Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 16:15:15 -0700 (MST) From: "Katherine R. Freymuth" Subject: Coup d'etat - Chapter 4 Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Chapter 4: Place Your Bets Sam remembered doing this once before but he couldn't remember with whom. He was watching George "Pierce" like a hawk, making sure he didn't have anything to drink. At least, not alcohol anyway. Pierce hadn't had a drop of liquor in two days and it showed. He was nervous, constantly pacing from one end of the apartment to the other. It had taken Sam all of the morning after he leaped in to convince Pierce to at least cut back on his drinking. Eight hours after Pierce finally agreed, he got the shakes terribly. He told Sam he had to have a drink. But Sam goaded him into a bet. He bet Pierce that he couldn't stay away from alcohol for a week. Sam figured it was worth the fifty dollars and the cancellation of Pierce's bar tab to get him to stop drinking. "Ah, Alan," Pierce complained. "I need a drink." "Sure," Sam said. "There's some orange juice in the refrigerator." He smiled, knowing what Pierce really meant. "No," Pierce said, holding his stomach. "I mean a real drink." "You'll be blowing a hundred dollars, you know," Sam told him. "The bets fifty dollars and double your tab if you lose." He leaned back in Alan's kitchen chair the way he thought Alan would. "You know, I could use an extra seventy-five dollars. I might buy a new jacket with it. No, no. How about taking a couple of weeks off and driving to California? I'm sure seventy-five dollars would cover my travel expenses. Don't you think?" "Well, don't start spending your money before you have it!" Pierce glared at him. "I'm not out of this bet yet. In fact, I know exactly what I'm going to do with my fifty." He looked at Sam viciously. "Hey, why do I owe you more than you owe me?" "If you win, I'll be out a hundred dollars!" Sam told him. "If I cancel your tab, I'll be out fifty because of how much that booze costs. We've got to be fair about this. Either I'm out a hundred or your out a hundred." Pierce glared at him. He didn't like it but he accepted it, even more so now that he was certain he'd get the raw deal if he lost. "Where's that orange juice?" he demanded. "In the 'frig', just like I told you," Sam told him as a familiar and welcome sound came to his ears. "Hi, Sam," Al said, his voice a bit melancholy. "How's it going?" Al looked at Pierce carefully. "He looks a little shaky. Does that mean he's winning the bet or you are?" Pierce opened the refrigerator and took out a can of Seven-Up and the orange juice. When Pierce's back was turned to Sam, Sam quickly pointed to Pierce, answering Al's question. "And that's good. Right?" Al asked. "That's good," Sam answered. "Is it?" Pierce said to Sam's words as he mixed the Seven-Up and the orange juice. "Yeah," Sam answered. "I used to make that all the time." "Let me guess," Al put in. "Seven-Up and orange juice. Or apple juice. Or any other kind of juice you can think of." He looked at Sam. "Thanks to you, I can never look at fruit juice without wondering if it's spiked with Seven-Up." Sam smiled. "Say, Pierce. There's a ball game coming on soon. How about I order a pizza and we can sit and watch the game." Pierce glared at him. "How about I go home? You know. Home? I haven't been there in three days." Sam gave him a mischeivous smile. "Sure, you can go home. But if you do, you'll forfeit and then you'll owe me seventy-five dollars." Al smiled. "I don't think I ever want to get into a bet with you. You're low, Sam!" Pierce just stared Sam down and went into the living room, leaving Sam and Al alone. "It's going to work, Al," Sam told him with a smile. "Pierce is going to stop drinking and he won't die in a car accident." "That's great, Sam," Al said with a smile. "Looks like you've got everything under control." Sam looked at Al carefully. Despite his cheerful words, Al looked deeply saddened. "What's the matter?" Sam questioned. Al looked at Sam. "It shows, huh?" He sighed. "You remember Bill Fairbanks?" Sam shook his head. "He was the Director of the Star Bright Program when you came on," Al reminded. "He was also a really good friend of mine. I guess I'm still a little moddy after the memorial service." "He died?" "Yeah," Al answered quietly. He raised the handlink. "Listen. I've got to go. Just keep at George or Pierce or whatever name he uses." He opened the Imaging Chamber door. "I'm positive you can do this, Sam." With that, he closed the door. ****************** The man was tired. He was tired of the waiting. He was ready; his people were not. They were still being trained by those who had already been trained. However, even though many were being trained, they were still short on men. They had only thirty-five men, each loyal to him for one reason: money. There were exceptions, though. Colonel Richard Stewart was one. Another was Lieutenant Genine Taylor, who preferred to be called by her rank. She had started out as simply his mistress but she turned out to be an excellent officer and soldier. Now, she was assisting in the training of his men. "Lieutenant," the man called her over to him. In response, she ordered a drill to the new recruits and went over to her commanding officer. "Yes, sir," she said with a salute. "Report," he ordered. "Ten more recruits," she told himm with a smile. "Five more and you'll have your fifty." The man smiled. "Excellent." He approached her seductively. "How can I repay you?" She looked at him seriously. "Just doing my job, sir." His smile widened. "I like that." Taylor lowered her head. "Sir, I don't think it would be appropriate to act in such a manner at this time." She looked at him. "Believe me, it's tempting but it just wouldn't work out." "You're falling for the Colonel, aren't you?" She laughed. "The man can't possibly compare to you, Darling," she told him with well-hidden disgust. "Then, come to me tonight," the man ordered. "Prove your loyalty to me." She thought for a moment. "I don't think sleeping with you is much of a way to prove a loyalty to you that I have already proven through my work." She huffed. "You won't even let me make a phone call without monitoring it." "Genine," the man told her. "Just because I make love to you and consider you my second-in-command doesn't mean I trust you." "Well, then," she told him. "How can I gain your trust?" "What do you think?" the man asked. Taylor gave her a firm look. She shook her head. "If you don't trust me now, you'll never trust me. And, unlike your last lover, I'm not a prostitute." He glared at her. She could tell he wanted to strike her for insolence. "Not while your men are watching, sir," she told him. "It would give you a bad name and how loyal do you think they'd be to you then?" The man smiled. "Now, I trust you. I trust people who think of their commanding officers over themselves." Taylor shook her head. "You're just saying that, sir. Now, if you will excuse me, sir, I have some men to train." The man nodded with approval as Taylor marched back to the recruits in training. ---------------------------- Short chapter, yes. But there's more to come. Kat