Forever Until Tomorrow (War Eternal Book 5) Read Online Free Page B

sir," she replied.  
    Vice President Nelson wandered away, replaced a moment later by Rear Admiral Yousefi.
    "Major," Yousefi said.
    "Admiral," Katherine replied, coming to attention and saluting.
    Yousefi smiled. "At ease, Major. This is a civilian event. Besides, you're forgetting the new regulations. The UEA settled on bowing, remember?"
    Katherine returned the smile, relaxing her posture. The fledgling oversight group had wanted to change things up a bit to better integrate the various members of the armed forces from all of the member countries. One of their bright ideas had been to homogenize formal military greetings to a bow instead of a salute. She had no idea how they had come to that decision, but it was proving to be a hard habit to break.
    And that wasn't the only one. Applicants to the program had come from nearly every branch of nearly every military around the globe, with the unintended consequence of creating a level of confusion in organizational structure and ranks that had yet to be ironed out. After all, there were no Majors in the Navy and no Admirals in the Air Force, and yet here they were.
    "Yes, sir," she said. "Admiral Yousefi, I want you to meet my friend, Michael."
    The Admiral turned to Michael, who put out a slightly shaky hand that had recently been wiped dry on the back of his pants.  
    "Admiral," Michael said.  
    "Please, my name is Ben," Yousefi replied, taking Michael's hand.  
    "Nice to meet you, Ben," Michael said.
    "Likewise. Your friend Katherine here is quite talented, isn't she?"
    "She used to have a stack of trophies in her room to prove it," Michael said. "Running, swimming, karate, violin. Is there anything you're bad at, Katherine?"  
    "I'm not much of a dancer," Katherine said.
    "Really?" Yousefi asked. He put out his hand. "Do you mind if I ask you to prove it?"
    Katherine glanced at Michael, and then at Yousefi's hand. She had been hoping to get through the night without getting out on the floor, and she had just said the exact wrong thing to accomplish that mission.  
    "I've never known you to be shy, Katherine," Yousefi said. "Besides, it will make a good photo op for the media."
    "I can picture the caption now," Katherine said. "Admiral uses pilot as floor mop."
    Yousefi laughed at that, pushing his hand forward a little more. Katherine bit her lip and decided to take it.
    "That's better," Yousefi said. "Shall we-"
    His voice was drowned out by the explosion.

5

    It echoed across the crowded room, the force knocking Katherine to her knees, while Yousefi crouched down over her, instinctively trying to protect her. She turned her head, looking for Michael, finding him on the floor his hands over his head. She was relieved he was okay.
    People were screaming and crying, and smoke was rising from the corner of the room.  
    What the hell was going on?
    "Are you hurt?" Yousefi asked.
    "No," she replied. "We need to help these people."
    "Yes."
    They stood up. She could see now that part of the window had been blown out, and there were at least four people on the ground who weren't moving. Others were injured and bleeding, their faces covered in debris.  
    "Michael," she said, leaning over him. "Are you okay?"
    He uncovered his face to look at her. She could see the fear in his expression. He didn't say anything. He didn't have to.
    "It's okay," she said.  
    Was it?
    The elevator doors opened, and a squad of soldiers poured into the room. They were wearing U.S military issue tactical battle armor, ready for a fight.
    Had someone been expecting this?
    She saw Vice President Nelson getting to his feet, surrounded by Secret Service. He had been close enough to the blast that he had blood and debris on his clothes and face, but hadn't been hurt himself.
    "What's happening he-"  
    He didn't get to finish his sentence. The soldiers opened fire, heavy slugs tearing through the secret service and the Vice President, who flopped backward like a dead fish.
    Katherine felt the fear