Wade nodded. ‘Looks like. But by whom, for God’s sake? All along, we’ve been blaming the opposition.’
‘Yes,’ Ellen replied. ‘And there’s no question they’re fanning the flames. But I don’t think they’re behind it. Somehow, they found out about it, and they are making capital out of it. But they couldn’t have put all this in place themselves.’
‘So, what do you think?’
‘My money’s on some kind of clandestine operation by the Lebanese.’
‘They used Lucia to get to me?’
‘That’s the way it looks to me. That way, there would be no need for you to know anything about Marfrela or those other people, or what was going on in Oregon. They were probably hoping you would compromise yourself at some point, and then they would move in for the kill. Blackmail, threats, who knows? Whatever it took to get you off their back, soften your policy a little, approve some aid, whatever.’
Wade sat silently, nodding, for some time.
‘All right, that makes sense. But why kill her, for God’s sake? I don’t understand. Why did they have to do that?’
Wade’s voice faltered, and for the first time, Ellen thought she saw a hint of regret and pain in the President’s eyes. She nodded.
‘It does seem strange. My guess would be that Lucia wasn’t willing to play ball any more. Or maybe she thought she was in too deep and got scared and wanted to quit. Or maybe she had actually come to like you. Who knows? Stranger things have happened.’
Wade smiled thinly. ‘Thanks a lot.’
‘All we do know is that, for some reason, they couldn’t trust her any more.’
It was some time before anyone spoke again.
‘I’m sorry, Martha,’ Ellen said eventually, ‘I’m not sure I’ve been much help. I’m sure the President doesn’t want to go on record as being the victim of a Lebanese plot. At least, not yet.’
‘What do you mean, “not yet”?’ Wade asked.
‘I mean, not until it becomes the best of several bad alternatives. Unfortunately, by the time the Committee has finished its work, that may be the case. Obviously, they will be running down this rabbit trail as fast as their little legs will carry them, as of this morning.’
Wade nodded. ‘I’m sure Helen de Vries is eating raw steak for breakfast to get herself in the mood,’ he observed sourly.
‘Count on it,’ Ellen said.
The intercom buzzed. The President hit a button.
‘I’m sorry to interrupt, Mr. President,’ Steffie Walinsky said. ‘I have one of your agents in my office, Gary Mills. He wants to see you. He says it’s important.’
‘Steffie, I said I didn’t want to be disturbed this morning.’
‘I told him that, Mr. President. He says it’s really important.’
‘What do you think?’
‘I think you should see him.’
Steve Wade shrugged wearily. ‘All right. Send him in.’
Gary Mills looked tense and nervous, as he walked slowly into the Oval Office. He nodded to Martha.
‘Good morning, Mr. President, Madam Vice President.’
‘This better be good, Agent Mills,’ Wade said. ‘It’s a very busy morning. Do we have some security problem? Not another code red, I hope.’
‘No, Mr. President,’ Gary said hesitantly. He seemed unwilling to continue.
‘Well, come on. I haven’t got all day.’
‘Actually, Sir, it’s about the First Lady…’
All three of the other occupants of the room leapt to their feet.
‘What about the First Lady?’ Ellen demanded. ‘Has something happened?’
‘No, Ma’am,’ Gary replied, holding up his arms defensively. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to alarm you. It’s just that… well, the fact is, Mr. President, we felt you ought to know that she’s not in residence…’
Ellen sat back down abruptly, glancing at Martha, who was standing rigidly at attention with her eyes and mouth wide open. Steve Wade was the last to catch on.
‘Not in residence? What do you mean? Her next trip isn’t till next month. She’s going out to California. I don’t know of anything else until then.’
Gary Mills looked down at his shoes.
‘Mr. President, what I’m trying to say is that… that the First Lady left this morning with a full complement of clothes and personal effects. She told her assigned agents she was going to New York, and declined their protection.’
‘Oh, God,’ Ellen breathed.
‘Declined… what do you mean, declined? They’re supposed to…’
‘The First Lady insisted, Sir. They didn’t… well, the agents didn’t feel they could physically restrain her, Sir. They didn’t know what to do. So they followed her. At least, that is, until she got to National Airport…’
‘The airport…?’
‘Yes sir. At that point, they contacted the office in New York and asked them to continue surveillance. They didn’t know what else to do, Sir.’
Steve Wade felt that all the breath had been pumped from his body. He resumed his seat, and fought for control.
‘I’m not sure I follow,’ he said quietly. ‘How was the First Lady able to leave the White House without the cooperation of her Detail? I mean, physically, by what means?’
Gary had folded his hands in front of him, and was rocking backwards and forwards slightly on his feet.
‘I was told she called a limo service, Mr. President. It was a limo the agents followed to the airport.’
‘Agent Mills,’ Ellen asked, ‘has there been a report from the New York office?’
‘Yes, Ma’am. Her Detail obtained information that she had booked a flight from National to La Guardia. They passed this information to New York, and New York had people waiting in the baggage claim area when she deplaned. A female met her there, and the First Lady seemed to know her, seemed to be expecting her. The female is described as white, well dressed, about the same age and height as the First Lady. They left together.’
‘Then what?’ the President demanded.
‘They took a cab from La Guardia in the direction of Manhattan, Mr. President. The agents had a surveillance team in place near the cab stand and followed. That’s the latest information I have. New York is due to report in again soon. But they said to tell you there’s no reason to think she’s in any danger, Mr. President. Apparently, no one even recognized her at La Guardia.’
‘Did the First Lady leave any message for the President, or anyone else?’ Ellen asked.
‘Ma’am, I was told by a member of her Detail that there was a letter for the President in the residence,’ Gary replied. ‘And she said she would call later today.’
‘Send someone to bring the letter,’ Ellen said, ‘with your permission, of course, Mr. President.’
Wade nodded in silence.
‘Other than saying she would call later today, did the First Lady indicate how long she was likely to be in New York?’ the Vice President asked.
‘She has friends in New York,’ Steve Wade said. ‘Maybe she felt like an unscheduled break.’
‘I couldn’t say, Mr. President,’ Gary replied. ‘But her Detail said she had enough personal effects with her for a long stay.’
‘I’m sorry, Sir,’ he added gently. ‘I’ll let you know as soon as I hear back from the New York office. If you’re worried, we could bring her back. But of course, that would mean…’
‘No,’ Wade said quickly. ‘I’m sure that’s not necessary. I’m sure all will become clear later in the day. Thank you, Agent Mills.’
‘Yes, Sir.’
‘She’s gone, isn’t she?’ Wade asked, after Gary Mills had left the room.
‘Yes,’ Ellen replied. ‘I’m afraid she is.’
* * *
It was almost four o’clock the next morning when the phone next to Ellen’s bed rang. She had been tossing and turning for several hours, finding it difficult to sleep, and was at least half awake when the shrill tone made her roll over
to pick up the phone.
‘It’s Commander Laing, Ma’am’, a familiar voice said. ‘I’m going to need you ‘on’ for about twelve hours.’
Ellen sat bolt upright. Being ‘on’ meant that the President would not be in a position to perform his duties for some time. It might mean just making herself available, or it might mean actually taking command under the Twenty-Fifth Amendment. It might mean anything. It was the first time in her six years on the job that she had received this call.
‘What’s happened?’ she asked, her pulse racing.
‘The President isn’t feeling too well,’ Laing replied calmly. ‘I thought it best to give him some medication which will make him a little drowsy. It’s probably best that you make yourself available, just in case. He ought to be back to normal early evening, but I want to keep the situation under review. Does that cause you any problems?’
‘No, Commander,’ Ellen said, ‘No problems.’ She paused. ‘Can you be any more specific?’
‘He had an episode,’ Laing replied. ‘I’m sure it’s nothing, but he got a bit excited about things, well… you know about the First Lady… and I thought it best to give him something to calm his nerves a bit.’
Ellen waited, saying nothing, for some moments. Eventually, Laing gave a deep sigh into the phone.
‘All right,’ he said. ‘Off the record, he had a full-blown panic attack. Steffie Walinsky called me. He was hysterical, crying and incoherent. I gave him a shot of Diazepam and I’ve given him some sleeping pills. He’s going to be out for between six and eight hours, and then he’s going to be pretty groggy for the next three or four.’
‘Thank you,’ Ellen said. ‘Who else knows about this?’
‘No one was around at the time except Steffie. She said she would take care of things. She’s expecting your call once I hang up.’
‘Thank you, Commander,’ Ellen said. ‘I’m on it.’
35
THE HOUSE MAJORITY Leader could not help smiling as Vernon Moberley was shown into his office. Moberley was short of breath, and he was trying, without being too obvious, to return the knot of his tie to its proper place above the top button of this shirt. Gerry Parkinson was seated at his desk in his shirtsleeves, the jacket of his suit draped unceremoniously over the back of his chair. Congressman George Stanley, wearing his jacket, was sitting in an armchair to the left of the Leader’s desk. Moberley stood still just inside the door, trying to catch his breath, shaking his head. Parkinson gestured to a chair in front of his desk.
‘Take a load off, Vern. Press give you a hard time, did they?’
Moberley collapsed into the chair.
‘You’re not kidding. It was like running the damn gauntlet. Jesus. I didn’t think I was going to make it. Wouldn’t have without a couple of marshals pushing and shoving them out of the way ahead of me. They would have ripped the shirt off my back. I’m too old for this kind of thing, Gerry.’
‘I’m sorry about all the fuss, Vern,’ Parkinson said placatingly. ‘How about some coffee?’
‘No, thanks.’
‘OK. What can I do for you this morning?’
‘You could tell me what’s going on. That would be a good start.’
Parkinson stood and leaned against his desk, looking thoughtful.
‘You haven’t made any statement to the press, right?’
‘What would I say? I’m in the dark here. All I know is, I show up for work, I get a call from the House Majority Leader who asks, as a courtesy, would I recess my Committee’s hearings indefinitely for reasons he can’t go into on the phone. I tell the Committee, who are not exactly overjoyed about it, and within minutes my phone’s ringing off the hook and all hell is breaking loose. And this is after I have to jump out of the shower in my own house this morning to take a load of abuse from the Director of the FBI. It’s been quite a day.’
He paused to consult his watch.
‘And it isn’t even lunchtime.’
Parkinson frowned.
‘Lazenby called you at home? What about?’
Moberley shook his head in frustration.
‘It’s unbelievable. He thought the story in the Post had been leaked from inside my Committee. He has some kind of undercover operation going on in Oregon that he thought might have been compromised. He was as mad as hell about it. Cussed me out every which way. Like I could do anything about it.’
‘Did the leak come from inside your Committee?’
Moberley crossed his legs impatiently. ‘No,’ he replied defensively.
‘How do you know that?’ Parkinson asked.
‘Oh, for crying out loud, why would they? Look, Lazenby came to me before we started and asked if we intended to talk about Oregon. I didn’t know what he was talking about. He asked me to let him know in advance if it looked like we would mention anything about Oregon. He said he just needed some time, because he had an operation which could be compromised if Oregon was mentioned publicly. He didn’t tell me what the operation was, and I didn’t ask. All I needed to know was that there was some material involved which wasn’t for public consumption. I didn’t have any problem agreeing to what he wanted. End of conversation. Then today, he’s dragging me out of my own shower, loaded for bear, blaming me for some story in the Post. Hell, Gerry, we had no idea about that stuff. Who knows where they got it from? Who knows if it’s even true?’
‘Oh, it’s true, all right,’ Parkinson said, with a sideways glance at George Stanley. ‘George’s Committee started to take the lid off this can of worms some time back, but I told them they couldn’t go any further until you guys had taken some testimony and built up something of a record. Now that you have, and now that the Post has beaten George’s people to the punch, we have to consider what to do about it. And we have to consider very carefully. That’s why I called you. I’m concerned that your Committee might feel they need to pursue the Post’s story.’
‘We haven’t had time to catch our breath, never mind figure out what we need to do about the story.’
‘Well, before you do, I think we ought to talk the matter over. There are some decisions we need to take which we should consider very, very carefully.’
Moberley looked doubtful.
‘I’m not sure I understand, Gerry. I hope you’re not suggesting we back off. I don’t mind giving Lazenby some time, but I’m not about to tell my Committee they can’t go after this. Hell, Helen de Vries would hand me my balls on a platter just for suggesting it.’
Parkinson smiled up at the ceiling, and allowed himself the pleasure of visualizing that eventuality.
‘No. That’s not what I mean, Vern. This has nothing to do with Lazenby, and I don’t think Helen will have any problem with what I’m going to propose.’
He leaned forward confidentially.
‘But what I’m about to tell you doesn’t leave this room for a few days…’
‘A few… oh, for God’s sake, Gerry. What am I supposed to tell my Committee? What am I supposed to say to get the press off my back?’
‘As little as possible. Go into hiding if you want to. Say you’ll hold a press conference as soon as you can. Blame it on this office if you want. Just don’t repeat what you’re about to hear.’
Moberley closed his eyes. ‘All right. Go ahead.’
Parkinson paused again and glanced at George Stanley.
‘You’re not the only one whose phone has been ringing off the hook this morning. I’ve got two extra secretaries back there trying to cope with it.’
Moberley opened his eyes again.
‘Just about all of our people are calling, and quite a few from across the aisle. They seem to feel that this whole thing has gone too far for just a House Committee. Some of us think we now have evidence of what the Constitution calls ‘high crimes and misdemeanors’.’
Parkinson paused for effect. The Committee Chairman’s eyes were now open very wide. He looked at George Stanley, who was smiling maliciously.
‘You’re not serio
us.’
Parkinson stood and picked up a booklet from his side table.
‘I’m very serious.’
He opened the volume.
‘Allow me to read from our governing document. It’s Article Two, Section Four. I quote: ‘The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors’. Now, I don’t know whether what Wade has done amounts to treason or bribery, but I’m pretty sure it’s going to come under the heading of high crimes and misdemeanors.’
It was some time before Moberley responded.
‘I don’t know, Gerry. That would be a big step.’
‘I know. That’s why I showed George the red light when he first came to me with the Lucia Benoni story. I thought we needed more. Now we have it.’
‘Based on this story in the Post? You think Wade has been consorting with the enemy?’
‘He’s been consorting with somebody. And I think, once we look into it a little deeper, turn over a few more rocks, we’re going to uncover some pretty ugly stuff.’
Moberely shook his head.
‘Is Alex Vonn on board with this? He has the best head on his shoulders, politically, of any man in the Party. We should take his advice on this.’
‘He’s on George’s Committee, Vern,’ Parkinson pointed out.
‘Alex is on board,’ George Stanley said.
Moberley still seemed unsettled.
‘It’s a hell of a leap, Gerry, a hell of a leap. And you do remember that we would need a two-thirds majority in the Senate? Or is it enough for us to embarrass him, and we don’t care about the ultimate result?’
‘No. We care a great deal about the ultimate result, and I think we can get it. Joe O’Brien has been working on this in the Senate. I spoke to him just before you arrived this morning. We’re not there yet by a long way. But the word is that the President’s friends in the Senate are not too happy with him. Joe’s expecting a good number of them to jump ship. He’s had some conversations with his leader and the minority leader, in complete confidence, of course. That’s why we need to keep it quiet for a few days. We have to give them time. They want to make sure they’re on solid ground before they move.’
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