The Belial Stone(81)
She breathed a sigh of relief as she watched him leave. Granted she’d only met two fallen angels in her life, but she had to think that even for those guys, Gideon was a few feathers short of a full wing.
The Senator continued to ignore her, which was fine by her. As far as she was concerned, he was a small threat. Gideon was the one to worry about. And this might be her only chance to escape.
They were on the first floor. If she incapacitated the Senator quietly, she might be able to make a good run before Gideon even knew she was gone.
Removing his reading glasses, the Senator addressed her for the first time. “Dr. McPhearson, you have caused me a great deal of trouble. You and your friends have endangered my work here.”
“You mean the enslavement of hundreds of men? Gotta say, I’m not feeling real bad about messing that up for you.”
The Senator continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “I do not think you appreciate the enormity of the task I have undertaken. I am personally ensuring the future of this country. The United States is at crossroads. We are beholden to oil-rich countries and without a means to sustain our current lifestyle. Unless we find another source of energy, our standing in the world will fall. More than that, we will become the lapdog of other, more oil-rich countries. My work here will ensure that does not happen. What I am doing will save this country and ensure its future.”
“At what cost, Senator? How many lives will you destroy?”
The Senator waved away her words. “No lives of value have been lost.”
“No lives of value?” she sputtered. “You’ve abducted hundreds of men to work as slaves at your site. And how many of those men have been killed?”
He sneered. “Men? They’re not men. They’re burdens to society. As you well know, we have over one and a half million people incarcerated in the United States with another five and a half million under some form of correctional supervision. The criminal justice system is the largest part of most state budgets and a huge part of that goes towards housing and supervising felons. Good, decent Americans can’t send their kids to college because we’re too busy housing convicts. And then what happens when we let these offenders out? They commit more crimes. The cycle has to stop.”
“By killing them?”
“They provide a vital service to this country. They’re helping secure its future. They are finally paying back the debt they owe the country that they have so egregiously harmed. Some may not survive, but their work will.”
“They were incarcerated. They’ve paid their debt.”
“Paid their debt?” he shouted, his face turning a violent shade of red.
Maybe I’ll get lucky and the guy will have a heart attack.
He pounded a fist on the desk. “You liberal professors are always the same. Inmates are incarcerated, for what? Maybe a half of their actual sentence? And then they’re released for ‘good behavior’. And what is that good behavior? They didn’t kill anyone while locked up. How’s that paying their debt?”
He shook his head. “No. We need to start treating inmates like they treat us. We need to use them for what we need and not care about the ramifications of our actions.”
She stared at him with disbelief. Was this guy serious? Did he actually believe the crap he was spewing? “How does that make us any better than them? If you’re so angered by their behavior, how does becoming like them make us any better?”
The Senator stood up and began to pace the room. “Like them? I am nothing like them. I am not doing this for my benefit. I am doing this for my country. Through my efforts and their sacrifice, this country will be stronger. Our future will be assured. This country will be restored to its former glory and we will lead the world once again.”
Well, apparently someone had seen one too many James Bond movies. He was the villain come to life. “With you at the helm. Right, Senator?”
“Someone with the right vision has to lead this country. And true leaders make the tough decisions and don’t look back. I am willing and able to make those decisions.”
He nodded his head as if to confirm his own righteousness and Laney saw how close to madness the Senator truly was. He was lost in his own vision of the glory of America and his role as its savior.
Her mind raced. He actually believed Gideon was going to give him the stone. All his arrogance was only going to serve to get him killed. She looked at him, lost in his own glory. He was swimming in very deep waters, and he didn't even know it.
She glanced behind her. They were still alone. Now was probably her only chance. Besides Gideon, she hadn’t seen any other guards. She just needed the Senator to move a little bit closer. And for a man with his ego, there was one surefire way to do that.