Chapter Text
DeRossi Residence, Arlington, Virginia: May 7th, 1968, 08:03hrs
“Hey, hi there! Do you have any burlap I can borrow? I need some to cover up the fig tree in the yard before dad has a heart attack!” Josie shook her head as she entered her sister-in-law’s kitchen, letting the screen door slam behind her.
“Che fai!! What are you doing, Josie?!!” Matteo DeRossi opened the door with a scowl on his face.
“Good morning, you two! Coffee?” Sharon drawled in a sweet southern accent while she shook her head in exasperation.
“For the love of God, please pour me some coffee! It’ll stop me from strangling my father.” Josie sat at the kitchen table, noting the oatmeal, toast, and orange drink. (The Tang was for Paul and little Jack.)
“Dad, coffee?” Sharon poured a cup before the elder Italian answered.
“Thank you. At least someone around here cares.” Matteo scowled at Josie before sitting down, “Where are the bambini? Don’t they have school?”
“Oh, Jackie is getting dressed, and Paulie is finishing a science project he should have done on Sunday.” Sharon paused to tuck an errant honey-blonde lock back into place. “Robert should be down here in a couple minutes.”
“Good! The faster we get what we need, the faster we’ll be out of your hair, Sharon.” The redhead downed her coffee and got up to get another. “My head is killing me.”
“You have a headache because you went out to some wild party last night! I know you were drinking. Probably hanging around with some hot-shot officers! Why can’t you find a husband and settle down? Have some kids?”
“Sharon… please… help me.” Josie poured another cup of hot, black liquid as she rested her head against the cabinet in front of her. “He’s going to say it, watch.”
“Look, Bobby settled down and had some bambini! It’s not normal for a woman to not have a family at your age! I worry about you, Josephine. Going out and drinking on a Sunday, a Sunday!? Staying out late—”
“Dad! What are you doing here so early?”
“For the love of everything, Robert, do you have some burlap!?” Josie turned and clutched desperately at the lapels of her brother’s army uniform.
“Sugar? I think there’s some in the garage. Why don’t you take your sister ‘n look? I’ll stay here with dad and the kids.” Sharon flashed a knowing glance at the siblings.
“Right, com’on, sis. Let me help you out with ‘mission burlap.’”
Josie didn’t need any more prompting. She flew out of the side door into the sunny backyard and marched towards the garage.
“Boy, oh boy! You guys started early today!” Bobby grinned as he unlocked the garage.
“Ever since I returned from Vietnam, he won’t leave me alone. I’m going to strangle him, Bobby!” The redhead faced her brother and mock-chocked him.
“Easy there!” The Major grinned and gently held Josie by the wrists, “I’ve gotta meet with some senator or something in a couple hours.”
Josie watched her brother step away. He calmly pulled out a stepladder and retrieved a whole roll of burlap stored in the rafters. “You know dad’s just worried about you, right? Especially since mom passed away. It’s not typical for a lady to go to a war zone unless she’s a nurse.”
“I know. It’s why I haven’t actually strangled him yet.” It was an event the entire family was still dealing with: their mother’s death. She passed away from cancer a little more than a year ago.
Both Robert and Josephine managed to persuade their father to move from Empire State to Virginia with the rest of the family. Having the older Italian live with Josie took some getting used to. She hadn’t lived with her dad since she was a teenager. Josie cleared her throat; it wasn’t easy for dad either. (She’d have to remind herself that the next time the man complained about her marital status.)
“And you haven’t been yourself since you got back either.” Robert handed off the roll of coarse fabric before stepping off the ladder. “You have a much shorter fuse, and you mope around a lot. We’ve all been waiting for you to snap out of whatever it is you’re going through.”
“You think so? I mean, I just saw some things that didn’t sit well with me.” Josie sighed and looked at the screen door to the house. She almost saw her father sitting at the table, laughing with the kids. The fighting in Vietnam was beyond brutal. Her mission in the conflict was to sabotage, gather intelligence, and train soldiers in unconventional warfare tactics. That included locals who were rice farmers… they weren’t soldiers; they were farmers. She emphasized survival when training but knew it wasn’t enough. She saw the aftermath more than a few times; it haunted her. But the redhead had no idea it was affecting the people around her. “I should be a little more patient with the old man, shouldn’t I?”
“Just remember that when you’re helping him cover up the fig tree in your backyard. You know how fussy he gets.” Bobby ushered Josie out and pulled the garage door closed, “So, who’d you meet last night?”
“Uh, how do you know I met anyone?” The Italian woman blushed.
“No-no, you don’t stay out late unless there’s someone you’re interested in; who was she?”
It was no secret between the two. Josie was attracted to women; she always had been. She and her brother used to sit in their quad at college and check out girls. She was lucky to have a brother who didn’t judge her preferences.
“You know that thing that was going on celebrating the Apollo 8 mission? I crashed it using my CO’s invite. He couldn’t go; he has the flu.”
“Those parties are notorious for getting out of hand.” Robert scratched his chin, “Most of the guys that go to them are looking to get away from their wives…”
“Yeah, well, I thought that there may be some free booze and food at least. I mean, I was going to leave after a couple of hours. But then I ran into the only other lady at the party. She was being harassed by some sleazy airman. I swooped in and saved the day!” Josie winked and shot her brother a finger gun before heading towards the house.
“Who is she? She had to have been pretty high up on the food chain to get invited.”
“Bianca Diamant.”
“Whoa, wait! The Bianca Diamant?” Bobby halted Josie by placing his hand on her shoulder. “White hair, dark makeup? Wears clothes that cost as much as my mortgage on this house?”
“Yea, so—”
“She’s a legend from World War 2. She’s killed hundreds of Nazis and has been battling the Russians in East Berlin since the Cold War started. She makes James Bond look like a British quire boy!” Robert dragged his hand through his brown hair while giving Josephine a worried look.
“James Bond is overrated! Besides, he sleeps around so much there should be an STD named after him. It’s a wonder he can get anything done in those movies.” The redhead flashed her brother a roguish grin.
“I’m being serious! I don’t know if you want to get mixed up with her. Did she tell you what she actually does?”
“We didn’t talk about work.” Josie shrugged at her brother.
“What?”
“She said she didn’t want to talk about work and, well, neither did I. After drinking all the champagne at the bar, we left the party and walked along the Potomac admiring the cherry blossoms. We took a cab to her place, and then she paid for my ride home.” That was Josie’s evening with Bianca. No escaping drunk men trying to have their way. No desperate make-out session in a dirty alley behind a bar. What she didn’t share with her brother, though, is that Bianca had given Josie her number… She had a feeling sharing that wasn’t a good idea at the moment.
“Bianca Diamant is Secretary of the Federal Bureau of Meta-Human Anomalies. She’s the one that gave all the ladies, like you, the title Gem.” Robert crossed his arms, “And she has a reputation about the partners she picks.”
“What’s that supposed to mean!?” Josie hollered and pinched the bridge of her nose. She was still hung over.
“It means Ms. Diamant shows interest when she wants a means to an end. She uses people, that’s what she does. You sure you didn’t talk about work last night?”
Lieutenant Josephine DeRossi of the US Army Green Berets was a forward operative. She used her abilities as a Gem to protect the US from dangers abroad. Did Bianca hit on her for something? The somewhat older woman stated that she didn’t want to discuss work… She said she wanted to feel like a ‘normal person’ for the night.
“Look, we didn’t talk shop at all. I think you’re reading too much into this, Bobby. We met each other at a party, that’s it. Besides, she’s only human! She’s allowed to flirt with someone without an ulterior motive.”
Before the conversation could continue, a child-shaped missile burst through the side door. “dad! I’m late for school!!”
Paul, Josie’s eldest nephew, jumped down from the steps and comically ran towards his father’s Cutlass Cruiser, sputtering a frantic hello in her direction as he went. His younger brother, Jackie, was gently ushered down the steps by his mother with a piece of toast in his hand.
“Auntie Josie! I didn’t know you were here!” Jackie hopped off the last step and ran up to the redhead, wrapping his tiny arms around her thigh.
“Hey there, sweetie! You look like you’re still half asleep.” She picked the boy up and kissed him on the cheek.
“Alright, kids, we gotta go.” Bobby pulled his keys from his pocket and kissed Sharon on the way to the car. “Josie? Be careful, that’s all I’m gonna say.”
Josephine gave her brother a mock salute as she carried her youngest nephew to the car and set him in the back seat. “Noted, Major.”
She and Sharon watched as the Cutlass pulled away and then turned the corner out of site. “Did he find you the burlap, honey?”
“Yeah, it’s just over here. Now dad doesn’t have to worry so much about the frost getting his fig tree tonight.” Josie shook her head.
“The weather has been an absolute nightmare for my flowers. I wish it would just make up its mind: 65 during the day, then dropping to 30-something at night? Let me come over and help ya’ll out.” Sharon offered as she smiled.
“You don’t have to—”
“You’re just being silly now, ya’ll just live across the street. Let’s eat some breakfast, and I’ll go over with you n’ dad.”
“You got it, sis.” Josie smiled. Things weren’t so bad; she had a home at the end of a cul de sac. And a loving family that lived just across the street. Her father was healthy, and her neighbors were the friendliest people around. Things could be far worse.
She couldn’t shake the conversation she had with Bobby, though… Beware of Bianca Diamant.
The Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia: May 9th, 1968, 09:47hrs
Josephine wasn’t sorry that her meeting was interrupted. In fact, she was relieved. It was looking more and more like she was going to be sent out to Vietnam again. Anything to avoid that scenario, there was no way in hell the US could win that war. Better to cut the losses and pull out, it would save lives at the very least. It was hard to guess what would happen next, though; Lyndon B. Johnson was the current president, but Richard Nixon was beating him in the polls.
The Gem stopped at the elevators and hit the button leading to one of the sub-levels of the building. The Pentagon was old, and it was showing its age. Some people would argue that it was less than 30 years of age, but it was built on top of a swamp at an expedited pace because of WW2. Almost 30-something years and the building was already in need of repairs. Josie hated this place. The redhead reached her floor and approached the MP, flashing her badge. The man saluted as he let her pass. As a Lieutenant, Josephine was considered a ‘junior rank,’ but a commissioned officer was still an officer.
She arrived at the room she was looking for. Josie nodded at the two MPs stationed outside as they saluted and found herself face to face with General Philips, head of military intelligence. Now, it was Josephine’s turn to salute.
“Have a seat, young lady. I’m glad I caught you before your COs tossed you back into Vietnam.” The old general offered the lieutenant a cigarette. She took one and nodded her thanks as she sat away from the others at the front; Josie was already getting dirty looks. Being a Gem had its advantages, but it ostracized her from everyone else. A lot of servicemen considered her a ‘freak of nature.’ There was the whole ‘women on the front lines’ argument, too.
The small auditorium was occupied by various officers from different groups and commands in the US Army. These men were either of a higher rank than Josie or had far more experience serving… She seriously doubted she should be in this group.
“Relax, Lt. DeRossi. I asked for you specifically. I know in a fight, you can put all the men in this room to shame.” Phillips winked as he pulled a lighter from his pocket and lit her cigarette, “Sit tight, and I’ll share what’s going on soon.”
Josie nodded as she nervously took a drag; what in the hell was this about? No sooner did the thought pass through her mind when Phillips started speaking.
“Gentlemen and lady, I didn’t gather you here for pleasure. This is not an ice cream social, so let me get to the point. You’re here because you’re the best we have that’s available. Johnson wants his elite soldiers in Vietnam, and normally I would agree. But we also have to protect the home front.” The general removed his cap and set it on a table in the center of the room.
Phillips motioned to an unknown staff sergeant. The younger NCO turned on a projector, and four men appeared on the screen at the front. “Senator Earnest Hollings of South Carolina, Clifford Hanson of Wyoming, Charles Goodall of Kentucky, and Norris Cotton of New Hampshire have been murdered.” Another slide was pulled up with two additional men, “Douglas Dillon, Secretary of Treasury, and Orville Freeman, Secretary of Agriculture, have also died via foul play.”
How could this be? Six high-ranking members of President Johnson’s administration have been killed? Josephine’s head swam at the scenario. The news hadn’t reported anything, but that was more than likely due to the Secret Service and FBI keeping the situation quiet. This raised another question: Why wasn’t the Secret Service and FBI heading this off? Hoover should be running his agents ragged at this point. Josie looked around and listened to the room; everyone was shocked. A loud murmur seemed to blanket the air.
“Quiet down! Now, we did manage to capture one suspect. He was caught by the police running from Secretary Dillion’s home. The FBI brought him in for questioning. However, he had a cyanide capsule in one of his teeth. The suspect ended things before they began.” Phillips paused as more shock passed through the room.
“Quiet! Listen up! The FBI managed to track down the suspect’s place of residence. There, they found multiple instructions typed in cipher text using the Cyrillic alphabet. The CIA was kind enough to lend us some professional code breakers. We’ll have everything decoded eventually, but this is what we have so far.” The slide that was pulled up next was a list of names. The men from before were crossed off the list, but many names remain. 48 in total, up to and including the President of the United States.
“Gentlemen and lady,” Phillips cocked an eyebrow in Josie’s direction, “All of these people are marked for assassination. Every-single-one.” The general pounded his hand on the table between each word for emphasis.
“We are tasked with protecting these people while the FBI and Secret Service track down the threat.” The projector was cut off. “Any questions?”
The usual platitudes followed. How long, why can’t the Secret Service do the job, we should be in Vietnam, not sitting around DC, etc. Finally, General Phillips had had enough and shut everyone down. “You are the whiniest bunch of servicemen I’ve ever dealt with! Good God! It’s a wonder we’ve won any wars with you bunch at the helm! This is your assignment, dammit! You were chosen for very specific reasons; some of you will be doubled up, and some of you will be working alone. There’s a table outside this room! On the table is an envelope of who you will be guarding. If you need special instruction, it will say so in your folder. Dismissed!!”
A mass exit ensued; the 101st Airborne, US Rangers, and Green Berets filed past Josephine. She stayed seated and waited patiently for the line outside to diminish. She pulled a cigarette from the case in her pocket and lit it by creating a small flame in the palm of her hand.
“Well, that ability must be the most useful one I’ve seen. Can I bum a light from you, lieutenant?” Startled, Josie looked next to her as the General held out his own cigarette.
Again, she produced a small flame in the palm of her hand. Phillips leaned over and lit his cigarette while giving Josie an approving look. “I’m glad I caught you after all that bullshit in the room. Those soldiers are worse than my kids.”
The redhead chuckled, “I’m sure they’re just concerned, sir. They’re all good at what they do, they wouldn’t be in the special forces otherwise.”
“True, but what do you think, Lt. DeRossi?” The general dragged a hand across his thinning gray hair, “I believe you’re a little sharper than most of the men that were in this room. You didn’t ask a single question.”
“I think you’re giving me a lot of credit, sir. I don’t know if I could have gotten in a word edge-wise—”
“DeRossi, that’s Italian, right? If you wanted to, you could have out-screamed all these men. So, humor me, young lady, what was your question?”
Josie sighed, “It occurred to me that there are other elite forces that were present when the murders happened. My brother, Major Robert DeRossi, is one such soldier. All of the servicemen in this room were either deployed or away from the Washington area in the last few weeks… And especially when the murders were taking place.”
“How do you know that, lieutenant?”
“Because I wasn’t the only Green Beret in the room, and I also know two of the 101st Airborne soldiers that were present as well. Why are you choosing soldiers that were out of the area during the murders?” Josie stubbed out her cigarette in a nearby ashtray and stared at General Phillips.
“You’re good, lieutenant. Real good. There’s reason to suspect that the threat is getting inside help. Army intelligence agreed that picking staff not present in Virginia would be a good course of action. Less likely to be involved.” Josie handed the general an ashtray, and he proceeded to put his cigarette out. “Which brings me to who you’re assigned to. You’ve got instructions in your envelope to see me. These soldiers outside are taking too long, so let’s chat now.”
General Phillips continued, “You probably have the most difficult assignment besides the poor sap assigned to J. Edgar Hoover. You’re looking after Secretary Bianca Diamant.”
It was as if electricity shot through Josie’s spine. “Sir?”
“You know who she is, right lieutenant? It’s not a very public position, but that may change in the future. The short answer is Secretary Diamant has been shadowy cabinet member for every administration since Eisenhower. She’s one of the most important people in the US government’s employ aside from Sec. State, Vice President, and POTUS.”
“Er, yes, sir. I’ve heard of her. I’m surprised she would need protection; I mean, she’s surrounded by some pretty powerful individuals.”
“They’re not always around. Secretary Diamant’s agents are out doing what they do best.” Phillips pulled out another cigarette and offered it to Josie, “Meanwhile, she’s sitting in a building built in the 1800s in Columbia Heights. Bianca Diamant is formidable but not invincible. She’s made a lot of enemies over the years, both abroad and at home. If any of them were to tip off the assassin? I think you know where I’m going, lieutenant.”
The pair sat in amicable silence for a minute. Josephine mulled the situation over in her head. Bianca was a Gem. It made sense, but the fact slipped past her the other night. She didn’t ask (she didn’t want to.) The other surprising thing was her reputation. Josie’s brother gossiped like a schoolgirl sometimes, so she took his warning with a grain of salt. But it looked like Robert was right about Secretary Diamant’s notoriety. (She would rip her tongue out before admitting it out loud. But he was right.)
“Secretary Diamant is 100% against having a bodyguard. I figured another Gem would help soften her stance. Plus, I saw you speaking with her at the party on Sunday.” Josie shot the man a surprised look, “Yeah, I was there too. How in the hell did a lieutenant score an invite?”
“My commanding officer had the flu, so he told me to take the invite and make the best of it.” The redhead spoke in a sheepish tone.
“At least there was a free bar.” General Phillips finally stood, and Josephine followed. “You’ll be reporting at Secretary Diamant’s office at 08:00 sharp tomorrow morning, lieutenant. She knows someone is coming, not you specifically. Anyway, Diamant is not happy and has tried going over my head to stop the detail. Instructions are in the report outside. Good luck, Lieutenant DeRossi.”
Josephine saluted as General Phillips left. When she exited the auditorium, a table manned by the staff sergeant from earlier was across from her. The only envelope left was hers. “Lieutenant DeRossi? Here’s your assignment, ma’am.”
As soon as she took the packet, the staff sergeant saluted and walked away. His job was over. The redhead looked down at the curious envelope: EYES ONLY. It was damn ominous; there was a small part of her that thought maybe going to Vietnam didn’t sound so bad. She slipped open the flap and found a handwritten note with an appointment time to see General Phillips on it. Did she still have to see Phillips? She didn’t think so, but her memory wasn’t the best since she returned from combat. (Lack of sleep, the doctors said.) The staff sergeant would know, he just turned the corner to an adjacent corridor.
“Staff Sergeant?” Josephine called out. She turned the corner only to run into a shocked janitor, “I am so sorry!”
“It’s no bother, miss. Were you look'n for anyone?” The black man looked questioningly at the lieutenant.
“Yeah, the staff sergeant? Did you see what room he went into?”
“Sorry, miss. I didn’t catch where that man went.”
The redhead frowned; that was a hell of a disappearing trick. But then again, lower-ranking enlisted men usually had a penchant for making themselves scarce lest they get assigned more work. It took practice, and Josie would be lying if she wasn’t the same way when she first joined the army.
“Sorry again. I hope the rest of your day is… uneventful.” The lieutenant flashed an apologetic smile.
“No problem, miss. You have a good day now.” The janitor tipped his cap and continued down the hall, whistling as he went.
Josie shook her head. She was going to take the rest of the day off to prepare. This assignment would take some time, and she wanted to digest everything.
She lit a cigarette as she walked down the cavernous corridor alone.
DeRossi Residence, Arlington, Virginia: May 9th, 1968, 15:18hrs
Josephine watched her dad as he puttered around the backyard. When the place was first bought, there was just a square patch of dying grass surrounded by chain link fence and tall trees. Josie was content to keep it that way, too. She didn’t have time for gardening. But since she moved her father here, the transformation was miraculous. A velvety, green carpet spread across the ground punctuated by a couple of stone paths. At the far end was a lush vegetable garden with butternut squash, tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, and fresh herbs. Her father had only just planted them, but everything had already started sprouting. The fig tree was nearby, sunning itself in a bright patch of afternoon light.
Currently, Matteo DeRossi is in the process of putting fresh cedar chips along the side of the house. He intended to add some shrubbery around the back and front. Particularly in the front, he wanted his only daughter to have a beautiful home. Searing affection welled in the redhead’s chest. Josie loved that man to pieces. Sure, she wanted to strangle him sometimes, but that was just life. She had already asked her dad if he needed help, but he declined, saying hard work was good for the heart and soul. He was still working out their mother’s abrupt end. Josie was still working it out, too, if she was honest with herself. She sat back down and closed her eyes momentarily, appreciating the warm spring air on the screened-in porch.
She had just gotten through the information packet for her new assignment: Bianca Diamant, A.K.A White Diamond. She was a mentalist, the most powerful one known to date. She emerged from Poland after WW2 and was heavily involved in clandestine operations around Berlin until the 60s. From Nazi hunter to Cold War agent for the US to a cabinet secretary for POTUS. (Cabinet secretary for multiple administrations. The woman has seen a lot.) There were various other facts. She lived in a 1200 sq foot apartment on the corner of 11th and Massachusetts Avenue in DC. It was a nice place; Lincoln Park was just across the street. Bianca was roughly in her 40s… Josie frowned a little; she was hitting on a woman in her 40s… Madonne, she was almost twice Josie’s age. (But then again, it hadn’t stopped her in the past. Plus, the woman didn’t look a day over 25.)
“Hey, dad’s coming over for dinner. You coming too?” Robert poked his head through the door. He had on an Empire City Yankee cap and a boyish grin.
“Yeah, that’d be nice. I need to spend a little time with everyone before tomorrow.”
“Uh-oh, that sounds like another tough assignment. What happened?” Bobby frowned and sat on the lawn chair next to Josephine and glanced at the manilla envelope. “Now I’m convinced you have a tough assignment.”
“Did a couple of your men get some strange orders today?”
“Oh… you’re involved with that?” Bobby removed his cap and scratched his head, “Two of my guys were taken from me for an indeterminate amount of time for an assignment. I was told not to discuss anything. Which is hilarious because there is nothing to discuss. I don’t know a damn thing.”
“Well, guess who’s on assignment for an indeterminate amount of time?”
“Christ.”
The siblings sat in silence as the birds cheerfully sang in the sunny yard. “It’s not all bad, I’m not leaving Virginia. Dad doesn’t have to worry about me being killed in Vietnam.”
“No, now he’s just going to worry about you getting shot somewhere near home.”
“I have orders, Bobby—”
“I know! I know. I worry, too. Ever since you found out you had powers and joined the military, it’s been kind of stressful, Josie. If mom were alive, she’d be a mess.”
The redhead grabbed her brother’s hand and squeezed, “I promise, I’ll do my best to look after myself. But that’s all I can do. I have these amazing abilities, Bobby! I can do some real good here!”
“Right, I still don’t like the risks you take, though. Come on.” Bobby put his cap back on as he stood, “Sharon has some steaks on the grill, and the boys want to know if you’d like to have a water gun fight with them.”
“Okay, looks like I’ve got to get pelted with some water projectiles!” Josephine grinned; she’d put her worries to the side, just for tonight. There were more important things to do.
Translations:
Che Fai! – Italian: What are you doing. In context it’s an expression used to say “What the hell?” Or “WTF?”
Madonne - Italian: Madonna. Another expression used when surprised or shocked or impressed. Growing up in a Sicilian household myself I heard this a lot at nonna's house.