The Sword of Damocles
“Everywhere around me I see jealousy and mayhem Because no men have all their peace of mind To carry them” Steely Dan ONE: BLUE FIN CONSULTING The retirement party for Phillip Ross was held at a large bar in downtown Washington. Leaving as the Deputy Director of the NSA, the party attracted spooks, high-ranking civil servants, and even a few politicians, all Democrats. Ross had faithfully served the department for twenty solid years, running agents all over the country, dealing with countless planned insurrections and manic political machinations. He was next in line for the directorship and if he had held on for another year or two that’s just where he would have been. But Ross had carefully observed his boss, James Whitcomb, and saw how that job wore him down to practically a nub. Ross was only fifty one years old and had no intention of spending the, hopefully, second half of his life slowly melting into the ocean of political press