bodyguard or whatever stop knocking on my door?"
"You think I'd tell anyone you'd been converted?"
"John, maybe. Or maybe I'd slip up and do something super in public. Doesn't
matter how the info gets out; it will. The combined might of an army might not
be enough to take you down, but I'm not going to be quite that powerful, am I?"
"Well, no, but..."
"But I'm going to be powerful enough to make the authorities nervous as hell
about having me around, right?"
Meeting his gaze, Mandi nodded slightly. "Yes."
"So unless I'm under someone's supervision -- someone stronger than me and
whom they believe they can control, even if only because she wants their
cooperation -- I may never have another damned day of peace or privacy. That's
the way their little minds work."
After a moment, Mandi asked, "You're pretty angry with me, aren't you, Ed?"
He shook his head. "No. No point. In this case, done is done, right or
wrong. How soon will you need me?"
Mandi's gaze narrowed questioningly. "Don't you want to know a little more
about what..."
Cade began bagging their trash and said, "Sure. Let's check out the next
restaurant. You can tell me all about it while we eat. Got a schedule to meet?"
"Uh, well, sort of. The President offered me the use of an obsolete missile
base and some money to fix it up."
"Hm. Remote, mostly underground facilities. You're going to convert some
women, too, aren't you?"
Somewhat guardedly, Mandi asked, "Why do you ask?"
Grinning at her, Cade said, "You're talking about converting a bunch of
people, ma'am. It seems to me that I'll probably be too dangerous for
unconverted women by Wednesday or so, and I'm thinking it would be nice if I had
some variety, too."
Standing up and pitching the fast food bag at a trashcan about thirty feet
away, he added, "Besides, it just wouldn't be fair otherwise, would it? And
you'll be spending federal money, so somebody'd sue you for discrimination in a
heartbeat."
Getting to her feet, Mandi said, "You can be pretty irritating at times,
Cade. You know that, don't you?"
He shrugged. "Yeah, I've been told that."
With a wicked grin, she said, "Well good. Then maybe you can figure out why
I suddenly have a craving for Mexican food."
Cade shrugged again. "Hey, you're a big girl with your own money, ma'am. If
you want Mexican food, then by God, it's your right to eat the nasty stuff. I