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Jaxon
“It’s official,” The news anchor on the tv said. “Albert Franch has been elected to be the next President of the United States.”
Half of the people in the New York City penthouse cheered. Jaxon Ribelle, however, felt his stomach drop.
“President Franch is expected to make his speech within the hour,” The news anchor said. It seemed like she was about to cry. Jaxon knew that she had voted for the other candidate, Curtis Capper. Because of that mistake, the news anchor was going to die. Just like Jaxon and his wife, Olivia.
Jaxon turned toward the front door. He had to get out of there.
“Hey, Jaxon, isn’t this great?” One of his wife’s friends, Whitney, slurred. She must have been on her sixth glass of champagne.
Jaxon shook his head. “No, Whitney. Olivia and I, we voted for Capper.”
Whitney frowned. “Oh, that’s too bad,” She burst out laughing as she said, “It was nice knowing you.”
Jaxon shook his head as he walked away from her. He had never liked Whitney anyway, she was always drunk.
“Jaxon!” Olivia came running up to him.
Jaxon hugged his wife, burying his face in her short brown hair.
“Jaxon, what are we going to do?” Olivia asked. Her green eyes were shining with tears.
“I don’t know, Liv. I guess there’s nothing we can do.”
The rules of the Presidential election were simple. Every American citizen over sixteen had to vote for a new President every two years. No exceptions. Whoever didn’t vote for the winning candidate would be executed. About forty-six percent of voters didn’t make it past their first election. Seventy-two percent didn’t make it past their second election. Jaxon and Olivia, however, had made it to their seventh election. They were two of the extremely lucky few. It wasn’t easy to make a decision on who to vote for. You were not allowed to discuss who you were voting for with anyone who didn’t live in your household. You would watch one debate with the two candidates. Then an hour later you would go to vote. It was a huge gamble. But if you didn’t vote, you’d be executed. It was the result of cruel people having too much power.
Jaxon and Olivia got out of the taxi and rushed into their apartment building. They were both impatient in the elevator. They rushed into their apartment. It wasn’t as luxurious as Whitney’s penthouse, but it was still quite nice. It was one of the benefits of living in New York, which was the only part of America that was as nice as things were before 2016. Ninety-eight percent of America’s population was living in run-down motels.
Alissa, their daughter’s nanny, was sitting on the couch. She turned off the tv when Jaxon and Olivia walked in.
“Alissa, where’s Zoe?” Olivia asked.
“She’s sleeping in her bedroom,” Alissa told her. “Is everything alright?”
Olivia didn’t say anything as she walked over to the picture window in the living room. She watched the city forty stories below.
Jaxon didn’t say anything. He was still in shock. He was going to die. What would happen to Zoe? She had only just turned three. Everyone in both Jaxon and Olivia’s family were dead.
“Alissa, who did you vote for?” Olivia asked at last.
“Franch,” Alissa answered. She looked back and forth between Jaxon and Olivia. “Uh oh, you two voted for Capper, didn’t you?”
Olivia nodded. “All of our family members have passed. We have no one to take care of Zoe. It’s why we hired a nanny in the first place. Zoe really loves you. Would you be interested in adopting her?”
Alissa stood up. “Of course. Zoe is like my own daughter. She’ll be in good hands. You can trust me.”
Olivia and Jaxon looked at each other and knew that they were thinking the same thing. You couldn’t trust anybody in this world.
––––––––
Albert
There was a knock at the door. A second later, a man stuck his head in. “Are you ready, sir?”
Albert Franch, who was looking in the mirror, straightened his jacket. “Yes. I am ready for the world to see me as the President for the first time.”
“Wonderful,” The man said. “If you would follow me, please.”
Albert followed the man, staring at the back of his head. He was scrawny. Albert could crush him without a problem. He wondered if this man had been excused from voting. No, he didn’t think so. This man wasn’t important enough. He probably didn’t even know that you could be excused from voting. Of course, not just anyone could be excused. It was only the important people. Like politicians, doctors, and the extremely wealthy. No, this man would not have been excused. He must have voted for Albert, otherwise, he’d be a mess right now.
“They’re ready for you out on the stage, sir,” The man said.
Albert put on his best fake smile and shook the man’s hand. “Thank you for your support,”
The man smiled. “It was no trouble. I’m just doing what I can to help make the country a better place.”
Albert kept his smile plastered on his face. “Well, you just leave the rest to me.”
“...And now, The President of the United States, Albert Franch!” Someone out on the stage said.
Everyone started cheering as Albert walked onto the stage.
He smiled and waved at everyone as he walked to the podium at the center of the stage. “Thank you!” He said. He waited for the cheering to die down before he continued, “Thank you, everybody. I am so excited to be your new President. I am going to make this country a much better place. You better believe that.”
“Are you going to stop the executions?” A woman in the crowd yelled.
“Pardon me?” Albert replied.
“Are you going to stop the executions? That would make this country better.”
Albert pointed to the woman and turned to a few men in the Secret Service. “Arrest her,” He said. After the woman had been taken care of, Albert continued his speech. “Make no mistake, America. I am not to be messed with. I will execute anyone who thinks otherwise. Now, there’s the matter of the people who did not vote for me. As you all know, we have a huge overpopulation problem in America. These executions are only to keep the population under control. If you did not vote for me, remain in your homes. You will be picked up and brought here, to Washington D.C., within the week to be executed. That will be all for tonight. Thank you, and good night.”
Half an hour later, Albert was being led through the White House.
“Your bedroom is this way, sir. You can talk to me if you need anything. Just ask for Edwin.”
Albert stopped to examine a picture of a young woman that was hanging on the wall. She was standing in a battle stance, with two laser guns clipped to her belt. Laser guns? Hm. Those had gone practically extinct by the mid 2030s. They were really nothing but a fad. She was good looking, though. She had white-blonde hair, and gray eyes that matched the background of the picture.
“Who’s this?” Albert asked. He had never seen her in any history books or anything. Not that he had read many history books. Or any other books, for that matter.
“That’s Mia Forte,” Edwin explained. “She was President Barrow’s bodyguard and assassin for five years. She was a close, personal friend of his.”
Albert stared at the picture. “I’d like to make her a close, personal friend of mine.”
One of the Secret Service men coughed uncomfortably.
“How come I’ve never heard of her?” Albert asked.
“She worked very secretly. No one wanted the public to find out that a President had an assassin. Especially when that assassin was an eighteen year old girl.”
“What happened to her?”
“No one really knows. She was in prison under the orders of President Cordon until she found out that he had hired someone to kill President Barrow. She broke out and took her family and disappeared. No one knows where they are now, or if they’re even alive.”
“An assassin?” Albert muttered to himself.
“Would you like us to find an assassin for you?” Edwin asked.
Albert shook his head. “No. I prefer to do my killing myself.”