Mad Worlds Collide by Tony Teora Read Free Book Online

backs of us hard working American companies. Nothing is going to be free here Schwartz. You’re late on payments for the last deal and I haven’t forgotten. And please, no more lectures on National Security, or why MicroIntel should just do these deals as good conscience or I’ll expose you.
    Gill opened on a side drawer on his desk and pulled out a piece of paper he’d kept for years. Written was a simple statement: "The meek shall inherit the Earth. MicroIntel will take the Universe."
    Gill’s door buzzed.  Gill hit his unlock door button.  Betty swung open the doors.  In walked General Schwartz, a fiftyish man with a graying crew cut, dark sunglasses, and shiny gold and silver metals across his chest.  Below the medals was a patch of colored ribbons taking up a fourth of the General’s shirt.  Gill had no idea what the decorations meant.  They might as well have been bought at the Salvation Army as a Halloween costume. Two other men dressed in blue suits walked in.  One was a fat black man with his gut bulging out of his suit.  Strange for a military guy , thought Gill.  The other man was as pale as a ghost and wore lightly tinted brown sunglasses.  He was tall and had a medium build.
    "Gentlemen please take a seat."  Gill got out of his chair, and led them to a set of three black leather couches. There were four lounge type chairs near the couches and a large coffee table with chocolates and fruit brought in daily. Gill waved them over to the largest L shaped-couch near a picture window overlooking the MicroIntel campus.
    The General sat next to the fat man who stared at the chocolates. The other man sat on a couch in the corner.
    "Please try some of the chocolates and fruit. I have coffee coming, anyone want anything else before we start?"
    The General spoke. "Gill, we’re fine. Let me introduce you to Mr. Edward Jones of the CIA.  He’s in charge of Psyche Net Strategy." Gill had never heard of that before and didn’t know they were bringing in the CIA. Gill reached over and shook the pale man’s hand.  It was a really warm hand, and sweaty--never trust the really sweaty hands. "Nice to meet you Mr. Jones," said Gill.
    "Some people say you are the luckiest man in the world Mr. Applebee.  It’s a pleasure to meet you in person," said Mr. Jones.  
    "Well if you read today’s newspaper you’d say Mr. Guilianni is the luckiest guy in the world.  He’s now the richest guy in the world too," said Gill.
    General Schwartz looked over at Gill and cut in, "Well if you had listened to what I said four years ago, I think you’d still be number one. If you’d released the source code to us on the MI2000 I think the justice department would have dropped the monopoly suit."
    "That’s true, General, but it was a company secret and eventually we won on appeals."
    Gill thought:What an asshole!  The world’s biggest Mafia, the military pukes and their Justice friends, talk about organized crime.
    "Well, it would have saved you money in legal fees—but that’s your business. I’d like to introduce you to Victor Longfellow—Victor’s in the NSA," said General Schwartz.
    Gill shook Victor’s hand; it was neither hot nor cold or sweaty . Probably a good guy though fat as a three hundred-pound stuffed turkey , thought Gill. Gill believed you could tell a lot about a man by his handshake and temperature. It was one of the reasons he’d never trusted his accountant, Frick; the guy was a sweaty mess.
    The fat man was already on his third chocolate .  Likes them even more than Robert, Gill thought .
    Gill sat down as Betty brought in the coffee and water.
    After Betty exited Gill spoke. "So, what can I do for my friend General Schwartz?"
    "Well I won’t beat around the bush.  We need MicroIntel to put in a new NSA and CIA chip into the Big Blue Server, and we want to do it without the regular formalities."
    Formalities? The formalities were set up to protect people from unwanted government snooping.