Executive Orders

CH 64: Secrets and Secret Weapons

Even after they've all retreated back to the study and the talk turned to more serious matters, that good feeling inside Olivia didn't go away. If anything, as they walked as a group into the other room and she and Fitz managed to remain side by side, she felt the connection between them stronger than ever.

As everyone took the same seats they had before - with Olivia taking hers at the end of the sofa closest to Fitz, their eyes met briefly, reinforcing her sense of contentment and completion. He smiled back and an entire conversation passed between them in it before they turned their attention back to the rest of the room.

It was amazing, almost incredible, this sensation of being so wired into each other's psyche that they were practically ending one another's sentences; whatever Fitz proposes, Olivia has the hard facts and data to back him up, the information coming to mind seamlessly and almost without any effort at all. Wherever she has a new thought or opinion to offer, Fitz agrees and commends her and then goes on to elaborate and expand on her words.

They're a team in the best sense of the word.

There's conversation about Annarosa's arrival and the mechanical failure that had delayed her. That raises matters of concern for her security as they move forward. It was quickly agreed that having her stay with Peter in the capitol would more than likely bring more attention to her that none of them would necessarily want at the moment, while her staying here with Will and Grace and Nathaniel here in North Carolina placed her too far away from the center of power to be of any true use.

Jocelyn offered an invitation for Annarosa to stay with her and her husband. "She could be either an intern or an exchange student. I have the means to establish her in either role."

"South America isn't your usual sphere of influence." Nathaniel pointed out. "That might be noticed."

"It can be ...handled." Jocelyn said. "Isn't this one of the reasons why we're here to begin with?"

"That's something we can decide on later." Jocelyn's words jogged a thought in Fitz's mind. "Let's be clear as to one of the reasons Annarosa is here but that we haven't really discussed."

Fitz wondered again if anyone else had picked up on the general's Old World act of showing his trust by sending a blood relative to them. Her age only underscored the gesture, and while it worried him on some level, it also made Fitz admire the man for his act.

Fitz turned to the young woman. "You're an envoy for the education project that your uncle is eager for but you're also his unofficial diplomatic back channel should anything - be it the education summit or anything else - run into any difficulties or obstruction, am I right?"

"Excuse me, Mr. President, but I think I have an idea." Before Annarosa could answer, Susan surprised everyone by speaking up and if the expression on her face was anything to go by, she was surprising herself at the same time. "If the point is to have Ms. Ramos' other duties that you're speaking of other than the education project go under the radar while she's in DC, then why not have her shadow intern out of my office?"

Feeling the weight of everyone's eyes on her, Susan words came out in a rush. "Everyone knows about the Caldwell's big bash - and thank you, because Casey is having the best time -" she said to Nathaniel before rushing on, " ...everything Director Davis said could still work, she could still have Annarosa as a guest, but we could keep the focus on the education project by having Annarosa shadow intern out of my office while I propose this bill that I've been working on..."

"The sister-city project exchange initiative -" Will said. It was obvious that he already knew about it as he went on to explain about the school project happening between two smaller cities in both North Carolina and Virginia. Susan had been drafting a bill that could benefit both school systems - and, with a little tweaking, the larger education summit, although she hadn't thought of it being so far-reaching. "We were only thinking in terms of inter-state communications, but if we were to take it internationally..."