The Reluctant First Lady

by Venita Ellick

  Before she began, she poured herself another cup of coffee. She leaned against the counter, thinking about all of the times in her married life she’d sought to bring some kind of harmony to a situation or to find some resolution to a problem between her and Michael. They’d always had their differences but never of the magnitude of what they were dealing with now. She felt like she’d been doing this same thing throughout most of their married life. With both of them being such strong-willed people and with each dedicated to careers, disharmony was practically a way of life.

  Yet, through all of the years, they’d stayed together and not for the sake of their children. Beneath all of their differences, they were truly in love with one another, deeply and forever. One would think love would bring comfort rather than so much discord. It would have been easier if they didn’t love each other so much. They would have separated a long time ago, and all of the friction arising from their love could easily have been handled with a couple of good attorneys.

  Ashley went to work on her pro-and-con list. A couple of quotes from an old Kevin Costner movie popped into her head. He had referred to a defining moment. His character said, “When a defining moment comes along, either you define the moment or the moment defines you.” In her opinion, this was a defining moment.

  The other quote was “Greatness courts failure.” Michael had been willing to take enormous risks to achieve his goals. He’d risked failure in his quest for the presidency. Now it was time for her to take a risk of her own in an attempt to balance their lives.

  Ashley looked at the list she’d created. Almost every item listed, regardless of which side it was on, carried with it an almost equal consequence on the opposite side. Each side painted a possible picture of the future. The path she would choose had to be for the sake of her marriage and her family and still allow her the career she’d worked so hard to achieve.

  New circumstances had been introduced into the equation that allowed for new solutions to be considered. As always, she had a lot to think about, but even with a snapshot of possible futures for her and Michael, the consequences of the decision she might make needed to be weighed and measured carefully.

  If she were to follow the path that could bring more harmony between her and Michael, she had a list of conditions that he’d need to meet too. Before she could decide anything for sure, there were other people she needed to talk to. If her plan broke down anywhere along the way, she’d have to scrap the whole idea and try to hammer out another way of achieving balance in their lives.

  Ashley wanted to spend what was left of the day relaxing. She picked up her book and headed for the bedroom. It was already dark, and even though she’d taken a nap, she knew she would sleep well tonight because she’d finally had some uninterrupted time to think things through and outline some fresh possibilities.

  When she awoke the next morning, Ashley looked over her notes from the previous day and decided there was nothing she’d written down that she would change. Basically, once she’d gotten away from all the stress, confusion, and demands, she was able to figure out what she thought might be the best course of action. She acknowledged to herself that she’d been consciously and unconsciously working on the problem for months but that what she desperately had needed was some time away from the fishbowl existence she’d been living.

  Life shouldn’t be taken for granted, and she felt as though she and Michael had been taking one another and their love for granted for far too long. Ashley didn’t want to have any regrets when she lay dying. She’d always grabbed life with open arms and embraced it firmly and with purpose. But had she been doing that lately?

  She decided to spend her second day soaking up nature. There was always something purifying about getting away from the city where noise and crowds constantly bombarded the senses. She dressed warmly and went for a long walk. It was a beautiful day, and the sound of the trees rustling soothed her. She breathed in the fresh country air and let the last of her pent-up stress release itself into the wind.

  When she returned to the cabin, she decided to rest outside on the deck. Steve had outdone himself in creating a beautiful, serene environment. With its abundant potted plants and flowers and its fashionable outdoor furniture arranged for comfort and conversation, it was perfect. She eyed what looked like a very comfortable chaise longue. She didn’t have to go anywhere or talk to anyone, and no one was expecting anything from her, praise be. How often did that happen anymore?

  Ashley carried a radio outside and turned it to a channel that played jazz. She watched the clouds drift by for a while and imagined all sorts of creatures in their billowy shapes. She read and she rested. She closed her eyes and breathed in the fragrant air. She let her mind wander until the sounds of footsteps interrupted her thoughts—soft ones, but definitely footsteps. She sat up and looked back toward the house. Nothing.

  When she turned back around, she saw a man walking toward her on the deck. Not just any man, but the photographer who had been at her apartment, at the fund-raiser, and outside the Russian Tea Room. The one who had taken the controversial pictures of her and Geoffrey. Only this time, she didn’t see a camera.

  The expression on his face alarmed her. He looked predatory.

  Ashley jumped up and took off for the door. Just as she reached the kitchen door, a hand clamped down on her shoulder.

  “What? You don’t have something to say to me this time, Mrs. Taylor?” The photographer, if he was a photographer, said in a very contemptuous voice.

  In that moment, adrenaline surged through her body, and she was unafraid. She turned toward the man. “Take your hands off of me.” The look on her face must have made him rethink what he was doing because he removed his hand from her shoulder and took a step back.

  Ashley continued her offensive. “What are you doing here? How did you find me? Is it more pictures you want? You’ve let your paparazzi mentality affect your judgment.”

  His surprise at her reaction only slowed him down a second, “Listen, Miss High-and-Mighty, you may have other people fooled but not me. You were easy to find. You may have the Secret Service’s panties all in a wad, but I recognize what you really are. You think you’re too good for the rest of us. Someone needs to teach you a lesson.”

  He reached forward to lift the hem of her T-shirt and touched bare skin. The feel of his hand grazing her flesh set off war drums in her head. Ashley slapped his hand away and let out a bloodcurdling scream.

  He hadn’t expected her to act so aggressively, first with words and now bodily. He thought he could intimidate her easily. Her screaming could possibly bring unnecessary attention. Attention that he, and most certainly his employer, didn’t want.

  He turned to leave. “This isn’t over. I can get to you anytime I want. My employer is very interested in you. So, until next time . . .” He grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it.

  Ashley stumbled into the cabin and locked the door. She looked out the kitchen window to see if he was still around, but there was nothing to see. Her breathing was coming in ragged breaths. Now that she could no longer see the interloper, her brave front crumbled. It was time to get out of here even though she’d originally planned to stay another day.

  She ran upstairs and threw her things into her backpack and headed to the front door. When she opened it, she stifled another scream; Matt and Dave were standing on the front porch. Neither looked as though he was in the mood for any nonsense. The expression on their faces indicated they were furious.

  Dave responded sarcastically, “What? You don’t look glad to see us?”

  Ashley grabbed each of them by an arm. “Quick. There was a man on the back deck.” She pointed in the direction of the deck. “He threatened me.”

  Dave stayed with Ashley while Matt went through the kitchen and out the back door. He returned shortly and shook his head at Dave. “We need to call in our investigative unit and see what we can find.”

  “I know who it was. In fact, so do you. Remem
ber the photographer who took my picture outside my apartment when I first returned from the inauguration? It was him. He came up to me on the deck and said I was easy to find, like he’d been following me. I ran toward the house, but he grabbed me. He said he could get to me anytime he wanted and someone needed to teach me a lesson. Then he . . .” Ashley stammered, finally realizing the danger she had truly been in. “Then he tried to lift my T-shirt. That’s when I screamed.”

  “We didn’t hear any scream,” Matt said.

  Ashley said, almost absentmindedly, “I did scream . . . as loud as I could. You must not have been close enough to the house.”

  Dave and Matt exchanged a look. This was precisely the kind of situation they had tried to protect Mrs. Taylor from. What transpired here would be thoroughly investigated, but at least they had a face, and soon a name, to start their inquiry.

  “On our trip back to New York, we’d like you to go over what happened and what was said. It’s important to remember even the smallest detail. It looked like you were leaving when you opened the door. Do you have everything?” Matt asked.

  The threat from the man on the deck had completely erased any thoughts she previously had, but now she realized Dave and Matt had actually found her. “How did you find me?”

  Dave answered, “I don’t think that’s important. What’s really more to the point is why we had to find you at all.”

  “I wasn’t trying to cause any trouble, and that’s the truth. But I needed to get away to think. It’s not natural to have people watching your every move; surely you recognize that. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I needed to think, so I took off. I don’t think a federal case needs to be made out of it although I’m sure it already has. Again, how did you find me?”

  Dave and Matt said nothing.

  “Fine. Have it your way. I’d planned to stay another day, but after what’s happened, I’m ready to go back. And the two of you don’t need to look so smug. Eventually I’ll figure out how you found me.”

  Dave coughed into his fisted hand. “Bullshit.”

  “What did you say?”

  “Absolutely nothing. I was simply clearing my throat.” Dave looked completely innocent.

  Ashley looked at Dave suspiciously, “Uh-huh, I’m sure. Jeremy often coughs to clear his throat in exactly the same way. At any rate, I’m ready to go. I need to get back to New York, and truthfully I’m a little shaken by the encounter with that man. I’m glad you showed up when you did. ”

  Matt interjected, “I think you should know, we’re under orders from the president. He told us to find you and bring you back, and that’s what we’re going to do. If you have a problem with that, feel free to call him and . . .” Matt stopped what he was saying as another government- issued SUV pulled up in front of Steve’s cabin. Two men stepped out and walked toward them.

  The agents all nodded to one another. Dave brought the other agents up to speed on what had happened. Then, three of them went inside the cabin where Ashley could no longer hear them. She supposed the new agents would thoroughly investigate the scene and see if they could find any clues.

  Dave returned and spoke to Matt. “It’s time we get Mrs. Taylor back to New York.” To which Matt replied, “I completely agree.”

  43

  During the drive back to New York, the atmosphere in the SUV was strained. Matt and Dave asked Ashley to recount exactly what happened at the cabin, which she was glad to do while it was fresh in her mind. While she repeated the story, they were both struck with how unafraid Ashley had been during the incident. She was angry more than anything else. Still, she had escaped what could have been a very nasty situation, all of which could’ve have been avoided if she hadn’t ditched her Secret Service agents.

  They didn’t need to lecture her. President Taylor would handle his wife.

  Their preference would have been to put her on the closest plane heading back to New York, but with strict orders to keep Ashley’s disappearance quiet and out of the media, it was probably smarter to drive her there. That way, no one would be wiser.

  Ashley was physically and emotionally drained from her unnerving experience on the deck. With each hour that passed and with each mile they drove away from Steve’s Vermont retreat, the more she realized the bullet she had dodged. Now that it was over and she was safe, she felt like a deflated balloon.

  Still, she wondered what the man could possibly have wanted . . . and he’d mentioned something about having an employer, which meant he was working for someone else, and she suspected he wasn’t referring to a newspaper. Whoever it was had evidently had her followed, but for what purpose? Why would someone deliberately try to scare her? Plus, the man hadn’t covered his face with a mask. In the movies and books, that was generally a sign that the attacker intended to kill his victim. Why didn’t he wear a mask? Certainly he knew she would recognize him. The more questions she asked, the more confusing his motive seemed. The whole situation was like a crazy dream.

  She shook her head as if by doing so, she could shake off the whole incident. It was time to get to work. Ashley picked up her cell phone to call Robert.

  Robert looked at his caller ID as he answered. “Where are you, young lady?”

  “I’m on my way back to New York, and I’d like to talk to you this afternoon. Do you have any free time?”

  “I’ll make some. Do you have any idea how much you’ve upset your husband, not to mention the rest of us.”

  “Robert,” Ashley said in a low, soft voice, “how’s Rick?”

  “Not so quick, Ashley. What you did was childish and inconsiderate. I really didn’t think you’d put your loved ones through such an ordeal.”

  “I believe I had very good reasons, which I’ll tell you when I see you this afternoon. You can lecture me when I get there, but for now, please tell me, how is Rick?”

  “Before I tell you about Rick, I want you to know this conversation is definitely not over. And you can be certain that when you get here, it will continue. As for Rick, we were lucky. The damage to his heart wasn’t as severe as they first thought. The doctors performed the double bypass. He’s still in the hospital, but we hope he can go home in a few days.”

  “I’m so relieved. I asked Mavis to call and check on his progress daily so she could bring me up-to-date when I returned.”

  All of a sudden, something occurred to Robert. “Where are you exactly?”

  “I’m in the backseat of a car with two of my Secret Service agents.” She spoke a little louder so her fellow travelers would be sure to hear her. “They’re being very unfriendly and uncommunicative right now. Nevertheless, I’m on my way back to the city, and I want to explain to you why I left and discuss a possible solution to the situation I created by not taking on the role of the First Lady.”

  “I’ll be interested to hear what exactly drove you to take such drastic actions. What time should I expect you?”

  “I don’t know—in a few hours.”

  “Okay, I’ll see you then.”

  “Goodbye, Robert, and simmer down. Nothing happened to me.”

  “There are so many things wrong with that statement, but my comments will have to wait until I see you.”

  As soon as Ashley clicked off her cell, it rang again. The number on the call waiting indicated it was Michael. Oh boy, here we go.

  “Hello, Michael.”

  “What the hell were you thinking?” Michael was in no mood for any niceties.

  “Listen . . .”

  “Ashley, you scared the living daylights out of me, your kids, your cousin, and your boss, and you made the Secret Service agents guarding you look like they’re completely incompetent, and you want me to listen?”

  “Yes, I want a chance to explain. I left a message with Mavis so you wouldn’t worry. I told her I’d be gone for about three days and that I needed time alone to think. I’ve done that now, and I’ve made some decisions I’d like to share with you, but first I need to talk to a couple of people,
and then I’ll come to Washington.”

  “No. You’re coming to Washington now. You can talk to whomever you want to talk to from here. What you did is irresponsible and completely unacceptable.”

  “Michael, I realize you can’t see the situation from my point of view, but what I did, I did for us.”

  “Really?” Michael said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “As if there’s a reasonable explanation for your actions. Go ahead, explain your absolutely reckless behavior.”

  “I’d rather explain it all to you in person. You know communications on the phone or e-mail can be misinterpreted; you can’t see a person’s body language. I need to see Robert, and after that I’ll come to Washington.” Ashley promptly disconnected the call before her husband could say anything else.

  Almost instantaneously, Matt’s phone rang. “Agent Campton speaking.”

  Whoever had called him, Matt was listening intently. He responded, “Yes, sir, I understand. Yes, sir, I’ll bring her to Washington immediately.” Again, silence on Matt’s part. “Thank you, sir. We appreciate that, Mr. President. We should be in Washington this afternoon.”

  After Matt hung up, he spoke to Dave. “Change of plans. President Taylor wants us to drive Mrs. Taylor directly to Washington. He also thanked us both for finding her.”

  Ashley spoke from the back seat. “Do not take me to Washington. I need to speak with my boss first. We can go to Washington after that.”

  “The president has directed us to bring you straight to Washington. I think you know whose orders we’ll be following. If what you have to say to your boss is so important, I suggest you call him back and have the conversation you wanted to have while we’re en route.”

  Ashley was furious. She had known when she left he’d be angry, but she thought he’d be a little more reasonable when she explained her reasons for leaving. She also knew it would do no good to argue with Matt and Dave. They would do exactly as the president had ordered. She picked up her phone again. At least, she could use the time to talk to Robert about her proposal.