Part two of the Controller series.
Richard Sinclair vows to take down the evil Controller no matter the cost. Unfortunately for Sinclair, the cost is more than he can bear. Sinclair knows that the Controller is too smart to be captured via ordinary means so he devises a plan that he knows may end up costing him his life.
Download part 1: Covenant
Excerpt:
Richard was devastated when his nemesis revealed that Veronica was his White House insider. It would not have hurt more had he been stabbed through the heart. Who else did the Controller have under his thumb? More important than that, who could Richard trust? How long was she under the Controller's influence? Was it just during his eight years as President of the United States, or was it even longer? Was it an accident that they met and instantly fell in love, or was it planned to happen that way? These were only some of the questions racing through Richard's mind.
It was now very clear to Richard that the Controller had been hedging his bets all along and had his stand-in waiting in the wings from the very beginning. And if he had one, maybe he also had a second. The Controller always seemed to have the odds calculated down to the most finite degree, leaving nothing to chance, and having all possible outcomes thoroughly analyzed. Richard was certain the Controller had at least one backup plan for any action that he could conceivably take, demanding that he come up with something foolproof, something that would be successful--without costing him his life.
It didn't help that he was growing wearier with each passing day. He had the affairs of his World Organization of Nations presidency to deal with as well as his conflict with the Controller, and he needed about twenty hours every day just to stay on top of things.
Richard knew that this ongoing battle of wits wasn't getting him anywhere and served only to agitate the Controller. He started to doubt his own abilities to match this worthy adversary.
The Controller looked upon every one of Richard's moves the same way a boxing champion views the feeble jabs of a sparring partner--something to be dealt with, but not to be taken seriously. Richard was merely helping the champion hone his skills, when in fact he needed to use their sparring sessions as an opportunity to learn more about his enemy. After all, sparring partners occasionally end up as title contenders.
Richard reflected back to the beginning of his first term as U.S. President. After the initial adversity with the Controller, he saw the positive aspects of what the Controller was trying to do, to elevate the underprivileged, feed the starving, eliminate disease, and rid the world of the political undercurrents that made peace a dirty word. He bought into the Controller's plan because these were also the accomplishments that he wanted to leave behind as his presidential legacy. He learned to suppress his misgivings by weighing his doubts and suspicions against the very real accomplishments that he could achieve. He was part and parcel to everything that had come to pass. No longer could he argue with his inner spirit that he had been forced to take part; that stand collapsed with his first voluntary act. He would never be able to confront the Controller, let alone defeat him, until he admitted to himself that he had abetted Satan and had become part devil himself. He would have to exorcize the demon within, but not until he used it to squash the Controller. If it meant taking himself down, then so be it, but he had to succeed, failure could not be an option.
"One thing is certain," Richard whispered to himself, "I have to convince the Controller that I'm back on his side and that my recent opposition was misguided. Then, after I have regained his confidence, I have to create a weakness where one doesn't exist. A false sense of security might help. I can't allow him to oust me and install a replacement. I have to assure him that such action is unnecessary."