"So Edward, I am curious as to how much you know about me and your position here." I asked, stone-faced, knowing that he hadn't yet been informed of his promotion.
"Well sir, I don't know much about what I am doing here. Before I was brought here I was top of my class at the secret service and I was going to be put as the head of the president's security. But one day, a man came up to me with a signed document from the president and said that I now work for you, and this is one of the most elite positions in the US government." He said, smirking at his achievements. "However, that wasn't really the question," He continued "You asked about yourself, and so far I only know two things. The first, you have a very high ranking governmental position, and two you are very, very, wealthy." I was intrigued to hear how he came to his conclusions so I urged him to expand on his deduction.
"Please, explain you reasoning, I am very interested in knowing."
"I can see that you do not come from much, which is evident from our talk as you got off the plane, talking about your previous career, before you discovered all of... whatever this is. So from there I saw your suit at the will reading, and your watch on our motorcycle ride, compared to your previous attire, money was no longer a factor. I could tell that you knew how to enjoy yourself and have fun, which is normally not a political minded view. Now to the good part, I believe that you found out that you were rich, I am guessing right after your time upstairs at your old house. This was because of how your face had turned from stressed and scared, to care free and happy. You are obviously a smart guy, while some think five steps ahead, you think twenty, if life was a chessboard, and you would be champion. All I can say is that I am very happy I am on your good side." The only thing that I could think of was how lucky I was to have such an astute Young man on my side. Ed is a great addition to my team, I will have a person to bounce ideas off of, have some fun with when I am on the road, and other things that will only be learned in time.
"It is great to have you on the team Edward, consider this an interview for a promotion that I am giving you. I will be happy to talk to you about all that this is. You deductions were spot on, I recently learned that I am now the operator of a group called The Collective, we operate in secret. You are the 53rd person to know about our group who is still alive today. We run everything, the nominations, the executive orders, the bills; we date back to the amendments. The title of "Advisers Chief Of Staff" is now yours, and you will be privy to most if not all of The Collective's business from now on. You will manage any employees I take on, not that I will be anytime soon, you will organize meetings or trips. Lastly, you will be my confidant for Collective business, I can bounce ideas off of you, and you me. How does that sound?" I asked
"Sir, I would be greatly honored to accept this position, yes!" He grinned and shook my hand. At this point we arrived at Ivan's.
"Hey, there is a cool doughnut shop down the way if you want to grab something, or you're welcome to come inside and light up a stogy..." I said.
"No sir, I will hop down the street to a good pizza place! I will be back in around twenty minutes, will you be sooner than that, if so-" I cut him off
"No, I will be longer. Now, go and enjoy yourself. Hell, take a chick back to the hotel!" I said taking out my wallet and handing him a stack of one hundreds. "I forgot to mention, your promotion also includes a considerable raise, consider this part of your bonus." He was all smiles, he thanked me and quickly dismissed himself to go and spend some of his cash.
As I made my way into the Tavern I decided to take a mental note of exits, people, and noticeable sights outside. It was a valuable skill to have in these troubling times, I learned it from job interviews and restaurant consulting, it was to insure that I knew if there were anythings to worry or be cautious of while inside. I knocked on the front do and was soon greeted by Ivan, he welcomed me inside. We grabbed a beer and started to shoot the shit. Small talk at first; weather, sports, and the like, then we got a bit more personal; family, political views, and philosophical questions. However, we soon got to the questions that were important; I wanted to know what he knew about The Collective.
"So I have a question for you," I said, pausing to take the first sip of my third drink, "What do you know about what I do and who I am?"
"Well," He said, slamming back his second beer, "I don't know a lot, to be honest. I was approached around... Gods, must of been thirty years ago, they offered me a large yearly income to keep my business running, to give people things for free, and to close whenever they say so. The paycheck was all I needed to know." He concluded
It was becoming more apparent as to how The Collective has stayed hidden for how long that it has; compartmentalization and money. You can try to keep anything secret, but there will always be someone who will try to dig deeper into what is going on, that is where the money comes in, and cash can buy silence easily. The Collective had this down to a silence. Upon some thought, I decided to keep Ivan in the dark; it would put him and his family in danger if they knew the whole truth.
Then it hit me, the people who were after me were incredible smart, they always thought the long game. They have killed, cheated, and stole for the power they have. I think that my father knew I would go to Paris that night. He wanted me to. He wanted me to get tough, and accustomed to stress on a daily basis. All this time I thought that I was no longer "in the family" per say. But all was the contrary, I was his legacy. He sent me away to grow and get tough, just as he was on me during my childhood. This is when I realized, I needed to act in brutal and unmerciful ways, for the protection of myself and my family. I bid Ivan goodbye, we planned to meet the next time I am in Boston. I decided to shoot Ed a text telling him I was headed home and to stay out, I didn't want company now anyway. I called up the Concierge and made sure there was a bottle of something strong in my room by the time I arrived back.
As I arrived back at the hotel, it was a blur, partly because of the alcohol and because of the impending panic attack, but I had to stop to admire a breath taking women who was at the bar. She was short, of Asian descent, and had a stunning red dress that sunk to her knees. Boy, did that dress emphasize her tits and ass, she must of had rock hard abs under there. My eyes scanned her whole body, my eyes trailing down, and up again. As I reached her face, we made eye contact. She smirked at me and took a sip of her drink through her straw. I couldn't talk to her in this condition, but I noticed that the manager had been watching our encounter so I learn more about her soon enough. Surely enough there was. Just as I capped the bottle I heard the door open, I couldn't talk now, there is too much going through my head...
In order to process all that I have just learned, with a drink in my hand, I decided to retreat to the rooftop, just me, myself, and I. In this big a city, you feel as though you are such a tiny part of its footprint, the cabs whizzing by beneath you, the office workers burning themselves out working through the night, the frat boys drinking their self's into oblivion. Sometimes seeing all of this at once shakes you to your core and makes you wonder what you are doing, what your life has amounted to, and why you are where you are. But somehow, all in the same breath seeing the constant construction, the incessant bettering of the city, it can inspire you to do anything and make you hungry for more. Then there is the sound, it is a distinct sound that gives life to a city. The inhale of fading sirens, and the exhale of roaring buses, the heartbeat of subways thumping beneath you, it gives a completely new dimension to how you view this city.
It is frigid outside, but I persist, knowing that if I walk in right now and see Megan or Samantha then I will completely break under the pressure. That was exactly what I didn't need; to breakdown, and show weakness to those who are already more scared then me. I remembered my ancestor's words about stress, and not letting it get to me. Spending my entire life in a high stress kitchen, you would think I would be well equipped to handle the stress, but you thought wrong, nothing can prepare you for this. The constant worry of being attacked or assassinated, knowing that there could be a threat around every corner. What is worse is that I am just sitting here, I have no experience in this job. Think back to your first day of school, where you worry yourself so much before you start, and then it is fine when you get there. That is exactly what I am doing, constantly hypothesizing possible scenarios, or problems. What made it worse is that I needed to hold all of this worry in, so I don't concern the others. Just in that moment, I remembered that I still had one person I could talk to; my father! I quickly grabbed the metal block out of my pocket and waved the ring over it.
"Hello Son, how may I be of assistance?" Father asked curiously.
"I am freaking the fuck out dad!" I spewed out, possibly mixing some words.
"Son, calm down," His demeanor changed from happy to comforting on a dime. "What is wrong and how can I help?" He asked. I spilled my mind out to him, told him all of my worries, hypothesizes, and everything. Basically, if my mind was an internet browser, I just closed about 1500 tabs. These "tabs" ranged from The Collective, to thoughts on bio-science, even proposal ideas for Megan, everything was gone, and my mind fog had cleared, stress alleviated. After about 45 minutes of my rambling I finally stopped, and he spoke.
