and Hamilton. Aerial didn’t want to go back to the White House, so Mo and Hamilton left without her. When they got there, Hamilton went straight to the Secret Service offices to confer with the chief and Mo went to find Kulchz. He located the acting President in the Situation Room. His guards blocked Mo’s entrance, but Kulchz waved them off.
Kulchz smiled grimly. “We’re old friends. Let him in.”
The guards backed off.
“So, I guess you heard about Videl’s Revenge?” Mo said, taking a seat across the big conference table from him.
Kulchz nodded dejectedly. “How do you lose six attack cruisers? I’ve never heard of such incompetence. Videl Lai would have never let this happen.”
“Probably not. As I understand it, Cystrom had his father’s ambition, but not his talent for getting what he wanted.”
“He was soft. He didn’t have to fight to make it to the top like Videl did, but I thought with Rupra Bruda’s guidance, he’d be okay.”
“You didn’t put up much of a fight at the Capitol Building,” Mo observed.
“What was the point? Without at least one attack cruiser to back me up, the American military would have eventually turned on me. It was all over when President Rubio was murdered. They would have followed him.”
“Sorry about that, but we just couldn’t let you have Earth for your sick social experiments.”
“What would you have done if Aerial Muri hadn’t shown up to play assassin?”
“I’m not sure, but we’d have found a way to kill Rubio.”
“Is it true she’s part seafolken?”
“Yes. Can you believe Videl never figured that out?”
Kulchz shook his head. “She’s a very cunning woman. Everyone thought she was his sex slave, when all along she was manipulating him and probably every other man she came in contact with. It’s pretty ironic that she ended up being the Purists’ downfall.”
Mo nodded. “So, Peter wants to take you back to Tarizon to be tried.”
“No! I’m not going to be humiliated before the people of Tarizon. OCE wasn’t my doing. I was only a soldier in the service of Tarizon. I will not pay for Videl’s war crimes.”
“What choice do you have? As soon as the new president is sworn in your power will evaporate. The Purist troops are already on the run now that Videl’s Revenge has been destroyed.”
The door opened and Hamilton stepped in. “The House has elected a new speaker,” he said. “He’s being sworn in as president as we speak. I’ve been ordered to turn you over to Commander General Leek Lanzia for extradition to Tarizon.”
Kulchz banged his fist hard on the table. “No! I will not go to Tarizon,” he said as he stood up and pulled a revolver out from his waistband.
Mo raised his hands. “No, Commander, put that away. You don’t want to do that.”
“I have no other choice,” Kulchz said, raising the gun to his head. “I’m a man of honor. I will not be humiliated!”
Mo grabbed Kulchz’ arm and tried to pull the gun away from his head, but Kulchz was too strong. He pulled the trigger.
Mo let loose and jumped back as blood splattered his face. Kulchz collapsed face down on the table. Hamilton rushed over and took away the gun. He felt for a pulse.
“He’s dead,” Hamilton announced.
Other agents came rushing in and froze when they saw the lifeless body hunched over the conference table.
“We have a new president!” someone yelled. Mo heard clapping and laughter. The agents began shaking hands and slapping each other on the back. Mo smiled and breathed a sigh of relief. The nightmare was finally over, he thought, and somehow America had survived. But what was even more remarkable was that the American people still didn’t know that aliens existed and were living amongst them. Everything that had happened would be attributed to the IJA and Tarizon would never be mentioned. He shook his head and headed for the restroom to clean the blood off his face.