Once in the capitol he was put up at a secured residence where he could be he guarded around the clock. Wondering what all the fuss was about, he received an invitation to dine at the White House that evening. The President‟s Limo picked him up at seven and along with his guard, Billy Gordon, road in silence to the mansion.
The dinner was hosted by the President and first lady who were saddened by the current events. Both had been taken by Warren‟s open personality and promising mission.
The dinner guests were again made up of the President‟s close advisors and friends. The Senator Hargraves, the VP and his wife and the Secretary of State and her husband were in attendance.
All remembered Roger fondly from the prior dinner, but this time a pall of gloom hung over the proceedings. Finally, the President broke the silence.“The country, and the world, has lost an important force in your friend. I believe he could have made a great contribution to the cause of peace here and abroad. We can only hope your close association has given you some knowledge and drive to carry on his mission. We need to continue his work.”
Finally seeing the reason for all the attention and security, Roger replied. “Thank you, Mr. President...That was Warren‟s goal and he taught me the business and PAX
production process. Warren can never be replaced, but I hope I may be able to carry on his work” Those at the table smiled for the first time and gave Roger their full attention
“With the help of the air force we are even now preparing for a PAXing of Iran and Iraq. I‟m sure you are all aware of this follow-up mission to our success in Afghanistan.
I suspect it may have been the motive behind Warren‟s...uh...assassination.” He held on to his emotions as he looked around the table. “We‟ll be ready by next week to carry out his last mission. In addition, as I understand from Warren‟s meetings with the UN
and the Secretary here.” He said with a gesture to the Secretary of State, “There is a whole list of destinations for PAX drops. The plant is humming at full tilt in anticipation of those bombings and the possibility of even more universal PAX treatments.”
“In spite of the tragic loss of Warren, that‟s encouraging news, Roger. It looks like you‟ve already taken the project in hand.” the President responded positively. Then his tone changed as he added. “We do have one very sad mission of our own to perform.
We feel Warren is as important a hero as any of our armed troops. Due to his foresight and courage the war in Afghanistan is ended, and soon his good works may resolve conflicts throughout the world. His martyrdom grieves all of us. Since that first meeting with the Senate subcommittee and the resulting news coverage, we‟ve received tons of fan mail for Warren. Then, with the first assassination attempt that wounded you, his kidnapping and now this the tragedy , the e-mails, blogs, mail rooms and government switchboards have been flooded with concerns for him. He captured the imagination of much of the country. They see his death as the martyrdom to a great cause. They want to know if his goal of world peace is also dead. So you see, now you are our last, best hope and we have to keep you safe. Warren‟s dead, but his idea is still alive, and in tribute, we‟d like to present him with a posthumous Congressional Medal Of Honor.
However, since he‟s a civilian we must settle on the Presidential Medal of Freedom. and if it‟s all right with his relatives, we have special dispensation to bury him at Arlington with full honors.
The President‟s words brought tears to Roger‟s eyes and he had difficulty expressing his
thanks for the honor the chief executive planned for his late friend.
****
The next day Roger and guard, Billy Gordon, went to the FBI morgue to view his friend. On the way, he suffered from mixed emotions. Though he wanted to remember Warren as the vital person he‟d known in life, he somehow needed proof his dear friend was no more. He wasn‟t sure what reaction he‟d have on seeing the body. But when it was rolled out and uncovered, surprisingly he wasn‟t shocked. Warren‟s remains looked tranquil as in sleep and though a bit pale, as handsome as ever. As Roger remembered the kind things the President had said, his feelings of love and pride were added to the deep emptiness which had filled him since he‟d heard of Warren‟s death.For a few long minutes he stood staring at the beloved face. Then he took a deep breath, turned away, and along with his guard followed the morgue attendant‟s directions to the detective offices. After some inquiry he was introduced to the lead detective on Warren‟s murder case.
“Glad to meet you Mr. Cooper. We‟ve been meaning to get together with the family and discuss our progress so far. We didn‟t mean to keep you out of the loop, but we are just now making some headway in the case. Frankly, there isn‟t much evidence to go on. As I told you before, the perpetrators cleaned up after themselves pretty well.
However, no crime is perfect and in the limousine, we found skin cells and a couple of partial prints. Our forensics lab is testing for DNA. We won‟t know anything definite for a day or so. Please be patient. We‟ll find the ones who did this, you can depend on it.
In the meantime, I understand the funeral is set for day after tomorrow.”
On his return to his secured residence, Roger was told the White House had called and invited he and Warren‟s parents to a little wake in honor of their son. Once again Roger, under security, was driven to he White House. There, he met Warren‟s Parents.
Dr. Orville and Olivia Peace. All embraces and a few tears were shed. In spite of President Lambert's attempts to keep the event light, it was impossible. He made a short speech, lauding the contributions of the Peaces‟ son and pointed out how the young scientist had brought hope to a troubled world. Though PAX had yet to prove to be the panacea of peace for the entire planet, it‟s success in Afghanistan had given humans a brighter future. Their son could go down in history as its savior.
Olivia Peace excused herself for a few moments and came back wiping her eyes.
The First Lady comforted her and invited Warren‟s parents to stay the night at the White House. A singular honor, usually given only to world leaders.
The next morning at nine, all gathered at the White House and were driven in presidential limousines and black HUVs to Arlington for the graveside ceremony. There was a huge crowd of politicians, reporters and admirers of the late martyr. The Army honor guard stood by with rifles for the salute and a military trumpeter to play Taps.
The hearse arrived and a squad of Air Force personnel carried the coffin to the grave side. There it was placed on the mechanism which would lower it into the ground. A military minister gave a short service in which he praised once again the contributions of the late scientist. In conclusion the honor guard fired it‟s salute, and Taps was played as the American flag which had draped the coffin was folded and presented to Warren‟s mother. The President came forward, gave a brief speech and presented the posthumous President‟s Medal of Freedom to Warren‟s father. The entire proceedings were televised for the nation and satellites carried portions of it to the rest of the world.