by Bryan Murray
“You’re losing me, Sarah, I’m afraid?” the President added.
“Bear with me, sir,” she continued. “Now, watch her mouth as we zoom in closer to see exactly what she is saying to Jeff. Tell me when you think you know what it is?”
They all watched the tape closely and Mulroney was the first to speak. “It looks like she’s saying ‘It’s Showtime’, Mr. President.”
The President nodded in agreement. “That’s right, John, ‘It’s Showtime’!”
Sarah continued. “Exactly, sir, those were the trigger words implanted in Jeff’s brain by the KGB Doctor while they had Jeff in captivity. We saw them scribbled on the side of his bunk and in the steam on the window of the cabin where they were holding the boys! He must have been programmed so that when he heard those two words, he would immediately grab the nearest gun, scream out ‘This if for Al-Qaeda’ and fire the gun at you, sir! He must have also been programmed so that the sound of the gunshot, in this case thankfully from Jake’s gun and not his, quickly brought him out of the hypnotic trance. That was why he hadn’t a clue what had just happened after the event.”
The President was in deep shock. “My God, you guys, how the hell did you figure all this out?”
Jake gave a sad smile. “A lot easier than figuring out how to tell you, Mr. President. We are so sorry that this had to happen on a world stage and for you to have to handle the massive reaction from the media, let alone that of the opposition.”
The President sighed. “It’s good that we know now and that I’m still alive to do something about it and I’m grateful yet again to you and Sarah for continually having my back, even more so than the people who are supposed to be taking care of me!”
“It was our pleasure, sir.” Jake replied
The President looked across at Mulroney who was also still in shock. “Regrettably this job has to go on twenty four/seven and I have to leave shortly for a gala dinner with your friend David Meissner, the Israeli Prime Minister, so John and I will reconvene first thing in the morning and confront the Vice-President, by which time, hopefully we will have our initial thoughts together on how best to handle this unfortunate affair.”
Jake passed the file across the table. “Very good, Mr. President. Please keep all this information and the tape player and we will melt back into the woodwork immediately, so that you can do what’s best for your administration. Our lips are sealed!”
The President and Mulroney both shook hands gratefully with Jake and Sarah before they left, both of them relieved that their job was done.
CHAPTER 39
When they got back to their office, Jake and Sarah were able to relax a little and check on what had been going on in their business. Sarah checked the mail that had accumulated since they had gone to Hawaii that now seemed like ages ago, while Jake called Steve back in Vienna.
He answered on the third ring. “This is Steve?”
Jake was pleased to talk to him. “How’s it going, buddy?” he began
Steve was glad to hear from him. “Pretty good my end. Just got back from Dallas. My mom’s doing okay, she’s back home and they’ve got her stabilized.”
“That’s great!”
“So, what the heck happened after I left?” he inquired.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Jake began. “Next time we meet, I’ll fill you in on what happened, but watch the popular press and start filling in the blanks, you’ll get the picture!”
“Sounds complicated to me.” Steve replied.
“It was, but now everything’s cool, the boys are back safe, poor old Al-Qaeda missed the boat and their leader is still in Guantanamo. Better luck next time!”
Steve laughed on the other end. “So, will you do me a favor, Jake?”
“Sure, just name it?”
“The next time you get a mission like this last one, make sure you give me a call. Most fun I’ve had with my clothes on in a long time!”
“No sweat and we couldn’t have done it without you, Steve. So keep this at the back of your mind as well. If business keeps on growing like it is for Sarah and me, we may be giving you a call, if you know what I mean?”
“Sounds good. Stay in touch and love to Sarah. Merry Christmas!”
“You too, bye,” Jake put the phone down. He turned to Sarah. “So, anything in the mail?”
She smiled and held up a large, already opened envelope. “Two first class complimentary air tickets for use any time on flights to Hawaii together with a two week complimentary voucher for a five star hotel and car rental anywhere in the Islands!”
“No kidding!” Jake was impressed.
She then held up a small piece of paper. “Plus this!”
“Which is?”
“A check for an ungodly amount of money for our services!”
He grinned. “D’you think we earned it?”
“Hell yes, now you can afford to take me out to a romantic dinner.”
“Can’t wait.”
* * *
Over a quiet dinner that night, they both marvelled at how well the mission had gone.
“What I still can’t believe,” Sarah began. “Is that in spite of everything that was going on across two continents, we still managed to keep everything contained.”
“I agree, not even Steve, the Director of the CIA or even the Vice-President were fully aware of what our entire role was in this sorry mess!”
“Absolutely and I can just imagine the headache that the President and Mulroney are currently wrestling with concerning how they are going to handle this tomorrow.”
* * *
At that moment across town, the President was at the high profile gala dinner welcoming the Israelis with full press coverage. His speechmakers had drafted his welcome speech for the visitors and he was struggling desperately to make polite conversation with his guests, while Elizabeth sat there looking exquisite in a new, long Versace creation, but having the same problem, after the President had told her of Jake’s briefing before they left the White House.
Tomorrow would be a day that would even outrank the Watergate Incident as far as the President was concerned.
After Jake and Sarah had left the White House earlier in the day, the President and Mulroney had sat down in total shock and started to draft out a game plan on how they were going to handle the conspiracy in such a way that it would be least detrimental to the President’s last term in office.
Stephen Parker was still in deep shock that his running mate who he had trusted and communicated with every day, could have been so ruthlessly involved in trying to get him killed and by his own son in the process.
One of the first things that the President had done after Jake left, was to call Dr. Rosencrantz and give him the trigger words that Jake and Sarah had miraculously found and the good doctor was already making excellent progress on de-programming the First Son.
Now, the President and Mulroney had to set up a confrontation with Maria to present all Jake’s incontrovertible evidence to get her reaction before having her escorted into custody until they could come up with exactly the right spin on what had been going on.
The President was convinced that once the details of the conspiracy hit the streets, the ratings of the Democrats would take a huge plunge from their present comfortable level and then he would be under extra close scrutiny from the Republicans as he came up with his proposed successor for Maria, some poor soul who would find themselves put through the wringer before eventually being accepted by the then extremely nervous Congress.
The sad thing was that certain candidates had come to mind, but none of them had either the political appeal or charisma of the existing Vice-President.
That night, neither the President nor the First lady slept well as the inevitable events of the next day loomed ever closer.
CHAPTER 40
In her classy Colonial Home in the elegant suburbs of DC, Maria and her family had just finished eating dinner when she received a friendly,
low key call from the President, asking her how she was feeling now that she had her son back safely.
She told him it felt wonderful and he then asked her if she could stop by the Oval Office the following morning before they went into the usual briefing, he had a couple of routine items he needed to go over with her. She told him she would be there, totally unaware of what lay ahead.
When she hung up the phone, David asked her what the call was about.
“It was the President, he was glad we’re all back together,” she replied. “He has a couple of things he needs to go over before the usual morning briefing, so I guess I’ll head in a little earlier.”
“Good idea,” David replied. “It looks like more bad weather again tomorrow, so it’s a good idea to get an early start.”
Andrew looked across the table and smiled. “And when are we going Christmas shopping, Mom?”
“Perhaps tomorrow afternoon, honey. I’ll let you know by late morning, okay?”
He grinned. “Great, I already know what I’m getting Dad.”
David looked up from his newspaper. “If it’s another of those glow-in-the-dark ties, Andy, I haven’t worn the last one yet!” he grinned.
Andrew smiled. “No, after the whipping I gave you at golf, it’s a series of pre-paid lessons titled, ‘How to keep out of the rough!’
Maria looked at David with an acid stare. “Yes, honey, that’s the kind of guidance your father needs!”
David looked at her with a withering stare following her attempt at sarcasm.
* * *
The following morning after a quick breakfast and saying goodbye to her family, Maria’s security detail picked her up fifteen minutes earlier than usual for the brief drive into the city.
Driving along, her mind was still deeply saddened at the loss of Lorenzo. She watched the capital slowly awakening to face another new day, guardedly optimistic about making a new start and adapting even more aggressively to her new role as running mate, grateful that her attempt at glory had remained undetected. Little did she know!
The weather forecast was calling for heavy snow later in the day and the dark storm clouds were gathering in more ways than one!
CHAPTER 41
On arrival at the White House, Maria made her way to the Oval Office, somewhat surprised to see two additional secret service agents in the corridor outside. She spoke to Phil, the Senior Agent on duty.
“Morning, gentlemen, what’s going on?” she asked.
Phil saluted smartly. “Just a precaution, Madame Vice-President. I think there was a new threat we were alerted to. Can’t be too careful.”
She smiled. “Absolutely.” before knocking on the door and entering the Oval Office, surprised to see just the President and John Mulroney waiting for her.
“Morning, gentlemen!” she looked closely at the President who was sitting behind the desk, a strange, stern look on his face.
“Good morning, Maria,” he replied, waving her to a seat opposite to him, next to Mulroney. “Thanks for coming early, there’s something very important that we need to talk about.”
Maria’s mind was totally elsewhere. “I agree, Stephen, I saw the wire that came in this morning about the additional car bombing outside the embassy in Baghdad!”
The President shook his head slowly from side to side. “I’m afraid that’s not it, Maria,” he began. “Firstly, I’m sorry about what happened to your son’s father.”
Suddenly, Maria’s heart skipped a beat as she desperately tried to control her facial muscles, her brain working at warp speed. “My God, Stephen, has something happened to David. I only left him eating breakfast an hour ago?”
The stern-faced President opened a file in front of him and slid a photo across the table to Maria. It was the one of herself and Lorenzo.
The President looked her icily in the eye. “I was referring to the man in the picture, Maria. Would you care to comment?”
She quickly glanced at the photograph, desperately trying to find the right words, while still sounding calm and surprised. “My goodness, Stephen that was taken over twenty years ago. What on earth are you suggesting?”
The President then slid the picture of Andrew across the table. Maria looked at it quickly, desperately trying to show an indignant attitude. “And why are you showing me a picture of my son?” she demanded.
“Because both were found in the villa of Don Lorenzo Cagliari, shortly before he was terminated for trying to have me assassinated!”
Maria was good at thinking on her feet. “My God, you think it was him who brain-washed your son into trying to shoot you? This is unbelievable!”
Inwardly, she was seething now that she knew for sure that Lorenzo had been terminated by the Americans and that he had not died of a heart attack.
The President continued. “Just cut the crap, Maria and listen very carefully. That picture of you was taken a week before you and David were married, a nice time to be professing ‘Love Always’ to another man, especially a mobster if you ask me, and Andrew was born nine months later. Do the math!”
She looked at the two of them venomously. “So, what the hell does that prove, Stephen?”
The President slid another sheet of paper across the table. “Nothing, on the face of it, Maria, but when you compare the DNA of Lorenzo, taken before he died, with that of Andrew, they are a perfect match!”
Maria was visibly starting to come apart as the President continued. “I should also mention that before he was terminated, with extreme prejudice I might add, Lorenzo admitted that you and he had planned the abduction of Jeff and apparently Andrew was also taken by mistake, but the main objective had been to grab Jeff, mess with his mind and instruct him to shoot me, his own father, while trying to blame it all on Al-Qaeda! How could you do it, Maria?”
She was till defiant. “How on earth do you intend to prove that?” she raged, her whole world starting to fall apart.
The President then switched on his laptop and swivelled it around so that Maria could see the screen. As he pressed a button, in close-up, she could be clearly seen whispering the words, ‘It’s Showtime!’ into Jeff’s ear.
“What more do we need?” the President replied. “The words you are saying to my son there were the trigger words in his brain to make him grab a gun and try to kill me! Since they were implanted by an ex-KGB doctor in Italy days earlier, how could you possibly have known to mention them unless you were in on the conspiracy?”
Maria was now in tears, her head bowed in disgrace as the President continued.
“My God, Maria, we’ve been friends and colleagues for years, we fought hard to win the election, our families are very close and our sons are best friends!” he took a breath before continuing. “Your future here in the Administration was very bright, you were the first ever female VP and following our current term of office when I can no longer run, you would have been a shoe-in here at the White House, at least for another term!”
Mulroney sat silent as the President continued. “What was so damned important that you were prepared to kill with that thug boyfriend of yours, just to get there sooner?”
Maria then started to show her true venom as she wiped her eyes. “I was tired of playing second fiddle in the highest profile situation in the world. Lorenzo was twice the man of my two-timing husband and he came up with the idea to make it happen sooner. I could run this country with no problem and on days when you have been unavailable for one reason or another, I have proved it. I am supported by every woman in America and many of the men and my track record is impeccable!”
“And so it was... until now!”
She looked at him defiantly. “So, what happens now?”
“You’ve embarrassed the USA and the Democrats in front of the world and whatever is now left of your pitiful life will be spent in regretting your actions! You are now under arrest for treason and you will be escorted to your home to make your final peace with your family, I owe you that much, and then you need t
o get yourself the best lawyer that money can buy and have your answers ready when the world media comes calling!”
He pressed a button on his desk and Phil, the Senior Agent and two of his colleagues entered.
“Yes, Mr. President?” Phil inquired.
The President gave precise instructions. “Phil, I need you to escort the Vice- President back to her home with her security detail and make sure she is safely inside until further instructions. There has been a threat today and we can’t be too careful. Stay on point will you, she is a special lady. Don’t be distracted, okay?”
Phil smiled. “Yes, Mr. President,” he turned to Maria. “Shall we go, Madame Vice-President?” he inquired politely.
She nodded quietly and left with her escort, head held high. When she reached the door, she turned and uttered just three words to the President and the still silent Mulroney. “Damn Jake Harrigan!”
* * *
After Maria left, the President and Mulroney realized that they only had the rest of the day to decide finally how they would handle the media storm that was about to descend on them.
The President was also looking through the window at a totally different kind of storm, where the increasing snow was slowly getting a grip on the city. He shook his head sadly.
“My God, John, this is the last damned thing we needed. We’re not even ready to nominate a new VP and the minute this story hits the press, the opposition will be salivating at the prospect of tearing any new names to shreds, the second we announce them!”
Mulroney finally spoke. “You are right, Mr. President. There’s no way we can keep the lid on this for more than a couple more hours tops, so, we have to be very careful before we take any further steps.”
The President nodded in sad agreement. “Goddamnit!”
CHAPTER 42
The increasing snow was now blanketing the State Capital leaving frustrated drivers struggling to get from A to B on slushy, slithery roads with poor visibility and traction.
The two vehicles left the White House garage and slowly merged into the busy traffic, most of which was moving way too fast for the prevailing road conditions.