One Man Two Votes (The Robert Carlton Series Book 1)

by J Russ Briley

  “Tracie? What’s wrong?” He asked her, wondering why his voice sounded so strange in his ears.

  “You didn’t call!” She was distraught. Robert could hear the boys arguing in the background. Relief crept over him.

  “I’m sorry. It’s been...we’ve been very busy here.” His response was wooden, canned sounding. He was not fully coherent, his stunned nerves still overwhelmed.

  “You promised!” Tracie’s shout silenced the boys. Her fear had set them at each other earlier, now the fear was compelling them to silence as they mutely watched her. “You said you’d call, and once again, you didn’t call! This is so typical of you, Robert! You put me on edge, and then forget all about me. You didn’t even think about me and the boys!”

  “I really am sorry, Tracie.” Robert answered, trying to respond. “Look, there’s nothing to be worried about. You need to stay with your routine, and wait for the agents to get there.”

  “Why aren’t they here, yet? You’re not telling me what’s happened, or why the agents are coming. It’s scaring the boys. I can’t do this! You can’t do this to me, Robert!” He knew that Tracie’s fingers were clenched on the phone, her knuckles white from the pressure.

  “I can’t tell you more, Tracie, because there’s nothing to tell.” Robert wracked his brain for a plausible reason, some kind of story she would accept. “There was a bomb threat.” He couldn’t believe he had said that. She would never buy it.

  “A bomb threat? Where?” Tracie sounded shocked.

  “Our offices. We’re just taking precautions.” Robert answered. He knew he kept using the same phrases over and over with her, but he couldn’t make his mind come up with anything else.

  “Your building? Then why are you there?” Tracie asked, now sounding suspicious.

  “It’s the other wing.” Robert was trapped now. He knew it the minute the words came out of his mouth. He was backed into his own corner.

  Tracie’s fear was rapidly becoming anger. “A bomb in the other wing?” She over enunciated each word. Her voice was carrying acidic fumes over the phone line, burning into Robert’s ear.

  “Look, Tracie, I genuinely can’t talk right now. There’s absolutely no reason you should be worried, since they haven’t found any evidence that there actually is a bomb. Okay? I’ll explain when I get home.”

  “You’d better, Robert. Don’t leave me hanging like that again!” Tracie slammed the phone down, then hit the off button and slammed it down again.

  Robert set his phone slowly down on the cradle. That had not gone well. The exchange had caught him flat-footed, but now he was awake. He knew he had to take action.

  He could feel the presence of Agent Long outside his door. He could hear Lorraine talking to a caller, her voice unnaturally high. The stress was building, spreading to everyone like an infection. He needed time to think, and to decide what to do, and where to start.

  Robert thought his mind had cleared, but he found he still couldn’t clear the image of Grady’s burning car. Grady’s battered appearance was silhouetted in his mind against a background of the explosion that had killed him.

  Robert stared at three names scribbled on a legal pad: Hunt, Karlovich, and Gregg. He kept repeating the names silently. Was Hunt a threat as he’d first assumed, or an ally? Karlovich; was he the source of the problem, or another piece in this expanding puzzle? Senator Gregg was a significant question mark. Why was he connected, interested, or even involved?

  Then there was the President. Robert would normally have assumed that the President’s concerns would be part of a pre-vote checklist. At least that’s what he’d have thought if Gregg hadn’t entered the picture.

  Robert knew he was going to be handicapped without Grady’s help. Did that even matter now? Wasn’t this the FBI’s problem?

  He mulled that over for a moment. He still had no choice but to continue his investigation. Nothing directly linked Grady’s attack, death, or Chris’s death to his investigation. Grady had mentioned the idea of dropping the investigation, but Robert knew that he’d be outmaneuvered by Senator Gregg, and his boss on that one. They’d already made it clear that wasn’t an option. If OPOV fell apart, and he hadn’t discovered why and how it happened, his career would be over. They’d deliberately placed him in that position as the scapegoat.

  For the investigation to move forward, he figured he’d better find out more about Karlovich. Whether Hunt had handed him Karlovich, or he was simply a logical beginning in finding any security problem with OPOV and The NSA didn’t matter. He had, indirectly, been Chris’ boss, and had too much to lose if the NSA’s security around OPOV failed. If he wasn’t a perpetrator in this mess, he should be open to a meeting.

  Spinning his chair around to his briefcase, Robert yanked out his computer and snapped it into the docking station. Punching the ON button, he intoned, “Come on...come on,” impatiently tapping on the machine as it slowly booted. He could have asked Lorraine to look up Karlovich’s number, but he didn’t want her or anyone else to know what he was doing. Finally the computer desktop screen came up, and he signed into the directory listing for the NSA. Karlovich’s name, phone number, and NSA building code were at the top of the page. Robert yanked the phone closer to him and dialed the number.

  “Systems Group. This is Francis. May I direct your call?” The receptionist answered.

  “Yes, Bill Karlovich, please.” Robert responded.

  “May I tell him who’s calling?” Francis asked mechanically.

  “Robert Carlton, US Associate Attorney General.” Robert answered. He’d figured he’d better make formal use of the title to get Karlovich’s attention.

  “Thank you, I’ll see if he’s available. One moment.”

  Robert could hear the line clicking several times as he was put on hold, and then forwarded.

  “Mr. Carlton, this is Bill Karlovich. How can I help you?” The man sounded confident, polished, and at ease.

  “I don’t believe we’ve met, I’m...” Robert began.

  “Actually, we met at the spring gala last year,” Karlovich cut him off mid-sentence.

  Robert thought for a moment. Karlovich should know who he was, as would most of Washington, but he couldn’t remember ever having met him. It was entirely possible that they had met briefly at some event, but Robert thought he would have remembered meeting an NSA Director.

  “Yes, of course,” Robert covered. “I appreciate your remembering. I need to get together with you.”

  “You have some questions about the implementation of the OPOV system, I assume.” Karlovich said, more as a statement than a question.

  Robert was taken aback by this insight, then realized that Karlovich, while being in charge of many projects, had only one major public program; OPOV. “Yes, precisely,” he answered, hiding his surprise. “I’m checking on a few final security issues, and need to meet with you to discuss them. I would prefer to meet today.”

  “I’m at your disposal, Mr. Carlton. Would one o’clock be acceptable? I can have a conference room made available. I could perhaps arrange a briefing, and a tour.”

  “Thank you, no.” Robert answered firmly. “I don’t need a briefing, or tour.”

  “Perhaps you would prefer your offices?” Karlovich responded. “We’d have to meet later, but I’d be happy to come over to you.”

  “No, your office will be fine. I have some items I need to clarify, and I think you can help.” Robert felt that Karlovich was being somehow a little too hospitable and deferential. The quick timing worked for his agenda, though, and being out of the office sounded good.

  “One o’clock then. Do you need directions?” Karlovich inquired.

  “No, I know the way to your building. I’ll see you at one.” Robert confirmed.

  “Good. I’ll meet you in the main lobby by the security desk. I’ll have everything arranged.” Karlovich responded.

  “Thank you.” Robert hung up. Either Bill Karlovich was the smoothest director he had
ever heard of, or he had expected his call. It felt like a set-up. Hitting the intercom button he asked Lorraine to come in.

  “Yes, Sir?” Lorraine asked as she came into the room, notepad in hand.

  “Get hold of Jerry, and have him come over. Then arrange for Agent Carey and Phil Davidson to meet me here...in a half-hour, if possible. Also, check the schedule and assignments for Singer and Nelson.”

  “Yes, Sir.” Lorraine rapidly jotted down the action items, and left the room, closing the door behind her.

  Gerald Turner, or Jerry as everyone knew him, was the head of the Office of Inter-Governmental and Public Liaisons.

  Jerry came through the door into Robert’s office fifteen minutes later. “Hello, Robert; what can I do for you?”

  Jerry was older than Robert, and more experienced. He had been in the Justice Department for years. He was senior to Robert in every way, except in title and connections. His salt and pepper smoothly combed hair and tailored suits screamed political ambition. Though Jerry had been passed over by Robert, there was no particular animosity between the two. Jerry had seen four Attorney Generals come and go, along with their Deputies and Associates, and in his opinion Robert was the next ex-Associate Attorney General. Robert preferred to leave Jerry to his own duties most of the time, since he had a heavy backlog, and did his job well. Generally they kept out of each other’s way, meeting only during department staff meetings.

  “Jerry, I’m going to need you to drop what you’re doing, and help me on something.” Robert told him without any preamble. “How fast can you be available?”

  Jerry winced noticeably. Pulling out his cell phone from his pocket, he scanned his priority list and calendar. “I have the justices for two sessions this week, a piece for Harvard Business Review, and the usual assortment of meetings.”

  Robert looked straight at him. “You’ll have to keep the Supreme Court commitments. Put off HBR, and your other work. Don’t take commitments for the next week unless you have to.”

  Jerry sat down, raising one eyebrow and crossing his legs comfortably. “What’s up?”

  “I need you to manage a team to dig into the One Person, One Vote system. This will require you to review how the different department jurisdictions apply, who controls which elements, how the states interact; the whole ball of wax.”

  “What, more bureaucratic rehashing? Isn’t that the same thing we did two years ago?” Jerry responded, sighing. He looked annoyed, and prepared to fight Robert’s request.

  “There will be some rehashing, Jerry, but the report needs to be refreshed.” Robert answered. “A lot changes in two years, even with the strict guidelines surrounding OPOV. This upcoming test has become more crucial than we realized, and the spotlight is on the program again.”

  Robert shifted in his seat, and leaned toward Jerry before continuing. “You know the committee never decided on a single control point, and that’s leaving room for jurisdictional confusion. That’s landed this thing back in our laps. The President and the Senate Rules Committee have asked us to make some discrete inquiries into who’s in charge of what section. I want to be sure there will be no obvious security process problems. Some may have cropped up with this dotted-line responsibility going in several directions. I need to know the complete chain of responsibility and authority through each branch, and how the communication flow is handled—right down to the collection of the votes. The President wants this test to go smoothly, and I want you to coordinate whatever it takes to cover all the bases.”

  “Look for anything that could be considered a flaw,” he continued. “For example, there may be a security point that everyone assumes is covered by another group. I would like to hear that two agencies are covering every critical spot, if not, changes might be required. You'll find all you need to get started in the original reports, but take nothing at face value. Re-check everything. I want to be sure we didn’t overlook anything, and that no procedures have been changed. Break up the sections, and spread the load across the team. Lorraine can get you copies of whatever you need.”

  Jerry was a veteran of political investigations. He knew Robert was looking for something specific. “Do you know who’s dropping the ball?” He asked directly.

  “I’m not saying that’s happening,” Robert stated firmly. One thing he didn’t need right now was a rumor flying around government offices. That could make things worse, or send whoever was behind this into hiding. “I’m verifying security. I have reason to believe that NSA is the most likely place for any problems to occur, based on the amount of responsibility they are shouldering.”

  Jerry looked unconvinced. Robert knew that he was assessing whether this could be a career making opportunity, or if it was Robert’s attempt to cover his ass in case anything went wrong.

  “Any questions?” Robert pushed.

  “Whose team do I use?” Jerry sounded irritated.

  Robert hit the intercom button. “Lorraine?”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Did you find out what Singer and Nelson are doing?”

  “They are both available. Ms. Singer says her staff is tied up on the U.N. Trade Embargo issues, but could fit in a special project. In other words, they’d be glad of a diversion. Mr. Nelson says his staff can request postponements, but he would have to verify with Mr. Turner, of course.”

  “Thank you, Lorraine. Send them notification that they are assigned to Jerry for two weeks.” Robert released the intercom button. “Well, Jerry, there are your team leaders.”

  Jerry narrowed his eyes. Robert had just assigned two of the best investigators the department had to him. “This must be more important than you’ve let on.” Jerry said, running his hand along the arm of the chair casually.

  “It is,” Robert admitted, “but that can’t leave the room for now.”

  “Understood,” Jerry seemed slightly mollified. The fact that this was clearly a significant duty was gratifying. His name would be in any report that was generated. He rose and headed for the door. “What’s your timeline?”

  “I need a list of who’s who in the authority flow for each major process step by tomorrow. The day after, at the latest. After that, I’ll need a daily update on your progress and any findings. If feasible, start from the end point, or from the top of the pyramid, and work down to the county level.”

  Jerry sighed, but left without further conversation. Robert knew he would do a good job—probably better than Robert would have done. He also knew that Jerry was not his friend, or a partner. Jerry was looking for an opportunity to show off his experience level. In a strange way that made him even more valuable and trustworthy.

  As soon as Jerry left, Lorraine came into the office. “Would you like to see Agent Carey and Mr. Davidson now?”

  “Yes, have them come in.” Robert was surprised that they had already arrived.

  The door swung open, with Long pushing it wide. “I’ll take a break and grab a sandwich, if that’s convenient.” Long spoke to both Robert and Carey through the open door.

  “Yes, of course. Thank you, Agent Long.” Robert acknowledged.

  Almost immediately Carey was standing stiffly by Robert’s desk. Davidson, next to him, looked smaller, older, and out of shape. Phil certainly didn’t present the appearance of someone so capable in his work.

  “I appreciate you both understanding the urgency here.” Robert smiled at Phil.

  “I was comparing notes with Agent Carey on your little morning meeting when your call came,” Phil responded. In spite of his dour expression, Phil seemed to be glad to be involved in the field work. His expression reflected his recognition of what had happened, and the gravity of Grady’s death, but he also seemed excited to be part of this team.

  “Gentlemen, please take a seat.” Robert gestured to two of his guest chairs. “There have been two incidents that I need you to check into.” Robert was on unfamiliar and delicate turf—he wondered how to approach this. The Secret Service had virtually unlimited pow
er in certain circumstances, but the President and their own management decided when and where that power would be used. This investigation might well be outside their interests, or jurisdiction. “I believe these events are related. The first incident is the death of Chris Stoker.”

  Carey was taking notes on a small paper spiral pad.

  “That’s Chris with a C and Stoker, s-t-o-k-e-r, male,” Robert added.

  “Caucasian?” asked Carey.

  “Yes. Non-military. He was working for the NSA. He was shot in his car leaving DC last Friday. The second is an assault against Lt. Colonel Grady Barlow that occurred at his home in Virginia last night. To my knowledge, Colonel Barlow did not report the event to the police. A fire occurred, so the fire department should have responded. You might check with them. Phil, I’m sure Carey has already mentioned Barlow’s car exploding.”

  “Yes, he filled me in.” Phil glanced over at Carey.

  “Good. Obviously, you have become part of this investigation, but let’s limit involving others on a ‘need to know’ basis.” Robert sized up Carey. “Let’s make it official. I believe there is a link between Stoker, Barlow, and Hunt. Hunt used both Stoker’s and Barlow’s names to get me to that meeting. He used the phrase ‘It’s time to Stoke some Barley’ to get my attention. Given the situation, those words sound somewhat threatening. I don’t know what his connection to them is. That’s all I can tell you. Now, do you have anything to fill me in on?”

  “I made some inquiries into the explosion of the vehicle Colonel Barlow was driving.” Carey began. “A body was found in the car; likely male. It was found curled up in the floorboard of the burned car, and burned beyond recognition. At this time, a positive identification has not been made. There were two explosions; the first and primary was from an explosive device, and the secondary was the fuel tank.”

  “Phil,” Robert said, “I need you two to find out what the police know about both of these incidents, whether any other government agencies are investigating, or are involved in any way, and what they might know.”