Realizing that she had no intention of giving him a break, GO decided the best thing he could do was to back off and hope that a good, home cooked meal and a glass of wine would soften the headstrong woman seated across from him.

While that was his plan, Jan had her own. Having found out pretty much everything she needed from Scott, the original purpose of her meeting with Thomas had evaporated. She now felt no compelling need to be polite to him. With people like Bernie Poulengy and her own husband involved, Jan figured the days of GO Thomas defining and guiding the confrontation between the Federal government and Idaho were numbered.

Still, she knew that it would be helpful to stay on the good side of GO if that were possible. So Jan resolved to moderate her sharpness as she ate. Besides, the guarded manner in which GO conducted himself during the balance of their meal told her that her initial digs had accomplished what she had wanted. The Idaho power broker had been put on notice that she had no intention of succumbing to his charms.

When they were finished, GO suggested that they adjourn to his study. With a nod of her head and a polite smile, Jan agreed and followed. The sight of a pot of coffee with whiffs of steam curling up from its spout told Jan that they were not exactly alone. Though she always made it a point to pay attention to what was going on around her at all times whenever she was in a situation like this, Jan hadn’t heard or seen anyone. Whether having someone else about was to her advantage or not wasn’t clear to her. So she kept her guard up. Watching, she noted where GO sat before she selected her own seat, one which was about as far away from Thomas as the arrangement of the room permitted.

“I said I’d look into the matter of who those paratroopers were,” GO stated as he poured Jan a cup of coffee and handed it to her. “I’ve been informed by the State Adjutant General that the unit was a company belonging to 3rd Battalion, 517th Parachute.”

Not sure how much GO knew about her personal life, Jan bent her entire will to ensuring that she displayed no reaction to this news. Instead she did her best to downplay its importance to her. “Just one company raised all the fuss that rocked Boise this morning?” Jan asked in a tone that was intentionally meant to be demeaning.