Chapter 18

“Um, we normally don’t get confessions quite like that.”

I shrugged. “It’s not like you can actually do anything with it, Captain Green. Remember those two little words I used earlier? Not ‘President Reagan,’ but ‘Diplomatic Immunity?’ I’m not saying I’m even thinking of it, but I could literally take your pistol, shoot Lieutenant Lefferts right here in front of you, and there’s not a damned thing you could legally do to me.”

He shook his head. “That’s one of the reasons Sacramento sent me. I deal with VIPs all the time. Diplomatic immunity only extends so far.”

“You’re right, it does for regular diplomats, such as ambassadors, or for that matter, even someone like Queen Elizabeth. She’s the monarch of her nation, but she’s not the absolute ruler and owner of everything that is Great Britain and the Commonwealth. The State Department can ask for the home country to waive immunity from prosecution, and the British Parliament could actually grant that. King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, is the absolute ruler of his nation and effectively owns all of it. So, let’s say his brother, Prince Nayef, comes to the United States and kills someone. You could appeal to the King to waive his immunity and try him for that crime. You can’t touch King Fahd, or due to the way things are written at the Federal level, anyone he orders to do something while here.”

Lefferts leaned back. “You know, I thought that comment ‘It’s good to be the King’ was just a joke in Sports Illustrated, but it’s really not, is it?”

I finished my drink, crushed the can, and tossed it into the trash. “Gentlemen, keep in mind that I really don’t go out of my way to irritate people.” I paused, then grinned sheepishly. “Well, except for shooting artillery at Fremont. A severe amount of adult beverages were involved, as it was one of my wives’ birthday, and another of my wives that is the Priestess of the Sacred Souls had performed fifteen marriage ceremonies earlier in the day as well. Plus it was an early Fourth of July party for, well, everyone, since I was going to be out of the country then.”

My expression changed. “I’d like to say that I’m just a regular teenager from Kansas, but that’s not true. Not when you consider my accomplishments and my responsibility. You were right when you said I don’t suffer fools lightly, and right now Sacramento seems to be full of fools if they sent the two of you here to either intimidate or threaten me.”

Green nodded. “I can agree with pretty much everything you said. To be blunt, it chaps their ass that you can do anything you want. All of your land is off limits, and when the reporters were shot and the paparazzi were killed, they went berserk. You also have Moffett Field, and you’re getting military bases downstate that they had planned on doing something they consider productive with the land themselves. This is Stanford and not your own land, but we still can’t do anything. The CHP shit a brick when your armed attack helicopter threatened their officer.”

I shook my head. “I told him to run my plates and look at my Federation ID card.”

Snorting, Green continued, “That doesn’t surprise me. They don’t like you. I’d even go so far as to say that they hate you. I didn’t say that they will do everything they can to make your life miserable here.”

I think they were both shocked when all I did was laugh for several seconds. “You might want to pass up the chain of command to Sacramento a little word of advice. The people of Hutchinson and the State of Kansas learned it quite well. It’s very simple, really. Don’t fuck with me or mine. If you have time, you might want to drive up to what’s left of the Maximovich estate, and count the bodies. Especially the ones that aren’t in one piece. Do both of you know who the Gurkha are?”

“Those are the warriors from India that fight for Britain, right? Carry those long knives that are almost swords, if I remember right,” Lefferts said.

“That’s right. I have a regiment of them under my command, and they will follow my orders to their death.” They both opened their eyes wide. “I don’t make threats. I don’t have to. I am the threat, gentlemen. I have sixteen hundred Gurkha warriors to back my words up. Go to the Maximovich house and see that I am not afraid to use any or all of them.”

They both quietly got up and left. I stayed with my guards and used my hearing. They were at the other end of the hall when Green whispered, “Fuck. I think I’m going to retire if they order me to go see that kid again. He’s dangerous!”

Lefferts whispered back, “Let’s go up and take some pictures. Maybe take a leg or head back to headquarters and put it on the desk of the assholes that...” The door closed and I lost them over the regular background noise.

I looked at each of the guards still present. “Any comments, gentlemen?”

They looked at each other, then one of them said, “Sir, let us know when you want some ice water from hell. We’ll get it for you.”

I nodded, then headed for home. Stephen walked with me, just being quiet. He did have a slight smile on his face, though. One of the other guards followed me as an escort to the door, where both Sayel and Yagyu were waiting to guard me the rest of the way.

Once we’d gotten on our golf cart and driven out of Stephen’s earshot, I asked, “Air guns and poison, huh? I didn’t know we had Mendoza on our payroll.”

“We don’t,” Yagyu answered. “It’s a very bad crime to be caught with a real gun in Japan. Even pellet rifles and BB guns. Japan came up with air guns that fire hollow plastic pellets at up to two hundred meters per second. Not enough to penetrate most clothing, but more than enough to penetrate skin from only a few feet; especially when firing a solid object or injected with water and frozen instead. William knew about the poison combination. The curare paralyzes them so they can’t make noise, then the strychnine kills them. Dry ice as the base, actually, since it melts almost before it hits the skin, for an easy distribution medium. We did use some Ice-X to make sure the ammunition didn’t melt in the magazines.”

“Okay. Thank you for dealing with that for me.”

“You are our Master. We are yours to command. It was nice that it was both a challenge and helped deal with a social issue that should never have happened. On behalf of the three of us, thank you,” Yagyu said. Sayel nodded his agreement.

At dinner, Margie told me that we’d have two people from Lilly that would be out next week to discuss their technology with us. They were cautiously excited, because they were the ones who’d found the connection during their Humulin testing. So they knew I could make something.

Tuesday morning, I went over to the materials lab. We now had two guards set up there as well, even though no one had tried to break into it. I spent some time going over the upcoming experiments with my new lab assistants. In the afternoon, I dropped in at the Linear Accelerator lab, to familiarize myself with the equipment they had available. I got into a discussion with a couple of researchers that went on so long, Dave finally had to remind me about supper.

Jeremy had news for me Wednesday at breakfast. I would have to fly to Las Vegas this evening, spend the night there, and fly out to Homey Airport and Groom Lake tomorrow morning. He was amused by the whole thing.

“This is the perfect example of a government program that doesn’t quite understand the world isn’t what it was last year. They first told me they had no idea what I was talking about, that Area 51 didn’t exist. I slowly worked my way up the chain of command. Mostly because I actually am a US Marshal, they realized I have certain legal authority and I actually can go anywhere in the US I need to if I’m on a case. I finally ended up talking to a three star General who admitted that there was a secret testing facility for the Air Force at Homey Airport, but that I wasn’t going to just get to bring some ‘kid’ for a visit, and was I out of my mind?

“That’s when Elroy’s sharing of a certain phone number came in handy. The President was in a meeting, but Vice-President Kirkpatrick was free. I don’t think I’ve ever quite had the pleasure of listening to such a use of invective and descriptive language from anyone who wasn’t a sailor. I’m a little surprised that the phone lines between Nevada and Washington didn’t melt, from the amount of heat she put through them. It seems that President Reagan issued an order that you – and anyone you chose – have full and completely unrestricted access to Area 51. They pulled the little stunt that since that place doesn’t officially exist, you don’t have access to it.

“Needless to say, the Vice-President didn’t like it in the least, so with the Air Force General and me still on the line, she had the White House switchboard hook up both General Vessey, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and Caspar Weinberger, Secretary of Defense. They both knew about the orders and were somewhere between aghast and appalled that the guys in charge of Area 51 had tried to pull this stunt, considering we’re only talking about the fate of the entire planet. It turns out that both Northrop and Lockheed are working on stealth aircraft out there. They already have a stealth fighter and are working on a stealth bomber.”

Dave put his coffee down, turned and looked at Jeremy. “And they just came out and told you this on a phone call?”

“Two phone calls, actually. The first one where I told the Vice-President what the problem was, and the second one where the Secretary of Defense called back and said to tell Minister Lewis that while he can’t fly your personal 747 there on this short of notice – and he’s not picking on you, they don’t even let Air Force One out there without advance planning – but however many people you want to cram onto a 737 flight out of McCarran tomorrow morning is fine. Apparently, they have their own private terminal and fleet of airplanes. If you actually need or want to take anything out of there ... he gave me a number for you to call, and they’ll get it authorized. I know it’s stupid, but without us sending the Gurkhas in, it’s the closest they’ll allow. Um, apparently the President wasn’t actually in a meeting, though, he’s currently in Bethesda Naval Hospital, undergoing final testing before he starts the cleansing for colon cancer surgery on Sunday. It’s minor, but he is seventy-four years old.”

“Who’s that old?” came from the doorway.

“Mike! Good to see you’re still alive,” Jeremy said. “Reagan. He’s undergoing minor colon cancer surgery on Sunday.”

Cally ran over and gave her Dad a hug. Right behind him was Karen. Cally looked up at her, saw her smile, and gave her a hug, too.

“Sorry, but ... oh, hell, no, I’m not sorry in the least. I see the world is still turning, so Cal hasn’t blown things up yet. It looks like Linda has prepared another stellar meal for us, and for some reason, I’m hungry. Thank you to whoever had meals delivered to our quarters.”

Jennifer laughed. “You’re welcome. I made sure they sent over at least enough food for six people per meal. If I had to make a guess, there’s not a scrap of it left. And if you actually ate the strawberries and whipped cream dessert off the plates, I’m going to be very disappointed in both of you.”

We all laughed when they both blushed.

“Okay. Beth, Dora, Mike, Jeremy, and ... Karen. Free trips to Las Vegas tonight, then at least one day, maybe two, at Area 51. Dave, when are services scheduled?” He was just sitting there, staring at Karen. I threw a roll, bouncing it off his head. “Earth to Dave? When are funeral services scheduled?”

He rapidly shook his head. “Sorry. Nothing local, he’s being returned home to Texas. He was divorced, ex-wife has already remarried, but his son and parents were set up as co-beneficiaries on his life insurance. Prince Dipendra did not go on the raid against the Maximovich family, but has requested that he go to Texas as your representative to pay respects. Colonel Suwal and an honor guard of Gurkhas will go as well. We’re using Ayo Gorkhali for transport of the body and the honor guard. Of course, we’ll also send a regular honor guard under Sharon, too. Because his death is what allowed the Gurkha to freely blood their blades, they are making him an honorary member of their Regiment. In addition, they are giving his family ten percent of what they ‘found’ in the compound and on the bodies. The two police officers you spoke with have both officially asked that you not destroy any more crime families in the State, as per the request of Governor Deukmejian. Unofficially, they’d like it if there were a few more survivors next time.”

“You still didn’t answer my question.”

“Sorry, Cal. Friday, so everyone will be flying out tomorrow as well. I’m just...”

“Welcome back from your honeymoon, Dave,” Mike said. “Sounds like the two of you had a few things to deal with while I was getting ... reacquainted, as it were, with my wife, Karen. I’ll get the full briefing from you later. For the last eighteen years, Karen has been legally and officially dead. Now, she’s not.”

Dave held up a hand. “Now I know why all of our female protective agents were acting like they were teenagers with a secret about a boy in high school. I was mostly stunned by two things. First, that you actually have a smile on your face for the first time since I’ve known you. Second, the pictures of Karen from before simply didn’t do her justice. You have a beautiful wife. Congratulations, and may the two of you ... the three of you as a family ... have long and happy lives together.”

“Thank you, Dave,” Mike said, nodding.

I noticed that Mike was now wearing a ring on his left hand. What gave me a bit of a pause was that Karen was also wearing a ring on her left hand. I figured I’d ask later, if it was any of my business.

Instead, I said, “Well, I doubt very seriously that we should take a whole lot of fancy clothing with us, because there’s probably not going to be much entertaining. Let’s get packed and plan for two days in the Nevada desert. I presume whoever flies us to Vegas can find something to occupy their time while waiting for us to come back.”

There were a lot of snorts from around the table.

“That’s what I thought. We’ll see about a show or something tonight.”

The six of us went to Moffett Field after lunch, boarded one of the smaller jets, and found ourselves arriving at Las Vegas an hour later. It was less than a four hundred mile flight. As she had come back to work at the same time as her husband, Mary set us up with a small bus, an assigned driver, and three rooms in Caesars Palace for the night. Our flight crew would stay there as well.

The bus picked us up at the private airplane terminal. Jeremy snorted while looking around as we walked to the bus. “That’s where we’re going in the morning. Funny, their terminal here is just sort of sitting there, off by itself.”

We each had a carry-on with only the bare essentials. I had a second bag I’d brought as well. Of course, Mike and Jeremy also had a second piece of luggage, very similarly equipped to the weapons cases that our team had taken to Disney World.

I really hoped we didn’t have to take on everyone tomorrow.

Once we’d all gotten to our rooms and cleaned up a little, we came back downstairs to do a little looking around. I thought the glittering lights and the sounds coming from the various machines were interesting and was glad I’d brought the second bag with me.

“Mike, I’d like to take a closer look at what’s going on, maybe even play a little.”

He chuckled. “Good luck with that. You’re not old enough. We can walk through the casino, going from one place to another, but you can’t stop.”

“Really?” I pointed at one of the casino guards that was quite obviously trying not to get caught watching us. “Sir, could you come answer a question, please?”

He put a fake smile on and walked over from his station. “Yes, Sir, how can I help?”

“Since you were paying close attention to the two gentlemen that are with me, because I would presume you wouldn’t be so rude as to simply be looking at the ladies, I suppose you’ve received some instructions regarding them. I’ll make it easy for you. They’re both carrying badges signifying they have the authority of Deputy US Marshals, and yes, they’re both carrying multiple firearms for use in my defense if need be. I had rather hoped to take a closer view of the assorted games and perhaps play some of them.”

“Sir, Nevada law and the Nevada Gaming Commission have set the legal gambling age at 21 for anyone who wishes to gamble in a casino or to be upon the casino floor. You may pass through the casino floor to get from one location to another, but you may not stop, watch, or play any of the casino games,” he stated.

“That makes perfect sense to me. Tell me, what are the repercussions if I do stop, watch, or play any of the games?”

“If you are under 21, then you will be escorted from the gaming floor. If you are a guest here at the hotel, then management has the right to remove you from the premises. If you persist, then under Nevada law, we are allowed to detain you for arrest by the Clark County Sheriff’s Department.” From his familiarity and ease, it was obvious he’d said this explanation more than once.

“Again, that makes perfect sense to me. What about if the person has sovereign diplomatic immunity, and thus is not subject to any local, state, or federal laws?”

He blinked a couple of times, then held up a finger. “One moment, Sir.” He was wearing a handheld radio, with a microphone on his collar, but with an earpiece in. He spoke quietly into the radio, then listened to the reply. He nodded, then said, “Sir, if someone with those qualifications visited our establishment and wished to partake of gaming, we would be required to notify the Nevada Gaming Commission enforcement officer of that request and as they issue our license, we would have to comply with their ruling.”

“Okay. I’m guessing the enforcement officer is sitting in your security room right about now watching us. My wives and I would like to partake of some gambling before we go eat dinner and perhaps catch a show. I personally would like to play some Texas Hold-em. As I am the Sovereign of my nation, I formally make that request.”

He sighed. “I figured you would. I apologize to both you and the young ladies with you, as they are who caught my eye first, and not your guards. I recognized all three of you from your Sports Illustrated article. They’re already on their way down. Ah, and that was quick.”

“Thank you,” I told him. Two men in suit jackets and ties, one dressed considerably nicer than the other, came walking up. The lesser dressed one of them had a badge hanging on the outside of his front jacket pocket.

“Mister Lewis, I’m Stanley Waters, the gaming director for Caesars World. This is Paul Macintosh with the Nevada Gaming Commission. I understand you have an unusual request for us that violates local and state law.”

“It’s simply that we’re in town this evening. My wives would like to try their luck at your machines and some of your table games. I’d like to play poker, and I understand you have one of the best rooms in town,” I said.

“That we do. However, it’s not up to me. We are governed by the regulations of the Nevada Gaming Commission,” Waters said.

“Ah, I see. Mister Macintosh, I am His Royal Majesty...”

He interrupted me. “Thank you, but don’t bother. I’ll save you some time. The Nevada Gaming Commission ... I’m sorry, I’m going about this the wrong way. The person in charge of your travel arrangements specifically contacted the US State Department about your stay here this evening. They contacted my superiors and made arrangements if you decided to make the request to gamble. Caesars World, as the owning company of Caesars Palace, is hereby granted permission for you and your wives to visit any shows here, including those of restricted age. You are also granted limited permission, for this visit only, to gamble at any of the venues in this casino and hotel and only here.”

I frowned. “Oh. Okay, fine, be reasonable and take away the perfectly logical and long winded speech I was all fired up and ready to give.”

That got laughs from everyone, first from my party, and then from the others as they understood how they’d beaten me.

“Well, then, shall we go in?” I asked.

“Cal, I’ve got an idea. Why don’t we take you to the poker room and get you settled in, and then Liz and I just wander? That way, we know where you’ll be, and Jeremy can stay with you,” Dora said.

Waters nodded. “That makes sense. Allow me to escort you to the poker room, so I can explain to the room director what’s going on. Then I can go with you ladies to the floor, to let the pit bosses know about both of you. Um ... I presume you have money to gamble with, or do we need to set up a line of credit?”

I grinned. “I’ve got that covered,” I said, patting the bag.

Beth shook her head. “You never have deposited that, have you?”

“Hey, you never know when having a few million dollars in cash will come in handy!”

I was pleasantly surprised to find there was a high stakes No Limit Hold-em game already going in the poker room. “Ladies, I think I’ve found my spot for a while.”

I opened the bag and pulled out some straps of bills for them. “Here’s a hundred thousand each. Go have fun. Can I have a kiss for luck?” They both kissed me. I then pulled out a strap and handed it to Karen. “Here’s twenty thousand. Keep an eye on them and don’t let them win too much.”

She frowned. “How much is too much?”

“The casino itself,” I said. Waters overheard me and chuckled, thinking I was kidding. Mike rolled his eyes because he knew I wasn’t.

It was a standard ten seat table, but with only seven of them taken. I pulled out the chair to the right of the dealer, which was open. “Anyone object if I sit here?”

“Aren’t you a little young to be in here?” one of the men at the table asked.

“Courtesy of the Nevada Gaming Commission, my money doesn’t have a minimum age to be put on this table. My physical age doesn’t matter,” I said with a challenge in my voice.

“Oh, I like that,” another man at the table said. He tipped his cowboy hat back. “Doyle Brunson. This is two hundred, four hundred no limit, with a ten thousand minimum buy-in. You got that covered?”

I frowned. “I thought this was a high stakes game. Last time I played, blinds were one and two thousand, with up to three straddles, and a minimum buy-in of two hundred thousand.” I pulled out half a million in cash and set it on the table.

It was like a wave went over the table. Four of the players at the table were Chinese. They eagerly talked back and forth, nodding back and forth. Brunson glanced at another man, who nodded back. The other man was Oriental, but much younger and not with the other group.

He had a Chinese accent, but spoke English quite well. “That’s too rich for my blood. I can handle five hundred and a thousand, though.”

“That’s fine by me. I’m only here for the evening, anyway, and fly back out tomorrow. We had lunch already, and it’s too early for dinner or a show.”

Everyone quickly agreed that the stakes could go up. Brunson said, “Let’s get a new set-up, since we’re starting over. I need to use the bathroom, anyway.” He got up, using a cane, and walked towards the bathrooms. I kept an eye on him and watched him get on the payphone that was nearby, calling someone to get down here as quickly as possible.

An hour later, I was down a quarter of a million. It was mostly split between Brunson and TJ Cloutier, the other native-born American at the table. Johnny Chan had about twenty thousand of it, while the Chinese businessmen were about even, they’d just shuffled money between stacks. A rather disheveled looking young man came up to the table.

“I hear there’s someone giving away money, thought I’d come get my share.”

“How you doing, Kid?” Brunson asked.

“Just fine, Dolly. What’re we spreading?”

“Five hundred, a thousand, hundred thousand minimum buy-in,” the dealer said.

“I think I can handle that,” he said, pulling a wad of cash out of his pocket before sitting down. He looked around the table at everyone before settling his eyes on me. A deep frown crossed his face and brow. “You’re younger than I look. I’m Stu, Stu Ungar.”

“Cal Lewis.”

He sat back in his chair while the dealer was counting his money and giving him chips for part of it. Since we were playing a cash game, many of the pots actually had stacks of money with rubber bands around them in the middle. The dealer gave him fifty thousand in chips of different denominations, then announced Stu had one hundred thousand cash in play as well. Two of the Chinese players looked excited that Ungar was at the table, the other two apparently didn’t know who he was, and Johnny Chan wasn’t sure what to think.

Two hours later, my wives came in to get me for dinner, carrying bags that they hadn’t had before. We’d just been dealt a hand, and I was first to act, so I just said, “Well, it’s dinner time for me, so I’m all in if you want some of your money back.”

The Chinese businessmen had all busted out, but were watching. We’d been joined by Bill Smith. He’d had just a little to drink, so he was ahead about twenty thousand from what he’d sat down with. He casually peeked at his cards, then smiled. “You sure you want to do that, Kid?” Apparently, I had managed to appropriate Stu’s nickname.

“You didn’t look at your hole cards,” Doyle commented.

That made Smith smile wider. “You’ve got me covered, but I’ll go along for the ride. All in.” He pushed his stack in.

Doyle pushed his hat back and scratched his head, then frowned. “As much as I’d love to, I just can’t. Fold.”

Johnny Chan was in the small blind. He looked at his hole cards in disgust and tossed them into the muck as well.

Stu Ungar reached up and scratched his nose, where the last bit of cocaine from his most recent trip to the bathroom still showed. “I don’t care whether Bill is half in the bag or not. He’s good, but he’s not that good. Neither are you, not if you’re going to make this kind of amateur move against two of the best poker players in the world. I’ve almost got you covered, so I’ll take your money. I’m all in, too.”

Since this wasn’t a tournament, we didn’t have to reveal our hole cards. The dealer took a minute to separate things, as there was a side pot for almost half a million that Bill was eligible for, while Stu and I were the only ones eligible for the main pot of three quarters of a million. The flop came up King of Diamonds, Ace of Spade, and King of Spades.

On seeing that, Stu simply flipped his hole cards of pocket Kings over, and smiled. “Tough luck, kid.”

The dealer burned the next card, then turned over the Ace of Clubs. Bill showed his pocket Aces. “Sorry, Stu, you don’t get both pots.”

The dealer then tapped the table, burned a card, and turned over the Ten of Spades. I blew out a deep breath, like I was disgusted. “I think you both know the odds of me having the Queen and Jack of Spades are almost six hundred fifty thousand to one. Would either of you care for insurance that’s not what I’m going to turn over?”

“Kid, we’re professionals here. You didn’t even look at your cards,” Smith sneered.

Doyle frowned then. “You know, he still hasn’t looked at them.”

Stu sat back in his seat then. “You’re not just mucking them because we’ve got you beat. This is an honest room because it’s run that way. I’ve got a perfect memory for cards which is how I won a hundred grand from Bob Stupak on that six shoe blackjack countdown bet. The backs of these are all the same, and there’s no distinguishing marks on them. What’s the insurance?”

“I’ll pay to clean you up. Then I’ll give you a job. I know you think you’re smarter than everyone else in this room, or even in this town, when it comes to cards. You’re not. What you are is one hell of a good man with numbers, though,” I replied.

“You’ve got a Queen Jack, but I don’t know about the suits. Everybody’s told me that it’s easier to get coke in rehab than out here, which, to be blunt, is why I’ve never bothered.”

I shrugged. “I don’t know about that. I do know that my crew will have the best place for you to go, though. It’s up to you.”

Bill Smith angrily said, “Just flip your fucking cards over, so I can take my winnings and go home, Kid!”

Stu held his hand up, while rubbing his chin with the other. After a good thirty seconds of just looking at me, he said, “Okay, I’ll take your insurance. You win, you pay for me to go to rehab and be successful at it.”

I casually flipped over the Queen and Jack of Spades.

Casino security was already present, as two of their officers had been following Beth and Dora, in addition to the one watching me. So they were in position to restrain Bill Smith when he came out of his chair to rush me. The rest of the players were in shock while they quickly escorted him out of the casino. Ungar just looked at me with a puzzled look.